Well, Bubba and Spazzie finally watched Passengers. It was “watchable” enough. However, the movie left me unsettled, but I didn’t quite know why. So, Bubba and I started to break it down, because that’s the sort of thing we do. It’s why we don’t go to movies in theaters anymore; no fucking pause button!
I love having these conversations with Bubba. We can (and frequently do) talk for hours about THE STORY. Clearly, a sign we are meant to write. Bubba knows more about the technical aspects of story crafting than I, so I especially appreciate his perspective on stories I find dissatisfying. Bubba is a man who knows GOOD STORY.
Good Director? Yes. Morten Tyldum directed The Imitation Game, the Alan Turing biopic, which was outstanding. Alan Turning, Bletchley Park, and ENIGMA? Hell yes, I’ve watched it half a dozen times!
Good Writer? Yes. Jon Spaihts wrote Dr. Strange (unquestionably fantastic) and Prometheus (Bubba will throw a flag on this because he HATED Prometheus. Spazzie is hoping that this year’s Alien: Covenant will be an improvement because I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Alien franchise).
Good Cast? Yes. Christ Pratt, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Sheen, and Laurence Fishburn all gave fine performances.
So why did I feel cheated? I felt cheated because the movie shamelessly and egregiously trotted out the same old tired-ass tropes that Hollywood’s been mixing, matching and filming since Hollywood’s 'Golden Age'.
Trope One: Romanticized Abuse or Stalker with a Crush. So, Chris Pratt stalks Jennifer Lawrence, totally invades her privacy, and obsesses over her for ONE WHOLE YEAR, until his fantasies just aren’t getting the job done, so (like a Psych 101 textbook predator), he escalates! He kidnaps and (effectively) murders her.
Stalking isn’t romantic behavior; it’s horrifyingly scary. Three different men have stalked Spazzie in her life, and these were terrifying experiences. Someone says they love you so much they intend to cause you grievous bodily harm? Fuck that! Stalking isn’t romantic; it’s predatory.
And do NOT get Spazzie started on the “50 Shades of…” books. Why the fuck is it ok for RICH WHITE MEN to abuse women? This meme illustrates these books' wrongness perfectly:
Let me clear. BDSM is not abuse. If both partners are consenting adults, have equal standing in the relationship, and both enjoy such play, then it’s perfectly normal kink. That is not the case in these books. He manipulates her, subjugates her, and once she’s completely broken down, the Billionaire asshat transforms into Prince Charming.
Motherfucker, please! Want to see some healthy BDSM — watch the first season of Billions. This show gets it right.
Trope Two: Black Guy Dies First. WTF is wrong with you? Why would you give Lawrence Fishburn only 15 minutes of screen time? I like Pratt and J.Law well enough, but these kids got nothing on Jack Crawford, Morpheus, Othello, Ike Turner, Furious Styles and Tyrone 'Clean' Miller.
Bubba and I saw Thurgood when it played at the Kennedy Center a few years back, and it was a life altering experience. Laurence Fishburn was fantastic. Great story, performed by an exceptional performer, will make you see God. Hannibal is so, so, so good and you can probably binge the complete series on Netflix by now.
It was at this point in my “Lawrence Fishburn is fucking excellent” rant, that Bubba rolls with “Don’t make your protagonist rapey and ‘Just Say No’ to the Magical Negro trope. Now this made me stop talking, and start thinking. I had never heard it referred to as the “Magical Negro Trope,” but I exactly knew what Bubba was describing.
Spazzie: “Like Will Smith in Bagger Vance?”
Bubba: “Exactly. You didn’t know that’s what it’s called?”
Spazzie: “I did not.”
So, Bubba, through his deep love of the website TVTropes.Org enlightened me. Spike Lee popularized the term "Magical Negro" during a lecture denouncing this trope. It’s worth reading up on. Especially within the context of the 2017 Denzel Washington/Casey Affleck Oscar drama. For real? How does Denzel Washington, directing and starring in August Wilson’s Fences NOT win at least one award?
The issue is representation and persistence of negative stereotypes. The issue is we have to fight for the opportunity to tell our stories. People are not one thing or the other. We can be many different, even contradictory, things. Isn’t that exactly what makes our stories so interesting and compelling?
I’m listening to “Hidden Figures. ” The author notes that, despite the numerous women (both white and women of color) who worked for NASA during the 1960s, the only people viewers saw on television were the astronauts (clearly) and the white, male engineers. The perpetuation of negative stereotypes and the lack of representation in our shared culture has consequences for our society.
Fast forward 50 years into the future, and the lack of representation leads to Internet trolls tweeting bullshit like “you can’t be a real engineer because you don’t look like an engineer,” to unsuspecting female engineers who, in the trolls' ignorant estimation, are too attractive also to be brilliant as fuck. Or people who are surprised by this guy:
Or a narcissistic fascist being elected President.