![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
faketalesSo I read this article by Kyle Buchanan at nymag.com and I am, quite frankly, pissed off about it. For starters there's the writer's patronizing tone as he condescends to speak to us lowly fans.
Most people would be excited to hear that one of the most promising actresses of her generation — indeed, an Oscar nominee this past year — had been cast in the movie adaptation of their favorite book. Unfortunately, those people don't seem to be the ardent super-fans of The Hunger Games. In light of the online firestorm that has erupted over Jennifer Lawrence potentially landing the lead Hunger Games role of Katniss Everdeen, we are forced to come to one reluctant conclusion: Y'all fans are crazy.
Never mind the fact that the "super-ardent fans" are the reason these movies are being made, and the built-in audience that this whole trilogy is (presumably) being targeted towards. We're just crazy because the opinions we express on the internet are different from the opinions expressed by other people on the internet! (Once again, the idea of fandom is being disrespected by the media, which is another, really long rant for another time.) And then there's the fact that not all of the "super-ardent" fans agree on this matter anyway. I think that the comments here, as well as about five seconds on tumblr prove that the fanbase is not perfectly united on this issue. But hey, we're "fans" so we must all think alike. Welcome to the hivemind!
Fans cry that she's too blond for brunette Katniss. (Indeed, the first words in Jezebel's report on the story today were "Golden-locked.") Presumably, these fans have not heard of hair dye, but it is an exciting invention that has been with us for quite a while!
The Jezebel article that he links to does mention Lawrence's hair color, but it also goes on to say, "Some believe the book makes a point of contrasting Katniss and Peeta's darkness and lightness, but Jennifer and Hunter [Parrish] almost look like brother and sister." It's not just thehair color we're concerned about but the skin as well. It's a wonder he didn't suggest tanning booths as a solution for that.
Really? Really?! The most important thing an actress should have isn't, I don't know, talent, but is in fact the ability to lose weight at a moment's notice? Awesome message there. Thin > talent.
"But she's not 16 like Katniss!" fans finally cry, despite the fact that a de-glammed Lawrence — who was 19 last year — can easily play a teenager, and is closer to that age than most of the actors who play high schoolers on television.
The Hunger Games trilogy points out the horrors of children fighting in wars. Even if she can pass as a teenager (which I'm skeptical about now, never mind when she's, what, 23 during Mockingjay?) it still takes the visceral brutality out of teens killing one another because any horror the movie might raise can be brushed away with "But the actress isn't really a teenager." Our subconscious can reject any emotional impact because of this. No one's going to believe that any of this is real, but I think that casting Katniss younger rather than older would better serve the trilogy's theme.
Nearly every report we've read about the casting — which has been rumored for the past few weeks — has been obsessively focused on Lawrence's physical attributes instead of what should probably matter more: her talent.
The article doesn't dwell on the whitewashing (or racebending, if you prefer) at work in the casting. This quote's repeated ad nauseum, but in case you've missed it, here you go:
Straight black hair, olive skin, we even have the same gray eyes.
That's not Jennifer Lawrence, and a simple bit of hair dye isn't going to fix that, but we're supposed to be happy because hey, at least she's talented. The implication here is that maybe we could have the perfect physical representation of Katniss, but she might not be able to act. It's a false choice, and it's deeply rooted in racism. "Yes, she may not have olive skin but she can act!" Talent and nonwhite skin are not mutually exclusive. And perhaps there's a dearth of talented actresses of color that we're not aware of, but that's because they're never given the opportunity to gain experience. If Hollywood keeps casting white actors then they're just perpetuating the cycle.
Part of me says that the movie is irrelevant and the books will always be there for anyone who wants to take the source material's word over the movie's. But then I think about the inevitable re-release of the books with the cast on the covers and I just sigh.
To summarize, fans are crazy, hair dye is revolutionary, anorexia is awesome, and talent equals white people. I've learned so much here.
Most people would be excited to hear that one of the most promising actresses of her generation — indeed, an Oscar nominee this past year — had been cast in the movie adaptation of their favorite book. Unfortunately, those people don't seem to be the ardent super-fans of The Hunger Games. In light of the online firestorm that has erupted over Jennifer Lawrence potentially landing the lead Hunger Games role of Katniss Everdeen, we are forced to come to one reluctant conclusion: Y'all fans are crazy.
Never mind the fact that the "super-ardent fans" are the reason these movies are being made, and the built-in audience that this whole trilogy is (presumably) being targeted towards. We're just crazy because the opinions we express on the internet are different from the opinions expressed by other people on the internet! (Once again, the idea of fandom is being disrespected by the media, which is another, really long rant for another time.) And then there's the fact that not all of the "super-ardent" fans agree on this matter anyway. I think that the comments here, as well as about five seconds on tumblr prove that the fanbase is not perfectly united on this issue. But hey, we're "fans" so we must all think alike. Welcome to the hivemind!
Fans cry that she's too blond for brunette Katniss. (Indeed, the first words in Jezebel's report on the story today were "Golden-locked.") Presumably, these fans have not heard of hair dye, but it is an exciting invention that has been with us for quite a while!
The Jezebel article that he links to does mention Lawrence's hair color, but it also goes on to say, "Some believe the book makes a point of contrasting Katniss and Peeta's darkness and lightness, but Jennifer and Hunter [Parrish] almost look like brother and sister." It's not just the
Is Lawrence perhaps too busty, or too healthy-looking to play an underfed girl fighting for her life in a futuristic dystopia? Kids, she's not gonna be walking around with cleavage a-poppin' — and hey, she can always lose weight, which Us Weekly reminds us is an actress's most important skill.
Really? Really?! The most important thing an actress should have isn't, I don't know, talent, but is in fact the ability to lose weight at a moment's notice? Awesome message there. Thin > talent.
"But she's not 16 like Katniss!" fans finally cry, despite the fact that a de-glammed Lawrence — who was 19 last year — can easily play a teenager, and is closer to that age than most of the actors who play high schoolers on television.
The Hunger Games trilogy points out the horrors of children fighting in wars. Even if she can pass as a teenager (which I'm skeptical about now, never mind when she's, what, 23 during Mockingjay?) it still takes the visceral brutality out of teens killing one another because any horror the movie might raise can be brushed away with "But the actress isn't really a teenager." Our subconscious can reject any emotional impact because of this. No one's going to believe that any of this is real, but I think that casting Katniss younger rather than older would better serve the trilogy's theme.
Nearly every report we've read about the casting — which has been rumored for the past few weeks — has been obsessively focused on Lawrence's physical attributes instead of what should probably matter more: her talent.
The article doesn't dwell on the whitewashing (or racebending, if you prefer) at work in the casting. This quote's repeated ad nauseum, but in case you've missed it, here you go:
Straight black hair, olive skin, we even have the same gray eyes.
-pg. 8 The Hunger Games
That's not Jennifer Lawrence, and a simple bit of hair dye isn't going to fix that, but we're supposed to be happy because hey, at least she's talented. The implication here is that maybe we could have the perfect physical representation of Katniss, but she might not be able to act. It's a false choice, and it's deeply rooted in racism. "Yes, she may not have olive skin but she can act!" Talent and nonwhite skin are not mutually exclusive. And perhaps there's a dearth of talented actresses of color that we're not aware of, but that's because they're never given the opportunity to gain experience. If Hollywood keeps casting white actors then they're just perpetuating the cycle.
Part of me says that the movie is irrelevant and the books will always be there for anyone who wants to take the source material's word over the movie's. But then I think about the inevitable re-release of the books with the cast on the covers and I just sigh.
To summarize, fans are crazy, hair dye is revolutionary, anorexia is awesome, and talent equals white people. I've learned so much here.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Re: Not to steal your thunder or anything
Date: 2011-03-19 12:26 am (UTC)I'm sure that he didn't mean the comment about loosing weight, but it's still a problematic statement when included in an article ostensibly directed at a fanbase that is largely female teenagers, especially within an article that's belittling their opinions. Even if he attributed the concept to another source the fact still remains that he included it at all as the entirety of his argument against the "too busty/too fat" detractors. Plus, he did it in the same flippant manner that he praised hair dye which is actually going to be a solution. I know he's sarcastic but that doesn't mean it's not an asinine aside.
Also it is ignoring alot of the constraints faced by hollywood because it is a business and is regulated.
It's because Hollywood's a business that the age thing became a big deal. They announced a release date for the movie before they had a cast or even a finished script. If they hadn't done that then they could have chosen a younger actress and calculated out how long filming would take and then this wouldn't be an issue. I know that having an older actress will make things easier but it's not like they couldn't have worked around it. They managed to film most of the Harry Potter films with an underage cast. There's nothing suggesting that wouldn't have worked here either.