100th Post and Final Push!

Happy Friday everyone, and happy 4th of July and long weekend too!!! Can you smell the fireworks in the air? The 4th of July is pretty flippin' awesome, so I hope you have a good one!

Here's 4th of July trivia for you (because I love US history, srsly). Did you know both Jefferson and Adams passed into the great beyond on July 4, 1826 within hours of each other? Adams' last words were something to the effect of "Thomas Jefferson survives," but actually that was not true. Truth is sometimes stranger than fiction, no?

This post is sort of MOMENTOUS because it's A Nudge's 100th post! Amazing! Seriously, for us this is a big deal because there was a long while where this blog just sat around. Now it's sort of consistent enough to have 100 posts (and lovely readers like you to boot!). I think this calls for ice cream!

Lastly, many of you by now know that the casting controversy surrounding the film The Last Airbender is an important issue to me. I've briefly mentioned it here before, so I don't want to harp on this again too much. This is, however, opening weekend for the movie (and a long weekend at that - perfect timing for a wannabe summer blockbuster), which makes it time for a big nudge on the topic.

• When you go to the movies this weekend, please consider NOT going to the The Last Airbender because whitewashing is not cool. If you must go (because I know a lot of people are excited about it), please consider going after opening weekend. Thank you.

I found there are so many people who have already said what I want to say about all of this much better than I ever could. So I leave you with a few links, a few of my bullet points, and a comic because comics are fun.

Why I Won't Be Watching the Last Airbender Movie by author Gene Luen Yang.

Link: Facepainting - A well-written essay about the TLA controversy and the history of ____face. Plus, it addresses many of the arguments made in defense of the movie.

Link: An Open Letter to Racebending.com Detractors - Michael Le of Racebending.com explains racebending.com supporters' concerns and tries to clear up the misunderstandings surrounding the protest.

Quickie bullet points on some of the concerns I've heard:

• Why shouldn't I see this movie? Giving this film your dollars sends the message that whitewashing is okay and/or that we tolerate it enough to reward the studio for perpetuating glass ceilings for actors of color. The movie's success would also tell studios that they can get away with such practices, and would reaffirm the assumption that White actors are more marketable than actors of color.

• The best actors were cast for the role. It's disingenuous to say this when open casting calls asked for actors who are Caucasian - or any other ethnicity, phrasing that indicates preference for Caucasian actors. Would you audition or apply for a job that asked for blonds - or any other hair color if you weren't blond? At least, it would make you think twice about applying. Also, comments by the casting director show an offensive level of cultural insensitivity.

• There are Asians in the film, including in leading roles. The original cast had White actors in all the main roles (3 heroes, 1 antagonist). Dev Patel replaced Jesse McCartney as Fire Nation Prince Zuko. The casting of the Fire Nation was subsequently adjusted to match Patel, making it a nation filled with actors and extras of darker skinned ethnicities. Also, populating the background with extras who are actually Asian or Inuit does not make the movie "diverse."

• It's a fantasy. The cartoon characters' race isn't explicit / their look is ambiguous. Lord of the Rings is an epic fantasy as well, populated with characters whose race (other than if they're human, elf, hobbit, etc.) isn't necessarily explicit either. It's implicit from the world-building, the tradition of the story, and the intents of its originator. I don't question why Middle Earth seems mostly populated by Caucasian people even across species because I understand that the story is meant to be like a European fairytale/myth. It pays homage to the grand Nordic and essentially Western sagas and epics and the folklore of Tolkien's heritage. The Last Airbender cartoon series does this with Asian and Inuit cultures and traditions. It pays homage to them and uses themes and settings based in those cultures. I know culture doesn't equal race, but when you see an "ambiguous" bald kid with a name like Aang who looks like a monk, does martial arts, and writes in Chinese calligraphy, do you really assume he's White? And ambiguous or not, Sokka and Katara, at least, are clearly dark-skinned in the show. Taking the Asian and Inuit settings and traditions but making the representative characters of those things White says to me, "Hey, your culture is cool, but your face isn't."

• It's just a kids' movie/ it's just a movie. It's for entertainment. First, the film is marketed as a summer blockbuster, and like another "kids'" series, Harry Potter, it has cross age-group appeal. Second, movies are a way of disseminating culture. Yes, they're for entertainment, but they reaffirm and sometimes challenge our societal beliefs and systems. Even so-called throwaway, no brainer movies say something about who we are as a society because they are products of our society. Yellowface and whitewashing has existed for so long because it keeps getting reaffirmed; kids learn to expect White as the default race. So The Last Airbender film might be more of a "big deal" in its role as a "kids' movie"; think about what it's subconsciously teaching the kids.

LASTLY, all controversy aside, it just seems like a terrible movie. It's gotten awful reviews (the Rotten Tomatoes meter is at a dismal 9%), including a HALF STAR from Roger Ebert. I didn't even know that was possible. And I do feel bad, especially for the young actors and for the original series, which will have to bear being associated with what sounds like a trainwreck.


From the fan side of it, fans are saying it's a horrible adaptation - too much exposition, bad pacing, clunky dialogue, uninspired fight scenes, and crappy effects (even worse in 3D). Worse than that, apparently characters have had all the heart and soul sucked out of them to the point where key aspects of who they are are underrepresented if shown at all. That's bad story-telling, my friends.


So yeah. If you want a family film to take your kids to this holiday weekend, take them to Toy Story 3, which is actually worth your time and money. Pixar understands compelling storytelling and genuine emotion. Better yet, watch Avatar: The Last Airbender, the original cartoon series, which I hear is up in its entirety (3 seasons) on Netflix. ;)

As always, I point you to www.racebending.com, especially their short video primer (it'll only take like 5 minutes of your time), for more information about the subject. They're civil, clear, and concise.

Thanks for sticking through that! I wish you sun and relaxation for this weekend! HAPPY 4th!