Before I continue, let me clarify that I am a minority American (South Asian + Middle Eastern) who lives in a minority neighborhood (Harlem), I voted (and campaigned) for Obama, which is another way to say "I'm not racist, I swear," and I also thought Gran Torino was a ridiculous movie.
However, I'm not sure I totally agree with Jarrod, and his letter raises an interesting question in my mind. Is it necessarily racist to present stereotypical characters like the “trying to be black” white guy or scenes like the black guys harassing Sue? The truth is, those things actually do exist. Some white guys really DO "try to be black," and I've personally witnessed girls being harassed on the street the way Sue was, though they never react to it as brashly as she did.
Maybe the real crime here is not the inclusion of the stereotypes themselves, but the fact that they are so poorly written. Maybe the racism would not be so abrasive if the scenes and overall story surrounding it were not so preposterous? You know, like in Crash.
(Is he joking?)
Devindra Hardawar
· 11 months ago
Hans, I actually somewhat agree. I don't think it's racist to bring up those stereotypes, but it's a tricky thing and if done poorly (as seen in Gran Torino), it's just particularly painful. What's most painful to me is that people are accepting this film's hokey handling of race relations as something genuine and thoughtful, whereas I think it's just shit.
All I know is that this film has reached the levels of Crash when it comes to overboiled race relation stories as told by white guys.
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However, I'm not sure I totally agree with Jarrod, and his letter raises an interesting question in my mind. Is it necessarily racist to present stereotypical characters like the “trying to be black” white guy or scenes like the black guys harassing Sue? The truth is, those things actually do exist. Some white guys really DO "try to be black," and I've personally witnessed girls being harassed on the street the way Sue was, though they never react to it as brashly as she did.
Maybe the real crime here is not the inclusion of the stereotypes themselves, but the fact that they are so poorly written. Maybe the racism would not be so abrasive if the scenes and overall story surrounding it were not so preposterous? You know, like in Crash.
(Is he joking?)
All I know is that this film has reached the levels of Crash when it comes to overboiled race relation stories as told by white guys.