So, then, what's this?
According to this site it's a new ad for the movie. But I had never seen it before. And it really pissed me off. I was all fired up to write this blog about the idiocy of trying to de-gay a gay movie and misrepresentation of potentially offensive topics in general.
And then I thought, "You know. I'm not sure even Hollywood executives are stupid enough to try to promote a gay movie with a poster of a nuclear family." Besides, it didn't really look like a poster, or even a traditional ad.
Turns out it's not a traditional ad, but it's one of several industry promos being sent out to Academy voters with the Oscar package. And since both of the females are supposedly contenders for award nominations it's only natural to put some pictures of them in the promo packs.
Which means that those who are showing off the second ad and screaming about hypocrisy are either (a) irresponsible and stupid or (b) hypocrites themselves. In this case, it's probably A, but even the possibility of B annoys the heck out of me.
From conservatives who rail against abortion but really don't want Roe v Wade overturned lest that disappear as a campaign issue to liberals who denounce the war in Iraq but nonetheless see the loss of American lives there as a chance for political gain, there are far too many examples of dishonest hypocrisy in the world today.
This is why I more and more admire people who at least truly believe in their convictions, even if I don't happen to agree with their opinions. John McCain is the best example. In reality, he and I disagree on far more issues than we share common ground on. But I don't care, really. I think more highly of him than I do of virtually any other politician. I voted for him for his senator position (as if that mattered) and would honestly be tempted to vote for him for President. Even though I don't like his politics, for the most part.
But I'm digressing, because this wasn't meant to be a political discussion. My real point is, in this year when I've read roughly 3,462 articles about how Hollywood is hurting the box office slump goes on, I can't recall reading a single article that suggests the main reason things are going badly: bullshit.
Most articles talk about absurdly high ticket prices (true) and bad product (true). But people always complain about prices and there have always been shitty movies. The problem is the great extent to which we are now aware that even Hollywood executives know they're putting out shit. And yet they still promote it. Does anyone really believe that there was a single person involved in the making of "Stealth" that thought it would be (a) a good movie and (b) a successful one? Of course not. And yet the budget to promote that piece of trash would have been front page news if it were a lottery prize.
So Hollywood is full of shit. We've all long suspected this, and now we have proof. Indeed, as the example I used to start this blog proves, we now tend to think Hollywood is even more full (?) of shit than they really are.
Cynicism is healthy. But a bleak world view isn't. I still believe in convictions and faith and being willing to trust others, even strangers. I think that used to be typical. More recently, it was at least something we all tried to encourage at this time of the year. Now even Christmas is regarded with a skeptical eye. It's a shame.
3 comments:
Funny, I too would vote for McCain if Bill Richardson is not nominated for the White House.
I keep reading articles about Conservatives hoping for Brokeback Mountain to fail. I'm just sick, sick, SICK of the way they seem to think their holier-than-thou opinions matter so much more than anyone else's.
Here's the thing that burns me the most: I am a Christian. And I am actually EMBARRASSED to admit that lately. I grew up thinking it was a religion of inclusion, and of love; not exclusion, judgment and wishing for the failure of ANY group of people.
Sorry, I wanted to rant about that, so thanks for writing this post. Grr. (And welcome back to the blog! I missed you!)
Today at work we had our Christmas party that involved a "white elephant" style gift exchange. One of our supervisors, a bearded, middle aged man, unfortunately got a Bath & Body Works gift set. Ha ha ha. Cue joke from a person I've previously complained aabout in this blog, "Hey, he can use all that stuff and then go watch Brokeback Mountain!"
Now, I'm not a Christian, but when I was in high school and I read the bible I was frankly stunned to see that - so far as I could tell from what i was reading in the Bible - Christianity actually seems like a wonderful religion, one that trumpeted many of the values (humility, non-judgement, inclusion, etc.) that I believe in.
But Christianity as it is practiced, at least in the American public forum, seems to resemble none of those things. All those co-workers of mine who had a good chuckle at the joke were those who send religious-themed emails, who have stage-whispered conversations about various "thems" (liberals, gays, feminists, whatever), and who frowned slightly when they found out I wasn't getting married in a chruch or with a religious ceremony. It makes me sad.
Lisa, you shouldn't be embarrassed to be a Christian yourself. But, if you must feel anything about it, might I recommend pity for anyone who could claim to love Jesus and at the same time use Jesus as an excuse to be hateful and violent and ugly.
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