I just realized that this year we have two upcoming movies that I believe the hard right, Sarah Palin worshiping drones will go up against, in their effort to restart the culture wars in a big way:
Kick-Ass. This movie has a young girl fighting and maiming a bunch of adults, and swearing like a sailor. 50 bucks says that within a year, some misguided youth commits a horrible crime, and this movie will be blamed for it.
Percy Jackson and The Olympians. Sure, this movie is just another Harry Potter Knock-off to the rest of us, but to many housewives across the South, this movie will be a full-blown attempt by Hollywood to force Pagan beliefs on our children. Mark my words, there will be Baptist preachers outside of theaters on the release of this movie praying for all of our souls.
Ever seen a movie called “Jesus Camp?” There’s a big rant in there about the pure evil of sorcery and the brainwashing that movies like Harry Potter are doing. But then, the people going that crazy over entertainment are going to find something no matter. Your right – a movie about pagan gods being real is gonna take so much heat. Kinda only makes me wanna watch it more!
“Kick-Ass” is gonna get flamed just for being named “Kick-Ass.” I still can barely believe they’re going ahead and marketing it around like that. Kicks ass!
Yes, I have seen Jesus Camp. One of the scariest films I’ve witnessed in recent memory.
I always considered myself a christian, but since I treat homosexuals as real people, and don’t take everything the bible says literally, I seem to no longer count. It’s exactly what happened to Islam in the Middle East, in my view.
It’s all about publicity, remember Dogma? The noise that came when that film came out? It speaks volumes that the head of the Catholic League thanked Kevin Smith after it died down, the publicity brought in a lot of money.
Jesus Camp is a fantastic film, it’s an insight into something I’ve never even thought existed, there should be more films along those lines, can I see Pagan Hippy Camp soon?
It’s really easy to paint everyone with the same brush, for many years I was very anti-christian, simply because of a few bad experiences, mainly because growing up Irish Catholic with any sort of “deviant” thoughts led me to believe I was on a direct train to Hell.
Not a British Train of course, a British train to Hell would have to stop in Birmingham for a replacement bus service.
It wasn’t until I was adopted I got my mind changed, my family are strongly Christian, but also don’t exclude anyone for any reason. The people that make the most noise are the people with something to gain and the time to waste making the noise, and it applies to every single belief structure in the world, liberal, conservative, any group with intrests in the world is looking to get their view across all the time.
I know many people, they are spread all over the political and religious spectrums, and all of them spend more time caring for their families, and their communities, and don’t have time to get on TV and rattle their sabres against things that they don’t care about, simply because the stuff they do care about keeps getting in the way.
It’s way to easy to think that the talking heads in the media, online and shouting on the streets are the mainstream, and like I said before, I’m certainly guilty of thinking it myself. It’s much harder to see them for what they really are, babies banging their sippy-cups against the crib for attention.
Kick-Ass is no doubt going to draw fire from the “Right wingers”, but the “left” is going to go after it too, gun control, violence in the media, it’s all going to be dug up again, assuming the film is any sort of hit, we won’t hear anything if it flops.
If the Internet teaches us anything that we can apply to the real world, it’s this “Don’t feed the trolls”, and remember that the people who actually make a difference are the people on the ground doing what they can to make it a finer world.
Next time you see a talking head raging about whatever the latest moral panic is, just remember they’re just crying because it’s feeding time.
As someone that many would brand as a ‘Right-Winger’ let me just say I am very much looking forward to seeing ‘Kick Ass’, Percy… not so much, maybe if there is a slow week movie-wise I might fit it in. I have read many of the Harry Potter books and enjoy the movies a great deal, and even though I was raised by very strict Southern Baptist parents I played Dungeons and Dragons. I have always felt that those who scream about Witchcraft and Satanism in literature and boardgames clearly have not read the books or played the games. Please research something before condemning it… please!
But personally I rarely speak out about any movies in a religious or political sense, movies should be seen as entertainment and art, and both are highly subjective. And I rarely bash movies, I simply prefer to say whether or not it was ‘to my tastes’. And even if it was really bad I try to find something good to say about it anyways, to not seem entirely harsh or biased.
The only movies that have truly offended my sensibilities have been Michael Moore propaganda films and the Junk Science Guru Al Gore’s ‘An inconvenient Truth’. But those movies simply beg to be argued about… And can hardly be considered art or entertaining, they are just in your face ‘this is what I believe’ and they offer no opposing views or opinions.
And I shall leave it at that… Let us not go down this road any further.
OK let’s take WALLEE, many read an environmental message into it and got all offended by it. I did not see one myself, Consumerism yes, environmental…no. Did the jab at consumerism ruin the joy or warmness of the film, Hell no!
Let’s face it, some people look for things to get offended about. There is no pleasing them. And as for picketing a theater or crying out for a boycott, or doing a phone blitz or anything else nutty. Not my style, I say keep your yap shut and vote with your wallet. You don’t like something, fine, don’t go and see it. Don’t rent or buy when it comes out on DVD, don’t buy any merchandise. That will hurt them more then a demonstration on the street, demonstrations are just free advertising anyways.
Omra, as a supposed right-winger, you sound like a much more reasonably minded person than what my idea of a right winger is. I guess that growing up with a mother who has a knee-jerk negative reaction towards any non-democrats, Southerners in particular, didn’t help things for me.
I too have a bit of a problem with a lot of Michael Moore’s work, especially after seeing a documentary where some one-time fans of his exposed his less than ethical methods. I still like Roger and Me, but his other films got much nastier, and less enjoyable to watch.
Fastcart: I have seen religulous, but Bill Maher, and some of his views, are those that even a liberal like me find to be a bitter pill to swallow.
atheism is something I could never embrace. To say that there’s absolutely nothing more to this world than what we see is just as closed minded as anything the other extreme says, in my view.
I still believe that there’s more going on in this universe than we can recognize, and there is some kind of prime mover, or god if you want to call it that, behind it. Does it exist in exactly the form that religious texts speak of. Probably not completely.
Spielvan, yeah as a non-commital agnostic (edging towards atheism), I find myself shaking my head at Maher 40% of the times.
It’s ironic that he has a goat with people who are forceful with their certitude when he’s just as bad when it comes to saying, “There’s no way to know.”
I have always found it ironic that those very vocal Left-Wingers who love to call themselves ‘open minded’ and ‘tolerant’, are so darned intolerant of any opposing views. Whenever I see them on a ‘talking head’ show they become shrill and belligerent when someone of an opposing view is on the panel, they will try to talk over them and control the discussion.
To me that is intolerable, debate is good. Shouting down your opponent is childish. A spirited and respectful discussion is optimum!
And whenever your opponent resorts to personal attacks? That just tells me they are out of facts and cannot counter your point, it is an old trick, if you cannot discredit the information. Discredit the informant! Whenever someone starts calling you names just smile, because it means you won! They have nothing better to offer…
Discussion is great, if you can have a respectful discussion with someone that has a different view it is like sparring. And you are both the better for it, because it keeps you sharp and reminds you why you have the opinions that you do, and it may expose you to something new to ponder and consider.
Bomb-throwers like Ann Coulter are a gas, while I find her dry wit extremely entertaining all she really does is stir things up and throw the hornets nest of far left loons into a tizzy. Not exactly constructive, and hardly going to change anyones minds now is it? When you put people on the defensive they are not going to listen to your message.
Satirist’s on the other-hand soften their message with humor, and that seems to work well.
But the Firebrands are down right dangerous, I have no use for them. Air America is a great example, I am glad they went down in flames… Of course the Right have their fair share too, whipping people into a frenzy is never a good idea no matter how noble you may consider your cause to be. Hate is hate, and nothing good can ever come of it.
I am in a similar way just as right wing as Omra. Heck I could make Alex P Keaton look like Left wing nut in a dress. Saying that most of the people here even though we have different views are all well reasoned and tolerant of others. Oh BTW i’m very religious to. Being that I grew up next to the church i went to as a kid (now an Elder in said church). Does that mean I have Holy Blinders on . A NO.
One of my best friends who I went to High School with and was in my church, ends up she is in a committed same sex relationship. Does it bother me, not really. She is happy and i’m happy for her. Is this what I like to do, not in the least.
Now as to the criticism of films like Harry Potter and this new Percy Jackson film. Please wake me up when the noise drops. Sadly there are people on both sides of any argument that agree on one thing. That is they just hate period. Anything that doesn’t fit their understanding in the world must be evil and be destroyed. Got them in all religions to. Be it Christian, Jewish, Muslim ect. Most people just want to get along.
The only part I have a problem with is the shot at Palin. Granted she is definitely on the conservative side. I would not put her in the crazy camp we are talking about here. Same goes for the POTUS. I may think he is misguided but I don’t put him in the welcome to the party Komrade group either.
Will I see Kick Ass and Percy Jackson. Yes but it may be on Redbox. Neither of these films makes me want to run down to the theater and buy advanced tickets. My HTPC will do just fine, thank you.
Hey, if the right wingers heard that you wanted to date yourself, imagine the uproar. There’s opposite marriages (did that term last longer than a month?), mixed race marriages, same sex marriages, and now we’ve introduced self marriages? Think of the children!!!11one
(I never understood why people think that “think of the children” argument works…
In addition, he told the Hammond Daily Star in an October story that he did not marry the couple because he was concerned for the children that might be born of the relationship and that, in his experience, most interracial marriages don’t last.
“I’m not a racist,” he said. “I do ceremonies for black couples right here in my house. My main concern is for the children.”
Whenever someone starts calling you names just smile, because it means you won! They have nothing better to offer…