| Author |
Message |
    
Brian Egeston
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, November 24, 2003 - 12:00 pm: | 
|
Hmmm. Here's an article by Thumper, or Thumper's brother, or someone using Thump's pen name. :-) It was posted on BET.com some time ago. In my estimation, this is great ammunition for Thump's banner about bad books(which he and I are still fighting over).
The article is about film, but it can be easily juxtaposed for books.
Written With Warmth,
Brian Egeston, Author
www.brianwrites.com
NOW PLAYING: HATER-NATION
By James Hill, BET.com Staff Writer
Posted Feb. 21, 2003 -- Had I known Black folks would defend "Biker Boyz" with a gang of messages calling for my head, I probably would have given it a better review.
Ok, I'm lying. I thought the movie sucked. But I was astonished by how many of you were so offended that I would give the film a negative review. Aside from questioning my race, users called me all types of names and eventually labeled me as a back-stabbing, Klan-card carrying sell-out who spends every waking minute trying to figure out how to trash Black movies and hate on Black celebrities while collecting money from big, bad, White Viacom. Believe it or not, I wanted to like the film -- great cast, good director. Alas, the cards didn't stack up and I only gave it two stars. Oddly enough, despite all the protest the film's fans only gave it $15.8 million at the box office in the first two weeks - not a good sign of support.
But I'm not here to debate the quality of "Biker Boyz."
I want to talk about a frightening trend in our community that I see growing with each negative review we post on the site. Aside from the various users calling me ignorant, assh*le and my favorite, "silly little Negro," it was BET.com user Chenca who really brings home the heart of the issue. In the discussion board for the "Biker" review, Chenca asks "How can a Black man so easily disparage another for being true to his craft and making a movie that . . . goes against the grain of Hollywood's tradition[?]"
Maybe I was absent from Black Etiquette School that day, but I'm pretty sure they never said Black men weren't allowed to be critical of each other. I didn't and don't understand how my opinion belittled the film or any of its actors. I know that by writing for a big name site like BET.com my opinion may weigh more than say, your local barber. Nevertheless, whether it's me or barber Bob, a movie review is simply an opinion, hopefully backed by facts.
If I had said director Reggie Rock Bythewood was a no-talent hack with club-feet and stank breath, then yes, I could see how anyone would be upset seeing as I viciously attacked the man. However, all I did was give my opinion of his film. But it wasn't seen that way. Actually, no bad or mediocre reviews for Black movies are ever taken as simple criticisms. They're seen as acts of Black treason.
But why? Why can't Black folks be critical of each other? BET.com user MaryLangie says "We should be supportive of black films even if we walk away not satisfied." What sort of twisted logic is that? That's like voting Mo'Nique for president just because she's Black. Sure, she doesn't have any actual political experience, but at least we could say we had a Black president, right?
Do you see where this could lead us? If we shut our mouths in the hopes of showing Black solidarity, we're going to find ourselves in a deeper hole than we are in now. It was our collective criticism of Black films that led to the demise of hood films into the new age of Black romantic comedies. Some of those 'hood films, despite how they depicted us, were good. And as many of you point out, they were made by Black men and women working hard to achieve a vision. Now imagine if no one dared to be critical. If no one said "hey, I like John Singleton, but enough with the 'hood films," theaters would probably still be flooded with them. I don't hear anyone saying that we hated on Singleton, The Hughes Brothers or any one else making urban dramas.
And you know why? Because in 2003 we've seemingly all agreed that we didn't want to watch those films anymore. Not one of you got upset when I unloaded on Ja Rule in "Half Past Dead." It seems that criticism is not considered hating if everyone agrees. As much as we tell White folks that there is no Black monolith, that we are all individuals with our own thoughts, we secretly keep that myth alive and damn anyone who doesn't come on board. The evidence is our slavish loyalty to the new genre of film, the "positive" Black movie (a.k.a. any movie that DOES NOT show us drinking beer, chillin' in the hood, saying "nigger" or referring to women as "bitches.") Now, some of these movies are good (like "Deliver Us From Eva"), some are great (like "Antwone Fisher"), but they don't all deserve a positive review simply because they exist. How many of you are happy that Clarence Thomas is a Supreme Court Justice? Should Black folks he helps put away not be critical of him simply because they're glad to see a brother in a robe? Maybe Black journalists should ignore his poor record on affirmative action because Thomas is just a Black man trying to pay his bills.
I love film and I realize the importance of positive Black images. I was one of those people crying for the end of 'hood films and celebrated "love jones" when it broke the trend, but that doesn't mean I don't see faults in "love jones" or any other Black romantic comedy of late. It's simply no longer satisfying to see a movie with positive images. Aside from congratulating Black people for not being thugs, me and $9.50 want a good movie. In my opinion, while "Biker Boyz" was a nice diversion from more negative depictions of Black folks, the film suffered from weak characters and no energy. Ultimately that's just my opinion, but as a film reviewer I feel it's my duty to tell the truth as I see it, painful or not.
If, in the end, you still see me as a haterr, then I'll wear the badge proudly. In a world where DMX keeps getting roles while Don Cheadle is forced to make NFL commercials, I figure we could all do with another tall glass of hater-rade.
|
Chris Hayden
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, November 24, 2003 - 12:09 pm: |
|
Brian:
Some of the attacks on Mr. Hill might have come from friends, family, or some other people otherwise connected to the film, or its makers.
A lot of it probably came from fans. These folks unfortunately take it personally when something they love is disparaged. I think the attitude or phenomenon is beyond race--let him disparage Harry Potter or Star Wars or Lord of the Rings and he will see some REAL hate male and not from black folks. |
Thumper
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, November 24, 2003 - 09:00 pm: |
|
Hello All,
Brian: It's not me, but it sounds like me. And I ditto everything the man said. He should call as he sees it. That's the best any of us can do. Like he said, "If, in the end, you still see me as a hater, then I'll wear the badge proudly." That's right. He's a hater, I'm a hater and wouldn't you like to be a hater too. |
InPrint
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 25, 2003 - 02:36 pm: |
|
...Be a Hater, Hate crap on paper...Be a Hater, Hate crap on paper...Be a Hater, Hate crap on paper... |
Thumper
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 25, 2003 - 04:48 pm: |
|
Hello All,
InPrint: Careful now, you're showing your age. *LOL* |
|
Email This Page