Posted on 06/17/2018 8:15:20 AM PDT by EdnaMode
“Ocean’s 8” currently sits at a 68% on Rotten Tomatoes. That’s enough for a “fresh” rating, but perhaps not as high as the studio or the stars of the film had hoped for. Well, if you talk to a couple of the actresses involved in the female-led heist film, they have an idea why that might be – a lack of diversity among the film critics.
The issue of white men dominating film criticism is a bit of a hot-button issue over the last week or so. Ever since a report was published that shined a light on the fact that white men make up the vast majority of critics on Rotten Tomatoes, people have been speaking out, hoping that more underrepresented people would get their chance to contribute to the film criticism conversation.
READ MORE: Sandra Bullock Says Actresses In The ‘Ghostbusters’ Reboot “Literally Walked Into A Firing Squad”
And during an interview recently (via Telegraph), Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett, previously mentioned stars of “Ocean’s 8,” agree with that sentiment. “It would be nice if reviewers reflected who the film is for, like children should review children’s films, not a 60-year-old man,” said Bullock. “I guess his opinion would be kind of skewed.”
She continued, saying she would like there to be “balancing out the pool of critics so that it reflects the world we are in, like we are trying to reflect the world that I live in and my friends live in.”
“It’s not just all men. I love men, I want to be at the table with men but I also want to be invited to the table that the men are at”, she added. “I don’t know, but let’s see, let’s try it.”
READ MORE: ‘Ocean’s 8’ Is Familiar, But Still Sparkles With Cinematic Delights [Review]
When Blanchett was asked about if she believes Hollywood is getting better about featuring films that tell female stories, she continued the film criticism conversation by saying, “It’s Hollywood but it’s also the media, because a studio can support a film and it’s the invisible faces on the internet, and often male reviewers, who can view it through a prism of misunderstanding, and so I think that is a really big part of the equation.”
This idea that films should be reviewed by critics that are the target audience isn’t receiving universal praise, however. On social media, the discussion has been varied, with many stating that diversity is needed but Bullock and Blanchett’s assertion that certain films should be reviewed by certain people isn’t the answer.
Film critic Alison Willmore summed it up on Twitter, saying, “Maybe reviews of OCEAN’S 8 would have skewed more positive if it’d been majority women-identifying critics reviewing it. Maybe not! If you need to erase the opinions of female critics who didn’t like it in order to make this argument, it’s not a good one. Women aren’t monolithic!”
Alison Willmore ✔ @alisonwillmore The push for greater diversity in criticism should come on the basis that more people from more backgrounds should be heard weighing in on a film, not on people arguing their movie obvi would have done better critically — you can't know that and it shouldn't matter
Alison Willmore ✔ @alisonwillmore "This movie isn't for you" is the same argument an angry teen boy uses when telling me why I shouldn't get to weigh in on SUICIDE SQUAD. It's also an argument whose end point is that there should never be bad reviews, because that just means the critic wasn't the right audience
Sp... now only girls can understand girl flicks.
Where did we read that the average IQ has plunged?
You get a gold star from Hollowhead Central.
Generally, you are correct, but not, I think, about this. Captain Marvel segues quickly to Avengers IV: guaranteed success.
After Phase III (?) is officially over, they are going to be in trouble if they keep the commuist indoctrination at the forefront.
I am with you. The Thin Man: first major film franchise?
But my favorite WP is Life with Father with Irene Dunne.
Liberal feminist White women are eager to say “Less White men!” but they are not eager to say “Less White women!”.
I understand; however, the “literature” does support this:
1. National Comics [DC] sued Fawcett over Captain Marvel (for functionally being “Superman”) in the 50s and won.
2. The name became dormant.
3. Marvel copyrighted it in the 60s. Ironically, DC resurrected the original character, but could not violate copyright, so opted for Shazam.
4. Marvel’s Mar-Vell, Kree warrior, came to Earth and became associated with Carol Danvers, a pilot.
5. In a fatal accident, Carol became imbued with Kree DNA.
6. She went through various incarnatione, but eventually adopted the name at the urging of Captain America, since she was, genetically, half Kree from the first Captain Marvel.
That is from memory; I think I have it right. Anyway, they did not make this all up just now to appease the SJW crowd, although they are undeniably exploiting it for that purpose.
Brie Larson, according to her own statement, shouldn’t talk about A Wrinkle in Time because she isn’t a woman of color.
Yep, typical leftist hypocrisy:
Misogyny bad, misandry good.
Box office for the first two weekends has been $79 million. It will probably break even, but barely.
You got it. You are probably right, The Thin Man may well have been the first full blown film franchise, will have to look that up. Still mt favorite film I love just about anything William Powell was in, never got a award for anything. He was certainly the best dressed,his clothes would be in style today.
I knew that I think. But hard to think of Captain Marvel without thinking of the original.
My Rotten shorthand: If left number < right number, I consider seeing; if left number > right number, I usually avoid.
Left = film critics. Right = actual, functional human beings.
(It is a propos they made the communist propagandists the left number.)
Like I said, I do understand.
I collected comics before it was a known thing, so I am biased in favor of the “literature”.
Classy, talented, articulate; could be leading man or character actor. Tragic personal life. He certainty deserved an Oscar more than many recipients.
She’s a white woman engaged to a white guy, and she’s against white people. Sure, makes sense.
Laurel and Hardy, et al, were all franchises of a sort, and started earlier, but The Thin Man seems like the first feature film series with A-list star power to me.
Would you believe that The Thin Man was looked at as a B picture then? Powell’s career at that point was stalled, Myna Loy was just getting started. That movie put Powell back on top and he never left it again for the rest of his career.
So it was strictly a studio picture that was given a solid director named Woody Van Dyke. Van Dyke had a reputation as a very fast director and this film was done in about three weeks. When it was released it hit the big high at box office and MGM realized they had not only a franchise but a great team in Powell and Loy. Before the Thin Man movie marriages were not portrayed as happy ones, etc..
Powell and Loy were the first couple portrayed that loved being married to each and as equals in the marriage. That is one thing that audiences loved, their on screen chemistry and in fact many thought they were married in real life. I thin they were much better than Tracey and Hepburn.
By the way he was dating Jean Harlow when she died and wanted to marry her, Powell picked up the tab for her funeral and her final resting place, it cost him $50,000 in 1930’s money. He really loved her.
He found happiness later with a woman year younger than he and he retired and lived into his 90’s in Palm Springs. A true and genuine gentleman to the end.
Michael Bay: responsible for Transformers movies
Jackson: the Star Trek reboot
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