Mel Gibson, director of the most successful indy movie ever, Passion of the Christ. BUY IT on Amazon.
Yeah yeah, we’re all supposed to hate on Mel Gibson. Personally, I don’t think its that big a deal, in fact, namecalling and tirades when appropriate are perfectly acceptable. If one of my gay friends is being a douche, I say “hey you little faggot, knock that shit off”, just like Isaiah Washington, and I can’t get fired for it either.
I’m not brave enough to be as bold as Chris Rock and start throwing around the “N” word for low-class blacks (or whites) mostly because I’d probably get my ass whipped.
Now I do take great affront when people use Italian-American slurs, but mostly because of the inappropriateness, but if the shoe fits; ferinstance, if you grease your hair back, wear a wife-beater and live in NYC and have over 20lbs. of gold around your neck, I’ll call you Guido in a heartbeat (I may say it running though). The bad thing about Mel’s outburst is the inappropriateness. I’ve had my run-ins with officious little pricks of police officers, but call them fascist, Nazies, pigs, what have you, but Jews just doesn’t make sense, Mel. Rule 1 on throwing a rant: make the slurs fit the assholes at which you’re throwing them.
However, moving on:
Mel Gibson was speaking to a film class at CSU Northridge last night when he reminded us all what a total prick he is. After the presentation, the crowd asked questions. An associate professor of Central American studies asked Gibson if he had read about the Mayan culture before shooting Apocalypto, and Gibson told her he had.
The woman insisted that many of the film’s representations of the Mayans — like their participation in sacrifical ceremonies and the violent tendencies — were incorrect and racist. Gibson’s response: “Lady, fuck off.” Further, when emotional audience members of Mayan descent complained about how the film portrayed their culture, they were escorted out of the room, and Gibson screamed at them to “Make your own movie!”
from Evil Beet
I responded so artfully I thought I’d reproduce it here, weeks later:
1. docweasel Says:
June 8th, 2007 at 1:41 pm
Well, on the other hand, its a fucking movie, not a documentary. I do get a little sick and tired of every minority interest group coming in and complaining that every tiny scrap of cultural minutiae isn’t literally correct.
Hey, how many movies about Mayan culture exist out there? They should be glad he took on the subject at all. And for the record, I’m Italian-American and I found several inconsistancies in The Godfather and any time FF Coppola deigns to speak to students about film-making I’m going to make it my business to go there and disrupt the thing and make it all about my petty grievances instead of appreciating that the guy bothered to show up and share.
Jesus fuck, the cult of victimhood just never does get fed enough, does it? I’m not saying Gibson couldn’t have handled it more gracefully, but these people are assholes and they thrive on this crap. They started shit with Gibson to get a reaction and that’s what they got. Do they expect him to go recut the film or something? Asking him if he “read about Mayan culture” is troll behaviour, sorry. The guy who asked it is a prick and he was trying to start crap with Gibson. I’m sure 90% of the people who were there to actually hear the lecture wished the guy would just shut the fuck up.
Hello people (especially leftist cultural diversity whores) movies are not exact representations of history.They are dramatic retellings, adapted for maximum dramatic and entertainment purposes. I don’t see anyone giving Spike Lee any crap for his romantic portrait of Malcolm X, which pretty much ignores all the racist hatred and violent dogma Mr. X espoused. Or how about the Motorcycle Diaries love letter to Che?
I wish the type of people who bitch about Gibson’s fudging of exact historical accuracy in what is admittedly a dramatic work of fiction would get as exercised about so-called “documentaries” with blatant falsehoods and distortions like those cartoons Mike “Fatass” Moore makes. Or how about Oliver Stone, anyone?
And for that lady who was all upset: none of us lived then. We don’t really know what happened, we only have archeological consensus. Just because she believes it don’t make it so. So go write a book or do a study, don’t hassle the guy who has the guts to get up there and talk about his art for the benefit of students.
You may dislike Gibson or things he’s said, but going to a campus and talking about film-making is a generous thing to do, and I for one would love to hear a truly great film-maker talk about his art and technique, not listen to some whinging minority victimhood whore ask inane questions, or more accurately make statements and grandstand. I’d have told her to fuck off too.
2. You Go Mel Says:
June 8th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
DITTO!!!
3. CherDash Says:
June 9th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
Docweasel, you got it exactly right!