Tag: analysis

How Star Wars Invites Trolls Who Are Toxic to Diversity

~ Metacrone

leia-organa-bb-8-poe-dameron-finn-and-rose-tico-star-wars-the-last-jedi-wallpaper-8100

Last week, Kelly Marie Tran, the Asian-American actor who played Rose Tico in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, shut down her Instagram account after being bombarded with racist and misogynist insults for months. Daisy Ridley (Rey) was harassed into leaving Instagram in 2016. John Boyega (Finn) has received similar negative attention for his Star Wars appearances.

There were many things wrong with The Last Jedi, but Kelly Marie Tran, Daisy Ridley and John Boyega were among the bright spots in a badly conceived story. Rian Johnson wrote and directed a film with a diverse cast that put the women and some of the people of color in prominent positions. Then he tore them down.

Continue reading “How Star Wars Invites Trolls Who Are Toxic to Diversity” →

Samantha Bee Calls Ivanka Trump Sexist Profanity, Spends the Next Day Dealing with the Repercussions

~ Metacrone
sam-bee
On her Wednesday, 5/30/18 episode of the TBS show Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, Ms. Bee aired a story about the recent immigration issues concerning the separation of children from their parents. During the story, she showed a tweet from Ivanka Trump that included a photo of Trump with her son and called Trump “a feckless c**t”.
The segment was quickly met with harsh criticism from many sources, with some, including Donald Trump, calling for her show’s cancellation. Samantha Bee and TBS apologized for her choice of language. She spent the next day dealing with the fallout from the incident. But by last night, she was complaining that she’d had to waste time on sexism instead of focusing on immigration.
Samantha Bee, maybe next time don’t use vile, misogynist language to make your point, if you want to keep the focus on the issue you intended. I don’t care who the woman or man in question is, that word should never be used because of its implication that female body parts, and women themselves, equal something disgusting. And your implication that the abuse of women isn’t as important as racism is revolting.

Continue reading “Samantha Bee Calls Ivanka Trump Sexist Profanity, Spends the Next Day Dealing with the Repercussions” →

Movie Review: Mudbound

~ Metacrone

MudboundPoster

 

Mudbound * 2017 * Rated R * 2 Hours 15 Minutes

😸😸😸😸😸 Rated 5/5 happy lap cats

Spoiler Free:

Mudbound is a family saga of life in the 1940s Mississippi Delta for two farming families. One family is made up of hereditary black sharecroppers descended from former slaves. The other is a white family of former landowners and slaveowners who’ve fallen on hard times. They’ve bought land in Mississippi hoping to reestablish their wealth. The families become intertwined as their lives intersect and affect each other over the years, until a tragedy changes everything.

Mudbound was directed by Dee Rees, who also wrote the script with Virgil Williams, adapted from the book of the same name by Hillary Jordan. It’s been nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay; Best Original Song for Mighty River, sung over the closing credits by Mary J Blige; Best Supporting Actress for Mary J Blige, who plays Florence Jackson, wife and mother of the Jackson family; and Best Cinematography for Rachel Morrison, the first woman to ever be nominated for this award.

Continue reading “Movie Review: Mudbound” →

Metawitches Guidelines for Spotting Misogyny vs Female Equality in Entertainment and Media

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment
Jane The Virgin –“Chapter Four — Image JAV104A_155 — Pictured (L-R): Andrea Navedo as Xo, Gina Rodriguez as Jane and Ivonne Coll as Alba — Photo: Danny Feld/The CW — © 2014 The CW Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

This is the basic list of questions we ask ourselves while consuming media to help us determine if we’re seeing women being treated fairly or not. It’s not a yes or no checklist, or an easy, one sentence test, like the Bechdel test. But then, Alison Bechdel never meant for her test to become a widely used standardized instrument. This test requires some thinking about what you’re viewing. Misogyny is often subtle, and it’s pervasive. It’s easy to miss with one, casual viewing, but the message still gets into our heads and affects us.

That’s why these are guidelines, rather than a test. Some of these answers will be subjective, and reasonable people can disagree. We’re talking about art and the interpretation of art, after all. It also takes practice to start seeing things like camera angles and positioning, rather than letting it fly by. Hardly any of us can always spot gaslighting, especially when it’s being done by the writers and producers instead of the characters. These guidelines are just aspects of entertainment to keep in mind while viewing, to become more aware of what you’re seeing.

I (Metacrone) started working on this list in the late 80s, and it’s slowly grown. It’s still a work in progress, just like the entertainment industry. There are very few works that would pass every question with flying colors. Figure out how much you can live with watching, and the level that makes you take action. It’s okay to just watch and enjoy the show sometimes without feeling guilty, too. But, the more you can recognize the issues with entertainment and speak out, even if it’s only to one person, the more of an effect we all have on the entertainment industry.

Continue reading “Metawitches Guidelines for Spotting Misogyny vs Female Equality in Entertainment and Media” →

Travelers Season 2 Episodes 1-6- Review and Analysis of the First half of the Season

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

Team&Frame

 

The Travelers season 1 finale left the show set up with several crises waiting for season 2. Marcy had been rebooted and we weren’t sure how she was. The Director had been rebooted and was under attack. We weren’t sure how it was, and there was the possibility that it wouldn’t win against the Faction. Grace and Trevor had been shot by Ellis, who’d then been killed by a messenger from either the Director or the Faction. Something was downloading into the quantum frame. There were conflicting messages about whether to kill MacLaren or destroy the quantum frame. Forbes and a strike team were staring at the group in the barn, ready to arrest them all.

It sounds like the set up for an exciting season, but they’d taken care of most of these issues by the end of the first episode, using deus ex machina once again. Everyone who was hurt is okay, thanks to deus ex nanites. Time travel seemed to be working fine. The quantum frame was being dismantled. Most of the FBI agents in MacLaren’s office were now travelers, including Forbes, so everyone was set free and forgiven any crimes.

Continue reading “Travelers Season 2 Episodes 1-6- Review and Analysis of the First half of the Season” →

Marvel’s Runaways Season 1 Episode 7: Refraction Recap

~ Metacrone

MR107CoolRunaways

In this week’s episode, Refraction, the characters spend most of their time dealing with the fall out from last week’s episode, Metamorphosis. Refraction, in its various definitions, refers to a bending or changing of light to alter the way things are seen. In this episode, various agents, including the Jonah juice cure-all, Jonah himself, Leslie, and Molly, alter the perceptions and dynamic of Pride and the kids. But change is not necessarily good, and the metamorphosis that was referred to in the last episode is going to be complex and difficult for the characters, at the very least.

In the opening flashback we watch Victor and Janet Stein meet for the first time. He uses a pick up line that compares light refraction to time travel, then insults her intelligence when she doesn’t fall for it. She takes the bait. The scene changes to Victor holding newborn Chase as Janet watches. He’s in awe of his child, declaring that Chase is the only thing that matters.

Continue reading “Marvel’s Runaways Season 1 Episode 7: Refraction Recap” →

Riverdale Season 2 Episode 9: Chapter Twenty-Two- Silent Night, Deadly Night Recap

~ Metacrone

RVD209CherylKevJugRonnie

Welcome to Riverdale’s nightmare before Christmas! Santa brought us what I suspect is a fake Black Hood, two kisses with two different girls for Archie, leadership of the Junior Serpents for Jughead, vanquishing to Greendale for Penny, either a new career for Penelope or a new stepdad for Cheryl, and a partridge in a pear tree and an actual Christmas nightmare for Betty.

No, I don’t mean her kiss with Archie.

Plus, Santa brought us the brief return of Nana Rose Blossom and a flat-stomached Polly Cooper. Stay safe, ladies!!

It’s very early Christmas morning when Polly, who’s not pregnant, wakes Betty up to come downstairs to see Santa. Betty follows her, only to find that Santa is the Black Hood in a Santa Hood. He’s coming for her, but she backs away from him, and wakes up from her nightmare.

Continue reading “Riverdale Season 2 Episode 9: Chapter Twenty-Two- Silent Night, Deadly Night Recap” →

Marvel’s Runaways Season 1 Episode 6: Metamorphosis Recap

~ Metacrone

MR1061stPride

This week we get more background on the early days of the Pride, the kids pull off a complicated plan, and the parents interact with the mysterious Jonah. Everyone’s personal lives, youth and adult, begins to get in the way of the goals of the group. The kids’ romantic entanglements and personal dilemmas are charming to keep up with, since they are mixed up with the discovery of their powers. The parents aren’t as much fun, but Julian McMahon might just be playing the devil this time around, instead of just a character who’s devilish. He certainly gives Lucifer a run for his money.

We learn over the course of the episode that Jonah had gifted the parents with many of their hearts’ desires over the years, with the understanding that eventually he’d need something in return. Apparently none of them had ever read fairytales or seen movies about the mob, because they all agreed, thus getting themselves involved in an evil bargain that they couldn’t escape.

Continue reading “Marvel’s Runaways Season 1 Episode 6: Metamorphosis Recap” →

The Gifted Season 1 Episode 10: eXploited Recap

~ Metacrone

TG110Esmex2

We lose some familiar faces on The Gifted this week, and gain some familiar faces as well. eXploited would have been the season finale under the original 10 episode order, and it feels very much like one. The stakes are high, loyalties are in question, and the game changes in the final act.

We start with a flashback to two months ago, when Esme was posing as a campaign aide to an antimutant senator, using the name Stacy. Or Stephanie, depending on who you ask. She’s just talked herself into a meeting between the senator and Trask Industries when she gets a telepathic distress call.

Her family has been discovered and captured. Sentinel Services knows where she is, and are on their way. Esme/Stacy scurries away from the Senator’s location as quickly as she can, while telepathic voices urge her to hurry and to find a way to rescue them.

Continue reading “The Gifted Season 1 Episode 10: eXploited Recap” →

Movie Review: Wind River

~ Metacrone ~ 2 Comments

 

WRposter

Wind River * 2017 * Rated R * 1 Hour 47 Minutes

😸😸😸😸🌑 Rated 4/5 Happy lap cats, with some reservations

I have very mixed feelings about Wind River. On the one hand, it’s beautifully made, starring a talented group of some of my favorite actors, and tells a compelling story. On the other hand, the story is about the epidemic of sexual assault and violence against Native American women, yet the voices of these women are hardly heard. The story is told from an overwhelmingly male point of view, and the two main characters are white.

Wind River takes place on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. Jeremy Renner plays Cory Lambert, a US Fish and Wildlife Service hunter and tracker who works on the reservation. His ex-wife, with whom he has a son, is a Native American from the reservation. They also had a teenage daughter who died mysteriously three years prior to the movie.

As he’s hunting a mountain lion that’s teaching her cubs to hunt livestock, Cory tracks bloody human footprints in the snow to the body of 18 year old Native American woman Natalie Hanson. Natalie was the best friend of Cory’s daughter Emily, so he recognizes the body, and reports her death to the tribal police, headed by Graham Greene as Ben.

Continue reading “Movie Review: Wind River” →