ARE SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIORS RUINING STAR WARS?
THIS THERE IS
APPARENTLY A WEIRD THREAD GOING
AROUND AND IT STARTED WITH THIS.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE TOP CRITICS
93% OF THE TOP CRITICS APPROVE
OF THIS FILM.
THE AUDIENCE SCORE HOWEVER IS 54%.
THIS HAPPENS A
LOT BUT USUALLY NOT WITH GIANT
BLOCKBUSTER FILMS.
USUALLY THE AUDIENCE IS LIKE IT IS NOT THAT
BAD.
THE PEOPLE STARTED LOOKING AROUND TO SEE WHY THIS MIGHT BE
AN CERTAIN PEOPLE HAVE GLOMMED ONTO A MESSAGE THAT SAYS
ESSENTIALLY SOCIAL JUSTICE
WARRIORS ARE RUINING THE FILM.
WE WILL GO WITH THE FIRST QUOTE
HERE.
WE ALSO HAVE MET FORMERLY OF ROTTEN TOMATOES, NOW YOU KNOW
HIM FROM WHAT THE FLICK.
>> HELLO.
>>MATT, WHEN YOU RAN ROTTEN TOMATOES THIS WOULD HAVE STUCK
OUT RIGHT?BECAUSE CRITICS ARE USUALLY TOUGHER ON MOVIES IN
THE AUDIENCE.
>>TYPICALLY.
SOMETIMES HE WILL END UP WITH A MOVIE THAT CRITICS
LIKE, LIKE DRIVE, THAT THE AUDIENCE DOESN'T LIKE AS MUCH.
THAT IS USUALLY THE CASE OF THE MARKETING MATERIALS NOT GIVING
THE AUDIENCE ñ GIVING THEM SOMETHING TO EXPECT THAT IS
DIFFERENT THAN WHAT THEY
DELIVERED.
DRIVE MADE IT LOOK LIKE FAST AND THE FURIOUS AND
THAT MOVIE IS SLOW.
I DON'T REALLY EVER ñ AND YOU KNOW THIS,
I DON'T PUT MUCH FAITH IN AUDIENCE SCORES FOR A COUPLE
REASONS.
YOU HAVE NO IDEA THAT ANYONE HAS SEEN THE MOVIE
ITSELF.
IN MY MIND THERE ARE THREE TYPES OF BULLSHIT IN
THE WORLD, GENERAL CIVILIAN BULLSHIT, WHAT COMES OUT OF THE
WHITE HOUSE THESE DAYS, AND THEN
ABOVE THAT IS ANY NUMERIC REPRESENTATION OF AN AUDIENCE
REACTION TO A MOVIE BECAUSE IT
IS BULLSHIT.
>>IT IS JUST NOT A SCIENTIFIC POLL BECAUSE PEOPLE CAN GO ON
THIS MOVIE AND BREAK THIS MOVIE
AND SAY I DON'T LIKE IT.
>> ALSO IN 2013 WHEN KIRK CAMERON'S CHRISTMAS MOVIE CAME
OUT, THAT GOT A WONDERFUL ZERO.
AND HE WENT ON FACEBOOK TELLING
HIS FANS TO GO GIVE IT SCORES.
SO YOU HAVE PEOPLE ON THE RIGHT
WHO ARE PEOPLE REALLY UPSET ABOUT REPRESENTATION IN THE
MOVIES AND I THINK THEY ARE
LASHING OUT AND MARKETING THIS MOVIE DOWN BECAUSE THEY ONLY
WANT TO SEE WHITE MEN IN THEIR MOVIES.
>> THERE ARE TWO DIFFERENT LAYERS, ONE IS THE SO-CALLED
MYSTERY OF WHO VOTED DOWN THE
MOVIE AND WHY?
IT'S BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE DIDN'T LIKE THE JOKES OR
SOME FANS WERE DISAPPOINTED ñ NONE OF THAT HAPPENED.
NO ONE
DOWN VOTED IT TO THIS DEGREE BECAUSE THEY TOLD TOO MANY
JOKES.
THIS IS POLITICAL.
THIS IS TROLL 101.
IF YOU ARE NOT
FAMILIAR WITH THE INTERNET YOU MIGHT BE LIKE IT COULD HAVE BEEN
A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT REASONS.
THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT TROLLS DO.
>> AND TO THE CREDIT OF THE FILM ITSELF IT GOT HIGHER BOX OFFICE
RETURNS THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND.
IT WASN'T ONE OF THOSE THINGS
WHERE WORD OF MOUTH GOT OUT.
WE WILL SEE MORE NEXT WEEK BUT I
WILL GO OUT ON A LIMB HERE AND SAY THAT THIS STAR WARS EPISODE
EIGHT IS GOING TO DO JUST FINE AND THAT PEOPLE WILL REALLY
ENJOY IT.
>> BY ANY OTHER METRIC,
EXCLUDING IS BOX OFFICE, PEOPLE LOVE IT.
IN REALITY THERE ARE
NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT SAY STAR WARS HAD TOO MANY
MINORITIES AND TOO MANY WOMEN, I
WILL JUST NOT GO.
>> I READ THIS ARTICLE BY A FRIEND OF MILO.
IF YOU ARE A
FRIEND OF MILO, YOUR POINT OF
VIEW IS SUSPECT AT THAT POINT.
LOOK AT THE FIRST TRILOGY, THE
EMPIRE IS EXCLUSIVELY EVIL WHITE DUDES DRESSED AS NAZIS AND THE
REBELS ARE THE ONES WHO HAVE
ALIENS FIGHTING WITH THEM.
>>ARE THEY ILLEGAL ALIENS?
>> LUCAS HAS SAID OVER AND OVER AGAIN ñ HE SAID IN 81 THAT
DURING A STORY CONFERENCE THAT THE EMPEROR WAS SUPPOSED TO BE
NIXON.
IN A 2005 INTERVIEW HE SAID HE CONCEIVED AS THE
ORIGINAL STAR WARS AS AN ALLEGORY FOR THE VIETNAM WAR IN
THAT THE REBELS ARE BASICALLY FIGHTING THIS TECHNOLOGICALLY
OVERWHELMING FORCE, AND THEY
WIN.
LOOK AT LUCAS COMING OUT IN THE 70S IN THAT
ENVIRONMENT, 10 YEARS AFTER THE SUMMER OF LOVE, HE HAS THIS
LIBERAL SENSIBILITY THAT IS AGAINST THE ESTABLISHMENT.
AND
THE ESTABLISHMENT AT THAT TIME
IS THE ILL-FATED NIXON ADMINISTRATION THAT DRAGGED US
INTO VIETNAM.
THERE IS A LIBERALISM BAKED INTO STAR WARS
TO BEGIN WITH SO FOR SOMEBODY TO SAY THERE IS TOO MUCH IN IT NOW
ñ I'M SORRY DID YOU NOT WATCH
ANY OF THESE OTHER MOVIES?
>>ALSO THE FEMINIST ANGLE, PRINCESS LEIA IS IN CHARGE OF
THE RESISTANCE.
DID YOU WATCH
THE FIRST ONE?
PRINCESS LEIA HAS HER STUFF TOGETHER, THE BOYS
SHOW UP AND SHE'S LIKE SOMEONE HAS TO SAVE OUR SKINS.
SHE IS A
LEVELHEADED ONE.
THEY YELL AT HAN SOLO FOR LEAVING AND HE HAS
TO HAVE A CHANGE OF HEART TO COME BACK AND HELP THE
RESISTANCE.
>> THEN THEY RESCUE HIM IN THE THIRD MOVIE.
HE IS THE DAMSEL IN DISTRESS.
>> IT IS NOT UNFAIR TO MEN.
HOLE AND FINN ARE INCREDIBLY HEROIC
I
DON'T KNOW WHAT
IN THIS MOVIE.
>> THEY SAY IT IS DIFFERENT BUT THEY DON'T SAY WHAT ABOUT THE
DIFFERENCES?
THEY SAY CHANGING THE FORMULA MAKES A BAD BUT THEY
WERE WHITE DUDES FOR NO REASON
AND YOU COULD SAY NOW THEY ARE MIXED RACE.
FOR REPRESENTATION
SAKE IT IS DIFFERENT AND IT IS NOT WORSE.
>> IT'S SERVANTISM IN A NUTSHELL.
WE WANT THE SAME THING
TO BE LIKE IT WAS BECAUSE IT WORKS FOR US AND IT MADE US FEEL
SPECIAL AND GOD FORBID WE HAVE TO SHARE THAT.
>> SUCH A GREAT POINT BY MATT.
>> AND THE WHOLE EVIL EMPIRE IS A FASCIST EVIL EMPIRE.
IF YOU
LIVE FOR FASCISM SORRY BUT THERE IS NOT GOING TO BE A LOT OF
MOVIES ON YOUR SIDE.
PEOPLE DON'T LIKE TO ROOT FOR THE EVIL
EMPIRE.
I GUESS THEY FANCIED THEMSELVES THE GOOD GUYS.
>>THOSE ALIENS EACH ANOTHER PLACE.
>> I UNDERSTAND LUKE SKYWALKER AND HAN SOLO WERE WHITE DUDES.
WHAT IS THIS GREEN ALIEN DOING
HERE?
AND NO ONE SHOULD EVER PAY ANY ATTENTION TO THESE ABSOLUTE
CLOWNS.
I SAW STAR WARS, IT WAS GREAT.
I DIDN'T LIKE IT BECAUSE
IT WAS A LIBERAL PLOT.
WHEN GOODNESS WINS IT IS NOT A
LIBERAL PLOT.
IF YOU THINK IT IS AND THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG
WITH YOU.
YOU ARE ADMITTING THAT YOU SIDE WITH THE BAD GUYS.
>>AND THEY ALL WANT TO WRITE THIS.
THIS SLIPPERY SLOPE
PARAGRAPH.
THIS IS THE EXACT SAME FRAMING OF THE GAY
CHARACTER IN BEAUTY AND THE
BEAST.
HOW LONG BEFORE PINOCCHIO HAS SEX WITH SOME GENDER FLUID
DWARVES?
IT'S SUCH A LAZY ARGUMENT.
>>WE CAN DO TWO HOURS ON JUST THE LIBERALISM IN STAR WARS
AND HOW PEOPLE ARE SO WRONG ABOUT THE MESSAGING, BUT I
KNOW WE ARE ALMOST OUT OF TIME.
>>THE GREAT IRONY HERE IS STAR WARS DIDN'T DO GENDER IDENTITY
POLITICS, THEY JUST HAD A BLACK GUY AND A LATINO AND A WOMAN IN
THE MOVIE WHICH IS WHAT THE
WORLD IS.
THEY ARE THE ONES DOING GENDER IDENTITY POLITICS.