Tuesday, September 30, 2008

"Ugly,.Black and Unbankable"

So, such is Forest Whittaker 's worth and essence in a nutshell, eh? Despite his Oscar and skill, says the powers that be, expressly & specifically, right here. Whence Sarah Palin? Shucks.

This is a wonderfully sick allegory for so much that is wrong. Any thoughts? (Especially from you whitefolks who haven't yet understood that racism has morphed and adapted and more nuanced than calling people niggers through Klan hood fabric). I suppose these tools'd have no issue if Forest were a madcap ghettofab black comedian, right? Or a fat, ugly Seth Rogen (who resembles most producers and directors)? We share some infamy here, as blacfolks are notorious for shelling out box office cash to Tyler Perry's mawkishness, or at dramas or suspense stories where only single-word named ex rappers are the stars, not trained dramatic actors. Alas, that's just boneheadedness, easily shamed and curable as long people like Dyson, Tom Joyner el al stop jumping to simple-ass folk's defense. White producers, publishers et al are behind it in either case, and below the surface of their smiling faces is, well...do I have to spell it out. See above...

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Look here, I want Forest to play me in the "Gary Phillips Story." Ha! Now bear in mind, Grogan must have cut down on the weed since he was slimming down when I last saw him on The Daily Show. Can't be a chunky Green Hornet. Double Ha!!

Anonymous said...

Firstly--this is awful and sadly true. Second Seth Rogen is The Green Hornet? WTF?

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

I don't even know where to begin.

The financier could have said FW is unbankable but that other shit? Not necessary.

Is Seth Rogen good looking...hell no. Yet he is printing money.

You're right. If Forest was some kind of cross-dressing comedian and not an Oscar winning actor, he'd probably have a bigger career.

Deocliciano Okssipin Vieira, aka Ochyming said...

Wonder WHY Elvis was scripted Rock and Roll King in detriment of Bo Diddley?

Anonymous said...

There's nothing allegorical about this. This is real life. Even if he were "handsome" he'd still be unbankable because he is black. I don't understand why we are so squeamish about saying that. The reverse is that there is a double standard on the comedy side, true, but also with white actors. Seth Rogen is trying to transition to dramatic acting.

There are no decent white American-born dramatic actors once you leave Clooney anyway.

Shai said...

It is sad. The sadder thing is the sexism and ageism in the entertainment industry.

Dark Moon said...

There are no decent white American-born dramatic actors
_______________
I have to agree to this. The standard of commercial artistry in American Cinema is made only bearable by a sprinkling of non-American white actors that they condescend to offer parts; the rest is nothing more than so much awful dross. The aging method lions like DeNiro have already sold out and with the exception of the usual underutilized Black American character actors such as Don Cheadle, etc--all my favorites are of course over the pond, British, French, and even German.

Knute Rife said...

Sorry, Chris, I'm white, not oblivious. I've considered Whittaker under-utilized since he effectively disappeared after Good Morning Vietnam, and I've always known why. Cheadle and Whittaker can both lap the vast bulk of the field of white, American actors. Notice also that there isn't a whisper of this in the US media; your link had to come from an Australian feed (Yes, I know the speech was in Oz, but this is a US movie with a US premier.).

OK, let's all sing together:
It's a white world after all.
It's a white world after all.
It's a white world after all.
It's a white, white world.

Unknown said...

Whitaker has taken so many risks to prove his worth as an actor. Dude is a genius. it's a shame. other white male actors who are not physically attractive have great careers (kevin spacey and others). heck even crackhead Downey has been able to revitalize himself as an action hero (WTF!)

Rich Fitzgerald said...

The truth is, Whitaker is not the most attractive cat in Hollywood, BUT he is an excellent actor. I was just remarking to my wife and kids how he has not let his lazy eye be an excuse for why he isn't a success. For that he should be commended. The brother goes for it, each and every time. Nevertheless, he is ugly, black, and probably unbankable because of the obvious prejudice that exists in Hollywood, but guess what, tell that to his accountant.

You win some, you lose some. We just don't like people to say certain things out loud.