The nerd rage was out in full force last night when reports came out that Zendaya had been revealed to be the new Mary Jane Watson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Why was there so much nerd rage? Zendaya is not white with red hair, and doesn’t look exactly like Mary Jane from the comic books. We previously went down this road when Michael B. Jordan was cast as the Human Torch.
Filmmaker James Gunn, the director of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ franchise had enough of this fanboy hate and posted an open letter to fans on his Facebook wall Friday afternoon:
People get upset when something they consider intrinsic to a comic book character changes when adapted for a film. I get this. There are movies I dislike because I think there’s a basic misunderstanding of the story or the character when the comic is transferred to film (I still hate how in the first Batman movie the Joker was revealed as the murderer of Bruce Wayne’s parents, for instance.)
That said, I do not believe a character is the color of his or her skin. When Michael B Jordan was cast as Johnny Storm I didn’t understand the uproar. The primary characteristic of Johnny was not, to me, that he was white, or that he had blonde hair, but that he was a fiery, funny, big-mouthed braggart of a hero. I was happy that he was going to be played by one of the finest and most charming young actors out there.
Yesterday, a rumor broke out that the character of Mary Jane was being played by a young black woman, Zendaya, and all hell broke out on the Internet (again). I tweeted that if people find themselves complaining about Mary Jane’s ethnicity they have lives that are too good. (For those of you who think this means I’m confirming that Zendaya IS playing MJ, realize that although I’ve read the Spidey script, and I’ve met the actress in question, I have no idea what her role is. There’s a good chance someone told me at one time or another, but, if so, I can’t remember. I’m going to find out when I go into Marvel this afternoon, but I feel free to speak until that time because it’s about the concept about a black woman playing Mary Jane, not the actuality or hypothesis of it.)
I got a thousand or so responses to my tweet. Most of them were positive. Some folks disagreed – they thought the character should look like what she looks like in the comics – but were thoughtful. And a handful were flat out racist.
I can’t respond to the racists – I’m not ever going to change their minds. But for the thoughtful majority of you out there:
For me, if a character’s primary attribute – the thing that makes them iconic – is the color of their skin, or their hair color, frankly, that character is shallow and sucks. For me, what makes MJ MJ is her alpha female playfulness, and if the actress captures that, then she’ll work. And, for the record, I think Zendaya even matches what I think of as MJ’s primary physical characteristics – she’s a tall, thin model – much more so than actresses have in the past.
Whatever the case, if we’re going to continue to make movies based on the almost all white heroes and supporting characters from the comics of the last century, we’re going to have to get used to them being more reflective of our diverse present world. Perhaps we can be open to the idea that, although someone may not initially match how we personally conceive a character, we can be – and often are – happily surprised.
When do you think the nerd rage will end?
What matters more than anything, however, is the symbolism, and that’s truly where it succeeds. Hell or High Water is a movie where talk is economic, violence is purposeful, guns are necessities, horses are tied up in front of gas stations, beer is plentiful and landscapes are barren, and it excels in that regard. The Texas backdrop is especially essential, even though it’s actually filmed in New Mexico. Much like how Minnesota’s snowy terrain informs Fargo‘s chilly existentialism, Texas plays like a miserable, desolate and almost endlessly picturesque portrait of anguish, the source of death and prickly rebirth at every turn. Just as it played a big part in No Country For Old Men‘s cynicism, it imparts long, often distant plains of sorrow and spite, a place where the living need to adapt to horrible conditions to make the best possible existence for themselves. It’s as tragic as it’s affirming.
Sharp, somber and carefully constructed, Hell or High Water doesn’t quite rise to the heights of its elders, but it’s never less than accomplished in its goals. Aided by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ expectedly exceptional score and guided by Giles Nuttgens’ handsome cinematography, Mackenzie’s latest is a scorching, winning drama. While perhaps too dreary to win over the affections of Oscar voters, it’ll undoubtably find its own audience. It’s a crisp, blistering, well-made modern Western that’s reserved when it needs to be and hard-hitting when it should be. Though not among the year’s best, it’s one of the summer’s most established. It pays its dues, and then some.
The wonder of this power quickly subsides when evil forces descend upon Kubo’s location. These forces are after Kubo’s magic, which radiates from his one good eye, and they won’t stop until it’s in their possession. His mother tries valiantly to fend them off, but Kubo is left alone to begin a quest with the help of a monkey (Charlize Theron) and a beetle (Matthew McConaughey).
