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Cameron H.

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Posts posted by Cameron H.

  1. Posted

     

    I have a few candidates for next week, but unfortunately they all come with catchy songs, so I'm no help.

     

    tumblr_static_bones3_dammit.gif

     

    And speaking of Little Inez...that was another thing I liked in the Musical as opposed to the Original. I've mentioned it before, but Link's journey through the film is so much more meaningful when he's not entirely on board from the beginning. His gesture to Little Inez at the end,

    and his willingness to give it all up, is, to me, more affecting because of this journey. I also enjoyed that they give the win to Inez instead of Tracy.

     

    Fuck, there's so much joy in this movie! You almost expect a title card at the end to read, "And after that, racism was over forever..."

     

    • Like 2

  3. Posted

     

    I came here for the bad movies, but stayed for the over-analyzing. I've enjoyed and appreciated reading the diverse opinions here, which often surprises me and makes me reconsider my original thoughts. I've read your posts in this thread several times (to over-analyze your over-analyzing) and I think I get where you're coming from. Divine in Hairspray is special to you and you probably feel protective, understandably. Also, as there are very few quality LGBTQ+ representation in entertainment, the role of Edna in the musical version could have been one more opportunity for an LGBTQ+ actor. But, I hope you know that even though I liked Travolta's Edna, it doesn't mean I think any less of how important Divine's Edna is in cinematic history.

     

    Okay, on a different note (see what I did there?), I can't decide which I like more, Good Morning Baltimore or You Can't Stop the Beat.

     

    I'm not sure either...it definitely begins and ends on a high note. I was going to say "Good Morning, Baltimore," but as soon as I wrote that I second guessed it. So I guess I like "You Can't Stop the Beat" more.

     

    (I guess don't watch this video if you haven't finished the movie yet)

     

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZnt-0fEiT0

     

    Also, to talk about different actors, I loved pretty much everyone in this movie. I thought it was amazingly well cast. I also read that James Marsden beat out Hugh Jackman for the role of Corny Collins. Way to go, Cyclops!

     

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    • Like 2

  4. Posted

    Thanks! I hope I do too!

     

    Honestly I don't know everything lol. I may be a bi girl but I still have white cis privilege as well so there's a lot of things I will never be able to understand. Clearly I try to speak up for all perspectives lol but if I come off as a know-it-all bitch please know that I am also not trying to come from that kind of place.

     

    hug.gif

    • Like 1

  5. Posted

    (I also apologize for any typos and things that genuinely just don't make any fucking sense because I've been up since 5:30 with a terrible cold and I can't take nyquil cause I'll sleep through my work alarm)

     

    I'm sorry you're sick, and I hope you feel better soon :D

     

    I get where you're coming from, and as always, it's not too far off from where I'm at--although I suspect some of my male, white privilege might be seeping (unintentionally) through. It's easy from my position to say, "Yeah, but it's better than it was" and not consider how far we still need to go. So if I ever come off like an insensitive asshole, please know that's truly coming from a place of ignorance, but I want to be and understand better.

    • Like 1

  6. Posted

    Taylor Anne, a couple times now you've written that you don't think the studio got what was "trying to do with Divine," and that very well may be (although, as you've said, a lot of this was preestablished), but without asking Waters himself, I would guess what he was "trying to do" is normalize the idea that a cross-dressing man should be viewed and treated without judgement. If that's the case, then the fact that people like myself can watch this movie without seeing the man behind the makeup, but just the character herself, then I think this movie does a good job. It's also why I didn't like Divine's dual role in the original as it undermines this goal.

     

    I mean, I get where you're coming from from a representation stand point, but as long as the role isn't making the joke "it's a man dressed as a woman" then I feel like it's at least a step in the right direction--even if it isn't the final step toward universal tolerance and acceptance.

     

    As to another one of your points, I was unaware of the hoopla surrounding Travolra's casting. I can only say, I hope that at least some of the people who viewed it as a joke were able to realize how not a big deal it actually was and that's kind of what the Big Deal afterall. Lol. I kind of think of it like The Birdcage. I feel like it was kind of a big deal when Robin Williams was cast in that, like, "Ha ha- he's playing a gay guy," but when you watch that movie, the joke is never "he's gay." I guess what I'm trying to say is, as distasteful as it may be, does having a cis gendered actor playing a non-heteronormative role, ultimately help society as a whole come to a more tolerant minset?

     

    Does anyone know how Waters feels about the Musical? I imagine pretty positive since he agreed to it being done in the first place and even provided a cameo, but that's just my guess.

     

    (Please forgive me for any typos or weird jumps in logic. I'm typing this on a tablet, in bed, at 2:30 in the morning. Hopefully, I'm making something close to sense, or that I'm at least coherency adjacent. Good night, everyone! Talk to you tomorrow!)

    • Like 1

  8. Posted

    That's one of the issues I have with the musical over the original. I remember seeing that and being rather angry that they were sugarcoating the bull shit black students went through when the schools were finally integrated. I agree that Queen Latifah's Maybelle is a much stronger character in the musical but I still feel like the message as a whole was stronger in the original. John Waters did not feel the need to sugarcoat anything while still keeping it campy and fun.

     

    I also think they very much play Edna's weight off for laughs throughout the musical as well as the whole "man in a dress" aspect. When it was Divine it wasn't just a man in a dress. Divine was a known figure for cross-dressing and to have her in that part was groundbreakingly amazing. To me, John Travolta being in that part shows how little our society understands the LGBTQ+ community. Divine wasn't there for laughs, but it felt like Travolta was.

     

    CAUTION: Controversial Opinion Coming Up!

     

    I don't know that I agree with you on the Travolta thing. I thought he was utterly charming as Edna. In fact, I thought this might be one of his best performances--ever. Never was I thinking, "there's Travolta in drag," I was thinking "this poor woman has had it rough." As I stated before, I loved "Timeless," not because I was laughing at Travolta, but because the relationship between her and Wilbur is so sweet and real and tragic and joyous. Don't get me wrong, I loved Divine in the original, but I didn't get the same pathos I got from the Edna in the Musical. I feel like Travolta embodied Edna, while in the original, Divine was pretty much just there to be the "mother" character. And while she was married to Wilbur, I just didn't get the same sense of "relationship" that they shared in the Musical. So while, on a real world level, the casting Divine in that role was absolutely groundbreaking, I just don't think she ever really lost herself in the role--perhaps she wasn't able to... And, as weird as this might sound, I think the fact that she played both Edna and Arvin Hodgepile in the original, just makes the casting in that movie seem more like a gimmick. She should have just played the mother and the World would just have to accept that--end of story.

     

    Ultimately, to me, Edna as a character just had a much more satisfying arc in the Musical. But that's just my opinion. I'm not trying to tear anyone down just to lift someone else up. And if I ever were, that person certainly wouldn't be John Travolta. I just have to hand it to him, that's all.

    • Like 1

  9. Posted

    That Tex Avery gif is perfect.

     

    Something that I didn't get - why were there only black kids in detention except for Tracy? Also, after detention, Tracy ends up back in class. Is there usually detention during normal school hours?

     

    I took it as a commentary on the disproportionate amount of Black people incarcerated as opposed to White people--especially during the Sixties.

     

    I'm not too sure about detention during the day, but I know in the original film she is sent to a "Special Ed" homeroom, so it might just be a carry over from that. Maybe when they were writing the Musical they didn't feel comfortable with saying that the school felt that being Black was the equivalent of having a mental handicap... Which, is a bit too forgiving of the writer. It's like they wanted to show how racist and awful the White people were, but were still trying to say, "But that weren't THAT bad." Which, in terms of the social commentary, I think is kind of a cop out...

    • Like 1

  10. Posted

    (You're) Timeless to Me was my favorite scene (maybe not necessarily my favorite song). Sorry for repeating, but Christopher Walken is so endearing in this scene. It's the little things that he does, like the way he looks at her or his little shimmies. Also, it cracks me up when Edna sings "so you'll wear a wig, while I roast a pig" and Christopher Walken says "I love pig" while laughing.

     

    I didn't get the sense that the musical was making fun of Edna's weight. If anything, I could relate to her love of pork products.

     

    BUT, what was going on with Travolta's accent? Is this how people really speak in Baltimore?

     

    You're right. For 90% of the movie I think she was performed perfectly well. It was just that one scene that bugged me. Everything up until that point was fine, but they basically had her salivating over that food like a goddamn Tex Avery wolf.

     

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    It just came off as a bit tone deaf to me. Even though Tracy was never in danger, that scene was basically saying she loves food more than her daughter's well-being. I like pork too, but if I was legitimately worried about one of my sons' safety, I feel like I could rein that in a bit.

     

    Otherwise, I loved the character--in both versions.

     

    Accent-wise...I guess that was a choice, and a damn fine one at that. I was all in at, "How am I supposed to negotiate pleats?"

     

    ETA: Also, you're right about "Timeless." Best scene, not song.

    • Like 2

  11. Posted

    Knowing how beloved John Waters' original movie is, I made sure to do my due diligence and watch it before I watched this. And while I really liked the original, and would never dream of disputing its place as an all time classic, I think I found the Musical, ultimately, more enjoyable. Whereas the original was able to elicit the occasional grin, the musical gave me quite a few genuine, and unexpected, laugh out loud moments. However, even though I think I liked it more, I'm not sure that makes itself a "classic." Does that make sense?

     

    I liked that in the Musical, while maybe losing some of the subtlety of the original, fleshed out some of the characters a bit more--especially Link, Maybelle, Edna, and Wilbur (although, I'm not sure if the "joke shop seduction" scene was absolutely necessary). I really liked how Link had to wrestle a bit between his beliefs and his career. In the original, he's just on board from the get-go which seems a bit...abrupt. I also liked that it gave a lot more agency to Motormouth Maybelle. In my opinion, Tracy comes off as a little bit too much of a "great white hope" character, and it was nice to see Maybelle take charge in this version.

     

    However, this isn't to say the Musical isn't without its flaws...

     

    For instance, I really didn't like the cartoon-ish way they portrayed Edna's weight as a joke--particularly the scene at the record shop. I'm supposed to believe this concerned mother is going to forget all her worries about her daughter because of some "braised" meat? Not to mention, that in the original, it's Penny's mother who goes down there which makes waaaaaaay more sense.

     

    As far as the music was concerned, I really enjoyed it. There were a couple of numbers where my mind wondered a bit, but overall I thought it quite good. If I had to pick a favorite, I think I liked "(You're) Timeless to Me" the most.

     

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpiUk_EDZy0

  16. Posted

    I've never won before.

    To be considered a winner among such great movie deconstructionists as yourseves is quite an honor. Seriously. It is a highlight on the last day of 2016 for me.

     

    But with that said, take solace in the fact that years from now others will rightfully view fister's comment as the "raging bull" masterpiece that it is vs my "ordinary people" of a theory.... My "crash" of a theory..."Argo"?

     

    Argo fuck yourselves.

     

    Yours was great too! I have a soft spot, though, for seemingly banal comments delivered with such passion. It's why that Covenant comment about glass replacement will always be one of my favorites.

    • Like 1

  18. Posted

     

    Ah shit, that Mortal Kombat: Annihalation episode's gonna be a bitch...

     

     

    ..And on that day shall our friendship be truly tested. :)

     

    No. I don't care if people want to share that stuff, it can be really interesting. Just don't act like I'm wrong or dumb because the extent of my knowledge extends only as far as the filmmakers have chosen to share with me in their movie. Like they've said on the show, I'm watching this as a standalone movie. I'm not about to take a deep dive into everything Street Fighter or The Shadow or whatever.

    • Like 1

  19. Posted

    i have a confession .. i haven't even seen escape form New York ... it's shameful i know. do i need to watch it before LA ... will LA spoil the original?

     

    I was actually wondering the same thing. I don't mind watching both if I need to. I just find it annoying when we're all having a discussion about a movie, and every time you write something, somebody feels the need to chime in with, "Well, actually, according to the lore found in the now out-of-print Extended Universe books published thirty years ago at the time of the movie's release..."

     

    I mean, if you want to add all that stuff, that's great, just please don't correct me because I don't share your nerdy pursuits--I have plenty of my own thank you very much. I'm basing everything I'm saying strictly on the piece of "Art" in front of me.

    • Like 3

  24. Posted

    Oh no I think Hairspray is considered good and popular! I just happen to have seen it after the original and that was probably a mistake because the original is soooo good! According to Wikipedia the 88 version is a musical though lol.

     

    Part of these discussions have to be how things stack up to the original, right?

     

    Well, I thought about that too. One of the reasons I chose it was that I thought it was available on Netflix. Turns out, though, it's the '88 version that's on Netflix. I mean, I MAY, watch the ''88 version, the '07 version, and the LIVE version that's on Hulu for the sake of comparison. It just depends on the time I have and whether or not I even like it.

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