Episode 35 — Tiptoes

[Lukas Holmes 2287]

Not a fan of the r-word in the least, and I understand anger about the m-word. However it is being 'that guy' to not be offended by the words and then post stuff about 'maybe someone will be offended'. That's called being a 'concern troll'. If you really had a problem with it, send an email to Earwolf, don't post it here just to get a response. That isn't trying to be helpful, that's trying to start a fight on the boards. You made your point, now people get to agree or disagree.

 

Meanwhile, over at Professor Blastoff, we're aruging about if there is a God or not, and who believes in him more! Or less. Or something. GRAVITY!!!

[Merdie 1]

 

 

I think what he was saying was more along the lines of..."this is a comedy podcast." The cast of this podcast barely says the word midget, they all use "dwarf" or "little people" for the vast majority of the episode. Besides, half of the banter on this show is inappropriate because that's how friends talk about bad movies. Laugh at it in context or don't. Either way please take the super sensitive, passive aggressive bullshit somewhere else.

 

P.S. I don't think Jason said literally one time in this episode. Literally not one time.

 

To be clear, he didn't say anything. He pasted a .gif attached to two quotes to add to the discussion.

 

I believe that Paul, June and Dave really do have empathy for all kinds of people and I don't think they meant it maliciously. The movie itself was offensive to the little people community, but it just seems like the gang would try a little harder to show respect despite the ridiculousness served up in the film. It takes half a molecule of brain space to replace a word in your vocabulary. So why not just do it? If you're stubborn enough to think that that is censorship, I hope you get all the satisfaction you want from not progressing.

[JacobCrites 4977]

Whoa. Well I certainly want to apologize if I sounded passive aggressive or troll-y. I didn't post it just for kicks. And I was genuinely offended by it. I used the term "bummed out" but...anyway, I meant it as offended. The reason I even posted this here and not in some letter to Earwolf is because, well sheesh, I'm not livid. I didn't feel the need to rant and rage. I'm a huge fan of the show, and this one little thing didn't set well with me. I know that the HDTDM crew read the boards so I thought I'd let 'em know, in a way I thought was reasonable, and maybe give them a chance to say something about it. Obviously they're not malicious people who hate dwarves and mentally handicapped people. I didn't think I was being unreasonable, and if I ended up just sounding like an overly-sensitive buzz-killer trying to stir up trouble then I really want to apologize for that.

 

On topic: they didn't talk about the corn rows enough.

[Merdie 1]

I was the passive-aggressive one and that was dumb of me. So there's that.

[Ghost of HST 71]

Poor Bridget "the Midget":

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVz7vdktX8M

[ChaseRoper 64]

You know what bugs me? People who who insist on taking a word that is perceived to be bad and making it the "first letter"-word. That alone is passive aggressive. Like Louis C.K has brought up on stage, you abbreviate but we're all still thinking it. Can't we discuss the word and use the word we're discussing?

 

Midget was once the actual term used to describe severely small people who had regular proportioned bodies. Like a hobbit. P.T. Barnum used the term for people living with Dwarfism and obviously was degrading those people as well. The rest of society didn't get the memo and most of us don't know when to use which term. Do you want dwarf? Do you want "little person"? How about I ignore it all together and don't call you anything. Except for when I'm watching a movie wherein actors living with dwarfism (or kneeling down and pretending to) are referring TO EACH OTHER as all three!

 

So cut everyone some slack. Nobody wants to hurt anyone's feelings here. You should all be just as equally offended that this god damned movie exists. I have a son with autism and if there was a Tiptoes movie about living with Aspergers I'd be upset.

 

Unless I wrote it.

 

I should write that.

[Wien 401]

I remember when we used to come here just to laugh at dumb movies.

[Lukas Holmes 2287]

What happened EarWolf message boards? You used to be cool.

 

I remember when we used to come here just to laugh at dumb movies.

[JacobCrites 4977]

What happened EarWolf message boards? You used to be cool.

Sorry to be one of the ones who completely derailed the conversation. But instead of complaining about the fact that people aren't talking about the movie, why not try and get it back on track by actually talking about it?

 

On topic: has anyone here seen the two-hour director's cut? Is it better? Worse? I feel that the elements in play in this movie prevent it from being good in any stretch of the word, but maybe it at least makes more sense?

 

I would also love to see a documentary about the person who thought introducing Marxism into the movie was a good idea.

[Wien 401]

Sorry to be one of the ones who completely derailed the conversation. But instead of complaining about the fact that people aren't talking about the movie, why not try and get it back on track by actually talking about it?

 

On topic: has anyone here seen the two-hour director's cut? Is it better? Worse? I feel that the elements in play in this movie prevent it from being good in any stretch of the word, but maybe it at least makes more sense?

 

I would also love to see a documentary about the person who thought introducing Marxism into the movie was a good idea.

 

 

Dude, I have NO idea why Dinklage's being a Marxist was ever introduced into this. It was one of those things that made me feel like the movie actually wasn't taking itself seriously. Its like when Vern Troyer shows up in a movie in a firefighter or lumberjack costume, or a basketball jersey.

[neilly 105]

Speaking of no relevance whatsoever...RIP MCA! I just had to say that somewhere; and since I don't do Facebook or twitter, this is my only social media outlet.

Just had to throw out some respect!

Sad weekend....

[TimThompson 22]

It was pretty disgusting to hear the term "midget" used so flippantly during this podcast. Jason seemed like the only one who consciously chose to say "drawf" or "little person." These people really hear enough insensitivity thrown at them throughout their lives from little children, hacky radio DJs and general assholes - it's dissappointing to hear the same from smart and socially aware comedians. I hope you sell a lot of t-shirts though.

 

Instead of being personally offended & perhaps deciding that this podcast is not your cup of tea, how do people get to be collectively offended & take it upon themselves to write out a retort?

 

The vigilanteism over something so petty is astounding. People overly concerned with political correctness should not look in the comedy genre for their entertainment.

 

 

Let me be the first to put an official Listener Advisory Warning:

***Comedy is not for sensitive listeners, especially free comedy, it will most certainly offend***

[lolzrena 6]

Know what's not cool? Telling people when they can or cannot be offended.

 

Look! Even comedians can get it...

http://www.buzzfeed.com/jpmoore/jason-alexander-calls-cricket-a-gay-sport-write

 

Feel free to mock me all you want, for I do not give a crap!

[TimThompson 22]

Know what's not cool? Telling people when they can or cannot be offended.

 

Look! Even comedians can get it...

http://www.buzzfeed....gay-sport-write

 

Feel free to mock me all you want, for I do not give a crap!

 

You can be offended all you want. Why do I have to hear about it though?

 

People go through life hearing offensive statements the world over. Why do you think I care if you are personally offended? If you were really personally offended I wouldn't be hearing about because you'd keep it to yourself.

 

 

This is a fansite so negative, accusatory comments about the show don't really have a place. If anyone is truly collectively offended please take time out of your day to create an anti-fansite & see all the crazy traffic you get.

[lolzrena 6]

Calling someone out on being insensitive isn't necessarily negative. Sheesh. Just because something makes you feel uncomfortable doesn't mean it's an attack. There is a difference between saying someone did a shitty thing and saying they suck.

 

This IS a fan site. I AM a fan. That doesn't mean I can't disagree with anything ever.

 

Now I'm off to make an anti-fansite for a show I love cuz that makes a ton of sense.

[TimThompson 22]

Calling someone out on being insensitive isn't necessarily negative. Sheesh. Just because something makes you feel uncomfortable doesn't mean it's an attack. There is a difference between saying someone did a shitty thing and saying they suck.

 

This IS a fan site. I AM a fan. That doesn't mean I can't disagree with anything ever.

 

Now I'm off to make an anti-fansite for a show I love cuz that makes a ton of sense.

 

The hosts have an audio engineer & the capability to edit any of the audio you heard. They are obviously fine with whatever product they put out. You're accusing them of being intentionally insensitive & you're trying to platform your moral filter on their work. I like the unique product they create & don't want to see your hypersensitive filter show up in the show.

 

This podcast isn't a campaign for political office. If it were I'm sure the hosts would apply the necessary tact & discretion that you desire.

[JimB-Reay 53]

Ok - I listened to the podcast without seeing the movie or trailer, and the whole time I had Gary COLEMAN in mind as the star, not OLDMAN, which made the whole plot about the brother being worried his kids would be little people seem ridiculous.

[JustinStolle 6]

Reiterating what was said in the episode, the dialogue in this movie is outright insane. Perhaps the craziest line is Carol (Kate Beckinsale) saying to Steven (Matthew McConaughey), "So you had a circle jerk with a bunch of little people? I would've loved to see that."

 

Carol says she thinks she's pregnant, then:

• Steven: "But we've been using protection."
  
• Carol: "Yeah, except for those two or three times a week when you wake me up in the middle of the night. Don't tell me you don't remember, either."
  

 

The words that Carol uses are also very uncommon in everyday speech:

• "I guess you have good reason to be cross with her."
  
• "I'm not mad, I'm just bewildered."
  
• "What a peculiar thing to say."
  
• "I think you have a lot of ambivalence about your family being little. [...] It's not a good thing for a child, if he's little, to have a father who's ambivalent about little people."
  

 

Sally (Bridget Powers), on why she's having sex with a new live-in boyfriend: "I felt sorry for him--his whole family was evicted from their apartment in the Gaza Strip. I mean, how would you feel?"

 

Carol chastises her mother, very harshly, after she wonders why Carol didn't just tell them about Steven's family earlier. "If you embarrass me, I'll never speak to you again, so just get it together, Mom, okay?!"

 

Lucy (Patricia Arquette) giving her back-story, which makes no sense and is never referenced again:

"Well, my ex-old man, Jerome, he used to whittle wood jewelry. See? He whittled all this for me. He even whittled me a wedding ring. See the splinter? Then he turned really evil. He was a truck driver and those guys are all on crank. And there's those, you know, transsexual prostitutes. Anyway, he flipped out and thought I was an alien walk-in. You don't wanna hear this stuff."

[JustinStolle 6]

There are also strange fart references.

 

Rolfe is shouting on the phone to Sally and says, "I'm a fucking fart":

 

Lucy asks Maurice if he farted in the hot tub:

 

But biggest of them all, Carol's dad Kirk tells a full on limerick about farts and ends it with a crazy face.

 

There once was a young fellow from Sparta

Who was a real whiz as a farter

He'd fart anything, from "God Save the King"

To Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata

 

He'd fart a gavotte for a starter

And then a Handelian cantata

Boost up his ass, blast Bach's B minor Mass

And then counterpoint La Traviata

 

[RyanSz 3140]

Apparently, the director's cut has seen the light of day as it was shown at one of the first Butt-Numb-Athons, so hopefully there is an actual DVD coming out or someone recorded that shit with their phone.

[Memphish_Boognish 249]

There was an article on Grantland today breaking down the trailer for Tiptoes

 

http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/rembert-explains-the-pre-mcconaissance-tiptoes/

[drivewaystyle 9]

Several years late to this ep but just watched the film and feel the spirit stirring within. Essentially I think the arguments for the suckiness of the film boil down to:

First, many taking offensive about Oldman's casting as a dwarf. Second, a cluster of complaints with a similar source:

1) Incoherent transitions; 2) Arbitrary, barely connected Dinklage/Arquette story; 3) Poor song, score, foley, etc. selections; 4) Most of all, no throughline to a plot. Add in 5) Disconcerting, apparently unearned and inexplicable endpoint.

The first, I would hazard this answer to, though with a professed ignorance about dwarfism and little person cultural standards. The film argues strenuously that dwarfism is a type of identity centered around negotiating a) real physical difference, including genuine biological suffering that may entail pain up to and including premature death; and b ) a cultural aspect of combating ignorance/prejudice/discrimination. So the question: Can no actor play a character outside their physical characteristics? And can no actor play a character outside their cultural grouping? I've never heard complaints about Daniel Day-Lewis as Christy Brown, or Russell Crowe as John Nash (in the former category); I' don't recall much fuss about Sean Penn as Harvey Milk, or Donovan Jr. as Hedwig, etc (in the latter category). I found the performance very sensitive and empathetic; like the above mentioned perfomances by others, that goes a long way to deterring charges that it is in someone a variation on "blackface"--which explicitly means to mock, belittle, undermine and otherize.

Second: The terrible flaws of the film, in my mind, are the second group. They make it look beyond amateurish but incompetent at points. What do they all have in common? Post-production. Editors who are morons, or who are controlled by moron producers, would be the ones to pin these problems on, especially since we know the director was removed from the process.

 

There are really tremendous performances here. Everyone mentions Oldman but I have to wonder if the people who decided to give McConaughey a second chance circa 2009-2010 hadn't seen this, because he did not display much ability in his other films of this period. Beckinsale, also, impressed me. Terrible at first but by the end, probably the best work I've seen her do. (I will agree Dinklage was out there and could have used a few notes on Maurice). That said, the strong scenes are little islands in a sea of incoherence.

 

I read that Dinklage says the director's cut was gorgeous. I believe it. I bet somewhere on a shelf in Bright's study are a few great cans of film (hard drive?). It's frustrating to get so many tantalizing tibdits of it, embedded in a lumpy gelatin mold. Here's hoping the real thing gets out to us someday.