Discussion
  • Read More
    OvdanyakadHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 6:01pm
    GIF

    “Few things are more infuriating than being sold a film about minorities that is really about a white savior.”

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      mandilynmOvdanyakad
      2/01/16 6:05pm

      It’s the .gif that keeps on giving.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      Big DOvdanyakad
      2/01/16 6:24pm

      White savior subtext is the fucking worst!

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    RicwashHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 6:05pm

    I am trying to think of movies, maybe in the last 30 years or so, that were largely minority that can possibly pass the DuVernay test. I am having a very hard time.

    The Color Purple

    Eve’s Bayou

    The Five Heartbeats

    Dead Presidents

    Soul Food

    The Wood

    Juice

    Malcom X

    Do The Right Thing

    I purposely left off the comedies, otherwise, the list would get too long.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      fantinethefairRicwash
      2/01/16 6:12pm

      Dreamgirls?

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      PitzerGrimmaceRicwash
      2/01/16 6:23pm

      I’ll ad one in. It was one of the most important pieces of cinema, period. Even before race comes into questions, this was one of the most remarkable epics i film. Terms of script, acting and directing. not much of a debate in this. And as it relates to minorities Eddie Olmos its director/writer/actor is a very big champion for minorities in film and Television

      AMERICAN ME

      Another couple of films in terms of the commercial Hollywood release:

      Beasts of the Southern Wild

      Straight Outta Compton

      Love and Basketball

      He Got Game

      Fruitvale Station(snuck in there because of it’s trajectory)

      Takers

      ATL

      Keanu- From Key and Peele

      There are films out there. however there are way to many films in which minorities are used as props and scenery.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    cew-smokeHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 5:52pm

    Wait a minute. You mean people who aren’t white don’t sit around discussing white people every minute of the day? I don’t get it. I can’t think of anything more important than me. Next you’re going to tell me that women don’t sit around talking about men every waking moment. What a topsy turvy world we live in.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      ValerieHousecew-smoke
      2/01/16 7:03pm

      If I’m not talking or thinking about white men...what am I supposed to doing with my time?

      My nails obviously. And cooking and cleaning. And....wait, is there anything else to life? Once the house is clean and dinner is made, what’s a woman to do with herself?

      Ouch! I just got a headache from thinking so hard. And I chipped a nail...let me go tend to that straight away.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      tinfoilhattieValerieHouse
      2/02/16 9:33am

      Well HELL, woman! Who's minding the baby?

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    paultoesHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 5:56pm

    This video series does a great job of showing just how bad it is.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      Codename_SailorVpaultoes
      2/01/16 6:05pm

      God this video just reminds me how literally nauseating Birdman was for me to watch. It’s one of the few movies I’ve almost walked out of.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      jemandthehologramspaultoes
      2/01/16 8:41pm

      In fairness, that movie was terrible for so many reasons. The fact that it was crtitically acclaimed is baffling.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    KnittingAuntHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 5:56pm

    Anything that adds variety to the movies and stories being made is good. I’m still bored witless with the White Man, side kick and bland girlfriend movie.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      andthenshewaslikeKnittingAunt
      2/01/16 6:08pm

      Yeah, as good as the Bechdel test is, I’m a bigger fan of the sexy lamp test for exactly the reason you state.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    One Bird MockingHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 5:52pm

    Why the hate for Hustle and Flow?

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      RicwashOne Bird Mocking
      2/01/16 6:07pm

      I was kind of wondering that myself. Not my personal choice for a great movie, I thought it was merely ok, but I didn’t hate it.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      b1gdon5Ricwash
      2/01/16 6:15pm

      I’ll say it. I thought Hustle and Flow was GREAT!!! It was nice to see a movie about black people not from the East coast, SoCal, or the Tyler Perry Christo-Cultural Complex.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    I'm Fart and I'm SmunnyHillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 5:45pm

    Ava DuVernay is one of those people where if she told me to jump off a bridge, I would do it, no questions asked.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      HappyHighwaymanI'm Fart and I'm Smunny
      2/01/16 5:50pm

      And the world would be better off because another sheep would be gone

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    MOAR Champers, Darling?Hillary Crosley Coker
    2/01/16 7:47pm

    This issue has made me more aware. Ex: last night we watched “The Martian” (sorry, yawned), and in one of the final scenes Matt Damon is lecturing future astronauts. Nice blend of male and female, one black guy.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      mollymlf05Hillary Crosley Coker
      2/01/16 6:35pm

      What would be the exact requirements of a passing film under the DuVernay Test? The genius part about the Bechdel Test is that it has has 3 requirements (1: two women, 2: who speak to each other, 3: about something other than a man) that seem so easy, but rarely happen. How would one quantify “fully realized” minority characters?

      There’s already the Deggans Test, but that doesn’t go quite far enough. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki....

      Reply
      <
      • Read More
        MrsTankToYoumollymlf05
        2/01/16 7:18pm

        I would go with 1. two POCs 2. talking to each other 3. about something other than a white person.

        Possibly include 4. and not a movie about race but with that I feel like that rules out any story about slavery or the civil rights movement. Which is probably the point.

        Reply
        <
    • Read More
      AnnaHillary Crosley Coker
      2/01/16 5:55pm

      I didn’t think that reapplying the Bechdel test to other groups was a new concept, but I’ll admit that having its own name will surely facilitate greater prominence for the DuVernay test.

      Ava DuVernay really is a perfect choice of namesake, and I love that if this really catches on long-term, it’ll be part of her legacy. Way better than paying a college to name a building after you, amirite?

      Reply
      <
      • Read More
        AnemoneAnna
        2/01/16 6:08pm

        I was under the impression applying the Bechdel test to minorities already had its own name, but I can’t remember what it was.

        There’s Deggans’ Rule (thanks, TV Tropes!) but I remember another name, too.

        Reply
        <
      • Read More
        AnnaAnemone
        2/01/16 7:22pm

        Googled that for ya. ;)

        This post from October 2013 seems focused on representation of Indian characters, but it fits the bill:

        I call for a test to be applied – (originally called The Shukla Test - or, if you think that’s arrogant,* we could call it The Apu** Test) – akin to the Bechdel Test for gender. I want to see a film where two ethnic minorities talk to each other for more than five minutes about something other than race.

        * The author’s name is Nikesh Shukla. Fun fact: ‘shukla’ is apparently the Sanskrit word for ‘white’!

        ** Apu Nahasapeemapetilon is apparently a Simpsons character who is apparently the proprietor of a Kwik-E-Mart. I take it that he is a stereotypical caricature whose entire identity is consumed by his cultural background.

        Reply
        <