10 July 2000

THE UGLY (cont): For me, it falls a little short of There's Something About Mary because that movie had a weird magic in the story of the most pained geek pursuing the most perfect woman. Renee Zellweger is a cute, spunky, sexy woman. But she's not Cameron Diaz. Or Vanessa Angel, for that matter. She is real. And so is Jim Carrey. He's tall and thin and good looking, but he's not Matt Dillon (before the teeth). These are real people. True, one is made of rubber. But the romantic stakes are a little lower here. That mixture of absolute insanity and a perfect working romance made There's Something About Mary one of the great comedies for all time, in my opinion. In this film, you want to see Charlie (the good side) beat Hank (the bad side) for the hand of the fair maiden...but only kinda. Hank's the guy who's really fun to watch here. So you root a little less hard for a happy ending, even though The Farrelys (and co-screenwriter Mike Cerrone) handle the entire third act with the skill and wit that leaves you wondering how they did it.

Also of note are a number of things in the closing credits, which I will let you discover for yourself. Let me just say that the guys show the kind of love and respect for their movie co-workers that is as rare as their gifts for humor.

BAD AD WATCH: What was Disney thinking by using the theme from Wild Wild West in its ads for The Kid? Yes, I know that they used Stevie Wonder's original version of I Wish and not Will Smith's variation on that classic. But still, doesn't it seem like playing with fire?

READER OF THE DAY: RKW writes: "I agree with Spike about the "missing slaves" problem in Patriot, but for very different reasons. Last summer, I did a sort of mini-missionary project in South Carolina, and did a lot of research on the history and culture of the Sea Islands off the coast of the Carolinas and Georgia before I went (since I had known very little about the area). I discovered that black people had been some of the earliest immigrants to the area -- bought there first by the Spanish (!) -- not all were brought as slaves, and many of those people originally slaves were free before the American Colonies were even thought of by the English.

At several points in time, there were many many more black people than white ones in the area. The whole area was unique for being remarkably similar to the places in Africa from which people were removed by the slave traders, and these slaves were allowed remarkable autonomy almost immediately by the plantation-owners who had much more trouble living in the area. The black people in these areas did not have their African culture or language stripped from them, since the plantation-owners soon became dependent on their slaves (and the local black freemen) to decide what and how to plant, how to use the local resources, how to grow and prepare herbal medicines against indigenous diseases, where to fish, how to set up indigo-dyeing, cotton-processing, basketry and wood-carving industries. The English knew nothing about how to raise rice or peanuts or yams, etc., and counted on the African peoples to make the most of the area -- for themselves, and for the whites. Of course, the whites benefited enormously from owning slaves (and both black & white indentured servants, too...) but the Africans in this area were far from the stereotypes of the oppressed "darkies" of Uncle Tom's Cabin -- at least during the time that Patriot was set. The African culture that flourished there has made our collective culture amazingly enriched. In fact, I discovered during my research that the quintessential American phrase, "O Kay," is actually from the African tongue that was to become Gullah -- "Yaw Keh" means "It is acceptable," or "This is correct," and became "American slang" during the Revolutionary War -- taught to the whites by the black soldiers!! Other techniques, such as how to fight in tropical land, how to signal with drums, etc. were also explained to the whites by Africans, and might very well be responsible for a large part of the success of the American's guerrilla-forces.

The Sea Islands, where much of the action of Patriot is set, were ALL ceded to black people after the Civil War; in the original legislation, every individual (male) was indeed entitled to 40 acres, although the mules referred to in folklore (and in Spike Lee's "joint") were not specified at that time. It is a shame that all Americans do not know how much America is what it is because of these African peoples, and that such films as Patriot are not reflective of these contributions. But I agree with your ROTD that, perhaps, such a movie -- telling the story of the Gullah/Geechee peoples -- needs to be told, and perhaps Spike is the one to do it.

While we're at it, the story of the Cherokee peoples (from not too far away from this same area) including the amazing saga of Sequoia, who brought his people to almost 100% literacy within a generation at a time when North American whites' literacy was less than 10%, and of the women leaders who kept the Cherokee nation alive as a people during the Train of Tears, needs to be told, as well."

And M.O. Kay writes: "When I read your review of The Patriot, I thought that it still might be satisfying. Boy what a disappointment, the score is lame, and every problem you had with the film I did too. The film is still worth seeing despite the fact the director is a Jacka**, Mel Gibson would have been better. Here is my real problem, Spike Freaking Lee! This guy is really starting to make himself look like a real idiot these days. Spike is a very important director in our society, he can make any movie he wants which is very good for Hollywood. I am not black, but I agree with Spike how me need more African American movies and more attention to their role in America. The Patriot is a cheesy movie, and this country is racist and stupid as people can be, it is a fact. The studio is saying, (We are trying to be noble in ignoring race as an issue in our Gibson epic the audience is not smart enough, for what it cost to make). Spike Lee is rich and talented, he is also a real son of a b**ch that is making us see shady characters in movies that have no place in a movie. Is it really even necessary to have a black guy in a movie just to insult him and make a dumb character in a movie. Here is my take more black part's with meaning, more black movies, more honestly in Hollywood. Less freaking bulls** like Spike Lee complaining about how racist the patriot is! Is Braveheart racist too, or Glory? Spike is wacko, movies are good because of content not race. "

Finally, this from JLN adds: " It's about time that we look closer at historical pieces and stopped trying to make characters so likable that they become the only cool non-racist in the 1700s. A good movie should be able to place the protagonist into a more three-dimensional setting where he can react as a product of his time. It doesn't need to be more than a little detail to hint at the differences in the world of the past, but Mel Gibson probably didn't want to bring down the audience. At the same time, the past doesn't have to be viewed only by the ever focusing eye of our modern world. One should be able to build a context in which a figure who lives a life style we now find disgusting (owning slaves) can still be seen as a heroic, given the time he lives in. As to the concept of being touchy, white guys (of which I'm one) should learn to stay on topic when talking about race and stop saying "you're just being touchy", you can have a much better conversation by arguing points, facts and concepts specifically, than you can telling someone that they are over sensitive. If you really want to talk racism, go back to the latest Star Wars movie and forget about Jar Jar, check out those Trade Federation guys who play characters right out of a bad WWII Anti-Japanese propaganda film. Doesn't George have any friends who aren't white? Not anymore."

E ME: Did you see Scary Movie? Will the box office numbers get you there if you didn't see it this weekend? Should they?