RIP Leslie Nielsen (1926-2010)

"Surely, you can't be serious."
"I am serious. And don't call me Shirley."

How can you not love the person who uttered those words? Like many in my generation, I became familiar with the late Leslie Nielsen after watching his Airplane and Naked Gun movies. I have been a fan of comedies ever since.

What is so amazing about Nielsen is that he was in his 50s when Airplane was being filmed. Prior to this, he had a very impressive resume as a dramatic actor. The success of Airplane and the Naked Gun introduced him to a new genre as well as a new fan base. Thinks about this the next time you catch yourself whining that you are "too old" to learn a new skill or that is "too late" to pursue your dreams. I know I definitely will.

Thanks for the laughs, Mr. Nielsen. You will be missed.

Salt

I am quite excited about this film. I have been a fan of Angelina Jolie for quite some time, so I am always interested in what she is about to do next (even though I must admit I am not feeling her playing Cleopatra, for reasons explained here). Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to seeing her in Salt.

I love the fact the a woman is starring in the movie as an action lead. How cool is it that Angie was able to land a role that was originally written for Tom Cruise? I don't want to hear any Hollywood actresses whining about how hard it is to get work when this chick was able to get a role the was originally for a man and had the whole storyline changed for her! Angie has so much clout that she pretty much calls the shots. One of the reasons that I think she has been so successful is because she has done a good job in picking the right roles. She has always went for the edgy, complicated roles instead of the sentimental and sweet characters you constantly see in romantic comedies. Jezebel elaborates on this further.

Hopefully Salt does well at the box office because if it doesn't then you know you will never see another movie like this again. Male actors can be in flop after flop but if a woman is not successful she is quickly given the ax. Time will tell. Stay tuned for my review!

h/t Women and Hollywood

Would YOU Leave Your Man Alone with Nicki Minaj?

If you're Alicia Keys, the answer to that question is a resounding no.

I must admit, I found this tidbit of gossip to be very comical. The visual of Alicia waddling full speed to the studio to babysit Swizz Beats cracks me up. There is a very good possibly that this story is not even true, but the funny (and sad) part is that it could be. How many women feel the need to watch their man like a hawk, especially when he's around around "scandalous" women?

Of course all this does is reinforce the notion that men are slaves to their penises and it is de evil wimmenz fault for tempting them. Which is of course why everyone has attacked Alicia for "stealing" Swizz away from his first wife, while he received virtually no criticism at all. It is quite funny how women are given so much credit. Maybe someone can pass some of that "evil seductress" magic off on me so that I can put a spell on these poor defenseless men.

Has there been a woman that you didn't want your s/o around? Please share!

Bethenny Frankel a Perfect Example of What Women Face When they Dare to Elevate Themselves

Props to Bethenny for having the highest rated premiere in Bravo history. Like 2 million others, I tuned into to the debut of Bethenny Getting Married and I think it is a great show. After seeing the negativity and pettiness displayed in the third season of the Real Housewives of New York City, it was refreshing to see Bethenny enjoying her pregnancy, career and hubby-to-be.

Which brings me to why I decided to write this post. While it was an absolute train-wreck, I think we can learn a great deal from the last season of the NY Housewives. As women, many are deeply invested in our suffering. Unfortunately, many of these people are usually other women. These women simply cannot be happy for other women and deeply threatened by any real or perceived female competition. In addition, women for the most part are assigned roles: the smart one, the funny one, the pretty one, the slutty one, etc. The second a woman dares to step out of this role, people will become upset. Some of these people will be her own family and friends. Which brings me to the Bethenny/Jill fallout.

Jill was happy in her role as "queen bee," and loved having Bethenny as a side-kick. When you are a wealthy, married socialite with an ego problem what could be better than having a sad, lonely, broke misfit around to make you feel better about your own life? I must say, castmate Ramona Singer was right when she said in season two of RHNYC that Jill likes being around Bethenny because she is the "underdog." In fact, while the Bethenny/Jill feud was a pivotal part of the season three storyline, many of the issues that resulted in the demise of their friendship began in season two. The snide remarks, the career sabotage, etc. When Bethenny decided to not play her role as underdog and actively seek for more, Jill could not handle it. Another cast member, Alex McCord, blogged in great detail about some of the vindictive things Jill has done to Bethenny since their friendship has dissolved. I have to say that I am not surprised. I think many of us have or have had these sort of toxic friends in our lives at one point.

Many people feel that Bethenny should have given Jill a chance because Jill was "there for her when she had nothing." I disagree. As a matter of fact I think that people who like to constantly like to remind you where you came from should be cut out of your social circle immediately. How can you grow when you constantly have people telling you how you used to be?

What amazes me the most is how women are totally unprepared for the fallout that WILL happen when they choose to step out of their assigned roles and elevate themselves. Are you preparing yourself for the inevitable hate you will receive as you embark on your own self-empowerment journey?

Mean Girl (Alex McCord)

Is Biting the New Black? The Disappointing Lack of Originality in the Industry

Maybe it is just my age catching up with me but every time I turn on the TV or the radio I get deja vu. Every thing is now a remake, rendition, or rip-off of something else. Is creativity a thing of the past? Is everything old new again?

I know that the common response to these questions is that there is nothing new under the sun, that is is common for artists to play homage to the people who came before them or that remaking a film/TV show is a no-brainer because of the built-in fanbase, but I simply disagree. While borrowing from previous generations is common and to be expected, I see artists imitating other artists that have not even been "gone" that long. I also think that this constant recycling has made Hollywood become lazy and out of ideas. Which brings me to Exhibit A. I remember the first time I saw one of Nicki Minaj's youtube clips, I was shocked at the blatant Lil Kim swaggerjacking. It looked like it wasn't unnoticed by Miss Jones neither, and the two are now beefing big time. And the lack of originality is not just limited to rap. Yesterday I tweeted that Lady Gaga's recent video looks more like a montage of every video Madonna made from 1985-1996. Judge for yourself:











And just when I think that I've had my fill of nostalgia, I read that the remake of The Karate Kid starring Will Smith's son Jaden made a killing at the Box Office. Its competition? A remake of the A-Team. Sheesh.

A Chill Pill and a Cosmopolitan: Why Everyone Outraged Over Sex and the City Needs to Bring It Down A Notch

Who knew that a chick flick could cause such a stir??? The criticism for the sequel of Sex and the City 2 has been down right brutal. This film has been called anti-feminist, anti-Muslim, racist, consumerist, materialistic, unrealistic, a "gay fantasy," vapid, insipid, superficial and my personal favorite, a "Taliban recruitment film." These critics would have you thinking that this movie is the Birth of a Nation of our generation.

I have seen review after review that took the same emotionally charged, self-righteous and downright hostile tone that went far beyond simply not liking the quality of the writing, direction or plot. Not only has the critique of this film been unusually harsh, I was unusually bothered by it. I never pay attention to reviews, but many of the things I read just did not sit well with me. When I went to see SATC2 on opening night, I was seriously confused as to what was it that got folks so angry. As my cosmopolitan-induced buzz wore off, I thought to myself, what on earth has so many people worked up?

I could not ignore the overt and covert ageism reflected in many of the comments. I actually read the women's faces being described as "leathery." There was much ado about these four middle aged women carrying on like high school girls, how "childish" they are and how they are getting too old to do these movies. I expect men to make these comments, but when that sentiment is also shared by women (many of who claim to be feminist), I am saddened, annoyed and frustrated. Why are people so quick to remind us of what we are too old or too young to do? Isn't this just another way to keep us wimmenz in our place? Ironically, in the movie Samantha has to check a sales associate who tries to discourage her from buying a trendy dress by saying that it is too young for her. Samantha was not having that BS and neither should we.

In addition to a great deal of criticism over the film being rooted in ageism, I also think there there is some serious sexism and class warfare going on as well. I gave the side-eye to many of the male critics of this film because many of their criticism is either over the cast members appearances, how "slutty" they are or how they are engaging in behavior that they deem wrong. It just came off as more behavior policing to me and I was turned off. Which brings me to my other comment about class warfare. It is very strange to me that this film is being called materialistic. I am starting to thing that materialistic is becoming one of those dog-whistle terms used to demean any woman who dares to live well. Think of a time when you have heard of a man being referred to as materialistic. In my Katt Williams voice, "Don't worry, I'll wait."

Sexists hate women who live well because they hate any woman who aspires to want more and be more than just what some man thinks she deserves. Class warfare wagers hate them because for the most part they hate anyone with money. And like blacks, women are criticized even harsher for this because we are expected to fight the good fight since we "know what it is like" to be oppressed by the man, society, corporations, etc. As a black woman, this line of thinking offends me. My race or my gender does not obligate me to fight any system, nor does it require to be on my best behavior at all times in order to be a good representative of my people. Every woman's film does not have to have some deep, political, "feminist" message.

The one good thing that came out of this is that there appears to be some backlash to the backlash that the film is getting. I suspect that many other fans of the movie were irritated at the mean-spirited and hypocritical nature of the reviews and are finally starting to push back.

While the Box Office numbers have been somewhat disappointing, I believe this installment much better than the first. I absolutely loved that they bought Aidan back, Samantha's over the top antics were hilarious as usual, and I appreciated that they allowed Charlotte to shed her Pollyanna Super Mom image and "get real" about the challenges of parenting. The fashion was fierce (Miranda's dress in the wedding scene was TO. DIE. FOR.), and contrary to what many have said I thought that the Abu Dhabi theme was integrated into the story in a very entertaining and thought provoking way. Was it Citizen Kane? Of course not, but neither is Transformers.

H/T Women and Hollywood
H/T Mendolson's Memos









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