Manic Pixie Dream Girls As Explained By Anita Sarkeesian

Anita Sarkeesian from the awesome blog, Feminist Frequency is doing a series of vblogs called Tropes vs. Women that “[explore] the reoccurring stories, themes and representations of women in Hollywood films and TV shows.” Her first post is on the Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

The Manic Pixie Dream Girl is a cute, bubbly, young (usually white) woman who has recently entered the life of our brooding hero to teach him how to loosen up and enjoy life.

 

Link to full transcript over here.

More on the Manic Pixie Dream Girl over here at TV Tropes. Warning, links lead to TV Tropes.

Miss Marple Reboot Casts Jennifer Garner

Image via Wikipedia

Miss Marple.

Please tell me, for the sake of my sanity that when I give you a question like “Who’d you most like to portray Miss Marple in a major film” you don’t immediately think, “Jennifer Garner!”

Now this is not a post about Jennifer Garner; it’s about Miss Marple and why actresses like, oh I don’t know, off the top of my head, Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Zoë Wanamaker, Meryl Streep, Emma Thompson, just to name a few, didn’t even get a chance because word is that “Disney has made a deal to revive the Agatha Christie mystery series staple character Miss Marple, but with one big difference: instead of the elderly spinster who lives in the English village of St. Mary Mead and solves mysteries as a hobby, the new configuration is for Mark Frost to script a version where Marple is in her 30s or 40s.”

Well then, I guess we should be glad we’re even getting a 40s option, no? Or couldn’t they have just acquired rights for Nancy Drew?

You know what, here’s a suggestion. Well alright then, she’s American and much younger now. Since they’ve opened that door, I’ll walk right through it. Why not cast a woman of color as Miss Marple? Arguments like staying true to the original source work don’t hold water anymore.

Related Articles

• Jennifer Garner Cast in Reboot of Agatha Christie’s ‘Miss Marple’ (screenrant.com)

Just In Case Airbender Wasn’t Bad Enough

From Racebending.com:

Hollywood is adapting the classic manga and anime AKIRA to the silver screen. Given the current lack of lead roles for actors of color in the science fiction genre, the complex characters of AKIRA would be a great opportunity for Asian American actors. Will directors Albert and Allen Hughes cast Asian American actors to play the iconic roles of Kaneda and Tetsuo?

The latest draft script for Akira is reportedly set in “Neo-Manhattan” instead of Neo-Tokyo. Given the prominence and popularity of the original Akira, we know fans will be closely following the development of this Warner Bros. production. On March 22nd, 2011, Deadline.com reported that eight actors have been invited to audition–all of the actors are white.

FAQ about Akira from Racebending.com

One would think that after The Last Airbender caused so much controversy and did a lot worse than the makers were expecting, this wouldn’t happen again. Not only are they removing the original setting, which I assume is to make it more “relatable” [insert *side-eye* here] or whatever BS they want to feed us, they are keeping the japanese names all the while buzzing for white actors to get involved with the project.

Yet again, Hollywood targets the young white male demographic and takes it even further by shamelessly appropriating a culture for entertainment purposes. Go you, Hollywood! Go you.