Ghost Busting the Antifeminists
For the past few months, Iāve been hearing about nothing so much as the controversy over the newest Ghostbusters movie. It didnāt really bother me one way or another because I have no strong feelings on the original. It wasnāt a bad movie by any means, but it didnāt leave a lasting impression on me. So I decided to check out the trailer as someone who wouldnāt be a whiny, butthurt fanboy. What I got was... about what I expected.
Keep in mind, Iām talking about this first trailer. See Here
There have been hundreds, if not thousands, of reviews, blog posts, and comments on what makes this a bad trailer. Iām not going to beat that particular dead horse. Instead, Iām going to focus on the people metaphorically screaming about theĀ āhatersā and how they are actually shitting all over feminism in their bid to be progressive.
In recent years, having a cause to rally behind (usually on the internet) has become the height of good manners and taste. That said, there are people who hate the idea of women in aĀ āmanāsā role, but thatās not who Iām talking about here.
No, Iām talking about a more insidious type of person, or in this particular case, persons. Iām talking about the company that tries to shift the blame of a crappy movie from the director (male) to the cast (female) while calling us, the viewing public, antifeminists. The men behind this movie want so badly to believe that they did nothing wrong, that itās because they had the balls to cast an all female group, that they twist the facts to fit their needs.Ā
The truth is, Sony Pictures Entertainment is blaming the wrong group, not that theyāll ever admit that. Sony, if you want to know what really went wrong, youāll have to analyse the movie trailers on your own. Anyone who takes any sort of cinema appreciation course in college knows the director is the one with the most power in a film, and the actors have the least.Ā If youāre going to have the balls to cast an all female Ghostbusters movie, then have the balls to own up to the fact that this backlash isnāt about feminism. That Ghostbusters is just a shitty reboot in a sea of shitty reboots, and by shifting the blame from the director to the actors, from the man to the women, you are guilty of the very same crime of which you accused the viewing public.
Now, donāt get me wrong. Iām not saying the director is horrible. Iām not qualified to make those kinds of judgments. Beyond that he is at least competent in the art of filmmaking. Paul Feig (the director) is not a terrible person. I canāt say if heās nice, as Iāve never met the man before. I also canāt say heās bad at his job. I donāt particularly enjoy the style of comedy he produces, but that is entirely personal taste. Audiences didnāt universally loath Spy, and, from what I remember, they loved Bridesmaids (again, not my taste in film), both of which he directed. Until he contacts me directly to say that by blaming him Iām actually against women, Iām going to guess that he has nothing to do with this outcry against public tastes. And Iām sorry to the lovely ladies that star in the new Ghostbusters movies. We all wish it could have been better.
I honestly donāt hate the new Ghostbusters remake. Iām just not interested in it. Iām not big on modern comedy movies, they donāt interest me and they donāt make me laugh.Ā