I assume. But that didn't stop people from complaining about it before the film came out.
Having one famous white person as the lead can be a problem for some if the setting causes them to infer that a white person maybe shouldn't be there.
Having one famous white person as the lead can be a problem for some if the setting causes them to infer that a white person maybe shouldn't be there.
Sounds like a different problem.
Maybe not the best example.Scarlett Johansson in Ghost in the Shell then.
It falls under the heading of a not-problem.
"Why did you cast Scarlett Johansson?"
"Because she agreed to do it."
I personally feel that the Helen character would likely have been served better by casting someone of a more Mediterranean variety. But what to I know?
As for the historical accuracy of the armor and vessels used, Hollywood frequently seems to sacrifice accuracy for "kewl factor". In the 1981 film Excalibur, for example, Gabriel Byrne's Uther Pendragon, Morgana and a number of other characters wore full plate armor. Uther was said to have lived around the 5th or 6th century, but plate armor didn't come into use by soldiers and knights until around 13th to 14th century. It's farby* and suspension of disbelief is necessary if one happens to know a little about history when watching these things.
* "Farb" (noun) and "farby" (adjective) is a (bit of a pejorative) term used in historical reenacting/living history circles towards newer members of units who have inappropriately modern-looking uniforms and/or equipment. This usually happens when it's hard to find something that looks good/right or is too expensive. The term "farb" comes from the longer sentence, "Far be it for me to tell you, son, that what you're wearing is NOT period-correct." God help them if they whip out a cell phone to take pictures in the middle of a tactical demonstration with spectators.
The thing about this, as well, is that storytelling has almost always been this way.
Half the reason we still associate Arthur and his knights with high medieval tropes that obviously don't fit the time period they theoretically would've lived in is because the actual medieval storytellers who popularized and immortalized the Arthurian legends themselves tended to ignore the centuries worth of differences and present the world of Arthur as basically recognizable to their contemporary audiences.
The historical events corresponding to the Trojan War probably took place over 3000 years ago. The greatest percentage of Mycenean DNA comes from people then living in the Anatolian region. They didn't look like Matt Damon or Henry Fucking Cavill. They weren't the people J.D. Vance has in mind when he says "white."
Helen of Troy was as real as Michael Burnham. She's mythical. The battles were most likely fought over water trade routes.
So, to restate the obvious: this entire tiff over casting is about some people's need to assert ownership of stories that are important to them but which have never been theirs.
Yes, that process is inherently political.
And Zendaya is objectively a more perfect goddess than Marianna Hill. Because I say so.
Helen of Troy was as real as Michael Burnham. She's mythical. The battles were most likely fought over water trade routes.
So, to restate the obvious: this entire tiff over casting is about some people's need to assert ownership of stories that are important to them but which have never been theirs.
Yes, that process is inherently political.
And Zendaya is objectively a more perfect goddess than Marianna Hill. Because I say so.
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Stop being.
Still, I feel the same way about.
Yeah, I haven't watched it yet, but it's on the top of my Prime watchlist, so I'm familiar with the basic plot. Damon and Pedro Pascale are European mercenaries who end up in China and are recruited to help fight the monsters on the other side of The Great Wall.
They're kind of in a no win situation with these kind of movies, because most studios aren't going to be willing to actually make a movie like that with a cast made up entire of Chinese actors that most Americans of never heard, so they pretty much had no choice but to make the main character a white guy. But then once people see that they made a movie like this with a white guy in the lead people get mad.
Stepping gingerly into the mine field, I'll just say that, personally, I think a production set in a particular historical time and place, should be cast to reflect, as closely as possible, the way people of that time and place would have looked. Anything else kills the immersive experience and willing suspension of disbelief. That's all.
I get and appreciate that, especially if this was a tale of real history.
However, The Odyssey is a different creature. It's an epic poem of gods and monsters written down long after the time that's depicted. More importantly, it's Greek Mythology and not a historic accounting of real people. As noted earlier, Nolan's intention is depicted through Homer's eyes, which varies from that of historic accuracy. Like I said before when I posted the Time article, I understand why that wouldn't satisfy some people and that's fair, but that's good enough for me because it's a valid interpretation of the source material.
For reference (so you don't have dig up the post), here's the quote in question:
Nolan offers equally thorough explanations for every production choice, from the boats to the weapons, all of which draw on both the Bronze Age and Homer’s era, hundreds of years later. “The oldest depictions of Homeric characters tend to be depicted in the manner of people living in Homer’s time,” he says. “So there’s a pretty strong case there for portraying things that way because that’s the way the first audience received the story.”
On the other hand, The Odyssey is a piece of fiction set in an indeterminate part of "Ancient History" in a place that never existed (Well that version of Troy),populated by people who didn't exist and Gods. Much like Camelot. So there's a fair amount of wiggle room.
Yeah, the only time that stuff bothers me anymore if they are casting a historical figure in a historical retelling (so, no, a non-caucasian as Isaac Newton in Doctor Who is not a big deal).
Anytime stuff like this comes up I'm reminded of the anecdote about the Hollywood executive that wanted to cast Julia Roberts as Harriet Tubman in a movie about Harriet Tubman. When pointed out that Harriet Tubman was black, the executive reportedly said that "it was so long ago that nobody would know the difference".
Anytime stuff like this comes up I'm reminded of the anecdote about the Hollywood executive that wanted to cast Julia Roberts as Harriet Tubman in a movie about Harriet Tubman. When pointed out that Harriet Tubman was black, the executive reportedly said that "it was so long ago that nobody would know the difference".
John Wayne as Ghengis Khan.Yeah, the only time that stuff bothers me anymore if they are casting a historical figure in a historical retelling (so, no, a non-caucasian as Isaac Newton in Doctor Who is not a big deal).
Anytime stuff like this comes up I'm reminded of the anecdote about the Hollywood executive that wanted to cast Julia Roberts as Harriet Tubman in a movie about Harriet Tubman. When pointed out that Harriet Tubman was black, the executive reportedly said that "it was so long ago that nobody would know the difference".
Apparently this sort of thing isn't acceptable in the other direction, for some reason.Anytime stuff like this comes up I'm reminded of the anecdote about the Hollywood executive that wanted to cast Julia Roberts as Harriet Tubman in a movie about Harriet Tubman. When pointed out that Harriet Tubman was black, the executive reportedly said that "it was so long ago that nobody would know the difference".
It's not set in a time and place most people who see it know a damn thing about. They only know the visual cliches they were raised with.
Like the notion that Myceneans would have looked anything like the cast of Clash of the Titans.
They aren't taking you out of the film by contradicting what you know. They're taking you out by not giving you what you expect.
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Maybe. Kenya seems a long way to wiggle from Greece.