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Moff’s Law
By Jeff Fecke | December 27, 2009
Via Racialicious, I was directed to this jeremiad, which wins the internet:
Of all the varieties of irritating comment out there, the absolute most annoying has to be “Why can’t you just watch the movie for what it is??? Why can’t you just enjoy it? Why do you have to analyze it???”
If you have posted such a comment, or if you are about to post such a comment, here or anywhere else, let me just advise you: Shut up. Shut the fuck up. Shut your goddamn fucking mouth. SHUT. UP.
First of all, when we analyze art, when we look for deeper meaning in it, we are enjoying it for what it is. Because that is one of the things about art, be it highbrow, lowbrow, mainstream, or avant-garde: Some sort of thought went into its making — even if the thought was, “I’m going to do this as thoughtlessly as possible”! — and as a result, some sort of thought can be gotten from its reception. That is why, among other things, artists (including, for instance, James Cameron) really like to talk about their work.
The entire post — which began as a comment on Annalee Newitz’s brilliant Avatar commentary — is worth reading in full, and I will be invoking Moff’s Law going forward any time someone argues that I should stop analyzing a movie because “it’s just a movie.”
I haven’t seen Avatar yet, in no small part because I don’t really know if I have the patience to put up with three hours of white-guy-saves-too-perfect-to-live-indigenous-people-from-other-white-guys. I may eventually go, because I’ve heard universal praise for the visual and technical effects in the film, but I’m not sure that wizardry is being used in service of good.
More to the point, though, is that James Cameron quite obviously wanted this to be a talked about movie. He could have pretty easily created a dumb-but-visually-stunning movie about plucky soldiers fighting mean aliens. (Heck, he already has.) Instead, he made a movie that by all indications is Trying To Say Something Important about nature and indigenous people. So it’s not exactly a stretch for people to want to question what the movie is saying, and to argue that Cameron’s characterization of the native peoples in Avatar literally dehumanizes them, and ends up reinforcing racism rather than working to destroy it.
Art is supposed to say something to us, even the art that wants us to shut our brains off to enjoy it, like, say, the Transformers franchise. Sometimes what it says is subtle, sometimes it’s subtle as a freight train. But it’s meant to affect, even if just to divert people from their humdrum lives. Because of this, it’s only natural for people to react to how they were affected by art by telling people how they were affected by art. If they’re artists themselves, they may even go further, and create art that is a response to previous works, as Avatar can be seen as a rejoinder, not just to the old, overtly racist treatment of aboriginal peoples as savages, but to Cameron’s own treatment of non-humans in Aliens.
That’s what art is supposed to do — spur discussion, spark creation, and yes, engender criticism. Of course, all too often — and especially when that criticism strays into questions of gender or race — people don’t want to hear that there are problems with films they liked. They want to ignore the flaws in a work of art. That’s their privilege. But it doesn’t mean the rest of us should follow their lead. Art is about communication. And that communication should not be one-way only.
Topics: Movies, Race | 5 Comments »
December 27th, 2009 at 10:31 am
“…I’m not sure that wizardry is being used in service of good.”
I’m not sure the wizardry by itself is all that impressive anymore. I think the last film that was really worth seeing just for the special effects was Terminator 2.
December 28th, 2009 at 12:42 am
A white woman wrote that commentary, entitled, “When Will White People Stop Making Movies Like ‘Avatar?’”
The question I find myself asking is, “When will white women stop making movies that demean and dehumanize men of all colors?” The last thing I want to hear about is a privileged, pampered white woman prattling on about how other people are blind to their own privilege.
I have to read her crap and then see countless examples of the white female fantasy of kicking men’s butts and using them in one way or another. Kill Bill, Sex and the City, Teeth… Bite me.
December 28th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
A agree completely. Even kids’ cartoons like, well, “Avatar: The Last Airbender” (which came first!) is a lot more fun when you get “into it”.
To be fair, it’s not just makers of movies that I expect to have a high degree of craft – it’s something I enjoy anywhere. Heck, a snowplow driver can be artful if they take pride in their work, and it’s worth talking about.
A movie that I spend 3 hours watching? Yes, I do expect a high degree of craft that I can talk about for a long time to come. Why the Hell not?
December 29th, 2009 at 2:53 pm
Hello, young artists wherever you are, (and old ones too. Art is an expression.
Some of us have been blessed with a special gift
from God that allows us to express our feelings of
whatever in a beautiful and memorable vehicle of art. I do believe that most people and definitely
gorillas have a creative aspect within them. They
all must be developed, practiced, and made prolific so that they get better.
I am a writer with my own blog and I write better than any other thing that I can do. And I agree with Jeff that movies are art and should be reflected upon and appreciated for whatever they can offer to the viewer. That’s why the movie industry has ratings. That’s how the movie industry can be assured that the current movie in their vista will be profitable.
My favorite movie is “Hidalgo”. It has great scenery, good acting, some laughs and tears,
fantastic action pace, romance, and a very happy
ending. The combo-effect of a little bit of all
that everyone loves is what makes a great movie.
When I experience a piece of art, I am very discriminating because I am an artist. I love the Ballet. I noticed that the “Sugar Plum Fairy” missed two beats of one of the most important steps and it truly detracted from the whole performance. The best “Sugar Plum Fairy” was done in Mass. by a dancer in the Conn. Ballet.
Yes, art must be analyzed so as to see where the artist is coming from or to.
Happy New Year, Jeff!
Carol at Carol’s Corner Blog.com
December 30th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
The real issue is why certain people feel like their interpretation of a movie should be accepted like it came down from Mount Sinai.