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i mean everyone is assuming they are supposed to be black youth (ok, so they probably are as well) but that is in part due to the fact that this is the way YOU see black youth, if you didnt think of them this way they would be just a pair of dumb humans, regardless of their voice
Please /film find something else to fuss about.
Lets act our age... wait.
THAT was stereotyped a little, but a bit tasteful. The characters weren't idiots as the racialized characters in the second were.
The racism in this movie is on par with "Cars" where they are represented by machines, but very clearly represent specific negative stereotypes.
the minute a character is not white and does some sort of stand out action: racism. can i call racism on the fact that the college girl is white? she is a whore and seductive and just trying to get on sam. can I call racism for portaying white girls as whores? i mean Mikaela is portrayed as a low dirty white girl too.
Its all in the same boat. we can go argue about this all day because no matter what someone says someone will argue back and make their point because no one wants to be wrong. The movie was done amazingly. i didn't even notice that Transformers were supposed to be different rces, they are a race of their own and when they needed to blend in here they got their traits from our internet, showing just how diverse and polluted it is.
Any questions or comments e-mail me at gernimafia@hotmail.com
For everyone else who just doesn't give a shit and wants to kick back and just watch a summer movie, you win.
On another note, The movie was Ok, nothing special. those two characters were as annoying as Daniel here, It was Jar Jar Bings all over again....
Even the filmmakers behind Transformers are denying responsibility for Mudflap and Skids.
Unsurprisingly, Paramount is also the studio behind Last Airbender.
Trying to make these racial apologists aware of how racist (not merely offensive) Mudflap and Skids are is as difficult as trying to explain why the Last Airbender movie should have lead characters of Asian descent. Despite the heavy amounts of evidence that the Last Airbender is based on Asian/Inuit cultures, those who justify the casting of all whites for the lead roles try to argue that the characters in the cartoon are not Asian.
They also turn around call me and others racist for "bringing up race." That's also an old flimsy excuse I've heard many times over the decades to justify racist casting.
They act as if simply not SAYING anything about race means one is not racist. But there are such things as racist acts that are done visually, or physically, but don't require words.
So it's not surprising to see how people are calling you racist for complaining about racially offensive caricatures.
These people never will understand what you're saying because they make the deliberate choice to remain ignorant.
So many of them say, I'M tired of hearing about this! But I tell them, Well, sorry for you feeling so uncomfortable, but I'M tired of EXPERIENCING it. They don't know the sting of racism in everyday life, and how much it hurts to see such negative portayals. Nor do they care.
They pick out nonsensical counterpoints, completely missing the point, and broaden it to absurd heights. Like one of the other people who compares showing a robot humping a dog's leg to racist caricatures. It makes perfect "sense" to them because they're ignorant and don't even know what racism is.
Keep up the good fight, but don't let it get to you.
I'm doing exactly the same. The "racebending" situation is ridiculous -- on the one hand you have ridiculous stereotypes (Transformers) and on the other you have complete whitewashing (Avatar).
Both are simply unacceptable...especially considering how they are aimed primarily at the youth.
Keep fighting the good fight -- MLK was hated and heavily criticized in his day...only to be vindicated and canonized long after he passed.
We've come a long way but we still have a long way to go.
They were laughing at THE ROBOTS. You can say the robots are mocking black people, but that's life. I don't know where you come from, because America is not the only country the plays on stereotypes, and it's offending to always hear foreigners comment on us when they don't personally know us.
Understand that the world is not happy-perfect and people are actually alright with this, because Transformers 2 isn't meant to be a politically correct masterpiece, but a dumb fun action movie.
God, dramatists these days.
Second of all, how does his comment make him a "typical racist Black person?" Objecting to something [that is objectionable] does not reflect poorly on the objector, nor does it speak for AN ENTIRE RACE OF PEOPLE!
I didn't know having a "black" voice (that statement is more racist than anything) & gold tooth was racist.
If you are offended by a funny black character, are Eddie Murphy & Chris Rock also racist for making fun of black stereotypes? And what about all the "white" characters in the movie? Are they racist too?
This is pretty pathetic as far as I'm concerned, you should come to South Africa & see real racism & history thereof to put this into perspective.
Having a stereotypical black character in a movie for a little humor is funny, just like having white trailer trash is... as a white person I don't take offense to white stereotypes, because they are just that... stereotypes, if you do you have a problem with your own colour of skin. People hating people because of their race for no reason is racism.
Grow up.
Yes you could argue its all very stereotypical is it non worse so then what most american films portray anyway. All hollywood films take a jaded view on race and gender. Does it really suprise everyone so much that Transformers has sterotypical "black" robots? my friend that saw the film with me didnt find it offensive, just like i dont find it offensive if a black comedian says us white boys cant dance or jump.
Its political correctness gone mad, does anyone moan when gay charecters always fancy every man in the film? or when all women like every shoe or handbag they come into contact?
Transformers 2 is a bad film, however i enjoyed it as it succesfully took me to another place that was a little more exciting then everyday life, if i wanted to go to a college that was full of ordinary people that are very plain looking ill go to my local uni.
With this kind of film all i ask for is to be entertained, i take my artistic hits from directors with more credability then Micheal Bay
On an unrelated note, I really hate the "it was a bad movie, but I enjoyed it" argument. If you enjoyed it, you thought it was good. Just accept it.
best point on this whole thread
i would have liked to have seen more of arcee and sideswipe and the decepticon reinforcements nearer to the end of the film. i wanted to see more of the giant robots and less of (the dawsons creek) the human melodrama that consumed most of the film. maybe they could have shown the alien robots absorbing information from the internet as part of their assimilation into earth. i know this was a popcorn movie, but transformers has survived for 25 years as toys, comics and cartoon shows and movies and actually has a rich reservoir of character development and storylines to draw from.
lets look at the context.
1) regardless of their antics they were still HEROES. They were brave valiant and were unbeatable fighters. Yes they kicked DEVASTATORS ass (unlike Jazz who was killed by megatron). Racist stereotypes rarely are used to show a
character in an ultimately good light.
2) As for the "we don't read much comment". Yeah that's pretty bad. BUT it could also be seen as a simple fact that these highly advanced life forms just have no need for reading. And yeah they are also "to cool for school" and yeah goofy and not consciously into studying. It can still be seen as an insult but again not essentially (yes I am reaching).
3) This is my biggest point about the context. A point which the real racists would disagree with and the reason I love Michael Bay. ALL of the autobots are portrayed as black people. All of the autobots were flipping lingo and rocking ebonics HARD. Ironhide was brother with british accent "Punk-Ass decepticon" "Get me up outta here" etc. But beyond that they all spoke with the cadence and bass heavy rhythmic voices that are STEREOTYPICALLY assigned to BLACK MEN. If we complain about the use of negative stereotypes we should also give praise for the use of positive sterotypes (yes stereotyes are not alway positive or negative folks).I ALWAYS viewed Optimus prime as a black man. His voice honestly sounds like a black guy's. I know the voice actor is white but if that ain't a black voice then Robin Thicke aint an r&b singer!. When Optimus said "my bad" in the first movie I was like "tru dat". When he says "roll out" I'm like "without question bra'!"
Look the original Primes rolled up on ancient Egypt holding spears and looked exactly like walking talking 100 ft tall african sculptures. Bay even took great pains to show the ORIGINAL egytians as being spear wielding nubians from 17,000 bc! He could have portrayed them as being arabs (who were only present in Egypt after 600 ad WAY after the Pyramids had been built). But instead he gave black folks their props and got his history right.
3) Barack Obama got a quick cameo in the film
My point is this. Michael Bay CHOSE to model the Autobots after black people. This is no surprise. Say what you will but Michael Bay is at least fascinated at most in love with black folks. His favorite films were his Bad Boys duet. So yeah in transformers 2 Bay showed the whole spectrum of black people. Super noble Optimus to super evil Fallen. Ebonic spittin' heroic clowns (skids and mudflap) to ebonic spittin' serious badasses (ironhide). A buck tooth bro in a deli to Barack Obama leading the world though a crisis...it was all there. And in reality it's all their too. Transformers 2 is by no means a call for white supremacy and black inferiority. In fact Bay kinda of showed how universally cool and omnipresent the black experience is.
The people who think it's racist are probably racist themselves. When I saw the twins say they couldn't read, did I say "Oh, they MUST be black", NO!
They act like any other teenager from this day and age (which is sad) but blame that on TV and all the other shit that kids have access to these days.
Again, I thought this movie sucked and the twins were definitely not funny but yall are reaching big time.
Find me some shred of evidence that these two characters were meant to be interpreted as black characters. Just one thing.
If you were making a movie and you wanted these two comedic characters to be goofy-gangsta, how would you portray them?
Shut the fuck up, your review was beyond terrible.
The group of black people next to me were laughing at them with everyone else.
Oh get over it you morons. none of you have an ounce of intelligence.
Obama has nothing to do with this, nor does politics. So the republicans and democrats alike need to do us all a favor and stfu
Online movie fans won't stop being jokes until somebody creates a Harry Knowles/teenager/fanboy/elitist-movie-snob-prick blocker.
Now that guy in the deli in the middle of the film, that was wrong and quite offensive. I don't really think they meant him to be a reference to Skids, he would've have had a gold tooth if Bay really wanted to do that, I just think no one was smart enough to catch it. It really just proves how out of touch Bay and all the executives "reviewing" his films for offensive content are.
You were obviously not the brightest kid in your class. Do you REALLY think that Michael Bay walked around on the street specifically to find the most stereotypical black guy he could find? umm...NO he did not, you see, many people want to be actors, It is their dreams. So what you do if you can't land a role, is you sign YOURSELF up to be what is called an "Extra". They may toss you a $100, and you get to be in the film for a few seconds, maybe you will get recognized. This man obviously wanted to be in this film, and he cant help what he looks like. Well....i guess it worked, this man got the fame that he wanted so much, so I guess he should thank you people for that. But I hope you keep making fun of him, and he tracks you down and puts you in the hospital.
Who really cares that it may seem like its cruel because of his physical features, boo hoo, people get made fun of all the time. People are put in movies because of their appearances all the time, though it does not at all show it was intentional in this movie. I hope your talking about this man, and not some of your own personal experiences being laughed at. Actually, I don't, because both topics still make you sound stupid.
Whether we like it or not, kids talk way worse.
I laughed at these characters cause I thought they were funny cause to me, it didn't sound forced, it sounded like stuff i might here when my friends and i are being stupid. But i did not laugh ath the stupid testicle and boob jokes. those should've just been left out of the movie.
What a sham
I haven't seen the movie yet, but I'm usually on the side of 'don't take it too seriously.' As Avenue Q says about stereotypes (well, racism) "You laugh because their based on truth! Don't take them as personal attacks."
Now I need to see JUST how offensive these robots are. But:
A Jewish Deli? Is that really offensive? There are like, 6000 in New York City.
A French Mime? Mimes have been French for as long as I can remember.
Some of these are just the way things are, they're not horrific insults. We, as a culture, should be able to accept differences, and not see somebody acknowledging them as being slanderous. It's a Deli that happens to be Jewish, many Delis are. It's a mime that happens to be french, like a lot of mime's are. It's not saying all Jews own delis and all french people are mimes.
There is of course a line, and I'll judge for myself to see how bad these robots are, but I imagine I'll say the same thing: They're robots that happen to be like that. There are people that actually act like that as well, so can we really fault them that much?
It is absolutely impossible for talking robotic cars to be Black.
They're jet red & green. I've heard just as many white or hispanic or even asian kids talk they way they do, and have gold teeth. And yes - America's urban youth of all races have a literacy crisis & lack of enthusiasm for reading in general (even if they do it, they hide it. It isn't "cool".)
Jar Jar was insulting bc/ he spoke patois and was stupid in addition to being goofy.
These guys are goofy. But the movie is stupider than they are so - they blend in.
Face it - Michael Bay has made a movie so stupidly enjoyable, that it's beyond reproach or analysis.
It's like saying that Megan Fox is offensive.
Try telling that to all the screaming girls who yelled her name in the theatre, along with the boys.
The REAL story here - is that the Trailer for the Last Air Bender got thunderously LOUDER applause from the audience than any scene in ROTF.
Looks like M Night's hit the right button, for once.
and the jewish deli is in NYC, so nothing stereotypical there.
and the french mime? guess what!!! he's in a scene where they're *gasp* in france!
There are Korean delis, Middle-Eastern delis, etc.
And that's the problem with stereotypes - they popularize ideas that ARENT' REAL or ARE EXAGGERATED...thus tarring individuals with insulting and offensive characteristics.
But to the average American with a pea-sized brain who's concept of ethnic food is the Olive Garden...yeah, for them...hey! NYC! It's full of Jews and Delis!
People loved "Birth of a Nation" when it came out, but if you look at it now it is impossible to not see the racist implications of it. (Another film that the director, like Bay, did not see how he was being racist.)
Idiocy should be an explanation for racism, not it's defense.
Erm.
I don't know where I implied that Transformers 2 was racist on the same level as "Birth".
Also, I know people rioted, but there were also deeply rooted people who believed that what was being shown in the film was what had actually happened in the South. And just as you said, it wasn't "exactly a triumph in multiculturalism" but it made more money than any picture before it (reminds me of a certain summer blockbuster sequel about robots in disguise).
You actually paraphrased my point when you said, "It was never possible to look at Birth of a Nation and miss the part where all the black people are savages who want nothing more than to rape white women and eat watermelons." People did NOT miss it, exactly. The majority saw it and said nothing.
The problem is that with this new movie:
A) I would hope that a prominent director would understand how awful and racist his characters are.
B) People are seeing minstrel characters on screen and laughing at them like we are back in the '20s again.
In some ways this movie is worse because people are, in droves, overlooking the racist implications of these characters. And secondly, I doubt Michael Bay will ever have his "Intolerance" to try to make up for it.
who really gives a shit?
It's a movie, you can find better things to complain about. Talking about racism only reinforces it back on everyone.
I didn't even like this movie but this shit is getting out of hand. Yall are just looking for things now. First it's the twins and now youre moving on to the deli and mime? Get the fuck outta here!
I wish more people were like this. It's all band waggon bs, because none of you have the balls to act as yourself.
Jazz got his inflections and manerisms from learning stuff on the net, so how is it a "weak" argument for the twins too also. I completely agree with Wilson's idea of the twins. The ONLY reason this is even an issue, is due to white people being scared that the black community is going to rage against them so all of the rascism talk is to try and show the black community that the white community is against anything that could remotely sound or look black. I'm white, I was sitting next to a black guy, the guy in front of me was black also and they both laughed and seemed to love the twins along with most other things in the movie. So why the media or you Russ have an issue with this I have no idea.
why do people have to be so uptight?
seriously, white kids just don't get it.
You people really need to stop this, you are making yourself sick.
Are you too stupid to know that, did you not hear the robots explain this in Transformers 1, idiots...
Tit for tat.
but Jazz from the first was also "black"
people need to calm down
i think everyone should stop taking things so seriously and just enjoy the movie. despite how annoying the twins were. all of the pros in the movie definitely outshine the cons!!!
Shut up, Russ.
Bay 1 - Complainers Nil
he got a rise out of you and you dove right in.....next time turn away
is the jewish community outraged at the deli depiction? if there were a 'redneck/white-trash' robot, would we even be talking about this? no, and everyone knows it.
we now have to look forward to these ridiculous debates splashed all over /film, with bloggers & contributors fighting and bickering over 2 SILLY CHARACTERS FROM A MOVIE ABOUT ALIEN TOY ROBOTS!?!?!? am i the only person who feels like i'm taking crazy pills?
y'know.. i knew the numbers for the jackpot on the lottery the other night.. i told all my friends the numbers i just got so busy i didn't buy a ticket. way to jump on a story that you could write about and be "current"
ps. you're reading way to far into it
By that logic, you could say anybody who thinks the black face midgets from the original Tarzan movies are racist is also a racist because that's what he thinks africans look like. And don't try that "oh that's different" bullshit, because it's not. Stereotypes are stereotypes. He's not calling for Bay's head, he's just pointing out that characters are poorly done and slightly offensive.
You all act like the worst kind of PR scumbags. Screw you guys.
everyone is just sooooo eager to start something where nothing is. shameful
anyway the movie is no good at all i like the first movie but this sequel is very bad and yes them twins do play up the stereotype. Paramount Pictures going to have a tough time now with these stereotype characters and also next year with The Last Airbender having an all white cast vs people of colour.
this is the not first time Paramount Pictures had race problems even Star Trek tv series had racial issues cause the studio executives was racist towards asian actor and black actress.
...nah, it'll just be a bunch of teenagers calling each other retard a lot. Carry on.
truth stings sometimes
Some black people act like that and they can't deny it. But if a black person makes a movie and goes all crazy with it then it's fine. Again... CHILL it's just a movie.
Some black people act like that and they can't deny it. But if a black person makes a movie and goes all crazy with it then it's fine. Again... CHILL it's just a movie.
Paramount Pictures must be having a tough time with this situation. anyway next year they will have more racisim issues cause of the casting of The Last Airbender by having all the heros been played by white actors and the villains been played by actors of colour.
Paramount always had racial issues when they did want the black actress and asian actor to have an positive role in the original Star Trek.
i couldn't stand reading this article.
the restaurant with the snails? racist? that scene takes place in france!
the stereotypical jewish deli? in NYC where thousands of jewish delis are.
the "stereotypical" old chinese man eating noodles? that scene takes pace in CHINA!
my god, i'm never reading one of your articles again. please, get fired.
(see what i did there?)
The quickest way to ruin something
126 comments of nothing but fighting and no one really being right.
You just gotta love it!
You all disappoint me :(
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/03/19/
To me, the twins were just like Jazz. The reason it may seem like they're worse is because they had a much bigger part to play in this movie than Jazz did in the first movie (Jazz barely said or did anything in the first film), and they were intended for comic relief. For me, when they showed up, I was like, "oh, more Jazz robots."
Since one of the actors portraying a twin was black, I don't see how this is an issue. I will say that I grew tired of these characters the more I saw them, but only because they got annoying after a while - kind of like Jar Jar Binks (also played by a black guy).
I thought it was totally realistic that some transformers might adopt this type of "cadence" as the actors put it that comes off urban. And I'm sure Michael Bay and his team didn't go, "hey, let's be racist in this movie."
There are people in this world of ALL races who act like the twins. It's an urban culture stereotype, not specifically black. Anyone saying they're specifically "black" has to question what's going on in their own minds when determining what "race" these alien robot twins tried to emulate. These people have to ask themselves, "What makes these characters black?" And then they are forced to answer, "oh, well they act like black people and they speak like black people...oh, wait I can't say that..."
And hey, they were the good guys!
If you are assuming that slang + illiteracy == black stereotype then it is you who is being racist. You are taking two characteristics and in the absence of a skin colour take that to meant to represent a certain race.
This means the only non-rascist portray of robots in Transformers is to homogise everything into american-speaking english, middle class american culture. Yeah, because discouraging difference isn't rascist at all. Yeah, the french should eat fucking burgers because snails is offensive. Yeah, and the chinese shouldn't eat noodles, they should eat burgers, otherwise its racist.
That is called colonialism bitches.
Things White People Like #1: Criticizing others of rascism because it makes them look progressive... yet, such critiques are founded in essentialism.
"Ha, these robots talk funny and can't read... they must be black! No, wait, that's a racist thought. I'm not racist. It must be the movie. Yeah! The movie is racist! Bad movie! BAD MOVIE!"
Kurtzman & Orci distancing themselves and damning the characters is fantastic - Could this really all lead to the most pig-headed director in Hollywood being forced to issue a public apology for his casual racism...?
That would be BRILLIANT.
Since they don't "do much reading" right? I remember Optimus told Sam from part 1 that they learned the English from the internet.
The twins to me were: immature, hasty, but bonded together in a tight brotherhood. If the use of language to describe a certain race of people was directly used, then i might agree with you.
To accuse the writers/director that they based robots on a black stereotype is essentially just furthering that stereotype. Obviously i don't feel political incorrectness/correctness articles are that relevant to this site. Probably should have been a page 2 at the most...
Personally when I saw the twins I recognized them as 'thug' not black white asian or otherwise.
Give me an effing break
The Twins are dumb stupid young characeters. And their stupidity is displayed by them acting like wannabe Gangstas. Its a perfectly valid characterization, doubly so because its PREVALENTLY TRUE IN SOCIETY
If you find this racist, I hope you never step foot outside your home, because you will probably be offended by real live people even more.
Not a justification, however let's talk using the correct terminology.
From wikipedia
"Racism is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race" - I have not seen the movie, but I do not see any of this represented in the above commentary.
"A stereotype is a type of logical oversimplification in which all the members of a class or set are considered to be definable by an easily distinguishable set of characteristics." - This makes more sense, right?
Also of note - the lack of a single strong female character. Can someone explain to me why Megan Fox needed a guy (either Shia or Josh Duhamel) to hold her hand the entire time they're sprinting for their lives through the desert? Why the mother instead of the father has a pot brownie and has to be brought (read tackled) under control by the men in the family. I'm sure people will say I'm reading to deep into it, but the choices made by filmmakers are important and significant, as media both reflects and effects society.
he is the one who automatically regarded those traits as that of a black person.
so who is really the racists?
Reality is what you perceive it to be. He perceived those to be what black people do. Think about it…
"have big ears and buck teeth and proclaim that they ‘don’t do much readin’‘. Skids even has a gold tooth."
You saw those things and in your own mind automatically regarded them as traits of a black person. You are the racists douche. Those are merely robots that tried to be funny but failed.
Get your head out of your ass.
i mean i tend not to care much about the racism in movies because it really depends on the movie and what it is really trying to address but Transformers did it for laughs, at first i didn't get what they were (rednecks?,street?) until they showed there faces, OMG then i saw the guy at the deli counter, good god, first thing that went through my mind was "this is VERY offensive and some one is going to get in trouble for this" but who?, it really took me out of the movie beside a whooole list of other things i though were wrong with it,
did anyone get dizzy at the spinning camera shot at the beginning when they are all lovey dovey?, i saw it in imax it could have been that.
I have no qualm with characters like these two, regardless of racism, because that's the point of free speech. However, I do stand by that it's in VERY poor taste, not specifically because it isn't amusing (let's face it, people laugh at racist things too without wanting to be racist, but everyone's a little bit racist...sometime...), but because these kinds of stereotypes don't NEED to be pushed, especially in a movie about GIANT ROBOTS. No need to be over-sensitive, but it's still nice to see that people take issue with poor racist portrayals like this one. It's like making a 9/11 joke...you should be allowed to make it but that doesn't stop it from being in very poor taste.
The thought that those characters were racist in the slightest, or even caricatured stereotype "black people", never crossed my mind. They reminded me of Dumb and Dumber more than anything.
They are cartoonish, over-the-top characters designed to give comic relief and embarrassingly high levels of stupidity. The gold tooth is the only thing that could even possibly be inferred to indicate that they are "black".
What's next, are people going to start claiming that Optimus Prime is racist against Asians because "his eyes are squinty"?
I think it's more racist when somebody interprets all these negative characteristics and the first thing they think of is, 'oh, aren't black people like this?'.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W__4lfz-pd8
Video collection from a few of Bay's movies
oh my god, there's really NO mimes in France. a Parisian restaurant that serves snail, oh man that's bad and so untrue, oh man and a noodle-eating old Chinese man, that's so racist and untrue. /sarcasm
there's mimes in France, Parisian restaurants serve 'snails' and Chinese people eat noodles like crazy, also i didn't know bad teeth is an indication of race. get over yourself, and really this just seems like this person is looking for problems with this film, and is trying to make waves over the internet.
as for the twins, they are stereotypical, ok who cares? god people are so sensitive these days, that's why comedies like blazing saddles can't fly anymore. its not like this is trying to degrad black people, it seems more like they were thrown in there as the 'wanna-be' gangster types, which aren't supposed to be taken seriously. this is really just an attempt at harmless fun and comedic relief (and i'd say it was successful sometimes).
so i say this thing should be dropped like a bad habit, and everyone just get over themselves, theres been worse stuff than this and its gotten less crap.
That's it. This whole ordeal is completely & utterly ridiculous.
Come on.
Shias characters is the typical nerd type and isn't Megan Fox a typical stereotype sex pot?
please, get over it.. they're fuckin robots.
Offensive?? ohhhhh pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaaseeeeeeee...
it is harmless..
have fun..
It's all Pro-Racismparanoia, younowwhatamsayin?
http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/23/votd-interv...
at around the 44 minute mark you will hear what they teach and Michael Bay practices
What a tool.
that's just like saying that all the comments Palin made during the presidential campaign were stupid and thus not racist.
give me a break!
its just the same as when you have american movies that'll have the stoned white boy thats like "dude, i dont get itttt" well thats a stereotype, but there are people out there like that, so its funny. I dont think Bay is racist in the slightest.
the discussions on here alone warrant a new study of the manner in which people are blinded to racism because it's so pervasive in Western culture.
this has nothing to do with political correctness, just looking at what's shown and rightfully questioning the depiction and the social and cultural connotations connected to the depiction.
the thing that gets me too is that Spielberg was pushing this. what happened to the social eye he had to make Amistad and The Color Purple?
thats the problem today people get offended by everything grow the hell up and stop being whiny bitches
telling someone to shut up cuz the issue makes you uncomfortable doesn't add anything to the discussion. get yr heads outta the sand(y vaginas).
HOWEVER, I fail to see how *transforming cars* acting is such a manner would reinforce *any* stereotypes about black people at all. After all,they are *cars*, not black people.
-_- *facepalm*
On an unrelated note, when are we going to get some Latino autobots?!?!
Get over it, it's a fucking movie. In no way is this the first occurrence of STEREOTYPES in a movie.
By all means; continue.
Seriously when they said they "didn't do much readin" they were talking about ancient cybertronian and that they could not read it. Just like the average human couldn't read Latin or Greek. They were not illiterate.
As for not being in the action I recall them being the only robots who fought devastator (the biggest badguy in the movie) courageously I might add.
Seriously folks need to get off the haterade.
I honestly can't believe that you all buy this shit. Why did the writer's pass the "blame" and why did Bay pass the "blame?" Because none of them probably thought about it being offensive until you touch-holes decided it would be edgy and cool to start a conversation/discussion/waste of time about it. Most of the people posting on this thing who say, "Man, WTF, like OMG, I like totally can't believe it, those two robots remind me of black people stereotypes!" You guys are probably all racist. That's right. Very, very racist. We just don't need your help pointing out what is or isn't racist.
Two fucking animated CGI robots who look like inbred hillbillies and act like inbred hillbillies could also look and act like black folks. In the end, we don't care because it's a... wait for it... fucking robot in a summer movie. I'm really surprised there are this many people out there that will latch on to whatever seems to be deemed worthwhile conversation topics by the armada of online writers.
Also your right Michael Bay is probably not going to give a crap about any of this as its only likely to increase peoples desire to go see the movie they might not have bothered to go see what all the talk is about.
Not to mention the movie was just awful anyways.
The reading controversy is an old, old issue among the black community it goes back in to the slave days so I'm sorry but yes, I was a little offended by that.
Might as well have had them eating fried chicken and watermelon... what is this? 1960? gimme a break.
So we get a blatant ass shot of Megan Fox and a dorm room upskirt for the adult males, and two "zany" rascist robots for the kids. Nice.
Michael Bay is a douche.
It was total overkill.
Just dumb.
God help us all if they make another one of these. I think they should quit while they're ahead.
Instead of seeing this as racial slander, you should be looking at it from the point of view of this what we put out there and this is possibly what an alien life form would take from observing us. Some stereotypes exist for a reason.
And most importantly the characters come from the images that are being portrayed on a much larger scale by today's collection of Rap performers and really shows how ridiculous and damning the popularity of gang abnging rap music music is towards an entrie race of people.
The two robots were a riot. And guess what? There are people in the real world like those two robots, and they are funny in the real world. There was no commentary on black America here beyond humor. This is the same as the humor regarding Middle-White America with Sam's outlandish and nerdy, embarassing parents.
This reminds me of the election, whenever someone had something bad to say about Obama's policies, it was deemed racist.
Is this the only argument you people have?
Grow up.
You sound a little angry there sport
And also, get over the eating snails in Paris!! xD Seriously?? And the mime? Now you're just whining cause you didn't like the movie. IT'S FRANCE. When you go to France, people try snails. And yes. There are mimes. I know. So what? Would it have been better if they were in France and said, you know what? Let's talk this over at McDonnalds! Cause yeah. That would have been better..
If you cant get away and watch a 2 hour movie with out finding something wrong with it, dont watch movies turn the news on and leave everyone else alone. We go to see movies to get away from real life for a few hours. It is not ment to be a rip on rl or people or anything else, its about making people laugh and forgetting whats going on in the world for a few damn hours.
Do u all understand that? every single movie out there u can find some comments or something that is taking way over born and someone will complain. SO just get over it and watch the movie for what it is a DAMN MOVIE.
I saw the movie last night (I thought it was stupid) and I agree that the twins were a cheap attempt at humor, but to write an article trumping up a race issue is obnoxious.
Why don't you just come out and say the makers of Transformers hate African-Americans? Or, why not say this movie is promoting racism?
Maybe you don't because, like me, you know a number of white people who speak and behave like the "twins" in the movie?
I don't think your article is inspiring social justice; rather, I think you incite banalization of culture. What about the objectification of women? What about the not so subtle sexual under tones in a movie geared towards teenage boys? That's all hunky dory with Secular Progressives. But GOD forbid any thing racist or sexist be allowed!! Because those are the only two evils Liberals are able to see.
Personally, I know people who behave like the twins, and it's funny. Why? Because art is an imitation of life, and those who behave that way make many people laugh. I know too many poser white middle class kids who speak as if they grew up in the ghetto. Why? Because they think Hip Hop artists are the greatest thing since Elvis.
I certainly don't think they do this because they hate African-Americans. And I don't think the Transformer crew is trying to promote the hatred of blacks for that matter.
So relax Sally.
I thought Skids and Mudflap were no different that any cartoon character personality acting silly to get some cheap laughs. You might as well go back and say Jazz and Blaster from the original series were racist because they rhymed in their speech and jive talked.
Political correctness seems to be collapsing in on itself in a single minded idiocy that transcends even the brutal ignorance of a hardcore racist...
So let me ask this. Do all African american type characters on the big screen have to have style class and act generally cool? The moment two stupid ones show up, for comedic purposes might I add, then it is racist, also if they talked more, "white" as most people put it would it be racist as well? In animation you look at the world around you to give yoru character life, the ONLY thing he can be acused of is lookign at the world around him and using 2 examples of class and character, out of hundreds for 2 of his characters to give them life, look at the world around you? If you are telling me people like that don't exist then you are clearly blind. People need to realize there are people like that in the world sterotyped or not there are people who talk like that and act like that, he could have easily said "i based these two characters off friend's of mine" and then what? What would you all say to that? While your at it go knock on Bill Cosby's door and tell him the junk yard gang is out of line as well.
Racism: the prejudice that members of one race are intrinsically superior to members of other races
Stereotype:is a generalized perception of first impressions: behaviors presumed by a group.
While it can be argued Stereotypes involve racism, go ahead tell me people like mudflap and skids don't exist, and I can show you 50 people who do exist that are just like them. It's a movie, with characters, with different personalities.....get over it.
Please stop talking Cherry Chapstick, you have no idea what is going on in the real world, and your arguements make absolutely no sense.
read a few books and maybe i'll explain what i mean since you obviously don't get it.
'Intent'...does someone say that stereotypical joke to intentionally hurt someone or do they say it because it truely is funny. Does a character in a movie say the *F* word because it would just make the line funnier or just to simply offend anyone who is against cussing? The reality is this a Micheal Bay movie. I have my thoughts that if this was a Spike Lee joint or even a movie by Antwoine Fuqua (pardon the spelling) this article most likely wouldn't be. Did we forget that this is the man who directed Bad Boys? Yea, let's recall the cast in that movie.
I can seriously go on for some time here addressing every aspect of how foolish your article is but honestly, I'd prefer to actually speak to somone like you. So in conclusion the reason I wrote this is not defend Transformers or Micheal Bay or even anyone responsible for creating this movie. The reason is honestly, what's racist..the imaginative character created solely for comedic purposes or the mind that would automatically link that character to an entire race? Like I said, I am a black man, neither of those characters represented me..but if you wish I could definitely tell you about a few people I know from my neighborhood that have one too many things in common with those two characters.
Hoping for a response.
Get the fuck over this shit. Some characters are stereotypical and aren't meant to reflect a universal representation of one race. These stereotypical characters wouldn't exist without some sort of inspiration behind them anyway, so it's not like there aren't African Americans (or people of any other race for that matter) who don't have any of these characteristics.
Find something else to bitch about...you can start with why Aliens in the Attic ever got greenlit. Go.
Hi-larious!
Get over it. Not everything in this world is racist, unless of course, you make it out to be.
This article reflects your own prejudices.
see? now the robots don't seem so bad.
it's a goddamned movie... and did i mention they are indeed robots? red and green robots, mind you. that statement serves no extensive point.. just merely pointing out that they aren't black.
1: A gold tooth doesnt mean black, stop thinking about yourselves for a change. My grandfather was white, and he had gold teeth, actually lets date this back to World War2, you know one of the things nazi's took from the jews? They removed their GOLD teeth, because it was very common.
2: They were made to relate to kids, i know MANY people like them, its just like 2 normal friends messing around. They talk like most teenagers do nowadays, trust me, i know this for a fact. White, black, mexican, asian, all races speak like this, really it depends where u grew up. Are you saying black people are the ONLY ones allowed to talk like this? that it belongs to them, and we are racist if we want to talk like that?
They are not degrading, they are their for entertainment, other robots are played by black men and talk very proper. Another thing, one of the twins was white, the other was black, but i dont worry about it, because i know that just because one white person(actually robot) talks like that, people KNOW not all of us talk like that, and its the same for the black guy, i know many intelligent black people. And for the "we dont do much readin" line, once again relating to teenagers, i bet about 20% of most high school students actually will read 1 book a year without being told to. I know i sure as hell dont read, it doesnt mean im dumb. Dont put yourself in their shoes, its just them, nobody is going to see one black person talking in slang, and walk up to every single black person they see and expect the same.
Just chill out, its not racist, its just a movie, and if you think this is degrading, go get some god damn therapy or something.
And for those of u bitching about the random black guy in the deli.... how in the hell is that bein racist? I sure hope u people know that HE signed up to be in this movie, nobody forced him, and its not his fault he looks that way, its not michael bays fault either... to me it would have actually been worse to say to the guy "sorry, you can be in my movie, ur black, and ur ugly" but no he let him in outta the goodness of his goddamn heart, and you want to complain about it? Im sure that man who probably got payed a $100 bucks to be in that shot isnt mad.
So drop it people, grow the hell up.
These characters were just supposed to be a change to the Optimus Prime type of autobots that were always serious.
so, i guess if i see this comment as racist i should just "get over it", huh?
just my two cents for anyone who cares to read it , but i think the bigger picture that i went home with was that the movie is about beating the bad guys, saving the world, and the ability to work together for the greater good.
if you don't like what i had to say, or think its unintelligent or ill worded, don't reply to it, i doubt i will read the responses after i post this. like i said i just wanted to post my two cents
Also
it amazes me how many more white people were offended than black people by the characters. makes me wonder what type of people are offended by behavior that is not theirs to understand, not saying that they cannot understand it but looking at the context in which it was used in the movie they were suppose to be the comic relief, just a modernized version of their cartoon variants. they chose those character profiles most likely because they produced the most one liners imo.
i have both black and white friends who behave in similar mannerisms i dont look down on them because of that or anything for that much .....christ people many of them have college degree and their own businesses. their vernacular does not determine anything about who they are just how they speak in personal social situations,
so try being offended by stereotypes that u fit and not other people kTHXBAI =)
he lowers the bar with every movie he makes.
"and shit" is hilarious.
I mean really...REALLY?
We all remember Jazz in the first movie...He had a bit of a hip hop side. We also know that the transformers had each SCANNED and chose a vehicle to mimic. We also know that they learned our language based on the world wide web.
Have you considered the fact that maybe the 2 robots picked their earthly persona based upon their attitude as autobots?
The whole reading part? Well sorry if the 2 autobots cannot read a 16000 year old language? Do you speak ancient hebrew?
The very thought that those 2 " ROBOTS " were an attack on a specific race is just freakin retarded.
Michael Bay should address this, if not apologize for it.
i reiterate can we plz start being offended by things that reflect out selves and not others . i hate when people get more offended over real life portrayal of stereotypes like theses than the actual people that fit them. i'm black i didnt care first thing that came to mind is "they look its Kevin and Chris"(2 real life friends). and they act like that usually to make people laugh.
there was no "WELL I NEVER.............. its a shame that people find this type of thing funny bah bah bah humbug humbug"
as a african-american person i can say that myself most african-american i know were Non-Chalant about it, not alarmed and cause its the past and imo with the way things are going in society treating it as a joke seems fitting
read the text Stereotypes=joking
Stereotypes=alarming
to be alarmed is to draw attaention to something that nobody even cared about, your stoping a group from laughing to notice society and racism and that isnt necessacary imo
Let it go! It was a great movie that most enjoyed, and if you folks didn't have anything better to do then to sit and criticize every little detail, you'd be able to sit back and enjoy the movie for what it really is.
Congrats to Michael Bay and his crew on making yet another smash transformers hit. I, as well with many others, look forward to transformers 3.
Like 90% of the racists 'jokes' found on the internet - it's just a lack of creativity. It's easier to be dumb than it is to be funny [read: artistic].
You really can't say ppl are pulling the race card. That's a cop out. If the content is in there it's in there. And it is. The film pretty much speaks for itself.
Also, since we have to qualify our own color and heritage in a thread like this, I'm a hispanic male and I found it offensive.
lol I hate to be cynical but i wonder just how many ppl are really a "black female" or a "hispanic male". You could type just about anything. You could also make ppl look really bad in the same way by lying about your race and submitting comment. ahem.
I have worked around Black kids in education and I can say that the typical classroom with a preponderance of Blacks is a repeat of the two ebonic-speaking robots. Yes, there are exceptions -with some that are more reticent, but the vast majority have potty mouths with just invective spouted to other classmates.... I dare any Black adult to see for themselves their uncivilized behavior that requires the teacher to be a de facto cop in the classroom.
Even thou their appearance or whatever, their part in the movie weren't very supportive for what the movie try to accomplish, they were not funny at all.
And their face design were just awefull.
Get over it.
Can I be mad that the Fallen was clearly "based" on being a white dictator? NO! The fallen wasn't a stereotype character, he had a voice, just like all animated characters. People just need to complain about something.
Are people not up in arms about television cartoons like Family Guy or American Dad or Southpark that actually make racist jokes? No because it is a cartoon? So is this.
Calm down and quite whining about descrimination this and racist that, it was a joke character in a movie, if it's not funny...don't laugh. But everyone in my theater thought it was funny, and every one I spoke too viewed them as "posers" because CLEARLY they are not black, they are fricking robots.
White aging jews, dressed to impress, who are stealing billions of dollars from charities and Holocaust survivors? Or maybe these two should have been 2 drag queens looking for their next trick on Santa Monica in Hollywood?
How about 2 young self proclaimed film critics. One can have a golden tooth. The other has very little to offer creatively but is willing to resort to regurgitating an old and tired cliche of a critique in order to drum-up some controversy just so that a few more people will notice his existence.
I wonder how many of you realize that you've just put your own beliefs about black people into this film?
Oh, right, it's the Internet.
I didn't see the robots as black any way, I saw it them as the 'stereotyped' dumb southern american hicks but from many comments here looks like its the whole nation. Yeah, white and black.
then the gold tooth, im sorry but if some 1 saw these robots and they had no dialoge would it be a racal steriotype, i dont think so, just cus somepthing has big ears and a different proportioned face i dont think that its a black steriotype.
The dialogue for them was loud and rude, cartoonish. we are just labaling them black because of our black stereotypical thinking
Get a grip people.. they were ROBOTS. I can't imagine the type of paranoid, easily offended person who would actually see racism here. My fiancé and I enjoyed the movie for what it is, and was never once offended (and yes, she is black). Get over yourself people.. sheesh.
It's a sad and pathetic attempt to get kids to laugh. These movies are made for ritalin addicted, can't focus for more than a second kids who don't follow any plot but just like to see all the rapid movement and shiny things. By the way, blacks are all criminals.
In the second movie, there's those two robots, and that's pretty bad. But everything else you posted - French restaurant with escargot, Chinese man eating noodles (OMG STOP THE PRESSES!!)...... that's not stereotyping, that's something that's just true. Quit nitpicking about stupid things!
Much more offensive to me is how at the final battle at the pyramids, it's basically the Decepticons vs two Autobots and the entire US Army. Where is the Egyptian Army? I guess they didn't care enough about the fact that their country has been invaded by the great American oppressors as well as giant robotic aliens, or that their historical landmarks are getting wiped off the map.
The US does call the assistance of Jordan (NOT Egypt, the country they're in - wtf?), which only sends two transport helicopters that get shot down before they even get to the battle. Basically, at the end of the day, the US Army has done pretty much all the work in saving the day.
No one is complaining about this? Come on guys, stop nitpicking stupid things like mimes in Paris (NO WAIIII) and focus on the important stuff. People were complaining when the US beat the aliens apparently singlehandedly in "Independence Day" and that was on AMERICAN SOIL.
You have got to be kidding me? Give me a break. It's articles like this that make me stop reading this site for weeks.
if your going to make a racial finger and point it, point it at our media. they are the ones who help define these stereotypes, they are the ones who (in the story line) enable the transformers to behave in that racist manner. Turn on BET and watch on rap video, and you'll see exact clones of skids and mudflap.
if anything the stereotypes examined in this movie were just comical reflections (with minor exaggerations that equal Hollywood's typical dramatizations) of todays image on ethnicities, not michael bay's or any other specific party.
i suppose everyone will "get over it" when this country actually deals with it.
Final Lesson: Don't be an asshole, just shutup and move on.
Box Office Totals (in millions)
Date US Intl Worldwide
6/24/09 $60.7 $60.0 $120.7
6/25/09 $28.6 $20.0 $48.6
6/26/09 $36.7
6/27/09 $40.6*
6/28/09 $34.6* $106.1**
Totals $201.2 $186.1 $387.3
As everyone can see racist is not an issue here with that total global.
What's wrong with having someone act like them in a movie? Is it because the movie's by a white guy? Probably, because when I've seen stereotypical "dumb black" characters in movies by black people, like Friday, then it's ok and funny... I don't get it...
I will say however, in the final battle scene, all of the characters take a back seat to Megaron, Fallen and Optimus Prime. Tell the PC brigade to take a break honestly.
I guess everyone has their own right and opinion on what they felt and thought from those twins. I am neither defending those robots, and I wasn't really offended by them, they just were filler characters I guess.
Btw, my young cousin's, 15yr m/ 9yrold f both enjoyed the robots and thought they were funny... so I guess Michael Bay accomplished what he wanted in the end with those robots.
MY only gripe with those robots was the aesthetic of the faces. It just looked ugly imho, didn't really mind the Gold tooth, but they are 2 of the most Fugliest faces I have seen so far.
Perhaps, we all need to be more sensitized to what we find acceptable and appropriate, not just for children viewing but for adults as well.
Toni Kauffman,
Burlington, NJ
About 5 years ago in high school I found that gangster cliche to be extremely annoying. All of them. They were white, black, asian.. They would sit out in the hall banging on lockers and rapping about how big dat girls booty was. Bling bling mother fucker.
I'd wake up to VH1, MTV, or some other music channel and hear the newest in rap innovation.. My immediate thought would be "That sounds like shit! I bet no one will like it!" Then to my surprise I'd come to school and hear the incessant babble of a crowd of gangsters just repeating the horrible lyrics of this song. It baffled me.
They should have modeled the characters after these gangsters!
The robots could have pointed at one of the main characters shoes and laughed really annoying like - "ha HAAAAAA, LOOK AT DAT NIGGAS SHOES! DAY FROM KMART! ha HAAAA! HE BE WEARIN' SOME TUBE SOCKS! WHITE BOY IS CRAZY!"
Then the robots could go somewhere and try to smoke a phat joint while trying to do the SUPA-MAN DAT HOE dance while high.
You guys are good at over analyzing robots.. What race was Megatron? I bet Optimus was white, the old transformer was Asian (Because he made Optimus transform like some kind of sailor moon/gundam robot.)..
I just want to know why Optimus keeps getting his white ass kicked by Megatron. Bet it has something to do with racism..
stereotypes exist for a reason, everyone rags on everyone else, is it really a big deal?
I've talked with a lot of people about the movie, and not one single person has brought this up. I'm from Norway btw, if that matters for the discussion.
The whole political correct crapfest that’s been going on only serves to try to pretend issues don’t exist instead of addressing and trying to correct them. We all feel different about various ides, it’s what makes us human. How we deal with how that makes us feel is the important part.
Grow the fuck up and get over it.
Now, you want to talk about racism, they kept referring to the Leon guy by "taco". And what about the black soldier who can't speak as well as the major? Prepetuating a stereotypical speech pattern. Get over it. If you hate ST's, then help end them and speak the "king's english". What pathetic kowtowing!
The dumb black kid w/ the shotgun in the old Bugs Bunny cartoons.. (lol)
(no, not elmer fud.. BEFORE elmer.. im talkin, old school Bugs)
I have no further comments...
Dimex
It seems that as well as the movie did, SOMEONE would have cried RACISM early on, and the numbers would have been a lot lower. Apparently no one else (but you) had a problem with it. So it seems YOU made this a racist issue. Get over yourself. If you didn't enjoy the movie, stop going to movies, and you don't have the problem of possibly being offended. If you weren't offended, then why are you flapping your jaws (or fingers) about it?
In every movie I've ever seen, there is always the potential for SOMEone to be offended. Does every movie I've ever seen offend me? No. I have a sense of humor. Do a few movies offend me? Yes, a very few. I simply avoid the movies that I know for sure are going to offend me beyond what is acceptable. Could I have been offended by the stereotypical white people? Yep. Was I? Nope. It's funny you didn't mention the sterotypical white people getting high on mari-brownies either... Hmmm, so is skipping the mention of the white people being racist in itself?
C'mon, give me a break, and lighten up. Find something real to blog about and stop trying to stir the stink. It only makes people annoyed at your ignorace.
MWM: This long letter to humanity appeared with no apparent return address. It is being
posted here and there. This is another internet piece for which I cannot assess the validity. All I
CAN say is that it sounds like a good idea, is coherent, and is written skillfully at a level of
intelligence and maturity with I would associate with a serious, non-technical, matter-of-fact
level of discourse. It is not ethnically loaded and the writer has a very good understanding of
language and human psychology, though there are a few moments where the grammar is different
than we are accustomed to and there are a couple of language errors. Most importantly, it makes
no reference to impossible constructs, faux-tech, nor any type of religious or New Age
buzzwords. This is as clean a straight-shooting letter as you will find. Accordingly I am
sending it to you to "vet" it and see what our Phoenix Five brain trust surmises about it. I am
also sending it to you because it might be real...
The main assertion in the letter is that human civilization is now in an uncontrollable free-fall implosion which cannot be "fixed" from within existing social systems. The implosion is causing, will cause a major rupture in all human orders. There is a dark road down toward the use of technology to rapidly enslave human populations in a badly degraded and unhealthy environment. Those who are defining this path, many of them unintentionally, have the greater advantage of power over resources and may gain the upper hand during the coming rupture. There are many who would take a liberating path, they could gain the upper hand if they UNDERSTAND THE CHOICE and can lose their fear, sense of isolation, and ignorance about the true state of affairs.
The main proposition in the letter is that the mass appearance of ET in the skies now could help humanity clear away the veils of illusion and deceits, help settle many existential issues and dilemmas, and provide an "attractor" to help pull positive mentalities out of the social death-vortex and enable them to refocus the next stage in evolution.
The main question in the letter is whether you want ET to thus show UP. ET suggests that direct contact and some cultural assistance would provide the means to overcome the major blocks in human social and cultural evolution.
ET argues that the mental/emotional ground needs to be prepared for such contact. Consent and expectation for such contact needs to be created around the world, less humans react in mass with fear and become manipulated by reactive power elites. ET suggests that a focused telepathic answer from each reader will be sufficient to assist ET is reaching a conclusion about what it should or should not do.
Even as the internet is achieving universal penetration during this time, ET requests that this letter, its first mass communication, be universally translated and transmitted throughout the world. ET also suggests that this should be done by people to people, forget the mass media.
As I said, this is very interesting. It is totally free of all of the "channeling" schtuff, thank God! I have no idea whose plot line this fits into, one could assume many different attitudes and takes on this piece. Is it merely another writer creating the basis for another book or movie plot and generating an audience as heshe goes? Several have done such a thing on other topics, so some healthy skepticism is inevitably appropriate. But that skepticism may not at all be a hindrance in answering the question posed in the letter. It may in fact help. And maybe, just maybe....well, here is the letter. Here it is unaltered by me. Decide for yourself. ~mwm~
CHANGE THE WORLD!
"DECIDE WHETHER WE SHOULD SHOW UP!"
Whoever transmitted this translated message to you is irrelevant, and should remain anonymous in your mind. It is what you will do with this message which matters !
Each one of you wishes to exercise her/his free will and experience
happiness.
These are attributes that were shown to us and to which we now have
access. Your free will depends upon the knowledge you have of your own power.
Your happiness depends upon the love that you give and receive.
Like all conscious races at this stage of progress, you may feel isolated
on your planet. This impression makes you sure of your destiny. Yet, you are at
the brink of big upheavals that only a minority is aware of.
It is not our responsibility to modify your future without you choosing
it. Consider this message as a worldwide referendum! And your answer as a
ballot!
Who are we ?
Neither your scientists nor your religious representatives speak
unanimously about the unexplained celestial events that mankind has witnessed
for thousands of years. To know the truth, one must face it without the filter
of one´s beliefs, however respectable they may be.
A growing number of anonymous researchers of yours are exploring new
knowledge paths and are getting very close to reality. Today, your civilization
is flooded with an ocean of information of which only a tiny part, the less
upsetting one, is notably diffused.
What in your history seemed ridiculous or improbable has often become
possible, then realised, in particular in the last fifty years. Be aware that
the future will be even more surprising. You will discover the worst as well as
the best.
Like billions others in this galaxy, we are conscious creatures that some
name "extra-terrestrials", even though reality is subtler.
There is no fundamental difference between you and us, save for the
experience of certain stages of evolution. Like in any other organised
structure, hierarchy exists in our internal relationships. Ours is based upon
the wisdom of several races. It is with the approval of this hierarchy that we
turn to you.
Like most of you, we are in the quest of the Supreme Being. Therefore we
are not gods or lesser gods but virtually your equals in the Cosmic
Brotherhood.
Physically, we are somewhat different from you but for most of us
humanoid-shaped.
Our existence is a reality but the majority of you does not perceive it
yet. We are not mere observations, we are consciences just like you. You fail
to apprehend us because we remain invisible to your senses and measure
instruments most of the time.
We wish to fill this void at this moment in your history. We made this
collective decision but this is not enough. We need yours. Through this
message, you become the decision-makers ! You personally.
We have no human representative on Earth who could guide your decision.
Why aren´t we visible ?
At certain stages of evolution, cosmic "humanities" discover new forms of
science beyond the apparent control of matter. Structured dematerialisation and
materialisation are part of them. This is what your humanity has reached in a
few laboratories, in close collaboration with other "extra-terrestrial"
creatures at the cost of hazardous compromises that remain purposedly hidden
from you by some of your representatives.
Apart from the aerial or spatial objects or phenomena known about by your
scientific community, that you call UFO's, there are essentially
multidimensional manufactured spaceships that apply these capacities.
Many human beings have been in visual, auditory, tactile or psychic contact with such
ships, some of which are under occult powers that "govern" you. The scarcity of
your observations is due to the outstanding advantages provided by the
dematerialised state of these ships.
By not witnessing them by yourself, you cannot believe in their existence.
We fully understand this.
The majority of these observations are made on an individual basis so as
to touch the soul and not to modify any organised system. This is deliberate
from the races that surround you but for very different reasons and results.
For negative multidimensional beings that play a part in the exercise of
power in the shadow of human oligarchy, discretion is motivated by their will
to keep their existence and seizure unknown.
For us, discretion is motivated by the respect of the human free will that
people can exercise to manage their own affairs so that they can reach
technical and spiritual maturity on their own. Humankind´s entrance into the
family of galactic civilisations is greatly expected.
We can appear in broad daylight and help you attain this union. We haven´t
done it so far, as too few of you have genuinely desired it, because of
ignorance, indifference or fear, and because the emergency of the situation did
not justify it. Many of those who study our appearances count the lights in the
night without lighting the way. Often they think in terms of objects when it is
all about conscious beings.
Who are you ?
You are the offspring of many traditions that throughout time have been
mutually enriched by each others´ contributions. The same applies to the races
at the surface of the Earth. Your goal is to unite in the respect of these
roots to accomplish a common project. The appearance of your cultures seems to
keep you separated because you substitute it to your deeper being. Shape is now
more important than the essence of your subtle nature. For the powers in place,
this prevalence of the shape constitutes the ramparts against any form of
jeopardy.
You are being called on to overcome shape while still respecting it for
its richness and beauty. Understanding the conscience of shape makes us love
men in their diversity. Peace does not mean not making war, it consists in
becoming what you are in reality: a same Fraternity.
To understand this, the number of solutions within your reach are
decreasing. One of them consists in contact with another race that would
reflect the image of what you are in reality.
What is your situation ?
Except for rare occasions, our interventions always had very little
incidence on your capacity to make collective and individual decisions about
your own future. This is motivated by our knowledge of your deep psychological
mechanisms.
We reached the conclusion that freedom is built every day as a being
becomes aware of himself and of his environment, getting progressively rid of
constraints and inertias, whatever they may be. Despite the numerous, brave and
willing human consciences, those inertias are artificially maintained for the
profit of a growing centralising power.
Until recently, mankind lived a satisfying control of its decisions. But
it is losing more and more the control of its own fate because of the growing
use of advanced technologies, which lethal consequences on the earthly and
human ecosystems become irreversible. You are slowly but surely losing your
extraordinary capacity to make life desirable. Your resilience will
artificially decrease, independently of your own will. Such technologies exist
that affect your body as well as your mind. Such plans are on their way.
This can change as long as you keep this creative power in you, even if it
cohabits with the dark intentions of your potential lords. This is the reason
why we remain invisible. This individual power is doomed to vanish should a
collective reaction of great magnitude not happen. The period to come is that
of rupture, whichever it may be.
But should you wait for the last moment to find solutions ? Should you
anticipate or undergo pain ?
Your history has never ceased to be marked by encounters between peoples
who had to discover one another in conditions that were often conflictual.
Conquests almost always happened to the detriment of others. Earth has now
become a village where everyone knows everyone else but still conflicts persist
and threats of all kinds get worse in duration and intensity.
Although a Human being as an individual, yet having many potential
capacities, cannot exercise them with dignity. This is the case for the biggest
majority of you for reasons that are essentially geopolitical.
There are several billion of you. The education of your children and your
living conditions, as well as the conditions of numerous animals and much plant
life are nevertheless under the thumb of a small number of your political,
financial, military and religious representatives.
Your thoughts and beliefs are modelled after partisan interests to turn
you into slaves while at the same time giving you the feeling that you are in
total control of your destiny, which in essence is the reality.
But there is a long way between a wish and a fact when the true rules of
the game at hand are unknown. This time, you are not the conqueror. Biasing
information is a millenary strategy for human beings. Inducting thoughts,
emotions or organisms that do not belong to you via ad hoc technologies is an
even older a strategy.
Wonderful opportunities of progress stand close to big subdual and
destruction threats. These dangers and opportunities exist now. However, you
can only perceive what is being shown to you. The end of natural resources is
programmed whereas no long-term collective project has been launched.
Ecosystem exhaustion mechanisms have exceeded irreversible limits. The
scarcity of resources and their unfair distribution - resources which entry
price will rise day after day - will bring about fratricide fights at a large
scale, but also at the very heart of your cities and countrysides.
Hatred grows bigger but so does love. That is what keeps you confident in
your ability to find solutions. But the critical mass is insufficient and a
sabotage work is cleverly being carried out.
Human behaviours, formed from past habits and trainings, have such an
inertia that this perspective leads you to a dead end. You entrust these
problems to representatives, whose conscience of common well-being slowly fades
away in front of corporatist interests, with those difficulties. They are
always debating on the form but rarely on the content.
Just at the moment of action, delays will accumulate to the point when you
have to submit rather than choose. This is the reason why, more than ever in
your history, your decisions of today will directly and significantly impact
your survival of tomorrow.
What event could radically modify this inertia that is typical of any
civilisation ? Where will a collective and unifying awareness come from, that
will stop this blind rushing ahead ?
Tribes, populations and human nations have always encountered and
interacted with one another. Faced with the threats weighing upon the human
family, it is perhaps time that a greater interaction occurred.
A great roller wave is on the verge of emerging. It mixes very positive
but also very negative aspects.
Who are the "third party" ?
There are two ways to establish a cosmic contact with another
civilisation: via its standing representatives or directly with individuals
without distinction. The first way entails fights of interests, the second way
brings awareness.
The first way was chosen by a group of races motivated by keeping mankind
in slavery, thereby controlling Earth resources, the gene pool and human
emotional energy.
The second way was chosen by a group of races allied with the cause of the
Spirit of service. We have, at our end, subscribed to this disinterested cause
and introduced ourselves a few years ago to representatives of the human power
who refused our outstretched hand on the pretext of incompatible interests with
their strategic vision.
That is why today individuals are to make this choice by themselves
without any representative interfering. What we proposed in the past to those
whom we believed were in a capacity to contribute to your happiness, we propose
it now to ... you!
Most of you ignore that non-human creatures took part in the exercise of
those centralising powers without them being neither suspected nor accessible
to your senses. This is so true that they have almost very subtly taken
control. They do not necessarily stand on your material plan, and that is
precisely what could make them extremely efficient and frightening in the near
future. However, be aware that a large number of your representatives are
fighting this danger ! Be aware that not all abductions are made against you.
It is difficult to recognize the truth !
How could you under such conditions exercise your free will when it is so
much manipulated ? What are you really free of ?
Peace and reunification of your peoples would be a first step toward the
harmony with civilisations other than yours.
That is precisely what those who manipulate you behind the scenes want to
avoid at all cost because, by dividing, they reign! They also reign over those
who govern you. Their strength comes from their capacity to distillate mistrust
and fear into you. This considerably harms your very cosmic nature.
This message would be of no interest if these manipulators´ tutorate did
not reach its peak and if their misleading and murderous plans did not
materialise in a few years from now. Their deadlines are close and mankind will
undergo unprecedented torments for the next ten cycles.
To defend yourselves against this aggression that bears no face, you need
at least to have enough information that leads to the solution.
As is also the case with humans, resistance exists amongst those dominant
races. Here again, appearance will not be enough to tell the dominator from the
ally. At your current state of psychism, it is extremely difficult for you to
distinguish between them. In addition to your intuition, training will be
necessary when the time has come.
Being aware of the priceless value of free will, we are inviting you to an
alternative.
What can we offer ?
We can offer you a more holistic vision of the universe and of life,
constructive interactions, the experience of fair and fraternal relationships,
liberating technical knowledge, eradiction of suffering, controlled exercise of
individual powers, the access to new forms of energy and, finally, a better
comprehension of consciousness.
We cannot help you overcome your individual and collective fears, or bring
you laws that you would not have chosen, work on your own selves, individual
and collective effort to build the world you desire, the spirit of quest to new
skies.
What would we receive ?
Should you decide that such a contact takes place, we would rejoice over
the safeguarding of fraternal equilibrium in this region of the universe,
fruitful diplomatic exchanges, and the intense Joy of knowing that you are
united to accomplish what you are capable of. The feeling of Joy is strongly
sought in the universe for its energy is divine.
What is the question we ask you ?
"DO YOU WISH THAT WE SHOW UP ?"
How to can you answer this question ?
The truth of soul can be read by telepathy. You only need to clearly ask
yourself this question and give your answer as clearly, on your own or in a
group, as you wish. Being in the heart of a city or in the middle of a desert
does not impact the efficiency of your answer, YES or NO, IMMEDIATELY AFTER
ASKING THE QUESTION! Just do it as if you were speaking to yourself but
thinking about the message.
This is a universal question and these mere few words, put in their
context, have a powerful meaning. You should not let hesitation in the way.
This is why you should calmly think about it, in all conscience. In order to
perfectly associate your answer with the question, it is recommended that you
answer right after another reading of this message.
Do not rush to answer. Breathe and let all the power of your own free will
penetrate you. Be proud of what you are ! The problems that you may have weaken
you. Forget about them for a few minutes to be yourselves. Feel the force that
springs up in you. You are in control of yourselves !
A single thought, a single answer can drastically change your near future,
in one way as in another.
Your individual decision of asking in your inner self that we show up on
your material plan and in broad daylight is precious and essential to us.
Even though you can choose the way that best suits you, rituals are
essentially useless. A sincere request made with your heart and your own will
will always be perceived by those of us whom it is sent to.
In your own private polling booth of your secret will, you will determine
the future.
What is the lever effect ?
This decision should be made by the greatest number among you, even though
it might seem like a minority. It is recommended to spread this message, in all
envisage able fashions, in as many languages as possible, to those around you,
whether or not they seem receptive to this new vision of the future.
Do it using in a humorous tone or derision if that can help you. You can
even openly and publicly make fun of it if it makes you feel more comfortable
but do not be indifferent for at least you will have exercised your free will.
Forget about the false prophets and the beliefs that have been transmitted
to you about us. This request is one of the most intimate that can be asked to
you. Making a decision by yourself, as an individual, is your right as well as
your responsibility !
Passivity only leads to the absence of freedom. Similarly, indecision is
never efficient. If you really want to cling to your beliefs, which is
something that we understand, then say NO. If you do not know what to choose,
do not say YES because of mere curiosity. This is not a show, this is real
daily life, WE ARE ALIVE ! And living !
Your history has plenty of episodes when determined men and women were
able to influence the thread of events in spite of their small number.
Just like a small number is enough to take temporal power on Earth and
influence the future of the majority, a small number of you can radically
change your fate as an answer to the impotence in face of so much inertia and
hurdles ! You can ease the mankind´s birth to Brotherhood.
One of your thinkers once said: "Give me a hand-hold and I´ll raise the
Earth".
Spreading this message will then be the hand-hold to strengthen, we will
be the light-years long lever, you will be the craftsmen to ... raise the Earth
as a consequence of our appearance.
What would be the consequences of a positive decision ?
For us, the immediate consequence of a collective favourable decision
would be the materialisation of many ships, in your sky and on Earth.
For you, the direct effect would be the rapid abandoning of many
certitudes and beliefs.
A simple conclusive visual contact would have huge repercussions on your
future. Much knowledge would be modified forever. The organisation of your
societies would be deeply upheaved for ever, in all fields of activity. Power
would become individual because you would see for yourself that we are living.
Concretely, you would change the scale of your values !
The most important thing for us is that humankind would form a single
family in front of this "unknown" we would represent !
Danger would slowly melt away from your homes because you would indirectly
force the undesirable ones, those we name the "third party", to show up and
vanish. You would all bear the same name and share the same roots: Mankind !
Later on, peaceful and respectful exchanges would be thus possible if such
is your wish. For now, he who is hungry cannot smile, he who is fearful cannot
welcome us. We are sad to see men, women and children suffering to such a
degree in their flesh and in their hearts when they bear such an inner light.
This light can be your future. Our relationships could be progressive.
Several stages of several years or decades would occur: demonstrative
appearance of our ships, physical appearance beside human beings, collaboration
in your technical and spiritual evolution, discovery of parts of the galaxy.
Every time, new choices would be offered to you. You would then decide by
yourself to cross new stages if you think it necessary to your external and
inner well-being. No interference would be decided upon unilaterally. We would
leave as soon as you would collectively wish that we do.
Depending upon the speed to spread the message across the world, several
weeks, or even several months will be necessary before our "great appearance",
if such is the decision made by the majority of those who will have used their
capacity to choose, and if this message receives the necessary support.
The main difference between your daily prayers to entities of a strictly
spiritual nature and your current decision is extremely simple : we are
technically equipped to materialise!
Why such a historical dilemma ?
We know that "foreigners" are considered as enemies as long as they embody
the "unknown". In a first stage, the emotion that our appearance will generate
will strengthen your relationships on a worldwide scale.
How could you know whether our arrival is the consequence of your
collective choice ? For the simple reason that we would have otherwise been
already there for a long time at your level of existence ! If we are not there
yet, it is because you have not made such a decision explicitly.
Some among you might think that we would make you believe in a deliberate
choice of yours so as to legitimate our arrival, though this would not be true.
What interest would we have to openly offer you what you haven´t got any access
to yet, for the benefit of the greatest number of you ?
How could you be certain that this is not yet another subtle manoeuvre of
the "third party" to better enslave you ? Because one always more efficiently
fights something that is identified than the contrary. Isn´t the terrorism that
corrodes you a blatant example ?
Whatever, you are the sole judge in your own heart and soul ! Whatever
your choice, it would be respectable and respected ! In the absence of human
representatives who could potentially seduce into error you ignore everything
about us as well as from about those who manipulate you without your consent.
In your situation, the precautionary principle that consists in not trying
to discover us does no longer prevail. You are already in the Pandora´s box
that the "third party" has created around you. Whatever
your decision may be you will have to get out of it.
In the face of such a dilemma, one ignorance against another, you need to
ask your intuition. Do you want to see us with your own eyes, or simply believe
what your thinkers say ? That is the real question!
After thousands of years, one day, this choice was going to be inevitable:
choosing between two unknowns.
Why spread such a message among yourselves ?
Translate and spread this message widely. This action will affect your
future in an irreversible and historical way at the scale of millenniums,
otherwise, it will postpone a new opportunity to choose to several years later,
at least one generation, if it can survive.
Not choosing, stands for undergoing other people´s choice. Not informing
others stands for running the risk of obtaining a result that is contrary to
one´s expectations. Remaining indifferent means giving up one´s free will.
It is all about your future. It is all about your evolution.
It is possible that this invitation does not receive your collective
assent and that, because of a lack of information, it will be disregarded.
Nevertheless no individual desire goes unheeded in the universe.
Imagine our arrival tomorrow. Thousands of ships. A unique cultural shock
in today´s mankind´s history. It will then be too late to regret about not
making a choice and spreading the message because this discovery will be
irreversible. We do insist that you do not rush into it, but do think about it
! And decide !
The big medias will not be necessarily interested in spreading this
message. It is therefore your task, as an anonymous yet an extraordinary
thinking and loving being, to transmit it.
You are still the architects of your own fate...
"DO YOU WISH THAT WE SHOW UP ?"
ps i loved skids and mudflaps i thought they were hilarious, as well as wheelie and jetfire.
But everything together was just in really bad taste, and hey, bad taste has its place, when its intelligent, i.e. South Park.
But these were just gross, cheap, crude, racial stereotypes of the worst kind.
Even though she was funny and I laughed, I could tell that Michael Bay's true intention was underhandedly insult white women everywhere with her character.
Good try Mr. Bay, you can't fool me.
It was funny, right, but Transformers isn't a comedy. The first movie was really good, serious with a few funny things. This sequel was too much. It was serious mixed with too much "humour". The old S7 agent and the new Sam's roommate suck. Those guys plus the twins, it was too much. That movie is really good on the visual effects side, but it really sucks because of these twins. They're stupid, useless, they don't do anything in that movie. Because of them, the other Autobots were left aside. How long did the other Autobots, besides the twins and Optimus, get to talk ? Ironhide, Ratchet, the new Chevrolet concept car, Arcee (the motos) ? They were "sacrified" because of those stupid and useless characters...
I was really looking forward to the sequel, but I was really disappointed with the childish (and I'm still being nice using that word) thingy.
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
When The Twins take on Devastator, it was admittedly a pretty cool moment to see one of them (I don't care which one it was...didn't realize they even had names) punches his way out of the mammoth robot's mouth. However, it would have been much cooler to see Arcee do the same thing. You already had her, she was already a classy, canonical character, and what treatment does she get? Blown away in her only real scene. The rest of the film sees glimpses of her here and there without any real impact on the film. It's a shame, really. The Twins were JarJar Binks distraction that brought the film down a few notches it really didn't have to spare. It's already a popcorn flick which is fine (I mostly enjoyed it...gotta love that Mega Optimus Prime scene) but did Bay need to make it stupid and pure drech as well?
(both characters speak with voices that sound like urban black stereotypes) LoL! what about urban hispanic? or some urban whites? what makes you think its just about urban black?...This is so fuckin' stupid!
On the other hand, white people are made out to be either nerdy or dumbasses in movies with more black actors, so it seems to go both ways.
Honestly, its probably not enough for people to really be making such a big deal about.
People are just itching to complain about something to get the African American populace back in the lime light now that we have a half black president. THATS RIGHT I SAID HALF BLACK, WHY COULDN'T HE BE HALF WHITE, THATS RACIST.
Point proven, if you want to bitch and complain about the movie, go home, nobody is making you watch the movie.
While I do have to agree about the stereotyping of the Twins in the movie (Black people belittling each other and acting stupidly and not really contributing - this was my impression), I would have to disagree with the above quote. I am black, and I do feel that we have gone a little too far with the whole being sensitive thing. The buck-toothed person was Indian, not black, and who cares if the deli was obviously Jewish? In the Northeast United States, it would not be racist to say that MOST delis are either Jewish or Italian-owned. Also, with the snails from Paris, that was just an illustration point of the parents going to a new place and trying the food there. The shot of the Chinese man eating noodles is racist? Hello? It happens to be one their staples. I don't find these references racist or stereotypical at all. Just a part of the story.
The funny thing about stereotypes is that behavior and attitudes are usually passed from parent to child and so on. So, within a community of similar people, USUALLY, (obviously not always) you are going to find similar behaviors, attitudes, reactions to certain things, etc. It's just a part of sociology. While no one should be THAT insensitive and make fun of a different culture as was done with the Twins' characters, we do need to get over this hyper PC-ness (sorry for making up a word) that's going around.
Then again, go check on Google about the fire house somewhere I think New York that nobody got raises for 4 years cause they didn't have a black fire fighter, they just didn't have anyone there that was black, so they had to sue the city for raises they never got.
That's the problem. They just took it too far. Maybe if they hadn't gone there with the illiterate joke or not made the robots look so radically unlike every other normal robot in the film (no bug eyes, buck teeth/gold tooth, big ears) most people wouldn't have complained. Of course, so might but most could just chalk it up to funny.
But after a while racially orientated "funny" starts to becoming more malicious and at that point people start getting offended. The subtle political jabs at Obama (and the foolish and stupid white man who WORKED for Obama and what PUT IN CHARGE by Obama), the bucked toothed minority in the deli that served simply as someone to laugh at because of how he looked, and the ridiculous looking robots that talked a jive slang similar to how some black people talk?!
How many blatant jabs does one movie have to take before some people become indignant? I think it was the "reading" comment that did it for me. They could have simply said that they didn't understand that language because it was ancient or something but the way they said it (being that they were already heavily bordering on racial stereotypes whether you want to admit it or not) was where they finally crossed the line in my mind. The scenes that followed just added more flames to the fire.
And about that "They are robots" comment. Did the fact that ministrals were played by white men made to resemble black men make it ok? After all, they were white men, not black men. The thing is, it wouldn't have even been half as bad if the characters were not the ugliest transformers I've ever seen, looked like they were ripped straight from some Jim Crow or political cartoon of a black person, and looked completely unlike any of the other transformers. If they had just looked like all the other transformers most people wouldn't have said anything. It is clear, though, that their look was purposeful and they were purposefully made to look funny. If they were purposefully made to sound like jive talking gangster wannabe's and purposefully included in the movie just so kids and others could have some cheap laughs (as has been implied by the various comments), then how can it be surprising at all when people are shocked and offended that the portrayal of those characters suggested them to be robot versions of poor, "ignant" black men.
No, it isn't. What's more surprising that some people miss these points altogether. Maybe that's why Chappelle finally walked away.
http://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/103981
I'm Asian and when I hear words like "chink", "Gook", etc in movies. I don't care. You know why? Cause I know for a FACT that I am better then they imply. I am Proud of being Asian. No matter how much ppl might bash my race.
PS: In no way were the twins directly related to black ppl and their culture. I didn't notice and the writer of this article seemed to also have overlooked it until whiners like some ppl here brought it up.
Big ears, gold tooth, attitude, not reading much, violent monkey horseplay, and all that BS are ALL attributes of people. Anyone could do or have that.
Which makes sense if you think about it. I really don't think there was a real sense of racism in that movie at all. Just characters used for a cheap laugh.
And in reality, even if they owned up, what would that get you? Would anyone honestly feel better?
And just for the record,if it offended you......GOOD,go fuck yourself!!!
This goes out to EVERYONE who has a issue with the "so called" racism in the new Trans 2 film.......no matter how much you complain,cry,voice you're opinion,or blog...the people behind the movie still get paid!
And just a FYI,they don't give a fuck there laughing all the way to the bank too.
And there is not a goddamn thing you or anyone can do about it,aside from sit at you're PC & be mad,lmao.....the number of pathetic individuals seems to be on the increase this year.........believe it or not,just knowing there are people out there getting bent out of shape over this movie......it puts a smile on my face,thanks for cheering me up people :)
Also interesting is that although Transformers was a toy line before the movie, of course, many stores cleared out major sections of older toys to make room for Transformers 2 toys... yet this is a movie that has been deemed "too mature" for children under 13 with the PG-13 movie rating.
this issue is strong! The view of stereotypical people (robots) in this movie. Can´t OptimusPrime be some heroic black man? Any theories against?
The thing is, in my point of view, that sterotypical pictures are all your own. Pictures taht are shown to you make YOU think something. Of course this gets used on purpose for different reasons.
Society needs to change! Sterotypes will change!
And the society needs steroetypes. What do youj think sitting in a café and some "stereotype" walks by? What do you say to your friend next to you?
I believe it's a perfect example of what's wrong with our society and the fact that we let hollywood dish out crap like this is... well... sad. There's nothing wrong with making a kid-friendly, family movie! Keep It Simple Stupid!
My 3 kids and I saw the movie in a theatre FULL of other parents and their kids. Black, Jews, Whites, Indians, and several Mexicans....and every one of us were laughing our asses off. Oh my, my kids saw a girls ass... OH NO!!!!! Tell ya what... I just came back from the Ukraine where I was for a few weeks. There, they have Playboy channel on broadcast tv. I sat with my girlfriend and her 14 year old son watching nude women. Here is the interesting part.. Because they don't have idiots like you in the Ukraine, they understand that the human body is ok to look at. They also have one of the lowest rape rates in the entire world. And when there are cases of rape...it is USUALLY western (American) men that do it. It's that way in most of the rest of the world. Because here, we have idiots like you and the moron that wrote this pack of crap lies, that the generations after mine (I am 41) are mostly sad excuses for humans that can't think for themselves and want the government to take over their lives. God, you make me sick!! Go to church, and learn this: Judge NOT, lest ye be JUDGED!!! Who the hell are you to judge anyone or anything.
P.S. im black and although I felt he took it too far, I understand what he was going for
Jesus didn't save your ass.
L8er
so they may come across as stereo typical black characters to you. But your coming across as a stereo typical person who is to opinionated to be able to take a joke. Again we are stuck dealing with a standard, nothing to special writer who happens to have a blog, and cant help but bitch and whine about something that doesn't affect them directly. But wants to jump on the band wagon yet again, just cause he likes to hear himself talk.
hmmmmm, next thing you know we are going to hear about how offended the Catholic Church is by Dan Brown..... Oh wait......
And what it really boils down to in the end is this. NO ONE REALLY CARES. give it 2 weeks.
If there is one thing that we can take from this its this. The world loves drama, no matter if its even worth investing any time into it. And as long as there is something, (No matter how small,) to bitch about, the bitches always come out of the wood work. They take on the role of the offended Patriot who needs to voice there opinion against the evil ways of the world, who, for some odd reason, has it out to hurt and offend the innocent.
I think Mark Twain said it best:
"Patriot: the person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about."
What's really funny about this country, is that 2 of the greatest shows of all time could never ever be created today.. They are shown, and people love them...young and old...but never would they be allowed to be made now. Anyone know them???
All in the family and The Jeffersons.
We have gone so far backwards in our thinking that it is a sad day for those of us that actually fought for the freedoms that we are destroying and twisting.
if you didn't find it offensive and it's not racist then why are you so upset that people are talking about it? they didn't take away that crappy movie from you. you can still go waste your money on a film that noone will care about in a couple of years.
Stop being so bloody PC and save your time for something else!
stop causing a fuss about nothing. tosser.
So easy on the insults buddy!
If this was the Wayans brothers having a laugh on Def Jam or Chris Rock talking about rappers etc, it would be deemed funny or when they dressed up in White Chicks taking the mick out of rich white girls, again an over exaggeration of sterotyping. I found none of these offensive and found all to be funny in their own way. I can see people's point but this over sensitvity doesn't help things, it's a film, its not real, it's fiction.
But hay ho it will only be a matter time until something else will come along and this will all be forgotton and we can argue about something else.
cant we all just get along!!!!
Michael Bay has created another fantastic Action movie and has pushed the envelope of CG and VFX as Action movies should. Those of you critics, professional or otherwise, who want a "storyline" then go watch a Drama, because it seems a lot of you are into drama with all this bitching about racism...
If the robots were speaking like feminine you would be rasing the homophobe arguement. It's a movie (an non-living artistic device meant to entertain) Perhaps the robots chose their own voices: like that t.v. dialogue spewing car, and they happened to like those. Is that wrong or do we just need to make sure the race flag controversy is raised everytime a psuedo "Jar Jar" is emulated?
Dear sir or ma'am,
How do 'black', per say, urban stereotypes sound?????? Your view, in affect, is riddled with separatist second hand speak, and in itself is filled with racism. I would have to say that anyone else with point of view is weak minded, and hand fed their ideology through mainstream media like this. Thank you for infecting us with more.
The companies look at it and see it as free publicity.They see all this bs on websites and news papers all over the world and say "Sweet look at all the free coverage!". Then a lot of people will pay to go see the movie out of curiosity over what everyone is talking about just so they can sit around the water cooler and be able to say they saw it too. And the companies will just do the usual "we didn't know!" and laugh their asses off at all the free publicity all the sensitive people out there are screaming for them. All your doing so making them more money by showing to them that if they slip in a few lines here and there or some stupid character that they can get millions of dollars of free press for their movie then play dumb and let all you people do the hard work for them.
Theyre robots...theyre ancestors werent slaves...or picked cotton...or sat in busses to get rights or whatever.
Just robots...if they had spoken like rednecks nobody would care, because its not racist as long as its a "cough" white sterotype.
Transformers 3 July 2011 :)
Oh, yeah, and Michael and Adrian and everybody that thought those two characters were funny, seriously, you're like what, 6 years old?
#2 WHO CARES
#3 WHO CARES
#4 WHO THE FUCK CARES ITS JUST A MOVIE AND
THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPEN IN MOVIES JUST DEAL!!!!!!!
They were put into the ovie to entertain and they certainly did.People who are stirring crap up should either focus there attentions on their careers (cause with energy like that, they'd be high flyers) and also get comfortable in your own skin, there some people in the 'hood' who dont read in MANY different countries (not just Zambia, I was born in London and lived in the Midlands for 9 years as well as been pretty much all over, there hoods everywhere)
So,just enjoy the bloody movie, I for one loved it, shocked when the initially killed Prime, I screamed!!HAHA
hAVE A NICE DAY!!
I myself am Black and originate from Nigeria and have lived in London UK all my life and I doubt it was an issue here or back in my home country.
People are making a big issue out of something so small and should focus on the big picture of the movie - Big bots with big guns that change into slick vehicles...And Megan Fox! I mean if you turned the tables how many folks complained when movies came out with in your face titles like White men can't jump. Surely no one pulled the race card there saying 'Hey that's racist of course we can jump'.
Only an uneducated dumb ass would class all black people in that negative category just from seeing Skidz and mudflap's behaviour. So just enjoy the rest of what you saw like I did and get a grip.
(Loved the forest fight!!)
When I see Latino gangsters in a film like say Training Day or Stree Kings, if anything I feel embarassed that it's reality. There's actual Latino people that kill others wihtout empathy or any real reason besides childish ignorance, if you don't want to be associated with certain sterotypes you should really gain solidarity with your people and change. Just because it's not on the screen doesn't mean it's going to magically disapear from the streets and our lives.
I don't know all the answers but I know what's silly and to try and jump on the movie and it's producers/writers and such- they didn't inspire the first "gangsta" personality. If anything they used this, and in other movies, certain personalities as a muse.
If their weren't varying personality types on our screens, then someone would start complaining that every character written is too "white" and someone's racist for wanting to "white-wash" our minorities. Sheesh it's a movie, just relax and enjoy it.
most people in today's world aren't complete morons. everyone i've seen so far and known so far, absolutely LOVED the movie and mudflap and skids (including my many black friends). i just think it's stupid how these so called 'fighters against stereotypes' make such a big deal out of things that most people really don't take seriously.
in reality, YOU are the people who are trying to start a fire by putting stuff in people's heads by writing stuff about this everywhere and making certain races look insecure. they don't need ur sympathy. most people GET jokes.
i just hope that the person who wrote this article didn't jump to say they were black because they knew it would get more attention. they should probably shuttup now. it's 2009, people don't think about their feelings, especially not in a movie with explosions. you should try getting american history X criminalized, even if it's a brilliant film because they use a lot of racial slang.
and getting mad at having a black stereotype in a movie? then start a petition against chris tucker. not going to work because it's still funny. if transformers wasn't making this much money, you wouldn't have a damn thing to say. your opinion counts lots, that's why michael bay is laughing all the way to the bank with this. some people love ethnic jokes. there's nothing wrong with that, it's an entire genre of stand-up comedy.
so take it down a notch, chico. no need to get all uppety over some latino robots. maybe you'd like it better if they kept the accents but went to college with shia lebeouf in the movie, because that's "respectable". don't tell me people don't act like that. i have friends like that. those robots are just like a lot of people. pretty much anyone in the latin kings haha
it shows the disturbing reality that people come together and say "ok we have 150 million dollars. how can we maximize this investment?" rather than "ok we have 150 million dollars. how can we maximize this investment by creating a more balanced and healthy global society therefore helping ourselves and the people we inhabit this paradise of a planet we call Earth?".
Instead of going for a cheap laugh (which is being ridiculously gracious considering what was acted out), the leaders of our society, which, terrifyingly, are people like Bay, should ask themselves how they should use the ultimate power they have been granted in a positive way rather than in an unhealthy, damaging approach.
it shows the disturbing reality that people come together and say "ok we have 150 million dollars. how can we maximize this investment?" rather than "ok we have 150 million dollars. how can we maximize this investment by creating a more balanced and healthy global society therefore helping ourselves and the people we inhabit this paradise of a planet we call Earth?".
instead of going for a cheap laugh (which is being ridiculously gracious considering what was acted out), the leaders of our society, which, terrifyingly, are people like Bay, should ask themselves how they should use the ultimate power they have been granted in a positive way rather than in an unhealthy, damaging approach.
STEREOTYPES and CARICATURES are formed FROM reality. THAT's why they are FUNNY. You don't often see a 'gold tooth' on a white guy. Or a 'non-street black guy'. Do you seem them on black pimp's? Wannabe 'gangsta's', hoodlums and the a$$ hanging out of their jeans idiots that gather on street corners and talk rubbish?
Hell yeah!
Stop being so frakin' uptight.
It's not even like it's the black community that's up in arms. It's all the tree-huggin' politically correct, scared of their own shadow 'lefties' and enough IS ENOUGH.
IF the part of the black community that hated this type of stereotype so much, then they would change REALITY so that this type of character wouldn't ever occur. And at the same time, stop talking in a messed up version of English, calling each other 'NI**ER', talking about their 'bitches and ho's' etc.. and grow up.
I truly fear for the future of the species if rubbish like this overly political crap doesn't get obliterated from society.
It won't be the 'meek' that inherit the earth. It will be the stupid and moronic.
The twins were a definite waste of time, and a large annoyance, but I very much doubt anyone was trying to be racist. Sure, they were stupid, but what if they had been hillbilly white folk, that would have been hilarious to most, and not racist at all, but in the long run, it's the same thing. Had they been Japanese, and had insane ninja, sword fighting and martial arts skills, that would have also been stereotypical, and could have been considered racist, but that would have been okay, because ninjas are cool.
Basically people, hate the twins. If fact, I encourage hatred toward them, but hate them because they were stupid, screen hogging wastes of CG, not because they are 'racist' robots.
As to your point...Not everyone who is "ghetto" is black but "ghetto" is an allusion to characteristics fashion mannerisms linguistics etc. that originated and are culturally specific to the black community. When one is "acting ghetto" they are invariably identifying themselves with the "ghetto"segment of the black community..REGARDLESS of their race.
"Ghetto" and "Ghettoisms" are cultural property of the black community. it is shared with ALL other races but authorship of it belongs to black people. " "Ghetto" can be good and bad. Hip-hop is "ghetto" but it is also the greatest expression of musical creativity and expression of ancient african musical traditions since jazz music was created by african americans. Ironically jazz was considered "ghetto"when it was first introduced by black folks as well as rock and roll, doo-wop, bee-bop etc...
Yet crack babies are also "ghetto". Urban ultra-materialsm is also "ghetto" and yes gold teeth is MAD ghetto! What we commonly call Urban culture is 100% culturally authored by black people and a lot of it is "ghetto" (not all things authored by black folks is ghetto, but that is another conversation).
Skids and Mudflap were not raceless. They were clearly "ghetto" and defined by culturally specific characteristics (good and bad) originating and eptiomized by the the black community. Ironhide Optimus and the fallen were "black"to but were not "ghetto".
Lets not take cultural conceptions (positive and negative) of the black community out of the black community. That is a form of theft and that is RACIST.
Okay I am a black man who earlier posted support for the skids and mudflap characters and Michael Bay's portrayal (and reveverence) for black characters in general.
BUT lets be honest...there is PLENTY of room to rationally interpret skids and mudflap as examples of ugly racist stereotypes. Iwas not offfended by them but I would have to be dead dumb and blind to not understand why someone is offended by them.
Also it is HIGHLY disrepectful to tell ANYONE from a community that has suffered from racist stereotyping what they should and should not tolerate. I can tolerate skids and mudflap and even like them (it was BADASS the way they demo'd Devastator "No one messes with the TWINS!"...AWESOME). But I would never dare tell someone they should tolerate something that makes them uncomfortable. Discomfort should not be a part of ANYONE"S entertainment experience. And this is AMERICA. Any american has the right to even boycott and picket a film if they want to. Skids and mudflap are polarizing characters with good reasons for BOTH sides of the argument. Buleedat!
Trust me I see your point about people mistaking other forms of discrimination for racism. But lets not get carried away. When white people picket the white house with signs saying "Obama go back to the zoo you came from" with images depicting him as a monkey-man that is RACISM. Its a throwback to when racist whites called black folks gorrilas. And yes when a black person depicts another black person as a grotesque gorilla type in their music and imagery that is RACIST to.
But this is honestly mild racism. It gets much worse. When a black man chooses to sell drugs exclusively in their black community that is RACISM. When A white mobster decides to funnel guns from overseas exclusivley into black communities that is RACISM. When 88% of all drug use convictions are of black people when 80% of the drug users in the country are white...white folks get re-hab black folks get jail...that is RACISM.
Dude I could go on for days. Racism exists.
Skids and Mudflap skate a slippery slope. For me they were not racist. But I can see how someone could prove they are. I praise Michael Bay for depicting those characters as heroic and noble despite their ghetto antics (they were not selling drugs!). I also praise him for depicting ALL the autobots as essentially a race of roboticized black men. Optimus, Ironhide, Side-Swipe, they all talked walked and acted like BLACK men. Plus he gave the ancient autobots an afrocentric orgin and even designed the original Primes to look like african sculptures (holding spears no less!). Bay also depicted the original egyptians as spear wielding Nubian black men. Most people missed that...but those africans in the beginning were at the site of the pyramids! They were the original Kemetic egyptians! This is MUCH better than if Bay portrayed the ancient egyptians as white or Arab THAT would have been racist(niether peoples stepped a foot in egypt until thousands of years AFTER the pyramids were built).
Shoot the only transformers who even sounded like white folks were the decepticons (except the fallen he sounded like an evil black man ala darth vader). Bay's depiction of comic (but heroic) "black robots" is not perfect but he more than balances his insensitivities by his depiction of "leading men" black robots. I thank Bay for that.
That's mad funny kid! Damn you joked brothers and gave brothers props at the same time.
Mad funny.
Seriously though Skids and Mudflap were hard on the eyes and ears but were ultimately heroic and supremely unbeatable warriors...who were black (like I feel optimus and iron hide were portrayed as black as well). I wish more black characters were portrayed like this...as winners.
Spike Lee portrays black men as weak inept powerless victims who ALWAYS lose in like 95% of his films yet NO ONE ever calls him out for being racist. WTF?
Deep Roy plays as one of the guards, and Wheelie uses the term Midget, and says "say he is tall". I don't see any complaints by people about that?
I'm English and Jetfire appears to be English, loud, rude, old, grumpy, farts. Not our greatest of treats! But I don't care. I thought it was hilarious. I think some people are trying to pick fights.
And in reference to the not being able to read bit, a lot of the transformers didn't know what the symbols meant, such as Wheelie. It just shows Skids and Mudflap are a newer generation of transformers and Cybertronian is a lost language.
I maybe wrong and as I am not Black, maybe I missed a point of it, and in that case, I take everything back. But it seems some people are trying to start a fight when there isn't one.
Deep Roy plays as one of the guards, and Wheelie uses the term Midget, and says "say he is tall". I don't see any complaints by people about that?
I'm English and Jetfire appears to be English, loud, rude, old, grumpy, farts. Not our greatest of treats! But I don't care. I thought it was hilarious. I think some people are trying to pick fights.
And in reference to the not being able to read bit, a lot of the transformers didn't know what the symbols meant, such as Wheelie. It just shows Skids and Mudflap are a newer generation of transformers and emphasises Cybertronian is a lost language and that Transformers have been around for many many thousands of years.
Some if few Black people talk like that. Like wise, White people talk like that. Asian people talk like that. Every community will have some members who talk like them.
I was also thinking that the stereotype given to Mudflap and Skids is a negative stereotype created by white community and given to the black community, which is obviously very insulting. The English stereo type is created by white people too but for the white English person as well so it appears less offensive, and one we could laugh about. We feel we can shake it off because we made it up. But some of us appear to think this stereo type of Mudflap and Skids is what all black people, or majority are like.
The double stndad comes from two reasons. The fair reason is that for MANY years whites have had a history of using media to misportray people of other ethnicities so even in light of the civil right movement people are still fearful that portrayals of other races by white folks have have a hidden or overt racist connotation/agenda. Even when no agenda exists. So sometimes an innocent white person is scrutinized as being a possible racist when they are not and the burden of proof is on the white person. I say this is fair becuase the other option is to trade places with a black person. TRUST ME you would rather have to worry about proving your unracist innocence to an anonymous poster on a message board because you are white than trying to prove your uncriminal innocence to a judge in a court because you are black. I would trade being called a racist all day over getting arrested by cops for EVERY AND ANY possible reason and doing time as a rite of passage. Plus in case anyone has been reading this thread black folks who even suggest a white racism may exist are mercilessley and visciously slammed as being 'white-hating" racists. So in this case I say the double standard is aform of balance for the historical and current racist burdens black folks endure as a result of racist agendas.
BUT here is why this double standard can be unfair to white people.
A white person inheriting a burden from racism that they are not responsible for but their community at large is responsible for is admittedly effed up but for the aforementioned reasons a bit fair in terms of balanced suffering.
But what about a white person being held accountable for racism that does not originate in nor is largely perpeptuated by their community. What about when the black community CREATS the stereotypes against themselves and perpetuates it? Michael you were a gentleman and gave the blame to the white community for the negative stereotype that Skids and Mudflap potentially represent. That is appreciated and very humanist. Unfortunately though for every negative black stereotype white folks make about black folks the black community makes 12 (at least nowadays).
I'm not saying this lets the white community off the hook for intentionally or unintentioall perpetuating a racist stereotype about black folks. I am am saying that A LOT of black folks need to check themselves in ADDITION to checking ANYONE else or be quiet. white people are well within their rights to call out black folks for any racism blacks perpetuate against others and THEMSELVES.
Also I have a lot of asian, jewis,white east indian and arab friends. They ALL complain when they are disrespected by the media and in films. Your blanket statement about blacks being the only community that "complains" is a racist one. Obviously you roll with a passive apathetic crowd of sheep that are too souless to demand respect from others. DO NOT lump all of humanity into your apathetic herd . Peoples of all races have proud histories of defying and rejecting the racism that EXISTS. Racists like you are proof of that.
Again I do not think the "twins"were essentially racist. But YOU DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO deny a person of any race their right to question the possible existence of racism and express dissent as an assertion of self-respect and sel defense.
Stop telling people what the should and shuoldn't take offense by. You sound like a racist moron and make cool non-racist white folks (who are the majority) look bad.
For the record you ARE NOT the only person saying "its just a movie grow up" In fact about 90% of the posts on this thread are saying that. Honestly dude what board are you reading?
Obviously you have friends of all ethnicities. Obviously you all huddle together complaining about people who complain (???). Look if its "just a movie" why can't you also say "its just a message board". But you can't. You are compelled to comment and complain and try to persuade people and make a point. JUST LIKE THE PEOPLE COMPLAINING ABOUT THE MOVIE.
If you want to silence people fine. But start by stopping being a hypocrite and SILENCE YOURSELF FIRST.
Prove you have the courage of your convictions by not replying to this and GO AWAY.
Many people on this board, including myself thought the film was just a film but hopefully after reading a few comments, they are able to understand what a few "simple" actions can have a negative effect on one society. I certainly do and thank you victor as well as others as you put up an informed discussion. It wasn't blaming anyone or taking offence, it was helping me see through the eyes more deeply of another society.
Don't take this the wrong way...
You are a brother with class for real.
Thanks for sharing that.
You make it clear that it all boils down to mutual respect of each other in every context personal, professinal historical etc.
And the award for best voice of humanity and reason for this thread goes to...
Michael.
Come on people give the man a round of applause!