Spike Lee Compares Tyler Perry To Amos and Andy

You seen one Tyler Perry movie / play, you've seen them all.

Tyler Perry markets to a very specific demographic, and it works for him.... whatever.

 

... i'd have to see the interview before i judge.. but anyway.. I think that Spike and Tyler could/should collaborate on something.. Perry's got a full Atlanta production/editing studio now, virtually unprecedented in this 'modern' era of black filmmaking.. heck, Christian Bale's profane rant inadvertently gave him props for running relatively delay-free productions..
as Tony mentioned, the Madea-free films are more nuanced.. the Madea based films manage to shoehorn in Christian-positivity in the midst of all the ghetto histrionics.. more or less the mainstreaming of the gospel play.. light on intellectual heft.. and as far as technical qualities (cinematography/editing, etc.) one supposes its good enough for the target audience..
I'm glad Perry got to appear in the Star Trek film.. there was a gasp from the (black) people in the audience.. I read in an interview where he wanted the experience of being part of a "big budget" movie..
As far as the TV shows.. heh.. I've watched a few episodes.. As the regular networks have phased out black-themed sitcoms, I'm glad that "somebody's" still working in the genre.. but I can't front.. I haven't "laughed deeply" often at a black-themed comedy show since Martin and Living Single.. I don't know; in some cases I don't know if it's a non-black/white writer trying to be hip, a black writer who's just getting their start, or network management/censors who possibly tone everything down from any "edginess"; i'm almost convinced, for example, that some jokes are recycled from older sitcom eps.. and certainly in this 'post-modern' era there are any number of cliches that performers can stumble into that just come off bad, even in the name of being 'politically incorrect'.. the eye-bucking, finger-snapping, neck-rolling..

 

Homeboy is just jealous. Perry appeals to his base:Black women while Lee strives for art. I don't know why he opposes a fellow director because of a niche.

 

It's one man's opinion and it makes me no difference. I liked the film. Plus it was the first on-screen appearance by Samuel L. Jackson (Gator). I think Halle Berry was a crackhead in it, too. LOL.

 

That one man's opinion empowered millions of Black Women who were already opposed to IR to be more public about it. To this day, the movie gets quoted by BW against IR. The title, in itself a racial slur against Black people, is now a slur against IR couples.

It's one man's opinion as represented in the film, an admitted propaganda piece.

People don't make propaganda for the entertainment value. They make it for the intended results. Lee's intended result was greater public hostility toward IR from the Black community.

By my measure, he succeeded.




I think Samuel Jackson is awesome too. Right now, I'm watching him in a condescending, manipulative piece of crap on ABC about the economy. Samuel Jackson's hilarious in the terrible Network parody they put him in, but it doesn't make the show any less crap. I wonder, if everyone takes the horrible advice on this show, if it will have as negative and lasting an impact as Jungle Fever.

 

"This is true, however, the stereotypes about Black people in the media are more harmful than others."

Really CBQ? I thought you were smarter than that. So the models you see that inspire millions of females to eating disorders (which are being seen at an unprecedented level in elementary schools) aren't as harmful as the media bias against blacks? And I bet Latinos would say its worse for Latinos. Im not saying that media bias isn't a huge problem for blacks, but obviously whatever one is or identifies with, the more harmful the perceived bias is. You drive a red car, you start noticing all the red cars on the road, y'know?

 

Skiny models are not a stereotype. You're talking about beauty standards, which is a whole nother thing, and no, they're not as dangerous as stereotypes that make our society complacent with the killing of Black Men. You can get counseling for an eating disorder. You can't get counseled out of being shot.

Yes, but there are actual statistics on how many cars are painted red, and if all the evidence states that the majority of cars are red, they probably are.

The entire history of racism in this country, the entire reason African Slavery in the South was different from any other kind of slavery that occured before it, was the use of racial mythology to maintain a corrupt system. Within that historical framework, all cultural representations of the group targeted by that racial mythology become infinitely more important, as they either prop up that mythology or they don't.

These are facts.


And besides, it is so demeaning and condescending to compare people to a car. Come on. Next time, if you're gonna come up with an analogy while painting your toenails, think a little deeper first. Rly.

 

The whole comparing stereotypes to skinny models thing has me thinking I need to break down what I'm saying a little more to you:

I am not making the argument, at this time, that the bigotry and inequality which Black people face is worse than any bigotry and inequality that any other groups face within the United States. At this time.

However, each type of bigotry and inequality manifests itself differently, and stems from a different source. Although bigots of a feather flock together, the foundation for each type of hatred is a different one.

The bigotry and inequality that is directed at Black people within the United States is inescapably tied up with racial mythology. Fictions invented by those that had something to gain from widespread and enthusiastic racism. It's true: Many, many Black Men were hanged after White Women accused them of rape. However in addition one must also know that a growing number of discoveries show that in many of these cases, Black Men with property were specifically targeted with false rape accusations so that White people in the area could take the land. As violently and disgustingly as many White people clung to their racism, their total understanding of race had been shaped by those who stood to gain financially from the continued legality of slavery, and later from Jim Crow laws, and after that the continued maintenance of inequality. These myths were designed to maintain inequalities that the rest of the world was abandoning. Convincing White America that Black people were less than human justified treating them as if they were less than human. You can trace nearly all of the stereotypes associated with Black people back to slavery.

Given this history, regardless of whether you think Black People suffer more greatly from bigotry and inequality, it becomes clear that the bigotry and inequality that is directed at Black People is uniquely tied in with stereotypes, and as such all cultural representations of Black People have a greater impact within the United States.

 

Thank you for making a good point.

 

that was well said. I knew you couldnt mean what you said exactly how it came out.

And Im not talking about eating disorders and being counselled out of them. Im talking about how people are genetically predisposed to being skinny or fat or whatever they look like, and that not being accepted by many people, which you can't get counselled out of. I struggle with my weight on a daily basis. I know it has cost me relationships; I know people who see me think of me as lazy, less intelligent, and any other stereotypes you can come up with. I was born this way, I am very intelligent, I have met lots of people who know I am a worthwhile person, and I do my best not to let it get to me. Nevertheless I have to deal with mainstream society's expectations of me, educating and informing people, or even ignoring people as I need to in order to make sure that I can live the fullest life I am entitled to live. Skinny models everywhere don't help. The stereotypes perpetuated by the fashion industry in choosing them encourage the ignorant to feed into the idea that fat is unacceptable. The industry makes mainstream society look down on those with weight problems, whether real or perceived, and people with low self esteem take unhealthy actions to lose weight and maintain a low weight. I am in no way saying that fat people have been mistreated the way that black people have, or even for as long, but we only know our own personal struggles and they can be just as crippling.

As far as coming up with a metaphor while I was painting my toenails, you don't have to resort to petty jabs just because youre irritated. Aren't we all adults here?

 

I absolutely could. I'm not making that point at the moment, but I certainly could see myself making that point. I think it's usually unproductive to measure bigotries, but that's not to imply they couldn't be measured.

 

How you turned a discussion about the stereotypes regarding Black people in the media into a discussion about you boggles me.

Highly debatable.

The first part of your sentence contradicts the second half.

From your posts so far, I'm pretty sure we're not. I find a lot of what you say to be borderline offensive, and the kindest explanation I can come up with is that you are very very young.

 

I haven't seen those shows to say whether it's "coonery" but Spike has to accept that "cooning and buffooning" is part of Black comedy.

Amos and Andy were funny. Many of the men and women who did these acts were talented comedians. It's possible for a Black person to be a buffoon in a modern comedy without the negative racial connotation. Though I've never seen his work, Tyler Perry is big for a reason and his movies will always attract a bigger crowd than Spikes.

 

That's crazy talk. Perry's never attracted the type of crowds Malcolm X got.

 

No he doesn't. This is where Spike and I agree.

Amos and Andy were two white men on the radio, doing a minstrel show parody of black people. The origins of the show were racist make no mistake. Only when it came to TV was it cast with blacks. I've never seen the show to know if it's actually funny.

No it isn't.

It's called "lowest common denominator"

 

I take it that you've never seen an episode of The Cosby Show?

 

that's just one aspect. Wayans and Martin are another. Amos and Andy/Stepin Fetchit are another.

I've seen the show and thought it was funny. It's better to embrace that type of performance art, instead of being ashamed of it and worrying about people believing that's how Black people really behave. There will never be a perfect representation of any group in media.

So a Black person can not play a fool or buffoon in a movie without racial connotations? So I guess there's only room for Bill Cosby types in Black comedy?

 

Are you kidding? Look at the gross between there movies. Even if you compensate for inflation, Perry's movies make more money than Spikes auteur flicks.

 

We're talking crowds, not box office. How thick was the line for Diary of a Mad Black Woman? Did people wait outside for hours? Nothing Perry's done creates the kind of crowds that Malcolm X or Do the Right Thing did.

Do the Right Thing and School Daze blew the lid off of Black Movies.

Spike's biggest problem he created a lot of enemies where there were none. This is what happens when you're a mangina, unfortunately. But that doesn't change how impactful a director he is.

Have you seen 25th Hour? Tyler Perry has not one single movie that can possibly compare.

 

Wow that is kinda true. I dont know if he intentionally did that but it is probally true that a Spike lee is opposed to IR relationships. Also you are right that the movie shows a negative view of those relationships. I think we need to email and mail media and hollywood that we need to see more Bm and Ww relationships represented.