Idris Elba Speaks

And no farting yourself some bubbles in the tub.


Oh yeah...I said that. :smt006

 

She can fart all she wants. She can do no wrong in my eyes.

 

Hmmmm...there's a thread for guys like you. http://www.whitewomenblackmen.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16692 :smt112

 

lol...i have english blood in me sin & sam...i love all things related to bodily functions...!!! dutch oven anyone...???

 

I read Elba's comments a few days ago and thought he was wrong. That's a whiny defensive stance he is taking as far as I'm concerned. His comments are not just directed at the Oscars but the Golden Globes as well and he seems to suggest that black folks don't get nominations because the award shows aren't designed for black people. I will concede that the Academy awards have always had a "white" bent to them. And is that wrong considering the vast majority of ticket buyers, movie stars and Academy voters are white? And considering that the field of producers, studio heads, writers and directors are even more predominantly white why would people keep expecting a different outcome? However the most insulting thing is that in the previous ten years, when it comes to the acting categories at least, black people have been nominated and won more than anytime ever in Hollywood's history. For black people like Elba to forget that so quickly simply because there weren't any black nominees this year is pathetic.

What Elba and many black folks seem to be asking for is a goddamn quota. They seem to think black folks deserve nominations on a yearly basis just because, what, it is the moral thing to do? What about quality of work? Should Latinos and Asians get quota nominations too? There wasn't anything worthwhile that black people put out that was worthy of Oscar nominations and that includes acting performances. Period. The scary thing is that I'm worried black people are so unable to put their racial hysteria aside that it prevents them from seeing this. Don't we understand that almost all the movies about us this past year were of the garbage variety? Who deserved Oscar nods? Denzel for Unstoppable? Tyler Perry for his awful films? It wasn't a good year for films overall IMO, but of the ten nominated movies for Best Picture I saw eight in the theaters during their original release and one I saw on DVD (Winter's Bone....months before it got all of its nominations I might add). The only one I did not see was "Toy Story 3". I am not into seeing animated movies on the big screen and I'll admit I didn't see parts one or two of that franchise either. This past year I also saw about 20 other movies as well so I got a good idea of what was good and what wasn't. There was hardly any impressive movies about black people in 2010 and not too many great performances from black actors. I and others could see an Oscar shutout for blacks and minorities long before the nominations were announced. And the shutout was justified.


It was justified because black actors and actresses were not given great material to work with. Let me be clear: I believe the talent is out there....the problem lies with the opportunities. If a black actor isn't given a great, substantial role how can you expect him or her to get a nomination? We need to stop complaining about awards shows like the Oscars because they are the end result, not the root cause. It is like crying that your favorite team didn't make the NCAA tournament when in fact it brought in bad recruits, employed an inferior coach and was underfunded compared to other basketball programs it competes head-to-head with. Roles are crucial. Not just for Oscar nominees but for the big budget blockbusters most of you here love to support. You guys get excited when the upteenth superhero movie goes into production. But those superhero movies are almost exclusively just other vehicles for white male actors to get leading roles while black actors get scraps. Hollywood isn't interested in doing movies with black leads or creating new black stars ESPECIALLY if black folks don't mind forking over their cash to movies that cater white male fantasies without ever catering to the desires of black men and women.


You may have noticed that I am limited this discussion to the black thespians because they are the true victims. The people who should be ashamed of themselves though are the black filmmakers who mostly put out shoddy work. While some are really hurt because of the lack of funding they get compared to their white counterparts, far more of them are hurt by their lack of ambition and creativity. Actor Anthony Mackie said it best when he wrote that black people need to stop crying about the Academy Awards and step up their game. Elba should listen to Mackie especially considering Elba would take any crappy role in any crappy movie that comes along. I mean did Elba think Obsessed or Daddy's Little Girl was Oscar worthy?

 

Wow.

Just Wow.

 

I think Idris Elba is one of the best 'new' actors around (I don't know if a nearly decade-long career counts as 'new'). I'm not a fan of Daddy's Little Girls and I didn't even bother seeing 'Obsessed', but his work in The Wire and Rock n Rolla was great. I look forward to seeing him in the future.