Racial Stereotyping In Comic Book Based Movies

I agree with this article wholeheartedly. Would like some feedback/opinions on this as well.
Mean Green

Green Lantern is just the latest Hollywood comic book film that makes black guys look bad.



By Armond White
Green Lantern Directed by Martin Campbell
Runtime: 105 min.

Green Lantern is a watchable if unexceptional entertainment, spinning an overcomplicated moral about guardians of the universe; will, courage and fear; and putting Ryan Reynolds as Hal Jordan in a body suit made of light. All amusing enough until the filmmakers…bring on the black guy.

No matter how fanciful, quixotic or faithful to their original source, most of this year’s comics-based movie sink when their pop-art legends are confronted with the modern world. The fantasy-figure heroes and villains cannot transcend cultural archetypes which means these contemporary, multimillion dollar productions keep dragging audiences back to the oldest, most decrepit social stereotypes.

It has become a particular annoyance this year. Given the essentially frivolous nature of these comics-derived films, it’s worth pointing out how their fleeting but constant offense prevents the movies from being the progressive fantasies they pretend to be. They spoil their own lessons about good and evil through their non-conscientious use of cinematic imagery and character presentation.

Here are three recent disappointments:
Idris Elba in Thor. While translating the gods of Norse legend into the modern day Hollywood universe, the makers of Thor challenged familiar thinking by thinking multiculturally. Casting black British actor Idris Elba as Heimdall, Guardian Sentry of Asgard, confronted archeological complexities more than it disputed history. Why shouldn’t a deity be portrayed by an actor of color? Problem is: Elba’s Heimdall never significantly figured into Thor’s action. The character’s conception was, essentially, a butler. His purpose was to admit and greet—aligned with 1930s Hollywood stereotype rather than divine or cosmological possibility. (Read the review here)


Edi Gathegi in X-Men: First Class. During the round-up of “Mutant and Proud” superheroes, Gathegi as Darwin becomes the first to graduate to oblivion. He is gruesomely dispatched when his sketchily revealed “gift” is used against him. Darwin never gets to display heroism; instead, he is horrifically calcified. It’s a tip-off that the movie probably won’t use any of its characters satisfyingly. Even though Gathegi (also brutally dispatched in Gone Baby Gone) was felled by convention, the only dramatic surprise was that it happened so early in the story. Gathegi’s Darwin was X-Men: First Class’ Second Class citizen. (Read the review here.)


Michael Clarke Duncan in Green Lantern. Duncan voices a character named Kilowog, a member of the Green Lantern Corps, brother from another planet. He’s drafted to train Hal Jordan physically although Duncan’s speech patterns seem to dictate the character’s physical appearance; he looks like a police suspect sketch (a dark-skinned, menacing hulk as if derived from the British racial epithet “golliwog”). Essentially emulating the famous Lou Gossett Jr badass drill sergeant role, Duncan suggests that racist stereotyping exists even among alien cultures.

Would any of these actors ever get a chance to play a superhero comics protagonist? Will the comics audience ever be educated beyond typical racist conventions? Can fans ever recognize the ideological roots of their heroes and villains and respond intelligently to how these pop myths are constructed?

Only Michel Gondry’s Green Hornet escaped this problem and did so primarily through Gondry’s sophisticated approach to the nature of comic-book heroism. Gondry, Seth Rogen and Jay Chou explored the stereotypes by which white male characters (and their audiences) presume heroism via social convention that gets mistaken for natural right. It leads to Britt Reid and Kato’s rivalry (Caucasian to Asian) which brings these issues into play rather than ignoring them and perpetuating the traditional biases and outdated cultural codes.

Racial stereotyping may be organic to the creation of comics lore (a simplistic genre) but Gondry’s Green Hornet proved it’s not essential to one’s enjoyment. Ironically, Green Lantern’s entertainment value comes from defying certain genre conventions. Ryan Reynolds brings an agile presence and light humor to the part of brash test pilot Hal Jordan. As a child who witnessed his test pilot father’s death, Hal’s frightened, arrogant psyche responds to the possibility of Green Lantern Corps heroism as a test of his maturity. Reynolds plays the seriousness better than Robert Downey in Iron Man or Toby Maguire in Spider Man. He also displays wit without resorting to camp like George Clooney’s Batman.

Because Reynolds is an unconventional comics type, it helps ground the film’s delirious lessons in humanity. He makes Hal’s scenes with Blake Lively as aviatrix Carol Ferris sexy and credible (“I think we both know I’m pretty good at walking away”) and straight-facedly represents Hal’s struggle with fear, weakness and will. It’s proof of what original casting can do for a comics movie. Director Martin Campbell is a reliable craftsman (The Mark of Zorro, Casino Royale) who raises the level of this genre even if only in terms of technique. The F/X of Hal creating objects out of his ring’s green light are successfully, modestly fantastic. Such professionalism needn’t resort to dumb stereotyping.

Is it possible that the comics franchise is inherently retrograde? Does the commitment to childish characters and mindless action prevent creativity, believability, intelligence? Hal Jordan’s magical ring of virtue, given to him by the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps is a talisman devolved from Wagner and Tolkien. And co-screenwriter Greg Berlanti (The Broken Hearts Club) doesn’t sustain Hal’s interesting family subplot nor detail his romantic rivalry with hydrocephalic super villain Hector Hammond (Peter Sarsgaard channeling Brad Dourif). The action stays superficial despite Campbell’s advance in the depiction of disaster as spectacle; disaster doesn’t just happen but is full of threat and, importantly, witnessed by many (surely a Spielberg influence).

Green Lantern should be better than it is but improvement would begin with sustained enlightened casting and characterization. What’s happened in comics movies this year has not improved on the casting in 1930s Hollywood serials. Actress Sanaa Lathan (star of Alien Vs. Predator) recently snapped “Nothing has changed!” when describing her role as an embittered 1930s black film actress in Lynn Nottage’s current play Meet Vera Stark. Lathan and Nottage’s collaboration is more meaningful and entertaining than all the comic-book franchises—or any other Hollywood movie—so far this year. Stereotyping has gotten so bad that smart viewers have come to expect the insult. They know beforehand that if it’s an action movie and there’s a black guy in it, his doom is certain—the ultimate spoiler.

 

It just amazes me how this article can mention green lantern and black person at the same time avoiding John. You know at the back of every one's mind John is there. any how, most of these comics are made by white people so you know quite a bit of these people will not be black. There isn't a single black person in the line up of the original x-men(this was in reference to the movie just starting up the x-men). The same with the lantern and justice league. So it doesn't amaze that you don't see them. They have tried to update the comic book characters but the original background is still there. I wouldn't mind a static shock movie but it is what it is.

 

Then what is Storm's ethnicity? Oh wait...you mean the First Class movie?

 

I can see some points in this article, though I think much of the roles mentioned also are helping to pave the way for more fair and 'equal' casting choices for black actors and actresses. While I don't think it is exactly a comic book movie, Idris Elba was just cast as the lead in Guillemo Del Toro's Pacific Rim movie, a science fiction/action movie at that. Far as his role in Thor was concerned, well Heimdel's role in the comics was never really that big anyway. If anything Kenneth Brenaugh cast the guy because of his talent as his history of casting black actors for generally white parts can support this. Heck, in Much Ado About Nothing we get Denzel Washington and Keanu Reeves as brothers.

You also have Zoe Saldana coming out with that one action movie where she is the lead. While yes, it also is not a comic book movie, I think a lot of the barriers are starting to crack at the very least. My main problem is the fact that Hollywood doesn't like to cast no namers or new comers all that much so we get the same black actors always making their rounds in different movies. While that is fine and good and many, most, are great actors and actresses. It would be nice to think that there will be more than one or two black actors around to play leading men and women in 20 years. I mean, Denzel and Will can't do it forever.

Anyway, i've seen worse casting of black actors. And may we not forget, no matter what, if there is a nugget of truth in racism or prejudice in the casting decisions, no one is putting a gun to these actors and actress heads and making them sign the dotted line.

 

I meant the very first line up.
Storm joins in later despite the fact that most of the black people who would buy their stuff would be male and not female! just comes to show how a white guy is thinking.


The same issue follows in DC. Even though John is black, he is treated as a white person with black qualities.

 

You got a point. Supposedly some guy was cast as John Stewart to at least cameo in the recent GL movie but I sure as heck didn't see him. So I'm assuming it fell through or they cut his part.

 

To this day I don't get why they casted Hallie Berry instead of Angela Basset for storm. She would have been perfect.
I always hated Static Shock. Another hood kid even though he lived in the burbs. Shit like that always rubs me the wrong way.

 

The old phrase follows, "Better late than never."

That form of bias and stereotyping have always existed across all mediums. So at least we should be lucky that there is much more diversity in many of the environments based on more diverse bases.

 

And Batman, being a rich white guy in a Halloween costume (which is as unrealistic), fighting crime doesn't rub you the wrong way?

 

Because Hallie Berry was better known by white people instead of angela. I still don't get what is so prety about her but it is what it is.

I liked the tv show. I never read the static comic. It was the push for intel that I liked and a young black hero. Most of the time they are older no matter the race. Spiderman had to wear a mask because he was so freaking young.

 

hilarious. You should have gone with the hulk! Bruce banner should have gotten cancer!

 

Hahaha! Not cancer! He should have gotten gout!

 

Darwin may return to X-Men, from what I understand his character evolves from one state of being to another. He never dies, he just changes. At least that is what I have been told by those who read the newer X-Men comics (last five years). They said he has the ability to re-evolve.
I have not seen Green Lantern or Thor yet.
I did read that after nearly 20 years in development and delays The Black Panther may make it to the screen after all.

 

Hmmm, hence the name Darwin. Natural Selection or evolutionary biology.

 

and yet the black panther seems to be absent in the avengers' new movie unless I just missed him

 

No because I'm tired of the representation of you blacks having a hood venacular even if they aren't from the hood. I'm as suburban as they come and I would have liked to see a black representation of me. Like a black Peter Parker or a black Johnny Storm someone who was representative of everyone I knew growing up.

Truthfully I liked the Bruce Wayne/Batman character more so than most of the DC heroes. He had such depth and a true sense of purpose.

 

Peter Parker swings through an urban environment. Static simply hovers through one. The same with Johnny. No offense but new york city has a very urban image. You don't do your self justice by naming nyc superheroes.

Static lived in a much less urban city when he was doing his super hero thing.

Batman also spends a lot of time in the main city. same thing with superman. There isn't much of the usual crime out of the urban place.

 

I hate to break it to you, but even suburban blacks from where I live would adopt a certain ghetto vernacular. It's not innate and to be frank, Static Shock/Vergil didn't speak in a black vernacular sense from what I'm getting at. He possessed the same virtuous qualities that any of the DC characters possess without too much ambiguity of character like Batman.

He didn't steal TVs, acted as though he's a pimp and any other stereotype you seemingly tend to associate people with who has a certain slang or lingo. Could it be that Vergil's voice is more of an accent than anything? So honestly, I don't see why you need to complain about nothing when it comes to that character.

Also, consider Todd MacFarlanes's character Spawn. Al Simmons/Spawn is another representation of a person. Like Batman, he has to make moral decisions. The difference, however, is when it comes to a strong sense of purpose, Spawn's decisions affect not just himself, but the fate of existence. He's a strong character that's troubled, but have redeemed himself ultimately.

 

I think Andrea is right about the vernacular. They do that to bring in the urban viewers whiling alienating the rest of us. I am not sure if they do that because the creators are from the urban environment or to pull in more of what they think people are.

 

At least you caught that part of my point. Thanks fam