Olivia Wilde created her own backlash (Ava and C.I.)

No, it's not sexism.  People who scream that all the time sport their ignorance.  

We realized that when Stephanie Zacharek of TIME magazine showed up Friday sporting 'lady wood' for Olivia Wilde, sporting her big crush on Olivia and her stupidity regarding how a starlet acts versus how a film director acts and sporting her stupidity with regards to history.  We've seen the backlash before and it wasn't about sexism.  

 

Before we go futher, Rebecca's "f**k you, stephanie zacharek" and Stan's  "TIME lets Stephanie Zacharek have a wet dream in public over Olivia Wilde" addressed this topic. 

 

 

 

 

This cover of VANITY FAIR.

No, it's not how directors pose for photos.  Ass in the air, legs spread, a see through garment, as Marcia noted.

She's begging to be slammed.  

Directors don't generally do cheesecake or beefcake photos. 

More to the point, most director and actor combos, where the two meet while one is the boss, do not go out of the way to advertise their relationship.

The last one that did the way Olivia and Harry do now?

Peter Bogdanovich.  

 

He began an affair with Cybill Shepherd on the set of THE LAST PICTURE.  He began promoting his affair as he moved to officially end his marriage (seeing a pattern here?).  And he talked about it and talked about it and talked about it.  The same way Olivia has.  And everyone turned on him.  As Cary Grant told him, most people aren't happy and they don't need or want to hear how happy you are.  

 

 

Sometime in the mid-'70s, when we were getting terrible press, Cary Grant called me. He says, 'Peter, will you for Christ's sake stop telling people you're happy? And stop telling them you're in love.' I said, 'Why, Cary?'  'Because they're not happy and they're not in love.' He was right.

 

 

 

It created a backlash which is what's happened for Olivia Wilde.

And that's before you factor in her attack on Shia LaBeouf.

She's supposed to be promoting her film -- not her sex life.  She's supposed to be promoting her film -- not attacking an actor.  There would be backlash for any director making remarks about Shia.  She doesn't know what she's talking about with regards to his personal life and should shut her mouth immediately.  There was never a reason for her to stick her nose into his personal life.  Maybe she's upset because she wanted to hook up with Shia before he walked out on her project.  She certainly seems to use a lusty voice when she's begging him, in the audio released, not to leave the movie and mocking her leading actress.  

But it was none of her business to try to pile on.

Jane Fonda looked like an old bitch when she bragged about telling Lindsay Lohan off. It seemed as bitchy as when Joan Crawford used the press to attack Marilyn Monroe.  (Hopefully, Jane hadn't had sex with Lindsay the way Joan had with Marilyn but considering how circumspect Jane's become about that topic, who knows?)  

Jane thought she looked like a mother -- as did Joan.  Neither did.  They looked like elderly cranks.  

 

Olivia piled on Shia and she lied about him.  And this pompous attitude about "my sets"?  This is only her second film.  She needs to reel it in.  She has no visual style.  Her last film was not visually stunning  and played out like a radio broadcast.  A director does not just call out "Action!"  She has no visual sense and she also lacks a rhythm when it comes to dialogue.  

Her attitude is annoying to those of us who actually know film.

All the backlash she's facing, she brought on herself. 

(And, for the record, it was sexism when Jane decided to call out Lindsay's mother -- not her father.  Just because someone claims to be a feminist -- between marriages -- doesn't make them one.)

Jim's Corner

 

 

Whenever I come across the name Margaret Talev, I make a point to pay attention.  Why?  As Ava and C.I. have repeatedly pointed out here and at THE COMMON ILLS, she's the one that gets no credit.  Talev was part of the truth squad at KNIGHT RIDDER -- the ones who didn't just do stenography in the lead up to the Iraq War.  But the Bill Moyers of this world rendered her invisible and just focused on the bro-cest of Jonathan Landay and Warren Strobel.  That pathetic relationship would implode during the presidency of Barack Obama.  But the record would never be fixed to add Talev's name to the list of those who did actual journalism.  

So I was reading up on Joe Biden's speech and it being seen as divisive (after I read Ava and C.I.'s latest) and came across this:

Axios managing editor and CNN analyst Margaret Talev suggested Biden's speech was intentionally "divisive." 

"I think some of this is about splitting the Republican Party. I mean it is divisive, it's divisive by nature. That’s the point of the speech. When you use a phrase like ‘MAGA Republicans’ this is clearly poll tested, and it's to say it’s not the same thing as say Republicans it's to say there is a different brand of republicanism inside the Republican Party. That’s what Biden is trying to get to and what he's trying to do is give independents and Republicans a permission structure to split the ticket. Or just to vote democratic or to stay home. That’s what he’s doing in states like Ohio, in states like Pennsylvania, in states like Wisconsin," Talev told the CNN panel.

I'm sure she's right.  I'm also sure that the president of the United States is supposed to be the president of America and not just some of America.

That's before you factor in that this president was supposed to be a uniter.  I'm tired of it.  His speech was divisive.  It was not fit for a president.  That's before you factor in his using the Marines as props in this speech.  You're not supposed to politicize the military.  Joe Biden owes the American people an apology.

But put that on a long list of things that Joe Biden owes Americans.

That list would include an apology for lying about having no knowledge of Hunter Biden's business dealings (his corrupt business dealings), an apology for the way he lied about Tara Reade, an apology for his assault of Tara Reade, an apology for his failure with regards to COVID 19, an apology for his failure to properly prepare for monkeypox, an apology for the way he has ignored the residents of Jackson, Mississippi while they have suffered without water . . .

It's a long, long list.

And his failures are proof that we do not need to ever again elect someone his age to be president.  He is too old.  He lacks energy, he lacks mental fitness.  His vanity run has cost the country dearly.  He should probably start his apologies with one for how he's harmed the country.

 

Useful Idiots Monday Mourning with Katie Halper and Aaron Maté

 

In "TV: Jen Psaki isn't capable of explaining what's going on to others," Ava and C.I. noted that Aaron Mate had come into his own on USEFUL IDIOTS.  Here's an example.  (Katie Halper's always been in her own.)

Immigration

Busing?

 

Remember when Kamala Harris, in a debate, called Joe Biden out on busing?  She was right to do so.

And we're seeing busing, as an issue, yet again.

And we're seeing a racist response to it, yet again.

Oh, poor DC, is it testing your community resources this influx (from Texas) of immigrants?  Suck it up, butter cup.  You're part of the US.  It's really easy to say you're pro-immigration when you're not a border state.  

What we're seeing is the reality that non-border states don't want immigrants.  They expect border states to deal with them but they don't want to deal themselves.  Too bad.  Read the inscription on the Statue of Liberty.  As long as it's in New York Harbor, we need to follow the motto "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The Wretched refuse of your teeming shore."

We agree with Ann who's noted that Iowa is one of the most Anglo-White states in the country.  And yet it expects to go first for the caucus each presidential election year.  We need to be steering newly arrived immigrants to Iowa.  And to other states as well.  We believe in open borders, we are pro-immigration but, sorry DC and Chicago and you other whiners, we are also of the belief that newly arrived citizens need to be dispersed throughout the country and not just in, for example,  Florida, Texas and California.  

If we're in this as a country, then we are in this country.  But if we were really in this as a country, you wouldn't see states with such a lily White composition as, for example, Montana and Iowa.

TV: Stop blaming negative responses to your own failures on trolls

Trolls?

It's a label many love to use.  Is it accurate?

We ask because some thin skinned types are insisting all criticism is trolls.   We are being told that poor entertainment conglomerates are under assault -- trolls at the gates! -- and all they want to do is entertain.

 

 

No, honey, all they want to do is make a buck.  Doubt it?  If we're watching ANT MAN & THE WASP on FX, we're not watching it because we want the lower right hand of our screen to be promoting DISNEY+ and the new offer if you subscribe.  We're watching for ANT MAN & THE WASP.  If they want to actually entertain us, stop distracting from the film with that garbage in the lower right hand corner.  

Are there trolls?  

Yes, there are and there always have been.  Josiah something on YOUTUBE strikes us a troll.  He's always attacking this woman or that.  

Now some female-led shows deserve to be attacked, that's reality.  MARVEL has made three female-led shows for DISNEY+ and they've all been garbage.  WANDAVISION promoted the rest cure that Charlotte Perkins Gilman railed against over a century ago.  MS. MARVEL stripped the character of a number of her powers, of her connection to the larger story and her powers were no longer inherent within her but gained when she wore a bracelet.  And then they offered the joke that is SHE-HULK: ATTORNEY AT LAW.  Our criticism of the latter, led to a DISNEY+ exec huffing that "for your information, WONDER-MAN will be a comedy as well."  That doesn't improve the stats.  Three times they could have created a strong female hero that people took seriously and three times they failed.  

Brie Larson is bothered by trolls.  So much so that she may quit playing Captain Marvel, or so she's insisting to the press.

Are the people criticizing her all trolls?

Brie's personable.  She's been fairly good as Captain Marvel.  Fairly good?  The first movie is a mess (and far too enamored of the US military)  We liked her mixing it up with the Avengers but felt there could have been more done to bring her character in -- she was a bit of an after-thought and more mingling might have helped ward off some of the criticism.  Equally true, while we loved Carole Danvers as Ms. Marvel and as Binary and as War Bird, we do understand why a lot of people found the comic book Carol as Captain Marvel off putting (she embraced fascism, among other things).  Listening to Brie whine, it only reminds us that she clearly knows damn little about the character she's playing -- including the whole Civil War 2 that destroyed Carol for a lot of comic book readers.

Brie feels she's a victim of trolls spewing sexism.

We think she might be right.  But we'd argue the trolls spewing sexism are the ones writing the scripts to her movies.  

MARVEL really should look at how it portrays women.  

Equally true that some being called trolls are not trolls, they are very devoted fans.

As the eighties wound down, it was announced that Michael Keaton would be playing Batman.  And people were outraged.  The guy from BEETLEJUICE? !!!!  But then people saw the film BATMAN and realized that Keaton could (and did) pull off the role.  Fans are happy to be proven wrong.  They will rail and rail -- look at Anne Rice before INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE was released -- and then, when they see the actual film or TV show, they'll offer praise.  

If it's done right.

Alden Ehrenreich is someone films and TV need to retire immediately.  He was never going to be a star.  He struggles in leading roles.  He's off-putting.  People objected to him playing Han Solo in SOLO for a number of reasons -- including that he looked nothing like Harrison Ford who originated the role.  When they saw him onscreen, they were given no reason to re-evaluate him.  He was awful in the role (and worse in Warren Beatty's film -- we love Warren but it needs to be noted that he's always struggled when it came to casting male actors -- whether it's jealousy or only appreciating beauty in women, he's cast one dog after another in film after film).

A lot of bad casting has taken place.

And some of it may not be bad casting, it might be threadbare writing.  Maybe STAR WARS shouldn't be churning out new movies?  Maybe that should have died long ago.  The trilogy is beloved.  What came after, much less so.  Maybe part of the problem stems from these watered down copies and studios should be learning to create new stories with new characters?

But when you're casting someone in a beloved role, there is going to be controversy.  A Michelle Pfeiffer triumphs as Catwoman (in BATMAN RETURNS) while Halle Berry struggles in the same role.  Bad writing.  And not understanding females.  Catwoman can take on anyone -- and does in BATMAN RETURNS.  But in CATWOMAN, someone got nervous about Halle battling men and felt the need to create a villainess for Sharon Stone.  She wasn't a villainess, she was a bore and her powers were unimpressive and the conflict was reserved for the final third of the film.

Recently, Viola Davis played Michelle Obama in FIRST LADY and had a hissy fit because people called her out for "duck face."  As we noted in our review, she looked more like Michelle when she was making the "duck face."  But we didn't call the people calling her out trolls or say they were wrong.  It was a spot-on criticism that had nothing to do with trolls but everything to do with an acting choice Viola made.

The tendency to reward cry baby artists is something we don't understand.  Jennifer Lawrence, for example, whining that she only got $25 million, less than Leonardo?  Stop whining.  

You're not a very good actress to begin with.  You've had seven flops in a row (that does include the film with Leo which didn't generate ticket sales).  You're lucky to be working.  THE HUNGER GAMES series gave you the pretense of popularity that you honestly do not have.  Every attempt you've made to carry a film has resulted in the film flopping.  You aren't box office. 

And, more to the point, there are a lot of people out of work in the country, there are a lot of people struggling to make ends meet and the fact that you didn't get X number of millions but only T number of millions?  We don't feel sorry for you.  

One of the reasons that Chris Pratt has been so popular for so long is because he had avoided whining in public -- until recently.  He took to whining over his AMAZON series.  We avoided writing about it because it bored us.  It bored Stan who did write about it "THE TERMINAL LIST" and it bothered Stan when Pratt started whining -- "Chris Pratt is getting on my nerves."  Sometimes, a person just doesn't like what you did, has nothing to do with being a troll.  

A limited number of actors and actresses are paid a lot of money -- in most cases, too much money when you factor in that they don't actually deliver at the box office -- and they need to develop a tougher skin.  

But maybe they complain because they realize that they're not as talented as they pretend to be and that they're overpaid?  

But if someone has invested the time to watch the performance (and, in some cases, paid to watch the performance), they have every right to complain.

Again, it all comes down to whether you deliver or not.  Actor or writer, if people are calling you out, instead of responding "Troll!" you probably need to take a moment to step back and look at what you offered.  You can't force-feed entertainment. 

 

 

 

From The TESR Test Kitchen

 

Water?  Some of us love it, some of us need an add in.  We all need it, however we consume it.

SONIC Cherry-Limeade is a sugar free add-in to water that you can find in small boxes at various grocery stores and dollar stores.  Inside the small box, there are six packets.  An eight ounce glass of water just needs one packet but you'd probably want to add an additional packet for every eight ounces you have in the glass.

We like the add-ins Sonic drive-in offers for their drinks and this box of add-ins equals the taste.  We tried, for example, also adding it into a Coke Zero and we got the same taste we'd get at Sonic -- though some of us (Dona, for example) swear by Sonic's ice and caution it's not exactly the same as a result.  (To help you judge that, let's note that Dona will go through Sonic and get a bag or two of just ice -- she likes their ice that much).

But as an add-in for water or for a cola, we have nothing but praise and highly recommend you check it out.

 

 

 

Tweet of the week

Margaret Kimberley took on mini-mind Jackie and his Little Hinkle:

 "uniting Marxists and MAGA" Coalitions can work, but they must have some degree of shared politics. What if anything do the two groups mentioned here have in common? Also, what are globalists? They are capitalists and any effort against them must be called anti-capitalist.

 12:30 PM · Sep 11, 2022

 

 

Are MAGA anti-capitalist? They can't work with marxists unless they are. What is the deep state? Its rooted in the protection of the US empire, which is all about protecting capitalism. In case you can't tell, I've never been a fan of this wishful thinking coalition.

12:33 PM · Sep 11, 2022

 

This edition's playlist

 

 1) Harry Styles' HARRY'S HOUSE.

 

2)  Diana Ross' THANK YOU.

 

3) The Pretenders' THE SINGLES.

 

4) The Pretenders' PACKED.

 

5) The Pretenders' LEARNING TO CRAWL.

 

6) Chrissie Hynde's STOCKHOLM.  

 

7) Rod Stewart's EVERY BEAT OF MY HEART.

 

8) George Ezra's GOLD RUSH KID.

 

9) Adele's 30. 

 

10) Chase Rice's THE ALBUM.