Ha-ha! I have vanquished Perich yet again, and return as your guest spinner (weaver? twister?) of the open thread. And yet I find myself in a bit of difficulty: The movies, usually fertile ground for overthinking in this space, seem to me a barren source of amusement. I mean, maybe you want to see It’s Kind of a Funny Story or Secretariat, but I don’t really, and I think the latter is interesting mostly because it seems to signal the dection Disney is heading and the kinds of live-action movies they’re likely to keep making.
Fine, then, let’s peer into the future, and talk about some things we’re waiting for. The internets have been abuzz recently with the trailer for Julie (Titus) Taymor’s adaptation of The Tempest:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-HIf4VL-7I
(I’ve embedded it in high-def; switch down if your internet connection is making it stutter.)
In honor of Helen Mirren’s go at Prospero, and in honor of Shakespeare, king of cross-dressing, tell us: What character from a great work of art would you like to see cast with an actor of the opposite sex?
Keeping the culture high, we turn now to the world of literature, where we find that Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa has been awarded the Nobel Prize in literature. I’d leave it there, except that while we’re on the subject of cross-gender casting, the linked article (on the LA Times awards blog, “The Envelope”, which either denigrates or ennobles [ha!] the Nobel by placing it along side the Golden Globes and the MTV Video Music Awards) contains this choice correction:
An earlier version of this story mistakenly gave Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez’s first name as Gabriela.
Continuing our theme of sexual ambivalence, but moving now from high to lowest culture, we find that Bristol Palin, who had made a point of insisting that she would only be dressing modestly during her run on Dancing with the Stars, has announced that she will be dressing sexy next week. Get excited people.
Wait, that's modest?
Says the younger Palin, “I’m definitely nervous for next week, because I have to be sexy in the dance and I have to find the sexy in me.” Moving along without comment…
Since we’re discussing These Fun-loving Teenagers, please allow me just one more: A senior at Duke University has created ranking of all the dudes she’s slept with. Says one extremely perceptive Duke undergraduate, “It’s funny because we know the people on it.” What’s their major… obviousness?
I’ve been a little stingy with the questions, I know, so here’s a couple for you:
- What embarassing human quality would you like to see ranked and published on the internet?
- And, for advanced Overthinkers unconcerned with privacy, What’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever seen leaked on the internets?
Finally, from the “End of the World” Department, FOX’s hit TV show Glee has sent more singles into the Hot 100 than the Beatles. Since Glee is now bigger than the Beatles, who were bigger than Jesus, and since this news surely betokens the end times, let us know: What are you going to spend the last few days of your life doing? (Or are your prayers to Grilled Cheesus sending you straight to heaven?)
For though I speak with tongues of men and of angels and have not Overthinking, I am but a sounding gong or a clanging cymbal. Make a joyful noise, for this is your… Open Thread!
Comic-Con! I’ve been tweeting about it, but I wanted to mention it in the Open Thread too: I’ll be at NYC Comic-Con tonight (Friday night), Saturday, and maybe Sunday. Holla at me if you’ll be there and want to be interviewed for a possible video piece for the site.
BTW, Lee, if you get a chance, check out ItsJustSomeRandomPanel at 8:45 tomorrow night. ItsJustSomeRandomGuy is the dude that does the parodies of Mac v. PC commercials with Marvel and D.C. comic book characters.
“What character from a great work of art would you like to see cast with an actor of the opposite sex?”
The g*ddamn Batman?, Captain Ahab, the Joker, and at last (and even if it says clearly “reat work pf art) Darth Vader. Oh, and maybe the vindictive maniac from “Cape Fear”
“What embarassing human quality would you like to see ranked and published on the internet?”
If it’s a quality why should it be embarrasing?. but since we are there where you took us: Honesty, ;)
“What’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever seen leaked on the internets?”
Either:
a) Rowdy Roddy Piper chewing on a phonebook, or
b) The speeches of Chilean President Sebastián Piñera (I acknowledge that it is a biased opinion and most likely you got no clue whatsoever about these guy, but trust me, I live here in Chile and this guy is vicariously embarrasing on epic levels.
There.
Bless You all, you rock!.
“reat work pf art” = “great work of art”, sorry guys.
Q&A
I’d love to see Merryl Streep play pretty much any role that did Marlon Brando did. A young Streep playing an ex-mixed martial artist in On the Waterfront, a strong lietuenant in Mutiny on the Bounty, most importantly, I’d love to see a River of Darkness/Apocalypse Now with Streep taking Brando’s role and Charlize Theron reprising Dennis Hopper. And for bonus points, I’d love to see Superman with Streep being Superman’s mom instead of Brando as dad.
As far as human qualities, I’d like to see something along the lines of tacky social behaviors by frequency such as booger picking or farting or underwear / bra adjusting.
For the last few days of my life, I’ll be watching entire seasons of the most hilarious TV shows whatever they may be. (How do I know it’s the last few days of my life?)
The Tempest has had my interest since it first started appearing in movie blogs. But there is another Helen Mirren film I’m looking forward to, opening next weekend:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_ZjBJv-rA0
As for gender-bending specifically, John McClane.
I want to see nose-picking.
It wasn’t on the internets, but there was a big spread in a fashion magazine I was perusing once that was all about celebrities with camel toe. Yikes.
I wouldn’t get my hopes too high for The Tempest. It is a Julie Taymor film after all, and her films, to bring in another Shakespeare play, tend to be full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
I’d like to see the genders reversed for “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” so that we can keep painting humanity in large, broad strokes but just flip things around for variety’s sake.
I don’t worship a grilled cheese. Like Homer Simpson, I pray to a waffle stuck on the ceiling.
I’ve decided what I really want to see is a shot for shot remake of Sex and the City 2 but with the sex of the characters flipped. I want all the dialogue the same as well, right down to the double entendres. Granted, since I’ve never seen the movie they could change whatever they want, but I feel that I would notice it in some spiritual sense. Also, if they shot the movie this way maybe they could actually film in the Middle East.
I would say for genderswapped heroes Sherlock Holmes, re: this fan-fic my friend created, would be good http://postcardmystery.livejournal.com/22282.html
Girl Trek is good fun too. Especially Geordi LaForge.
My sense of humor runs to the ridiculous. I’d like the see The Scarlett Letter with reversed genders for the main 4 characters. Let’s reverse the genders for every romantic comedy and instance of “strong female characters” and other archetypes and see how they play out if you keep all of the intrinsic characteristics of the character the same. Oh, the hilarity.
The Scarlet Letter…sorry, brain shorted out… Female Dracula or Frankenstein’s monster?
I need a like button.
Oh, oh, gender reverse Alien! It worked great already, so if everyone is reversed, it must be the bestest ever!
BTW, entirely unrelated, check out this internet win: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkd5dJIVjgM
Reversed genders in just about any Drew Barrymore chick flick turn her from an adorable, lovestruck young woman into a creepy stalker.
Hmn…I think Drew Barrymore is usually being chased in her movies…The Wedding Singer, Ever After, etc. I think the idea of a character seeming like more of a stalker if you reverse genders is an interesting one, though. Take Edward from Twilight. Now most of us sane, rational people (of either gender) find his behavior abusive, controlling, and stalkerish. But there are many women who also find that romantic. I think this plays into the idea that women think guys don’t put in the effort so even the sketchiest of behavior passes for romantic because at least he cares, at least he’s trying. To put a woman in that role she becomes a demanding, shrewish harpy in a Fatal Attraction way (I’m assuming, since I’ve never seen it). I think this lends itself to the idea that we as a society aren’t all that comfortable yet with the notion of the female as the aggressor. Why else do all of our bitchy, career-driven female leads have to be humbled by love into teary, sentimental messes until they realize how silly they were to put so much energy into rising to the top of the corporate ladder instead of finding a man? Silly, silly women. Men can be as stalkerish as they like (as long as they’re not playing the horror-movie music) because they’re still in the role of the aggressor.
And as long as they sparkle.
Oh Gab, we should totally be comment thread BFFs.
You mean this?
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_HRiGgliTOzc/TDJBScdCHeI/AAAAAAAACuI/x9K6X_ZMDE0/s1600/BFF+NO+Simpsons.jpg
Or this?
http://rlv.zcache.com/bff_mousepad-p144269073010771337trak_400.jpg
@Gab Definitely the mousepad…though there’s something sinister there. One friend should not be capable of dissolving into another, losing their identity, and being consumed by the identity of the other.
That, my dear, is a question of ratios: cookie mass to milk volume.
Sidenote: I love crumbling my cookies in the bottom of my glass/mug, pouring a little milk at a time over it, stirring sporadically, and stopping when it reaches a somewhat slop-like consistency. Sort of like oatmeal, but much more awesome.