Friday, June 29, 2012

Ghetto Nerd Reprieve from Supreme Court Obamacare Discussions: Tyler Perry to Make a Sci-Fi Film. How Should Madea Go to Outer Space?

"I love sci-fi, I love the Alien movies and the Alien franchise," he tells Black Film. "I was very disappointed with Prometheus, but I love that whole franchise. Those are my favorite movies. I’m actually working on a sci-fi movie right now."
There is nothing more entertaining than watching Michele Bachmann Queen of the Stupid Mushroom Tea Party People rambling on about the tyranny of "Obamacare" and the "activist" John Roberts.

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presided over a fundamentally conservative and careful ruling regarding President Obama's healthcare reform package; this is the very model of what a traditional, if not strict constructionist (despite Scalia's complaints) view of the Court as an institution should be. 

Yet, the Tea Party GOP howls and complains about a bill that helps to protect people from bankruptcy if they suffer a broken leg because the faux populist New Right are in fact radicals who want to transform American society against and outside of the country's tradition of consensus/centrist liberalism. 

Ultimately, Chief Justice Roberts wisely decided that to overturn Obamacare would be the third act in a series of extremely Right-leaning decisions following Bush's election in 2000, and then on to Citizens United, which would mark what was once a highly esteemed and respected political institution, as a partisan branch beholden to a Tea Party GOP libertarian political agenda. If he overturned President Obama's very reasonable and centrist healthcare reform bill, Roberts' reputation would be damaged almost beyond repair: his vanity and ego would not allow such a thing, for the historian's pen can be deadly and sharp.

Beyond those observations, We Are Respectable Negroes is a safe harbor. Yes, I could drive some traffic by discussing the Obamacare decision; I am not a good business man. Like George Costanza's father, I do not follow trends. As such, this post is the extent of my comment on this matter. There are so many fun news items circulating around these Intertubes which deserve discussion. How can I ignore them?

To point: Tyler Perry is making a science fiction movie. Yes, Madea, she/he who had a cameo in the reboot of Star Trek, is going to outer space in her next movie.

[I have seen Prometheus three times now--I have so much to say about the movie, but I sense that the moment has passed. If you disagree, please do request that embargoed post and I will post it.]

If Tyler Perry's not so unique brand of coonery and buffoonery were to morph genres from new age race minstrelsy into science fiction or space fantasy what type of movie should he make? Given that Madea is Perry's most popular character, is there a way to incorporate his cross dressing transvestite self into a movie that satisfies the ghetto nerd crowd while also making the less sophisticated lumpen black proletariat Sunday church going set happy?

My suggestion is that Tyler Perry should do a movie where Madea meets either the Leprechaun or the Space Jockeys from the Alien universe. Alternatively, Madea could be in a sequel to the Flash Gordon movie. Imagine the possibilities! Tyler Perry could also be added to Return of the Jedi as one of Jabba's dancers in the inevitable special edition 5.0 that will be released in 2022.

The indispensable website IGN had some fun with Perry's sci-fi possibilities as their commentators offered up the following suggestions. Do add to the list.

Enjoy.
  1. It's gonna be about a woman abused by her husband and how she overcomes the struggle...in space
  2. Then leaves her abusive husband in Cloud City. Travels to a distant planet and she falls in love with the kind strapping young lad that can bullseye womp rats in his T-16.
  3. Diary of a Mad Black Alien.
  4. But not without the help of her snarky Auntie Mama who's gonna help her get her groove back and teach her about respecting herself, in space, where she'll meet a real man...an alien. Don't miss the heartwarming semi romantic comedy with random moments of drama this summer in, You Go Girl, To Space.
  5. Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Madea
  6. Tyler Perry: "Scott, I have some pointers for you. The movie needed.. More black people. In fact, take out all the white actors except one skinny bitchy white actress, and some white actor no one knows. Have the main character be abused by her husband, then move in with her mother, and then moves into a giant space station complete with a black church to get away from her husband. Now, here's where it gets really thrilling. They find out that the white actress is really an evil alien from the planet Caucatia and they sent all the black people to earth because the aliens are all evil racist white devils. So the woman goes back and rounds up all the blacks and browns and mocha's and semi grays to return and kill the evil white devil racist queen. They all eat churches chicken and watermelon together at a big ass table with some fat black man dressed as a woman. The end."
  7. Madea is the new ernest. Only thing left is madea saves halloween. Tyler perry sold out his character big time. I'm surprised he didn't dress in drag when he appeared in star trek.
  8. Tyler Perry is disappointed with Prometheus? I'm sure Ridley Scott is disappointed with Madea's family reunion-goes to space-goes to jail- goes to school-stays at home-blah blah blah. And for one, this whole Madea thing was already done way before Perry by a man called of Ernest P. Whirl. Even the titles of Perry's movies copy Ernest, let alone the whole Cross dressing, foul mouthed, and ornery old woman bit.
  9. Six black youths, an intellectual male, a pothead male, and a jock male, as well as a whorish female, a sweet virgin female, and an angry sassy female, all win a contest to go in space. When there, they discover everything is not as it seems. Aliens are on the ship, there to steal the LCD that one of the black youths brought, because it's a source of great power on their planet.
  10. Some will fall, some will learn to love, lessons will be learned, alien asses will be kicked, the cycle will repeat.

19 comments:

Tom said...

I'd love to see anything on Prometheus from anybody who can make sense out of any of it.

Rod said...

I would like to see a post on Prometheus, and what made you go see it 3 times.

Henri B. said...

This is a funny coincidence because I just watched Star Trek: First Contact last night for the first time. At one point I turned to my husband and said that I loved Alfre Woodard's character because she was brave, the right amount of angry, and not "comically" overweight and/or promiscuous. It's an old movie so I don't know if there are nuances to her character that I didn't pick up on but I'd rather see more of her in space than Madea.

Anonymous said...

I look forward to TP 's take on Sci/Fi many film makers have not impressed in that genre...

It is sad of course observing CD take yet another tired swipe at TP... Envy runs deep in far to many black venues ...

Why is this underdeveloped mindset is so prevelant in black intellectual and creative circles? I opine it is in part just petty garden variety envy. I also think it is a outcome of legacy of oppression such a history creates black folks who loate in self hate and contempt for anything Black.

Not only does this ugly behavior surface in nasty petty acts of envy but it becomes a community theme about a range of black efforts from small business ventures to investment overtures.

Hateful black folks often demonize black ventures even more than the hate that comes from the usual white suspects .,,

Tragic on so many levels

CNu said...

Like David, the "engineers" on LV-223 are themselves replicants. So to the extent that there's a gag or a gist, it has to do with the intersection of created agency with its source.

I thought it pretty awesome the way in which Giger's original vision of biological technology was brought forward leaving one to wonder still at the nature and the form of the genuine creators of such a technology.

Humbling indeed will it be when the humans finally come to grips with how far down the totem pole of agency and creation they truly are.

My take on the true "engineers" is that they're something far more akin to Arthur C. Clarke/Stanley Kubrick's notion of the Firstborn, just a lot wetter and more material than the beings who have become entirely discarnate. Like 2001, however, the humans are once again put very firmly in our quite lowly place as the automatic spawn of a machine whose programming has gone haywire...,

--------SPOILER---------------

The only thing to which I took offense was the do-it-yourself C-Section followed by significant athletic exertion.

That isht right thurr was waaaaaaay stupid and extra...,

chaunceydevega said...

@Anon. You would likely have paid money to see race minstrel shows in the 19th and early 20th centuries, so your slavish devotion to Tyler Perry is no surprise.

@Cnu and others. There is much going on w. Prometheseus which rewards repeat viewing. We have the Geiger painting's, the Lovecraft allusions,the videos and websites that were leaked virally (Weyland's Tedtalk should have been in the movie), the debate about its "Christian" overtones, and much else. Maybe I will post the questions and observations I had on the movie.

Razor said...

Actually I am frightened at the prospect of it all.

A. Ominous said...

TP = time to flush it

Re: Prometheus: post it, please! Interesting how these prequels inevitably seem to show technology advancing by leaps and bounds as the chronology runs in reverse, though... (laugh)

Razor said...

Anon, are you serious? At first I was OK with TP's use of minstrelism and repetitious mid-level buffonery because I knew the brother's story and believed he deserved support. I believed that he would build off that and that we would get to see him really expand and explode. However, the last movie I reluctantly went to see after pleas from my woman left me very pissed off. I swore that I would not pay another dime for any more of that trite BS. It's got nothing to do with me , CD or anybody else, especially black men, being jealous or hating on TP. We know that he has some measure of creative genius..so we ask that now that he has a war chest...dammit close up the minstrel-like shows and show us what else you got. Or at least consider buying someone elses ideas or collaborate.

I really am frightened by what he may be cooking up. I believe that he really is reaching way out there for the white audience.

Razor said...

I wonder what Brother X Squared thinks about it. Maybe he's waiting see what the sci-fi movie effort looks like. I wonder what he's up to? We are need of some of his unique wisdom.

Anonymous said...

razor,

Please spare me the overkill slamm on TP...I doubt if you have slammed white film makers with the same verve..WTF

sienna_skin said...

"I doubt if you have slammed white film makers with the same verve..."

Which white film makers should we slam, as hard, for the crime of Aggravated Coonery? Beside D.W. Griffith, I mean... ?

sienna_skin said...

(not trying to sock-puppet here, CDV... was logged into the wrong account! laugh)

chaunceydevega said...

@Sienna. Be careful eventually it will be figured out that I have multiple accounts like our various anons and write back and forth to myself in an elaborate online ventriloquist act.

Anonymous said...

AHA!

A. Ominous said...

Nah, 'twas I, Anon! My Google accounts got confused, man (or woman). And, yes, I am proudly Tylerperryphobic; I sometimes wonder if the muhfuh is immortal and honed his nitwitty chops in Antebellum Dixie. Feller would be right at home directing episodes of Amos 'N Andy and blockbusters featuring Steppinfetchit and I am fairly certain he pioneered the crowd-pleasing "frightened Negro with bugged-out eyes" special effect for Mack Sennett in the '30s. Why do you "support" him? He sure in fck doesn't support *you*.

Uh, so where's the material on Prometheus, CdV? Am eager to read it!

(And speaking of Sci Fi, and since I'm late to WARN, I certainly hope you did a number on "District 9", which was the most blatantly Negrotoxic film of its year... the Negro Creatures in that film made the aliens, on whom the repulsive Negroes not only sometimes snacked but also _____, seem downright suave)

chaunceydevega said...

@Steve. Working on it; am in a scatological mood.

Razor said...

Anon:

Overkill? How can you overkill on black minstrel characters/themes/plots in the 21st Century. Even white filmmakers were at least begining to outwardly show more respect, though post-Obama seem to backsliding.

I'm hard on him because he now has the chops that Spike Lee and others never had, having caught even more hell from white power based on the film content and emowering images.

I appreciate and even admire the brother in many ways. Same with Obama. Same with Colin Powell. Same with Rev. Sharpton. I understand getting paid. But we know as much as we might want to, there no divorcing yourself from being of color in the US and everyone of us owes some debt to some folks who came before us.....recently. Step-n-Fetchit and Amos & Andy's time was much more limiting than today.

Anonymous said...

Razor,

Is that your best retort?? TP is a fictiona film maker he does not produce documentaries etc..

I simply do not understand the overkill litmus test for TP ..It must be easy always targeting Black folks ...WTF

I don't pay legacy debts I live in the future..Stop it with the debt collar around Black folks necks...Of course you can become a film maker and stop whinning..Just saying