Re: The Jared Leto Question
Consider what it would have meant to the trans community / society had a trans woman won the oscar.
It would have meant a trans actresses career would be pushed forward like none other. Appearing in bigger movies, roles specifically created for that actress, and more and more trans visibility (not just in every interview she has for the movie...but every time she is seen, mentioned, constantly fighting for trans rights in the public eye).
Instead....
We have a cis straight white guy who won an oscar (given because he played a rather harmful stereotype of "poor trannies").
During interviews, he tends to ignore trans issues....even in the acceptance of the award, he ignores trans issues (the very reason he got the award).
What was the end result of the movie? A step backwards for trans acceptance and rights with the perpetuation of many harmful stereotypes. And yet, Hollywood is celebrating it...as if they have achieved something great.
Re: The Jared Leto Question
I think Stavros' points are valid. It is quite reasonable to regard the character in the context of her times, when transwomen were not nearly as accepted or as well developed physically as they are today.
Re: The Jared Leto Question
Re: The Jared Leto Question
He's an actor. He's playing a part.
Best person for the job? Possibly - possibly not, I've yet to see it but as long as trans-women were able to audition and Jared played the role more convincingly, then it's a non-issue. This "outrage" is getting kinda boring.
Re: The Jared Leto Question
No. Transgender should ONLY do porn!
Re: The Jared Leto Question
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rabbiteyes
Consider what it would have meant to the trans community / society had a trans woman won the oscar.
It would have meant a trans actresses career would be pushed forward like none other. Appearing in bigger movies, roles specifically created for that actress, and more and more trans visibility (not just in every interview she has for the movie...but every time she is seen, mentioned, constantly fighting for trans rights in the public eye).
Instead....
We have a cis straight white guy who won an oscar (given because he played a rather harmful stereotype of "poor trannies").
During interviews, he tends to ignore trans issues....even in the acceptance of the award, he ignores trans issues (the very reason he got the award).
What was the end result of the movie? A step backwards for trans acceptance and rights with the perpetuation of many harmful stereotypes. And yet, Hollywood is celebrating it...as if they have achieved something great.
don't you think for these kind of issues you should expect people who are not actors to push them forward?
i mean- you're putting so much emphasis on someone who is simply an actor to do interviews and make comments about a community which he is not a part of and push their issues? would that even be right? can he honestly be the spokesperson for the trans-community?
also, i'm one of those people who doesn't believe you have to be gay to play a gay character, or straight to play one. just be a good actor because that's what it's all about: acting. if this was a documentary, then we'd have a valid topic
btw: jared leto's mom is super hot. she can be in my movie anyday :D
Re: The Jared Leto Question
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rabbiteyes
Consider what it would have meant to the trans community / society had a trans woman won the oscar.
It would have meant a trans actresses career would be pushed forward like none other. Appearing in bigger movies, roles specifically created for that actress, and more and more trans visibility (not just in every interview she has for the movie...but every time she is seen, mentioned, constantly fighting for trans rights in the public eye).
Instead....
We have a cis straight white guy who won an oscar (given because he played a rather harmful stereotype of "poor trannies").
During interviews, he tends to ignore trans issues....even in the acceptance of the award, he ignores trans issues (the very reason he got the award).
What was the end result of the movie? A step backwards for trans acceptance and rights with the perpetuation of many harmful stereotypes. And yet, Hollywood is celebrating it...as if they have achieved something great.
I find myself agreeing with some of the sentiments of your post because I am sure there are some talented transgendered actors out there (Harmony Santana would be one example), but I disagree with your argument that Dallas Buyer's Club is a 'step backwards' for trans acceptance'. The core issue has more to do with acting in a film rather than being transgendered.
I find it hard to believe that as a result of a transexual appearing in a film as a transexual, this would 'break the mould' and that more and more films would feature transexual characters. That is probably a challenge too far for Hollywood. And surely, the mark of success for a transexual actor (using the word as gender neutral) would be that they play a role not because of their gender, but because of their ability to act, rather than "bigger movies, roles specifically created for that actress, and more and more trans visibility". This sounds to me like a ghetto in the making. Acceptance, surely, dissolves the boundaries of gender, as acceptance of black actors dissolves the boundaries of colour -?
It is now counter-factual, but in what way would a transgendered actor have played the role differently from Jared Leto? To begin with, there was a script, so I am assuming that a transgendered actor who did not want to depict Rayon as a 'stereotypical poor trannie' would have asked for changes to the script -to show what? Rayon in the film is not actually depicted as a prostitute, as I recall, we never see her hustling or disappearing in a cab with a john. She is not shown taking drugs outside the anti-viral medicines the members of the Club are buying, yet I would surmise 50% or more of 18-35 year old transexuals in Dallas in the 1980s would be at least casual consumers of recreational drugs -Texas might be conservative by reputation, but we all know strange things happen after dark.
On the other hand, by playing a direct role in the Dallas Club, Rayon is shown as a socially responsible person who is doing something that is mutually beneficial for her and the local community -hardly a negative stereotype.
I wonder if it is a case of transexuals being critical in this sense: I don't talk like that; I don't dress like that during the day. I wouldn't do that, I wouldn't wave my hands around like that. I don't know if Jared Leto did any research, my guess is that if he is into bands, LA, clubs, and so on, he has encountered transexuals; if he did not want to acknowledge the fact that is his choice.
Re: The Jared Leto Question
I agree with most of the comments. It would have been very meaningful for a trans woman to win the Oscar but winning it was not a foregone conclusion for anyone. I also don't understand the argument that if someone plays a character who has some stereotypical features, they are then the mere embodiment of those stereotypes. Sometimes certain character traits are derived from actual biographical data where the character is based on a real person, and sometimes stereotypes are touched upon incidentally without an implied message that these characteristics are typical of a member of that class.
Re: The Jared Leto Question
Quote:
Originally Posted by
mrtrebus
No. Transgender should ONLY do porn!
Hmmmm, not sure if serious.
We've had a couple of transgender women at work, thats a fairly normal working environment (central southern UK).
People, regardless of gender, should be allowed to perform any job that they want as long as they can do the job.