Jul 30 2010
∞
Knives Chau
- IN RESPONSE TO: http://twitter.com/davechensky/status/19883217632
- Devindra Hardawar: hm, you realize O'Malley is making fun of the white perception of asian girls right?
- Devindra Hardawar: In terms of Scott's ignorant dialogue
- Devindra Hardawar: he's asian as well
- David Chen: ! Interesting
- Devindra Hardawar: haha yes
- David Chen: I don't know that it comes across in the film
- David Chen: as satire
- David Chen: i mean
- David Chen: Cera's ignorance certainly does
- Devindra Hardawar: It's uncomfortable, for sure
- David Chen: but the girl is still portrayed as a caricature
- Devindra Hardawar: dude
- Devindra Hardawar: the movie has an indian guy singing bollywood style and shooting fireballs
- Devindra Hardawar: EVERYONE IS A CARICATURE
- David Chen: haha not in the same way though
- David Chen: I mean
- David Chen: the mary elizabeth winstead character
- David Chen: and the knives character
- David Chen: they operate in the same plane of "reality"
- David Chen: which I would argue is different than say
- David Chen: super vegan ________ (name omitted)
- David Chen: speaking of which
- Devindra Hardawar: best cameo ever?
- Devindra Hardawar: I'm just sad you didn't get as much out of it
- Devindra Hardawar: anyway, I'd be intersted to hear your friends concerns about Knives
- David Chen: i'll try to get her to give them in a more articulate form
- David Chen: she was seriously disturbed by it though
- Devindra Hardawar: um ok
- Devindra Hardawar: see my tweet (http://twitter.com/Devindra/status/19883592915 )
- Devindra Hardawar: I agree that Scott's ignorance can get people laughing at the wrong thing, Knive's portrayal is just that of an obsessed high schooler though
- Devindra Hardawar: Wong, btw, amazing
- David Chen: yeah she is great
- Devindra Hardawar: everyone is so perfectly cast
- Devindra Hardawar: Kieran Culkin as well
- David Chen: hilarious
- David Chen: but as for people laughing at the wrong thing, yes I think that's a large part of it. but i'd never argue that you should curb your humor to accommodate the ignoramuses
- Devindra Hardawar: exactly
- David Chen: but
- David Chen: well
- David Chen: there's going to be two major movies this year with significant Asian female characters I think
- David Chen: this movie
- David Chen: and The Social Network
- Devindra Hardawar: hahah
- Devindra Hardawar: have you read the book?
- David Chen: no
- Devindra Hardawar: let me tell you... OUTLOOK NOT SO GOOD FOR ASIAN WOMEN
- David Chen: yeah that's what I'm saying
- David Chen: it goes back to our racebending talk
- David Chen: it's like...
- David Chen: the two times asian women are portrayed on screen in film in major ways this year
- David Chen: both are unflattering and fulfill the most common, unpleasant stereotypes we have about them
- Devindra Hardawar: but then that's sort of what happened, so how can we take issue with them depicting reality?
- David Chen: haha okay
- David Chen: i'll give you that one
- Devindra Hardawar: like news flash: It's not uncommon for asian girls to be turned on by white dudes with money and power
- Devindra Hardawar: KEEPING THE ASIAN DUDES DOWN
- David Chen: whoa
- David Chen: dude
- David Chen: first of all, that's a separate issue
- Devindra Hardawar: I'm half joking
- David Chen: second of all, it's my asian female friend that was bothered by it, not me
- David Chen: and I could understand why she was
- Devindra Hardawar: but that's the portrayal you'll see in social Network
- Devindra Hardawar: I suppose
- Devindra Hardawar: but I wonder if she knew O'Malley was half-Asian would change anything
- David Chen: I'm getting a bunch of tweet responses to my initial tweet
- Devindra Hardawar: yah...
- David Chen: do you mind if I just share this conversation?
- David Chen: on tumblr?
- Devindra Hardawar: go for it
- David Chen: thanks
- David Chen: i have to go to bed.
- David Chen: big day. NYC tomorrow
- Devindra Hardawar: later man
