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From the New York Times:
Last weekend, like seemingly half the country, I took my son to see "X-Men: First Class," the latest, and best, big-screen incarnation of the popular comic book franchise.
My son and I represent two generations of X-fans. I came of age in the '80s and '90s and can still recall when Xavier's students were lords of the Underground, and the phrase "comic book movie" conjured absurd images of David Hasselhoff donning an eye patch. The boy is of the present era, where the geeks and nerds throne and Hollywood is compelled to seriously contemplate the cinematic potential of B-listers Namor, Luke Cage and Ant-Man. Still, we were united across the ages in our love for the X-Men - patron-saints of the persecuted and the champions of freaks and pariahs across the globe.
In print, the X-Men are an elite team culled from a superpowered species of human. The mutants, as they are dubbed, are generally handled roughly by the rest of humanity and singled out for everything from enslavement to internment camps to genocide.
As if to ram the allegory home, the X-Men, for much of their history, have hailed from across the spectrum of human existence. Over the decades, there have been gay X-Men, patrician X-Men, Jewish X-Men, Aboriginal X-Men, black X-Men with silver mohawks, X-Men hailing from Russia, Kentucky coal country, orphanages and a nightmarish future.
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By: Hmmm on 6/09/2011 11:39AM
First let me start off by saying I understand your point, and I make no excuses for movies when they attempt to true to certain time periods. However that being said. The X-men as a group today and in their earliest incarnation showed very little diversity. If you want to be accurate when it comes to certain time periods, then I believe we should be accurate about the books during that time as well.
I myself am surprised they had any black characters in the movie considering that when a period piece is done it usually fails to reflect what was going on in the world according to black people ( I say black people because I believe it unifies all of us no matter the country or language).
However we have to accept that we, as a people did not make this movie, and it is because of that, that we really should not complain, but continue to make our own movies. Movies that don't just reflect our reality, which tends to be the cop out. But movies that reflect what our world could be like.
I miss the days of Boomerang and Coming to America(to some extent) where we made movies that didn't focus on racial stereotypes, but instead were just stories where you could have replaced the entire cast with white actors, and still had a good movie.
Anyway, I guess I should see the movie. That's just my two cents.
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By: Hmmm on 6/10/2011 9:11AM
Sorry for the typo it should have read: and I make no excuses for movies when they attempt to hold true to certain time periods.
Sorry my mistake, I was a little emotional
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By: RICHARD MANIGAULT on 6/09/2011 3:04PM
Your observation is very genuine. It is those types of perspectives that make one recognize that each and every culture here in America should have their own vehicle to voice their point of view. By that I mean that black americans should have their own chain of theaters, their own T.V. station, their own radio stations and internet service providers. And then you will get a more broader script to read. One group of people can not continue to run and control everything. You will only get one perspective. I'm speaking of positive things, nothing negative. But where is a Luke Cage? Oh, they haven't decided to do that yet. And let's not forget Uncle Sam, who conveniently kraft laws that leave out some. BUt all in the name of REGULATIONS. Indeed there must be a nation within a nation in order for there to be a wholeness for all. And again, I speak of nothing in the negative. And finally, I enjoyed the movie, as well.
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By: Uriah Jordan on 6/10/2011 9:42AM
I've had problems with the majority of 'Black' characters in Marvel. Most of them are criminals or former criminals. I rather the company not publish comic containing characters like Luke Cage, Falcon and Storm. Go through the company's list of black charcters' bios and see for yourself 'one time criminal' this and 'former hoodlum' that. Luke Cage is the most embarrassing collection of stereotypes followed closely by Jim Rhodes the boot-leg Iron-man and the other manservant the Falcon. Someone needs to inform Marvel that the character developement of their black characters is sorely lacking.
I actually gave up on Marvel when it was revealed in their Ultimate line that the Bishop character was in--you guessed it, prison.
In Marvel's Universe there are any black inventors, teams, or families... just toadies, copycats, excons and convicts.
So I won't support their latest venture on the big screen and I won't expose my son to their blatant printed racism.
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