Ra.One (2011)
February 12, 2019 9:29 PM - Subscribe
Shekhar is a nebbishy video game designer trying hard to impress his son and succeed at work. Following his son's advice, he hits it big with a game based around Ra.One, a seemingly unbeatable villain. But when the AI powering Ra.One becomes sentient, his son Prateek is in danger.
Also, how over the top and obnoxious do your ethnic stereotypes have to be for someone who does not know Indian names well enough to pick out which group a person comes from and cannot differentiate the various accents to see a portrayal of a character not specified (at least not in the subtitles) as any particular ethnicity and think I don't know what is going on, but this feels pretty racist?
(And upon looking It up, Indian audiences apparently would have placed SRK's character as Tamil and the movie is indeed lousy with stereotypes about said people.)
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:34 PM on February 13, 2019
(And upon looking It up, Indian audiences apparently would have placed SRK's character as Tamil and the movie is indeed lousy with stereotypes about said people.)
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:34 PM on February 13, 2019
I know SRK is supposed to be the Desi answer to Tom Cruise
Maybe even more double Tommed, Hanks and Cruise, depending on the story.
Christmases, they actually use the Scooby Doo sound effects for people shaking their heads, having their minds blown, etc.
Heh. I actually get a kick out of that in some of the lighter Masala movies for having that nice cartoon feel, but in the bigger budget ones it doesn't work so well.
Also, how over the top and obnoxious do your ethnic stereotypes have to be for someone who does not know Indian names well enough to pick out which group a person comes from and cannot differentiate the various accents to see a portrayal of a character not specified (at least not in the subtitles) as any particular ethnicity and think I don't know what is going on, but this feels pretty racist?
Yeah, Indian movies do have some real issues with sex/gender/race/skin color/religious representation, there's no question about that. There's been some advances, but the underlying issues run so deep that the stereotypes are still often taken for granted and sometimes attempts at shifting them can actually lead to protest for how ingrained some of the ideology is within certain groups. It's complicated and often ugly.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:10 AM on February 14, 2019
Maybe even more double Tommed, Hanks and Cruise, depending on the story.
Christmases, they actually use the Scooby Doo sound effects for people shaking their heads, having their minds blown, etc.
Heh. I actually get a kick out of that in some of the lighter Masala movies for having that nice cartoon feel, but in the bigger budget ones it doesn't work so well.
Also, how over the top and obnoxious do your ethnic stereotypes have to be for someone who does not know Indian names well enough to pick out which group a person comes from and cannot differentiate the various accents to see a portrayal of a character not specified (at least not in the subtitles) as any particular ethnicity and think I don't know what is going on, but this feels pretty racist?
Yeah, Indian movies do have some real issues with sex/gender/race/skin color/religious representation, there's no question about that. There's been some advances, but the underlying issues run so deep that the stereotypes are still often taken for granted and sometimes attempts at shifting them can actually lead to protest for how ingrained some of the ideology is within certain groups. It's complicated and often ugly.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:10 AM on February 14, 2019
I can't say I didn't like anything. I cheered like a five year-old when Chitti did his cameo. And many of the action scenes were fun. And I continue to admire the way Indian films try to entertain everyone--you, your parents, your kids, your grandparents, your neighbors--all in the same picture.
I wonder if I just had trouble because the modern setting made it harder for me to come at the humor with no preconceptions.
Some of the better sections reminded me of the first Spy Kids, which I mean as a compliment.
I definitely thought it was braver and more interesting to kill the dad than most cinema would have had the nerve to try.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:15 AM on February 14, 2019
I wonder if I just had trouble because the modern setting made it harder for me to come at the humor with no preconceptions.
Some of the better sections reminded me of the first Spy Kids, which I mean as a compliment.
I definitely thought it was braver and more interesting to kill the dad than most cinema would have had the nerve to try.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:15 AM on February 14, 2019
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Christmases, they actually use the Scooby Doo sound effects for people shaking their heads, having their minds blown, etc.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:20 PM on February 13, 2019