Sometimes A Vampire Is Not Just A Vampire (Not That The Blind Community Are Vampires)
The novelist José Saramago won the Nobel Prize in 1998 following the publication of his book Blindness, which has just been adapted into a movie starring Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo. It's a beautifully written but terrifying dystopian allegory about humanity's tendency towards violence and intolerance and our collective need for deeper compassion, delivered through the story of a worldwide epidemic that leaves millions of people blind and the chaos that ensues. "BULLSHIT, you are a bunch of assholes," says the blind community. From the AP:
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Blind people quarantined in a mental asylum, attacking each other, soiling themselves, trading sex for food. For Marc Maurer, who's blind, such a scenario -- as shown in the movie "Blindness" -- is not a clever allegory for a breakdown in society.Instead, it's an offensive and chilling depiction that Maurer fears could undermine efforts to integrate blind people into the mainstream.
"The movie portrays blind people as monsters, and I believe it to be a lie," said Maurer, president of the Baltimore-based National Federation of the Blind. "Blindness doesn't turn decent people into monsters."
The organization plans to protest the movie, released by Miramax Films, at 75 theaters around the country when it's released Friday. Blind people and their allies will hand out fliers and carry signs. Among the slogans: "I'm not an actor. But I play a blind person in real life."
The movie reinforces inaccurate stereotypes, including that the blind cannot care for themselves and are perpetually disoriented, according to the NFB.
One could, of course, ask the blind community why they didn't bother to protest the book, which was written 11 years ago, and waited for the movie adaptation to channel their outrage. One could, if one was such a pedantic jerk. But one won't. Still, it's clear that the blind community didn't get the memo that you shouldn't over analyze things. Right you guys? Entertainment is just entertainment, everyone should shut up. Or they did get the memo, but it wasn't in braille. Ugh. There we go. Perfect. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to work in a reminder about how I am the worst into this post, but I did. Success!
Posted by Gabe at 9:15 AM in Backlashes
Tags: Blindness | Jose Saramago | Julianne Moore | Mark Ruffalo | Protests
At least they don't get upset about accurate stereotypes such as a cantankerous middle-aged blind man racing a Ferrari through DUMBO! Glass ceilings, my friends...
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If the blind people don't like how they're portrayed, they shouldn't watch the movie. That ought to be easy for them.
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no worries, gabe. I think Matt has usurped the worst throne.
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What's wrong with trading sex for food?
Blind people can be so pretentious.
P.S. I think Matt is The Best Worst- does that even make sense?
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These blind protesters are trying to argue that if the entire world went blind instantly their wouldn't be any black lash or chaos? Speaking for myself, if I instantly went blind and couldn't see I would most definitely freak out. If you times that by more than 6 billion...well you do the math, it wouldn't turn out good.
THE WORST: 1
BLIND PEOPLE: 0
P.S. Does keeping score make me the new worst?
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Wait. Blind people are protesting a movie about blind people... when they CAN'T ACTUALLY SEE THE SCREEN DUE TO BLINDNESS?
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"One could, of course, ask the blind community why they didn't bother to protest the book, which was written 11 years ago, and waited for the movie adaptation to channel their outrage."
Ten bucks says it wasn't in braille.
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"SOMEONE DESCRIBED WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN THIS MOVIE WHILE I LISTENED TO THE SOUNDTRACK AND I'M SUPER DUPER OFFENDED."
-- All Blind People
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"Blind people and their allies will hand out fliers and carry signs."
Will the signs be printed in braille?
You crazy blind people are confusing.
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more tragically, not all blind men look like mark ruffalo. where are the signs about that, hm?
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You are all a bunch of a**holes. I am not sure that I think that this movie is "protestable," but your insensitivity and shallow comments prove to me that you are indeed the lowest of the low. I'm not even sure why I'm contributing, except to say it is slightly cathardic to say, "you are all a**holes!"
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calm down, people of the world.
stop looking so hard for things to be offended by.
hey, blind folks, they're not even talking about real blindness, sillies.
it's not like they're saying that when you become blind you will be reduced to the basest levels of animalistic behavior because blindness is inherently debasing. also, people who have been blind for a while aren't helpless or disoriented, but newly blind people probably are, because that shit takes a while to get used to. REAL TALK.
blind community, you guys are making yourselves look silly by freaking out over the wrong thing entirely. did you even read the book? there were good blind people, too. and the bad guys weren't bad because they were blind, they were bad because they were just crappy people. they were just as crappy when shit wasn't falling apart and they could see perfectly.
the point is that, regardless of the type of pandemic or apocalypse, society will probably break down and everything will become a big battle between good and evil.
the road?
the stand?
mad max?
i'm sure they have a full library of post-apocalyptic/dystopian future books in braille, too, guys. you'll see, it's just part of the genre.
(sheesh. you have to explain everything to some people.)
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