Rants
On Issues With “Blue Is The Warmest Color”
Anna-Dmitry Muratova, Deputy Managing Editor
When I was younger, closeted and in total denial about my own queerness, I found this one graphic novel in a dusty basement of a Moscow comic book store, “Blue Is The Warmest Color.” For those who only ever saw the movie adaptation, it was a graphic novel first, and a good one too! Anyway, after having liked the novel, I expected the movie to meet my high expectations — it didn’t. By then I knew I was queer (a baby gay at that) and was relying on my relative knowledge of English to teach me about non-heteronormative relationships through Western media. Did “Blue Is The Warmest Color” do a good job? No. Instead it taught me that lesbian sex looks like homoerotic action for creepy middle-aged cis-men, all queer relationships will inevitably fizzle out and end in heartbreak by one remorseless partner, and emotional abuse is just a trait of homosexual relationships. If you watched “Blue Is The Warmest Color” as a young queer, I hope, wholeheartedly, you found better ways to educate yourself. I sure did! Here are the lessons I want you to take out of this rant: lesbian sex isn’t for creepy middle-aged cis-men, it’s for the consenting parties involved; emotional abuse shouldn’t be a part of any relationship; queers do find their “happily ever after.” But most importantly, read the damn graphic novel!
On Lizzie McGuire
Helen Wajda, Deputy Opinion Editor
While bored in quarantine last week, I decided to introduce my youngest sisters to the cinematic masterpiece that is “The Lizzie McGuire Movie” in an attempt to get them to stop asking me if I have games on my phone (which I don’t). I’m not going to pretend that I didn’t enjoy watching the movie — it was a great distraction and a nostalgic throwback to simpler days — but I did severely underestimate just how catchy the soundtrack would be to my sisters. At first it was cute, but trying to write papers and attend class while a 7-year-old belts out “What Dreams Are Made Of” for the seventh day in a row has now become headache-inducing. This is definitely not what dreams are made of and now I just have a lot of regrets.
It’s Okay to Not Be Pretentious
Jake Capriotti, Photo Editor
Upon entering the Film and TV major at Tisch, I knew that at some point I would be confronted by a “film bro.” This came rather early on during my time as a Tisch student when I was talking to a classmate around the time “Joker” came out. They had asked me where I had seen the film and I replied “The AMC on 34th” to which they replied, “Oh, you’re not a real Film and TV major until you’ve seen it on 70mm print rather than digital.” First off, it’s more expensive to see it on print rather than digital. Secondly, the fact that I saw a different format of the film does not make me lesser than you. Everyone has their own way of enjoying films and all the ways don’t have to be agreed upon but at least be respectful. If you want to spend extra money to see an original print of a film, by all means — go ahead! But if you want to choose a more economic route, such as going to the AMC or just streaming it, that’s okay too! There is no need to bag on someone for the way they watch or make films. Being a pretentious jerk who chooses to alienate those with differing opinions on cinema doesn’t make you sophisticated, it just makes you unbearable to listen to.
Raves
On Greta Gerwig
Emily Dai, Deputy Opinion Editor
Not to be the completely stereotypical artsy New York college student, but gosh dang do Greta Gerwig movies just hit different. She’s only directed two movies, but I’m calling it now: Lady Bird and Little Women are going to be the movies of this century. As somebody who doesn’t get that excited about movies, I was completely captivated throughout these two. I’m ready to read anything that has touched Gerwig’s hands — even her grocery lists.
On Jojo Rabbit
Gabby Lozano, Deputy Opinion Editor
Earlier in the semester, I saw Jojo Rabbit. Not to sound cliche but it changed my life. I became enthralled with the plot and Taika Waititi’s work, so much so that I have seen the film six times since then and spent many days watching interviews with the actors and director. Needless to say, this information came in handy when I started my paper on religious violence in film at midnight. Was the paper good? No. Will I still watch the movie after deeply analyzing it? Yes.
Opinions expressed on the editorial pages are not necessarily those of WSN, and our publication of opinions is not an endorsement of them.
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