NON-REVIEW: Thoughts on Daddy's Home 2 and Whether It is Especially Inappropriate Now
So, the new Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg comedy Daddy's Home 2 is supposed to suck. Surprise, surprise. I didn't see the first one, but it seemed pretty obvious this was one of those The-Original-Made-Money-So type sequels. It wasn't on my to-see list, but an amusing trailer with Mel Gibson and John Lithgow had me thinking "...maybe..." Well, per reviews I've read, the new movie is being savaged by critics for being poorly-written (duh) but also crass, crude, and "shockingly" tone-deaf, in light of recent events, when it comes to things like gun-handling and the sexual objectification of women. I even read a critic who wrote "THIS MOVIE PROVES HOLLYWOOD HASN'T CHANGED OVER THE PAST MONTH".
I know what that critic was referencing. Supposedly, the Mel Gibson dirty grandpa-type character makes inappropriate jokes, leers at women, and gives his preteen grandson icky chauvinistic advice on how to approach the girl he likes. This is, of course, in bad taste given the recent sexual harassment accusations revealed against Harvey Weinstein, Ben Affleck, Andy Signore, Kevin Spacey, Dustin Hoffman, and Louis C.K. (among others). In this context, the critic wrote "this movie proves Hollywood hasn't changed over the past month".
Um, DUH.
Two things:
1) From a purely-logical standpoint, movies aren't made and released in a month. So, this movie that attempts to derive humor from women-should-be-in-the-kitchen jokes and just-smack-her-on-the-butt grandparenting advice wasn't written, produced, filmed, and released all since the first rumors about Harvey Weinstein came out. It was already in the works. That being said...
---1a) In light of these scandals, could Hollywood producers have reviewed this movie's content, and yanked it, condemning it to straight-to-DVD or just on-Netflix territory? I suppose. But would they? They had a sequel to a hit comedy that made money coming out, one that starred bankable names like Ferrell, Wahlberg, and Gibson. You think they would be seized by an attack of conscience, freak out, and cancel the release of a could-be moneymaker just because of a few real-life scandals? LOL.
2) "This proves Hollywood hasn't changed".
Have all these sexual harassment claims about Harvey, Kevin, Louis, Ben, and others, opened some eyes? Sure. Have they been shocking and depressing, given the credibility/general goodwill afforded some of these individuals? Yeah, they have. Has it spurred the creation and implementation of new sexual harassment programs and closer supervision of closed-doors meetings? Maybe.
But, frankly, this isn't something that is going to be fixed. Shoot, even if some of Hollywood's biggest and most well-liked names were outed with sexual harassment-type behavior tomorrow -- for instance, just say it was the likes of Dwayne Johnson, Denzel Washington, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon -- it would open a lot of eyes and shock people, start social media campaigns, and maybe inspire some movie boycotting. But would it ultimately change the Hollywood culture of selling sex and objectifying women? I doubt it. Would it stop selfish, perverted people from making terrible decisions? Nope. Would it stop movies/TV shows from intentionally or unintentionally glamorizing certain behaviors from men to women or women to men? Nope.
Once again, I will quickly say, anyone who is guilty of sexual harassment is guilty and without excuse. I previously wrote a post that might not have made my thoughts on this clear as I would have liked. Harvey, Kevin, Andy, Ben, Louis etc... are all responsible for their actions, and these reprehensible things they've said or done or tried to should not be watered down or explained away or rationalized by talking about movies, TV, magazines, alcohol or sexual preferences. They are responsible. They made bad choices, and hurt and offended people. That was them, and them alone.
But it's like my pastor said the other day, isn't it odd that we condemn Harvey Weinsten for his objectification and treatment of women, yet we celebrate the legacy of Hugh Hefner? All the sexual harassment allegations in the world aren't going to change Hollywood selling sex or making dirty movies that objectify people. It's a systemic issue. It's a heart problem. People are flawed.
So, was Daddy's Home 2 ever going to be a good movie? Probably not.
Does it seem especially tasteless in light of recent events? I'm sure it does.
Does it prove Hollywood has not changed over the past month? No, but did anyone expect it to?
Has Hollywood changed in the past month? Maybe on the surface, but no.
WILL Hollywood change, ever, regarding the things it promotes and the things it puts out? Most likely, no.
So, the new Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg comedy Daddy's Home 2 is supposed to suck. Surprise, surprise. I didn't see the first one, but it seemed pretty obvious this was one of those The-Original-Made-Money-So type sequels. It wasn't on my to-see list, but an amusing trailer with Mel Gibson and John Lithgow had me thinking "...maybe..." Well, per reviews I've read, the new movie is being savaged by critics for being poorly-written (duh) but also crass, crude, and "shockingly" tone-deaf, in light of recent events, when it comes to things like gun-handling and the sexual objectification of women. I even read a critic who wrote "THIS MOVIE PROVES HOLLYWOOD HASN'T CHANGED OVER THE PAST MONTH".
I know what that critic was referencing. Supposedly, the Mel Gibson dirty grandpa-type character makes inappropriate jokes, leers at women, and gives his preteen grandson icky chauvinistic advice on how to approach the girl he likes. This is, of course, in bad taste given the recent sexual harassment accusations revealed against Harvey Weinstein, Ben Affleck, Andy Signore, Kevin Spacey, Dustin Hoffman, and Louis C.K. (among others). In this context, the critic wrote "this movie proves Hollywood hasn't changed over the past month".
Um, DUH.
Two things:
1) From a purely-logical standpoint, movies aren't made and released in a month. So, this movie that attempts to derive humor from women-should-be-in-the-kitchen jokes and just-smack-her-on-the-butt grandparenting advice wasn't written, produced, filmed, and released all since the first rumors about Harvey Weinstein came out. It was already in the works. That being said...
---1a) In light of these scandals, could Hollywood producers have reviewed this movie's content, and yanked it, condemning it to straight-to-DVD or just on-Netflix territory? I suppose. But would they? They had a sequel to a hit comedy that made money coming out, one that starred bankable names like Ferrell, Wahlberg, and Gibson. You think they would be seized by an attack of conscience, freak out, and cancel the release of a could-be moneymaker just because of a few real-life scandals? LOL.
2) "This proves Hollywood hasn't changed".
Have all these sexual harassment claims about Harvey, Kevin, Louis, Ben, and others, opened some eyes? Sure. Have they been shocking and depressing, given the credibility/general goodwill afforded some of these individuals? Yeah, they have. Has it spurred the creation and implementation of new sexual harassment programs and closer supervision of closed-doors meetings? Maybe.
But, frankly, this isn't something that is going to be fixed. Shoot, even if some of Hollywood's biggest and most well-liked names were outed with sexual harassment-type behavior tomorrow -- for instance, just say it was the likes of Dwayne Johnson, Denzel Washington, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon -- it would open a lot of eyes and shock people, start social media campaigns, and maybe inspire some movie boycotting. But would it ultimately change the Hollywood culture of selling sex and objectifying women? I doubt it. Would it stop selfish, perverted people from making terrible decisions? Nope. Would it stop movies/TV shows from intentionally or unintentionally glamorizing certain behaviors from men to women or women to men? Nope.
Once again, I will quickly say, anyone who is guilty of sexual harassment is guilty and without excuse. I previously wrote a post that might not have made my thoughts on this clear as I would have liked. Harvey, Kevin, Andy, Ben, Louis etc... are all responsible for their actions, and these reprehensible things they've said or done or tried to should not be watered down or explained away or rationalized by talking about movies, TV, magazines, alcohol or sexual preferences. They are responsible. They made bad choices, and hurt and offended people. That was them, and them alone.
But it's like my pastor said the other day, isn't it odd that we condemn Harvey Weinsten for his objectification and treatment of women, yet we celebrate the legacy of Hugh Hefner? All the sexual harassment allegations in the world aren't going to change Hollywood selling sex or making dirty movies that objectify people. It's a systemic issue. It's a heart problem. People are flawed.
So, was Daddy's Home 2 ever going to be a good movie? Probably not.
Does it seem especially tasteless in light of recent events? I'm sure it does.
Does it prove Hollywood has not changed over the past month? No, but did anyone expect it to?
Has Hollywood changed in the past month? Maybe on the surface, but no.
WILL Hollywood change, ever, regarding the things it promotes and the things it puts out? Most likely, no.
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