Escape to the Movies: Branded

[keitarobg]

This movie sounds a lot like "Generation P", the book (there's a movie, but I haven't seen it yet). Awfully alike... Someone's getting sued muehehe...

 

[CosmicCommander]

I don't think any sane man would opt to be fat when if he were able to easily select his physique. Being fat is usually a fairly lucid choice people make; I'm aware I'm more likely to die of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc., and I've never met another overweight person who claimed otherwise. What fat asses like myself don't need or want is the media constantly shoving in our faces how unhealthy, unattractive, and how hedonistic we are, people constantly approaching me to say how bad for me my existence is, and the health Nazis who constantly push for taxing me for my existence or trying to force a change to my diet or shit.

At first I wanted to flip this paragraph, substituting "overweight" with "IQ under 70" and "fat ass" with "idiot" to show resemblance between these two human parameters, but I couldn't make myself do it.

People have less control over their level of intellect and overall education, than they have over their weight. You are born into certain educational level - if your parents do not happen to have a certain level of income, you are SOL for life. And you can't just starve yourself to a high SAT score.

But hey, guess what: noone in their sane mind openly(!) advocates idiocy, or asks the media to "shut up about this whole education thing already", or make a "dumb-acceptance" movement. Such sentiments did exist a few centuries ago, when education was viewed as corrupting. But hey, maybe in just in few years we will see a Renaissance of dumb-acceptance movement.
There is nothing "inherent" or "universal" about society praising or shaming something. It is always the recent fad - we shame one thing and praise another, only to switch 180 degrees in under a century. But at no point in time people will ever be truly out other people's hair.

P.S. Regarding the whole "bullying will not help me get thinner" comment I've seen earlier - everybody understands that, and nobody cares. Bullying will not get a 300-pound guy to exercise, but it will instill enough dread into hundreds of 200 pound guys to go and buy jogging boots.
Shaming works like the state penitentiary system: the few are made an example off to guide the many.

I'd reply to this, but I feel this post is one huge snide insinuation. I'm not going to report if because I don't know if it's intentionally offensive, but I'd ask you to select your words a bit more carefully in the future, chap.

 

[Jegsimmons]

So, its an anti-corporate movie....that gets out via hollywood corporations....hollywood being more evil and manipulative than Monsanto.

I dont get anti-capitalism...i get anti-corpratism/commercialism....but anti-capitalism doesnt make sense to me, it isnt like communism where it caused the death of millions of people and open up to people right being stripped away.

also, i dont get the anti-fat sentiment. its one thing to promote good health...but being fat?
anyone get the idea that the makers may be supporters of a more....authoritarian policy....like i dont know...communism?

fuck i cant wait for red dawn....its about time we get a gun-ho red blooded MURRICAN movie with a bit of 80s cheese that doesnt involve mercenaries or jason bourne.

 

[RTR]

I feel physically ill just watching this review

 

[xPixelatedx]

First it was the word rape, then it was sexism in games, now the threat of a fat-war looms overhead.

I truly hate this anally PC world... We have to be so careful about what we say all the time; making sure we don't upset anyone for any reason, even if those people are doing something incredibly stupid, hurting themselves or hurting others. I have no problem with the message this movie is trying to deliver, and I think it's silly to get bent of shape over that.

That said, it does look retarded and I have no interest in seeing it.

 

[Hugga_Bear]

You can use your body however you want, but when people go and promote "fat acceptance", I get a bit irked. It's promoting an early death. If they want to be unhealthy (and I am talking fat here, not chubby or having a gut, but fat), that's fine, but don't promote it, because it's unhealthy.

As a fatass myself, I feel inclined to comment. I'm not part of any "fat acceptance" movements, but I think I'd be qualified to say that you're conflating the idea of "fat acceptance" (that is, not being a dick to fatties) with the concept of encouraging people to be fat. I don't think any sane man would opt to be fat when if he were able to easily select his physique. Being fat is usually a fairly lucid choice people make; I'm aware I'm more likely to die of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc., and I've never met another overweight person who claimed otherwise. People have chosen to live a certain way, aware of the opportunity cost of their fitness and life expectancy. What fat asses like myself don't need or want is the media constantly shoving in our faces how unhealthy, unattractive, and how hedonistic we are, people constantly approaching me to say how bad for me my existence is, and the health Nazis who constantly push for taxing me for my existence or trying to force a change to my diet or shit.

I get it. I'm unhealthy. I don't want to make anyone else fat, I just want everyone to shut the fuck up. Is that something so unacceptable?

The common idea seems to be that if media do NOT do this, then acceptance will grow, and people will become fatter and more unhealthy.
I am unsure if this is entirely true or not. I think it could be done in far more tasteful ways, however.

I know it's not the same at all but I immediately thought of being gay, the same argument was trotted out and paraded around. Still is. If we accept gay people, more people will be gay and this is bad because gay is bad. Why? Because gay.
I know it's not the same. Still amused me though.

That is impossible here. Nomatter your stance at obesity; kicking someone who is already down is disgusting. Seriously, point out one person who is happy being obese. No, not a person that has accepted his/her life situation. I mean a person that view his/her obesity as something good. No one?

Beth Ditto maybe? I don't like the woman at all but I think she views her obesity as good. Not sure, may be that she's just super accepting of it.

My captcha is cheese fries. Relevance.

 

[Realitycrash]

You can use your body however you want, but when people go and promote "fat acceptance", I get a bit irked. It's promoting an early death. If they want to be unhealthy (and I am talking fat here, not chubby or having a gut, but fat), that's fine, but don't promote it, because it's unhealthy.

As a fatass myself, I feel inclined to comment. I'm not part of any "fat acceptance" movements, but I think I'd be qualified to say that you're conflating the idea of "fat acceptance" (that is, not being a dick to fatties) with the concept of encouraging people to be fat. I don't think any sane man would opt to be fat when if he were able to easily select his physique. Being fat is usually a fairly lucid choice people make; I'm aware I'm more likely to die of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc., and I've never met another overweight person who claimed otherwise. People have chosen to live a certain way, aware of the opportunity cost of their fitness and life expectancy. What fat asses like myself don't need or want is the media constantly shoving in our faces how unhealthy, unattractive, and how hedonistic we are, people constantly approaching me to say how bad for me my existence is, and the health Nazis who constantly push for taxing me for my existence or trying to force a change to my diet or shit.

I get it. I'm unhealthy. I don't want to make anyone else fat, I just want everyone to shut the fuck up. Is that something so unacceptable?

The common idea seems to be that if media do NOT do this, then acceptance will grow, and people will become fatter and more unhealthy.
I am unsure if this is entirely true or not. I think it could be done in far more tasteful ways, however.

I know it's not the same at all but I immediately thought of being gay, the same argument was trotted out and paraded around. Still is. If we accept gay people, more people will be gay and this is bad because gay is bad. Why? Because gay.
I know it's not the same. Still amused me though.

You're right, it isn't the same, for being gay is neither unhealthy nor a choice for most people (unless you count repression, which I consider very unhealthy). I added "most people" because I am certain there are some that have managed to "pray the gay"-away without suffering from any repression side-effects, but I honestly think these were bi-sexual to begin with.
Obesity is, in very, very rare cases not a choice either, due to genetics or disease, and these people are also excused.

 

[Boba Frag]

Duly noted, Bob.

So.... when are you doing Judge Dredd?

Captcha thing:

Rowboat.

What did you call me?

 

[DjinnFor]

Pretentious with pointless overwrought CGI imagery and popular ironically? Too bad it doesn't have scantily clad chicks fighting giant robot samurai.
-_-

You failed, horribly. So damn horribly it's not even funny.

There's a difference between a justifiable satire of something with such subtly that you confuse it for the real thing and unjustifiable ham-fisted criticism of something that comes across as pretentious. In fact, the two are so absurdly dissimilar that comparisons between them don't even make any sense at all.

 

[DjinnFor]

A lot of people would beg to differ on that one. The Spill Crew is actually among them ...

...Do they even know what pretentious means?

 

[lacktheknack]

Am I the only one who really wants to see this move after the review?

Nope! I'm positively foaming at the mouth in anticipation of its DVD release, so I can finally complete my planned movie night.

Films To Be Viewed:
Vampire's Kiss
Branded
Birdemic
The Room
The Amazing Blob (if I can acquire a copy somehow...)

It will be LEGENDARY.

 

[Britisheagle]

Great review - the Boston accent made a return for this episode at parts too!

Fatpocolypse aside, yeah this doesn't sound like my kind of film..

 

[Lord Draenor]

I liked Southland Tales but this looks awful

 

[Lord_Gremlin]

Hm, one should never hate oneself, but if you're really fat you shouldn't really embrace it, it's bad for your health, for your heart, and you probably should try and do something about it.
Unless of course you make your weight a part of yourself as a pop culture idol. Like Benny Hill. Or Jim Sterling.
Still probably bad for your health. It's also kinda ironic - the movie I mean - because there are not many fat people in Russia. It's interesting because in neighbor Ukraine obesity is much more common. One has to wonder if it's a cautionary tale for Russians to not end up like USA, where one has to wonder how to fight obesity.