Mark Beall's Geek Beat: Truth, Justice, and All That Other Stuff
Filed under: Action, Celebrities and Controversy, Fandom, Scripts, Politics, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels
Please read and fully digest the following statement before you engage yourself with today's edition of the Geek Beat. It's written in bold, for extra emphasis. Don't miss it. Ready? Okay:
The following rant is in NO WAY meant to be anything resembling a political issue. This is not a politics blog, and the last thing I want to do is open that can of worms. Please don't read the title of this article and infer its contents. This is a geek rant, NOT POLITICS. Got it? Good, let's move on.
Perhaps you've heard the angry hubbub slowly brimming in the media about this. If you are an old school Superman fan, you noticed it yourself when you watched the movie, because it jumped right out and smacked you in the face. When discussing the return of Superman, a character pondered aloud if he still stood for "truth, justice, and all that stuff." And thanks to the old television show, just about everyone on earth knows that traditionally, Superman stood for "truth, justice, and the American way." Somehow, the former doesn't quite have the zing of the latter. The basic debate on the issue goes something like this:
Angry Conservative Talk Show Host: Blah blah blah Hollywood hates America blah blah blah.
Movie Writers/Actors/Etc: Blah blah blah Political Correctness blah blah blah.
Angry Conservative Talk Show Host: Blah blah liberal pinko commies blah blah blah.
Movie Writers/Actors/Etc: Blah blah international hero blah blah blah.
And that more or less sums up the discussion which has been happening since the seemingly innocuous little line was uttered by Perry White a few days ago. There has been a lot of back and forth about why it was changed, and mostly each side just accuses the other of not understanding the world today. It probably doesn't help that the film released so close to the 4th of July. They've turned it into a big political issue, but politics isn't really my beef with the change. I know politics was involved in the decision and I understand the points being made on both sides. I think the issue the simpler, though.
Look, I understand the world isn't super keen on America these days. I understand you need your movie to sell big overseas, because you spent a TON of money on this bad boy. If you are a movie guy, and you think "hey, I need to sell this film to people who don't like America, maybe I ought to think twice about including a very American line," I get that. My personal opinions are completely irrelevant, because I didn't make the film. In fact, if you want to avoid "the American way" simply because your personal mindset doesn't like the concept, that's your prerogative. You made the film, you choose what makes the cut. Likewise, it's the prerogative of people who disagree with you to complain about it or to not watch your movie. I get that. I'm down. There's probably an ironic statement to be made here about the nature of capitalism, open debate, and personal choice being part of the American Way, but I'm too good to make that joke. Honestly, I GET the decision to hold back on this line. Not saying what my stance on the issue is, but it at least makes sense to me.
I hear you out there asking "but Mark, if the politics doesn't bother you, why are you joining the debate on this issue?" It's cool, kiddos, I've got a point here.
Okay, let me set the scene for you. It is a short time in the future, and you are just settling in to watch the new Fantastic Four flick, which has promised you a whole lot more superhero action and adventure. The ever-lovin' blue-eyed Thing finds himself on Yancy Street, surrounded by baddies and itching for a fight. He drops the trench coat, cracks his knuckles, and declares "it's time to hit some people!"
No, of course not. Ben Grimm always says "It's clobberin' time!" It's one of the most famous battle cries in comicbookdom, and fans know him for it.
Let's try again. Imagine you are watching the first Spider-Man movie. We go through the whole Uncle Ben buildup to death, Peter runs up and cradles his beloved Uncle in his arms, and Uncle Ben imparts his last bit of advice, reminding Peter "with great power comes some other stuff you've got to do."
Right? No. The long-standing and well-known line is "with great power comes great responsibility." Fans would have risen up and lynched Sam Raimi if he'd changed that line -- and rightfully so.
How about if Beast declared "oh my stars and eyeglasses," or the Human Torch dove off a building and ignited with a cry of "fire time!"? Would you just sit by and nod your head as if these were perfectly normal things to say? No, you'd be outraged at the changing of a classic line so clearly and definitively linked with a particular character. And that's my problem with "truth, justice, and all that stuff." The writers can stop telling me about a changing world climate, an era of tolerance, blah blah blah. Don't care about politics, you messed with something that's WAY beyond you to touch. You aren't ALLOWED to make the decision to change that line, because the line is bigger than you'll ever be. People will remember "truth, justice, and the American way" for decades, and most people don't even know your name currently.
"But Mark," you ask with a quivering question in your voice, "I thought you said you were okay with the politics behind the decision. Are you really just a lying hate monger?" No, man. Like I said above, I GET the decision. I understand. But there's a MUCH easier solution here. You'd better eat some brain food though, because this is graduate level thinking. Ready?
DON'T INCLUDE THE LINE AT ALL. Wow. Crazy, right? Honestly, let's think this through. Would you be particularly offended if The Thing never said anything resembling "it's clobberin' time"? True Believers would probably be sad the line didn't make the cut, but that'd be about it. We could do without Beast saying "Oh my stars and garters" and it wouldn't be a big deal. What WOULD be a big deal is including a perverted version of the lines. You don't mess with some things. The writers, who self-righteously cling to their politically correct defense (again, a reasonable defense), could have avoided the entire controversy by simply not including the line. It was unnecessary to the film, and very few people would have complained about its absence. No offending people by including perceived American ideology, and no offending fans by messing up. But instead, you chose to take a very well-known line directly associated with a very well-known hero, and twist it around. And now you've got a mini-fervor brewing about it for no good reason. Congratulations. Stay away from The Thing, okay?
Jeremy Renner Wants To Be An Avenger
Directors We Love: Jim Jarmusch
Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'
Shelf Life: Fight Club_thumbnail.jpg)
Watch: Famous 'Matrix' Scene Re-Created with LEGOs
_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-04-2006 @ 11:43AM
Cangrande said...
Ah, but Mark, look back further. The phrase originated in the Superman radio series, but back then it was, "Superman fights a never-ending battle for Truth and Justice!" That's it. T&J. (Much like in the 40s the pledge of alliegence didn't contain "under God.") It's like referenceing "Change the course of mighty rivers!" instead of "Faster than a speeding bullet!" (which, incidentally, was originally "Race a speeding bullet to its target!")
I understand that for, oh, fifty years the phrase has been locked. But, like the retro-costume, I don't mind harkening back to his roots. In fact, if they wanted to make him less powerful, that would be... swell.
On a separate but related note, did you also mind the "It's a bird, it's a plane, no it's..." bit? Because it's the same thing. They assume you know the lexicon of phrases, and they're having fun with it.
Cheers.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 11:57AM
Mark Beall said...
You are right, Can, after a fashion. But you and I both know when you think Superman, you think "truth, justice, and the American way." The phrase is undeniably assosciated with the hero. And they aren't "having fun with it," they've willingly admitted in several interviews they didn't want to use "American way" because of the political issues involved.
Strong points, though. I love my readers.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 12:13PM
Scott Weinberg said...
Good piece, Mark. I agree that it might have been wiser just to leave that line out of the film entirely. Instead, they went ahead and made a half-baked "statement" out of the thing.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 12:18PM
doc said...
First, that is a well written and thoughtful post Mark. Thanks for taking the time. I would add one option that you didn't bring up. They could have simply shot the scene twice. Once with 'the American way' and once without, using the non American version for the overseas version. Then toss the alternate version on the DVD as another extra for anyone who has to see everything.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 12:32PM
Christopher Campbell said...
Not that I agree with the decision, but at least Singer didn't have the line spoken by Superman. So we can still assume he would say it the right way.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 2:50PM
thegrizzle said...
The reason I have so thoroughly enjoyed this incarnation of Superman, despite all my naysaying friends, and all you intarwebbers out there is this: Singer and Co decided to actually pursue their own interpretation of the mythos. In Superman returns, we aren't riding along with Superman, we're staring up into the sky, in awe of this big blue wonder. Despite the filmmakers efforts to make the film "timeless" it is anything but, and it's really ok with me. It is Superman, as he would exist in our political climate today. What could be more relevant than that? The movie went darker than any Supes film has dared before (it's a dog eat dog world!), and I think really challenged the expectations of what a superhero flick can actually do FOR THE CHARACTER. They've created their own pocket universe, like the All Star line, where we can be taken to places we've never been with Superman before.
I've always had a hard time identifying with Supes, but Singer's film puts me in a place where I'm NOT SUPPOSED TO. He's alien, he's not one of us, but we look up to him. He stands for something more important than the American way (which is a whole other undefinable arguement). Superman, while raised in Kansas, is a citizen of the world. I don't think the character in Singers film has allegiances that end with borders, I think he's here to help humanity save itself from...itself. Yes, it does seem like Warner made the safe choice in making this an international film, what with the state of the world, but think about whether "truth justice and the AMERICAN way" work in the context of the film. The line doesn't change what Superman stands for anymore than the line being completely missing. If anything it reflects more upon Perry White's cynicism than anything else.
C'mon Mark, give Skeletor a break.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 3:45PM
CeeAre said...
Excellent post. Perfectly said. They should have just left it alone. The same goes for the coloring. I really don't like the new blood red and tiny S. Come on, why did they have to change that.
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 3:53PM
Steve said...
I would like to offer another possibility as to why he said "and all that other stuff" instead of the "and the American way". Maybe they thought that in the context he said it "and all that other stuff" just sounded or flowed better, or maybe they just thought it would be funny and mildly amusing for him to say instead(i for one found it amusing). Maybe it wasn't even planned and during filming or rehersals he forgot the end of that line (i know thats a stupid line to forget but stephen colbert forgot the name of his show a couple of weeks ago on an episode). Whatever reason that it was put in could have not even been ploitacly motivated.
but i guess the best person to ask would be singer
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 4:01PM
bgdc said...
Problem is - these films are based on comics. That's it. Comics. Little panels with pictures of people and balloon text. They're source material. They're not gospel. They're not worth quoting verbatim. They're comics for god's sake...meaningless pop art that is used to make big budget franchises and massive profits (except in superman's sake as it's tanking - as it should).
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 8:12PM
Elrond Hobbert said...
If Superman fights for truth, justice and the American way, he'll wind up fighting almost every elected official in this country. (Lois Lane)
Reply
7-04-2006 @ 8:27PM
Trent Hayes said...
Cangrande and thegrizzle said it all, and concisely too :)
Changing lines? Whoop-de-do
Last time I checked, Spider-man clung to walls through a wacky spider-attraction, but in the movie he has near-microscopic (metallic?) hairs or hooks.
Now obviously as my point of view originates from outside the US, I'm thankfully allowed to avoid the talk-show hosts bleating their opinions as if I'm supposed to care WHAT someone on a six or seven figure salary is thinking - talk about deviating from reality ;)
I'm thinking of catching this flick BECAUSE it looks different, I think DC's decision to avoid real world cities and situations is WHY Marvel is so popular - any writer will tell you it is easier to suspend disbelief if you use recognisable landmarks, etc.
Above all I've found that the comic movies lately have been produced with the idea that the audience are NOT fans. Yet they do contain little snippets, within the whole, which spark a rosy flame of nostalgia in the breasts of those who have a background associated with the genre.
They stand on their own and I applaud their difference.
Reply
7-05-2006 @ 11:33AM
Cyberphin said...
Can't believe you equate "with great power comes great responsibility" with a throw away line like "Truth, Justice, and the American Way". Totally on different levels.
And even though you aren't being political, you are making something out of nothing. It was a joke, or at least a way of having the actor speak like a normal person. I still cringe when Supes, gives his little speach about Flying still being statistically the safest way to travel.
Ugh.
Well then again I didn't like this movie. It was a nice homage (or blantant rip-off) of the first Superman movie, but didn't add to the characters (even with a kid in the mix) In fact it rewound and undid the advancements in the characters from series like Lois and Clark, and Smallville.
Now I believe Superman can go back in time.
getting back on track...
Classic lines of Superman for me are:
Up Up and Away (only good on radio and unnecessary in visual incarnations)
This looks like a job for Superman! (points out that not every job is a job for Superman)
A mild mannered reporter...(at least George Reeves Clark was as extreme milktoast as the comics or the movies)
Reply
7-05-2006 @ 1:31PM
Brant said...
If the omission of "American Way" was politically motivated, I think the writers disguised it well given the context of the the scene and the gruff character of Perry White. He's got less than a day to prepare his team for the story of the decade, so in the excitement and urgency of the moment he's not worried about the details of some old adage.
Reply
7-05-2006 @ 10:28PM
rocko said...
way to freakin steal the article and plagiarize upon other people's work:
http://www.chud.com/index.php?type=news&id=7037
Reply
7-05-2006 @ 10:33PM
Mark Beall said...
Are you kidding me, Rocko? The CHUD article is a political piece about the political motives for not including "the American way." My article is a geek piece about comic book reasons. Yeah, we touch on a few of the same points, but we make entirely different arguments. Maybe you oughta try reading the whole thing, yeah?
Reply
7-06-2006 @ 1:08AM
Pro America said...
You just hate America.
People like you make me sick.
True, Justice and the American Way. That is the essence of Superman. If that can't survive in this modern world, then perhaps the modern world doesn't deserve Superman.
Reply
7-07-2006 @ 11:49AM
Steve said...
Brant is exactly right about this, because he is the only person who notices which character says the line. In the 1978 movie, Superman says "truth, justice, and the American way," and so that is what Lois then publishes in her famous article "I spent the night with Superman." But in the new movie, it is NOT Superman who says, "and all that other stuff." It is the cynical, bottom-line editor-in-chief White who says it, badly paraphrasing Lois's article. White's remark is utterly true to character, as his character has always been. The problem here is not anyone's patriotism. The problem here is that conservatives like Mr. Pro America don't know how to read stories.
Reply