Red Mosquito

The Argonaut wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 9:29 pm But why would anyone care about the race of the actors in this movie. It's not about race. It takes place before race as it is currently conceptualized even took place. Is it so hard for people to not focus exclusively on how dark somebody's skin is. Lupita Nyongo has dark skin, ok, I don't need to dwell on that. The guy who plays the shade of Achilles used to play female characters. Ok who gives a fuck. It's just boring. Aren't you bored of yourself thinking like this?

If you watched The Northman and for some bizarre reason they decided to make the Vikings random races, wouldn't that effect your immersion in the story, at least at first? I'm sorry but if Michelle Yeoh and Idris Elba were running around in Iceland acting like crazy Vikings, it's gonna take me out of it a bit. It's going to feel less real. I'm going to be like, "oh, I'm watching a movie right now. These are actors playing around on screen. The cast was very likely chosen for reasons that have nothing to do with the artistic intent." That doesn't seem crazy to me. I think most people would feel that way. It's a less impactful experience.

Hollywood movies should try to be more historically accurate, when depicting history. Frequently movies gets accurately criticized for casting too white (and that goes both ways), or wearing wrong clothes, eating the wrong food, depicting historical events wrong etc.

To be clear, The Odyssey is not "history"

What if the Northman? What if the Lord of the Rings? Different movies do different things. Be flexible

The Lord Of The Rings are culturally tied to British and Northern European history and mythology, even if it is a fantasy novel. That is how Tolkien intended it to be. I think the movies do a fairly good job at respecting that.

The Odyssey is a foundational story of the ancient Greek world, and is better if it respects that.

The Argonaut wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 9:49 pm What if the Northman? What if the Lord of the Rings? Different movies do different things. Be flexible

Like I said, it depends on the movie, the tone, the setting, etc. But this idea that someone is a horrible racist because the artist's clumsy attempt at diversity took them out of a movie is crazy to me.

Maybe Robert Eggers should have directed this movie

God I love Cinema!

"Color blind" casting (what a terrible term, but alas) works when it isn't a story about race. So like casting George Clooney to play Martin Luthor King, Jr is abhorrent and uncomfortable and hilarious and stupid. Casting Idris Elba to play David Duke, ditto. The list goes on.

A myth that never happened about people that never existed? Go wild, fem! Hell, you might even be able to make a larger point that connects to modern culture and still resonates. What an idea! Who among us wouldn't love to see Idris Elba play King Arthur?!

History is history. Myth is myth. Movies are movies. How is this even a real conversation?

You know what I love? Films

epilogue wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 10:51 pmHow is this even a real conversation?

Let me introduce you to bored, racist idiots.

epilogue wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 10:51 pm "Color blind" casting (what a terrible term, but alas) works when it isn't a story about race. So like casting George Clooney to play Martin Luthor King, Jr is abhorrent and uncomfortable and hilarious and stupid. Casting Idris Elba to play David Duke, ditto. The list goes on.

A myth that never happened about people that never existed? Go wild, fem! Hell, you might even be able to make a larger point that connects to modern culture and still resonates. What an idea! Who among us wouldn't love to see Idris Elba play King Arthur?!

History is history. Myth is myth. Movies are movies. How is this even a real conversation?

Agreed

Jorge wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 9:44 pm To be clear, The Odyssey is not "history"

Your are telling me it didnt happened? How can you be so sure ?

Dev wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:38 pm

epilogue wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 10:51 pm "Color blind" casting (what a terrible term, but alas) works when it isn't a story about race. So like casting George Clooney to play Martin Luthor King, Jr is abhorrent and uncomfortable and hilarious and stupid. Casting Idris Elba to play David Duke, ditto. The list goes on.

A myth that never happened about people that never existed? Go wild, fem! Hell, you might even be able to make a larger point that connects to modern culture and still resonates. What an idea! Who among us wouldn't love to see Idris Elba play King Arthur?!

History is history. Myth is myth. Movies are movies. How is this even a real conversation?

Agreed

I think it's more of a spectrum. The more you get away from realism, the more suspension of disbelief is required, the more the creator has to alter things like the tone...

If you're going for some gritty, realistic "historical" version of a myth, but the audience is taken out of the story and starts questioning the realism, you're gonna have a bad time.

Why is the audience so weird? Tell the audience to stop being so weird

They're just normal men.

BurtReynolds wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:49 pm

Dev wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:38 pm

epilogue wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 10:51 pm "Color blind" casting (what a terrible term, but alas) works when it isn't a story about race. So like casting George Clooney to play Martin Luthor King, Jr is abhorrent and uncomfortable and hilarious and stupid. Casting Idris Elba to play David Duke, ditto. The list goes on.

A myth that never happened about people that never existed? Go wild, fem! Hell, you might even be able to make a larger point that connects to modern culture and still resonates. What an idea! Who among us wouldn't love to see Idris Elba play King Arthur?!

History is history. Myth is myth. Movies are movies. How is this even a real conversation?

Agreed

I think it's more of a spectrum. The more you get away from realism, the more suspension of disbelief is required, the more the creator has to alter things like the tone...

If you're going for some gritty, realistic "historical" version of a myth, but the audience is taken out of the story and starts questioning the realism, you're gonna have a bad time.

No version of any audience should be questioning this portrayal of a foreign, ancient myth. That speaks to a personal issue, and honestly probably justifies what people are saying otherwise. It's wild how many white people think everyone in the history of history are white.

BurtReynolds wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:49 pm

Dev wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:38 pm

epilogue wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 10:51 pm "Color blind" casting (what a terrible term, but alas) works when it isn't a story about race. So like casting George Clooney to play Martin Luthor King, Jr is abhorrent and uncomfortable and hilarious and stupid. Casting Idris Elba to play David Duke, ditto. The list goes on.

A myth that never happened about people that never existed? Go wild, fem! Hell, you might even be able to make a larger point that connects to modern culture and still resonates. What an idea! Who among us wouldn't love to see Idris Elba play King Arthur?!

History is history. Myth is myth. Movies are movies. How is this even a real conversation?

Agreed

I think it's more of a spectrum. The more you get away from realism, the more suspension of disbelief is required, the more the creator has to alter things like the tone...

If you're going for some gritty, realistic "historical" version of a myth, but the audience is taken out of the story and starts questioning the realism, you're gonna have a bad time.

I have never thought about historical accuracy in my life but I am heterosexual. I am more concerned with an interesting/challenging story. If I am absorbed by the story I am not like looking for these sorts of low level details. More than anything else I just want to see something new. If it feels done before, derivative or the story feel like it's coming from an inauthentic place I'm out.

epilogue wrote: Fri July 10, 2026 12:18 am

BurtReynolds wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:49 pm

Dev wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 11:38 pm

epilogue wrote: Thu July 09, 2026 10:51 pm "Color blind" casting (what a terrible term, but alas) works when it isn't a story about race. So like casting George Clooney to play Martin Luthor King, Jr is abhorrent and uncomfortable and hilarious and stupid. Casting Idris Elba to play David Duke, ditto. The list goes on.

A myth that never happened about people that never existed? Go wild, fem! Hell, you might even be able to make a larger point that connects to modern culture and still resonates. What an idea! Who among us wouldn't love to see Idris Elba play King Arthur?!

History is history. Myth is myth. Movies are movies. How is this even a real conversation?

Agreed

I think it's more of a spectrum. The more you get away from realism, the more suspension of disbelief is required, the more the creator has to alter things like the tone...

If you're going for some gritty, realistic "historical" version of a myth, but the audience is taken out of the story and starts questioning the realism, you're gonna have a bad time.

No version of any audience should be questioning this portrayal of a foreign, ancient myth. That speaks to a personal issue, and honestly probably justifies what people are saying otherwise. It's wild how many white people think everyone in the history of history are white.

Of course they can. It could be an issue with the creators. Your weird absolutism about a movie that isn't out yet or that anyone who is critical of the casting is because they think "everyone in history was white" is ridiculous.