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Monday, May 24, 2010
The wrong-handed and black Shoeless Joe
Poz talks about Field of Dreams.
Suppose you are in an all-black college, a college being attended by Denzel Washington, Andre Braiugher, and Morgan Freeman among others. And you want to remake Field of Dreams for the college play. The pool of available actors is tremendous, but both other-handed and other-colored than Shoeless Joe. But, who cares, right? I want to see ANY movie that Denzel is in because he is such a tremendous actor. Then, in this school, Brendan Fraser is admitted. Not only him, but Keanu Reeves and about thirty other such people. And you have a choice to cast the lead of Field of Dreams between Denzel and the same-handed (let’s say) Keanu Reeves. Does it really matter that Keanu is white? I mean, does it REALLY matter?
I have no problem, no problem at all, suspending disbelief when I go to the movies when it comes to the color of skin or the handedness of the actor, or if the actor has a stutter issue, or a height issue, or a teeth issue (hey, only actors with scurvy can be on Mutiny on the Bounty!). You ask ANY woman about the handedness of Shoeless Joe Jackson and Ray Liotta, and she will think you are a complete moron.
A movie is not a biography. It’s a movie. I want a great script, good pace, and wonderful acting. Color of the skin? Don’t bother me with that bullsh!t.
That said, Joe and Charles pointed out that in a movie that went out of their way to cast white actors for white parts, and allowed a non-white actor (voice of Vader as I knew him then) for a color-agnostic character, did not find room in heaven for Roberto Clemente and Jackie Robinson and Josh Gibson. I never thought of that because, well, like I said, I wouldn’t notice that to begin with. Now I know.
Thanks for ruining that, as it will forever be in my mind. I just hope that you guys can appreciate the rest of the movie as I do, because what hand Ray Liotta uses to swing a bat or sign a contract or take a leak is immaterial to a movie.
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