RE: The Last Jedi - TOMORROW! :D
First off, wecome to Steemit! This is an awesome global community with both a lot of similar interests represented as well as diverse people. You can't ask for more diversity than Steemit... :)
I guess I'm just older and more set in my ways, but for me Star Wars was magical as a kid. I guess I just can't relate to it anymore as an adult.
My only real beef is not with diversity or women, it's how poorly men are portrayed in general. It's rampant everywhere these days. I'm tired of how men and masculine qualities are no longer held as good but are only highlighted in negative ways. It turns me off.
- Luke - A whiny out of touch male who is a quitter.
- Finn - A coward as much as a hero who constantly needs saving
- Poe - A loose canon who acts brashly and irresponsibly
- Kylo - Typical evil white guy
- Supreme Leader Snoke - The evil patriarchy
Were there any faults in any of the female characters, not really. I just want balance I suppose. What am I supposed to tell me young boys? Men are evil and can't be trusted to get the job done? Great female and male characters is what I want. I don't mind women or other ethnicities taking the lead. I'm just tired of, well, being ashamed of being a while male (Or at least being told I should be ashamed).
Sorry for the rant. I did actually enjoy to movie as well. But not nearly as much as I would have liked to, especially since it was such a big part of my youth.
Welcome to Steemit again! :)
Thanks for the welcome :) Sometime this week I'll go into a in depth reply to some of your points as I have some disagreements with some of them. I would kindly like to state that in my humble opinion there is nothing in this film that states that something is inherently evil or wrong with being a white male. Representing women and other ethnicities in this and other films is simply more realistic as anyone can be any character. I would hope that you can tell your boys that women and people of color are just as capable of anything they are and vice versa. Also that though one may falter and struggle as Luke did, seeing the good in, the spirit of hope in, and sacrifice that others are willing to make can encourage you to forgive yourself and work towards a better future as Luke did at the movies end. Luke's arc in The Last Jedi is one of the most well written examples of showing the toll that pain can take on someone but how others can help us find our inner strength for good, I've ever seen in a sci fi fantasy. The notion that to be manly requires one to solely solve everything alone and that men never suffer emotional trauma is a unhealthy view of masculinity as it drives men to push others away, creates a unchecked ego and leads to burying or covering emotional struggles through unhealthy vices instead of discussing them in healthy constructive ways. None of this is intended as an attack on you or your boys, just to be clear. Its simply my thoughts on some healthy things that anyone can learn from this film.
No offense taken. You are a pensive person who clearly forms your opinions and views from a well thought out perspective. Disagreements aside, I will always respect that.
I don't necessarily believe that the filmmakers went out of their way intentionally to make men look bad (although they may have). I just feel that the film (like many others in recent years) are a reflection of our new everything traditionally masculine is evil culture in the west.
I agree with most of your points about emotions and feelings and teamwork and I get a bit insulted (you didn't do this) when people insinuate that my objections to man-bashing in society have something to do with being a chauvinist or racist.
I'm more spiritual in my approach and really believe that there is a place for traditional masculine traits (like resolve, forcefulness, action, impulse, strategy, competition etc) as much as the feminine. To shun these will tip our world out of balance. And I believe many of our problems in western society stem from the particular shift and imbalance. The film is simply symptomatic of this for me and clearly does not resonate with people like me.
Cheers!