Gone Girl — Page 6

How about a "three-way"? I said this movie was crap back on October 10.

Updated On: 11/11/14 at 07:29 AM

http://litreactor.com/columns/what-the-huge-success-of-gone-girl-says-about-us-as-a-society-hint-it-isnt-good

Just to be clear, I just thought Namo and others might want to read that. Posting it is not an endorsement.

There really should be more written about how and when people attribute an objectionable generalization to an authorial choice. And whether such attributions are persuasive or not. We live in a world where everything is not just intelligently politicized but in which everything is in parallel also far too easily polemicized.

When is it convincing to consider an author's creation an unfair and oppressive depiction of a whole group of people and when is it shortsighted and facile to draw the same conclusion?

If Hedda Gabler were born today, would we consider Ibsen a woman-hater? Would we feel differently if we knew Ibsen's other heroines?

Does an author have to extrinsically prove his or her bona fides before giving us a character who might otherwise strike us as objectionably representing his or her demographic? Or are the more salient clues as to the author's intent to be found in each work itself? And, if so, how?

Or, as some here apparently are suggesting, does an objectionable character suggesting classic fears about gender or race have to be really brilliant in order for him or her to transcend the fallout? So the debate becomes more about how good the work is rather than whether the work is politically unpalatable? The equivalent of a really tasteless or objectionable joke having to be extremely funny for us to tolerate it or give it a pass because of its sheer entertainment value (and of course many are going to disagree how funny that joke is at the same time they disagree about how hurtful it is, whether those considerations are parallel or proportional, inversely or directly)?

Updated On: 12/2/14 at 05:20 AM

Have any of you read Flynn's other books, 'Sharp Objects' and 'Dark Places'. That will send you over the edge.

Again, this reminds me of all the Brokeback backlash. I remember when Roger Ebert said something about Gyllenhall's character being a "sexual predator" and there was the whole spin about how gay men are these predators trying to "convert" straight men and the, "YES! See? It happens all the time! The poor guy!" So, once the point of view is out there, regardless the intent of the author, or the intent of the opinion-holder, does it redefine the text for everyone? The text is now homophobic because it gives homophobes a reason to use fiction as support for their bigotry (not unlike the Bible Defense)?

In the case of Gone Girl, I just saw the character as written. She's a vengeful psychopath who decides to manipulate circumstances in the ways she believes would do the most harm. A true misogynist would shriek about ANY actions of a vengeful or manipulative woman against a man. Is faking the rape what crosses the line? Faking a pregnancy? Any or all female-specific actions? Can they not be character-specific in a work of fiction? Are we reinforcing the stereotype further by conceding that society cannot determine fact from fiction, so the generalization is valid?

I ask the questions not to prove anyone right or wrong or to specifically defend Flynn. Just trying to clarify my point of view on the subject. It's an interesting discussion and I've been a bit starved for interesting discussions lately.

I got angry when I read that because I couldn't believe she is unable to see how claiming her intention behind something doesn't negate how what she put out into the world reinforces the anti-woman sentiments that continue to damage our culture.

I completely understand how her reply would cause frustration and anger (though I haven't read that article). I just personally don't feel this particular work reinforces anti-woman sentiments so much as it can be used to reinforce anti-woman sentiments. Much like any other female-villain tales can be used to the advantage of misogynists. I have definitely gotten a misogynist vibe from other films (Looking for Mr. Goodbar, most of Lars Von Trier films), but I just didn't pick up on it from this particular novel or film.

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Updated On: 12/3/14 at 01:21 PM

Ah! You're right. It was Shalit, not Ebert. I got them confused.

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See, Namo? Flynn was prescient! FREE BILL COSBY!

BY ROLLING STONE | December 5, 2014

To Our Readers:

Last month, Rolling Stone published a story titled "A Rape on Campus" by Sabrina Rubin Erdely, which described a brutal gang rape of a woman named Jackie at a University of Virginia fraternity house; the university's failure to respond to this alleged assault – and the school's troubling history of indifference to many other instances of alleged sexual assaults. The story generated worldwide headlines and much soul-searching at UVA. University president Teresa Sullivan promised a full investigation and also to examine the way the school responds to sexual assault allegations.

Because of the sensitive nature of Jackie's story, we decided to honor her request not to contact the man she claimed orchestrated the attack on her nor any of the men she claimed participated in the attack for fear of retaliation against her. In the months Erdely spent reporting the story, Jackie neither said nor did anything that made Erdely, or Rolling Stone's editors and fact-checkers, question Jackie's credibility. Her friends and rape activists on campus strongly supported Jackie's account. She had spoken of the assault in campus forums. We reached out to both the local branch and the national leadership of the fraternity where Jackie said she was attacked. They responded that they couldn't confirm or deny her story but had concerns about the evidence.

In the face of new information, there now appear to be discrepancies in Jackie's account, and we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced. We were trying to be sensitive to the unfair shame and humiliation many women feel after a sexual assault and now regret the decision to not contact the alleged assaulters to get their account. We are taking this seriously and apologize to anyone who was affected by the story.

Will Dana
Managing Editor

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