Defamer
Despite having received the GLAAD Squeal of Approval™, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry has mostly underwhelmed critics, one of whom wrote, "[It] isn't just unfunny; it's racist, sexist and homophobic — and truly unpleasant to watch." (In fairness, we should mention that the Village Voice review declared it "as eloquent as Brokeback Mountain," and included the pull-quote ready, "This sodomite had a gay old time"— sure to become the centerpiece of the movie's print marketing campaign.) It's not just critics who find themselves offended, however: At a TCA week promotional party for NBC's fall slate, Heroes' teleporting office worker Masi Oka disapproved of Rob Schneider's turn as the fake-gay couple's slanty-eyed officiating officer. From the USA Today report:
Oka was less thrilled with the stereotypical Japanese character comedian Rob Schneider plays in the new Adam Sandler comedy feature, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, opening Friday.
"I didn't agree with that," said Oka. "It was very funny, but it wasn't smart funny. I don't understand why an Asian guy couldn't have played it. You didn't need to have the (slant) eyes and the buck tooth trying to be a 'yellow face,' as we call it."
Despite Oka's best diplomatic efforts to buffer his pointed accusations of racism by inaccurately describing the performance in question as "very funny," we doubt that will be nearly enough to discourage the legendarily hot-headed comedian from firing off another of his infamous open letters, in which he'll remind the Heroes star—as he did the NY Times after they published an editorial condemning his "leering Hawaiian" character in 50 First Dates—that being 50% Filipino gives the actor free reign to make his comic creations as bucktoothed and slanty-eyed as he wants them to be.
- The peacock parades its stars at NBC bash [USA Today]
Comments
I love how the implication is that the rest of the movie was in good taste and stereotypically correct- it's just that Rob Schneider's Bucky Beaver Asian was off-putting.
From Mickey Rooney to every minority character on Seinfeld, Asian stereotypes have never, ever been funny.
@HeatherNumber1: we were just discussing this at work the other day, and the majority agreed that Jerry Lewis' oeuvre captured the subtle nuances of the Asian stereotype best.
I want Hiro Nakamura to take his sword to Rob Schneider. It doesn't have to be about this. Any reason will do, really.
Isn't Adam Sandler the only person alive who thinks Schneider is funny?
@picardia: Hirrrro!! The Hiro-nator! Did you ever know that you're my Hiro?! Hiro-rama!
@Heathernumber: Not funny? So what were those noises coming out of my mouth that sounded like "Ha Ha Ha Ha" ?
@scroll_lock: Awesome.
Criticizing Schneider's performance is sort of like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic, though, isn't it?
@HeatherNumber1: Obviously you've never had to watch confused people trying to get out of crowded parking lots in Koreatown? That shit's FUNNY.
@procrastinator, esq.: that answers Seinfeld's question about how long it'll take to get out of Koreatown. "Five, ten minute."
Another thing -- the only way this movie concept could ever, ever have worked and been funny would have been for Chuck and Larry to actually fall in love.
Schneider clearly doesn't fear retribution from the mighty Asian Mafia that secretly runs Hollywood... of which I really mean the reservationists at Katsuya.
Raise your hands if you go to Adam Sandler movies expecting accurate portrayals of minorities or even people in general.
The more important question here is WHAT was Masi Oka doing watching "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry." Or maybe I just thought he had taste.
It is my fervent hope that Masi Oka will choose a more meta form of critique - namely, by applying for domestic partnership with a colleague in the same field (he was a math nerd before meeting any casting directors.)
Hiro, our future is drawn on cheap comic newsprint! Call me!
Pshaw!! The shabby marriage ceremony conducted by an unnerving minority portrayed by an actor invariably not of that race has been a comedy staple since Richard Libertini in "Best Friends"-and if you think I'll let anybody here denigrate those comic geniuses Barry Levinson & Norman Jewison you're sadly mistaken. But I would agree Jack Ong in the Molly Ringwald misfire "For Keeps?" is the penultimate performance of the genre
@scroll_lock: You are my Hiro for that.
@baronzemo: Not Asian, but the Impressive Clergyman in Princess Bride was pretty good. Although Brits with speech impediments are unfortunately NOT a minority, as one look at British tv can show you.
Why does Adam Sandler still have a pitch space? For the love of decent comedy - axe him!!!
@Picardia: Yes! Just ... yes. That would be too awesome for words.
Like the Britcom "Bob & Rose", in reverse.
As a Japanese woman,I would like to see Asian stereotypes disappear. It does offend me a bit that Rob Schneider's playing the part of a Japanese character, but I have yet to even see the movie, so I can't really state my opinion regarding that.
In the meantime, I would like for Masi Oka to speak proper Japanese in Heroes instead of sounding like some braindead kindergarten dropout. When I first saw Heroes, I thought they pulled some random Chinese person (again, like in Memoirs of a Geisha) to portray a Japanese person... that's how bad his Japanese is. And on IMDB it says that he's fluent. I don't think so!
@Kalik: As a honky, I always thought Hiro was something of a ridiculous stereotype of what white folks think Asian geeks are like, based on John Woo movies and Masamune Shirow.
But then, I hate that damn show, so I'd best shut my yap.
@scroll_lock: u win the internets bb
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