“Funny People” not funny…..
August 7, 2009
by Amy Siskind
|I am hardly pollyanna when it comes to bad language. I did, after all, spend years on trading floors where 4 letter words were used with the regularity that the rest of society reserves for “the.”
That’s why I am wondering if our culture is changing, or if I am just becoming more aware?
This past weekend, I went to see Funny People starring Adam Sandler. With the summer onslaught of sexism that we seem to be experiencing, I figured I could use a laugh. Only, Funny People was hardly funny.
The thing that disturbed me most was the constant reference to male genetalia as the butt of jokes. I might be exaggerating a bit here, but sitting in the theater it felt that no 5 minute period went by without the mention of “d*ck”, “c*ck”, or balls. Again, I am hardly a prude, but I couldn’t fathom the amount of punchlines based on these three words – the audience for the most part just stopped laughing. And not just the mention of these words, but the degrading treatment of almost all the female characters surrounding these words.
There was one line that was simply rock bottom and caused me to literally gasp – as did several women in the audience – the rest were silent (no laughter). This is when Adam Sandler is expressing reservations about parenting the 2 daughters of his ex-girlfriend. I don’t have the exact words, but basically what Sandler said was that he liked the 6 year-old, but with the 11 year-old he could already smell the menstration coming on. Yes, for real.
Since seeing the movie, I’ve learned that the leading lady of the movie, Leslie Mann is actually married to the director of the movie, Judd Apatow, and that the girls in the movie are their children together. I was also told that Leslie said in an interview that she did not allow her daughters to see the actual movie – only a 10 minutes clip of the parts they were featured in (I’m hoping Leslie cut out the menstration line).
So just sayin? Am I becoming a prude? More aware? Or are we exposing ourselves to an ever increasing dose of misogyny and an ever decreasing dose of manners!
If the mother won’t let her daughters watch it, then she knows something is up. And how will she explain the embarassment they will undoubtedly feel when they hear the menstruation line?
Adam Sandler has a history of this kind of “humor” – I remember watching “Big Daddy” about 9-10 years ago, and after a date with the female character, he wants to kiss her, she says no, repeatedly, and he keeps insisting (to the tune of “c’mon, just a little…it won’t hurt…”) – until finally he sneaks one in. She is, in turn, grateful (he was the writer, obviously) and they ultimately get married.
Wasn’t Seth Rogen’s recent film premised on date rape? He is a mall security guard and the leading female character gets flashed by a man in the mall parking lot?
that one wasn’t funny either.
Although my instinct (I’m a bit prudish) is to not like men talking about young girl’s cycles, I can get over that, but what bothers me is that it sounds like he used that line to say that he doesn’t like girls who have cycles, or there’s something wrong with them. I guess he’s alluding to difficult teenage girls, and that message of rejection instead of compassion and empathy is just not very humane.
Adam Sandler hasn’t been funny in about 20 years…
Am I becoming a prude?
How can you even ask yourself that question??????
If anything TNA should be generating protest and picketing the theater!
with the 11 year-old he could already smell the menstration coming on
How they can manage to spend their entire adult lives trying to gain access to vaginas while simultaneously regarding them as the most vile, disgusting things on Earth never fails to amaze me.
Again, the only possible way to explain it is that they think that having sex with a woman is like using a toilet. Period. No other possible explanation.
[...] it. Upset because the vicious and violent words against women and girls are used in every day movies and music. And you write comments here or write to me directly to say: I want to [...]
“Or are we exposing ourselves to an ever increasing dose of misogyny and an ever decreasing dose of manners!”
Remember Berger and Luckman–”The Social Construction of Reality”? Societies socially/culturally construct a reality that is generally accepted within that society. US culture has undergone reality gender shifts over the last 50 years. Fifty years ago, the relations between men and women allowed for male domination/female acceptance because power- money, property, education-were consigned to men. Men were powerful. The cultural construction of reality has shifted, and women now have some power, hence, misogyny. I know you have heard all that before. But. . .
the cultural construction of reality is powerful — reality is powerful for the society experiencing reality of change. Men and women now culturally construct reality differently from fifty years ago. And women act on this reality and it benefits them–they can decide when and if they will have children; they can go to college and graduate school; they can live alone it they choose. They live in a territory formerly occupied by men. Some men accept change and understand the benefits to them. But the ones who understand only their loss of power are angry and dangerous because they construct a different reality. They genuinely believe in their own entitlement and refuse to recognize society/culture has moved on without them.
I am not proposing a solution, only saying culture is powerful. Maybe recognizing the power of culture necessary to seeking a solution.
Not all of us Janis….Speaking as the male of the species I too think this locker room garbage should be placed in the waste bin of cinema history and never again repeated. What was Ms Mann doing in even appearing in this garbage? and allowing her daughters to do so? Not stopping her husband from producing it… same on all of them…
Shame not same, ” H” sticks-
If women refuse to go with their men to see Aptow, Sandler, and the rest of those sexist frat crap, they wouldnt make it at the box office- Although I wouldnt blame the victim for abuse- in this case women go to see the s #$@ t ,spend their money- and act in it – so they can stop it.
I’ve come back to revise my comment. TNA shouldn’t organize protest against this silly movie – there are more important issues out there. The movie will come and go.
The Adam Sandler comment is clearly misogynist though, and it always pains me to see women doubt their own judgements – which is what the question Am I becoming a prude? demonstrates – instead of confidently calling out the anti-women comments.
The content of the film doesn’t surprise me. Just look at the movie poster.
Bruce, I would like to believe you. You have no idea how much. But I am simply not willing to take that risk. And risk it is — risk of life, physical safety, mental welfare, many things.
I would truly, truly like to believe you, more than just about anything on earth.
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