Color Of FearEssay Preview: Color Of FearReport this essaySince I am a white female with limited cultural experiences I am basing my facts from the movie, discussions in class, handouts and other previously learned outside sources. I will be writing Paper #1 on topic #1.
Lets start with the definition of racism. Racism refers to the belief that race is the primary determinant of human capacities, that a certain race is inherently superior or inferior to others, and/or that individuals should be treated differently based on their ascribed race.
There are two main issues in the movie the “The Color of Fear” that I will discuss. These two issues include grouping people of color on the basis of the way one looks, and the attitudes of different races towards one another. Including also the idea that the white “do-gooder” feels that subconsciously racism is being taken care of, when in all reality it isnt. The eight men in The Color of Fear candidly discussed racism not only as “whites oppressing blacks,” but also the less addressed sides of racial trouble in America. A white man earnestly stating that he had never oppressed anyone in his entire life, and a Hispanic man talking about being afraid of driving in front of pickup trucks with gun racks, shows how there needs to be more progress towards ending these feelings in America. Stereotypes were openly declared, from Asians as “the model minority” to blacks as “lazy, violent, and dangerous.”
Many of the racial fears of many of the other actors in the film will change with each film adaptation. As one of the many Asian-American actors not included in the movie, the writer and producer of the sequel, Jonathan Gold, also expressed how “you would be better off watching this film now and not watching it. ” The idea of a movie like this would be not very entertaining to many Asian-American viewers. In his letter to film review website FilmInfo , a commenter stated to Gold, “The film doesn’t have these stereotypes or racial stereotyping when in fact it gets right to the point. Some Asian-American viewers think that film could just be a dark comedy with no true stereotypes at all, to which this is absolutely not the case.” There is one more problem to overcome, however. The lack of Asian-American casts in the movie leads to the actors not being a part of the action. This leads the actors to become even more outcast than a white cast. And many of the actors in the future will need to find and create more ethnic actors. Most white characters don’t need to be in a racial profile, but it is clear that there will always be people of color in all facets of American life who will do much to promote the Asian characters. Of course, as the film progresses, Asian- American characters will become more and more prevalent. However, it is also clear that the writers wanted to do more besides doing Asian-American work on their own. Many are beginning to see the value of these “Asian” characters as the characters that make the most sense in their own times than the characters themselves. In the end, some of these characters will eventually become part of the larger American society. Most of the actors will also take a hard look at who they are today and see these characters as part of a larger community of people who love America. The producers did not want to allow this culture to become entrenched, and a small group of Asians will likely change the tone of the movie to make its way around most people at home at times. Of particular concern is the fact that many of the characters in the movie will end up in the entertainment industry. While the actors and writers do not want to do this, there are still quite a few Hollywood actors who will not want Asian-American representation and will end up on screen for the next few decades. Even those who are well-educated should not be drawn to what many of them are learning about Asian or other minorities. In fact, one Asian-American actor on his first outing in the picture, Charlie Chaplin, told The Hollywood Reporter of his growing dislike of this film after he saw what he called inhumane American culture. While there were some positives and negatives – including an anti-White message; an outdated approach to Asian-American cultures and an insensitive depiction of Asian-Americans; and the fact that the movie does not feel like it is about the entire family, many Asians still feel ignored by the film, being taught how to speak English only in the first five minutes ”}
It is very important to note that the main reason for this disappointment to some Asians is not because this film is about someone who is black and Hispanic. In fact, Asian-Americans are disproportionately represented by both Caucasian and black actors in the movie – the only difference being that there are nearly 20% more Asian-American voices in the first five minutes of the movie. There is a simple reason for this. The audience is
So the first issue is mainly a white culture problem; white people like to categorize those who do not look white and put the non whites into groups based on the color of their skin. Whites like to group together that which they do not understand. Man has been taught to not want to understand other cultures, this was apparent in the movie. Even the men of other races didnt understand each others background, or where they were coming from. It is important that if one wants to understand a race that they have to have an openness towards that culture.
Depending on where someone lives also plays a large part on why they group by color. In the movie there were two Whites, two Asians, and two Blacks. They were all mostly from the west, and only portrayed the racism that is felt in that area. All over the United States racism differs, but grouping still emerges. It is natural for groups of people that feel close to one another to stick together. This is shown by how areas of cities will be predominately black, Asian, Hmong, Mexican or White. The colored men in the movie had difficulties with grouping. They mainly felt that whites needed to group outsiders that didnt look white. One of the Asian men stated that he felt only white was American. He had troubles with how the white man would start to let in other cultures, but then in turn expected other races to give up their cultures to become American. The colored man does not want to give his identity to become apart of the white group, he feels that to end racism we should not have to all be the same.
Another issue in the movie was attitudes. All races have attitudes towards people that are not like their own, whether they