Magneto attracts wrath of God
Published by punkass marc May 17th, 2006 in Film, GodbaggeryAs if inspiring all of mutantkind to rise up and kick our asses wasn’t enough, he had to go and take on the Lord our God. The fundies are pissed:
Lauer took the bull of controversy more directly by the horns when he interviewed the cast and director Howard today. Said Lauer:
“There have been calls from some religious groups, they wanted a disclaimer at the beginning of this movie saying it is fiction because one of the themes in the book really knocks Christianity right on its ear, if Christ survived the crucifixion, he did not die for our sins and therefore was not resurrected. What I’m saying is, people wanted this to say ‘fiction, fiction, fiction’. How would you all have felt if there was a disclaimer at the beginning of the movie? Would it have been okay with you?”
There was a pause, and then famed British actor Ian McKellen [Gandalf of Lord of the Rings], piped up:
“Well, I’ve often thought the Bible should have a disclaimer in the front saying this is fiction. I mean, walking on water, it takes an act of faith. And I have faith in this movie. Not that it’s true, not that it’s factual, but that it’s a jolly good story. And I think audiences are clever enough and bright enough to separate out fact and fiction, and discuss the thing after they’ve seen it.”
[...]
With the camera focused on McKellen, one could hear a distinctly nervous laugh in the background, seeming to come from either actor Tom Hanks or director Howard. McKellen’s stunning bit of blasphemy is likely to test the adage that all publicity is good publicity.
[Emphasis from the source, believe it or not]
Stunning blasphemy! I love it. If this site wasn’t already called punkassblog.com, I think stunningblasphemy.com would suit us mighty fine.
Anyway, typical that a Brit would be forced to drop some hard truth while the fuddy-duddy Americans with sticks up their asses hem and haw over the polite thing to say.
Of course, even before his charming kick to the Christian nuts, I loved me some Ian McKellen. I suspect you did, too, and not just for Gods and Monsters or his stage work you never saw. Thanks to the Anthony Hopkins 10-Step Program for Selling Out in Hollywood, McKellen’s made a nice chunk of change while powerfully elevating the quality of some big Hollywood franchises.
Speaking of those roles, for some reason, I was irritated that the Jesus Freak Times referenced McKellen as Gandalf rather than his role as Magneto. After a bit of consideration I decided it was because McKellen’s Magneto was far more compelling than his Gandalf, even though Brett Ratner’s 94% likely to take a giant dump on the franchise.
The bad guys get all the best zingers, but as Magneto, McKellen also took several ho-hum lines and transformed them into classics. I doubt I’ve uttered “Is that what they say?” in anything other than a bad McKellen impression since X2. Okay, so I don’t exactly have cause to break out that phrase on a daily basis, but you get the idea.
[No, the idea is not that I am a monster fucking nerd, either. Even if I am.]
He paints Magneto as a calculating, ruthless Machiavellian with a lethal messiah complex and a flair for manipulation. Gandalf’s a bit more inconsistent, more generic, though perhaps that’s due more to Tolkein and Jackson than Sir Ian.
Regardless of which character was more enjoyable, though, when it comes to adding credibility to an an otherwise vapid project [or telling the godsheep where they can stick it], make mine McKellen.
OMG! I knew I loved McKellen for a reason! -swoons-
I love me a gutsy man who’s not afraid to tell the truth.
And ‘know what? I’ll totally duke it out with you for the biggest nerd title. Because, ‘know what? Gandalf totally ruled, he was just more nuanced than Magnetto. Though I never liked Magnetto until Sir Ian played him. ‘Cause the dude has Presence ™.
Anyway, disclaimer before a movie about fucking mutants? ‘Cause it may not be bloody clear that, I dunno, a blue shape-changing chick or a white-haired weather changer, or hell, Logan “Snikt” Wolverine are anything but fiction? I mean… makes me wonder if fundies still believe in Santa. And the Easter Bunny.
Oh crap, Elfinity, my bad — they wanted the disclaimer on the Da Vinci Code, but I never actually made that clear. Smoooooth posting, punkass. Real smooth.
Okay, so I don’t exactly have cause to break out that phrase on a daily basis, but you get the idea.
You’ll find daily cause for this phrase in the world of blogging.
Oh, I see. I was wondering about that a bit. But, still… The hell? Oh wait, I see. It’s the same thing as when anyone uses God’s name and that is enough for people to go, “Oh, ok then.”
Kinda like when Bush said that God told him to go make war not love, too many people went, “Oh, in that case, it makes sense. Well, not really, but we believe you.”
So, I guess when it’s not an officialy sanctioned Piper, the officials start worrying, eh?
I think any movie that isn’t a documentary is understood to be a work of fiction. So either Christians should have the faith of their beliefs or just shut up about this movie. I’m seeing this movie just to upset the fundies. I’ve loved McKellen ever since I saw Gods and Monsters.
As for Xmen - a fav scene was when Magneto referenced his attempt to kill Rogue that gives her that white streak -”love what you’ve done w/your hair.” Nothing like a villain who doesn’t even bother with pretending to be sorry.
Allow me to grant you a glimpse into the mad mad mad mad world of Fundamentalist Christianity:
The “anti-christ” is generally described within the sub-culture as a pacifist, opposed to all war. One televangelist said “he will be called the Prince of Peace,” and “through peace shall he rule.” As a result of this, many persons within this sub-culture cheer war with their hearts, and loathe peace from same (this is also why they have such a problem with the UN, as it’s nominally there to prevent war).
Unfortunately, the “Prince of Peace” is how Jesus is described, and the “through peace he shall rule” quote comes from The Omen II, which means at least one important nuance within fundamentalist Chistian theology come from the movies, and has no obvious relation to anything in the Bible.
Still wonder why they want these movies to go away? None of these miscreants actually know what the hell their holy book actually says, so then end up following others’ interpretations of it. Whether that interpretation comes from a preacher or a filmmaker is essentially meaningless, the important point is that the religious person shouldn’t be made to think.
Hey, I saw him onstage in An Enemy of the People AND in Peter Pan (he was, as you could probably guess, a fabulous Captain Hook).
Uh. Neener?