You may have noticed alot of people bitching about something in Superman Returns. No, it's not that...or that...or THAT.... its the fact that Perry White in his war room asks his staff about the return of Superman: "Does he still stand for truth, justice... all that stuff?" The fury over this is because the line is usually "Truth, Justice and the American Way". Personally, I think it's ridiculous that people are getting so upset over it. Instead of sharing with you my thoughts on the matter, I'm taking the easy route and sharing instead a paraphrase from John Campea who pretty much said it already:So they changed that last little part in the film. No big deal right? ...... apparently there are other people who want to make a big political debate out of it. The debate rages stupid:Seriously, tho..... of all the things to complain, bitch and moan about with this movie, people are choosing THIS?? pfffft - Amateurs.
Angry Conservative Talk Show Host: Blah blah blah Hollywood hates America blah blah blah
Movie Writers/Actors/Etc: Blah blah Political Correctness blah blah blah.
Angry Conservative Talk Show Host: Blah blah liberal pinko commies blah blah blah.
Movie Writers/Actors/Etc: Blah blah international hero blah blah blah.
If you wanted to make an issue out of it...... Think about it in a couple of ways.
1) Superman's adopted home (and this goes all the way back to Reeve's first Superman flick) is not America, or Kansas or Smallville. It's Earth.3) The meaning of "The American Way" has changed over the last 50 years. Even the most conservative of pundits agree with that. The international view of "The American Way" has [unfortunately] also changed. So saying it today wouldn't carry the same meaning it had 60 years ago. That's not an Anti-American thing... that's just a symantics.
Would it have bothered me if they left "The American Way" in the line? Hell no... Does it bother me that they took it out? Hell no. It's totally understandable and fine.
Basically, this is a case of people who WANT to complain about something, just finding an excuse to complain about something.
Just to drive it home..... Superman has evolved out of the simple "hero of America". He is now a hero for anyone, regardless of governmental borders. There is more of an international community now than when Superman was created and that phrase was coined (in 1938); the United Nations hadn't been created or thought of at that time! And what is "The American Way" by today's standards? We are split down the middle and can't even come to an agreement on what America should be and stand for. To ground Superman to just America negates the entire spirit of the character. While the phrase is classic and I have a nostalgic fondness for it, unfortunately it holds little meaning Today. Regardless, Superman is larger than just one country.
"Truth and Justice."
Instead of complaining that "America" was left out, how about instead think of what "The American Way" truly meant and means.
"Goodwill, Equality, Compassion, Honor and Open-Mindedness."
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3 comments:
i agree with you,......( it didn't really bother me that much ), BUT i also think that by putting the phrase in would help re-define what "the American way " is. I think it could have put aside party lines and just made a blanket statement..."this is what America stands for,..this is what we aspire to be......." He would have lead by example, rather than parrotting what politics has become in this new millenium (sp??). By not putting it in,..you kind of diminished what we as americans (a whole,...we're in this together people)..want to be, and want to represent. There was a chance to hold superman up to ideal standards that we have forgotten, and should try and aspire for, but instead made a MINOR ( it wasn't that big of a deal...) political statement about how a large group of people feel right now.
I see what you're saying and agree. I think I veered too much off topic at the end of that post. In the end, Superman over the years has moved beyond just America and is no longer just an American Hero. To keep the "American Way" in there excludes the rest of the world. From their perspective, he is just a sign of hope. This isn't about America, it's about Humanity across the board.
Hope that made sense.
Heil Superman!
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