Letters to the Editor
Published Letters: 3 Editor's Choice: 2
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Oh, Lighten Up for God's Sake
[Read the article: Pride and pathetic]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]There's really no way to criticize a movie adaptation of a novel by holding it hostage against its source material without coming off as a short-sighted superfan, and that's exactly how Ms. Fattore seems to me.
Good Lord, I don't care how "like" the book is this movie adaptation. Fans of the novel already have not one, but two well-made and super-faithful BBC miniseries from which to choose, on top of the obvious choice of simply rereading the book and leaving the movie alone.
I tend to agree with Mark Twain as well: "I haven't any right to criticise books, and I don't do it except when I hate them. I often want to criticise Jane Austen, but her books madden me so that I can't conceal my frenzy from the reader; and therefore I have to stop every time I begin. Everytime I read 'Pride and Prejudice' I want to dig her up and beat her over the skull with her own shin-bone."
So, for me, the fact that this movie was a "twist" on Austen made it very enjoyable for me. And what's wrong with that? The filmmakers had a stated intention to reinterpret the novel, they set it in an earlier time period, they roughened it up around the edges, and they purposefully gave it a very contemporary pace and tone. I found the results refreshing and capable of creating an intelligent, well-acted piece of light entertainment.
Honestly, you guys sound like a bunch of comic-book geeks dissing the new "X-Men" movie because of its deviations from lore and legend. Worse still, pre-conceived ideas about how "Hollywood" and "romantic" the movie would be are being applied left and right, even when they don't really apply; I wonder how many of the people agreeing with Ms. Fattore and repeatedly referencing the trailer have actually SEEN the whole movie.
Like the movie or not, I don't buy a reinterpretation or a shift in purpose/perspective as the sole basis for a negative review of the film, especially when things like acting, imagery, and aspects of the script OTHER than how it differs from the book are never even discussed. I'm glad Stephanie Zacharek, Roger Ebert, and others reviewed the film on its own terms, as opposed to a duel between movie and novel.
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Why Are Americans OBSESSED with Pedophilia?
[Read the article: All the guys I'm dating want me to shave down there]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The whole pussy-shaving thing is yet another issue that drives otherwise reasonable people to become reactionary prudes, hurling cries of "pedophilia!" at the drop of a hat.
For God's sake, the current trend for shaved genitals is not driven by some barely-concealed lust for pre-pubescent girls on the part of average men. It is driven by pornography as a cultural trendsetter, and by the simple facts that men typically like smooth as opposed to rough; men are visually stimulated during sex and seeing everything clearly on display is very erotic; and cunnilingus is far more pleasant for both giver and receiver when it's performed on a trimmed or bare vagina.
It has nothing to do with looking like a girl, clearly evidenced by the fact that a full-grown woman--with hips, derriere, breasts and, hopefully, an adult confidence and desire for sex--does not suddenly become like a 12-year-old simply by shaving her crotch. This claim is idiotic, and I really wish people would leave it out of the debate.
That said, by all means grow your bush as wild as you like--it's your body. But don't vilify men for feeling comfortable and honest enough with you to discuss their quite common grooming preferences.
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RE: oops this isn't Milan Kundera
[Read the article: Laughter and forgetting]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Get a life, Cosmic.
TV is part of our culture, and Salon.com is a magazine that covers culture, politics, life, and news. It's not a site that ever intends to be "Democracy Now!" and thank God for it.
Your genius revelation that "TV shows ain't that fuckin' important" is the kind of sophomore-year Philosophy undergrad posturing that drives me up a wall. Smart people watch TV. Furthermore, reading, intellectual thought, and television-watching are not mutually exclusive.
God, you must be a bore to have a drink with.