Is it time to reassess our favourite movies and TV shows?
In the years leading up to World War II, Adolf Hitler produced hundreds of paintings and sold them to make a living while he lived in Vienna.
Following the war, many of the paintings were seized by the US Army and are still held by the US government.
Some, however, made it into the public domain, with Newsweek reporting how one sold for over $160,000 at auction back in 2014.
In this case, the price of his works and any “enjoyment” someone might get from them are inescapably linked, as the art and artist are forever tied together.
However, in today’s Hollywood climate, is that any more or less difficult? Should we still feel guilty for enjoying the art despite the artists involved?
At the end of 2017, following a few screenings at festivals around the world, steam began to pick up for The Disaster Artist on becoming an Oscar contender.
On 7 January, the Golden Globes rolled around, and the movie was nominated for Best Picture in the Comedy or Musical category, and James Franco won Best Actor in the Comedy/Musical category.
Clip via NBC
On 9 January, following a series of allegations of inappropriate sexual misconduct against him, Franco went to the Stephen Colbert show and said the following: “Look, in my life I pride myself on taking responsibility for things that I have done. I have to do that to maintain my well being.
“The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate. But I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice because they didn’t have a voice for so long. So I don’t want to shut them down in any way.
“If I have done something wrong, I will fix it – I have to.”
On 23 January, the full Oscar nominations were announced, and The Disaster Artist was practically nowhere to be seen, with just one nod for Best Adapted Screenplay, and the out-of-nowhere arrivals of Timothe Chalamee (Call Me By Your Name) and Denzel Washington (Roman J. Esquire) both nominated for Best Actor.
On 13 January, Aziz Ansari was the focus of an article on Babe.net, in which a woman who went on a date with the actor claims it ended in his sexual misconduct; she was prompted to come forward following his win at the Golden Globes.
Ansari responded to the report by suggesting he had a very different memory of that night, claiming to be surprised and concerned by her position on how the night had gone.
On 22 January, Ansari did not attend the Screen Actor’s Guild Awards, at which he was nominated for Best Male Actor in Comedy Series, which he lost to William H. Macy for his role in Shameless. However, people watching the awards picked up on the reaction to his name being called out for his nomination:
They didn't break for applause when announcing Aziz Ansari's nomination at the #SAGAwards
— Amy Kuperinsky (@AmyKup) January 22, 2018
https://twitter.com/zepblackstar/status/955247496548306944
The lack of reaction to Aziz Ansari’s nomination at the SAG Awards spoke for itself
— José María Luna (@JoseMLuna) January 22, 2018
While both of these men are still being judged by the general public, it would appear that those in Hollywood have already decided to distance themselves entirely.
When it comes to the likes of Kevin Spacey, Harvey Weinstein, Louis CK and Woody Allen, the division between the public mood and that within the industry is less confused.
Despite the lack of any actual lawful repercussions, the public has made it abundantly clear that they feel these men are guilty.
Some of them have admitted fault while others have denied the allegations against them outright.
The fallout has seen Spacey being entirely recast in All The Money In The World, and Netflix dropping him from House Of Cards entirely. Weinstein was booted out of his own production company and had several of his upcoming productions dropped. Louis CK had his brand new movie pulled from release schedules just weeks before it was due to open. And stars of Woody Allen movies are coming out in droves to say they’re sorry for working with him in the first place.
All of these reactions going forward make sense, but what about the past?
Honest question for an honest answer: if someone tells you that their favourite movie of all time is The Usual Suspects, or Annie Hall, or Gangs Of New York, is it right to judge the viewer?
Should we reassess our opinions of previous works knowing what we know about the artists involved now? Is it even possible to not re-review these movies and TV shows without our enjoyment being sullied by the new information?
Our favourite movies and TV shows exist in a bubble by themselves, fundamentally incapable of changing. But our views on the artists behind them can, as we learn that they aren’t who we thought they were, and perhaps they never were.
As the meme is so fond of reminding us, 2016 killed most of our heroes, and 2017 turned the remainder of them into monsters.
The art remains brilliant, but the artists behind them do not, and knowing what we know now, is that enough to review our choices. Just like Hitler’s paintings, do we forever tie these movies to the people who were involved in making them?
The decision is individually ours and ours alone to make, and all views should be respected.
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