coalition of disability groups blasted Ben Stiller’s latest movie Tropic Thunder on Tuesday, slamming the spoof war film’s repeated use of the word “retard” as “disgusting and appalling.”
The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) said in a statement it had rallied disability groups urging a boycott of the film, which is released in North America theaters later this week.
Protesters demonstrated at the Los Angeles premiere of the film on Monday, which was attended by Meet the Parents, Night at the Museum and Zoolander actor-director Stiller.
The associated has taken aim at Tropic Thunder for depicting a caricature of an intellectually disabled person — Simple Jack — played by Stiller’s character, an egotistical Hollywood star seeking awards.
Although Stiller has said the sub-plot is intended as a satire on Hollywood, the associated described it as a “continuation of the horrifying portrayal of disabled characters in entertainment.”
“AAPD is also disgusted at the use of the word ‘retard’ numerous times in the movie and promotional items for the film,” the group said.
AAPD president Andrew Imparato, who met with studio backers Dreamworks last week to discuss the movie, slammed the film after viewing it on Monday.
“Both the use of this word and the appalling portrayal of an intellectually disabled character in this movie are incredibly damaging to people with intellectual disabilities,” Imparato said.
“Although the movie is considered satire, this depiction of a person with intellectual disabilities is far from funny.”
Dreamworks has defended the film, insisting the humor is intended to lampoon actors rather than people with disabilities.
Tropic Thunder, which also stars Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr, follows the fortunes of a group of actors who are sent to make a war film only to find themselves in the middle of a real-life conflict.
Two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank has bought the rights for a film version of the best-selling book French Women Don’t Get Fat, entertainment press reported on Wednesday.
Swank, an Academy Award winner for Boys Don’t Cry and Million Dollar Baby could star in a screen adaptation of Mireille Guiliano’s hit 2004 lifestyle tome, Daily Variety reported.
Guiliano, a former executive with champagne company Veuve Clicquot, scored a hit with her book, subtitled The Secret of Eating for Pleasure which offered insights into how French women manage to stay slim despite enjoying calorie-rich staples such as pastries and wine.
The book reached top spot on the New York Times non-fiction bestseller list and has sold more than two million copies worldwide to date.
Variety reported that the film version would be a romantic comedy about the boss of a champagne company.
George Clooney has snapped up the film rights for a book based on the detention and trial of Osama bin Laden’s driver, it was reported on Wednesday.
Daily Variety said it was not clear what role Oscar-winning actor-director Clooney would take in the project, which will be based on Jonathan Mahler’s book The Challenge.
The story spotlights the efforts of US Navy lawyer Charles Swift and Georgetown law professor Neal Katyal to secure a fair trial for Salim Hamdan, who was last week sentenced to less than five years in prison.
The sentence was later described by Swift as a “stunning rebuke” to the government’s case against Hamdan. Prosecutors had demanded the Yemeni be jailed for 30 years, portraying him as a cunning al-Qaeda warrior.
According to Variety, Clooney could direct, write and star in the film. The report said Clooney was considered a perfect choice to play the role of the idealistic lawyer Swift.
Clint Eastwood’s Changeling, starring Angelina Jolie as the mother of a missing boy, and Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler, featuring Mickey Rourke as a washed-up pro wrestler, are among the highlights at this year’s New York Film Festival.
The festival announced its 28-film lineup on Wednesday, including a restored print of Max Ophuls’ 1955 classic Lola Montes. The 46th annual event, run by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, will be held Sept. 26 to Oct. 12.
The opening-night film is The Class, Laurent Cantet’s documentary-like drama about a year at a rough French high school. It won the top prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
The New York festival closes with The Wrestler, in which Rourke plays a former wrestling star now relegated to the bush leagues of his sport.
Changeling, based on a true story, is about a single mother whose 9-year-old son disappears in Los Angeles in 1928. Months later, police bring her a boy who claims to be her son, but she doesn’t believe him and sets out to unravel the mystery with the help of a local minister played by John Malkovich.
Other prominent directors at the festival include Steven Soderbergh, Mike Leigh and Wong Kar Wai (王家衛).
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
Despite the intense sunshine, we were hardly breaking a sweat as we cruised along the flat, dedicated bike lane, well protected from the heat by a canopy of trees. The electric assist on the bikes likely made a difference, too. Far removed from the bustle and noise of the Taichung traffic, we admired the serene rural scenery, making our way over rivers, alongside rice paddies and through pear orchards. Our route for the day covered two bike paths that connect in Fengyuan District (豐原) and are best done together. The Hou-Feng Bike Path (后豐鐵馬道) runs southward from Houli District (后里) while the
March 31 to April 6 On May 13, 1950, National Taiwan University Hospital otolaryngologist Su You-peng (蘇友鵬) was summoned to the director’s office. He thought someone had complained about him practicing the violin at night, but when he entered the room, he knew something was terribly wrong. He saw several burly men who appeared to be government secret agents, and three other resident doctors: internist Hsu Chiang (許強), dermatologist Hu Pao-chen (胡寶珍) and ophthalmologist Hu Hsin-lin (胡鑫麟). They were handcuffed, herded onto two jeeps and taken to the Secrecy Bureau (保密局) for questioning. Su was still in his doctor’s robes at
President William Lai’s (賴清德) March 13 national security speech marked a turning point. He signaled that the government was finally getting serious about a whole-of-society approach to defending the nation. The presidential office summarized his speech succinctly: “President Lai introduced 17 major strategies to respond to five major national security and united front threats Taiwan now faces: China’s threat to national sovereignty, its threats from infiltration and espionage activities targeting Taiwan’s military, its threats aimed at obscuring the national identity of the people of Taiwan, its threats from united front infiltration into Taiwanese society through cross-strait exchanges, and its threats from
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