Paris is Burning

A couple of days ago I watched an amazing documentary called Paris is Burning.  The documentary was directed by Jennie Livingston in  1990. Paris is Burning is about the ball culture and homosexual, transgender, and transsexual lifestyles of African American and Latino men in the boroughs of New York in the mid-late 80s.

This documentary focuses on several key characters who talk about their involvement in balls which can also be considered drag queen show and how being or gay and/or a drag queen has affected their lives. Some of the characters in the documentary include Pepper Labeija, Dorien Carey, Octavia St. Laurent and Venus Extravaganza.

Paris is Burning explores controversial themes such as gender discrimination, HIV/AIDS, drug addiction, transsexual changes, poverty, as well as the battle between race, wealth, and power. Livingston did a great job exposing these issues in the African American and Latino GLBT communities.

One of the most striking, yet frustrating, things I found interesting is how these black and Latino gay and transsexual men in this documentary viewed beauty and who had beauty. These young ethnic men saw white wealthy women as the epitome of beauty. Octavia St. Laurent idolized white models and acknowledged them as the ultimate beauty. There were no images of black models and successful black women for these men to look up to and be inspired by. Most of these men were struggling with their identity as far as gender and sex, but being secure within their own skin of being a black man seemed to me as another indirect issue they had.

There were may social and political issues that could be pointed out in this documentary but this one was the most relevant to me. I think these issues are what made the documentary so good because it made the viewer think about the issues back then that are still occurring now. In addition, it gave viewers insight to some of the functions of the African American and Latino GLBT communities in New York in the 80s that can be seen today in various GLBT communities around the world. I would definitely recommend viewing this documentary. I saw it on Netflix, but is also on Hulu.

Message To You

This post isn't about TV. I would like to talk about something different. It touched me deeply that I want to share it.

On Monday (April 15, 2013), I went to the movie theater and saw Temptation. It is Tyler Perry's latest masterpiece. I was excited to see this movie from the very first time I saw the trailer. It seemed like it was going to be something different from his other movies. The topic was different and so were the actors. I must admit seeing Kim Kardashian having a legit acting role in a Tyler Perry movie made me a little skeptical, but it was well worth it.

I was blown away! Besides the moral of the movie, the theme of the movie is often something the audience and Tyler Perry fans are going to appreciate. I say the word appreciate because the theme of Temptation is certainly unique from family values, religious beliefs, or humanitarian actions and people want to see that a producer or screenwriter can be versatile in their move topics.  However, those were still prevalent themes in the movie they just weren't the central theme. The acting was great! Tyler Perry always has amazing actors. In my opinion Kim Kardashian wasn't a bad actress, but he part didn't require to much acting skill because her character seemed very similar to her true self. Lance Gross, Jurnee Smollett, Ella Joyce, and Robbie Jones were outstanding!

I don't want to give away the plot of the story, but the actors and Tyler Perry do an amazing job of displaying how powerful temptation is. What happens in the movie happens to people everywhere all of the time and it's very unfortunate. This movie has surely made me evaluate some things in my life, but I like that. I Love a movie that makes me think profoundly about what is going on in my life and what is occurring in the world. Anyone can benefit from watching this movie ad learn extremely serious life lessons.

Message to you: Dear readers, do not be tempted by what looks good or sounds appealing on the exterior. Get to know the interior before making any sudden decisions because you will find your self in a very compromising position.

Wicked Single...I think Wicked Not

Let's talk about one of VH1's newest reality TV show series, Wicked Single. For those who haven't seen it, it's a reality TV series about several friends who live in Boston and how they interact with each other, party, and work in the city. Now, being a native of Boston, MA I thought I should at least watch one episode to see how it is. I'm not a fan at all. These are the problems I have with the show:

1. Most of the cast members are not actually from Boston. They are from suburban towns or cities in MA such as Franklin and Hingham. Only one character is from the city of Boston.

2. Their "Bostonian accents" seem a little exaggerated. I know a great deal of people from Boston speak like "paahk the caah on the street (park the car on the street)" but NOT EVERYONE has this accent.

3. It's boring! I saw one episode and I was more embarrassed than I was impressed. There is no drama that is reality TV worthy and the partying that is seen isn't exciting. It makes me wonder why they would make a reality TV series out of these people lives.

I understand why the producers named the show Wicked Single because there are many people from the state of MA who used the word 'wicked' to describe something extremely good or outrageous. However, most people who live in the city such as places like Mattapan, Dorchester, Roxbury, West Roxbury, South Boston, don't use the word 'wicked' as much as the show and producers make them seem. Moreover, people who live in Mattapan, Dorchester, and Roxbury don't have an extreme Bostonian accent like how the cast members of the show do.

If the producers actually picked people who live in the city, there would be a much more diverse cast as well. Despite what many people think, there are more races and ethnic groups living in Boston and other parts of MA than just Caucasian people.

Just wanted to share my thoughts about this show, that's all.

Seeing the Artist but Knowing the Person

I totally admire VH1 network for their Behind The Music TV series. It allows us viewers and fans too watch the lives of our favorite musical artists and see how they made it to the career paths they did. Some people are actually incredibly surprised to witness how some of their favorite artists used too look in high school or their real names. I find it very interesting because it proves that everyone has their own life story of where they came from and where they ended up regardless of economic status or pop culture fame. Behind the Music reminds us that celebrities are people too and went through the same struggles that we did or sometimes even worse.