Comments on: Never go full retard

By: Will Graves

Will Graves — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 01:04:21 +0000

I am retarded a little. I have asbergers and ocd and a bad stutter and my teeth are really bad, and I have no problem with this movie. You people are way too PC and you need to get a life.

By: Nick McGivney

Nick McGivney — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 09:33:51 +0000

Will Graves: ‘Stupid stuff like this’ happens to be part of the lives of many people who visit and comment here. And I’d encourage you to meet people with kids who have Down syndrome and have major heart defects because of it, are deaf because of it, have trouble swallowing their food or have leukemia because of it, and suggest to them that their kids and they have never experienced real suffering, and do drop back and let us know their reactions. Thanks for commenting.

Jonathan, likewise. I would be one happy camper if my biggest problem was with do-gooders who are just out to spoil my enjoyment of a movie. Why not treat people with disabilities the same as everyone else? Well for one, they might need that heart medication or that wheelchair or hearing aid more than anyone else. Think about that while you were queueing for the popcorn? Having freedom of speech is a wonderful thing and never to be taken lightly. It does have its consequences though, in that you must be willing to stand by whatever thing it is you say, no matter how misguided, inexperienced or plain foolish. And to tell people who come to this blog that they have ’sticks in their asses’ because they express their concerns or their outrage over issues of which you clearly have no experience isn’t just plain wrong and rude, it has its consequences too. Your words will still be here to remind you of your current self, Jonathan, when hopefully your opinion will have moved on to other, more thoughtful insights. Good luck with the t-shirt hunt, but do not be surprised if a statement like ‘Never go full retard’ ends up making some people mad, and some people cry. That will be because of the experience I mentioned, that they have and you don’t.I just wouldn’t rush up to them and tell them to lighten up if I was you. Thank you for commenting openly and honestly.

By: Jonathan

Jonathan — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 23:03:23 +0000

Thank you Will Graves. Seriously this PC thing is getting way out of hand. That dialogue is actually one of the funniest of the entire movie, and honestly, the only I stumbled across this blog is because I was looking for a t-shirt that says “never go full retard”. That may be insensitive to you high and holy people, but please, it´s harmless. Why not treat people with dissabilities the same way as everyone else. Why do they have to be sheltered when it´s allowed to make fun of overweight people, people of other races or religious affiliation. Take sticks out of your a**es, and try relaxing for a second. I may be out of line, coming from a country that actually upholds their right to freedom of speech (Denmark). We have absolutely no censorship whatsoever, and it´s really liberating. Of course I´m not saying that you can go around insulting people whenever you want, but this is a movie, a hilarious one. Please try finding some real problems to complain about and lighten up.

By: Will Graves

Will Graves — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 07:50:17 +0000

Sorry but I thought it was really really funny. I don’t have any relatives that are handicapped, but friends and friends that have handicapped brothers/sisters, and my wife is a special ed teacher. She punches me when I say retard and I do it just to raise the hackles. You know boys will be boys, and I don’t have any problem with the show, I’ll watch it again. This country is WAY too P.C. and if we ever experience REAL hunger or suffering we won’t worry about stupid stuff like this.

By: Nick McGivney

Nick McGivney — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 12:10:42 +0000

MTS – read the post before deciding what I did or did not say. I have never, at any point in this movie’s glorious lifespan, suggested a boycott. Never. Go check. I also predicted – as did some who felt the same way about the movie – that our dislike would probably add to its marketing machine’s efforts. We’re lucky to have you with your knowledge of its grosses to show that this is the case. Incidentally, the first amendment guarantees me nothing. But being the father of a boy with Down syndrome guarantees that I will have to suffer the views of people who do not understand, sometimes despite their best efforts, just exactly what it means to advocate with sometimes purveyors of free speech, more times blithe adopters of uncaring language, on behalf of my son and others like him who will not be in a position to advocate for themselves in the same way.
As for your statement ‘You do not have the right to not be offended,’ I’m afraid I simply don’t understand what you mean. Thank you for taking the time to comment. Respectfully I still disagree with you.
The man who didn’t say boycott.

By: MTS

MTS — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 04:56:28 +0000

If you do not like the movie, then do not rent it. The first amendment trumps your wishes for political correctness. You do not have the right to not be offended. I didn’t care for the movie, but I loathe anybody who wants to legislate politically correct speech.

And.. here’s how well your boycott has worked:

as of Nov 9 it has grossed 110 million, which exceeds the amount spent to make it by 18 mill. Now we have DVD, rentals, and pay per view coming in to push the numbers up even more.

By: ‘My first reaction: what did I do wrong?’ « Our Jacob

‘My first reaction: what did I do wrong?’ « Our Jacob — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:33:47 +0000

[...] It makes him a whole richer person in my eyes (even before I read the bit where he said he thought Ben Stiller was a little turd for making Tropic Thunder. Tee [...]

By: Eric

Eric — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 21:51:19 +0000

I thought it was one of the funniest parts of the whole movie…I can see now how some might find it offensive, I just never reached that deep into it.

By: Hairyfish dot org » Tropic Thunder - Movies.ie

Hairyfish dot org » Tropic Thunder - Movies.ie — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 17:20:43 +0000

[...] gonna bother commenting on the whole use of the ‘R’ bomb in the particular scene. Obviously there are people who have their own individual reasons for not wanting to see the film, and that’s fine. To me the film surpassed all of what ended [...]

By: B Chill

B Chill — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 18:12:21 +0000

The entire point of the movie was to show how completely self-absorbed and inflated actors are. Stiller’s character, after playing a disabled characters, and says:
“In a weird way, I had to sort of just free myself up to believe that it was okay to be stupid or dumb.”

At which point Downey’s character shows how “retarded” has lots of negative connotations and he himself has no compassion for the handicapped.

This is really about showing how horribly self-absorbed actors are, being more concerned about the feeling of pretending to be someone than the plight of those they portray.

I seriously doubt many actors who have played the mentally challenged give a crap about them beyond what their agents tell them will make them look good to the public eye.