Anyone else think this?
All of the major female characters were negative ones. Mother was a bitch, Sookie betrayed Igby, Rachel was a weak junkie whore.
Its a long time since i saw it so i don't remember who or Ida, Bunny, Lisa Fielder, Girl, or Miss Pigeee were, but I'm pretty sure they weren't major characters.
So, you think the men were sterling examples? Were you paying attention?
No, I think this coming of age story gives us a glimpse into the not so unusual dynamic of childhood victims raised to be emotionally crippled adults, not because of sexual abuse in this case, but because of cold hearted self service fueled by old money, family connections, and selfishness.
It shows that having lots of money does not protect one from the frailties of life, but only create new opportunities. And it does an excellent job of showing us that appearances can be deceiving.
"I'd never ask you to trust me. It's the cry of a guilty soul."
I wasn't making any comment on the nature of the male characters.
shareSurely for a film to be misogynist, it would mean that the women are portrayed as bad/evil/inept/foolish in contrast with the men. This film has a dim view of most of the characters, regardless of gender, not just the women.
"I'd never ask you to trust me. It's the cry of a guilty soul."
ok then so more misanthropic than misogynist?
shareWell it's definitely not misogynistic, that's for certain.
Misanthropic? Ehhh.. I suppose you could argue that one. Some of the characters definitely were misanthropes; Ollie stands out the most to me. However the movie as a whole? I don't personally think it was. Then again I'm one of those people who felt it was appropriately labeled as a comedy(though a rather dark one). I mean some parts were definitely depressing, without a doubt, but I also laughed a LOT throughout the movie. I feel it spent more time poking fun at human nature, rather than hating on it. That's just my personal take on the film though and I'm aware most people found it very depressing.
**shrug**
I don't even think Sookie was portrayed as bad, I certainly don't think Igby saw her as bad, just pissed off at her. Oliver was portrayed more badly, in my opinion, than she was.
- We could be men with ven!
I saw this movie when it was released,at 10 at night,in a completely empty theatre.What a depressing experience.Misanthropic.Thats the word.
"1)There is a God,and 2)Im not him."
I also agree that none of the characters were really great people, all of them were significantly flawed. But that's why the movie was so amazing. The way people were portrayed as complex, emotional beings was perfect. It was so real and that's what was so great about it. You understood Igby's anger and his desperation and you were inclined to feel what he felt and sympathize with his situation.
shareNo I didn't get that vibe (and I am normally sensitive to these things), all the characters were negative, it was about a bunch of dysfunctional people. I can't say the women were any crueller or less realistic than the men - it was the same.
shareNope
My real name is Jeff