MovieChat Forums > The Man Who Lost His Head (2007) Discussion > If you you live to see a kind Englishman...

If you you live to see a kind Englishman mocked; this is for you!

posted 10 years ago by Camargue
1 reply | jump to latest

I am thoroughly disgusted. The Martin Clunes character, Ian Bennett, was "just trying to do his job" and he was treated despicably for the effort.

The message was bungled, mangled, and gross, but this is what I got out of it.

Whites (particularly the English) are to be ridiculed and no effort must be spared in using them as the prime butt of "Maori humor." Because, after all, whites are stupid, foolish, dim-wits; barely worth mocking.

Natives are cool; if there is an "wizened old uncle," he is SUPER cool; if there is a wise-butt teenage kid; he is SUPER-SUPER cool (even cooler than the super cool uncle)! And every single one of these super cool characters need to be respected and reckoned with!!! All of them! Every single one of them, no matter how badly they have failed or "messed up" their lives, or even if they have just done nothing more than breathe regularly for 30 or 40 years. Sadly, NONE of those same sentiments are held for whites (or people from England). Not even if he/she has worked hard and has educated himself, and feels no hatred for anyone.

I am sorry that Martin Clunes was so desperate for work that he participated in this horrid excuse for entertainment. Yes, there are "beautiful" shots of the landscape (most countries have some great spots; he said that "California was great" but I doubt he took the Pacific Coast Highway above Carmel; he would not be so quick to dismiss it). Clearly, he needs to praise the scenery as an excuse for this pathetic attempt. And, Clunes is a GENIUS! I would watch him read a phone book! But, with ALL the excuses for doing any project, there comes a point where the lack of respect (for your fellow human being) rises to a level that approaches evil.

I had company when this "mess" was on; my spouse and daughter asked things like "what IS this?" And, "what's going on?" And, "what is the point?"

I certainly hope it was just an awful attempt and that there was no "deeper meaning." As it is, I have lost ALL interest in visiting New Zealand! I would feel as if they were all laughing at me, and were looking for ways to mock me! Personal? Paranoid? Maybe, but THEY made this movie; I didn't. (If I had read the script, I would have tossed it into the trash can.)

[–] liscarkat (16707) 7 years ago

You are absolutely correct. My wife and I are Clune fans, but half an hour into this disaster we had to abort. It was after Clunes's character had put up with all that bizarre Maori shouting, grunting, gurning, and threatening body language nonsense from this group of losers who blame him, as a representative of White Western culture, for the problems arising from their own behavior and flawed culture. He, of course, is the clueless White guy, and they, naturally, are full of mystical gnosis and nobility, even (especially!) the drunken, stumbling, filthy looking old man. At the point when that pompous woman starts lecturing him about how he's so privileged and he owes them something, namely, to return some goofy looking wooden mask that they claim will cure all their problems, we couldn't stand it anymore. Sorry Martin, we love you, man, but this was just too much to endure.