MovieChat Forums > Whip It (2009) Discussion > This movie gives non-derby-folk a false ...

This movie gives non-derby-folk a false idea of the derby world?

posted 14 years ago by NewEnglandClamChowder
46 replies | jump to latest

I am support staff for a roller derby league and went to see this movie with a bunch of my roller girls, most of us felt obligated, I think, to see it, since it was about derby. And most of us thought it was just okay for a film based on a book about someone's personal experiences, but as a movie about derby, it sucked. We were pretty much alone in the theater when we saw it, it was after our event for the premiere had ended and the crowd had left, so we spent a lot of the movie talking freely about all the illegal hits and other things the movie just got wrong about the sport.

What irks me is, there are people who aren't involved in derby, who loved the movie and seem to come away from the movie assuming they have a complete knowledge of all things derby. I think because this movie showed not only bout scenes, but practice, locker room, and afterparty scenes, non-derby-folk (being people who aren't even fans, and are seeing this movie because it "looks interesting") feel like they have an inside view of the derby world.

Basically I've found: Derby people thought the movie was stupid, non-derby people loved it.

Derby has been a huge part of my life over the past two years, I love, appreciate, and understand the sport from a lot of different angles. And now I feel like the kind of people who look down on it, don't really care for it, or don't understand it think they have an advantage over all the people who've put time, effort, and love into roller derby. I mostly hate that these people will probably never get to see it from the actual insider's point of view.

So am I completely wrong? Is anyone out there a non-derby-person who feels a little more educated? Is there any derby-folk who feel the same way I do?

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[–] chiibug 14 years ago

although i feel like this isn't uncommon, (heck, trends come from popular movies!) and i'm sure that there will be people who will give the sport a try after seeing this movie and be disappointed about it. i think that what's shown in this film is one person's idea of what happens in the derby world, not exactly the main representation of it. like others have said, this isn't a documentary (even if it may have felt like a memoir already - i've checked the trivia section, and shauna seemed to rely a lot from her experiences in real life) it's a movie that aims to tell a story. i certainly didn't feel like i'm omniscient when it comes to roller derby. man, i even replayed the scene where the guy explains the rules of the game about 3 times before i got it! but anyway, i think that it made me view the sport as, well, like what the other poster said, empowering and not as a negative thing. :)

in conclusion, i think you're over generalizing us non-derby folks a bit. =/

[–] Pwny_rides_again 14 years ago

The boxing is Rocky is complete BS, yet it's a classic. All sports movies embelish the sport, else why watch the movie when you can just go to a game. I think you a re being unfair to the film. This is something that EVERY sports movie does.

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[–] StarWidget 14 years ago

I think the big difference here is that most people are already familiar with boxing and other sports that have movies made about them. Roller derby is completely new to a lot of people, so the effect embellishing has on audiences is a bit more pronounced.

That being said, I thought the movie is a fair representation of the sport and didn't get completely crazy.

[–] shaznazzi 14 years ago

I have to say that yes, you are completely wrong.

I did not see this movie to learn about roller derby, nor do I believe that the people who made this movie were attempting to pass it off as a realistic look into the world of roller derby.

In my oppinion, callling this a movie about roller derby is like calling "Remember the Titans" a movie about football. It was not a movie about roller derby so moch as it was about a girl who was not satisfied with simply going with the flow and doing what was expected of her and hten having the courage to follow what made her happy rather than the path that had been layed out for her and I think it did a very good job of that and avoided many of the cliches that riddle such movies.

I do of course understand why a member of the roller derby league migh not like this movie for the same reason why a doctor would not like "House". My only advice would be don't take it personal. Since this wasn't a documentry about roller derby, it had to be layed out in such a way that non-roller derby people could understand it. I doubt anyone who was involved in the making of this movie would claim that anyone watchin it should walk away knowing more about roller derby but should instead know more about themselves.

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[–] 14 years ago

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[–] rooprect 14 years ago

To the OP: Welcome to Hollywood, don't take anything personally.

I see your point, but movies are movies, and it's implied that nothing reflects reality. I once had the misfortune of seeing "Face/Off" sitting next to 2 doctors. They spent the whole 90 mins complaining about how a face transplant is absurd & how it would never work. I felt like smacking them and yelling the famous line from Ed Wood: "Haven't you ever heard of SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF?"

I've seen a few flicks about my own profession, and yes they're always wayyyy off. But if the rest of the movie is entertaining I can overlook those flaws. The alternative is to be like those 2 whining doctors in the movie theater.

[–] DaniSwiftknife 14 years ago

Oh, your pretension is showing...

Don't say it's just a movie. If I thought it was just a movie, I wouldn't have an imdb account.

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] hooper-xxx 14 years ago

You can sleep easy about people coming away with the wrong idea. No one cares about roller-derby, and it's not a sport.

[–] dan-508 14 years ago

Whoa, what? Are you saying that movies aren't a completely accurate reflection of how things are in the real world? I have been led astray!

[–] king_of_bob 14 years ago

I'm not going to say you're not entitled to think whatever you like, I just want to say one thing.

The movie isn't really about derby. It's about a young girl not only coming into her own, but finding her calling. Derby was just the backdrop for this to happen in.

Having said that, I don't see why anyone would think they got an inside view of the derby world. Anymore than they assume Grandmas Boy is an accurate portrayal of the gaming industry.

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