#autistic robot trope. ok. alright. forgivable.

[boygirlctommy]

saw the new alien movie! it was. um. well. there certainly was an alien in it

[gaaradreamer]

Power Rangers Movie Positive Rant (mostly)

WARNING! MAJOR SPOILERS AND GUSHING! ALSO SOME CRITICISM! Okay for those of you who haven't seen it I'd suggest it. It's worth it as long as you expect what it which surprisingly most people don't seem to understand. It was a reboot. That means it's going to have just as corny silly stuff as the original but it's 2017 and it's time to add some depth. And MAN did it add depth! But I went to the movie expecting that kind of reboot. There are some problems and I'm going to post some spoilers. I know sometimes I need to know what's going to happen to give a movie a chance. So if you're like me about that or maybe just this movie here you go, problems you should be aware of: 1. The white guy leads. There are 5 characters with different genders and colors of skin but the 1 white guy becomes the leader. The only reason this isn't a deal breaker is because of what they do with the rest. I'll put that later though. 2. For all the proper diversity there really is only one black person. I'm not even sure there were extras. I would count his mom but we litterally only see a blip of her. 3. The tones are a struggle if you don't get the reason but basically suits are on it gets silly (but also cool! Especially if you loved the show!) suits are off and it gets serious. 4. Product placement. Completely shameless product placement. I used to work for Krispy Kreme and considering how low tech old fashioned a business they were and especially considering our usual customers were almost always over 50, I actually think it was a smart choice. And I'm impressed by not only the choice but how they made their selves so integral to the actual plot. But it is blatant annoying and distracting. I just understand why they did it. 5. Good writing but bad writing. OK everyone has an origin. Everyone is well explained. Everyone reacts to their origin realistically. Every origin is not only beautiful it actually made some skeptical viewers cry. BUT we don't exactly get to see these way more emotionally interesting stories. We see them keep secrets then reveal it later and we see again realistic reactions but we get seconds of them actually going through it. 6. If you're a hard core fan and you're just here for the suits I'd suggest sending in a friend who can come get you when they FINALLY get them on because almost the whole movie is about them learning how to get the damn things on. I wouldn't have minded but it did piss me off when there were plenty of opportunities. They have to be connected and care about each other or no suits. K fine but they show many instances of caring about each other where they should have put the suits on, but didn't. And you can't tell me it's because they weren't trying because one of them did it on accident first. Because he cared about the entire team. If that's the rules then they should have put the suits on right after the campfire scene! Alright those are the only real problems. Here are the reasons you should go see it anyway: 1. Damn with the shock value! These guys know how to make the "dead always come back and main characters never die" thing actually shocking! Even though you know they can't kill that guy off or the world's not really going to end somewhere in the back of your head, this movie knows how to make you doubt it. They ACTUALLY make you worry about the world and the good guys! 2. Damn the depth! I mean I know we said we don't get to see it but what we know and do see means this movie isn't afraid to hit everything​ it can. Not all the rangers are perfect people who are just misunderstood. These are teenagers who act like teenagers. They do stupid stuff. They lash out. They have attitude and good reason for it. They have moments of doubt. There is more to Rita than in the show (don't get too excited she's brushed over too). She's the villian if you haven't seen the show. There's more to Zordon.(sp?) He's the guide​ and if you haven't seen the show and you don't know what that means it means he's the Dumbledore or professor X of the story although he's not great at it because of his own depth. There's just so many emotional story points and there really is a good story here. 3. Damn the excellent diversity! This needs to be here as a general but I'm going to address each one because they all really deserve their own reasons. They were handled perfectly! I addressed the ONLY representation problems but imo they mad up with just how many problems people usually have with deversity in movies or TV they completely obliterate. I gaurentee you will feel represented and as an actual person if you are black, gay or have a mental disorder. The usual things you see just aren't there with sadly the exception of the 1st 2 things I mentioned. But dude you don't understand. 4. The black guy is THE MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTER! And is BLATANT my friend. He has the best lines, the most lines and is genuinely the best person in the group. He's really the only one who always has pure unselfish intentions and he is the most accepting person. He basically is the plot all by himself. He is the 1st to get his suit. He finds out where the important thing is, BIGGEST MAJOR SPOILER! LOOK FOR "END SPOILER" IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE!!! He's the one who dies but he doesn't stay dead so no not that trope either. END SPOILER. He is responsible for uniting them as a team oh! And did I mention he is a genious and if he doesn't have the most screen time he steals the show so much it feels like it. If there's anyone you're not going to forget it's him. 5. Ok this is the same character but Damn! Double whammy representation. This guy is also AUTISTIC! Don't get me wrong I don't know anyone who is autistic but I was almost diagnosed with autism as both my parents thought I might be and some doctors wondered but some basic questions proved that no I was just extremely ADD which is thought to be on the same scale and if that's true I definitely found myself relating to the guy. I THINK it was correct but I honestly don't know. Here's what I DO know they got right. It wasn't a joke. It wasn't "oh look this guys wrong in the head and it's funny just because of that" It also wasn't pure sympathy or a crutch that makes you feel like life is impossible. It wasn't "oh poor little autistic kid can't make friends or take care of himself or have a normal life" Yes he had some comic relief loosely based on his condition but mostly he was just funny. His condition was a TRAIT AND NOT A PERSONALITY! And that just made it amazing to watch! 6. The lesbian with no girlfriend. I have to say it most of the time of a lesbian is involved it means they can never be single and it's all about the sex or making out. It's pandering which I actually is a good thing but to the wrong people. This movie doesn't pretend being a lesbian means you're some sex driven goddess. You're not guaranteed to flirt with every girl. You're not guaranteed a girlfriend. You don't have a giant obvious sign saying "hey girls just so you know I'm lesbian if you're looking for one and guys back off!" And you don't necessarily have or ever get the courage to tell your over conforming family. and even if they probably wouldn't approve that doesn't mean they're awful or abusive they just aren't likely to understand. We see her parents and her mom definitely needs to take a chill pill but otherwise it's a normal kind family. 7. The other 2 aren't white and there's barely a comment on their diversity. There's literally one line and if you blink you'll miss it. They don't toot their own horn or talk about the importance or problems of diversity and honesty if you're not looking you won't notice. It's a story not a political move. 8. Alpha 5 kicks ass! He doesn't change much from the source material but I remember the 1 thing that bothered me about him was how pathetic he was. He was like the scare damsel in the show. He'd get scared and the rangers get defensive. Nope! The 1st thing he does is drag one of them like a ragdoll. They try to fight him and they get their collective asses kicked! I would actually love to see him fight Rita it might be a fairer fight than you 1st think. 9. Fanservice! Yes they do the group walk. Yes they fight the minions. Yes they get the zords (sp?). Yes they make a giant robot to fight a giant monster and yes the stake are high but it's still silly and it's still action packed 10. Learning curve. Weird new thing they don't automatically know what they're doing! 11. The playoff at the end. The knowing smiles when they listen to their families gush over all of the power rangers and know each color. 12. Nothing is magically better. The sick are still sick. The judgemental remain that way. And the hurt aren't magically forgiving. But everyone is on a "that was unbelievable and awesome" high.