I dunno, man, I've always said that the art is different than the artist & I don't have to condone what an artist does personally or how he behaves to enjoy the art that they create.
Some of our greatest composers, artists, directors, philosophers, actors, writers, photographers, etc, were heinous human beings who behaved in despicable ways that were worthy of the strictest justice. But I can condemn a person's actions while still recognizing the art.
And I agree. Haven't we had this discussion before? More than once?
Anyway, I'm just noticing some hypocrisy going on with all the "OMG LOCK HIM NOW AND THROW AWAY THE KEY!!!!!" posts when so many paid to see his movies, etc etc etc, and never once mentioned how heinous they thought his past actions were. It's like it's a surprise to them that hey, Roman Polanski pled guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and now that he's been arrested, they feel personally betrayed or something..
Maybe they didn't know? It is possible that there are people who are just now finding out about his crime for the first time. Hopefully they're taking this chance to educate themselves about it. How they choose to view him or his movies going forward is up to them.
I think what's pissing me off the most about this situation is the people who signed the petition to free him because he is an 'important artist'. Which, really, so fucking what, I get that, but he still drugged & raped someone & fled the country to avoid going to jail.
To me, the only one who needs to be held accountable is the guy who drugged a child and then put his dick in her. Everything else is static and bullshit.
So you're saying that it was okay for her mother to agree to a private photo shoot? Or that it was okay for the actual crime to take place in Nicholson's house?
I don't think ANY of this is static and bullshit. She was placed in the situation by adults and taken advantage of by an adult.
As I said, I'm not in any way saying he shouldn't be held accountable. I am, however, fascinated by the amount of people who are just now screaming and chest beating like they've been personally betrayed in all this when it's not exactly recent news.
Unfortunately, many humans have a very short memory and an even shorter attention span.
The exploitation of children (and other innocents) by Hollywood has gone on for far longer than I've been alive and the only thing we can address RIGHT NOW, with THIS SITUATION is the fact that regardless of someone's 'artistic genius', if they shag ass out of the country instead of sticking around for their sentencing, they should be prepared to have it bite them in the ass somewhere down the road.
IMHO, arguing about what other folks might have done to facilitate the situation only dilutes the debate right now.
I think that, on either side of the fence, there are a lot of people who don't know the entire story or are just now learning the entire story. Certainly, I spent most of my life hearing off and on about how Roman Polanski was in "exile" in France because he was accused of rape
( ... )
Personally, the most I knew of the story before was that he was in exile for something he did in the 70s with an underaged person and that was only because they'd mention it when he was up for an award and wasn't there to receive it. I remember thinking during all the hype for The Piano being nominated that it's a little crappy that they were so supportive of someone who did something bad and fled. I had no idea he'd plead guilty, that the girl was 13 (I thought 16 or 17, the slightly more gray area), that he'd drugged her and that she said no repeatedly. When the news broke that they finally arrested him, I was surprised but I'm very dismayed by all the people who are saying he should be released just because he's good at his job. He did the crime, even plead guilty, and then fled before he could do the time. If this was any "normal" person, people would no question think this was a long time coming.
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Some of our greatest composers, artists, directors, philosophers, actors, writers, photographers, etc, were heinous human beings who behaved in despicable ways that were worthy of the strictest justice. But I can condemn a person's actions while still recognizing the art.
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Anyway, I'm just noticing some hypocrisy going on with all the "OMG LOCK HIM NOW AND THROW AWAY THE KEY!!!!!" posts when so many paid to see his movies, etc etc etc, and never once mentioned how heinous they thought his past actions were. It's like it's a surprise to them that hey, Roman Polanski pled guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and now that he's been arrested, they feel personally betrayed or something..
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I think what's pissing me off the most about this situation is the people who signed the petition to free him because he is an 'important artist'. Which, really, so fucking what, I get that, but he still drugged & raped someone & fled the country to avoid going to jail.
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I don't think ANY of this is static and bullshit. She was placed in the situation by adults and taken advantage of by an adult.
As I said, I'm not in any way saying he shouldn't be held accountable. I am, however, fascinated by the amount of people who are just now screaming and chest beating like they've been personally betrayed in all this when it's not exactly recent news.
Reply
The exploitation of children (and other innocents) by Hollywood has gone on for far longer than I've been alive and the only thing we can address RIGHT NOW, with THIS SITUATION is the fact that regardless of someone's 'artistic genius', if they shag ass out of the country instead of sticking around for their sentencing, they should be prepared to have it bite them in the ass somewhere down the road.
IMHO, arguing about what other folks might have done to facilitate the situation only dilutes the debate right now.
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