An extended critique of Ferd's vid "Strip"

[thingswithwings]

I don't know what the current fandom convention is when posting something that critiques someone else's work - I've heard that even whispering that someone might not be perfect can destroy souls and ruin christmas fandom for everyone. Also, I know very well from experience that I don't like it when random white male American people show up in my

Comments

[giandujakiss]

You're right - I don't have anything to add except to say that, fwiw, you aren't the first person to critique the vid for heterosexism.

[thingswithwings]

I wondered - knowing fandom, I thought someone else must've brought it up already. Are those previous critiques linkable?

[giandujakiss]

FLock, that I saw. It wasn't extensive - just, good happy vid, but pointing out the heterosexism.

[miscellanny]

That was a really interesting read, thank you.

[thingswithwings]

I'm glad you thought so.

[such_heights]

Thanks a lot for this. I don't think that's something I've given conscious thought to before, not being a great multifandom vid watcher, but that's a very good point about either working with the mainstream or against it, and also why "I'm Your Man" is made of all the win in the world.

[thingswithwings]

Yeah, dude, seriously. I want to be Charmax when I grow up, really I do.

[were_duck]

great post, I completely agree with your assessment of that vid. The vidder clearly went out of her way to be heterosexist and to avoid portraying people of color in a positive way. Yuck.

As a palate cleanser you might consider linking to one of the vids you mention at the end that you do like? I'll go find them on youtube now, but it'd be nice to have it here to click after watching that vid...

[thingswithwings]

Sure! I'm still looking for "Hot Hot Hot," which I downloaded a million years ago, but I've linked to "I'm Your Man," above. Mostly I was just too lazy to go and find them, but you're right. :)

[were_duck]

Hooray! Wow, "I'm Your Man" made my morning joyful. SERIOUSLY. Thank you!

[thingswithwings]

Isn't it the greatest? I could just watch it over and over. In fact, perhaps I will.

[heyiya]

Wow. I hadn't seen the vid before and just went and watched it quickly before reading this

[thingswithwings]

it represents and celebrates the fact that the dominant cultural narrative of romance is one that exists off the backs of the invisible bodies and labour of poor bodies and bodies of colour, and one whose purpose is to reinforce heterosexuality in ways whose pleasures are ambiguous for woman and erasing for queers.

Yes yes, that's it exactly, and very well said: part of the problem is that this straight white fantasy world can only exist with Mammys in the background doing the work and making it possible, and only via the exclusion of queer sexualities (and, often, female pleasure). Definitely a vid of hegemony.

Though I must agree that it's nice to have a bunch of examples, right off the top of my head, of vids that get it right. I mean, 'getting it right' still means, like, 10% people of colour in a vid, but we work with what we have. :)

[cesperanza]

If she were cleverer, she could have done something with, "We're just following ancient history."--indeedy! slavery and everything! Not to mentin that as the granddaughter of a dressmaker, to me, all those clothes are labor labor labor. (*g*