21 is Bringing Down the House
MIT dome photo uploaded by Dan4th
This weekend was the release of the movie 21 staring Kate Bosworth and Kevin Spacey. This highly anticipated movie based on the book Bringing Down the House reflects the story of the MIT students that took the Vegas casinos for millions. I highly recommend reading the book and also taking a visit to the MIT Museum before watching the movie.
I still remember when Spacey and the production team were in town filming. There was a lot of hype about the movie and what parts of the book would make it to the big screen. As the movie was near completion the controversy of having a non-Asian (Jim Sturgess) play the lead role of Jeff Ma’s character came into play. Furthermore, having a cast that wasn’t a majority Asian was also coming into question.
The Asian community made their feelings known with accusations of racism. Furthermore, the community went as far as to title Jeff Ma as a “sell out.” As an Asian myself, I can understand the desire to have more Asians playing major movie roles, but labeling this issue as racism may be a bit harsh.
First, this movie wasn’t meant to be a documentary or a reenactment of the actual events. Just like any movie based on a book, many things are changed and left out to squeeze a story into a 2 hour movie.
Second, the decision to cast a non-Asian for the lead role was not based on dislike for the Asian community, but more of a decision based on statistics. Asians in lead roles gross less. If I were a movie producer, I’d surely see these statistics as a reasonable choice. Sadly, movies are made to make money, not just to tell a story. Just like any other Asian, I’d love to see more of my race in movies. In the past 5 years there have surely been an influx in the roles for Asians, but it is up to us as movie watchers to make our opinions heard to adjust the statistics that producers use to cast roles.
Lastly, it is sad to label Jeff Ma as a “sell out” because he wasn’t protesting the changes to the movie. Surely, he didn’t have much of a say to the production of the movie, but instead he was given a choice: be part of the movie and get paid or not. I’m sure if any of us were in his shoes we’d gladly make the same decision. Remember, this is only a movie.
Regardless of the issues this movie brought up, I’m glad it was #1 at the box office this weekend and surely a must see for me in the near future. It is always great to see your home town up on the big screen. The nostalgia of being able to recognize the places in each scene just makes the movie going experience that much better.
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Great post. Will be seeing the movie this weekend. To check out filming locations of 21 and other famous Boston Movies, make sure to check out Boston Movie Tours which is included with your Go Boston Card purchase.