Still better than U571
otherwise it would have been an American squadron of B17s or the like, and Barnes Wallis would be from MIT.
Where is a bomb icon when you need it?
Dam Busters dog dubbed 'Digger'
Scriptwriter Stephen Fry has announced he's successfully tackled the thorny problem of just what to call Guy Gibson's dog in Peter Jackson's upcoming remake of The Dam Busters. The mutt will be rebranded "Digger", Fry announced to the BBC, because "there is no question in America that you could ever have a dog called the N- …
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 15:48 GMT mike2R
U571
You know, this U571 hate has always irritated me.
Its a made up adventure, made by Americans and naturally enough they chose to use Americans as the main characters. The film not only acknowledges the British capture of the early enigma machines in its credits, the DVD has an interview with the RN chap who boarded the first U boat from which an enigma was recovered.
Nothing hugely dramatic - depth charged to the surface and abandoned by her crew. He didn't know it was abandoned, and by his account was bricking it because he had to climb down a ladder (where he couldn't hold a weapon) and thought he was going to get shot in the process. Didn't happen since it was deserted, and a working enigma was recovered.
Now that was a brave act, but it is hardly a story you could make a film out of. He certainly didn't feel that U571 was an insult to him so why should anyone else?
It's actually a really good submarine movie, and this Daily Mail faux patriotic hatred for it is just a bit pathetic in my opinion.
-
-
-
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 07:20 GMT Scorchio!!
Re: The German Opposition
"I do hope they've also removed any racist reference to huns, fritz, jerry, krauts or bosch."
I say old boy, don't forget such endearments as Huns or 'sausage munchers'. Personally, and speaking as one of Le Rostbifs, I think us, the eyeties, bubble and squeaks, frawgs and Huns show a pretty good example of racial harmony, what? We kick the fsck out of each other over hundreds of years, call each other names, and still we get together every now and then for a game of rugger or footers, and perhaps even a little game of war for retroactive abortion purposes, and we never hold it against one another. Seems to me that old small fry needs to think again, what, what.
-
-
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:23 GMT Matthew 3
RE: Barking up the wrong tree
Suggesting that the Dambusters raid was of 'questionable significance' is a matter for debate. And both sides suffered civilian casualties.
If you'd just mentioned arguing about the significance of a dog's name in relation to the actual task undertaken you'd have got my upvote.
-
-
Friday 17th June 2011 15:39 GMT ElReg!comments!Pierre
Disturbing
I find your lack of faith in the glorious US of A disturbing. The US of A is a great nation. Remember that you're talking about the people who not only single-handedly won WW2 all by themselves, but also tamed the fearsome Mt Everest, sent the first living organism in space, then the first man in space, tackled terrorism on the whole planet, and are awesome in every regard.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 21:43 GMT nematoad
Operation Chastise
"They're remaking a film which celebrates a mission of questionable strategic significance..."
No, although Chastise was of questionable tactical importance the strategic ramifications were huge. For one thing it enabled Churchill, in the USA at the time, to announce in a speech to Congress what the RAF had just achieved. Thus boosting Britain's prestige with the American public. Secondly it boosted British morale at home. The papers were full of what 617 Sqdn had done and in view of the state of the war at that time was a good reason for undertaking the operation. In the larger picture the loss of life is of course, to be regretted. But don't forget,as the saying was " Don't you know, there's a war on?" In war people get killed. One of the most tragic aspects of the deaths caused by the breach was the fact that a large number of those killed were in fact women from a Russian forced labour camp downstream of the Mohne dam.
On a separate note one of the things that Chastise did demonstrate was the superb skill of the crews of Bomber Command. To navigate, at low level over hostile territory at night: to rendezvous at a given time and place and then to attack at 60 feet, no higher or lower, shows the tremendous skills of the crews available to AM Sir Arthur Harris, AOC Bomber Command. Harris was not convinced that his crews had the ability to attack the precision targets that would shortly be called for under the Pointblank Directive. Chastise and the later operations by 617 Sqdn. as directed by Gp. Capt. Leonard Cheshire proved to him that Bomber Command was capable of such attacks. This enabled the RAF to multiply its effectiveness and thus shortened the war. So, although of limited tactical importance Chastise was a milestone in the strategic bomber offensive, showing the way to future possibilities.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:16 GMT Loyal Commenter
Indeed.
Especially since El Reg appears to have no problem in publishing, the 'most offensive word':
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/02/15/fonda_slip/
Personally, I believe it's not a word that is offensive, but the intent behind its use. In the case of people being offended by the (historically accurate) naming of a dog 'nigger', the thing I find most objectionable is the people who decide that they are going to be offended by it in the first place. my expletive of choice in this case would come form the film Blade 3, and I would refer to them as a bunch of 'cock-juggling thundercunts'.
That is all...
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:36 GMT Loyal Commenter
@Sarah
If they wanted to avoid controversy, they'd just write the dog out of the film, it's not like they aren't going to make several 'artistic' rearrangements of the facts anyway, and the fact that they had a dog called Nigger really doesn't form a huge part of the story of the bombing of the dams in the Ruhr valley anyway. By changing the name, I'd say that they were actually courting controversy, not avoiding it. Of course, they are also getting a certain amount of free publicity in the process, which is probably their aim.
As for suspension of disbelief, that really shouldn't be necessary for people watching a film based on something that actually happened.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:53 GMT frank 3
meh, title
in many ways, of course, the very most offensive thing about the Dambusters is:
YAY! We killed a shitload of people! Go team!
I know, we were fighting the dark empire etc. but it's still an unpleasant thing to be involved in: killing people is not really to be celebrated.
It just feels a bit weird to worry about the name of a dog when we're talking about the coldly calculated design of a machine created by people to kill other people.
Bit depressing really.
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 07:20 GMT Anonymous Coward
Nigger is significant
The dog is actually a significant part of the film. Gibson's dog killed the morning of the mission and his name was the codeword for the successful breaching of a dam. If it's name was Fido, they reports would be coming back, "Fido! Fido!", but its name was Nigger, and that was the codeword - avery significant historical fact that is very hard to leave out...
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 17:14 GMT JimBo59
sane?
If you want this story to be artistic, dont choose a historical event.
I am reasonable, but I think that changing history is a very bad thing.
What if we decide to make a film where the Germans didn't kill jewish people? Is that OK in artistic grounds?
Of course not.
It happened, it is fact.
Titanic, who remembers the details and the reasons for the films apology? who's seen the film?
Millions are misdirected in history to tell a better tale.
If you want it to be artistic, write a story. set it in a different time and good luck.
PS I dont read the daily mail and have no idea why every appears to be slagging it off.
-
-
-
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:06 GMT Anonymous Coward
Honky please
"In the film, you're constantly hearing 'n-word, n-word, n-word, hurray'"
Ironically, that sounds like it would be disturbingly plausible as the chorus of a party-oriented hip-hop/RnB chart hit... albeit one that would be censored on daytime radio and you'd have to be black yourself to get away with singing.
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 13:08 GMT Tom 13
Which of course is completely unlike successful American movies like
Pulp Fiction.
Sadly, I do understand his point. But I think I would have renamed the dog Niger. But I don't consider his choice as bad as them changing the movie name for Rowling's first book. I still want to put all the morons who insisted it be "Sorcerer" instead of "Philosopher" up against the wall.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:06 GMT Anonymous Coward
Shame
Yet another "rose tinting" of history. Yeah, it's only a dogs name, but it's the thin end of the wedge.
20 years from now these films will be banned, because we're discriminating against/victimising/racially abusing the germans. And we won't be able to use lancasters, because they use dirty petrol engines, and that's not environmentally friendly. And a war film??? Wob't someone think of the childern???
50 years time the dambusters will be a story about a happy camping trip to Germany by smiling, multi-ethnic teenagers (who don't have sex before marriage, naturally), flying over in their solar and fart-powered eco-planes to dance and have social events with the equally multi-ethnic Germans.
Pah, humbug.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:04 GMT The Fuzzy Wotnot
Not quite...
...they THINK they're going to get some. A quick kiss and a fondle, the music changes ( Which is always the biggest clue something nasty will happen. Why aren't the kids listening to the music? ) and the Nasty Thing(tm) either abducts or brutally slaughters almost all present, but one person has to survive to go on and kill the thing in the end, but doesn't quite as the Nasty Thing(tm) always has something left in it as the credits roll....*breathe*
People wonder why I don't bother watching films anymore, more sense and reality in an episode of Fawlty Towers than some of the latest Hollywood claptrap!
-
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:06 GMT Paddy Fagan
Do they really think this is going to be the biggest inaccuracy by the time it's finished?
If Merv/Jim think this is going to be the biggest inaccuracy by the time the movie hits the big screen I suggest the bring a beer along to the cinema to cry into.....
Perhap the best solution is to get a black actor to play Guy, because then it would, of course, be ok for him to have a dog called N*gger...
Paddy
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:18 GMT Ross 12
sod human rights
Interesting that curator of the RAF museum thinks that they should not only 'sod political correctness' (yeah, arguable) but also 'sod human rights'. Hmm. Bit of a dinosaur perhaps?
It *is* a shame the name needs to be changed, but I think that as a society we're just not grown-up enough to deal with it and for it to be taken entirely in the historical context, and thus be a total non-issue. Instead, as soon as the remake was announced, the first question everyone asked was about the dog's name. Plus, given that America, which is probably going to be the biggest audience for the film, has such a bad and recent history with *that* word, I'd say it's the... least-bad option.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:02 GMT Anonymous Coward
America as biggest audience?
Only if the leading actors are American, complete with accents, baddy Germans all speak in proper English and the whole thing is dressed up as an American adventure in which England was, reluctantly, allowed to provide the aerodrome.
Come on, it's a British-based story, no Yanks involved. They won't watch it. If the actors talk English, the Americans will not even understand it.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 18:05 GMT peyton?
to be fair
regarding yanks not following English English ;)
In the lovable series "Jeeves and Wooster" - when they are Stateside, there are a LOT of British actors speaking with American accents. These bits are a bit painful to watch, not because they get the accent wrong (they're really not far off from our gold standard: the news anchor), but because they speeeeak sooooo slooooowly. I imagine this was to help the ears of those not quite accustomed to such an accent - I think accommodations are made both ways.
And anyway - surely no one would dare label a Harry Potter film as "pretentious"!
-
-
This post has been deleted by its author
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 09:58 GMT Scorchio!!
Re: sod human rights
I think it was probably a reference to the yuman rights of people who kill children in road accidents, whilst having criminal records, people we're unable to deport; a reference to muslim clerics who stir up violent jihad and are wanted for terrorist offences in their home countries, people we cannot deport because they might suffer harm in their home countries.
That's yuman rights. We had the real thing before the EU legislation, from which we ought to derogate, so that we can rephrase our perspective before taking the legislation on again, meaning we can tell them to piss off when it comes to the sort of silly, dangerous exception that I have mentioned.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:18 GMT lurker
A lot of fuss about a dog's name
Let's face it, whichever way they jumped on this issue, they were damned.
As an earlier poster mentioned, let's just be thankful that this isn't a complete whitewash of history like "U571".
With Peter Jackson directing, and Steven Fry writing (say what you like about his grasp of science, he's quite a witty writer) it might be worth watching, whatever they call the dog.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:34 GMT Anonymous Coward
Eugh
I find myself in the Daily Mail camp...disturbing.
The dog's name was the dog's name, in future films about the Roman empire should we remove all hints of gladiatorial combat because it isn't poltically correct? What about a movie set in Southern Pre-civil war America and remove all teh black slaves from the picture and replace them with well-treated and paid workers of diverse ethnic origin (Including white people to be balanced).
History is history, it isn't all roses and violets and if you cannot judge it based on the historical context then you are a drooling muppet.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:34 GMT Anonymous Coward
What will happen here
Any time now someone is going to be arrested for shouting racial abuse at a person of African descent, with the N word replaced by the D word. He will be found guilty of being a twat and rightly so. This film will then be remembered for adding racial overtones to the word Digger, rather like many autocensors added certain overtones to a town just north of Lincoln.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 10:48 GMT Jerry
Ethic correctness
As an antipodean I've noticed an awful lot of English 'historical' dramas set in the 1900s, 1800s 1700s etc that have a carefully selected set of South Asian and Carribean characters.
Now considering that most UK citizens with South Asia and the Carribean origins only arrived since the 50s I have to ask is this PC gone a step too far?
Your UK history is being rewritten in terms of 21st century demographics. Aren't you in the least bit worried?
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:54 GMT Anonymous Coward
Not Ethnical correctness, accuracy
There were a fair number of those strange looking swarthy types knocking around the place, part of the "Empire Dividend".
THey tended to get absorbed into the main population until such times as there were larger, somewhat distinct populations as in the big fits of immigration from the late 19th Century on, Irish, Italians, Eastern Europeans, West Indian, Asian etc
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 13:00 GMT Alien8n
Letters to Iwo Jima
I liked the fact that the black actor's union (can't remember the actual name of it) in America tried to call Clint Eastwood racist for not having any black actors in his film. His response? There were no black soldiers in the battle, so there's no black actors in the film. One guy who's more than happy to let historical accuracy stay ahead of political correctness...
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:02 GMT Dabooka
What a crock of shit
I'm sorry, but this has a great amount of historical significance and should not be replaced because of modern day sensitivities. There are plenty of films which use the word to set the tone of 60's America, and the fact the US are embarresed by their history should not mean that the Nigger word be dropped.
The US, Peter Jackson et al can go and boil their heads. And that includes Stephen Fry.
Tossers.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:02 GMT Anonymous Coward
Daily Fail
Surely the mail is still upset about the Damnbusters raids succeeding given Rothmeres' personal freindship with Hitler and Mussolini.
Or has we forgotten this ....
"I urge all British young men and women to study closely the progress of the Nazi regime in Germany. They must not be misled by the misrepresentations of its opponents. The most spiteful distracters of the Nazis are to be found in precisely the same sections of the British public and press as are most vehement in their praises of the Soviet regime in Russia. They have started a clamorous campaign of denunciation against what they call "Nazi atrocities" which, as anyone who visits Germany quickly discovers for himself, consists merely of a few isolated acts of violence such as are inevitable among a nation half as big again as ours, but which have been generalized, multiplied and exaggerated to give the impression that Nazi rule is a bloodthirsty tyranny."
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:02 GMT Suburban Inmate
I'm with the late George Carlin on this.
"The context. That makes them good or bad. For instance, you take the word "Nigger." There is absolutely nothing wrong with the word "Nigger" in and of itself. It's the racist asshole who's using it that you ought to be concerned about."
http://www.iceboxman.com/carlin/pael.php
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:02 GMT T.a.f.T.
Rap time
I am sure I have heard rappers use the word Dog and N-word to friends and associates so for an RAF squadron to refer to mans best friend in this way is naturally totally inappropriate.
I do agree somewhat with the idea that words have the meaning we apply to them and we don't tip toe around any other word to the ludicrous degree so what exactly happened which placed this way above Nazi as in Grammer Nazi? We also do not refer to things as large Asian frying pans.
-
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:20 GMT The Fuzzy Wotnot
Whoa there!
You're treading thin ice calling us 'english', me laddo! For one, we're English with a capital E and two, the PC mob would prefer to have us believe we're all British, not English! It's OK for the Welsh and Scots to be proud of being such, but the English are a classed as a bunch of racist thugs for so much as picking up a St George's flag!
*shudder* I seem to have been possessed by the spirit of a middle England Daily Mail reader for a second there!
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:43 GMT NoneSuch
Movies re-writing history?
Maid Marion wielding a long sword. Guinevere with a long bow. Now a dog called Digger. Political correctness infiltrated movie scripts a long time ago.
My prediction, when they eventually remake the Great Escape (I hope they don't, but it is inevitable), they will escape through a tunnel called "Dirk".
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 17:18 GMT JimBo59
was this intentional, I hope so.
rewriting history - fictional characters. brilliant, or maybe not.
all i want to see is someone use a long bow correctly, i.e. not to the chin.
Guys trained for a lifetime to get the strenght to do this, they were damn near deformed by the time they do do a full draw.
-
-
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 13:26 GMT Richard Willetts
Except the name was significant!
It was used as the codeword to indicate one of the bombing runs being successful so they shouldn't avoid saying the name of the dog, which means they have to keep it or change it, personally I think it should have been left alone but won't be outraged because of the change!
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:54 GMT davefb
'thin end of the wedge'
good grief, I really can't believe people are seeing this as some sort of amazing cry for freedom that they can call a dog an extremely offensive name. Is this the kindergarten?
As for 'british forget those yanks' , I believe what you mean to say is 'commonwealth and allies' ie RAF + canadian and new zealanders+ ?.
It's one thing to moan about 'americans taking our glory' but to then repeat the error ...
People were racist in the past, the film is not about casual racism and how bad it was, its about the bombing raid, the dog gets renamed.
Always remember reading a battered old 617 squadron book about the raid and later tallboy missions, the death rate on that raid is horrific , that's what we should be talking about , the stoic bravery, the political need for a victory... Hell ,even the crossword puzzles.. Not Nigger RIP..
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:17 GMT Juillen 1
You realise
You're absolutely right about it being about the squadron, not the dog..
Which is why people are rather irate about so much bowing down to Political correctness over a historical fact.
The name means the dog was black. As there weren't many black people in England at the time (certainly up north, and in Wales, where my folks were from, they'd not seen a black person until their late teens, which as a while after the war).
That is the historical fact. They were referring to the fact that the dog was black.
Sure there was racism around then. All over the world, from all sides. That's also a fact.
The film isn't about "casual racism", it's about mentioning an anachronistic word for a colour (the same as in a period drama, merry people are still referred to as being "gay"; this doesn't offend any of my homosexual friends, who are quite bright enough to get the context). There is nothing racist about it. Only in the brains of those who are looking for it.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 17:23 GMT JimBo59
really?
do you pay this much attention to every word you use?
do you say who when it should be whom, or do you misuse medical names for body parts when angry at people?
I prefer to tell people to get audited, it is an unpleasant but non leathal thing that wastes thier time rather than the more commonly misuse 'swear' words f**k off, which is generally accepted to be pleasant and something we like to do more often.
if you feel that words have a lot attached to them, maybe its time to get a dictionary and a doctor
-
-
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 11:54 GMT Morteus
It's all so pointless...
...because political correctness isn't interested in preserving of portraying the truth.
Various ruling factions thoughout history have altered names and events in the name of political expedience - or in this case in the case of commercial gain - and not for the first or last time either.
What concerns me more is that many people are more and more willing to take these cinematic representations on face value as factual. In years to come people will be argueing over which was portraying the truth. It may only be the name of a dog, but what next?
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:05 GMT Tony S
History ..
..is written by the victors (or those with the money to dictate what happened)
The real problem is that most Americans actually learn their history from Hollywood. They believe what they see on the silver screen. Oliver Stone's film JFK is riddled with inaccuracies, but these are still often quoted (even in college courses), and many Americans believe that it is 100% accurate - "it's in the film, so it must be true".
This is not a new problem; there was a dreadful Errol Flynn film "Merrills Marauders" that portayed fighting in Asia during WW2. When it was released in the UK, many people walked out in disgust - they knew what had really happened. But as time moves on, there are fewer people that were there, so the studio suits can re-write history as much as they want.
George Orwell talked about re-writing history.....
-
Friday 17th June 2011 11:59 GMT Anonymous Coward
Truthiness
"it's in the film, so it must be true".
It's worse than that. I have often heard the phrase "they wouldn't let them put it in the film if it wasn't true". Quite appart from the fact that I don't know who "they" might be it worries me that if people see the phrase "based on a true story" they assume there is some sort of legal requirement for everything in the film to be true.
The more modern phrase "fact based drama" was, I'm sure, coined by some lawyer who had worked out that as long as there was a single undisputable fact in the script then the studio would be on solid legal ground should anybody try to sue for libel. Look this here is our fact and the rest of it is fiction.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:19 GMT Anonymous Coward
Double Edged Word
Historically it should be in there, the word should be used in the original form in anything even if it is considered to be offensive.
Remember the NAACP buried that word, then Chris Rock brought it back.
And yet they still say it's not ok to say that word if you are a European Caucasian and I hear the car stereo blasting down the street *Bass thumping* "Nigger going to make a movie ... Nigger going to make a movie ..." *Bass thumping*
No I am not using that word, just quoting lyrics ... so I should be able to sing that song anywhere without being called a racist correct?
Oh look there's Al Sharpton coming to thank...whoops gotta go.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:19 GMT doperative
Code word Snuffleupagus
Never mind the name of the dog, how are they going to refer to the code words for a successful breach ?
2:17 "Now get these code words off by heart. Gonner is the code word for an explosion in the right place. Nigger is the code word for a breach in Möhne Dam and Dingy is the code word for a breach in the Eder" ..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgePEO7GUtE
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 23:09 GMT Matt Bryant
RE: I heard that
Don't be silly! He's going to be played by Laurence Fishburne and be called Professor Zuluchaka, assisted by his beautiful colleague Lucille Whytetrash (Reese Witherspoon, natch), with the main plot line being how she overcomes her upbringing as a racist Southerner to fall in love with Prof Zuluchaka and help him design the bomb that some unmentioned RAF guys go to drop on some dams somewhere in Germany. Not even a need to mention the dog!
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:34 GMT Saganhill
Dont do it
Im from the USA and I would see this rewriting of history as another attempt to be politically correct. A term used by Stalin by the way. They are already rewriting Mark Twain here in the states. Its a shame really. No future generation will know the truth after these revisionist get their way. I hope someone keeps the original for future generations.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 12:53 GMT Anonymous Coward
Who won again?
Re: who helped who, and who helped themselves in WWII
I drive a german car
I ride a Japanese motorbike
All my computers/kit is american/Japanese/chinese
I think just in the last few years we paid off the WWII debt to America
UK has been taxing to death everyone just to keeps it's head above
So forgive me for being fuzzy on the whole who helped who
Ah well
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 13:51 GMT Tony S
ooops
Sorry, you're correct, it was "Operation Burma" not "Merrill's Maruaders. Mea Culpa, no doughnuts for me this afternoon.
But it wasn't a Commonwealth conflict, as it was during WW2. (The Commonwealth didn't really exist as such until after the war - although the Empire had previously been referred to as a "Commonwealth of Nations" back in the 19th century)
The story line was inspired mostly by "Operation Loincloth", military action by British & Empire troops (including Indian and Gurkha, as well as ANZACs).
I'd not previously heard of "Rogers Rangers" - colonial troops attached to the British army during the pre-revolution days. It looks like quite an interesting story.
-
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 13:25 GMT Anonymous Coward
Daily Mail?
I find it very odd that just because I think that we should stick with historical accuracy, I'm adjudged to be a Daily Mail reader, even though I'm a leftie Guardianista!
Perhaps Jackson can shoot dual scenes for those involving the dog's name, so that we can choose which version to watch for ourselves, instead of having somebody get all offended on our behalf?
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 13:26 GMT Anonymous Coward
Missing the point!
I think you’re all missing the point here. Imagine a family of diggers moved into your street. You wouldn’t be happy about it, would you? And where there’s one family of diggers, there’s usually more diggers. Before you know it, the whole area is overrun with diggers, your house it worth nothing and your car has been stolen.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 14:18 GMT Peter Clarke 1
Missing the Point
If Nigger is not going to retain his name then I hope Mr Fry will also rub out cigarette smoking from history. Won't someone think of the children?
PS I believe the 'strategic value' of the raid was showing we could strike at Nazi Germany despite Europe having been occupied for the previous 3 years.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 15:46 GMT Graham Jordan
gonna be shit anyway
King Kong will defend the dam whilst orks chuck spears at the mighty stealth bomber only detected on gps when the dumb but lovable kid from south Carolina accidentally releases celebratary fireworks prematurely.
Peter Jackson offends me more than anyone else bar Michael Bay. Sigh
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 17:10 GMT Apocalypse Later
You might as well fall flat on your face as bend too far over backwards
The last time I saw the original black and white film on the telly, they had dubbed over the n-word. I don't know if it was cluelessness or a deliberate swipe at the PC lot, but the substituted word was "boy". Just try calling a black man that in the USA.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 17:55 GMT Rick Brasche
as long as
they show the development of the bomb as a tiring process of experiment, observation, and testing...of trial and error in the yard and in the test tanks, done by an older, slightly weird dude with a sense of pride of his nation...and not some young prettyboy who imagines it all flawlessly all at once or was "inspired" by too much recreational chemical intake.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 18:04 GMT Anonymous Coward
what other words will we change in history to appease the revisionists?
so if the term "Mickey Mouse" is decided to be "racist" or the term "overlord" becomes an "offensive" one, will we also redo all of our D Day films as well?
they shoulda changed the dog's name to "White Trash", so then it'd be "good" racism.
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 21:31 GMT Alan 43
the dog and codeword were nigger
The dogs name was nigger, the operations codeword was nigger named after the dog -surely they could have come up with something better than digger as a replacement - i`m sure there are plenty of other words for black in other languages that could have been substituted since that was the point - the dog was black .
-
Tuesday 14th June 2011 21:41 GMT Jolyon Smith
Coming Next: WWII without anti-semitism
Because you can't have Jews being rounded up and shipped off to death camps in this day and age. Historical accuracy go screw yourself.
And it's "just the name of a dog - what's the big deal?",... OK so let's change the Lancaster bombers to B52's, let's change Barnes' name to something more American friendly like Hank, and while we're at it, let's have Glen Miller's St Louis Blues swinging over the end credits instead of that British Imperialistic Dambusters March...
FFS
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 12:32 GMT saucy
Why Change The Name?
I used to work in a factory and all the coloured gentlemen called each other nigger. Yes. I wrote the "n" word. They were not offended nor were they offended when "the whites" called them nigger too.
It`s all the hype that is associated with this word as those who the word refer to take it all in their stride. I think most of them are more embarrassed about the hype and the the politically correct lot that air their views.
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 15:51 GMT Yet Another Anonymous coward
Following a sponsorship deal with BMW
In the remake a gang of plucky Germans will develop a bouncing bomb for use against Ladybower.
Pity it wasn't as feeble as American dams. I visited the Hoover dam and had my tiny Swiss Army keyring knife taken off me - apparently the dam is a terrorist target and a 1inch nail file could destroy it.
-
Wednesday 15th June 2011 16:55 GMT Dropper
Really?
People actually care what's in a movie that much? Since when did we become Americans? Do we now use films as our official source for history like most of the US? Because as far as I was aware there are something called books that can be used in a pinch when Wikipedia is down. Not sure why we should expect them to commit financial suicide for the sake of one name. I expect that it's stuff like this that explains why the US is better at making money from films than we are. They understand that people you're trying to sell to generally object to being insulted, and then told that they're not being insulted, it's just they're too stupid to understand. Normally I'd find insulting people and then ask them to thank me for being historically accurate funny, but when it comes to a sales tactic, it's pretty shit.
Besides you can't go around decrying political correctness in one breath and then act like a little girl over a name in the next. You might as well just start wearing a skirt and ordering half a shandy.
-
Friday 17th June 2011 12:17 GMT Anonymous Coward
Americans
Why are so many posters working from the assumption that this is an American film? As in those comments about history being rewritten to show that the US was responsible for the raid. Lets see; the screen play is being written by a Brit; the executive producer is a Brit; and the director is a New Zealander. So where's the American influence?
I'm more worried about Fry shoe horning the story to fit the characters being a bunch of poncy self obsessed luvvies who are more interested in their relationships and inadequacies than they are with the mission. That's the sort of stuff he normally seems to write.
-
Saturday 18th June 2011 12:11 GMT skellious
" over 9,000 visitors a year"
It's over 9,000!!!
But, to get on topic, SF is only taking the decision that makes business sense. If the name was not changed, so many groups in America would protest the film for no other reason, and many cinemas would not show it. Regardless of anything else, they've got to think of the wallet.
-
Tuesday 21st June 2011 11:02 GMT Anonymous Coward
Who pays the piper, calls the tune - again
Stephen Fry should heed his own words "you just can't go back, which is unfortunate" - and refrain from b*****ing around with History.
The poor animal will probably end up being played by a chipmunk - all cute and apple pie.
Hollywood has so corrupted it's output that half the world would misbelieve any actual historical fact presented to it.
.
This topic is closed for new posts.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
