It’s time for a new JAP — a Jewish Amazonian Princess
It’s obvious an Israeli should be cast as Wonder Woman: Her indestructible bracelets are a prototype for Iron Dome since the 1940s
If Hollywood rumor mill is to be believed (and why should they lie) Gal Gadot, the Israeli model turned actress from the “Fast and Furious” franchise, is among a small group of raven-haired beauties up for the role of Diana, Princess of Themyscira, better known to the world as Wonder Woman.
It will likely be a small role in Zack Snyder’s upcoming “Man of Steel” sequel, which will probably be called “Batman vs. Superman,” but might be called “Superman vs. Batman” or maybe even “World’s Finest: Superman vs. Batman.”
Okay, so there’s a lot we don’t know about this movie, other than Henry Cavill will be back as everyone’s favorite Moses metaphor Kal-El of Krypton and Ben Affleck will wear the cape and cowl as the Dark Knight of Gotham City.
We’d love for Gadot get the role – not just because she is talented and beautiful, but we’d like to see what a designer lasso of truth looks like. Furthermore, Wonder Woman’s indestructible bracelets have been acting like a prototype for Iron Dome since the 1940s.
Warner Bros. is priming their DC characters to expand and evolve like their main competition, Marvel, so if Gadot does get the keys to the invisible jet, we can expect to see a lot of her in many forthcoming films.
And speaking of Marvel, the comic book entertainment titan announced a huge licensing deal with Netflix this week. A number of television series are in the pipeline for some of their lesser known characters such as Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and Jessica Jones. Yeah, I’ve barely heard of Jessica Jones too, but that show is in the hands of Jewish-American writer/producer Melissa Rosenberg.
Rosenberg is a credited screenwriter on all five of the “Twilight” movies, which means that right now, this very instant, she is taking a money bath. She was also a head writer for “Dexter,” so she’s not only about twinkling vampires, but does apparently have a thing for blood.
Jessica Jones has some superhero powers (and used to go by the nom de guerre of Jewel) but left the life of a costumed do-gooder for that of a private eye. Rosenberg’s show may end up being the slightly geekier CSI we didn’t know we were waiting for.
Shonda of the Week
It wasn’t an entertainment item, but an op-ed in the Washington Post had all of Twitter collectively slapping its forehead. The comment was so nasty and deplorable in its sentiment that it took me a beat to realize the implications of its author’s name. In a column about the reelection of New Jersey’s governor Chris Christie there was a section about New York City’s mayor-elect Bill de Blasio. The quote:
“People with conventional views must repress a gag reflex when considering the mayor-elect of New York — a white man married to a black woman and with two biracial children.”
If by “conventional” the author meant “rancid, reactionary racists who refuse to accept that love, commitment and spiritual connection can be made by people of different melanin levels,” then, yes, sure. Unfortunately, the bozo’s byline read Richard Cohen, and if you heard someone mumbling “oy vey” that was me.
The 72-year-old columnist is no stranger to controversy, once suggesting that Israel was “a mistake.” (“The idea of creating a nation of European Jews in an area of Arab Muslims — and some Christians — has produced a century of warfare and terrorism.”)
We’ll give Cohen credit for one thing, he’s certainly unpredictable. He is, also, the Shonda of the Week.
New From Hollywood
Nebraska: Alexander Payne, director of “The Descendents,” “About Schmit,” and “Sideways” is back with another of his rich, melancholy comedies. This one is shot in black and white and stars Bruce Dern and Will Forte as a father and son on a roadtrip through America’s heartland and their family’s past. Cranky and growing more debilitated by dementia, Dern in convinced that a sweepstakes mailer is his key to a fortune. Or is he just pulling everyone’s leg to give his loved ones a mission? You can work that one out for yourself, that is when you are done dabbing your eyes with a hankie.
“Nebraska” is a pretty solid film. It is also notable because it seems to have NO JEWS involved in it whatsoever. Not the director, the writer or any of the film’s leads. (Bob Odenkirk plays Forte’s brother – but he’s famous for specifically not being Jewish on “Breaking Bad.”) Considering the movie biz (and particularly comedy) this Hebraic dearth is a little bit weird. But fear not – the Elders of Zion’s grip on the entertainment industry can always be found if one looks hard enough. “Nebraska” is being distributed by Paramount Pictures, whose CEO remains Mr. Brad Grey.
12-12-12: Israeli-American documentarian Amir Bar-Lev (“My Kid Could Paint That,” “Fighter,” “The Tillman Story”) was on hand at Madison Square Garden last year for the Harvey Weinstein-produced Hurricane Sandy benefit concert. (He got the job ten days before the show.)
Guests included the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, The Who, Alicia Keys, Billy Joel, Eric Clapton, BDS supporter and quite-possibly anti-Semite Roger Waters, Kanye West, and the surviving members of Nirvana.
The music in the film is great, but the mayhem captured backstage (the show was put together in record time) is arguably more interesting. In addition to Weinstein and Joel, members of the tribe you’ll see in the film include Adam Sandler, Jake Gyllenhaal, Senator Chuck Schumer and, of course, Chris Rock. Yeah, you heard me right.
Currently in Theaters
Thor: The Dark World: Natalie Portman returns as Dr. Jane Foster, an astrophysicist who blurts out things like “that’s a quantum field generator!” Her heart is still broken because of that sheygetz Thor, the muscle-bound blonde always making with the hammer. Natalie gets zetzed with some sort demonic goo called the Aether and it’s up to Space Goy to fly in and save her and the rest of the Universe. Thor’s trickster brother Loki shows up, too. This latest entry in the Marvel Movie Universe is a great deal of fun, if you like this sort of thing.
Big Bad Wolves: The Israeli directing team of Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado follow up “Rabies” with an even more chilling and uncomfortable film. “Big Bad Wolves” is the type of movie that begs for symbolic interpretation, but also works on its own terms.
A man is suspected of being a child serial killer, but there is no hard proof. A convinced detective and the father of a recent victim independently decide to take the law into their own hands. When the three end up in the basement of a remote house the most unexpected thing happens: the movie is actually a little… funny? A true experiment in tone (and testing audiences’ boundaries) “Big Bad Wolves” was named the best movie of 2013 by Quentin Tarantino.
Gravity: Shot in long, highly choreographed takes, this interplanetary adventure is a high-energy, survivalist film of the best kind. While it is 90 minutes of non-stop action, there actually is a story, and Sandra Bullock takes the few character moments she’s given and runs with it. It is a great performance from a gifted woman who can do drama, comedy and, at this point, basically no wrong.
Gossip-mongers are still reading the tea leaves to determine if Bullock is Jewish. There are some who say her mother may have been, others who say she observes “in her own way.” It is known that she employed a mohel for the circumcision of her son. What gentile does that? Oh, but back to this movie – it’s terrific. Spend the extra shekels for 3D, it’s worth it.
Kippur: The Jerusalem Cinematheque continues its Amos Gitai retrospective with one of his most troubling films. More of a tone poem than a narrative, this unflinching look at the cruel realities of battle is based in part on Gitai’s own experiences in the Yom Kippur war. Not for the weak of heart, but essential viewing for anyone needing a refresher on Israeli history.
The Times of Israel Community.