A Tale of 3 Saudi Movies - Not Made in KSA

With all these debates about cinemas in KSA, many talk about the effect of movies in changing views and educating emus and such.

I won't go into the point that says that Saudis would evolve with the establishments of theaters and great movies will raise the Saudi image abroad. Of course that is total bullshit, point in case is that everyone still makes fun of Egyptian movies, an industry with 50 years of experience.

What I want to talk about is the other side, the way KSA is portrayed in movies. Although there are countless films that have the token Saudi bad guy, the token Saudi moron, the token Saudi corrupt pig. I won't mention those as the list is too much for this crumbling keyboard.

I will list three examples that have stories based WITHIN the country. and point out the truth from fiction.

The first is not technically a movie, but makes up a good 50 miutes (close enough). The two part American Dad: Stan of Arabia. This in particular is a constant reoccurring subject of chain spam mail, always detailing of how the west is feeding the world hate propaganda. And after watching it, I fully agree. I don't really care of what defenders of free speech supposedly spew with Saudis not having a sense of humor. Joking is something you can do with your best friend, and Fox isn't really what you might call a friend of KSA. Criticise all you want, but base it on truth.

Verdict: The show is complete and utter BS

Next: The Kingdom, the movie starring Jamie Foxx about a CIA team sent to Riyadh to aid in an investigation. The movie does correctly portray the locations and some behavioural aspects of the culture, but its dramatization just goes nuts with some extremely violent scenes.

Verdict: %75 accurate (unless our media are masters in covering things up)

Finally, a little known movie released in 95, Human Cargo, tells the story of an American contractor that traveled to Jeddah in the 70s to build a multi million dollar contract with a Saudi sheik. The culture, as well as some local is spot on (based on my recollection of that period). Although the country did develop, most of the culture remains somewhat the same (corruption).

Verdict: This movie was so powerful that I was cursing the Saudi and rooting for the American by the end....And that does show how cinema is indeed a tool of change, and why it will never be a part of KSA.

The Saudi Theory of Constrainted Views STCV

There is obviously some reservation is the way Saudis of both sexes perceive those from the West, and visa versa.

But why is that? there should be some reason, basis for they way things are they way they are.

For the most part, the common stereotype goes like this:

Saudi men perceive western men as immoral party animals who worship money.

Western men perceive Saudi men as rich retards who are violent and dangerous.

Saudi Women perceive western woman as nymphos who cant wait to ride.

Western women perceive Saudi women as oppressed drones with culty tendencies.

Saudi men perceive Western woman as easy lays whom go crazy over their endownessness

Western women perceive Saudi men as filthy sexist pigs whom shouldn't be allowed outside a cell or mine.

Saudi women perceive Western men as bloodthirsty rapist plunderers.

Western men view Saudi women as weak pets that have no backbone.

So who's to blame, it is clear that the collective view comes from somewhere, most often it is the media, from both sides. Playing on the fact that fear sells. But that needed a basis. And just as Pearl Harbor was a starting point for condemning all that is Japanese in US media, there had to be a catalyst for the portrail of Saudis as they were in movies and TV.

The following is a basic graph showing the links between the four groups, and while Saudi and Western men can familiarize themselves and slightly break through the hardened stereotype shells (as well as Saudi and Western women). The media will prevent the full picture from being shown (that's barbed wire if you were wondering).

Portrait of Bigotry - Don't Let This Pass

Freedom of speech is said to be a necessary right. Hate speech is said to be a punishable offence. Where to draw the line....where to draw...or not draw the comic?

Comics have been a powerful visual conveyor of ideas, so that is why they are used to promote agendas, like the jackass from the Denmark newspaper claiming to uphold the freedom of speech.

But Saudi papers aren't exempt, they need to understand that respect is mutual, and having some radical nutcases defaming and insulting KSA and Islam is not an excuse to go down to that level and degrade other religions (such as Judaism) or nationalities (such as from the far east).

AlWatan newspaper published this cartoon as a commentary about the first case of swine flu being bought to the country by a Filipino nurse, it is degrading and racist. And we should all join in condemning it just as the world condemned the Danish cartoons of yesteryear.

It is with our power of words that freedom of speech is held as a constructive tool, not a publicity stunt that every gomer and hick use to garner the attention and love of the right wing nuts/extremists.

Link to the cartoon

The Pez-audi

I know people tend to associate Saudis with uniformity. We are the Trekkie's of the real world, wearing the same clothes, sport the same facial hair, and boldly go, well everywhere.
That's the problem, bunch of lemmings cause trouble in Spain, every Saudi going there is stereotyped.
Canadian Saudi flasher, watch out everyone.
Stereotyping is a stable against Saudis, its our certificate of authenticity. We have come to expect that we bare the burden of every cumulative Saudi mistake since the dawn of time.
Because we look the same, dress the same, we must be the same.
Like candy from a Pez dispenser, dressed in white and sour all over.

Not Selling the Abaya

Should waitress wear skimpy outfits and act all flirty with men?
One restaurant chain thinks so. Hooters is going to absurd and insulting lengths to patronize backward habits of the west by forcing its female waitresses to dress and behave in a stereotype of subservient Western women. When waitress Lana Assam stood up to the policy, she was fired.
Hooters employees were informed of the policy previously. In addition to wearing the traditional skin tight top and shorts, the policy stated that, "it is expected that female act in a way that entices our core demograph, males 18-30 to cum for more then the food."
To Miss Assam this was outrageous. "I am a proud Saudi woman and I don't want to be demeaned in this way," she told us in an exclusive interview. "I'm a Muslim, and I'm proud to be Saudi." Miss Assam hastened to add that this was not a clash of civilizations but a labor dispute over a sexually discriminatory policy. "This is not a political statement or promotion of one belief over another," she said. "We're living in the 21st century here. Any woman told to be open with men will be outraged, don't you think?"
Miss Assam union representative told her the top & shorts were considered "an item of uniform" and that refusal to wear it should be treated as "a potential disciplinary matter." Miss Assam went to great lengths to avoid coming into conflict with the policy. She asked not to be scheduled to go to the dinning area, but that would remove her from all money making areas, which effectively would cut her salary by a third. When her time finally came to serve, she refused, and was suspended.
Ten months of what Miss Assam refers to as "administrative bullying" ensued before she was dismissed in April 2008. "I started standing up for myself," she said, "and I don't think they liked it." She appealed her case but a labor tribunal accepted Hooters argument that the chain introduced the requirements "entirely from the need to conform to local customs, practices and law in the west."
Hooters should help usher the west into the modern age by setting an example of equality and tolerance rather than pandering to discriminatory practices.

Link to the story

The Winner of the Race-ism

Saudis abroad get a lot of grief, mostly for stuff they don't have anything to do with.
Most have this Homer-esqnece about them where they are too dumb to understand that stereotyping can kill ya.
And yet you have these lemmings flying out in droves, vacations and study courses, even learning a language they can perfectly learn at home. And once they arrive at their destination, they tolerate, make excuses, and are in denial based on how much they are in the hole (not talking about red lights here). But it gets to them, then they unleash the 'Racism rant' in a way that makes them look paranoid.
But it is true, Saudis are discriminated against to a degree where only extortion can soften it. A Saudi with no money abroad is a simple doormat. Saudi students pray that there is no skirmish in Israel during the exam period. Saudi families on vacation hope there isn't an Arab story arc in 24 or any HBO special during their trip to Orlando.
It sucks, it really does. But all we can do is hope to save up enough money to pay off people to accept the fact that it was OTHER Saudis that done those deeds. All we want to do is have overpriced foreign junk.

Outsourcing Culture

What does Saudi Arabia have? Oil and culture. That is all. And as everyone and their grandma are trying to make oil obsolete, culture in Saudi is getting battered from a number of fronts.

First, you got those who are trying to erase it, go down any uptown street or up any downtown slum and you are greeted (not really, more like shocked) with an array of subcultures based on what popular western genre was available. But mostly rap/hip hop for the boys and teenie soaps for the girls. It is quite distressful when dealing with someone who doesn't even have a grasp of their own identity, their ever changing personality are entirely dependant on whatever free time they had last night to shoot up another rap CD or episode of 90210.

The other problem is with those who are outsourcing culture, one example is the importing of the Shumaq (red-white checkered head scarf) from the UK, and blatantly advertising it as the "Original English Shumaq". One far out example is this belly dancing video from Japan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk3kIvJlAiQ

If this goes on, once the oil runs out, Saudi cities, void of local culture would resemble broken down malls.

And that concludes the post for today, sayonara, adios, and goodbye.