Johnny depp as tonto: racist or not?

[Steve]

Just saw the movie. Liked it, but I'm curious what the thoughts are around here. Is Depps depiction racist or not?

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[pgsmith]

Haven't seen the movie, but just naming the indian sidekick "stupid" is pretty darn racist in my book!

 

[granfire]

I am sure it is, but you can't call the Lone Ranger's sidekick anything else but Tonto these days. I mean, not to call him stupid, but Hi Ho Silver, the Lone Ranger and his sidekick Steve, or Paul....

Sure there isn't an alternative meaning to it?

And I do wonder... don't they have any native american actors who can look good on a horse?
Like the guy who played in 'Windtalker'?

 

[billc]

I saw Depp on Letterman. They both complained about greedy white men and the treatment of native Americans. I thought it was funny that Depp mentioned "white men's greed," several times...but no one asked him if they could have found an actual Native American to play his role...and given that gentleman what Mr. Depp received for the job. Perhaps Mr. Depp needs to think a little more before he pontificates?

 

[Big Don]

NOT!
He's an actor.

Tonto, btw, means stupid in Spanish, in Spanish speaking countries, he is called Toro, because you can't call the Lone Ranger's faithful Indian Companion Stupid.
This amuses me way too much.

 

[arnisador]

I haven't seen the film but the trailer has certainly left me wondering how sensitive the portrayal is.

 

[Steve]

Okay. So, has anyone seen the movie besides me?

Fwiw, I think they did a nice job. Depp isn't Comanche, but he alleges to have some Native American ancestry, and was made an honorary member of the Comanche tribe a while back.

Tonto is played by depp as quirky and a little odd. Without spoiling anything, he is referred to by the other Comanche in the movie as having a broken mind. Every other Comanche is (I think) very much a Native American.

I think that the Comanche are largely portrayed against stereotypes, and are not cast as villains at all.

I'd be interested to hear what you guys think after you've seen the movie.

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[elder999]

"Racist?" Not really-at least, not the fact of his doing so-I haven't seen the movie, so I really don't know about his portrayal.

"Insensitive," though? Sure. They could have gotten Wes Studi, or Roger Wheeler, or Adam Beach, or even Gary Farmer(which, given his age, demeanor and girth, might have made for a fun comedic choice!). Instead, they followed a longtime Hollywood tradition, and it doesn't really mean a damn thing-critics and box-office say this thing has "John Carter of Mars" all over it...:lfao:

 

[granfire]

Okay. So, has anyone seen the movie besides me?

Fwiw, I think they did a nice job. Depp isn't Comanche, but he alleges to have some Native American ancestry, and was made an honorary member of the Comanche tribe a while back.

Tonto is played by depp as quirky and a little odd. Without spoiling anything, he is referred to by the other Comanche in the movie as having a broken mind. Every other Comanche is (I think) very much a Native American.

I think that the Comanche are largely portrayed against stereotypes, and are not cast as villains at all.

I'd be interested to hear what you guys think after you've seen the movie.

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I think in the TV show the White Man was the baddy anyhow....

 

[billc]

It sounds from your description that he is Captain Jack Sparrow in the American West...

 

[Steve]

It sounds from your description that he is Captain Jack Sparrow in the American West...

Kind of.


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[aaradia]

"". They could have gotten Wes Studi, or Roger Wheeler, or Adam Beach, or even Gary Farmer(which, given his age, demeanor and girth, might have made for a fun comedic choice!). Instead, they followed a longtime Hollywood tradition, and it doesn't really mean a damn thing-critics and box-office say this thing has "John Carter of Mars" all over it...:lfao:

The main draw of wanting to see that film for most people is that Depp is in it. Really, who would be excited about seeing this film without Depp? Answer honestly. Would most of us want to see it if Adam Beach or Roger Wheeler was in that role? I'm guessing no. Someone honestly tell me I am wrong here.

As for the portrayal, I'll let you know what I think when I see it. Probably this weekend.

 

[Daniel Sullivan]

Okay. So, has anyone seen the movie besides me?

Fwiw, I think they did a nice job. Depp isn't Comanche, but he alleges to have some Native American ancestry, and was made an honorary member of the Comanche tribe a while back.

Tonto is played by depp as quirky and a little odd. Without spoiling anything, he is referred to by the other Comanche in the movie as having a broken mind. Every other Comanche is (I think) very much a Native American.

I think that the Comanche are largely portrayed against stereotypes, and are not cast as villains at all.

I'd be interested to hear what you guys think after you've seen the movie.

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I saw the movie. I didn't find the portrayal racist, but I'm also not of the ethnic group portrayed in the Tonto character. I thought the movie fell short in a number of non related areas; it could have been great, but instead, it was merely okay.

Personally, I felt that they diminished other parts of the story in order to emphasize Depp. Personally, I'd rather have seen a different actor in the role. His ancestry isn't a factor in that. It kind of seemed that they went out of their way to make the sidekick the star for the sole purpose of getting the most out of Depp. Having said that, I thought his performance was fine.

 

[Daniel Sullivan]

It sounds from your description that he is Captain Jack Sparrow in the American West...

Actually no. I saw it and didn't get that at all. Very different character.

 

[oftheherd1]

NOT!
He's an actor.

Tonto, btw, means stupid in Spanish, in Spanish speaking countries, he is called Toro, because you can't call the Lone Ranger's faithful Indian Companion Stupid.
This amuses me way too much.

From wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonto):

Tonto was portrayed as an intelligent character, an equal partner to the Ranger in his work.[SUP][citation needed][/SUP]
The radio series identified Tonto as a chief's son in the Potawatomi nation. His name translates as "wild one" in his own language.[SUP][citation needed][/SUP] For the most part, the Potawatomi did not live in the Southwestern states, and their regalia is different from that worn by Tonto.[SUP][clarification needed][/SUP] The choice to make Tonto a Potawatomi seems to come from station owner George Trendle's youth in Mullett Lake, Michigan. Located in the northern part of the Midwest, Michigan is the traditional territory of the Potawatomi, and many local institutions use Potawatomi names. Other sources [SUP][7][/SUP] indicate that Camp Kee Mo Sah Bee belonged to the father-in-law of the show's director, James Jewell. According to author David Rothel, who interviewed Jewell a few months before his death[SUP][7][/SUP] Kee Mo Sah Bee and Tonto were the only two words that Jewell remembered from those days. Tonto's name may have been inspired by the name of Tonto Basin, Arizona.
"Tonto" is also a common Spanish and Italian word meaning "stupid." Interestingly, "Kee Mo Sabe" comes pretty close to "que no sabe," roughly Spanish for "clueless one" (i.e. "tonto"). For this reason, the character is called "Toro" (Bull) in Spanish language versions.

Who knew?

 

[Daniel Sullivan]

From wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonto):

Who knew?
[/I][/I][/I]

I did.