Bright: The Apotheosis of Lazy Worldbuilding | Video Essay

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[@tricksterhuaun]

Choose your race: Elf, Dwarf, Orc, Mexican

[@oscarmccormack1611]

In South Park: The Stick of Truth, the four possible classes are Warrior, Thief, Mage, and Jew.

[@pf161821]

Half orc, half mexican

[@koboldcatgirl]

@@pf161821 Basically just a normal half-orc, but you take a -4 penalty to Diplomacy checks when speaking to someone who remembers the Alamo.

[@Tareltonlives]

We're halflings, so that's just a name change.

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

No, no, no, you got it wrong. Mexican is a *sub*race. You gotta get the DLC for that option.

[@Swag_money]

Imagine someone saying “once with hitler always with hitler” about Germans

[@schwarzerritter5724]

The difference is Germany is a major player in world economics and politics. There is no faster way to win someone's grace back than having them want something from you.

[@MrFoxInc]

John Smith Yeah it's not like that's a common tongue-in-cheek remark or a classic stereotype in any media outside of German media to this day or anything

[@WillBits]

Along those lines... is there.... NOT anything resembling an Orc Nation? At all? Seems like another missed opportunity.

[@schwarzerritter5724]

@@WillBits Hold on, are orcs actually a metaphor for Jews? I mean, a folk without a home nation, still getting crap for something they allegedly did millenia ago.

[@WillBits]

I mean they're a metaphor for "lesser, violent" races (Tolkien likened them to the "Mongols") but yeah, kinda. More specifically, a LOT of fantasy stories code goblins with the same traits as Jews. (Look at World of Warcraft and Harry Potter, especially). Huge noses, obsession with money, very clever and tricky but physically weak. It's, like, a thing that is actually problematic, even if most fantasy stories aren't really doing it with malice anymore.

[@OsmSkylandersCheats]

Imagine beating a raccoon to death in your yard and then saying “raccoon lives don’t matter today”

[@niallreid7664]

You know what? I probably would. But to myself and not to my neighbours. And I'd probably think, "man, that was a lame- ass joke."

[@edenmckinley3472]

Your neighbors would give you an odd look and go "R U Ok? Maybe you should take a vacation."

[@sheldondowning958]

[Rocket the Raccoon disliked that]

[@carlosmunoz3089]

Is raccoon what you call actors like Will Smith when they take on roles where they play the voice of the racist writer or elite producer making the movie?

[@grapemuncher]

@@carlosmunoz3089 what

[@alexbattaglia8297]

"You know what they say about the Italians, once with Julius Caesar, always with Julius Caesar"

[@NoapeHenah]

Julius Caesar was not Italian he was Roman. That's not the same thing

[@alexbattaglia8297]

@@NoapeHenah joke -> your head:

[@NoapeHenah]

@@alexbattaglia8297 ?

[@PlatoonGoon]

@@alexbattaglia8297Imagine some anime dweeb on a high horse...

[@imperadoraureo]

​@@NoapeHenah He tried to say that The joke passed over your head Because you didnt get the joke

[@nurkadurka]

I agree with all your criticisms but one. Shrek exists in all possible timelines

[@sigmacademy]

Perhaps a multiversal cosmic entity? XD

[@jc-kj8yc]

Then bright is the darkest timeline

[@Heckules]

but what about the timeline where shrek doesn't exist in all possible timelines?

[@sigmacademy]

We call that one "the dark dimension". It is the dimension whose name we don't speak. XD

[@TheDracoChick]

@@catherinestickels2591 Wasn't Shrek based off a children's book, though? I could've sworn reading it when I was in elementary school. So it still could've existed in this universe without the movie...I guess?

[@TheTaleForge]

It's an old video, but I want to point out that there are centaurs on screen and there are clearly no accomodations made in doorways or hallways for their presence despite them just being part of the word.

[@JMBAD_art]

Top 10 Things Bright Could Have Learned From Zootopia

[@emmae2520]

[insert disabled people being a minority joke here]

[@allisonjuno7654]

on the wiki it says they're 0.01% of the US population and typically live in rural areas that may have special accommodations. the centaur in the movie was probably only there because the police needed one. same with the giants, they aren't in the movie but they exist in the universe but they live in places with special accommodations (like 15 foot tall doorways)

[@qwertyuoip1234]

A clear violation of the Americans Who Are Centaurs Act.

[@highlordlaughterofcanada8685]

@@qwertyuoip1234 A.W.A.C.A.

[@RaistlinMajereFistandantilus]

We hate orcs... Because they fought under the Dark Lord... Who was an elf... Who was only defeated because of an orc. Flawless world building.

[@heitorpedrodegodoi5646]

Hitler was white, Berlim was taken by Soviet Union, Western world dont hate white people but hate communists.

[@RaistlinMajereFistandantilus]

@@heitorpedrodegodoi5646 Okay? And? My point is the racism in the writing makes no sense. It's not thought through.

[@archkull]

@@RaistlinMajereFistandantilus I get what you mean and i agree, and its really shitty worldbuilding, but I think its kinda funny cause ive seen real people be racist for more nonsensical reasons irl lmao

[@RaistlinMajereFistandantilus]

@@archkull all racism is for stupid reasons, it's made up bull shit

[@LoLaSn]

@@archkull Most people lack critical thinking and introspection nowadays, so sadly what you're saying is not even surprising anymore

[@madhackrviper]

That one graffiti in there with the elf puppeteering the human that's beating on an orc feels like it comes from a much better movie that actually fully explores the implications of the stratified society.

[@friendlyghosthost1830]

Exactly! They could’ve made elves the masterminds who were trying to pin all theirs crimes on the orcs!

[@Ralzar]

Whenever Bright comes up I am always reminded of that whole intro with "We're broken people" playing while cruising past grafitti and how it set the scene for a fantastic movie that never happened. Bright was basically "What if we made a Shadowrun movie, except we just slightly rewrite a generic cop movie and then throw out all Shadowrun world building in favour of just making up some historical references on the spot?"

[@R77ification]

Yeap. From the get go we are shown elves essentially rule the world with golden fists. Then we are shown that only elves can use magic, which explains why they rule the world: They can do and make whatever the hell they want a reality. Which is why finding the magic wand was top priority for the government as opposed to, well, everything else.

[@jamesderiven1843]

@@Ralzar I genuine haven't seen anyone mention Bright since it came out, would love to know when and where it's making appearances.

[@kapiteinkech1868]

though the racialisation of "the elites" into elves that puppeteer the world does feel a little anti-semitic

[@dougthedonkey1805]

Me about British people: “You know what they say, once with King George always with King George”

[@fructifer4502]

​@Yongo Bazuk I hope YOUR comment isn't satire. Because you are 18% correct.

[@Tervval2]

i laughed at this

[@dougthedonkey1805]

@@Tervval2 glad I could make you laugh

[@kittycatcrunchie]

Which King George

[@dougthedonkey1805]

@@kittycatcrunchie the one who lost the Revolutionary War

[@MarStoryTime]

So, is Shrek like, a historical drama in the Bright universe?

[@swordswaltzing]

shrek is the bright of the bright universe

[@starhunter9085]

*It would have to be*

[@GilCAnjos]

It got famous for being one of the first kids movies about racism

[@Tazzie1312]

It's like A Knight's Tale?

[@emilycaballero6052]

...imagine a historical drama made today where the love interest transforms into a different race at the end so she can be with the main character. It would almost be funny.

[@---rm8do]

"once with the dark lord, always with the dark lord" is such an insane line

[@mooncat7009]

its the kind of line someone without a brain would write!

[@cookyboi7422]

The delivery sells it beautifully

[@timothymclean]

Is the Dark Lord even still a thing in the 21st-century Brightverse?

[@daanstrik4293]

You want a second dark lord? because thats how you get a second dark lord

[@sab3redg333]

Funny how this works for the rings of power too

[@regularjoe5517]

The fact they could’ve named it belferly hills is a heartbreak I will never recover from

[@etcetc1]

oh my god you're right

[@1oace768]

In the heart of Mount Everest, great rings were forged. Three were given to the elves, immortal, wisest, and fairest of all beings. Seven to the Dwarf Lords; great miners and craftsmen of the mountain halls. And nine rings were gifted to the race of Mexicans, who above all, got shit for the Alamo.

[@yonatanbeer3475]

Ah yes, the great classic Tolkien races: elf, dwarf, Hobbit, human, Mexican...

[@papaquaalude8227]

this one paragraph that was a reference to lotr is better than the entirety of bright

[@muhilan8540]

Mexicans won the battle of the Alamo.

[@mariamatedei]

Thank God I revisited this video, I would have missed this beautiful comment otherwise

[@raiorai2]

@@muhilan8540 *When they win:* we won, 'murica fuck yeah *When they lose:* you violent fuck, how dare you?

[@FaeMagic]

"WHO WERE THE NINE RACES?! WERE MEXICANS PART OF THE 9 RACES?!" I love that line.

[@xxkanezxx6903]

@@lovellofwar that's the joke idiot

[@xxkanezxx6903]

@@lovellofwar also they're** as in they ARE not their

[@josephperez2004]

From what little I can see, there are Humans, Orcs, Elves...and apparently at least one Centaur cop. So they got four races at least. But that's not even half of them...

[@xxkanezxx6903]

@@lovellofwar wtf are you on about? are you 12? you do realize the op was quoting from the video right?

[@gregmulax5870]

@@josephperez2004 I'm still convinced that fairies actually are one of the nine races and that the fairy violence that no one cares about is the true racism allegory in this movie.

[@JohnJacobJingleheimerSchmidt7]

“Were Mexicans one of the nine races?” is basically all the commentary you need to make about Bright’s awful worldbuilding 😂

[@thisgoddamusernamestoodamnlong]

Ah yes, the mighty legions of Elves, Humans, and Mexicans, allied against the dark lord

[@lonestarr9759]

​@@thisgoddamusernamestoodamnlong we (real born in mx not pochos) mexicans defeat the dark lord :b

[@starkillersneed]

"Fairy lives don't matter today"

[@bconroy328]

​​​​@@thisgoddamusernamestoodamnlong the mexicans, we are a proud people with a vast amount of variations... in the north you have the wood tejanos and in the gulf you have the high Cubans truly we are a wonderus race.

[@cuindless189]

Weird how humans have all these different languages thanks to linguistic drift over centuries of development, but Orcs and Elves just have one language...

[@Donnerbalken28]

I think what frustrates many people about Bright is that "fantasy creatures in a contemporary setting" actually sounds like a novel and fresh idea in a genre that is dominanted by medieval stasis.

[@DariaHoelzel]

I honestly love that concept of Bright. I find medieval settings to be a bore so I love when film makers do something different. But I also like continuity and obvious continuity mistakes bother me a to a point where they ruin a movie/show for me.

[@cuindless189]

Making this a Shadowrun movie would have solved a lot of problems.

[@persianking44]

There are plenty of much more modern or non-medieval setting fantasy books out there, that just don't see the light of day (and whether or not they're actually good is debatable). And there's definitely a lot of manga and anime that mix fantasy with a modern setting. The inherent problem is that you can't have a modern, real world setting without implying the history that came with, and there's only four ways to go around it: the Secret World where the history is just ignored (which is fine as long as there's an adequate explanation for why normal humans can't do or see magical stuff), fully integrate the fantasy into the real-world (like, say, Hitler and the Nazis were all vampires, dragons were used by the British Empire as biological aircraft (aka the Temeraire series), that sort of thing), the modern setting is purely aesthetic, or the fantasy stuff happened recently. The MCU and DCEU can more or else get away with referencing movies and pop culture stuff because they don't contradict the history behind any of them, or real world historical events for that matter, and the stuff that's a little paradoxical (like MCU Tony referencing the LOTR movies when the real Cate Blanchett and Karl Urban play Hela and Skurge respectively in the MCU film Thor Ragnorok) can honestly just be chalked up to the fact that either the MCU humans named Cate Blanchett and Karl Urban look completely different than their irl counterparts, or they don't exist and the parts for Galadriel and Eomer were played by other MCU humans).

[@PhoenixFireZero]

​@@cuindless189not really. It would have just added RoboCop into the mix.

[@amiablereaper]

Honestly a lot of urban fantasy is cop or cop adjacent and it's annoying. It's very difficult to really explore these alternate realities when the person supposed to explore them treats extrajudicial murder as a first response

[@MaylocBrittinorum]

I don't know you guys, but I want a prequel set in WW2 where mermaids fight Japanese kamikaze dragons and Hitler is literally Sauron.

[@toatahu2003]

@JoeRingo118 Sauroman.

[@Fly-the-Light]

Stalin could be Carcharoth, a giant wolf that beats a magic dog that beat up Sauron

[@toatahu2003]

@@Fly-the-Light I would like to change my vote!

[@Shinigami13133]

@JoeRingo118 which would make Stalin morgoth

[@yetanother9127]

@@Shinigami13133 Except that doesn't work, Morgoth was Sauron's master. Stalin would have to be some character who is just as evil as Sauron but also opposed to him, and as far as I know the only character that really fits those criteria is Saruman.

[@Olibubb]

The movie just drops a centaur in the background and never ever comes back to it

[@CyborgX7]

Centaurs are one of the nine races, I'm guessing.

[@AlexanderDraconis]

Shoulda been about Centaur Cop.

[@Beansquishy]

@@AlexanderDraconis centaur cop part man, part horse, ALL cop

[@Zeppelinschaffner22]

@@jazzycat8917 What Lindsay points out and what I assumed to be the case after having watched this abomination of a movie, I reckon it's, in descending order of class: Elves, Whites, Blacks, "Mexicans"/Hispanics, idk Asians?,. Centaurs, Orcs and probably Goblins or some shit? But yeah.. they never say anything about that, but I assume the different races of humans count too. Otherwise I would not make it to 9 either

[@cjensen9213]

Beansquishy underated comment

[@WellWoopdidoo]

I got into an argument with my partner about Bright today so I’m back watching this again. I can’t stop thinking about Background Centaur Cop. They have Orc affirmative action but none of those bathrooms we see are centaur accessible. How does he go to morning briefing? He can’t get up the stairs. Do they have minimum size requirements for lifts to accommodate centaur citizens? How does this impact city planning and architecture? The big stairs up to city hall at the end are not centaur friendly. Is there a centaur booth at the strip club? Can orcs and humans have babies? What about elves? You know humans would have tried to smash with every other race by now. I don’t want to think about centaur porn.

[@meowi6805]

That final sentence just triggered a fight or flight reaction so strong I flinched

[@BlackOrderAlchemist]

I think a movie about background centaur cop would have been exponentially better than the one we got. I mean, I'd watch it; but that mostly because I like centaurs :y In saying that, I could probably answer some of your questions, but some wouldn't be, y'know, "youtube-friendly". Guess you'll be left wondering, unless by some strange circumstance I get drafted to write a sequel or something :'y

[@WellWoopdidoo]

@@BlackOrderAlchemist Fun news. I was, as I often find myself, groggily googling about Bright because I started on a tangent in my own head instead of sleeping. (I couldn’t remember seeing female orcs in the movie, but there were some in the background so they probably don’t burst from corrupted earth-wombs like Tolkien orcs). Clicking through the wiki I noticed they mentioned speaking lines from a named centaur, which led to a page about an animated movie in the Bright universe set in Japan after the fall of the Shogunate. Should I be congratulating you on the new job?

[@amiablereaper]

You know, half orcs are a dnd classic, and talking about the struggles of mixed race people would be a way to extend the themes of the movie And when it comes to centaur porn... don't worry, other people have done that thinking for you

[@theunwelcome]

@@amiablereaper half-orcs and half-elves too, humans are sluts that will fuck anything that moves

[@duncanchapin3630]

I will never get over the "BE YORCELF" graffiti at 5:11. That's not punk graffiti, that should be a dopey motivational poster on Jakoby's desk

[@nykcarnsew2238]

Way too many people in the entertainment industry don’t understand graffiti. I keep seeing elaborate murals being used to indicate urban decay

[@timothymclean]

@@nykcarnsew2238 Because the presence of elaborate murals which poor people paint on other people's property is an indication of the parts of urban life _they_ like decaying. Which parts are those? Um...let's change the subject.

[@nykcarnsew2238]

@@timothymclean poor people don’t paint elaborate murals on other people’s property, full murals take days to finish. In fact my issue with them is that they *don’t* indicate urban decay, they’re actually a sign of gentrification if anything

[@InsertCleverNameHere0]

"See how I glitter!" VS "I ate the WHOLE plate." VS "I'm losing to a bird!" VS "Fairy lives don't matter today." CHOOSE YOUR DESTINY

[@purpleghost106]

InsertCleverNameHere - shouldn't that first one be "do I dazzle you?" Unless it's not the twilight quote in which case carry on. (I wouldn't even notice except Lindsay's last video pointed it out. XD)

[@mattopiiskamiks5350]

PurpleGhost (all of these quotes given are phrases and clips often used by lindsay in her videos. "See how i glitter" is a reoccuring clip of that badguy from pocahontas)

[@lorddashdonalddappington2653]

The whole plate is a much more funny line than the others.

[@willier47]

I will take the Whole Plate line. I thought that scene was funny. Funnier then those other Scenes lol

[@gota7738]

Thot Patrol I think we've found the winner folks

[@conneroneill8506]

If nobody gets the “why didn’t they hire a screenwriter” joke it in reference to the fact that it was written by max landis, a known sexual predator...

[@sweetly1634]

Ah thanks, I was so confused. I thought they actually just didn't hire a screenwriter and I was like... why, how did they even make a movie?

[@conneroneill8506]

Sweetly Yerp, he’s a real scumbag, whom was also unfortunately on a great episode of redlettermedia that you should watch and not tell anyone.

[@CasaiAgicap]

​@@conneroneill8506 IT'S SO FRUSTRATING He's a total bastard and I can't stomach supporting anything about him But That episode is BOTW! Also he made a really good Superman comic that I read before I knew he was a shithead and now I don't want to like it and ahhhhh

[@JacksonKillroy]

@@CasaiAgicap He also made that video back in 2012 about the series of superman comics from the 90s where superman died that is one of the best things on youtube

[@breathe-2am]

No lie i didnt know this and didnt think it was weird bc the movie was so bad....... i legit thought that they decided not to have a screenwriter and their movies plot was shit because of that...... the fact that this actually had a screenwriter and is so bad is insane to me

[@glitchedoom]

I want to like the idea of modern, urban fantasy, but seeing a LAPD officer say the words "dark lord" unironically is too much for me.

[@itsonlyafleshwound9024]

Extremely late, but still. I think its because we dont say it this way in the real world unless we are already following them. To use the obvious example, most people refer to the nazi leader as "hitler" and not "the führer". In fact, referring to him as "the führer" kinda implies that you respect him/look up to him/follow his worldview. So people referring to the character as "the dark lord" while being fundamentally opposed to him just doesnt work. Why respect the most evil humanoid that ever lived? If even J.K. Rowling manages to do that correctly (with the added layer of "he who must not be named"), then it is an embarrasement if bright cant.

[@senecavermeulen8110]

@@itsonlyafleshwound9024i mean, magic exists so there might be superstition about saying his name. also dark lord has a meaning in English, unlike Führer, so calling him that casts him as the bad guy

[@War_is_cool]

⁠@@senecavermeulen8110führer means leader

[@senecavermeulen8110]

@@War_is_cool it doesn’t have a meaning in English besides as a synonym for Hitler

[@sharkenjoyer]

@@senecavermeulen8110 Not really how it works

[@andyb1653]

"We gonna titty-bar gun-fight DIE" is still one of the greatest lines Will Smith has ever uttered.

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

“Keep my Wife’s name out your fucking mouth” is a hard competitor for the top spot..

[@ocdc3261]

@@jakespacepiratee3740 That line was so good it was criminal, like actually, he should have been arrested for that.

[@ryantalley5284]

@@jakespacepiratee3740 HAHAGAGAFAFADAFAHA You're not funny. This was never funny. Please shut up.

[@FroggyMosh]

@@ocdc3261 Some things are worth getting arrested over. (I take it this is about the comedian he slapped, right? Genuine question, cause I normally don't really keep up with all that drama guff.)

[@jamaaldagreatest2748]

@@FroggyMosh Yes, yes it was. That was the joke, not trying to sound mean, jus figured I'd answer your question since nobody else has for two months 😂

[@tzisorey]

I wonder if, in that universe, "Shrek" is their equivalent of "Song of the South"

[@clayxros576]

I really wouldn’t be surprised if it was, and that’d be a really cool dynamic of so.

[@joeavreg2254]

That's way too smart and aware a reinterpretation of contemporary media for this crap.

[@KOTEBANAROT]

but shrek was making fun of disney, is disney a thing too?

[@snowflakepillow8697]

Is it not ours?

[@darkeimp555]

I could see people defending it by saying "yeah but he's not an ORC, he's an OGRE, you're reading into it too much!" much like people have of Bright, saying the orcs weren't coded black, they were just wearing "popular urban clothes that many people wear".

[@mirror8519]

The two most known fantasy races: Orcs and Black.

[@HERSHISKISS]

Don't forget the third race: Mexican

[@Shades781]

Also aboriginal Australians

[@Shades781]

@The one and only okay

[@HamletMan]

I laughed so hart on this loool

[@Nantosuelta]

@The one and only It does exist, you just have to BELIEVE!

[@thusadragon]

I remember being amused by the general premise as I watched Bright, but constantly wishing that Will Smith's asshole character didn't exist and that Jakoby was the bright instead.

[@enricosciacovelli5890]

I've just realized one thing. Jakoby blasts in the car heavy metal and Ward turns it off with "we will not be listening to orkish music" So Orcs like heavy metal. That is their genre. THEN WHY DO THEY ALL WEAR DURAGS AND HAVE HIP-HOP INSPIRED URBAN GANGSTA FLAVA?!

[@BlackOrderAlchemist]

Maybe its like surburban white kids who like rap and their parents are like "'Nooo! why not wholesome American country music in my good Christian household?' So in this universe it's "Son, this is a [insert death metal band (I'm sorry I can't think of any atm)] house and I will not have you crip walking all over our values."

[@Jonathanizer]

Or it's just random and the guys who made it never gave it a second thought, and Netflix just green-lit every semi decent idea back then anyways. It's just lazily cobbled together, as the video explained.

[@BlackOrderAlchemist]

@@Jonathanizer nofunallowed.jpg

[@SplitMutton]

The song is "Hammer Smashed Face" by Cannibal Corpse and it is likely a nod to the singer, George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher being a devoted Orc player in WOW. There was a character named after him in the game for a period of time though he was removed after some tasteless comments by Fisher.

[@naikigutierrez4279]

@@SplitMutton I guess that Tomb of the Mutilated is Cannibal Corpse’s most well known album, but couldn’t they have chosen a song that actually has Corpsegrinder on vocals?

[@UrpleSquirrel]

My takeaway from this: Bright is a bad movie, but I would TOTALLY watch an urban fantasy buddy cop movie with Legolas and Gimli.

[@funnyberries4017]

UrpleSquirrel Pixar did it!

[@SacredDaturana]

Yeah, the reason I liked this more than it deserved, I think, is that it's such an inherently intriguing premise/elevator pitch. There is an urban-fantasy shaped hole in pop culture aching to be filled in and unfortunately Bright happened to fill it this time.

[@eugenhardtmann454]

Shadowrun fans: Allow us to introduce ourselves

[@the_furry_inside_your_walls639]

@@SacredDaturana At least small shapes that don't necessarily fit the holes they're put into can be easily knocked out of them by bigger shapes that do.

[@theGhostSteward]

Yes. Fanfics are way better on subverting genres. Change my mind.

[@wickedcaitsith]

If Shrek exists that means Smash Mouth exists. I like to imagine that the lead singer of Smash Mouth is an orc in the "Bright" universe.

[@tommyhill7645]

Some BODY

[@ericb7291]

isn't he an orc in ours?

[@r.h.3532]

I love that. Totally fits

[@r.h.3532]

@@ericb7291 Right? Lol

[@tiacat11]

From what little I know of Steve Harwell, I think he'd agree with you.

[@davidls187]

Bright is what happens when someone who doesn't understand the roots and depth of racism is asked to explain why racism is bad.

[@cactusadams7752]

@@caitlyncarvalho7637 idk but I appreciate any attempt to broach the subject of problems within activist groups. In my experience not enough ppl trying to take a stand look at possible hypocrisy or bigotry that any activist can use without realizing it, even when fighting for a good cause.

[@ernie39]

dnd version!

[@siriocaz5743]

This concept of mixing real life settings with high fantasy sounds amazing. Looking forward to a day someone properly executes it.

[@DieselsVideos]

Not a movie. But as Role Playing game with many supporting novels playing in the universe and computer games... Search for Shadowrun.

[@helbent4]

@@DieselsVideos Shadowrun is a bit hit-and-miss in its relation to the real world history, but at least they tried to make the emergence of magic etc. somewhat coherent. I think it would be best if you set such a mashup in an alternative world that looks like ours but it definitely not Earth. (Divergent evolution, if you want to get technical.)

[@DieselsVideos]

@@helbent4 Placing it in anther world would destroy lot's of things that makes Shadowrun as cool as it is. And opens a bunch of other problems. That it's a common name betweenpen and paper Roleplayers and Video gamers prooves that that "a bit hit-and-miss" is not really a big Problem and the MCU Proves that even much more hit-and-miss works well for movies. Before Dr. Strange the MCU was just our world for most people with superheroes and some "hit-and-miss" because of that.

[@helbent4]

​@@DieselsVideos While SR is cool, it's debatable to what degree Shadowrun actually gains that quality by being set in our world. Although it does have historical place names, and a few analogous organisations, pretty much everything else was extensively re-worked: from cultures to national and local political units to brand names (this due to copyright, etc.). In all my years of playing Shadowrun I never got the impression that it really was tied to the real world outside of (say) being set in a city called "Seattle" (Technically, "Seattle Metroplex. Which is treated as the rump of former Washington state w/r to the UCAS, but is also allowed to conduct independent national-level diplomacy. So again, it belongs to our world in name only.) It's possible that in some deep lore somewhere in some product someone decided to tie SR more deeply to our world in various ways but as a player and even ref that would have required far too expensive a deep dive into SR sourcebooks. Plus, I haven't played/reffed SR in a while, I might be missing some (very) subtle point. Anwyays, in SR local politics, geo-politics, culture, social movements and concerns, everything about our world that might inform a good dramatic situation is absent or changed. Part of this is due to the mashup with the nihilistic cyberpunk genre, but even so it's no wonder SR characters are generally (but probably not exclusively) sociopathic corporate mercenaries. To a degree the lack of connection between our world and SR was due to SR being set generations in the future after a cataclysmic event. But then, it may as well be Earthdawn in that respect, but high-tech. Agreed, FASA did do much more world-building than than Bright! But aside from historical place-names, SR reflects little and has little to say about our world. Granted, there is racism towards orks, etc., but this is a time-honoured fantasy trope in and of itself, and SR does do a bit of regurgitation of fantasy stereotypes. God forbid, even while ripping off African-American stereotypes to make its racial point, Bright actually tries to give a (bonkers) reason as to why orcs are historically discriminated against. In SR, it's literally magic: one day normal humans started to change into fantasy races, and those that were orks (and similar assumed "subhumans") were now treated as an underclass for reasons. As a thought-exercise, if you simply changed all the historical place-names in SR to be more fantasy, what actually would change? Other than magic and fantasy races being there all along as part of a more coherent history, not much. The main setting is still a recognisable city-state, a remnant of a much larger but recently-collapsed republic, of which a rump remains. Various aboriginal peoples in concert with various elven groups managed to take back their land in the wake of its collapse, some even expanding their historical territory. I'm unsure the point you make about the MCU. Super-heroes are part of the real-world there, yet still somehow kept separate (except where some real estate needs wrecking.) Over the decades, this genre has tentatively examined some moral and ethical issues surrounding those super-beings, hooray for that. The Boys is probably a much better look at how super-heroes would really act in the real world and it's not pretty. As a suggestion, if you'd like a great RPG example of how supers would integrate with the real world, and the causes of the day, check out the old game "Godlike", if you haven't already.

[@cornfield3034]

Onward was pretty good, but only used to e modernized high fantasy as a setting to justify the existence of magic

[@newflesh666]

I don't understand how the fabled hero was an orc and the orcs are all still hated, but the Dark One was an elf and somehow they're in the upper echelon of society.

[@Nerdsammich]

Because elves have the highest rates of magic potential.

[@lberghaus]

Clearly it's a matter of who does the best PR.

[@ExeErdna]

@@lberghaus Elves were always good at PR

[@merrittanimation7721]

Would probably have been good to note that in the movie.

[@eugenhardtmann454]

I mean, Jesus was a Jew and there still was anti-judaism in large parts of Christianity

[@azeemtravadi6128]

i can't believe fucking Roger Rabbit is a better racial allegory exploring systemic oppression than a movie that was rewritten to be racially conscious

[@DuskEalain]

@@caitlyncarvalho7637 I'd say it does it quite well, as the core isn't that Team Plasma is bad or necessarily even have a bad ideal, but it's rotten in the core because Ghetsis has ulterior motives beyond Pokémon rights and freedoms. This is contrasted to N, who genuinely believes the ideology of the group until he meets the player character and feels the affection their Pokémon have for them, which makes him begin to look inward towards the core because it contradicts the teachings of Team Plasma and - more importantly - Ghetsis. Team Plasma and its members aren't inherently evil, but they're being manipulated by a powerful individual with ulterior motives. Think of how many ideologies in the world world this makes parallel to, groups with good people and even a good ideology, but is paradoxically a force for bad because a bad but powerful person is using the good intentions of others for their own selfish ends.

[@TobiasFangorIsntCis]

I can, Who Framed Roger Rabbit is really good film

[@justaguyonyoutube4592]

Roger Rabbit is an absolute masterpiece

[@SnepperStepTV]

Nobody who writes something that's meant to be "conscious of social issues" knows how to make a movie. They know how to put social issues on a screen. Thing is, you have to put the real world through a bunch of lenses before it becomes a movie that isn't annoying to watch, and in turn you get to make a much deeper statement because you're no longer hitting the audience over the head with "this thing bad" and can explore the cause, effect, and relatability across perspectives.

[@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf]

@@SnepperStepTVI mean it’s a bold and hilarious choice to declare that Francis ford Coppola and Ted Kotcheff and Jordan Peele and Wayne Wang know nothing about making movies, I’m sure that’s definitely a credible opinion we should trust lmfao. Definitely can’t be that insincere corporate engagement with ANY theme including tokenism produces crap the way it always has throughout the history of cinema.

[@silversonome5360]

When you have *fucking Harry Potter* as a positive example of worldbuilding compared to your movie, you know that you've messed up

[@niklausvenzendt]

I always say, "The best example is a bad example," So thank you Bright, for being so bad an example someone had to make a 45 minute mental breakdown of what not to do when world building.

[@spookzer16]

If you want a great example of what not to do, watch Fateful Findings. It's is legitimately the worst piece of content I've ever consumed. Everything about it is bad. From start to finish. I mean like it literally doesn't have redeeming qualities in my opinion. It's not even so bad it's good! It's just bad!

[@niklausvenzendt]

@@spookzer16 You have piqued my interest. Can you offer me an example or two to whet my palate?

[@spookzer16]

@@niklausvenzendt All the women in the movie love the main character who I believe is also the director of the movie, the acting is terrible, and the plot is nonsensical. He feels like a Marty Stu.

[@niklausvenzendt]

@@spookzer16 gotta love a good self-insert.

[@user-rj4pq7lm1n]

it's confusing how nobody in the film comments on the fact that the dark lord was an elf, but nobody's racist against elves

[@JesusIzAPunkRocker]

I hate to be the guy to fulfill Godwin's Law, but easily one of the most hated historical figures, Hitler, was white. But people don't impose his moral failings on white people at large. The same concession is given to elves in Bright. Not defending the ridiculousness that is this movie, just saying that aspect wasn't so odd to me.

[@SorowFame]

I'm guessing that people already didn't like orcs and the whole siding with the Dark Lord thing just justified their hatred, at least in their eyes.

[@akunekochan]

Just like the real life

[@ondras5241]

@@JesusIzAPunkRocker It's not about white people. Hitler was a German and people still make fun of/insult Germans because of that.

[@bl00dvv1tch3]

And the one that defeated him was an Orc but yet they're still treated like shit.

[@athenabrown3117]

Lindsay, you clearly don't know how fantasy works. They had to all stand still at the end because it wasn't their turn in the initiative order yet!

[@MortMe0430]

Suddenly I want to see a fantasy movie that actually follows that rpg limited structure, where the characters are aware of it and have struggle through it. It would be hilarious! Kind of like those Star Wars comics that follow the same premise; can't remember the name.

[@zzyzxsyzygy]

@@MortMe0430 "I grapple." Everyone else: Darth Vader's "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

[@redkite1908]

@@zzyzxsyzygy Darths and Droids. The creator of the line "Jar Jar, your a genius"

[@tibot4228]

@@MortMe0430 I strongly recommend The Gamers, if you haven't seen it yet. Not quite what you are looking for, but a total blast.

[@tiacat11]

@@MortMe0430 Harry Potter and the Natural 20 has a somewhat similar idea: take a character from a D&D game, which runs on tabletop rules and logic, and transport him into the Harry Potter world, which runs on fantasy literature rules and logic. The results are extremely amusing, and that's even before you mention the hilariously mercenary and rules-driven main character, who doesn't REALLY care about all this plot going on or who these people are, but boy does sticking around this Potter kid net him a LOT of exp.

[@eweidenh]

I was rewatching this while cooking Thanksgiving dinner with my 14-month-old son playing nearby. Every time Lindsay went "Aaarrrrgh!", the baby went "Aaarrrgh!".

[@SusanDelgado1177]

Literally nobody cares🤣

[@PhotonBeast]

Having never seen the movie, I just now realized that the whole "Jakoby gets shot and then revived" could have been a moment to help show off the advancement of the relationship between him and Ward. Like Ward is angry and upset to show that he cares and then post-revival, he quips "How are all your holes?" as a call back to earlier in the movie. But rather than it being something 'awkward', it's a more of a legitimate concerned question of "How's the hole in your chest from getting shot?" while also being a possible 'ha ha that's funny' quip.

[@icantcomeupwithagoodusername]

Let's not forget that the elf woman was introduced as a bright. Then the movie forgot about it just to reveal that the elf woman was a bright later as a twist

[@popcorn8153]

they were hoping Netflix and chill would kick in and people wouldn't even be watching for the first reveal.

[@duplicarus]

@@popcorn8153 would have been weird considering I watched this with my sister the first time

[@user-ce1cu5my4j]

@@duplicarus Are you from Alabama by any chance?

[@seanstange8704]

Mikey the orc sounds like a joke DnD character lmfao

[@cursedalien]

Or maybe an npc from The Adventure Zone who was named after someone on Twitter, because that’s how they name their npcs.

[@xhaterkillerx]

A great DnD Character alongside Torbophile the Dwarf

[@jacklandismusic]

@@cursedalien I was legit about to make that joke before I saw the replies!

[@mivical]

thats kinda how i read the whole movie. i thought it was a comedy lol

[@Tareltonlives]

"Hey, you never named your PC" "Um....Mikey?" "Fine, good enough"

[@attackfrogs]

a minor thing that irked me in Bright was the fact that the swearing felt entirely unnatural and forced. like whoever wrote the dialogue for this movie never swore once in their entire damn life. all the swearing just felt so haphazardly tossed in there, there's no flow at all to it! as someone who casually swears like a sailor a lot, listening to the characters talk just felt super jarring. and hard to listen to. like i felt secondhand embarrassment from how shitty it was, ha ha.

[@violenceisfun991]

Same with that show Ozark they seem to think fitting awkawrd awearing into each sentence makes it good "swearing = 14 year olds will love this show"

[@Levacque]

It's almost as if they didn't have a proper screenwriter

[@vaiyt]

Will smith

[@junemurff7970]

Not only did Crash steal and Oscar it also wormed it's way into criminology classes

[@ernie39]

communications classes too. rip.

[@markd.9042]

Underrated comment.

[@AEFic]

I think what's most frustrating about movies like this are that they PRETEND that they're saying "stereotypes are bad", and then turn around and say "let's make orcs/aliens/etc into a black/latin america/asian stereotype!" It's insincere and phony.

[@alandgomez5905]

Yeah, and it's so common. Fuckin bigots.

[@MrPF]

The weirdest thing is that, orcs aren't just a stereotype of black people, they are also a stereotype of Germans with the hole "worked with the dark lord" thing they have

[@alandgomez5905]

@@MrPF Lol I beg to differ.

[@rustyshakelford4232]

@@MrPF I agree. The orcs were a hodgepodge of racist stereotypes. I personally saw the orcs in this movie as being an allegory for middle easterners. Not black people. Linzers here fairly makes the assumption, due to the muddied act of overlaying fantasy species upon our real world, that Christianity was still a thing that existed in it. Think about it. Everybody hates orcs, except for the one orc that was a savior. People in America are terrified of middle easterners, except for the 1 middle easterner, Jesus, who was a savior. ( I don't personally subscribe to that nonsense, religion is just fanfiction that got way the fuck outta control.) Perhaps the creators intended that. Maybe we were meant to personalize the orcs, as being whomever it was we see as being unfairly disenfranchised. Or maybe this was simply a suspend your disbelief romp, that WAS lazily put together, that warrants no further in-depth analysis.

[@laynelg8762]

there not pretending stereotypes are bad they never said that that's just what you wanted them to say. what they are actually doing is showing the issues of today from multiple perspectives in an alternative universe it's not that complicated everyone just needs to stop trying to make it about this race or that place it's about everything and everyone that's why it's an alternative UNIVERSE

[@johnathanarcher6999]

“DreamWorks was unsuccessful until Shrek” I know you’re basically right, but my love for Prince of Egypt makes my heart hurt when u said that

[@silverdays2909]

Prince of Egypt blew my fucking mind when I was a kid

[@ZenzeroCAM]

Not religious but it’s a great story with lots of depth and the animation, song and voice acting is amazing

[@meghanhenderson6682]

My hurt was for Sinbad, but same feel.

[@ellieb.1231]

Cameron Carroll it's one of precious few movies I loved a Christian and still adored after leaving the faith. It's just BEAUTIFUL. I don't understand how it wasn't more successful; to me it's on par with The Lion King. The GOOD one.

[@eddiedingle767]

How about how "The Iron Giant" bombing so hard, it killed WB Animation?

[@impish_snake3526]

See, I KNEW that Will Smith would be the chosen one “bright” the moment they said that humans could be brights. And I thought that Jakoby would be a “bright” because of the obvious tie-in to a chosen-one storyline (the “unblooded” orc who saved the world=the “unblooded” orc who defies modern irc stereotypes). But no. They couldn’t even muster the imagination for THAT old cliche. And it would’ve made the movie more interesting.

[@frankm.2850]

Imagine not just using the line “fairy lives don’t matter today” but HAVING A BLACK MAN SAY IT. What the hell Bright?!

[@lillianward2810]

I think they thought they couldn’t say it otherwise and reeeeeeeally wanted to get that “joke” in.

[@ryansch682]

“What if the Orcs...” “Yeah, yeah, okay, keep going” “...were black people?” “...that’s GENIUS.”

[@jackgebhardt2932]

Reminds me of Detroit: Become Human. DO YOU GET IT!? THE ROBOTS SIT IN THE BACK OF THE BUS!

[@neine999]

@@jackgebhardt2932Detroit is about as subtle as someone screaming SLAVERY IS BAD into your face

[@SylentVoidkeeper]

SPAKELDORF GUYS! THEY SPRAYED WE HAVE A DREAM ON THE WALL! GET IT? ITS LIKE THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT! GET IT? THEY’RE LIKE AFRICAN AMERICANS (despite racism being about physical and biological differences that don’t matter while androids are literally different from humans but whatever)

[@Fenris30]

If the Orcs are Black People then what are the Black People?

[@dreamquesttv]

@@Fenris30 Maybe...they're the REAL Orcs? #message

[@gamerman360]

I'll never forget being a Mexican American kid, growing up in texas, and everuday someone giving me shit for the Alamo.

[@muhilan8540]

Mexicans won the battle fo the Alamo.

[@baronvonbeandip]

What's the Alamo; sorry, I've forgotten.

[@sully1492]

@@baronvonbeandip though you’ll likely not see this comment the Battle of the Alamo was a battle in San Antonio in the Alamo which was originally a Spanish missionary building for native Americans. The battle was between Texan rebels and Santa Anna the leader of Mexico. The Texans army was vastly outnumbered and surrounded so they hid out in the Alamo. In the end after many days the Mexican army slaughtered all of the rebels with many of those who died like Davy Crockett and Stephen F Austin becoming martyrs and the “remember the Alamo” became a rallying cry amoung the rebels.

[@AmayaBloblaya]

Sully Madres I feel like adding, the “Texan rebels” who where Americans where considered invaders by the Mexicans, who owned the territory where the Alamo was at the time.

[@sully1492]

@@AmayaBloblaya you are entirely right. I just didn't want to start a comment war.

[@BaronB.BlazikenBaronOfBarons]

I recently learned of an indie game called Coffee Talk. It’s about you running a late-night coffee shop in a world with fantasy races during the modern day. And it easily handles the concept of “Fantasy Races in the Modern Day” MUCH better than this movie (including the idea of fantasy racism through one of its plot lines). If you want to play it, it’s available on all major platforms along with it’s sequel. It’s a visual novel, so the gameplay isn’t tasking. If you don’t have time for it or can’t afford it, I recommend the readthrough by Jello Plays Games. They not only play it, but fully voice every character, so you can treat it kinda like a podcast. Of course, if you can/want to, support the original creators by buying the game, but treat the readthrough as a backup/alternative. It’s worth your time more than Bright or it’s possible sequel.

[@localinternetclown]

added both to my steam wishlist. thanks for the reccomendation.

[@anomaly7853]

I thought "Elf Town" was a joke until it was criticized as the name of the place.

[@lotusthemermaid]

Jakoby should have been the Bright, and the fact that he wasn't was the biggest disappointment of this film to me.

[@saucyboy1695]

I know, right?! It’s stated in the film that most Brights were elves while very little were human, so that means there was never an orc Bright. He could’ve been the first! It would’ve made the ending so much better.

[@leep9078]

I nether noticed that it said he wasn't a Bright and wasn't the Ork that beat The Dark Lord in the backstory a Bright?

[@treacherousjslither6920]

@@leep9078 He was a legendary hero who united the 9 races against the dark lord. I don't recall any mention of him being a bright.

[@leep9078]

@@treacherousjslither6920 My comment was a while ago so my resoning is a little hazy now but wasn't it said that only a Bright could beat the Dark Lord?

[@AlexanderDraconis]

The point is that we all agree there were better literary seeds than 'Magic Hater becomes Chosen One Harry Potter during the climax". Jirak and the Dark Lord, Jakoby being a bright, or the first orc bright, or maybe Jirak being one and Jakoby becoming one being tied to a reveal that orc brights have been a think, and/ir Jirak was one...all of these have untapped or superior literary potential than another Human as Savior story. Even before jumping into Shadowrun possibilities snd stuff, there were better stories to tell with the premise and in the world they settled on with the material presented.

[@johnjessop9456]

I love the idea of Gimli and Legolas as buddy cops.

[@corv1d770]

If fanfic of this doesn't already exist I will be sorely disappointed

[@elvellarambles9151]

Write it bro

[@angiekelley9038]

Why couldn't we get that instead of this?

[@oof-rr5nf]

Friends to Lovers, Alternate Universe, Rated Mature, Word Count 60,000

[@bunkertons]

I'd watch that show!

[@JohnGenericName]

Also, the Orcish at 40:11 is just an alphabet swap. You can see in "Orc Community Center," the M is repeated, the C's are right next to each other, the "A" looking letter is an R because it's on the middle of Orc and the end of Center. They made up an alphabet but didn't even want to mix up the lettering so it's not a one-to-one letter swap.

[@Alex_Vir]

Also Y and I are the same letter

[@jonkirby1880]

"Were Mexicans one of the nine races?" Jesus, I miss her

[@oakclarke3976]

I mean, technically Aslan is not allegory. He is canonically, explicitly jesus christ.

[@kafkabigmon]

WHAT

[@coinshot]

Yeah that's true at the end of voyage of the dawn treder aslen tells the children" My name in your world is Jesus Christ..." if true that means....hmmmm......does not compute.....

[@oakclarke3976]

@@kafkabigmon What the Crasher said.

[@horatiohuskisson5471]

Thought Aslan was God and Peter Pevensie was jesus

[@Fenris30]

Well someone took the Lamb becoming the Lion literally.

[@acarter9806]

Bright's fucked-up ridiculous fractal of "so apparently that happened in this alternate history for some reason" is exactly the same as when Cars introduced the Car Pope and thus Car Jesus' crucifixion by the Car Roman Empire as being 'a thing that happened'

[@localinternetclown]

more more like jeepus christ

[@anthonycasino8955]

@@localinternetclown Jesus Chrysler

[@kohinarec6580]

Holy Father the Opel.

[@BimpytheWimpyShrimpy]

@@kohinarec6580 In nomine _Ferrari,_ et _Audi,_ Spiritus _Susuki._

[@valletas]

There was a car world war 2 and that means there was a car hitler who ordered car jews into gas chambers Why did they ever think that was a good idea? Wtf

[@allthebanter9316]

I always enjoy the statement “aslan in narnia is a Christ allegory” because it shows the people who only watched the films and never read the books. Aslan isn’t an allegory, he IS Jesus Christ, in universe, Aslan is the form Jesus takes when he interacts with narnia. It’s like saying lucifer in paradise lost is allegory for satan from he bible

[@redpup112]

as someone who hasn't read/watched Narnia, this got a solid "WHAT" out of me

[@allthebanter9316]

@@redpup112 “ I don't say. 'Let us represent Christ as Aslan.' I say, 'Supposing there was a world like Narnia, and supposing, like ours, it needed redemption, let us imagine what sort of Incarnation and Passion and Resurrection Christ would have there.” -Clive Staples Lewis Hopefully I’ve now hit you u with the double tap of Aslan being Jesus’ fursona and The “S” is “C S Lewis” standing for “staple”

[@alissapenridge7516]

Even if we understand Aslan to be literally Jesus, I don’t think that means that the Chronicles of Narnia aren’t allegorical. It’s a symbolic retelling of the New Testament, not a direct recreation of it, and the characters and settings are altered to highlight specific themes. Certain characters are meant to represent certain biblical figures, some more directly and literally than others, and as a whole, Narnia is a parable designed to make the passion of the Christ and other bible stories more approachable and understandable to kids. Even though Aslan eventually reveals himself to be the same character as real-world Jesus, it’s still an allegory, just an allegory where one of the characters breaks the fourth wall.

[@allthebanter9316]

@@alissapenridge7516 narnia as a whole may still be allegory, but no where did I say it wasn’t. All I said was Aslan isn’t an allegory, which he is not

[@bbrbbr-on2gd]

But aren't those all different characters anyway? Lucifer, Beelzebub, Satan and the Devil. It's all sort of interchangeable?

[@SpecterSprite]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it yet, but in that scene where Will shuts off the "Orcish Music", the song playing is "Hammer Smashed Face" by Cannibal Corpse which is a cheeky reference to the fact that George "Corpseginder" Fisher is a big WOW fan and only plays as an Orc. When this movie was made, there was a character in the game named after him (Gorge the Corpsegrinder) but it was changed recently after George made some unsavory remarks during an interview.

[@ofsinope]

I think Jacoby was supposed to yell "I can't, I'm out!" because he ran out of ammo. But the actor and director both misinterpreted the line so he just kinda sighs "I'm out" like he wants to go home and take a nap.

[@TheTGOAC]

and that single statement just made me understand how a movie can be written one way and executed another. Thankyou

[@coryluso941]

almost, its fatigue and despair, "im out of bullets there is nothing we can do they won", not "its late imma head out"

[@afrophoenix3111]

_Why didn't they hire a screenwriter?????_

[@justanotheryoutubechannel]

I wonder if he wasn’t given full context or something, in a lot of games you get lines like that which sound super off because the author just got the line rather than the scene script. Although it seems this is a film so that is unlikely, although stuff like the infamous Hercules “DISAPPOINTED!” still happened.

[@trouty606]

What gets me is this scene has been done a thousand times before in a way that works. Hero holds up gun to villain, pulls trigger, and then *click* of the empty chamber. Then maybe a reaction shot where they try cocking the gun again or go "Oh shit" or whatever. That has tension and then the opportunity to show despair or play it up for a laugh. But here, Jacoby is aiming the gun at her and then... just sorta goes "Gosh whoops I'm outta ammo". So... he knew the whole time his gun was empty, and was just fucking around aiming it? Like, he wasn't doing it to try and bluff that he was going to shoot her instead? Nah, he was just out of ammo and was playing around and then got sad when he was called out on it. It's so bizarrely shot and acted and makes no sense.

[@CatTheRoundEarther]

"I'm part German so whenever I bring it up people start mentioning the holocaust..." Is a more plausible line than "Mexicans still get blamed for the Alamo"

[@tatatory627]

Robert Cullins I never hear people say “remember the Alamo” as anything more than as a call to overcome impossible odds or that Americans can win out over foreign adversaries. That being said i am Mexican in California and that’s not Texas where the battle actually took place.

[@ekki1993]

I mean that can be explained by temporal proximity. People today can still remember someone who went through the holocaust and there are still holocaust survivors alive. The movie tried to find an example of stuff that happened so long ago that nobody directly affected by it is relevant today, which should have tipped them off on how nonsensical that premise was.

[@merrittanimation7721]

Tatatory I’m Texan and I’ve never heard of anyone hating Mexicans because of the Alamo. The Mexican attackers at the Alamo aren’t really associated with modern day Mexicans anymore than we associate modern day Brits with the ones from the American Revolution. If you told me a Texan hated Mexicans because of the Alamo I’d assume it was from a parody.

[@Ivanmaradonaaa]

@@merrittanimation7721 Lol what are the Mexicans supposed to get hated on even back then? Defending their homeland stolen by foreigners that were given land on an agreement that they didn't complied with? That's like hating Ireland for wanting to end occupation

[@merrittanimation7721]

@@Ivanmaradonaaa That was exactly the reason. Also the general dictatorial direction Mexico was going in at the time, but that was kinda minor in the grand scheme of things.

[@raymondkravitz2001]

Whenever I feel like I'm a bad writer, I just think on the fact that David Ayer is still employable at Hollywood.

[@mondaymorningmorgan5103]

If shrek exists in bright then smash mouth exists in a different universe and that's the most unbelievable part of this movie.

[@alt0248]

The nine races: Humans, Elves, Orcs, Centaurs, Goblins, Dwarfs, Ogres, Reptilians, Mexicans. Ah yes.... perfectly clear. Remember that Jorge.

[@BihagDave]

Fairies. Don't forget fairies

[@Rodoet001]

@@BihagDave I don't know about them. You heard Will Smith.

[@gilgrady1033]

Oh, hi.

[@fluffy-hellhound]

@@BihagDave Since when did their lives matter?

[@Knightstruth]

@JoeRingo118 I play paladins so if Mexicans get a bonus to charisma without taking hits to Str or Con I am so there...

[@Why-sv7eo]

There are centaurs in that universe... Are there cars for them? do they just work walk everywhere? Were they trafficked bc they're half horse? Can you ride them, or is that considered racism? There was also a reference to lizard people. Are they evolved from a dragon? how does evolution work here?.... Ah shit, I've fallen into a rabbit hall

[@th3rasave]

No, no. Let's keep going. We might actually make "modern fantasy" a legit genre

[@Ramsey276one]

“You see reins? Chains? They’re already grounded, so let’s not get the police and involved. Being their new landlord is enough of a burden for me... I JUST SAID THAT WORD.” [WHISTLE] “Stop whistling at me or I will buy your shares, Moradin! Keep driving home with their bikes!”

[@Ramsey276one]

Actually my 20H alternative history fiction has a lot of humor when bunches of fantasy races end up in random Earth locations

[@panthera9151]

I suppose it's okay to ride a centaur as long as it's consentual, at least that's how it's presented in stories featuring centaurs. As for lizard people and dragons, my theory is that they're not related to each other any more than a human is related to a polar bear; they're just both reptiles, that's all; maybe direct descendants of dinosaurs.

[@BatmanAoD]

"Onward" actually handles this reasonably well.

[@Its_McKennon]

That "oops all allegory" comment about Mother! made me laugh pretty hard, lol

[@hawyercruz3618]

"There are human brights" "One in a million" "So... more than 8000?"

[@melledevries4685]

there's a lot to be learned from bright. for example me and my gangbanger friends are going to start embroidering our gang's name on the front of our hats

[@leoseling4413]

To be honest... I kind of love that trope where a group or organisation just has merchandise for no reason. Like this, or SHIELD in the Marvel movies. It never makes sense and it always makes me laugh.

[@Dargonhuman]

@@leoseling4413 I mean, there is something of a real-world equivalent like NASA mission patches or the military emblazoning their identifiers onto every single piece of equipment, but those also serve a viable function that their fictional counterparts don't except to give the audience a quick visual confirmation of which character to root for during action scenes.

[@fallingpetunias9046]

"Wear yo' scarf, bitch! It's cold out, and I'm worried about you." - Paraphrase of Ron Funches impersonating a caring gangsta.

[@ErgonomicChair]

Well... i'm a criminologist, this is an actual thing that gangs do. They present their "colours" which is where the term "colour gangs" comes from. Hells angels wear patches, hells angels charter groups (trainer groups) wear patches with RANKS on them, crips and bloods wear specific items and tattoos to easily determine who is who at a glance and make a presence of power in an area. This is... actually something that happens.

[@nulolove]

Nah niggas legit do that. I got a brother who’s blood and three cousins who all bang, and they legit have bounty Hunter blood hats and hoodies. That’s one part of the movie that accurate

[@DoctorLazers]

Whenever they talk about Jirak and the Dark Lord, I just think, "That sounds like a way better movie. Why aren't I watching that movie?"

[@seen921]

Something wicked this way comes is me agreeing with you. Why the hell is that not the story? But then again, a directionless movie without a script wouldn't recognize this unless they set it up from the start!!!!

[@ericjamieson]

To be fair you can say similar things about a good number of movies. The epic battle at the beginning of Gladiator is the best part of the movie. Why can't the whole movie be about Russell Crowe being a badass General fighting the Visigoths or whoever instead of what it's actually about.

[@TheDanteEX]

Because that's just a generic fantasy story. You've seen that story before a dozen different ways. It wouldn't be interesting.

[@brettforsyth4842]

Because then you'd be watching LOTR.

[@zeusdemi6858]

@@TheDanteEX Except it wouldn't be, in LoTR and Narnia, the forces of good vs. evil are clearly set and never change, with an outsider (the Hobbits or the Kids) coming in, while Jirak is an 'outsider' he's still an Orc. There's a big difference there

[@GrayFox_74]

Jakoby says “I’m out” like he doesn’t want to shoot her. He’s acting like she’s someone he knew and cared about and can’t do it,not that he’s ran out of ammo. He didn’t even have to say it, they should’ve had the gun audibly click to convey the gun is empty.

[@oswaldfriedman7116]

Why is it always orcs being oppressed? Like, hear me out: Dark elves. Similar to their pale skinned blue eyed blonde cousins who live in sunny happy forests and big castles, except for the fact they are dark skinned and were forced underground in dank caves. They are hated for worshipping a spider god of lies, but think, one of the most well known mythical figures from the continent of Africa is a spider trickster, and is so hard to believe that a trickster god was painted as a god of lies by victors of a race war? Or even hobbits, who are stereotyped as unsuccessful because they are “lazy” and have no real political rep in a world counsel? Tieflings, if you REALLY wanna go into racism in dungeons and dragons, or hey, what about humans? I can easily imagine a world the thousand year old elves and dwarfs with magical abilities we’d be seen as the savages.

[@enzojose4001]

Well, to be fair, the reason why dark elves are opressed is because they are slave traders and they use other sapient creatures for magical experiments. But you are right about hobbits and tieflings.

[@nykcarnsew2238]

Even non-fantasy fans know orcs from LotR, and DnD writes orcs as basically just Native Americans who it’s okay to kill (right down to the suggested origins for good orcs in old editions being that they went to residential schools) and so every progressive nerd’s first instinct to be subversive is to make them good guys

[@snazzy9175]

​@@enzojose4001 ok but like. Fantasy lore isn't static. Dark elves are something people made up with a lot of variation in portrayal, and you can add and remove whatever you want from that lore (such as the slave trading) depending on what you want to use them to explore.

[@kevinsullivan3448]

If the Orcs had had unique ethic dress and mannerisms it would have made more sense. Giving them generic inner city gangs was pretty lazy.

[@chloeomelchuck5686]

Especially because "orc music" is explicitly mentioned, but there are no other references to orc culture at all.

[@Demortra]

To the ethnic dress and mannerisms, in 2000 years with the races being integrated within the society would it make sense for them to have their own dress codes? Take for example Japan a nation isolated up until 1853 by choice mind you, within the less than 200 years that they were forced to open their borders they currently have a western way of dress. Yet there is still a difference as Japan is currently a nation, one with their own borders, and a national culture with values. For orcs in bright, you see a strong sense of belonging to clans, a more hunter/trophy based motif while in homes(Antler throne in the scene with Jakoby getting killed along with the other decorations.) Now let's look at the way different races interact in a melting pot, either you fit in with those around you or you get pushed out. It's why different groups dress the same way, for instance, the classic goth uniform of dark clothing, with shiny bits of metal along with steel-toed boots, bikers wearing leather jackets, vests with patches to show what club they are from along with denim, or on wall street how most workers shifted(without it being mandatory or stated) from an expensive suit and tie to Vest, dress shirt and slacks after the 2008 financial crisis. These shifts to accept the cultures around you and adapt happen naturally. So expecting a race that seems to have been disbursed after the fall of the dark lord, keeping cultural clothing without adapting is fairly lazy thinking.

[@UltraDonny5000]

Simple, it would be unnecessarily awkward and would prevent the suspension of disbelief.

[@renoloverxoxo]

#racialcoding

[@riririri100]

@@Demortra If this was a real world and the human cultures dominated, simply because there were more of them, different generations of orcs, would handle it differently. I think it's possible that certain, traditional dress codes, would disappear. Get overwhelmed if you will. Certain behaviors would change. Same for humanity.

[@sp4zt4zt1c2]

For a movie titled "Bright" it isn't well lit or intelligent.

[@anotherlemontree]

My favourite of all the comments.

[@Dargonhuman]

This is such an underrated comment.

[@IAmTheStig32]

This film is like the exact opposite of our lovely intelligent Lindsay.

[@ACharmedEarthling]

It's wot you call, one of 'em ironic nicknames!

[@angeldreyesdiaz1355]

Instead, it should have been called " ".

[@ZombieMurdoc]

Poor centaur cops; the chief is always riding them.

[@UberNoodle]

@8:57 that's weird. When Will Smith's character says to the orc, "keep my wife's name out of your ..." er sorry, "take your Shrek looking ass back to your vehicle", does he realise he has now made Shrek not only part of the Bright universe but also implied that it is a similar cultural phenomenon? In the Bright reality, is Shrek also beloved by everybody and so spawned several sequels, or was it like "the Song of the South" for orcs?

[@jameshodgson1025]

In the words of Terry Prathett "Racism was not a problem on the Discworld, because-what with trolls and dwarfs and so on-speciesism was more interesting. Black and white lived in perfect harmony and ganged up on green."

[@Tearakan]

Exactly

[@AndorianBlues]

Although in his later books he changed this a bit, like in Jingo where the Ankh Morporkians and Klatchians are racist against each other. I think he got more cynical about human nature as he got older.

[@boblawblawblaw]

The thing though there definitely is bigotry that exists even within racial communities. Like, in the real world you have people living in China who are actually very biased against certain minority groups who are also chinese. And likewise in a fantasy world like Bright I don't totally disbelieve that you wouldn't have racial subgroups of humans being racist towards one another.

[@emilyfarfadet9131]

I think Pratchett's main nuance was that races on the disc- only possessed imagined differences in nature or capability. Whereas the different species pick up the important oft overlooked distinction- that even if there were real differences (the reduced mental faculties of trolls in warm weather, Goblins eating their own babies) that these differences were not inferiority, that they were still equals deserving of compassion and solidarity. In this way the allegory is more akin to disability or poverty.

[@bobrolander4344]

Yes. Killing a fairy and then saying to your kid that racism is bad doesn't compute.

[@323starlight]

I think the biggest sting about Bright, to me at least, is how much of a waste it was. You have this interesting premise of a medieval fantasy progressing to modern day and you waste it by making a standard buddy cop movie with poorly written racial stuff thrown in. To me, the idea of a "what if a medieval fantasy world progressed to modern day" kind of genre is interesting and can lend itself to a lot of potential stories. And Bright wastes that potential.

[@darkthorpocomicknight7891]

"what if a medieval fantasy world progressed to modern day" Watch Angel the series, Angel basically is a knight. Buffy also borrows from King Arthur

[@mccookies3664]

This is the focus of urban fantasy as a setting, and I have to admit, it's probably my favorite trope ever.

[@neoqwerty]

I liked the buddy cop movie non-grimdark Shadowrun bit. :( The elves needed to be way more Drow and obviously chaotic evil race. I'd take a lady Drizzt being the Bright over the piece of knife-eared cardboard we got.

[@SAMSARALIVEEEEEE]

The thing is, i think that Bright’s premise has a lot of potential of course. Imagine all of the stories that could be told about this fantasy Lord of the rings version of our modern society, but we see these stories from the perspective of two cops making their way through this original world. It’s very interesting, but the thing is the only way to bring out all of the potential of this idea is to make Bright into a SHOW not a MOVIE. Imagine how much more fleshed out the characters and the world-building would be if this would be a TV series like the Witcher. It would certainly be less rushed than this two hour movie that barely tries to fit everything in. Because let’s be honest there’s too much material in this world and it’s not possible to make it into something tangible and interesting in a movie because a movie isn’t long enough to truly show us how this world shines. And also, if it was a show and they would have more time to develop an interesting story over time it would make us care about the characters way more because we’d see them more often. And the story could be something interesting not some dumb cliche shit like “the main character is the chosen one because of events that happened 2000 years ago that we never got to see” The dark lord’s return ,dragons, politics, social statuses, the rulers of this new world, Jirak and his legacy, the war, other races that are only teased in the movie. These are all concepts that could be brought to life in different episodes it has so much potential to be a long running series but Netflix decided to completely waste what is arguably one of their most original ideas.

[@Dargonhuman]

That about sums up why I hate the Purge series too, especially the first one; take a truly interesting premise rife with the potential to explore many aspects of humanity and they turned it into a basic home invasion story. Bright could have been as intricate and intriguing of a world as Shadowrun, but nope, it's Bad Boys if Martin Lawrence had blue skin and fangs.

[@Zoie3x8]

"how are your holes ?" "How the Fuck can You Make a shootout Awkward !?" never gets old, funny as hell every time. XD

[@Remi0dd6]

So I have a funny story about this movie, I first watched this movie on Christmas Eve with a friend of mine. Mind you we were about 1/2 a bottle of vodka at this point and decide to watch this movie. The only thing that I remember from that night was me screaming out loud "IT'S THE COMING OF ORC JESUS" and the laughing fit that followed it. My friend and I still mention that to each other during Christmas.

[@maedle99]

Lmao

[@slashingkatie7872]

Also if Shrek exists in Bright, is that like the Orc equivalent of Song of the South?

[@RothAnim]

Oh hell that's nothing: if magic is real and Disney exists, most of Disney's output would be ham-handed racial allegories in the bright universe.

[@willlegok9]

Oh, don't be silly. Shrek is an ogre, not an orc.

[@zerakielvmark]

LegoK9 yeah he's an ogre not orc, those orctards just want to complain about people making jokes that they are like Shrek. It's harmless fun

[@chapablo]

Oh, so you think all Orcs and Ogres look the same? Check your privilege, man! #UrbanGanstaFlava

[@zillafire101]

Ogres and Orcs aren't really the same thing. I do, however, see Lord of the Rings being Birth of a Nation.

[@withlove2963]

90% of what I watch on Netflix I would NEVER pay to see. That's what Netflix is for.

[@basic5926]

But you do pay for Netflix, don't you?

[@withlove2963]

@@basic5926 nope, I'm a parasite on my cousin's account. 😳 don't tell Netflix.

[@wowanothercookie]

​@@basic5926 I partly agree with you, but if you compare the cost of watching a movie in cinema to the amount of content you can get for a monthly fee on netflix is very different. So while you might pay something to watch Netflix, it's mostly binge-able content compared to this "event" that cinema still is (as in, you have to make plans, you buy tickets, go there...) and I'm not sure if most of the audience would go out to see it.

[@schwarzerritter5724]

The only thing I would ever pay for is Bojack Horseman.

[@syrusangi8743]

It still has some good shows. It's not perfect but for what is worth is pretty good and I'm not gonna cancel my membership anytime soon.

[@sofcal]

re-watching this video many a year later. It's impressive how many of the same editing issues which plagued Bright were also present in Suicide Squad. There's numerous examples in there of setups that don't have a payoff (the pink unicorn); and the same drawn out dialog choices in the final "battle" where people spell out the solution while the bad guy just sits and waits. Last minute character introductions and changes that go nowhere (slipknot, joker, rescuing waller). I expect somewhere out there, there's a side by side video dedicated to the two

[@RedSpade37]

Just wanted to say I think that's a really good comparison. Might be a video to be made by someone with that.

[@bbrbbr-on2gd]

Weird that it keeps happening to David Ayer...

[@Rexotec]

As someone who is a HUGE fan of Shadowrun, gotta agree with you. I was intrigued watching the first 5 minutes of Bright and all of this worldbuilding and racial undertones it... hinted at... and then never addressed, opting instead for a generic 'fantasy' storyline with guns thrown in for good measure. It's one of the reasons I get so hesitant about cyberpunk fiction these days, a lot of the time it can get made for the aesthetic and not the substance or ideas that it was meant to pose. Bright is a classic tale of 'all style, no substance', and I'm sick of it. Fr tho, get a story and themes ironed out first before you pick up a camera, buddy.

[@fatdaddy1996]

Rexotec , you're right about Shadowrun though, it's brilliant.

[@swearwerks]

They should of gone full gangsta flava and had drive by hobbits with hogweed pipes

[@eazy8579]

Fucking hell that’s amazing

[@justbeyondthecornerproduct3540]

"Once with the Dark Lord, always with the Dark Lord" is another great example of "You can type this shit but you can't say it"

[@tibot4228]

If you look closely, you can see the actor choking on his own bile as he say sit.

[@WolfHreda]

It's just so lazy and bad.

[@TheAnonymmynona]

And isn't it totaly undercut with the whole jirak thing ?

[@williambyrne5513]

i laughed out loud when she cut to that

[@Lix88]

Two things: 1) you can make a drinking game, shot everytime Lindsay says "Urban Gangsta flavah" 2) the thing about lazy worldbuilding is something that I really hate in one particular instance, similar to what Lindsay said about history but more specific, when they give non-human characters the inhability to understand some particular human behaviour (es. Kissing, hugging, biological functions like crying...) or usually misunderstand human speech (jokes, metaphors...) and then they seemingly forget about it: alien A goes: "what is this hugging you speak of?" And then other characters of the same races (usually background) do the thing no problem, or they say "races B are actually like giant ants, so they don't cry" and then they make them do other human things like sweating (I don't know if ants sweat or something, you get what I mean), or even having a common phrase of race C simply a human common phrase with names changed (es. "You can't have your Zigky and eat it too!") I get that creating a new race or something from the ground up is difficult and complex, and I don't expect an author to have all its biological and cultural quirks worked out, so you just take human, change it a bit, adding or taking away some things (usually for comedy), and boom, now you have a non-human character, but the least they could do is staying consistent in what they write.

[@orbismworldbuilding8428]

Agreed. And the thing is it's not all that hard if thought, time and observation is put into it

[@orbismworldbuilding8428]

@@caitlyncarvalho7637 weird question to ask Im not really the audience for that sorta thing but sure? I don't see why not

[@LocoPinocchio_]

the best part of Bright was when he said "IT'S BRIGHT TIME" and then brights all over those guys.

[@dariuskahmenleodros3646]

I hate how that actually happened without those lines

[@MisterHPlays]

You're not overthinking this Lindsay. I've run D&D games with more thought put into the world than Bright, and I'm a lazyass DM.

[@icook1723]

The urban arcana setting is a much better world.

[@gio3]

@@squattingheads Different players enjoy different styles of worldbuilding. A good example of a complex world working well for the players is Exandria (Crit Role)

[@samualwatkins]

I recently had this idea since watching this essay and learning more about the subject of coding in fantasy, about a campaign where instead of the white European culture being the default “regular” people that they would be replaced by the warforged and another culture of humans would be the default culture and “regular” people setting. My thought for this stemmed from the idea of “well if orcs get allegorized as African or Asian people what could we use to do the same with white” and the best answer I can get for a honestly pointless attempt at a balancing of the scales would be “hey how about the warforged?”

[@niallreid7664]

@@squattingheads And the MASSIVE problem of how it's literally our world but you dumped fantasy races in it, claimed they were there the entire time and did literally nothing to reflect how massive a change this would be to society. For example, centaur cops. Not only do they run around with their dicks out (ffs) but there does not seem to be any form of transport that accommodates them. So if they wanted to go anywhere they'd have to gallop. And that's not even touching the houses. Theres also dragons. Dragons existing would be a pretty gigantic deal but they are a blink and you'd miss it thing in Bright. Society apparently doesn't care about massive, flying, fire breathing reptiles. Theres tonnes of this in Bright, I could go on. And honestly, I actually liked Bright, I think theres real potential there. It just feels so goddamn lazy. This isnt even touching pacing and consisteny issues with the plot either.

[@agonleed3841]

@@niallreid7664 Here's your fault..you're putting our ACTUAL reality into a movie reality that is just based on our reality. There is a perfectly good fantasy explanation for all of that. In ANY fantasy, how many transportation systems is there for centaurs? They are conditioned to travel where need be. And what you don't see, but can easily guess, is if there are us humans and the world we do know..there are also horses. And if there are horses, there are transportations for them. And it's not hard to imagine that with the ability we have to have trucks carrying huge tires on the back that extend past the container roof...then there could also be trucks that transport Centaurs in the same manner as I, a marine vet, was transported while in Iraq. In huge trucks. Everything doesnt have to be seen if it's that easy to just "poof" in your mind. And it SHOULD have been that easy. Dragons...we also have sharks, bears, tigers...Africans have coexisted with lions forever. The point...maybe in this reality Dragons only bother you if they really felt the need to. Maybe they are more docile than your imagination...you do have to understand that this movie wasn't YOUR imaginative creation. so Maybe who DID imagine it saw it as, "Sure, they're dangerous, but they don't have to be so extra about it". MAYBE...knowing that the main plot is about magic....maybe there exists a level of magic that is peripheral....a barrier of sorts. And either prevents dragons from entering areas or at the very least makes the dragon somewhat docile..or just less aggressive. Again...it's an easy concept to get seeing as how this IS a fantasy world And the main plot is literally about magic. And the main complaint that actually should've gotten you to not even complain anymore...if these fantasy characters have been here all the time...how can it be a change at all? Think about it...it's just that reality now. To YOU...in our actual reality...all of those elements would be extroidinary and therefore we react as such. But in this reality, it just is. That's it. Just them, there, time happens as it is. Hitler attacks using dragons and enslaved Centaurs maybe. Maybe Japan attacked Pearl Harbor using Fairies as inside semi-spies/attackers. No different than the many experiments we have done with animals. Give those animals somewhat higher maneuverability and intelligence, and maybe they can be used as suicidal grunts at least. So..no the world doesn't have to be so drastically affected...or maybe it already was. It's just already settled now. Overall, your main problem seems to really be, "It's not a fantasy in the way that DnD, or King's Field, or Magic the Gathering is fantasy" But that was lliterally the point. To be different than that. And it actually works well when you don't try so hard to be against it. And you gotta admit, you really are trying too hard to be against it. Every complaint is very easily solved by using slight comprehension about what is, and using your own knowledge of fanstasy then adding the fact that every movie asks you to fill in a few things cause the movie is maybe 2hrs...it cannot show you every single damn thing

[@paulinabringas98]

As a Mexican I can confirm I get a lot of shit for the Alamo Except I don't, not once has anyone ever mentioned The Alamo to me

[@RavenPryde]

I’m pretty sure Mexicans in Texas don’t get shit for the Alamo. Like seriously, I live in Texas and I’ve never heard that shit once.

[@paulinabringas98]

Not Applicable SELENA GOMEZ OMG 😂😂

[@chrisossu2070]

I have no idea who told Max Landis that was a thing. Whoever told Landis that was a thing is a crazy person, and Landis is incredibly sheltered for believing that crazy person.

[@spiderbits2923]

So they forgot the Alamo?

[@SLYKM]

Spider Bits The Stalk

[@benjaminpercival6143]

I'd never heard of Bright before and I usually enjoy and appreciate when a writer takes the time to present fantasy elements blended into a modern or science fiction themed setting- because of all the opportunities it offers, all the questions it raises and all the avenues it creates for fresh encounters and scenes that are only possible in the context the production presents. No part of what was explained or sampled here seemed to play to those strengths. Whether you decide on a world with a modern divergence point ala shadowrun (which this seems like a neutered copy of with the pink mohawk, sci-fi and individuality 'surgically' extracted), or one that was different from the beginning, you gain the advantage of being able to put characters in situations where your audience genuinely doesn't know how it will play out, without seeming absurd or implausible in these circumstances. Take killing the pixie. Instead of going to beat it with a broom with much fanfare, the protagonist could've instead wearily gone to a kitchen cupboard, produced some bizarre looking magical pixie trap, perhaps something that looked like a dishwasher lozenge, that traps the pest in a convenient container that they then have to deposit in a drop off point on the way to work. Turning the fantastic into an everyday exercise shows so much more about the world as it's the routine, the utilities, the branding on everyday products, the creation of a new normal that allows you to not just entertain but set the standard for where the characters can reach beyond that into the extraordinary. If you must stick to tropes of orcs and elves even then there are plenty of opportunities if you just step a little further. An elf in counselling because of the unrealistically high expectations brought by his species inducing stress, self doubt and debt to keep up the charade. Fairies being criticised for having the highest standards of living due to their smaller size reducing their expenditures on food and housing- and then the debate raging the other way with the issues towards ergonomics, wage squeezing and the artificially inflated price that comes with goods sold to the fey market because everyone knows they can afford it. What if orcs were sensitive to noise and so shouting at one could be considered assault- thus forcing every conversation to be held with a polite and courteous tone. I've diverged, but the point is, of all the possible places you can go with a story set in a modernised instance of a fantasy world there are basically two things that I would beyond any shadow of a doubt consider to be inexcusable. The first is making a primary focus of the setting into an allegory of a topical issue in reality. Racism certainly can be an element of a world, but it should be something that reflects the setting, rather than a warped play-dough facsimile of Earth. The second is making the plot point of the story about a macguffin that has a broad or far reaching impact on the setting without an appropriate level of response. Middle earth has Frodo and the fellowship because that's apparently the method they have for an immediate and effective response to a problem, not because it's the best one. If a group is making frequent and persistent efforts to gather the tools to enact a plan with a national or WORLD scale degree of imminent harm then the logic follows that if the identities and MO of the group is known to organisations affiliated with the country it operates in, they will divert and appropriate measure of force to deal with this. Whether it's throwing 007, an elite task force, or a combined local and federal response, it should be scaled to match the stakes and when you throw the fate of the world on the table then there's no reason the country should be holding anything back- especially when faced with a very tangible easy to understand threat and no vested interests to deter intervention. My honors was on Sustainable practices for writing narratives for commercial fiction- but fearing it difficult to get a job writing in my neck of the woods, I turned to IT for stable income. If this is the most capable something as large as Netflix has on hand, I wonder if I made the wrong decision.

[@darwincity]

“Goodnight and Good Luck” became something of an illumination for me, and launched my lifelong curiosity regarding the McCarthyist era. I think it would’ve been a worthier winner than Crash, with Munich on par and Capote plus Brokeback Mountain behind.

[@robmeehan7208]

"Ah, yes, the Alamo. When the Uruk-hai swarmed into Texas. I remember it well."

[@merrittanimation7721]

"Fell deeds awake. Now for wrath, now for ruin and the red dawn!" -William B. Travis, probably.

[@HiopX]

Those brave Hobbits defended that castle valiantly.

[@safe-keeper1042]

We invaded the Lannisters even though it was Daenerys and her dragons who brought down the World Trade Center :( ...

[@kentlindal5422]

Don't forget about when elves gassed all those dwarves back in the 30s

[@0axel078]

*40s, but still, good one

[@island_girl]

I have a question.... in the Bright universe, do the human cops ride their centaur cop partners when they patrol the streets, or do they have a special cop car with a horsey carriage in the back? 🤔

[@heitorpedrodegodoi5646]

Centaur cops taken the cavalary part entiraly since is cheaper to maintain only one person that one human and a horse.

[@helbent4]

Centaur cops would be like horse-mounted police in our world: they would patrol their area on foot, mainly crowd control and downtown/urban policing, based in a nearby precinct. To transport them long distances a horse trailer or similar would be used. I can't believe I thought about this.

[@R77ification]

Well we do see a centaur cop for a few seconds with no partner on him, so I guess theres one answer.

[@Broomer52]

I remember reading a web comic called Modern Mogal (shorted for Modern Monster Girl) despite the name it’s more of a comedic exploration of a world inhabited my monsters alongside people and the core cast happens to be mostly female monsters. Theirs a Dragon Couple the dad is a terrifying looking Dragon who’s also a giant nerd that got into the acting business because his hero is Godzilla and his wife is easily twice his size and constantly forgets how big she is and their daughter is a lawyer. (Dragons in the world are somewhat humanoid but and least about twice the size of an average person) theirs a mother who was bitten by a werewolf when she was younger and they went through a court case convicting the werewolf of the crime of forceful infection (it was treated like an allegory of a rap3 case) and she would eventually marry the lawyer that helped her win the case. She worries that her daughter might have inherented the werewolf curse from her but they won’t know until she becomes old enough for it to take hold. That same mother keeps the secret from her daughter to try and help her live a normal life and the daughter makes friends with a Vampire kid who’s family whole family can smell the werewolf on their kids new friend and don’t trust her or her mother. Not being full blown racist but absolutely biased. I could go on but it’s a fun read

[@BlackOrderAlchemist]

@@Broomer52 I love Modern Mogal :y The centaur ladies are my favorites; the one with the cop who was surveiling a suspect and had to disguise herself as a playground horsey got me pretty good

[@m2goofy760]

Best line in the entire movie... -Jakoby turns on music and begins to groove to desth metal groweling/orcish. -Ward, turning off music says "we are not listening to orcish music" -Jakoby "that was the greatest love song ever written" Lol

[@thedullohanvids]

The Mikey the Orc plot line is like the writer saw training day and wanted to recreate the plot line where Ethan Hawke saves the girl from being raped only to be given to her cousin later in the movie to be killed but they didn't understand what made that plot line great.

[@Tazzie1312]

"Were there Orcs at the Alamo?" Is probably the best question brought up ever.

[@big-bonkin-head1034]

Most likely not, since (if were using the LOTR Map) Orcs are in Eastern Europe and SouthEast Europe. Meaning no Orcs in the Alamo

[@merrittanimation7721]

Big-Bonkin-Head Given that they are in America and clearly have been for awhile it’s plausible some of them could have ended up there by the time of the Alamo.

[@big-bonkin-head1034]

Merritt Animation Immigration occurred during the same time Eastern Europeans came over to the USA (early 1900s and such)

[@leichtgetriggered7658]

Big-Bonkin-Head lol

[@Tareltonlives]

Yeah, but they prefer to be called Texans (sorry, sorry....)

[@whateverman187]

"You can't logic people out of a mindset they didn't logic themselves into" Well said!

[@MrPiccoloku]

Yes you can. It's just really, really, really, really, really fucking hard.

[@franohmsford7548]

Racism is an extreme version of Tribalism and saying that Racism and therefore Tribalism isn't Logical simply proves that you don't understand where it comes from. Therefore of course you have problems "logicing" people of that mindset - You're being EMOTIONAL not Logical! "Racism is bad M'kay" only gets you so far....You have to understand the other person's point of view before you can argue against it. Now of course you can argue that Tribalism itself is outdated in modern society and that's the globalist argument in a nutshell :) But to say it's not logical full stop is to paint yourself into a corner. P.S. The current Left Wing obsessions with "Cultural Appropriation", "Safe Spaces", "Positive Discrimination" and "Ghettoisation" are all just the same old Racial arguments only facing the other way! Oh and if we're talking of systems and laws at least one of these IS BOTH! You won't defeat Racism with more Racism! You'll just repeat the same old mistakes! Bright is BLATANT yes, It's CRINGY yes, It clearly should have been a full TV Series NOT a Movie where the writers would have been able to go into much more detail and give much more characterisation to the characters. But it has its HEART in the right place. UNLIKE "Disney's Star Wars", "Nu-Who", "Star Trek Discovery" and "Picard", "Ghostbusters 2016", "Terminator Genisys", "Another Life", "Space Force", "Avenue 5" etc. etc. etc.!

[@fallingpetunias9046]

@@franohmsford7548 I generally agree. It's really difficult to pull off what "12 Angry Men" managed to do: approach a moral dilemma, show many sides and how people got to thinking how they do, then turn in the correct verdict. It's even worse when the industry seems to not actually have a heart in the matter and turns fringe culture into pop-culture. It feels like most movies and companies these days pander too hard. Instead of finding a great story that fits a "woke" message then crafting it into a movie, they're really just taking the "woke" message and building a half-baked movie around it before public sentiment moves onto the next thing. It's like the Left Wing obsessions you listed. Really, there are cases of "Cultural Appropriation" and "Safe Spaces", but then it gets blown out of proportion with some half-baked news coverage or movement, and the actual meat of the matter gets charred and tossed. The bad part of cultural appropriation is the double-standard, not white people having dreads but white people with dreads being deemed "cool" while black people with dreads are deemed "gross". Safe Spaces are just supposed to be rooms to chill out for a moment when you're having an anxiety attack, not a new regime. I don't know anything about Positive Discrimination or Ghettoisation, so I won't comment. I'll look into these.

[@rileykim6068]

Fran Ohmsford Dude, racism is not logical. Neither is "tribalism", more appropriately called sectarianism. Just because people naturally divide themselves into in groups and out groups doesn't make it logical. Racism is always based on nonsense, in reality humanity is actually ridiculously genetically similar as species go, even between races, which we made up. Even so, racists are still racist, because it's not about logic, it's about a bunch of made up garbage that they've had reinforced by the culture that surrounds them.

[@masterofwriters4176]

35:38 One way to solve the problem of requiring an alternate history is to have a situation were history progressed the same way as it did in this world, but then one night something or some one transforms everything into a fantasy world without people immediately realizing, thus resulting in a fantasy setting that conflicts with history. Problem is that you eventually need to acknowledge that sudden undetectable change.

[@REZIX233]

RE: Tolkein and D&D Fun fact! When D&D first became a thing they were sued by the Tolkien estate over the terms balrog, dragon, dwarf, elf, ent, goblin, hobbit, orc, and warg, wanting them removed from the game. All but three of them (Balrog, Ent, and Hobbit) were argued to be public domain and allowed to be kept in. Those three were removed and they settled out of court. And RE: Tolkein and the dark-skinned races of men and orcs. Yeah it's kinda a shit show, but as time went on Tolkien became less and less comfortable with the idea of orcs being inherently evil and irredeemable. And he always placed the onus on Melkor and Sauron, not the orcs themselves in their evil since the evil of the orcs were born of Morgoth's evil will. He also talked about how Eru had to accept the Orcs as part of Arda or they couldn't exist and therefore can't be irredeemable. As for the Easterlings and the Haradrim siding with Sauron they were conquered and enslaved by him. In fact, Elessar pardoned them of any crimes against Gondor after the fall of Sauron since they were forced into war.