White People Won't Save You

Dances With Wolves (Feat. Shea Vasser

They should have never given Kevin Costner money. This week we take a look at a movie so boring and tedious that we struggle to tell the difference between the 3 hour theatrical cut and damn near 4 hour directors cut. Yes, it's time for 1990's Best Picture winner and the highest grossing western of all time, Dances With Wolves. 
We're joined by the incredible Shea Vasser to discuss how this movie is so long yet nothing happens. Also what was up with Mary McDonnell's hair, several wild behind the scenes stories, and marvel at how this movie won so many damn awards. 
Movies recommended: One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest, Reservation Dogs. 
Please do yourself a favor and read Shea's excellent Through a Native Lens column at Film School Rejects where she breaks down some of the best and worst of indigenous representation in film. 
And as always, check us out at @white_pod on Twitter, and feel free to write us at whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com 
We love you, see you next week! 

Stargate (Feat. Craig Hale)

Open your Third Eye's brothers and sisters( and beautiful people between and outside genders), we're traveling back to The Motherland! Craig Hale (of the I Want You To Watch This podcast) joins us as we traverse the Stargate to talk...Stargate. 
Roland Emerich's 1994 blockbuster is as messy as it wants to be, playing fast and loose with history and all of our ancestors. We discuss how a white woman is somehow the main love interest, Jaye Davidson flexing to get the bag, and how effortlessly James Spader is able to decipher the Ancient Egyptian language (maybe it's the hair?). 
Movies recommended: Space is the Place, The Mummy (1999)
Listen to I Want You To Watch This to catch their take on Stargate and follow Craig on Twitter for more takes @Catharticus. 
As always, subscribe, tell a friend, give us all the stars that circle the moons of Abydos. You can write to us at whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com and you can follow us on Twitter at @white_pod.  

Avatar (Feat Raafi Rivero)

Oooof. This weeks movie is the highest grossing film of all time but at what cost...at what cost? We're discussing James Cameron's 2009 epic, Avatar. 
We're joined for the first time by a guest who actually enjoys the movie, Filmmaker and founder of Unarmed, Raafi Rivero. We discuss if Avatar has had any lasting cultural impact, James Cameron's white savior inspirations for the film, and the Jake Sully of it all. Also, what's up with those ponytails?
Recommended Films: The New World, Get Out, 
Please, ,please, ,please follow Raafi at @raafirivero on all social media and visit https://unarmed.co/ and support this amazing project! Also check out his website: http://raafirivero.com/ .Very, very cool stuff. 
As always, hit us up at @white_pod on the Twitter and feel free to write us at whitepeoplewontsaveyou@gmail.com 
Peace! 
 
 

Hardball (feat Black Girl Film Club)

This week we're stepping up to the plate with the wonderful hosts of Black Girl Film Club! Ashley and Britney almost chose violence and made us watch Soul Man, but thankfully opted for 2001's Hardball instead. That's right, our boy Keanu is back to save us again. 
We talk about everything from Keanu just being a terrible adult in these kids lives, G-Baby's adorable and well proportioned bullet hole, and how this movie is basically all lies (who would have thought?)
We also discuss this being Michael B. Jordan's film debut, that wild DMX needle drop, and of course the infamous Hardball music video with all the "lil's". 
Movies to watch instead: A League of Their Own, The Mighty Ducks, Hoop Dreams. 
Please do yourself a favor and follow Britney and Ashley at @blkgirlfilmclub and find the podcast wherever you get your podcasts. You can find more at blackgirlfilmclub.tumblr.com
And as always, subscribe, rate, review, and tell a friend to check us out. We love y'all and we'll be back next week with Avatar!

Amistad (Feat. Ben Passmore)

Ten episodes! To thank you for putting up with our nonsense for this long we have a very special episode for you. We're joined by the incomparable Ben Passmore (Your Black Friend & Other Stories, Bttm Fdrs) to discuss Stephen Spielberg's 1997 epic, Amistad.
Boy oh boy...this movie. Why is it so long? Why is it so historically inaccurate? And is Spielberg the real white savior? We also discuss Debbie Allen's slave school, Cameron shares a story of unwanted white guilt in public, and we reimagine Amistad from the perspective of the Mende people. 
Movies recommended: The Underground Railroad, Roots, Unchained Memories. 
Find more of Ben at @daygloayhole on Twitter and Instagram as well as at The Nib
Also look out for his new upcoming book These Black Arms To Hold You Up coming out in 2022!
As always, subscribe, leave a review, and tell a friend! Find us at @white_pod on Twitter and write to us at whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com 
Thanks for sticking with us for 10 episodes, here's to many more! 

Dangerous Minds (Feat. Rhayne Coleman)

"We've been spending most our lives..." well, you know the song. This week we go to the principals office with special guest Rhayne Coleman (Carefree Black Nerd) as we discuss the 1995 hit film, Dangerous Minds. 
As maybe the preeminent white savior film, what is it that makes Dangerous Minds so...dangerous? Is it the myriad of stereotypes? Is it that random Black grandma that doesn't want her grandchildren to read? Is it how the real life story was totally changed to make it more palatable for a white audience? But still, Gangsta's Paradise though...
Movies to watch instead: Coolie High, High School High, To Sir With Love. 
Be sure to check out everything Rhayne has going on. You can follow Rhayne at @carefreeblerd on Twitter and @carefreeblacknerd on IG. And of course check out the Carefree Black Nerd podcast and YouTube Channel for much more great content. 
Follow us @white_pod on Twitter and write us your thoughts at whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com 

The Matrix Trilogy (Feat. Ernie ”Blerd Without Fear” Carothers

We got a big one (but still under 2 hours, so improvement?) as we plug into The Matrix with our special guest Ernie "The Blerd Without Fear" Carothers! 
It's a lot to unpack. Where to begin? The potential casting of Will Smith? The whitewashing of Keanu? The many muddled metaphors? Zion? The orgy scene? 
We talk through it all as well as give flowers to the many talented Black actors in the franchise. Finally we look forward a bit to The Matrix 4 and what could be done to help correct some of the past missteps. 
Follow Ernie on his wonderful Youtube channel, Blerd Without Fear as he gives you the latest on comics and pop culture with a special spotlight on characters of color. You can also find him on Twitter @blerdminusfear and on Instagram @Blerdwithoutfear. 
As always, rate and review us wherever you podcast and tell your friends about us. We're cool. Hit us up @white_pod on Twitter and write us with your thoughts at whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com 

Atlantis: The Lost Empire (Feat. Stephanie Williams)

Come on a deep sea journey with our special guest, Stephanie Williams (@Steph_I_Will) as we try to decipher the 2001 Disney film, Atlantis: The Lost Empire. 
A risk in a lot of ways for Disney, Atlantis tells the story of Milo (Michael J. Fox), a white dude from the surface who somehow knows more about Atlantean culture than...actual Atlanteans.
We discuss how the hell that's possible, why Milo's "nice guy energy" makes him more of an insidious white savior than others, and how to fix this movie to give the Atlantean people some actual autonomy. 
Our movie recommendations for this week are Fast Color and Kirikou and The Sorceress. 
Find more of Stephanie's work at whysteph.com and But What If Though  
And be on the look out for Nubia and the Amazons available October 5th, wherever comics are sold! 
Find us @white_pod on Twitter and write to us at Whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com 
R.I.P. Michael K. Williams, your work and your spirit will live on forever.

Bonus: Candyman Roundtable with Valerie Complex and Charles Pulliam-Moore

We've got a very special bonus episode for y'all! Last week, the newest installment in the Candyman series dropped and it's basically the whole thesis of our show. What if a white savior movie got remade by Black people? So we absolutely had to talk about this one. 
Helping us break things down are film critics, Charles Pulliam-Moore (@CharlesPulliam) of iO9 and Valeria Complex (@Valeriecomplex) also of iO9, Deadline, Den of Geek and more. 
We discuss the differences between the 1992 original and the newest film, the many themes layered throughout, what works, what doesn't, and the future of Black horror. 
Check out their individual reviews here:
Charles - https://gizmodo.com/candyman-review-nia-dacosta-film-1847501789
Valerie - https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/candyman-review-horror-movie-update-is-a-missed-opportunity/ 

Cool Runnings

Feel the fiction, feel the lies, get on up, it's white savior time! This week we're riding solo as we discuss the 1993 sports comedy classic, Cool Runnings.
The nostalgia was strong with this one, but we push through and talk about those accents, Disney's original vision for the film, and if John Candy was even necessary at all. 
We also talk about how Jamaica felt like it was being pronounced with a hard "R", the true story the Jamaican bobsled team, and imagine a movie closer to the truth. 
As always, you can follow us on Twitter, @white_pod, and write to us at whitepeoplewontsaveyoupod@gmail.com 
Please rate, review, and subscribe if you get the chance. We really appreciate your support! And be on the lookout for a special Candyman episode coming this weekend!