Swan Song for a Career

Bryan Singer is in the news again. The acclaimed director of X-Men films and the recent hit Bohemian Rhapsody has found himself the target of some #metoo allegations. A piece published in The Atlantic details a story of perversion and abuse. Singer, of course, maintains his innocence, accusing the article of being homophobic and merely taking advantage of his spotlight for personal gain.

A few thoughts occur to me in regards to cases like these:

• Accusations are not proof. This goes for the whole #metoo campaign. While there have been certifiable cases, cases where the perpetrators admitted to their wrongdoing, the burden of proof, especially in the USA, is upon the prosecution. We left behind witch trials and lynchings for a reason. If these allegations are true, then evidence must be found and submitted in the appropriate venue. And just as there have been verified cases of abuse, there have also been verified cases of false allegations, allegations that go on to tarnish and damage innocent people. Remember To Kill a Mockingbird? They #metoo'd Tom Robinson into an early grave (remember that the fictional account in the novel was based on real trials like the Scottsboro case). It is critical to avoid emotionally reacting to accusations before all the facts are in.

• I would not surprised in the least if the allegations happen to be accurate. Hollywood is, to put it kindly, a concentration of worldliness. Like Bunyan's Vanity Fair, it is a place full of every possible cultural and material contrivance. Why wouldn't it also be surfeited with every vice? Where you have a large concentration of rich, powerful, different people, you also have that much more possible combinations of sin. The math is pretty simple. If #metoo has done anything, it has shown Hollywood to be a collection of whitewashed tombs, perfect smiles on the outside, dead on the inside. 

• Hollywood is built upon lies, in an almost literal sense. We're talking about an entire industry predicated upon the concept of pretend, acting. The better you are at genuinely convincing the audience that you are someone you're not, the better you are at your job. Notice that in the aftermath of the Harvey Weinstein accusations, we were faced with the fact that people lied about their knowledge of his conduct, only to then tell the public that we should believe them now. 

Keeping track of the lies in Hollywood is pointless; the whole affair is basically made up to begin with. I think finding truth in such a place would be the real challenge.