Zoe Saldana:Too pretty to play Nina Simone?

[Takket]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/20/zoe-saldana-nina-simone-biopic-casting-controversy_n_2165356.html

Lanita Jacobs, an anthropology professor at the University of Southern California who often lectures on the portrayal of African-Americans in film and on television, says Salanda's casting and subsequent transformation into Simone is offensive to women who have struggled with self-image.

"We understand that there are these beauty issues," Jacobs told NPR on Tuesday, "and sometimes what sanctions people's right to speak on these kind of issues is whether they have had experiences born of what it means to have kinky hair, or to have wide noses or darker skin. Nina's music taps into a certain kind of awareness born of the way she looks."

~snip

[BlancheSplanchnik]

1. Every woman who gets portrayed by major film networks

And indies too, for that matter MUST be reinterpreted into an acceptable figure of feminine beauty.

[LittleBlue]

2. She's faced a lot of criticism for this role, very unfair to her

Gorgeous woman. Her bread and butter is becoming action movies anyway. Hope she dumps movies like this and sticks to action. She's too good to deal with this BS.

[Arazi]

3. Charlize Theron was absolutely brilliant in Monster

completely transformed and utterly believable.

Great actresses can pull this off. Can Saldana? Remains to be seen but I don't think whether one is "born beautiful" should disqualify them from a great role

[Depaysement]

6. I love this post

I think I am the only other person who thinks Charlize Theron is a great actress.

[Arazi]

8. Solidarity! Lol!

[sufrommich]

4. They do this to women in biopics all the time.

They cast men according to how closely they can resemble the character and women by how good looking they are. With black women they take the extra step of making sure they appeal to white sensibilities.

[malaise]

5. Well Nina sure didn't appeal to anyone's sensibilities

I agree with the professor

[Arazi]

10. Wow! Really?! I always loved Nina Simone's face - so powerful

it was elegant and supremely self-assured

[malaise]

11. Absolutely but she had no resemblance to

Zoe Saldana. you can't just make up people and call them someone they don't even resemble - that's crap.

For the record we grew up on Nina - we have more than a few records and CDs

[Skittles]

7. she looks fine to me

[enough]

9. I imagine everyone reading this has already seen the recent stunning documentary about Nina Simone

called "What Happened, Miss Simone?"

But if you haven't, see it (Netflix). Very moving and revealing, and most relevant to this discussion.

[MrScorpio]

12. She looks nothing like Nina Simone

Personally, I would have went with Viola Davis instead.