Dork Hollywood: Geek is the New Cool
Here is just some evidence to prove Hollywood has finally acknowledged that geekiness is coolness.
The Matrix: A nerd’s idea of a wet dream, the film follows the evolution of Neo (computer geek) into becoming the One. Even with the lousy sequels working against it, The Matrix had become such a huge influence on mainstream Hollywood filmmaking, specifically its bullet-time scenes. Sure, bullet-time photography has been in existence since Speed Racer but The Matrix made it cool and suave.
Return of the King (Lord of the Rings trilogy): The quintessential geek film written by the biggest geek of them all, J.R.R. Tolkien, who was obsessed with creating a world so profoundly nerdy that it has its own Elven language. And now its recognized by the Academy Awards. After passing on Return of the Jedi and other geek films, the Oscars finally recognized the brilliance of the nerds by awarding Return of the King with a grand-slam, winning all the awards it was nominated for, including Best Picture and Director.
Spiderman 1 and 2: Geeky Peter Parker gets a supermodel. What’s wrong with this picture? Abso-friggin-lutely nothing! The movies show that it’s not pretty boys get the girl after all, it’s the nerds. Why? Because they’re adorableâÂ?¦ they’re bespectacledâÂ?¦ and, yes, they’re the epitome of coolness. So gents, wear those nerdy glasses and bag yourselves one of them supermodels. Speaking of black-rimmed eyewearâÂ?¦
Harry Potter: Need I say more?
Aeon Flux: I know. I know. Horrible film? Sure. But as every red-blooded American male with tell you, none of that matters. What matters is that Charlize Theron is Aeon Flux. Serious, established actors and stars are doing films where their names are secondary consideration. You got actresses like Halle Berry taking roles like that godawful Catwoman. Why? Because geekiness is cool.
High Fidelity: Nothing says dork like John Cusack and Jack Black debating about music and love in the movie based on a Nick Hornby novel. But we dug their geekspeak because they made it look cool to be able to recall all that music trivia without batting an eyelash.
Kill Bill Vol. 2: We all know Quentin Tarantino’s a big geek. Many of his references in his films are stuff geeks are made of. Take Kill Bill Vol. 2, for instance. In the climax of the film, Bill (David Carradine) extrapolates on the mythology of Superman and superheroes. It reeks of dorkiness, doesn’t it? Yes, definitely. Is it cool though? Absolutely.
V for Vendetta: Alan Moore may be furious that his masterpiece got slaughtered in the silver screen BUT thanks to this film, comics are getting read with respect by more and more people who once thought that comics are just for kids and nerds.
There you have it. Just a few examples of Hollywood tapping into geekdom’s resources. So celebrate your destiny, geeks. Feel no shame in geekspeaking and know that Hollywood, finally, is on your side.
