So, a couple of things happened over the weekend. A major snowstorm nailed the east coast of the country, "Identity Thief" opened to huge numbers making it the best R-rated comedy bow of all time, and the largely irrelevant and already cantankerous Rex Reed penned a scathing review of the movie. Not just scathing, but also bizarrely personal, the critic took dead aim at Melissa McCarthy calling the actress "tractor-sized," "humongous," "female hippo" and "a gimmick comedian who has devoted her short career to being obese and obnoxious with equal success." As FilmDrunk noted near the end of last year, the critic has an Armond White-esque tendency to say outrageous things, but this seemed to well over the line, and the internet and media responded swiftly to denounce Reed. Well, you can’t keep a cranky, seventy-four year old critic down.
But first, let’s get some perspective: "Identity Thief" is a terrible, terrible movie. But it has zero to do with McCarthy’s weight and more to do with a thin premise, executed with the belief that if the actress rehashes her "Bridesmaids" routine but less honed, and more outrageous, it will equal comedy gold. And there are countless more ways in which "Identity Thief" is spectacularly awful (a story that could’ve knocked out at least two subplots, logic and plot gaps that defy comprehension, dead pacing and more). But turning to personal attacks, again, is just cheap and low. And given an opportunity to respond on WOR710 AM with Mark Simone, instead of making a simply apology and getting on with his life, Reed stoked the flames.
Saying that his jerky comments are "constitutionally protected, so there’s nothing anybody can do," Reed dragged out a conspiracy theory claiming that Universal Pictures was using his review to leverage moviegoers to buy tickets. Uh, okay. He then launched into an explanatoin that was a bizarre mix of health advocacy, a lame and hard-to-buy assertion that his comments weren’t about McCarthy but about her character in the film and more. Here’s what he said:
"My point was that I object to using health issues like obesity as comic talking points… [McCarthy] is basing her career on being obnoxious and being overweight. And I don’t think that’s funny. I have too many friends that have died of obesity-related illnesses, heart problems and diabetes, and I have actually lost friends to this. I have helped people try to lose weight, and I don’t find this to be the subject of a lot of humor. I have a perfect right to say that. My review was really more about the movie and about the character she plays in the movie than it is about her. I don’t care how much she weighs. I don’t care how much Melissa McCarthy weighs. She wants to be fat? Mark, she’s crying all the way to the bank."
This is probably the closest we’ll get to an actual apology from Reed, and it won’t be the last time he writes something that’s simply bizarre and perhaps mean. If anything, it’s likely the most press Reed has received in a while, and hopefully by next week, we can go back to not reading his reviews at all. [IndieWire]
She looks like a fat pig. Especially with that pig nose. And she\’s not
even funny. She\’s trying too hard to be funny, and it just feels forced
and obnoxious.
If truly Rex Reed felt Melissa\’s popularity is due to her wieght and not that she is truly a gifted comedian /actress.I would have to say Rex Reeds infamous career is because he is a arrogant obnoxious idiot.
I don\’t remember saying this …but there may be another Debbie Formola reading my mind
He\’s right you know
Melissa McCarthy isn\’t a poor comic actor because she\’s overweight; she\’s a poor comic actor because all her humour relies on her being overweight.
Look at, for example, John Candy. His roles could have been played by anybody, they were just funny and well-written. Louis Tully in Ghostbusters, for example, was a role written for Candy. It eventually went to Rick Moranis, who was about as far away from Candy\’s physique as it was possible to get.
Don\’t hate Melissa McCarthy because she\’s fat. Hate her because she\’s not funny.
Rex Reed is sorta right. MM bases her career on a stereotype – the fat slob stereotype. It's insulting, and I'm a tiny, little thing.
But…..she is fat and obnoxious. Terribly so. It's time we stop babying fat people. It isn't a disease any more than alcoholism. It's people with weak minds and addictive personalities that don't have people around them telling them they are too fat or drunk all the time. Being surrounded by people that call you fat sucks, I'm sure, but its better than being surrounded by enablers.
Mr. Reed you are mean mean man. I am so sorry you made your living attacking people and not for their acting abilities but for their outward appearance. Any executives that hired you and that pays your salary for being such a rotten bastard for no reason and allowed to attack a person's physical appearance should be seriously looked at and fired. Please look in the mirror, take a good look, before you say anything else that is so awful as you did to this wonderfully talented actress. Shame on you.
Rex Reed's writing style is in your face. Go watch You Tube clips of Rex when he was a young man in 1969 he was a bitchy queen back then too. Reed's joke about John Wayne being a drunk and getting an Oscar was hilarious!
As for Melissa McCarthy I disagree with Kevin here, Rex is correct McCarty is famous for being obnoxious and obese in her films and she's not funny! Rex was just speaking the truth this man knows a lot more about the inner workings of Hollywood than you do Kevin he may be 74 years old but he's seen a lot and knows a lot about the film industry.
Rex Reed is a figment in his own imagination. What if the actor-in his version of a bad movie- was an alcoholic or drug addict? How about gay?
No one even remembered (or cared) who Rex Reed was before he spouted his drivel. In neither "Bridesmaids" nor "Identity Theft" is Melissa's weight mentioned or used for comic purposes. She's funny & she does physical comedy well. Rex Reed is old & does bitchy queen well.
If Melissa wasn't as fat as she is, she would not be starring in this movie. She lets other ppl use her size as a source of humor. She being fat is part of the joke, both in this movie and in Bridesmaids. I don't see why ppl are so angry at Rex Reed for referencing her weight, when part of the reason ppl laugh during those movies is the underlying fact that a fat woman is performing those "comedic" acts.
Rex Reed is a miserable little man who has made a living critizing others who create for a living. He should probably kill himself. At least he could be remembered for that one betterment of humantiy.
With that nose you have alot of nerve!!!!!!! I always told my daughter that those that made fun of her had problems. Believe me Rex you don't like yourself, or you would not attack others. Really what matters in life? Beauty comes from the inside, IT is not outside that matters. GET A LIFE!!!!! AND APOLOGISE!!!!TO MELLISSA!!!!!
Melissa McCarthy was amazing as a regular on Gilmore Girls for 7 years, and her role in that show had zero references to her weight or her appearance at all. Just because she reached a wider audience by playing a stereotypic role on Bridesmaids doesn't mean that her entire career has been made up of such roles.
And you're telling me Zack Galfinakas isn't partly funny because how horrible he looks? Get over yourself, whatever makes me laugh…doesn't matter how.
I love the passive aggressive tactic movie bloggers utilize to dismiss a persons completely valid and sound opinion. McCarthy DOES use her weight as a tool for comedy. Anyone who deny that is clueless.
Roseanne. Barr.
This old queen's opinion hasn't been relative since I was in high school.
Well, the motherfucker be right. That right there is a big fat bitch.
I love Melissa McCarthy but honeslty, anyone can act. It not rocket science.
BETH:
Should we assume then that you have an eidetic memory for Rex Reed reviews? I mean, you're remember a very long time back to recall with such ease Mr. Reed's comments on two former SNLers who haven't been in a film (or among the living) in about 20 years.
And spare us the "bully" card. We all know what a real bully is, and it's not an aging Hollywood gossip taking jabs at a mediocre comedienne who makes money from being fat (a la Kevin James).
Funny, I don't recall Rex Reed doing this type of review of John Candy's work or calling John Belushi's weight into question when speaking of his comedic skills. Tell me, Rex…is is only fat women you are so critical of??? I said it once and I will say it again…Rex Reed is a BULLY and should be ashamed of exercising his "constitutional rights" to back his inexcusable actions up!
Reed said McCarthy is "a gimmick comedian who has devoted her short career to being obese and obnoxious with equal success". You can't blame Rex for telling the truth. I said much the same thing about her just last week, although I think my words were "I guess she's supposed to be funny because she's fat."
McCarthy is John Candy, Chris Farley, etc. … except that she's still breathing and overeating.
You are absolutely right-se is stealing material from Chris and John and its supposed to be funny cuz shes female this time-its stolen bits and she cant even do it right-at least the other two had depth-shes horrible
Who cares. She is hilarious. How many women base their career off of being talentless but insanly hot. A hell of a lot more talentless women are on screen for being hot, than fat women are for being talented.
Well, if it is his constitutional right to call someone a 'hippo' then it's my constitutional right to call him a bitter old queen.
Now, more than ever, more critics and more journalists ( and more twitter people) have agendas. If they don't like celebrities , they will nitpick and try to find many ways to personally attack celebrities and trash their work. This whole social media has made it okay to bully famous people.
But, to be fair, Melissa McCarthy has hit it big by being a female version of John Candy, and many of the jokes are about her character's sloppiness and her big frame. So, McCarthy should not be upset nor angry , because she is playing these stereotypical fatty roles for big laughs. I hope Melissa tries to diversify and portray different roles.
No one has really paid that much attention to Rex Reed, not since he acted in one of the worst films of all times: "Myra Breckinridge," was about a transexual before transexualizing became accepted as normal. He played "Myron."
These comments by Rex Reed are coming from a hack who is both overweight and obnoxious. I am guessing that his comments on Melissa McCarthy's weight stem from Reed's sense of self-loathing.
Melissa McCarthy is a comic genius who happens to be large. She has every right to explore that comedically, just as other comedians get to reference their own race/religion/unfortunate-plastic-surgery/whatever (Note: This is not an endorsement of "Identity Thief").
. . . we love her because she's fat. . . her humor is based on her being fat. Is she funny, yes, talented yes, a solid comedic actor, yes . . . but we cherish her because she's "doesn't care about her body image."
So if you praise her for her weight she can be equally critiqued for it too.
And while we do need a counter-point to some of the waif like actress out there, we also need to be aware that Melissa's success is a bad image to support, too.
I don't remember anyone saying he didn't have a constitutional right to write what he did. What a dumbass.
Melissa McCarthy isn’t a poor comic actor because she’s overweight; she’s a poor comic actor because all her humour relies on her being overweight.
Look at, for example, John Candy. His roles could have been played by anybody, they were just funny and well-written. Louis Tully in Ghostbusters, for example, was a role written for Candy. It eventually went to Rick Moranis, who was about as far away from Candy’s physique as it was possible to get.
Don’t hate Melissa McCarthy because she’s fat. Hate her because she’s not funny.