Over a lunch for Woody Allen’s latest movie “Café Society,” Blake Lively criticized the Cannes Film Festival for allowing a controversial rape joke about Woody Allen to be part of the opening night ceremony.
“I think any jokes about rape, homophobia or Hitler is not a joke,” Lively said on Thursday when asked about the incident by a Variety reporter. “I think that was a hard thing swallow in 30 seconds. Film festivals are such a beautiful, respectful festivals of film and artists and to have that, it felt like it wouldn’t have happened if it was in the 1940s. I can’t imagine Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby going out and doing that. It was more disappointing for the artists in the room that someone was going up there making jokes about something that wasn’t funny.”
At Wednesday’s opening night screening of “Café Society,” master of ceremonies Laurent Lafitte shocked the audience when he said: “It’s very nice that you’ve been shooting so many movies in Europe, even if you are not being convicted for rape in the U.S.” The joke, which drew gasps from the Palais audience, was taken as a knock on Allen and possibly on director Roman Polanski as well.
“But it wasn’t just Woody,” Lively said of the material. “He made three homophobic comments in a row. A Hitler joke. And a rape joke. It was all within 30 seconds … What on Earth was happening? It was really confusing.”
When asked by Vulture’s Kyle Buchanan about the Ronan Farrow essay published yesterday in the Hollywood Reporter about how the media hadn’t responded appropriately to rape allegations brought by his sister Dylan Farrow against their father Woody Allen, Lively said that she hadn’t read the piece yet.
“I came home and went to bed at whatever time we finished,” Lively said. “I haven’t been in it, so I don’t want to speak on something I haven’t read. I think that’s dangerous. It’s definitely something that being at the festival, the media these days, you come to a film festival about film and people talk about all different types of things. You know? That can be definitely tricky to navigate, I’m sure. I don’t want to speak about something I haven’t read.”
Lively doesn’t want to comment on an article she hasn’t read. But she does comment on something she obviously doesn’t know. Woody Allen exploited and took naked pictures of Soon ye when she was just a child. He is a deviant and a pervert.
Blake Lively is right out of the class era of another Siciety movie, High Society with Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Grace Kelly. Nothing crass, cheap, or cringing about her.
‘I think that was a hard thing to swallow in 30 seconds’ – that’s what she said.
Hey Lively you wanna let Allen babysit your kid for you sometime?? LOL you’re a suck up sychophant.
I think that everyone, especially “feminists” need to stop judging Blake for her comments. I do not think she did anything morally wrong by simply stating her experience of working with Allen. She is not invalidating the statements of his accusers or trying to make excuses for his behavior. I also do not think that anyone would disagree with her statement that jokes about rape, Hitler, or homophobic insults are not appropriate. Given the situation and how much media scrutiny she is under, I think she acted very tactfully. She was mature enough to call out an insult that was unnecessary and to not to give any comment on the Dylan Farrow article ( which in her defense is not something that everyone with a busy schedule or anyone who gives a damn has necessarily read).I agree that if some “comedian” had gone up onstage and offended say Steven Spielberg, everyone in the room would have been outraged. Just because someone takes a shot at Woody Allen does not mean that a dig suddenly becomes funny. Anyone who is calling her stupid should take a moment to place themselves in her shoes. How would you respond given a thirty second clip where you had to promote a movie, talk about Woody Allen rape sexual assault allegations, and still come out morally unscathed?
Feminism is an ideology that both women and men should have EQUAL RIGHTS. That is all.
Feminism is a real thing, it doesn’t require scare quotes.
Agreeing with feminism or calling oneself a feminist doesn’t mean one has relinquished any right to express one’s opinions about women or men, or may no longer discuss topics related to women or men.
Feminism doesn’t require that the feminist henceforth forswear making any sort of value judgements, nor does feminism require the feminist to shut up if they disagree with your opinions.
All feminism means is that the feminist believes that neither men or women are entitled to, or otherwise deserve more rights than the opposite sex.
Hope that clears things up for you, resh2000
Does she know that Allen has made scores of hilarious jokes about Hitler and the Holocaust?
I think Blake has it a bit twisted here. Celebrities’ lives were no more or less “scandalous” in the 1940s than those of today — it’s just that the cover up was better. There was complete cooperation between the studios systems and the gossip entities, there was no paparazzi to speak of, AND THERE WAS NO INTERNET.
Maybe it wasn’t so much a joke as a dig. The way she speaks it doesn’t seem that she is smart enough to understand the difference.
Ugh. I have to agree with Nicole. Comedy is supposed to be provocative because it speaks to fundamental truths. People who don’t understand the goals of comedy likely have a limited capacity to comprehend irony. Allen is a complicated figure. On one hand he has an incredible comedic voice, and on the other it seems he was having sex with his underaged adopted daughter. B Lively’s attempt to censor this biting comedy to protect Allen is akin to silencing the cries of rape victims everywhere (intentionally dramatic, but no less true).
Rape is Real & Everywhere – this is a Canadian stand-up comedy show touring across Canada right now. All the comedians have been raped and use comedy to discuss their experiences and insight. So you CAN joke about these topics when its discussed with context.
lively doesn’t do her homework but start talking. and variety prints her story instead of looking closer at allen and polanski for that matter. enough said! PS. The dude fucked his own daughter! Already forgotten? And Polanski? – Oh, forgot, that’s just the fascists trying to dismantle a “cultural icon”…makes me sick to my stomach!
He did not fuck his own daughter. Soon-Yi was the adopted daughter of his girlfriend. They were unrelated, both legally and by blood. But thanks for letting your phony outrage get in the way of actual facts.
Don’t forget that Allen and Farrow never even lived together, they lived directly across the park from each and were famous for waving at each other. I’ve tried applying logic with people regarding this situation and it’s fruitless, despite NO ONE but the people involved know what really happened, I allow for the possibility that, given what had just transpired between Allen (Soon-Yi) and Farrow, Mia took the opportunity to blacken Allen’s name, and hopefully damage his career permanently. The conclusion by the CT court was inconclusive and no charges were filed. Was this a grave error in judgement on Allen’s part, certainly, morally murky for sure, but it’s also not know what the relationship was between mother and daughter. Teens do all kinds of crazy things to irritate parents, maybe Soon-Yi wanted to get at Mia (reason unknown) and she set her sights on Allen…it worked. But they been married 20yrs, and if you really want to see who drives the bus in that family, watch Allen’s documentary ‘Wild Man Blues’, Soon-Yi is a very determined woman, I saw no shrinking violet in her and this doc is from 1997, just a few years after all this turmoil occurred, interesting to say the least!
God, how ignorant can one person be? Soon-YI was twenty-one when they started sleeping together. There’s a word for that: adult.
As for Polanski, you have a case there, but this isn’t about him–it’s about Allen–so don’t drag him in because you think it will score points by equating the two.
So…in any case, a guy who likes little girls should be able to have sex with them, even if he raises them as his own children? because ya know. It’s not his blood? Do you honestly think that makes it ethical? And Roman Polanski! Hey, if enough time has passed and your victim is sick of dealing with it then…it doesn’t matter anymore. Because “art.”
yeah lets go back to the 1940’s…everything was so much better then! What with WWII and everything. right, Blake?
She isn’t wrong. Jokes about rape, homophobia and Hitler aren’t okay. And I can believe that she didn’t read the essay only because she’s doing so much stuff. At least she didn’t comment on something that she didn’t even read.
Stars, and their staff, monitor the Web 24/7 for the good and the bad about themselves. After all, they are a company, so to speak. She, as everyone else at Cannes, knew about Ronans article. Ask any star that’s worked with Woody and they always say the same type of thing. Blanchett did it best, but Lively has got it down too.
Yes: ““I think any jokes about rape, homophobia or Hitler is not a joke,”
Please.Of course she read Farrow`s essay.She a moral coward that`s all.
The true incidents of what happened with Roman Polanski and Woody Allen, and the environment surrounding these acts, the choices both of them made, will not sit well with the public. Certainly both of them should expect this response. All their brilliance in the world pales amidst their actions. In Roman’s case, it becomes apparent that he was involved with some very serious and dangerous people. Something has been going on in Hollywood for years now; we afe informed on occasion of twisted situations that give no rhyme or reason, and we are left to figure out the puzzle and fit the pieces together.
If Blake Lively is so against the belittling of rape, then why is she defending a rapist?
Maybe Ms. Lively is defending a victim of “coached” memory/accusation and a seriously vindictive ex-partner.
Amen!
Quite agree Ken.