Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood by Maureen Ryan

9 reviews

fkshg8465's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.25

Sadly, nothing new (only in that this BS has been happening since Adam). Will be hard to watch Lost in the same way ever again, though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Ableism, Alcohol, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Self harm, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Rape, Violence, Body shaming, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Pandemic/Epidemic, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Racism, Suicide, and Physical abuse

iamamyyyyy's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

2.5

The chapters that were focused on specific shows such as Lost and Sleepy Hollow were the most compelling. Outside of those, I found it overly long and repetitive. However, I still felt that the book could be for anyone. The last section of the book which focused on solutions seemed like it was meant for a far smaller audience. I slogged through it, but while maybe interesting as a concept, it didn't feel like it was for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Sexism

jackiepreston's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

The two halves of this book feel very different. I understand the purpose of part 2, but it's not nearly as compelling as part 1. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Racism, Sexism, and Homophobia

ladythana's review against another edition

Very good book but too sad and distressing for me to finish. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Misogyny

Moderate: Sexual assault, Rape, and Sexual violence

atomicbritt's review

challenging dark informative sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Sexism, Xenophobia, Gaslighting, Racism, Homophobia, and Adult/minor relationship

wlreed312's review against another edition

challenging hopeful informative slow-paced

5.0

Brilliant, challenging, at times infuriating. I especially liked the discussion about SAG-AFTRA in one of the later chapters, given the strik that is currently happening. It offered a lot of insight 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Homophobia

Minor: Alcohol and Drug use

geenawrites's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

 Maureen Ryan's expose on the Hollywood machine is something else.

I've heard of and watched a lot of the situations Ryan details, lived in the moment as some happened in real-time.

And I'll be honest, I really only got this book to hear the chapter on Sleepy Hollow and the horrors of what happened on that set. I know a lot of other readers who did the same.

Not out of some masochistic need to hear it read to me all over again, but to know and see the pain actors like Nicole Beharie and Orlando Jones are seen and acknowledged. Surrounding the SH debacle is a plethora of stories of people who entered creative industries like Hollywood to tell stories, only to be harmed and pushed out by self-important personalities who thrived on a culture of abuse.

"Burn it Down" is a hard read. I stopped more than once to cry and to take a breather. I started reading this at the start of June and only finished it today.

Feelings of despair and anger were a constant, but they didn't leave me hopeless. Instead, I'm hopeful for the work that people are doing to, as Ryan puts it, "burn the old temple down". It's happening everywhere, and I truly hope to see the fruit of this labor.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone invested in social change and community action and collaboration. Just pace yourself. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Homophobia, Rape, Racism, Sexism, and Sexual violence

moonytoast's review against another edition

challenging hopeful informative slow-paced

4.75

We have to remember one big truth about the entertainment industry—not just as it is presently constructed but as it has always been constructed. Those who run it care about power and money. Profits that used to be measured in millions now are measured in billions. Every penny has to be squeezed from every possible corner of the industry. [...] If those with power think it saves money to ignore monstrous behavior—if it save money to not care about who gets damaged, broken, or otherwise abused during the creative process—well, that's what happens.

I think this is a must-read nonfiction book for anyone loves film and television, even those who may not be as tuned into the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. It breaks down so many issues that have plagued and continue to plague Hollywood, which often create a toxic and abusive work environment for writers, actors, assistants and various workers across the entertainment industry, particularly lower to middle-level workers.

There is so much that this book digs into regarding various workplaces and an abundance of harrowing personal experiences from those she interviewed, but it's not a book without hope or a vision for a better future; Maureen Ryan demonstrates that Hollywood does not have to be this way and there are demonstrable changes that can be made to create a better, healthier work environment for everyone.

I, for one, hope that future comes sooner than later. If the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes put enough pressure on the AMPTP to come to the table and cede to the demands of those unions, that won't nearly solve all of the issues Ryan brings up in this book. But it would be a good start. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Racism

scottnap's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative medium-paced

5.0

This is a hard read but a necessary one for anyone looking to go into the entertainment field.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, Racism, Gaslighting, Grief, Homophobia, Cursing, Sexism, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault