Cebuana actress Chai Fonacier’s accent in trailer for Hollywood film “Nocebo” stirs storm in a teacup on social media
Social media was abuzz with excitement and pride as the teaser for Hollywood psychological horror film “Nocebo,” which stars Cebuana actress Chai Fonacier opposite Eva Green and Mark Strong, debuted online. But the reaction was not all chest-thumping Pinoy-pride patroitism; a Twitter user posted that he found the accent with which Fonacier’s character speaks in the movie unbearable and consequently stirred social media sparring over issues of “authenticity” and “internalized racism.”
First, here’s the trailer for the movie, in which a fashion designer (Green) struggling with a mysterious illness and finds help in a Filipino nanny (Fonacier) who turns on her doorstep.
Film critic Philbert Dy, and many netizens, evidently liked what he saw.
But one Twitter user stirred the pot by saying he found Fonacier’s accent unbearable and that Fonacier the actress doesn’t speak English that way. So maybe he thought Fonacier’s character shouldn’t, either?
This did not go down well with the majority of the Twitterati, who didn’t find anything suggestive of “oppression” in Fonacier’s accent at all?
Finally, here’s a screenshot of a post by Fonacier that aims to set the record straight:
What did we learn from this, and many, many, other exchanges over woke talking points that pervade social media? It is this: the hot takes, which tend to be expressions of outrage on behalf of other people because it’s a social justice warrior thing to do, tend to go viral because they’re utterly ridiculous. They find fault and dishonorable intentions where there are none. In short, as some commenters have nailed it, it’s generally a “You” problem for these woke cultists.
Also, sanctimonious wokes hold their ground, no matter how shaky it is. Also, they won’t engage because your comebacks are not smart enough to be worth their time. Lastly, it’s the “white man” that’s our enemy here, not our fellow oppressed people of color.
