Why Caitlyn Jenner’s Story Is Important

In the winter of 2014, my friend Dan* and I sat in a coffee shop just down the road from our houses. The reason: to talk about his transition from a female to a male gender. This wasn’t too long after the suicide of Leelah Alcorn, who killed herself after her family refused to accept her for being a trans woman, and we were discussing how attitudes towards transgender people had changed.

While Britain and Ireland has become more accepting over the years, with the Same-Sex Marriage bill allowing those of different sexual orientation to legally marry, the Metropolitan police saw offences against transgender people soar by 44% in 2014. In America, transgender men and women continue to face the worst forms of persecution in western society, with a high murder rate against trans women on top of the fact people can still be fired or lose their homes for being transgender.

And then there is Caitlyn Jenner.

Formally known as Bruce, Caitlyn Jenner is a former Olympic gold medalist who is best known for her marriage to Kris Jenner (formally Kardashian) and her appearance on the reality show Keeping Up With The Kardashian’s.  But while her family actively seeks attention, the jokes regarding her gender identity are completely inappropriate.  Ever since the first rumors of her transition, news outlets such as TMZ, renowned for their slanderous reporting of celebrity lives, have consistently ridiculed her for her “embarrassing” change in gender identity; even going as far as to say “he’s not doing a very good job of staying a man”.

However despite the fact Jenner has revealed to be undergoing gender reassignment and requesting for the media to use female pronouns, various news outlets have appeared to ignore this and continue to refer to Jenner as “he”; further demeaning as well as dehumanizing her. Celebrity gossip magazine In Touch, infamous for their controversial covers, splashed the headline “My Life As A Woman” with an image of Jenner wearing heavy, obviously photo shopped, make up. The message this gives, not only implies that society does not understand those undergoing gender reassignment, but that the lives of people who go through this on a daily basis are one big joke; that Caitlyn Jenner should be mocked because she is unhappy with the body she was born into. The continuous taunting, ridiculing and lack of understanding from news outlets are no different to playground bullying and can only add to what must be an incredibly difficult time for her. The fact that Caitlyn Jenner is a big name in the public eye seems to render it acceptable to encourage transphobic remarks, now that racism and homophobia are no longer tolerated.

Unfortunately persecution towards transgender people is all too common. While Britain has become more accepting over the years, the Metropolitan police saw offences against transgender people soar by 44% in 2014. In America, transgender men and women continue to face the worst forms of persecution in a western society, with a high murder rate against trans women on top of the fact people can still be fired or lose their homes for being transgender. In addition to this, a staggering 41% of people who are transgender or gender-nonconforming have attempted suicide, with nearly two-thirds of people claiming it to be the result of bullying or domestic violence. Sadly, this is all too familiar to my friend Dan who, like so many other transgender people, was bullied by his parents. “These were some of the darkest moments of my life,” he explained. “During this time I was getting some nasty verbal and emotional abuse from my mother. My parents pulled me out of school [and] denied me access to my friends, the stress of which made me turn to self-harm”. 

Caitlyn Jenner’s story is important because it signifies the lack of education in society. While sex and sexuality are becoming more prevalent in culture, gender is something that is often ignored and often portrayed negativel  As my conversation with Dan taught me, the older generation has a history of dealing with people coming out as trans or what terminology to use in the wrong way and the media continues to enforce this. Very few people who are cisgender (a person whose self-identity conforms with the gender that corresponds to their biological sex) really knows what being transgender really entails. It wasn’t until that conversation in the coffee shop that I learnt about hormone treatment and how it can be quite an emotional process and can be the deciding factor in getting surgery.

So why is this story of an athlete turned reality star important? Because it signifies attitudes society has towards transgender people. Jenner’s frequent publicity brings to light the changes that a trans woman goes through in order to feel self acceptance, something many people can relate to; especially those who are transitioning later. While there has been some negativity towards Jenner and her journey, many transgender communities have praised Jenner for coming out and bringing the issue into the public eye, even wishing him well through the rest of his transition.

However, she also represents everything that is wrong with the press. Instead of using Jenner as means to inform the public on the struggles of transgender people, they ridicule her for her fashion choices, pit her against her family and even go as far as to portray her as the villain. Caitlyn Jenner’s story is important as it reveals that the way the press handles sensitive issues to be disgusting. Their childish behavior and lack of compassion is a prime example of the persecution trans gender people face everyday, the only difference being that in most cases they are just too ‘uninteresting’ to report on.

Metallica At Glastonbury: A Victory For Music Or A Commercial Mess?

As the sun set over the muddy fields of Glastonbury, a large crowd gathered outside the Pyramid Stage, anxiously awaiting the festival’s most controversial band to date: Metallica.

Their journey here was not an easy one. Since the announcement of Metallica headlining Britain’s biggest music festival, the heavy metal group’s booking had faced controversy due to their sound not fitting the typical “hippy” vibe of the festival. Many festivalgoers argued that Metallica were not in the spirit of peace loving Glastonbury due to the violence and angry nature of metal music. There was also backlash from animal rights activists, who launched a campaign for the band to be removed from the line-up due to frontman James Hetfield’s involvement in bear hunts.  

But as all eyes fell on the American Metal Heavyweights, it seemed that nobody knew what to expect. Even before Metallica took to the stage, they premiered a film titled Glastallica, portraying four murderous bears killing English toffs on a fox hunt. It’s intention? To poke fun at those aggrieved by Hetfield’s former role in bear hunts. It seems that when you’re the world’s biggest metal band, it’s easy to laugh off the hate.

Then came the aforementioned metal. Holding their instruments like lethal weapons for the massed drums and slash guitar of “Creeping Death”, it was hard not to be impressed. Even if you weren’t a fan, you couldn’t deny the sheer heft of their sound. With the back of the stage packed with their own supporters and the 120,000,000 people who sung back their songs, it was clear that Metallica had taken Glastonbury by storm.

Metallica is the first metal band ever to headline at Glastonbury, so it was easy to see why it is considered one of the most notable events in festival history. Glastonbury Music Festival is well known for its hippy nucleus and its focus on saving the planet, with Greenpeace, Oxfam and Water Aid reportedly receiving some of the profits. It is a festival branded by critics as “the peace and love” festival where crowds of the young and old, the hard rock fans and the country music fans can come together as one under a good cause. However, while it claims to be inclusive of all genres of music, Glastonbury have a history of refusing metal bands, so it was an odd choice to have Metallica playing the Saturday evening slot. So why is metal music so scarce at mainstream music festivals? Is it really down to metal being marketed for a niche audience, or is it down to the prejudice of festival organizers and their fans.

Metallica were the first and by far the biggest of the ‘Big Four’ of Thrash Metal and have continued to play well into their fifties. Since the heavy metal genre first broke away from the original “loud blues” sound of Black Sabbath, few bands pushed the boundaries like Metallica. With Metallica being the first band to be considered “Thrash Metal,” they drew in thousands of fans dedicated to the anger, aggression and pure energy. Album sales skyrocketed while also spawning countless imitators and inspiring many to take thrash in entirely new directions. However, after the great success with some incredible albums, Metallica released what is arguably their worst album to date Reload: the album fans state was the band “selling out” and compromising their musical integrity. Since that album, creativity dropped and the band became a commercial mess, causing bassist Jason Newsted to eventually leave the band. The albums to follow did nothing to salvage their creative integrity. Instead, they edged Metallica closer towards mainstream music and further away from the thrash titans they once were.

While Metallica’s performance at Glastonbury was perhaps one of their best to date, one can’t help but feel that their attendance was typical of the festival. Historically, Glastonbury is a five-day music festival that takes place near Somerset, England. Founded in the 1970’s, the festival was heavily influenced by hippie ethics and the free festival movement, offering contemporary music, dance, theatre and circus events to name a few. Until the late 2000s, Glastonbury continued to have rock and indie bands headline the festival as well as the occasional pop artist.

However, the festival of peace and love soon moved away from its hippy routes towards more capitalistic ventures to become massively commercialized. VIP sections have since been installed as well as Yurts for celebrities who detest the idea of camping in order to cater to the rich and famous – transforming Glastonbury into nothing more than a bourgeois haven.

But despite the ever-changing music culture in society, we continue to expect the same conventions from Glastonbury. The days when Glastonbury was an alternative rock festival made it quite interesting. But with artists such as Dizzee Rascal, Beyoncé and Kanye West (who has recently been booked for Glastonbury 2015) continuing to headline, its no wonder the festival is losing its authenticity.

Is this a victory for heavy metal music? Probably not. Essentially Metallica should be at the new Glastonbury because they personify everything that is wrong with it today. The band has become very mainstream and commercialized in recent years, caring only about the money they receive rather than the music they produce. Instead of representing the triumph of the metal genre and the togetherness Glastonbury is supposed to represent, Metallica represents the commercialized mess the festival has become. They, like the festival, have become the ultimate symbol of selling out in order to gain more financial success.

Five Nights At Freddy’s: If There Was Ever An Excuse To Hand In Your P45…

Five Night’s At Freddy’s is an indie point-and-click game that takes horror to another level. With its minimalistic presentation and an emphasis on its audio design, the game’s atmosphere plays on the impending threat of the animatronics that’ll leave your imagination running wild.

The aim of the game is to survive five nights as a security guard at the infamous Freddy FazBear’s Pizzeria. With limited power, the player must hold off the bloodthirsty animatronics by using the doors and camera feeds or be met with a gruesome end.

Even without both the third dimension and high production values of triple A titles, the game itself is truly terrifying. Its less-is-more approach to its design makes the player feel helpless when confronted with the animatronics. Your inability to move, with only the cameras and doors to protect you, creates a suspense that even the most sophisticated horror games fail to deliver.

The game’s lack of audio also manages to create an atmosphere that is positively chilling. Everything is silent, except for the gentle hum of the fan and the warning growl of the approaching toy. Whilst the AI is relatively basic, the animatronics are by no means predictable. Its tendency to play around like an innocent child before closing in for the kill will leave you on the edge of your seat.

Due to its simplistic design, Five Night’s At Freddy’s runs the risk of becoming repetitive.  Once mastered, there is not much more to expect beyond slamming doors and managing battery life, making it hard to find anything else beyond the atmosphere.

Regardless, Five Nights At Freddy’s is highly entertaining with its gameplay mechanics and aesthetics that contribute to an overall feeling of fear and paranoia. No nightmare can come close to the terror of looking into the eyes of a plush toy that has come to rip you apart. Once Five Nights at Freddy’s digs its claws into you, it will be impossible to let go.

The Grand Budapest Hotel: A Gripping Tale of Alliance, Fulfilled Promises and Nobility.

Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel is a stylish adventure comedy. With its hilarious dialogue and enthralling plot, it is without doubt his best film to date.

The film follows the adventures of Monsieur Gustave H, concierge of the titular hotel and his lobby boy Zero Moustafa. Together, they become embroiled in a story of murder, theft and escape, all against the backdrop of war.

Despite its action filled plot, the comedic element of the film is highly sophisticated. A key example of this would be the hilarious fight scene between Dmitri and Gustave. While this particular scene’s dialogue is childish at times, it’s not done in a way that cheapens the plot.

Anderson’s star-studded overall cast gave a spellbinding performance. However, it was Ralph Fiennes who stole the show as Gustave. Initially vain and somewhat egocentric, Gustave’s character develops beautifully throughout the film, eventually becoming a fiercely loyal father figure to Zero.

The Grand Budapest Hotel is stylish yet maintains integrity. It’s a film that finds Anderson using elaborate settings to give its audience a nostalgic reminder of classic movies. Its deeply emotional ideas and bittersweet undertone is a shining example of inventive storytelling that you can’t help but fall in love with.