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Melissa Villaseñor’s SNL Oscars Breakdown Has Got #WhiteMaleRage Trending

What do all the Oscar-nominated films have in common?

Melissa Villaseñor popped in for a desk bit during Saturday Night Live‘s Weekend Update, where she shared some original songs she wrote for this year’s Oscar-nominated films. As a goofy music track plays, Melissa rhymes about the nominated films while summing up what each movie is actually about: white male rage.

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She starts with Joker, then goes into The Irishman, ending each song with a chorus of “white male rage”. Colin Jost sums it up as “a description of the movie then takes a weird turn to social commentary.” There is also a recurring joke about Jost watching each film every day while working out, alone on Christmas, etc.

Villaseñor then combines the rest of the nominated films under the white male rage, including Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Jojo Rabbit, 1917, and Little Women, which was snubbed because of, you guessed it, white male rage. She culminates in the white male rage between Buzz Lightyear and Woody in Toy Story 4.

Unsurprisingly, angry white guys took to the internet to, well, rage against the bit. Others called them out on missing the point of the joke:

What makes the bit so relevant is that the Oscar-nominated films are only one facet of the #WhiteMaleRage that is consuming our country. You only need to look at Mike Pompeo berating journalists or Donald Trump’s Twitter feed or the pro-gun rally in Virginia to see that we as a country are drowning in white male rage.

No wonder all our films reflect this specific anger. After all, art is a reflection of life, and film is specifically a reflection of the white men who dominate the industry. At least that jingle is catchy.

(image: screencap/NBC)

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Author
Chelsea Steiner
Chelsea was born and raised in New Orleans, which explains her affinity for cheesy grits and Britney Spears. An pop culture journalist since 2012, her work has appeared on Autostraddle, AfterEllen, and more. Her beats include queer popular culture, film, television, republican clownery, and the unwavering belief that 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' is the greatest movie ever made. She currently resides in sunny Los Angeles, with her husband, 2 sons, and one poorly behaved rescue dog. She is a former roller derby girl and a black belt in Judo, so she is not to be trifled with. She loves the word “Jewess” and wishes more people used it to describe her.

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