Whoops They Did it Again! A film review

My husband and I went to see the movie "The Expendables 2" last night.  I had had a hard day at work and then therapy for my knee. so we planned to meet at a local theater where you can watch the movie and eat your dinner at the same time.  It's nice, you choose your meal from a menu, they even include alcoholic beverage, which my husband enjoys because, being English, he misses his Woodchuck Cider, which he can't find in a lot of places.  A "waiter" comes and gets your order and then delivers it while ducking down through the rows so that he/she doesn't impede anyone's view of the movie.  The food is definitely not high class, think cheese fries, wraps and some desserts, but it's fun.  Another great perk of this theater is there is always a small clip at the end of the previews (not really previews, they use old clips of the stars of the movie or clips from pictures similar to the one you will be watching) that stresses that you are to turn off your cell phones, no ringing, no texting and NO talking during the movie.  It's usually presented in a humorous manner, but they really mean it.  If you are sitting next to someone who is disruptive, all you need to do is write down your complaint on a piece of paper and stick it in the slot so it stands upright, exactly they way you order your food and a server comes and collects it and takes it to the management.  The management will then warn the offender once and if they cause any more trouble they will be removed from the theater without their money back.  I assume this is something they felt the need to institute because they do sell alcohol, but whatever the reason, it makes for an enjoyable viewing experience.

Anyway, there we were, my husband and myself, happy to see each other after a busy day and watching the movie.  Now, this is not the type of movie I usually want to see, but it got a high rating on Rotten Tomatoes and I didn't mind it.  The experience and the prospect of a date with my husband was what I had been looking forward to.  However..... about three quarters through the movie, the heros ( Stallone, Stratham and some other actors I don't know as well so I can't give you their names off the top of my head) were in a village, facing some suspicious village women who were protecting their young boys from the evil villain.  When asked who they were, our heroes answered, "American", "English", "Asian" and then..... wait for it...... the next guy answers "tard".

Why!!!! Why does someone feel the need to do that, couldn't you have said "ugly" or "sexy" or something else which would have caused viewers to laugh without using that ugly word which hurts, devalues and dehumanizes people with intellectual disabilities?  And what made it even worse, in my mind is that Sylvester Stallone is one of the writers of the movie and he has a son diagnosed with autism.  I don't think that automatically makes him a caring wonderful human being, but I would think it would make him more sensitive to using a word like that in a movie that he not only co wrote, but starred in.  Can he not fathom how that hurts people when he does this?  For me, the use of that word made the film not only sub par but insufferable.