"So-Called Angels", the Christmas episode from My So-Called Life. Teen angst, social awareness, angels, and family togetherness. What a wonderfully tearjerky mixture.
3/07/2008
Tear Jerkiest Moment of the Day: Mid 90s Edition
"So-Called Angels", the Christmas episode from My So-Called Life. Teen angst, social awareness, angels, and family togetherness. What a wonderfully tearjerky mixture.
3/03/2008
Film Criticism: A Criticism
Movie critics, for the most part, are overrated. Do we really need someone to tell us that the new Jessica Alba movie is going to be awful? Most trailers give a pretty decent idea what the film will be like. If you can't tell that 27 Dresses reverses the feminist movement even by its very title, there's something wrong with your judgment system.
But my biggest beef is the need to say if something is either good/bad or rated with stars, ignoring the variance of skill and creativity that goes into to filmmaking Maybe because films are a form of mass media, we feel the need to judge movies based on mass appeal. But even when critics do look deeper at a film with lesser immediate appeal, most of the public ignores them--quality movies go unnoticed and lazy films make millions upon millions of dollars.
I guess I should define what I mean by "quality movie". I'm talking about a movie that has clearly been thought through thoroughly: if the script is well polished, the set design reflect the themes/characters/time period, the music enhances the film, the cinematography helps the audience to experience the film, the editing supports the tension, I could go on. Basically, all aspects of film are well thought out and support the purpose of the film for the intended audience. If it's a comedy, there should be good comedic timing with the actors, editing, and music; it obviously won't have sweeping and dramatic shots--that would be inappropriate. But a film that has a goal and sticks to it is a pretty good one right off the bat. Clearly there's room for preference within this definition, but I can acknowledge that even a film I disliked was a quality, well made film.
Unfortunately, some people cannot get passed certain aspects of a movie, so they call it bad. For many, The Village was terrible. I'll admit the ending felt cheap and contrived, but the rest of it was wonderful. The costuming, cinematography, and musical were gorgeous and lush, creating a surreal atmosphere. For me, Pride & Prejudice (2005) was terrible, but the tone of it was consistent in the music, costumes, and script adaptation. I could probably rant about my complaints about the film, but what it would come down to is that it didn't fit my preferences and my tastes. That doesn't make the movie bad, per se, just not my favorite. A wise friend once mentioned that people want to see a movie that fits their expectations and are disappointed when directors/writers/producers create something else. It's not their movie, they don't have to see it, so why act like the victim? (Again, I'm talking about quality movies. You can complain all you want about the terrible movies your friends make you see.)
I recently stumbled upon a film site that's seems fairly well established, but I soon realized how limited the criticism is. Case in point: There Will Be Blood. This was one of my favorite movies released in 2007. Granted, it's not everyone's cup of tea: it has slower pacing than most films and leaves out a lot of exposition that would explain why the lead character is the way he is. Whatever. But to take issue with the questions the film raises. I personally like a movie that makes me think. Maybe it's because I also love literature, but are we so illiterate a country that we need themes, characters, or motifs spoon fed to us? I understand that films cost a lot to make, so mass acceptance is just being economical, but surely there are many moviegoers who love to think about the art of film. This movie obviously rubbed the reviewer the wrong way, so he ignored how the very aspects he hated supported the film as a whole. I'm at a loss for how much that review hurt my faith in people and their thinking skills.
So, I guess my point is that I love movies--especially good ones--and I love good commentary on films. Unfortunately, most of it drives me crazy, which is why I've reduced my review reading mostly to Pajiba. Although a little crude, it features review from smart, knowledgeable people who take the time to pick out the good aspects in well made films and insult the horrible aspects in lazy ones. If anyone knows any other good reviewers, let me know. I'd love to check them out. And take care to hate movies with good reasoning. After all, rants are so much more fun when they're well supported.
But my biggest beef is the need to say if something is either good/bad or rated with stars, ignoring the variance of skill and creativity that goes into to filmmaking Maybe because films are a form of mass media, we feel the need to judge movies based on mass appeal. But even when critics do look deeper at a film with lesser immediate appeal, most of the public ignores them--quality movies go unnoticed and lazy films make millions upon millions of dollars.
I guess I should define what I mean by "quality movie". I'm talking about a movie that has clearly been thought through thoroughly: if the script is well polished, the set design reflect the themes/characters/time period, the music enhances the film, the cinematography helps the audience to experience the film, the editing supports the tension, I could go on. Basically, all aspects of film are well thought out and support the purpose of the film for the intended audience. If it's a comedy, there should be good comedic timing with the actors, editing, and music; it obviously won't have sweeping and dramatic shots--that would be inappropriate. But a film that has a goal and sticks to it is a pretty good one right off the bat. Clearly there's room for preference within this definition, but I can acknowledge that even a film I disliked was a quality, well made film.
Unfortunately, some people cannot get passed certain aspects of a movie, so they call it bad. For many, The Village was terrible. I'll admit the ending felt cheap and contrived, but the rest of it was wonderful. The costuming, cinematography, and musical were gorgeous and lush, creating a surreal atmosphere. For me, Pride & Prejudice (2005) was terrible, but the tone of it was consistent in the music, costumes, and script adaptation. I could probably rant about my complaints about the film, but what it would come down to is that it didn't fit my preferences and my tastes. That doesn't make the movie bad, per se, just not my favorite. A wise friend once mentioned that people want to see a movie that fits their expectations and are disappointed when directors/writers/producers create something else. It's not their movie, they don't have to see it, so why act like the victim? (Again, I'm talking about quality movies. You can complain all you want about the terrible movies your friends make you see.)
I recently stumbled upon a film site that's seems fairly well established, but I soon realized how limited the criticism is. Case in point: There Will Be Blood. This was one of my favorite movies released in 2007. Granted, it's not everyone's cup of tea: it has slower pacing than most films and leaves out a lot of exposition that would explain why the lead character is the way he is. Whatever. But to take issue with the questions the film raises. I personally like a movie that makes me think. Maybe it's because I also love literature, but are we so illiterate a country that we need themes, characters, or motifs spoon fed to us? I understand that films cost a lot to make, so mass acceptance is just being economical, but surely there are many moviegoers who love to think about the art of film. This movie obviously rubbed the reviewer the wrong way, so he ignored how the very aspects he hated supported the film as a whole. I'm at a loss for how much that review hurt my faith in people and their thinking skills.
So, I guess my point is that I love movies--especially good ones--and I love good commentary on films. Unfortunately, most of it drives me crazy, which is why I've reduced my review reading mostly to Pajiba. Although a little crude, it features review from smart, knowledgeable people who take the time to pick out the good aspects in well made films and insult the horrible aspects in lazy ones. If anyone knows any other good reviewers, let me know. I'd love to check them out. And take care to hate movies with good reasoning. After all, rants are so much more fun when they're well supported.
2/28/2008
Medley in my head of the day:
"Stairway to Heaven" by Led Zeppelin combined with "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by the Beatles.
These two actually go together, I swear.
These two actually go together, I swear.
2/26/2008
Worst Cultural Reference of the Day:
My Assessment and Treatment of Articulation and Phonological Disorders in Children textbook titling a section on babbling stages "Babbling Revisited."
I'm sorry F. Scott.
I'm sorry F. Scott.2/25/2008
A Childhood Well Spent
Now, I was a big of fan of the Animaniacs, Sailor Moon, and The Secret World of Alex Mac as the next person, but I feel like I got an extra amount of culture in my childhood. Maybe I'm just getting that vibe because I go to an LDS school where most people weren't raised with cable TV and plenty of free time. So, the spirit of procrastination of studies, I've delineated a random selection of some of my favorite things I remember from my childhood:
Music Videos:
I remember watching TV during the half-day school days of kindergarten and preschool. The one I remember the most vividly is Tom Petty's "Mary Jane's Last Dance" complete with necrophilia.
Although I also loved Prodigy's "Breathe." Such a great/creepy song to grow up to:
Pepper Ann:
This show came out about the same time as Recess, but didn't get as much credit for being hilarious. Probably because half the jokes didn't make sense to 10-year-olds. My favorite episodes include
Daria:
I watched this show concurrent to Pepper Ann. I miss after-school cartoons. At one point in my life I earned the nickname Daria, not really for my misanthropy as much as my monotone. Thinking about this show makes me lament the loss of MTV's good programming and how much I hate it now and how much I wish they would release the series on DVD already. Seriously. Anyway, I would recommend this show to any "tweener." It gets you over high school drama before you get there, successfully guiding you to real life.
Anyway, the show is so good, the French love it too:
Real World Seattle:
This was one of the last seasons that the cast had souls. I actually liked the people on the show because (they actually had to do a job (work at an alternative station in '90s Seattle?? Awesome), and they seemed like they wanted to do something with their lives other than be drunken whores*. Plus, I felt really bad about the Irene situation. That was real.
As a note, there weren't any good clips of this to show. But trust me, it was one of the better seasons.
Earth 2:
I was raised to be into Sci-fi/fantasy, although with grain of salt (see below). Star Wars, Sliders, The X-Files, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer all contributed to my love. The most obscure show (that I believe was on either right before or right after Lois & Clark) that my family watched was Earth 2. Off the cuff, I remember a curly-haired man and Tim Curry (who ended up being the villain on the new Earth, maybe?) inhabiting a new Earth--with any luck because old earth was overpopulated/polluted/war-torn. I love the concept of space travel and hibernation and this show had plenty in its one season. Mostly, I use Earth 2 to show the sheer amount of television watching I did as a child.
Looking on YouTube, I found some unfortunate fan videos. I'll spare you and instead show you the intro en espanol (Tierra dos):
Mystery Science Theater 3000:
This show really just enables anyone who thinks they're funny to comment on movies. This show contributes to my love to snark at anything; my only wish is that I'm actually funny. Plus, the amount of pop culture dropped in all the jokes makes it even more educational. Here's a great example:
Well, this is just a taste of my childhood. There are so many more examples to choose from, but these are some of the more original. I can only hope my children will be as lucky as I was.
*I refer you to How I Met Your Mother and Marshall's rant from Season 3 Episode 7: "Ted, how many times have I told you to put the lid back on the peanut butter jar?! It's this inconsiderate, immature jackassry that makes me feel like I'm living in The Real World House! And not the early days when they all had jobs and social consciences, I'm talking about Hawaii, and after! I can't take it anymore! Ted, Lily and I are married now! It's time! We're getting our own place!"
Music Videos:
I remember watching TV during the half-day school days of kindergarten and preschool. The one I remember the most vividly is Tom Petty's "Mary Jane's Last Dance" complete with necrophilia.
Although I also loved Prodigy's "Breathe." Such a great/creepy song to grow up to:
Pepper Ann:
This show came out about the same time as Recess, but didn't get as much credit for being hilarious. Probably because half the jokes didn't make sense to 10-year-olds. My favorite episodes include
- One where the opening conversation is about whether or not Paul from The Wonder Years is Marylin Manson.
- Pepper Ann's mother becomes a successful comedian with her "You Might Be A Single Working Mother..." bit (this was during the hey-day of Jeff Foxworthy).
- Pepper Ann's sister Moose wants the new town statue to be of Patrick Swayze and wears a "Crayze about Swayze" shirt while collecting signatures. The Evel Knievel nomination wins out.
Daria:
I watched this show concurrent to Pepper Ann. I miss after-school cartoons. At one point in my life I earned the nickname Daria, not really for my misanthropy as much as my monotone. Thinking about this show makes me lament the loss of MTV's good programming and how much I hate it now and how much I wish they would release the series on DVD already. Seriously. Anyway, I would recommend this show to any "tweener." It gets you over high school drama before you get there, successfully guiding you to real life.
Anyway, the show is so good, the French love it too:
Real World Seattle:
This was one of the last seasons that the cast had souls. I actually liked the people on the show because (they actually had to do a job (work at an alternative station in '90s Seattle?? Awesome), and they seemed like they wanted to do something with their lives other than be drunken whores*. Plus, I felt really bad about the Irene situation. That was real.
As a note, there weren't any good clips of this to show. But trust me, it was one of the better seasons.
Earth 2:
I was raised to be into Sci-fi/fantasy, although with grain of salt (see below). Star Wars, Sliders, The X-Files, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer all contributed to my love. The most obscure show (that I believe was on either right before or right after Lois & Clark) that my family watched was Earth 2. Off the cuff, I remember a curly-haired man and Tim Curry (who ended up being the villain on the new Earth, maybe?) inhabiting a new Earth--with any luck because old earth was overpopulated/polluted/war-torn. I love the concept of space travel and hibernation and this show had plenty in its one season. Mostly, I use Earth 2 to show the sheer amount of television watching I did as a child.
Looking on YouTube, I found some unfortunate fan videos. I'll spare you and instead show you the intro en espanol (Tierra dos):
Mystery Science Theater 3000:
This show really just enables anyone who thinks they're funny to comment on movies. This show contributes to my love to snark at anything; my only wish is that I'm actually funny. Plus, the amount of pop culture dropped in all the jokes makes it even more educational. Here's a great example:
Well, this is just a taste of my childhood. There are so many more examples to choose from, but these are some of the more original. I can only hope my children will be as lucky as I was.
*I refer you to How I Met Your Mother and Marshall's rant from Season 3 Episode 7: "Ted, how many times have I told you to put the lid back on the peanut butter jar?! It's this inconsiderate, immature jackassry that makes me feel like I'm living in The Real World House! And not the early days when they all had jobs and social consciences, I'm talking about Hawaii, and after! I can't take it anymore! Ted, Lily and I are married now! It's time! We're getting our own place!"
2/20/2008
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