Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Reality bites
Originally, I was going to post a comment response to Jay's post on reality tv. That is, until I realized how long the post had gotten. So, I thought it deserved a whole post all it's own.
Jay,
Very good point you make here. I can remember when the beginnings of what we now call "reality tv" was the kind of informational program on Discovery, only watched by shut-ins, geeks, and those without a life. I used to watch these all the time. More like mini-documentaries on everyday subjects, I really enjoyed a show on how house insulation was made, or what goes into a city's septic system.
Now, as you point out, they have taken the heart out of the issue. They have pumped in prosthetic plotlines and synthetic drama, until the whole thing is a bloated mess, a sickly thin shadow of the original, with dark circles under the eyes. Course, the audience is larger now. Nobody really cared about the crab industry until the drama was injected, "these people might cuss, or DIE out here!" Now you have a show that appeals to the masses.
It can be said that there are two types of moving picture entertainment. One is the visceral, action type flick. All booms and bangs and sex and cars and fun. Revenge flicks, football movies, shooting sprees. The other is the more cerebral type of engagement. The puzzle, the mystery, the twisty thriller, the unsolvable crime, the mental chase, the race for the cure.
Personally, I usually prefer the cerebral type. On occasion, however, I do like to unwind and dip into the thoughtless realm and just have a fun series of shallow images flood my brainpan. You know, when I get tired of thinking for myself.
What about the rest of you?
-Owen
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1 comment:
I'm reminded of an old sci-fi series on the BBC. It was called Blakes 7. They shot it mostly with video equipment on a sound stage with "little" to no effects, and the little was very cheap.
Occasionally they would shoot at a landfill or some outdoor location that was supposed to be a planet. If they shot outside they used 16mm film because back then video was not portable.
The effects were less than the quality of the original Trek series and the sets were cardboard.
BUT...
The stories were superb!
The series ran for several years and ended in a cliffhanger that fans still talk about.
The thing is, that series could be shot by anyone with the passion to produce it and common consumer equipment, today. Might even look better!
And it would be just as good. The characters were interesting, the stories were good science fiction, and the audience didn't care if it had Star Wars quality effects.
Blakes 7 is still a good show.
People need to stop thinking blockbuster effects and start concentrating on the story.
I'd rather watch one good 10 minute show that is compelling and thought provoking than sit through two hours of stuff blowing up and a predictable ending.
But, that's just me.
J.
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