Culture watch : Newsweek : TV vs Movies

If you got this week's newsweek you'll see on page 52, an article that showcases the changes in scope, focus, and star power given to the little screen; As well as a shift between the big screen movies and television.

And the shift has been dramatic. What do people talk about at work? Is it the latest movie in theaters or is it what happened last night on... "NOOO don't tell me I haven't seen it..!" More often than not the latest episode of (Name your poison here: Lost, Sopranos, Idol, Race, Survivor...) is the topic of the day around desks. Excitement bubbles, coffee consumed, and imaginations run wild at the thought of what next week, or tomorrow will bring. And way shouldn't it? The production value of television has exploded. With big name producers and writers taking part in this part of the craft, the escalation of the expenditure and scope was inevitable. Jerry Bruckheimer, Michael Crichton, and a host of others has brought great writing and visual story telling back to our homes during primetime.

Take the TV show LOST for example. Efforts to bring a sense of disaster, danger, and mystery, required the use of a real airplane cut in to pieces, fire, explosions, and a real island to tell the story of airline crash survivors. Take 24, a show about a federal agent and 24 phenomonal hours of intrigue and and explosive action. The level of scope and story telling have leapt beyond the efforts of recent memory, especially when we look at what I believe is one of our lowest moments in pop culture, the unadulterated glut of "reality based" shows.

Saint Anna - Right?... Err... Seriously wtf?

So Saint Anna died. I mean Anna Nicole Smith. I dubbed her Saint Anna because I was sure that with all the press surrounding her death she'd performed some kind of miracle. Sorry, Playboy and trimspa aren't miracles. They resonate with their audiences but are far from miracles.

Maybe I'm a little harsh, but in what way does the passing of this person draw the kind of media attention worthy of the kind of funeral and retrospective that we grant the President of the United States when one dies?

I guess I'll figure out why the next time I turn on my tv and try to find something on, because even today it's still everywhere.

Merry Freakin' Christmas

Merry Freakin' Christmas people. And I meant that. We've lost our heads here. We're at a point where someone can be admonished for bringing cheer and good wishes to others by using a series of words that are not demeaning, obscene, or negative in anyway. Here's my problem with this problem. More often than not, the phrase's underlying meaning is NOT, "HEY! Celebrate the birth of my savior or burn you heathen." No, it really isn't. More often than not is it an expression of one's desire to share good wishes with the people around them during this most traditional of American seasons.

What's really being said is, "Good wishes upon you. I hope your family is well, you friends plentiful, and your football team does well in the playoffs." Or something like that, I had to do some translation.

It's a greeting, a bringing of good tidings during this season of giving. So whether your greeting is a Happy Kwanza, Happy Chanukah, or Merry Christmas, I say bring it with emphasis of a global citizen of peace on earth and goodwill towards mankind, get off the semantic kick, stop assuming people are out to get you and challenge you and your faith, accept the good wishes, and get on with standing in line at Best Buy hoping against hope that there is just one more Nintendo Wii in the bin in the back with your name on it.

Merry Freakin' Christmas
-dean