Sunday, August 05, 2007

Television


Hey, don't go away when you see that word because it's my contention that television--the non network variety--is the new film. The kind of films that Bergman and Antonioni made are more likely to be found on series tv. At least if you're talking about depth of character and atmosphere.
I see a lot of movies, at the theater and at home, and nothing lately compares to The Wire, The Sopranos, Big Love, Rescue Me, The Shield, Deadwood, Life on Mars and more recently Mad Men.
Burn Notice, Entourage and The Closer also merit the occasional glance. Television--the non network kind--has finally seen its strength--it can give the viewer a deeper, longer view into its subject. It can be just as sophisticated as film.

Mad Men, in its first two episodes, has more to say about how women were treated circa 1960 than any movie of recent years. I remember being considered fair game for the men in my Bell Telephone Company office and that was a decade later. It's also amusing and sad to see aerosol sprays come onto the market pitched as wonder products, knowing what we know now. Not to even mention, decisions made by these ad men on how to sell cigarettes after the surgeon general's first warning.
My Netflix envelopes are sitting on the coffee table for weeks now. Maybe I'll watch them when the network shows return in a month. Maybe...

14 comments:

Sandra Ruttan said...

I agree Patti. Movies have been very disappointing for me, which is why I don't go to theatres much any more.

pattinase (abbott) said...

I still go but more out of habit and for the popcorn. But I am usually disappointed--even with movies with good reviews. Like Talk to Me the other night. It was a tv movie with good acting. They never demonstrated why this guy was so great at doing talk radio. Went for laughs instead.

MysterLynch said...

There are a lot of outstanding films being made, but they are not the ones that are being promoted heavily.

Example: The Lookout comes out on DVD on Aug 21st. A really smart heist flick that is worth buying.

But cable television has clearly taken over when it comes to quality television. It is sad that often the networks don't even seem to be trying to produce great shows, rather looking for the next reality show that will explode.

But going back to films, there is a growing sub-class in Hollywood of directors that make smaller films (less expensive films) that allow them to have more freedom. Those are the directors that are making the films that are worth looking at.

For example:
Rian Johnson(Brick)is currently filming a con man film with Rachael Weisz, Mark Ruffalo, Adrian Brody and Max Schell. Three Oscars in that bunch. He opted to finance it independently so he could have more control over it.

Kevin Smith, Robert Rodriguez, Tarantino, Paul McGuigan, Paul Thomas Anderson, Danny Boyle, Guillermo del Toro, the Coen Brothers and Richard Linklater are some of the directors (that have nine Oscar nominations and two wins among them) that opt to spend less money so as to command greater control over their films.

With DVDs, more of these smaller films end up being profitable. Kevin Smith has yet to have a film that did not make money. Even Jersey Girl ended up being very profitable once it hit DVD.

I am not suggesting that all of those folks I mentioned have always made great films, but they do make films with originality and inventiveness that is commonly lacking in the bigger films.

pattinase (abbott) said...

You're right, of course, and I have seen a number of good films this summer: Away From Her, Waitress, After the Wedding, The Lives of Others. But if I lived in most places, ones without four theaters that show indies, I would never have seen any of these. I can't wait for The Lookout, have it on my netflix list. And these others look promising too. Things always look bleak in the summer, I guess. Thanks for the titles. The Coehn brothers have only misfire in about ten movies so I am hopeful about that one, in particular.

Ed Gorman said...

I caught one episode of it and it made me wince. I was one of Them for a time, working in and out of Des Moines, Minneapolis, Chicago. I've written a couple of "work" novels--one about advertising, one about politics (SMP 2008)--starting both the same way, with the narrator setting himself above all the miscreants filling the scenes...but coming to the conclusion that he was no better than any of them. Alas I wasn't.

pattinase (abbott) said...

He's a tough protagonist to like: a cheater, arrogant, cruel to his wife, a sellout, amoral. I'm curious to see where they go with him. And I know you weren't one of them or you wouldn't have ditched it so quickly.

Maria said...

Josh brought over a movie tonight that I'd never heard of, but that you might love if you've not seen it. It's called Brick, out on DVD.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Thanks, Maria. I have seen the liked Brick. Cool idea-putting noir in a high school.

Anonymous said...

I'm still happily naive enough to enjoy most movies I see, but I definitely see stronger storytelling in TV right now. I think most of this has to do with how the writer is treated. In films, writers are the lowest form whereas in TV the writer is king. I have yet to see Mad Men or several other of the new shows, but I'm totally digging on Burn Notice.

MysterLynch said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
MysterLynch said...

Bryon,

I honestly think it depends on what movies you are going to see.

There are some amazing scripts out there being made into movies. Sadly, many of them fly under the radar.

It is not small coincidence that most of the filmmakers I mentioned, in a previous comment, write (or co-write) most of the films they make.

We just need to get rid of hacks like Joel Schumaker and Brett Ratner.

Maria,

Brick is an absolute fave of mine. It was my film of the year for 2006.

Rian (creator of Brick) Johnson's next film sounds killer with three Oscar winners and another nominee in the main cast. It is inspired by the book that inspired The Sting.

The Brothers Bloom just wrapped shooting and will likely be in theaters early next year.

Anonymous said...

Hey, and some network/broadcast tv is worth seeing...it's just that it's usually cut off at the knees, particularly at ABC over the last year or so...MASTERS OF SCIENCE FICTION, DAYBREAK, HELP ME HELP YOU, TRAVELER, BROTHERS & SISTERS, and arguably BIG DAY are all worth the time, but damned if all weren't cancelled or otherwise toyed with. HOUSE, NUMB3RS, MYSTERY!, SCRUBS (even if it is tailing off), THE OFFICE, and occasionally the procedural shows have solid episodes...and the PHILIP MARLOWE, PRIVATE DETECTIVE series is popping back up on public television in syndication, DA VINCI'S INQUEST still circulating south of the border in commercial syndication.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Love The Office. Haven't seen too many of the others. Anyone like Eureka or the 4400? I've those get by me too

Anonymous said...

Among the other cable series this summer, THE BRONX IS BURNING (on ESPN--which keeps trying to be a source of drama) and THE KILL POINT (Spike) are decent, the new Lifetime shows...well, they're watchable, I suppose...and I was unimpressed with what I saw of the new Holly Hunter series on TNT and extremely unimpressed with DAMAGES, on F/X and repeated on the new broadcast network MNT. On the other hand, the season premiere of season two of PSYCH was pretty brilliant. While I've found BURN NOTICE remarkably uneven, ranging from near brilliant to just watchable.