Why is this attitude…
Cell phones! Cell phones! Cell phones! And computer screens! It seems every new movie I see just has to show
people talking on cell phones and staring at computer screens! It drives me nuts! When will this crap stop?
…not considered as utterly ridiculous as this one would've been?
(c. 1931) Telephones! Telephones! Telephones! All I see in the movies now are people talking on telephones! Does the new Hollywood breed have
something against a good old-fashioned letter or telegram? And the clothing styles… These baggy suits and fedoras… What's wrong, I ask you, with a nice
homburg or bowler? What happened to winged collars and spats? Good gravy, they even show women's ankles now - or more! And why must all these females be
seen smoking cigarettes? Why, in my day…(blah blah blah)
I just have to shake my head in astonishment when I hear (or read) people whining about modern films, set in modern times,
showing characters doing exactly what modern people do.*
While certainly no technophobe, I personally don't care that much for cell phones -- I have one basically
for emergency purposes. (It cannot take pictures, I use the original ringtone that came with it, and it stays OFF most of the time.) But I don't extend
this personal dislike to the movies, where, if anything, film characters use them less than I see people doing in real life all around me.
The same goes for computers.
*Now, filmmaking styles (quick-cut "MTV" editing, color leeching, etc.) are a different kettle of fish altogether.
Those can be legitimate beefs.
Whining About "Modern" Movies
| Author | Comment | ||
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 Omega Man |
Whining About "Modern" Movies |
Lead | |
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(07/16/08 7:16 AM) |
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GhostofChaneysLiver |
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(07/16/08 8:04 AM) |
I've never complained about going to the theatre and seeing people on screen using cell phones. I've complained about people IN the theatre using cell
phones!!!
Cromwell |
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Omega Man |
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(07/16/08 9:01 AM) |
GhostofChaneysLiver wrote:Amen to that, Sir Ghost! |
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blackbiped |
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(07/16/08 12:29 PM) |
Cell phones have led to a new problem for modern movies--having to explain why the characters can't simply use their cell phones to call for help
when they're in trouble.
Actually, as much as I despise cell phones, I think it was probably The X-Files that got me used to seeing characters use them all the time.
Legend, oh legend, the third wheel legend...always in the way.
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Jojo Lapin X |
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(07/16/08 3:40 PM) |
Well, there are films that seem to be exclusively about young people playing around with their cellphones, which tends to get dull quickly.
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Rick |
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(07/16/08 11:33 PM) |
The phone situation is not limited to cell phones and not limited to lousy movies. THE INSIDER is a very good movie, but I swear I would have screamed from my
seat in the theatre if Al Pacino had made one more phone call. Of course, the movie is based on a true story, and maybe that's the way it happened, but it
would have been a good candidate for re-writing history to get a little more face-to-face drama, and a little less phone chat.
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Michael Elliott |
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(07/17/08 10:37 AM) |
THE DEPARTED was a masterpiece on how cell phones were used.
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Wich2 |
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(07/17/08 10:54 AM) |
Rick, you likely know that F. Murray Abraham used cellphones in his recent stage MERCHANT OF VENICE...?
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catmandu7 |
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(07/17/08 3:31 PM) |
Cellphones in the Merchant of Venice??
Was that before they turned on the Plasma TV??? |
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Joe Karlosi |
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(07/17/08 5:57 PM) |
I certainly don't mind movies of today having people utilize computers and cell phones like they do in real life today.
But when the whole movie plot is written around the angle of cell phones and computers -- and this is happening in a lot of newer movies, beyond being just a small novelty -- it gets to be overkill. I'm sure there were some old movies that featured a telephone as an important catalyst, but not nearly as much as the plots today revolve around cells and computers.
----------------------
"It's MORE ... than a hobby!" |
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Dr Acula |
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(07/17/08 6:14 PM) |
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Joe Karlosi |
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(07/17/08 6:16 PM) |
That's one. I'm sure there are a few others.
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"It's MORE ... than a hobby!" |
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Wich2 |
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(07/17/08 10:27 PM) |
SORRY, WRONG NUMBER.
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Rick |
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(07/18/08 2:01 AM) |
Yes, I had read that. But, in spite of the cellular-ite, I heard that FMA was quite spectacular in the production. |
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SparkieGojira |
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(07/19/08 12:23 AM) |
The frequent use of cell phones on the revived DOCTOR WHO, I'm embarassed to say, is what made me relent and get one.
www.itcamefromplanetx.com
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blackbiped |
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(07/19/08 1:40 AM) |
Some of the recent Asian horror movies I've seen have made really good spooky use of cell phones. Personally, I wouldn't own one of the damn things if
you gave it to me.
Legend, oh legend, the third wheel legend...always in the way.
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Michael Elliott |
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(07/19/08 2:59 AM) |
I really don't find it as bad as the early talkie days when every sound film just had the characters talking for no other reason than to let the crowd know
that talkies were here.
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HalLane |
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(07/19/08 11:33 AM) |
Joe Karlosi wrote:I SAW WHAT YOU DID ...... BLACK CHRISTMAS ......... SparkieGojira wrote: Collect call for SparkieGojira from the end of the Universe -- will you accept the charges?
I hate Star Trek stories that revolve around the Holodeck. That's one device I hope they never invent for real. |
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blackbiped |
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(07/19/08 12:18 PM) |
I'd LOVE to have a Holodeck, but I HATE the Trek Holodeck stories. It was okay when the Holodeck was simply a way for the weary crew to experience a
beautiful sunset or a stroll through the forest or whatever, but before long it was able to simulate literally anything with limitless potential. All logic
and believability was thrown to the wind simply for lazy writers to be able to put Worf in a Western, Picard in a 40s detective story, etc. or, worst of all,
to have Professor Moriarty threaten the entire ship. Any recreational device that actually caused the Enterprise and her crew that much peril on a regular
basis would've been scrapped long ago.
Actually, the most probable and believable use of the Holodeck was in Quark's bar. I'd hate to be the guy who had to hose that thing down every day.
Legend, oh legend, the third wheel legend...always in the way.
Last Edited By: blackbiped
07/19/08 12:25 PM.
Edited 2 times.
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heinlein99 |
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(07/21/08 1:22 PM) |
I like the Holodeck stories, but I can see how others would find them annoying. The one where Dr. Moriarty comes out into the real world was interesting (and
Stephanie Beecham as his girlfriend didn't hurt).
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Monsterpal |
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(07/21/08 10:24 PM) |
How long can it be before DIAL M FOR MURDER is remade, this time using a cell phone instead of a dial phone?
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