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In this month’s issue of
Vanity Fair, James Wolcott writes a fascinating
article comparing TV to the movies. In light of Billie’s weekly Doux News (which now has me actually looking forward to Sunday nights) and J.D.’s great post on the movies, I got motivated to write a response.
I grew up watching movies and not TV. In fact, we did not own a TV until I was nearly ten and even then it was a small black and white set in the most uncomfortable room in the house. My parents, both English teachers, thought that books were the best form of entertainment and, to their credit, I tend to agree with them still. But, we did go to the movies. The very first movie I saw, my mother took me to see
The Sound of Music. I was very little, but I remember being swept away by the story and knowing that, when I grew up, I was going to have a wedding just like that one (oh well).
I loved the movies as a child and I still love movies. I couldn’t even pick one genre that I like better than others – I’ll watch just about any film if it tells a good story. Some of my favourites I have seen so many times that I can quote whole scenes. But I tend to watch them at home. I can no longer stand going to the cinema where people talk, text (what is with that??) and chew in my ear. Why pay for the aggravation when, a couple of months from now, I can watch the movie in my sweats, on my couch with no one talking and no one eating but me? And, all that luxury for a fraction of the price. But, honestly, there just aren’t that many great movies made any more. The exception that proves the rule is
The King’s Speech that I not only went to see in the cinema, but went back twice more and have watched it countless times on BluRay.
I agree with Wolcott that TV is now telling stories better. One direct comparison is the BBC’s 2006 televised version of
Jane Eyre and the 2011 movie. Although the movie did a fair job, the televised version was so much better. The reason, of course, is that TV had four hours to do what the movie only had two to do. Of course the story and the characters were better fleshed out – they had the time and the space to do so. Another example is the 1995 BBC version of
Pride & Prejudice against the 2005 movie. Barring the fact that I am not a fan of either Keira Knightly or Matthew Macfadyen and I think that Colin Firth is the second coming, the BBC version is so true to the book that it was almost like reading it again. Again, six hours instead of two.
Like Wolcott writes, my friends and I discuss television over our pints, not movies. The current rage is
Homeland, which is still showing over here. Absolutely everyone I know is watching it and talking about it. I don’t remember the last time that happened with a movie. The Christmas night episode of
Downton Abbey brought this country to a stop. I was at a party in Kansas City a couple of weeks ago, and the biggest discussion of the evening was about
Game of Thrones – the book or the show. People are passionate about it!
The other joy of television shows is the DVD box sets. It was the only way I could watch
24 – I was too impatient to wait for the following week, so I would avoid the show when it aired and then devour the entire year in one weekend. When I was very ill recently, I watched the first six seasons of
Supernatural this way, literally one show after the other over a couple of weeks. It was a brilliant way to keep from going crazy holed up in the house.
Television is far from perfect. There are way too many reality shows, the draw of which I don’t completely understand. Having said that, I tend to get swept up into
Masterchef,
The Apprentice and
Strictly Come Dancing, so perhaps I should descend from my horse.
The other problem with television, especially network shows, is that the season is too long. Forcing the writers to come up with 20+ stories a year inevitably leads to more than our fair share of filler episodes – especially when sweeps are not on. I love
Castle, but this year especially felt like a lot of wasted time between episodes that mattered. Cable shows seem to understand this. If we look at the best of cable (
Game of Thrones,
Justified,
True Blood), they all have seasons about half as long. As a result, a lot less filler which makes for a lot more story.
Finally, the shows that draw us in tend to have characters that we learn to love or love to hate. Because there is so much more time for character development, we grow to care passionately about them and talk/write about them as if they were real. All you need to do is look at the current discussions here and elsewhere about Alaric and Caskett, among others, to see what I mean.
But – when all is said and done, would I rather watch
Singin’ in the Rain or
Once More with Feeling?
Gone With the Wind (Clark Gable – my first crush – I was nine) or
The Vampire Diaries (Ian Somerhalder – my current crush – I am no longer nine!)?
Butch Cassidy or
Justified?
Romancing the Stone or
Friends?
The Godfather (any of the three) or
The Sopranos?
My Cousin Vinny or
Hart of Dixie? Thank goodness I don’t have to choose!
Also published at
Billie Doux
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