[Stuart Wright]

AVForums Movies Podcast : 19th November 2009

Movie and Blu-ray news plus we consider - is TV better than the cinema?

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[Pecker]

Just listening to this, and...

NONE OF YOU HAVE EVER SEEN MAGNOLIA?



I think the phrase I'm looking for rhymes with 'clucking bell'.

Steve W

[Phil Hinton]

Originally Posted by Pecker

Just listening to this, and...

NONE OF YOU HAVE EVER SEEN MAGNOLIA?



I think the phrase I'm looking for rhymes with 'clucking bell'.

Steve W

I have and its one of my at least top 30. Boogie Nights is higher though.

[Pecker]

Originally Posted by Phil Hinton

I have and its one of my at least top 30. Boogie Nights is higher though.

Sorry Phil, I must have missed that.

Boogie Nights is one of those films that I never warmed to, though I don't know why. I maybe need to give it another go.

Can't wait for the BD of Magnolia - another one to tick off the list.

I've only managed around half of this podcast so far - I'll post more when I've finished it, but so far so good.

Steve W

[bosque]

Originally Posted by Pecker

Just listening to this, and...

NONE OF YOU HAVE EVER SEEN MAGNOLIA?



I think the phrase I'm looking for rhymes with 'clucking bell'.

Steve W

We have to remember that not everyone has seen every movie though I was surprised to hear Phil (I think) say that Paul Thomas Anderson seemd to have "dropped off the radar" since the late 90s. Check out There Will Be Blood, probably his best film and one of if not the best movie of 2008.

[Pecker]

Okay, firstly kudos to Phil for his comments near the end about the need for quality material first and foremost. Phil, that shouldn't need to be said, but sadly it does - well done.

Secondly, Chris am I the only one who thinks someone is taking the **** by putting a programme on Cbeebies called Dirt Girl World? What's all that about?

Right, on to the TV discussion. Gentlemen, I take a slightly different view. Have you not noticed what all these programmes have in common? Lost, Heroes, Battlestar Galactica, Supernatural, and so on. They're almost all sci-fi/fantasy/horror. The few that aren't (Band of Brothers, The Wire The Sopranos, 24) are violent(ish) crime/war products which are aimed at a similar demographic.

The networks now have more money to throw at these products, due to increased revenues from cable/satellite, overseas markets, and future sales on DVD/BD, as well as the associated commercial off shoots. Subsequently, the dreaded franchise with several sequels appearing every year or two becomes a dreaded franchise with the next instalment appearing next week.

To say they're deeper than many films is merely an acknowledgement that Michael Bay exists. To say they're higher budget is merely an acknowledgment that we don't see moveable cardboard walls on Star Trek and Dr.Who anymore.

Talking of Dr.Who, you didn't - well, hardly at all - and I don't think you mentioned another British TV series. The last decade or so of British TV has seen numerous interesting, intelligent well-written series, from This Life, through to Coupling, Life on Mars, and others.

If I think of Hollywood at its consistent best I think of the period from the late '60's through to the end of the '70's. This was dominated by films that were not genre affairs aimed at people in their late teens/early twenties, but interesting, thoughtful dramas aimed at adults.

Now I'm not saying for a second that the quality of some TV productions hasn't improved, and to be fair some of it is a little more thoughtful than the latest crass blockbuster, but that's damning with faint praise. Battlestar Galactica is deeper than Transformers, what isn't, but I still wouldn't call it deep.

Still, that's a very interesting discussion. Cheers.

Steve W

[Pecker]

Originally Posted by bosque

We have to remember that not everyone has seen every movie though I was surprised to hear Phil (I think) say that Paul Thomas Anderson seemd to have "dropped off the radar" since the late 90s. Check out There Will Be Blood, probably his best film and one of if not the best movie of 2008.

That had me scratching my head, too. Indeed, TWBB is his magnificent octopus, if you ask me.

Indeed, I think you've hit the nail on the head. TV isn't the new messiah because it can do sci-fi/action slightly better than Michael Bay, but it might be when it can do serious drama as well as PTA.

Just my opinion, chaps.

Steve W

[Nelviticus]

Spent ages trying to figure out why this doesn't appear in ZENcast Organizer and finally nailed it - the 'pubdate' tag is 'Thu, 19 Oct 2009' instead of 'Thu, 19 Nov 2009', so because it looks older than the previous item ZENcast barfs and ignores it. Flippin' Creative, they make great MP3 players but their software sucks.

I had to copy your xml file, edit it, post it on my own site and then subscribe to that - but now it's downloading properly. I haven't listened to it yet but thanks in advance!