Menu
What's new
By:
Filters

Anyone else had their enjoyment of films somewhat ruined by TV shows?

el-bo said:
just as long as I can keep my attention focused for more than half a paragraph ;)
Click to expand...
Our world is systemically eroding away our ability to focus for longer periods of time. I've linked this one here before and likely will do so again. It's important to be aware of this imho:




Myself I noticed that it's easier to focus on a whole movie when not watching it alone. Together with my girlfriend I can watch a 90 minute thing in one go. Alone I wouldn't even want to start and likely would pause after half of it. I mostly stopped watching 45 min episode shows too, instead I'm watching more 22 min per episode anime shows. I guess the next logical step would be only watching 10 minute long meme compilations on youtube, or 5 min per episode mini-series.


There's also an aspect for me about being familiar with characters already, that I like in shows. I find it somewhat exhausting to start a new show because I don't know any of the characters yet. Once I'm familiar I feel much less resistance towards watching more of it. And I prefer the "monster of the week" style of old shows over modern long story arcs. I'd rather rewatch Star Trek TNG than watch one of those modern from-cliffhanger-to-cliffhanger shows.
 
Last edited:
I’m going to go off the rails and change the subject and say music has ruined my enjoyment of TV and movies.Every second is crammed with emotion manipulation sound waves sometimes you can’t even hear the dialogue.Don’t even get me started on those insidious commercials with their gawdawful jingles .I love music ,I hate this barrage of emotion manipulation it deadens the senses and makes a mockery of music.If Silence is golden media music is puke green...rant over..carry on ..my apologies .
 
el-bo said:
I'm sure it will, just as long as I can keep my attention focused for more than half a paragraph ;)
Click to expand...
You simply have to visualize or imagine what your reading, as if you’re watching and plan to tell someone later. It’s a subtle mindset shift that I’m probably not explaining well, but it changes how you process what you’re reading. Not mechanical eye movement anymore but an emotional involvement
 
MartinH. said:
Our world is systemically eroding away our ability to focus for longer periods of time. I've linked this one here before and likely will do so again. It's important to be aware of this imho:

Click to expand...

I've not watched that video (I will do, though), but I am not unfamiliar with the theme. Been looking into this for a while and am determined to do something about it (Not in a global sense; Just in my life).

MartinH. said:
Myself I noticed that it's easier to focus on a whole movie when not watching it alone. Together with my girlfriend I can watch a 90 minute thing in one go. Alone I wouldn't even want to start and likely would pause after half of it. I mostly stopped watching 45 min episode shows too, instead I'm watching more 22 min per episode anime shows. I guess the next logical step would be only watching 10 minute long meme compilations on youtube, or 5 min per episode mini-series.
Click to expand...
Yeah, you got it bad ;)

I think the only reason I can make it all the way through shows is that after the first few minutes they get relegated to background white-noise while I focus intently on the seemingly more important job of being distracted and daydreaming :eek:

Got a plan?
 
youngpokie said:
You simply have to visualize or imagine what your reading, as if you’re watching and plan to tell someone later. It’s a subtle mindset shift that I’m probably not explaining well, but it changes how you process what you’re reading. Not mechanical eye movement anymore but an emotional involvement
Click to expand...
Yeah! It's something I've tried before. Need to also remind myself to think about what I've read after reading it. Maybe I can start filing some of this tuff into long-term memory. if I don't remember the experience, is there any point in having it in the first place?
 
RmPvt said:
Why the hell isn't there an intermediary format ?
Click to expand...

YouTube. There are some consequences: compression, lousy sound, ads.

In college I would spread out around ten books on a big library table, and refer back and forth to all the various sources. Now the browser is the table; the tabs are the books.

I feel for ya. Drowning in media availability has had bad effects on my attention span. Listening to an album used to be a listening event. Now I listen to smaller excerpts on-demand. I have noticed a diminishment in my ability to imagine things now that I can call them up. Playlists.

You're right. "Television," or episodic stuff, can be brilliant in the hands of artists.

Watching a movie now is getting a Blu-ray and having uncompressed 5.1 surround. It's an event, like listening to a great LP.
 
Not a movie but an interesting experience pre-internet days. A made-for TV series of John le Carré's "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" (BBC).

It was a 7-part weekly show seen here in Canada. I read the book while the series progressed.

Funnily enough I found the TV series exceptional as it clarified something which the book left unclear (Note: le Carré helped produce the series).

There was no binge watching/Netflix back in the day so you could read along at a leisurely pace and stay abreast. So there is one exception.
 
Thanks mainly to Covid induced lockdowns, I'm swinging the other way on this and preferring "mini-series" to movies. 8 x 1 hour episodes gives a story and characters time to evolve, rather than cram everything into a 90 - 120 minute movie.

Another bonus for me with forced time at home, has been broadening my cultural appetite for non-English content (and music) which I've found very refreshing.

I suggest the pressure is on traditional "formula" movie makers now, with the surge of streaming and globalisation, to "freshen up" and properly innovate.
 
No, So many TV shows are 8 hours of filler that could easily be condensed into a quality Film experience....

Plus a lot of these so called high budget Netflix offerings are style over content....

There are some exceptions....Walts journey in Breaking Bad...

The amount of TV shows that I have quit on episode 2 or 3 is huge....due to nothing happening, characters I just don’t care about and crap writing.

The same can be said for Films too...it amazes me how people can sit through the new star wars movies as they are utter Dross....while The Mandalorian was just brilliant....

So it’s not the format...TV or film....it’s the characters and writing and the quality of the performances....Daisy Ridley is such a rubbish actor it amazes me how on earth she got the job....

I seek out European cinema it offers a lot more exploration of the human condition and mostly hits the spot....

Portrait of a lady on Fire is a masterpiece....Another Round was brilliant also....
 
Last edited:
easyrider said:
No, So many TV shows are 8 hours of filler that could easily be condensed into a quality Film experience....
Click to expand...
True in some cases, but movies based on books often benefit from longer formats. So many great books have been savaged and stripped of all subtlety in a movie.

Sweeping generalisation, but I've also found euro/scandi/middle eastern shows to be better at developing more subtle dynamics in a mini-series format.
 
Arbee said:
True in some cases, but movies based on books often benefit from longer formats. So many great books have been savaged and stripped of all subtlety in a movie.
Click to expand...

Don’t get me started on the Utter dross of the Lord of the rings films...Read the hobbit as a kid and the films were dragged out nonsense...

So I guess it works both ways...but my tolerance for mediocrity is increasing and I’d much rather be sat around my pond watching the wildlife....

Arbee said:
Sweeping generalisation, but I've also found euro/scandi/middle eastern shows to be better at developing more subtle dynamics in a mini-series format.
Click to expand...
There certainly are some top quality TV shows from across the world worth seeking out.
 
No, if anything TV shows have made me realize just how much I do enjoy good films (nothing against TV, have enjoyed Breaking Bad and The Ozarks somewhat recently). It does seem that good films are less often created lately, but they are still made. My nephew asked me a few weeks ago, "doesn't it seem like way more good movies were made in the 90's?" I confirmed his assumption.
 
Macrawn said:
TV shows have improved exponentially in the past few years. There is so much money being poured into them that they really are in a way very long films ie the Mandalorian, Game of Thrones. Witcher, Westworld and so forth. At least the top tier ones.

Add to that the fact the a lot of movies are just trash like that new Wonderwoman movie.

I think the whole model is changing as a lot more money is going to go into high quality tv shows with the intension of carrying on several seasons. I've honestly been a lot happier with those shows than what I'm getting from the movie department.

Even the new Dune movie which I'm looking forward to, probably could or should have been for television. Kinda perfect for that really as it's based on a huge series of books.

I'm not sure why most movies are bad these days, but over the top action and effects is a big reason. Too safe is another.
Click to expand...


I love this channel showing some philosofies about movies/shows etc.





 
easyrider said:
Don’t get me started on the Utter dross of the Lord of the rings films...Read the hobbit as a kid and the films were dragged out nonsense...
Click to expand...
Not only that but those movies had no chance, regardless of budget, of recreating the visuals that Tolkien put into your head when reading the books. Ironic that those movies dragged out so much yet completely missed so many of the subtleties (e.g. the relationship dynamics between different races).
 
Documentaries series work...as they follow the case....Making a muredder and The Jinx....we’re good...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom