http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX1iplQQJTo&feature=player_embedded
The Simpsons used to be my favorite show on TV. I have the first 12 seasons on DVD, and the show was full of awesomeness. Around that time ( I don't know exactly where) the show jumped the shark. It started recycling old episodes, and it became clear that the show I once loved had run its course. I tune in from time to time, if a celebrity I like does a cameo or something. Mostly, I have moved on. Also, at the same time, I would like to point out that I have a pretty dark sense of humor. I can laugh at stuff that would make others cringe.
Even I have my limits. If you watch that link above, you'll see what I mean. I know that The Simpsons is made overseas (In Korea, I think). I never pictured it quite like that. I think that video was supposed be sort of an attack (or political statement) against 20th Century Fox. The thing is, The Simpsons have survived for so long because of the support of the network. By that logic, if Fox is guilty of allowing Dickensian workhouses to create their shows, than the creators of The Simpsons are, too. Where that intro is meant to be an attack, it comes off more almost as though the creators are proud of the fact that others suffer so they can have their millions of dollars in merchandising. It's kind of like if the Nazis made a video about the mistreatment of Jews...that was filmed in their own Concentration Camps. It's enough to make you scream "WTF?!?" That's a little extreme, but that's how I felt about it. I think the show has gone too far. This may be a case of "It's art, and I'm not smart enough to get it", but that last clip is one of the most dark, inappropriate, unfunny, and sad things that I have ever seen. For shame, creators of The Simpsons, for shame.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
The Social Network (Or, How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Check My Facebook)
The Social Network is intense, fascinating, and one of the best films of the year. It's always about this time of year that I start putting together my list of top 10 films. Which ones I liked, versus which ones I really liked, and which ones I was indifferent towards. This one is easily in my top five. Nay, my top three. I personally never would have guessed that a movie about the creation of Facebook would be all of these things.
Part of why The Social Network is so fascinating, is because of how culturally relevant it is. I mean, you gotta wonder how many people were on Facebook while watching a movie about it. If that's not art, then I don't know what art is. You could even make the argument that this film is the defining movie of the decade. Again, because of how integral Facebook has become to our society. If it were to shut down for a week, I'd worry that our society was on the brink of Apocalyptic collapse.
This movie is also a testament to American Capitalism. Literally anyone, even nerds who spend their Friday nights typing lines of code on the internet, have the potential to become billionaires. The fascinating thing to me about this movie was its "who-stole-what-from-whom bickering. It attempts to paint Mark Zuckerberg as this evil-genius douchebag. Maybe he is. But there's no way he could have known from the beginning how big of a monster Facebook would become. If he was planning to screw all of his friends over from the start, as the movie suggests, I think that points to a very dark side of his character. That means he didn't do it for the money, he did it because Facebook was his, and no one would get in his way.
The Social Network is the best film director David Fincher has done since Fight Club. It doesn't hurt that he's backed by writer Aaron "The West Wing" Sorkin. The cast is also amazing. All the actors here bring their A game. Yes, all of them, even Justin Timberlake. Not only that, but it's a little freaky how much the trio of actors look like their real life counterparts.
As much as I said this film is a testament to American Capitalism, which celebrates that drive of the human spirit to succeed at all costs, I really hope a lot of people don't walk away from this movie thinking "Man, I really want to be that guy." It's possibly dramatic irony, but it's at least interesting to think that Zuckerberg, who created a network where friends could stay in touch with one another, seems to have few himself in the end.
Part of why The Social Network is so fascinating, is because of how culturally relevant it is. I mean, you gotta wonder how many people were on Facebook while watching a movie about it. If that's not art, then I don't know what art is. You could even make the argument that this film is the defining movie of the decade. Again, because of how integral Facebook has become to our society. If it were to shut down for a week, I'd worry that our society was on the brink of Apocalyptic collapse.
This movie is also a testament to American Capitalism. Literally anyone, even nerds who spend their Friday nights typing lines of code on the internet, have the potential to become billionaires. The fascinating thing to me about this movie was its "who-stole-what-from-whom bickering. It attempts to paint Mark Zuckerberg as this evil-genius douchebag. Maybe he is. But there's no way he could have known from the beginning how big of a monster Facebook would become. If he was planning to screw all of his friends over from the start, as the movie suggests, I think that points to a very dark side of his character. That means he didn't do it for the money, he did it because Facebook was his, and no one would get in his way.
The Social Network is the best film director David Fincher has done since Fight Club. It doesn't hurt that he's backed by writer Aaron "The West Wing" Sorkin. The cast is also amazing. All the actors here bring their A game. Yes, all of them, even Justin Timberlake. Not only that, but it's a little freaky how much the trio of actors look like their real life counterparts.
As much as I said this film is a testament to American Capitalism, which celebrates that drive of the human spirit to succeed at all costs, I really hope a lot of people don't walk away from this movie thinking "Man, I really want to be that guy." It's possibly dramatic irony, but it's at least interesting to think that Zuckerberg, who created a network where friends could stay in touch with one another, seems to have few himself in the end.
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