Old Books and movies.

John Baker

John Baker

Final Approach
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John Baker
I guess it's been over ten years since I've watched anything besides the news on television. I lost interest in all their offerings simply because they were so blatantly predictable. Within the first few minutes of viewing any show or movie, I pretty much knew what the whole thing was about, and how it would end. Everything is based on a formula, what the producers feel is a winning formula.

I switched over to reading books in the evening. Then I started noticing that the same seems to hold true for all recently published books, they are all formula based.

I am guessing that nobody will put up the money to produce or publish anything that is not based on a proved successful formula. They have eliminated as much risk to their investments as they possibly can.

A few years ago, my sister sent me a bunch of old books by authors such as Earnest K Gann, Len Deighton, Earle Birney, and a bunch of others.

It appears that in days gone by, books selected for publishing were based more on creativity and the authors ability to hold your interest on just about every page, and of course, their mastery of their craft, writing.

I now will not waste my time on recently published, how shall I put this.....drivel, yes, drivel works for me. I prefer the older books and movies, it is like actual thought went into their creation. They are fun to read and watch, and mostly hard to predict how your journey through their pages and scenes will end up.

In todays investment based creations, you know as soon as you spend a minute or two with them, exactly where they are headed.

Just thought I would share some thoughts with you guys.

John
 
You are totally ignorant.

There is a comment.

One shouldn't complain about stuff one neither watches nor reads.
 
John Baker said:
I switched over to reading books in the evening. Then I started noticing that the same seems to hold true for all recently published books, they are all formula based.

I am guessing that nobody will put up the money to produce or publish anything that is not based on a proved successful formula. They have eliminated as much risk to their investments as they possibly can.

I now will not waste my time on recently published, how shall I put this.....drivel, yes, drivel works for me.

In todays investment based creations, you know as soon as you spend a minute or two with them, exactly where they are headed.

Just thought I would share some thoughts with you guys.

John
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Hmmmm... Seems there are quite a few book recommendations within this thread that don't meet any of the descriptions you mentioned. May take a bit of effort on your part, but certainly not at all difficult.

Try this one, isn't what you might expect from the title:

http://www.amazon.com/Immortal-Life-Henrietta-Lacks/dp/1400052173

Gary
 
steingar said:
You are totally ignorant.

There is a comment.

One shouldn't complain about stuff one neither watches nor reads.
Click to expand...

Wow! I put my honest thoughts out there, then I come back with an obvious solicitation for either approval, or perhaps, some constructive criticism, and I get your carefully thought out response.

I'm wondering if perhaps, that by your referring to me directly as being "totally ignorant" if that does not put yourself on somewhat of an intellectual pedestal? I imagine it must be quite a boost for your self image and esteem.

I congratulate your directness, although I must admit, I don't feel so good about it. You must be very proud of yourself.

I never said I have not watched or read the current crop of movies and books, I said I stopped watching or reading them, and prefer the older offerings.

John
 
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The last movie I saw in a theater was Chariots of Fire. The last I watched on a TV screen was Top Gun. I guess you could say I'm not a big fan of the current crop either, and very little of my reading is fiction--unless you count those about politics.
 
I have some excellent newer recommendations for you.
Books: Straight Man by Richard Russo; Underworld by Don DeLillo, the entire Harry Potter series.
Excellent movies: The Royal Tenenbaums, and Moon (2009).

People still make good movies and books. Remember, the classics we read and watch today are the films that have withstood the test of time, not those that best exemplified their time. Most of the published stuff back then was garbage too.
 
TV - I watch the unscripted reality shows --> sports.

Books and movies aren't necessarily about the formula - it's HOW they follow the formula. I prefer movies that tell a story.

Movies - I've seen a bunch, good and bad. The two that pop up in my head first are "The Godfather", and "The Best Years of Our Lives". Yeah, they may follow a formula when they tell their story, but the WAY they do it is better than most. "Glory" is another one like that, but I haven't seen it in so long my recollection of it may be off.

Books - I've read a lot of those, too. The first two I thought of were "Undaunted Courage" by Stephen Ambrose, and "Young Men and Fire" by Norman MacLean. Two book that tell some pretty incredible stories - and that don't necessarily end like you'd think.
 
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John, I see where you are coming from. But what you are saying is not news. Hollywood has adequate talent and phenomenal effects capabilities, but continues to crank out absolute utter CRAP year after year. Television relies heavily on reality shows (probably 10% the cost of a scripted show with paid actors). The dramas out there that are any good don't last (Deadwood, Firefly, etc.).

Hopefully some day Hollywood and TV producers will once again rely on good writing to carry a movie. Anyone seen Gran Torino? No special effects, one big name actor, and a fantastic movie. $33 million to make, worldwide gross of $279 million.
 
John Baker said:
Wow! I put my honest thoughts out there, then I come back with an obvious solicitation for either approval, or perhaps, some constructive criticism, and I get your carefully thought out response.

I'm wondering if perhaps, that by your referring to me directly as being "totally ignorant" if that does not put yourself on somewhat of an intellectual pedestal? I imagine it must be quite a boost for your self image and esteem.

I congratulate your directness, although I must admit, I don't feel so good about it. You must be very proud of yourself.

I never said I have not watched or read the current crop of movies and books, I said I stopped watching or reading them, and prefer the older offerings.

John
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Comments like this:

I guess it's been over ten years since I've watched anything besides the news on television.
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Now, I admit that I also watch very little television, and no longer read for pleasure due to time constraints. But that would not prompt me to indite the entire medium. You did not say "gosh, I'm having trouble finding good things to read or media to view".

People are every bit as creative as they ever were, if not a bit more so because of novel technological and literary tools. It is harder not to duplicate things of years past because there is a lot of it. Nonetheless, I have little doubt that people routinely succeed.

So I now suppose I have to make recommendations to back up my rhetoric. On TV I saw a show called Justified. It was produced and quite obviously written by Elmore Leonard, featured a bonified movie star, and was excellent in every way a television show should be. I have been seeing episodes of the BBC's Top Gear, and it is hysterical, though at times somewhat juvenile, if you prefer unscripted television.

The last thing I read was Stephen King's Dark Tower series. Not uniformly good, but the writing that was good was very, very good indeed. I find most things I have read about airplanes to be poorly written, with the possible exception of The Right Stuff, which remains Wolf's weakest book in my opinion. Not that the book isn't good, but Wolf is a very good writer.

Most cinema that involve airplanes that I have seen is utter trash (with the stellar eceptions of the Zuker's Airplane! and Kubic's Dr. Stragelove), and I love them because they have airplanes, I am a sucker. Most movies that involve motorcycles are even worse, but do go rent The World's Fastest Indian. Drag Me to Hell was the best horror film of the last several years, The Descent the best of the last several decades (horror movies being a very guilty pleasure of mine). Of the last year Splice was certainly the best science fiction, The Hurt Locker the best war movie by a long shot, and anything by the Cohen Brothers can be counted on to be good, or at least have something good about it.
 
I have a collection of around one thousand movies, I started buying them years ago when times were better. Due to my age, I can select pretty much any of them that has a good coat of dust on it, and it's almost like watching it for the first time.

Now I buy them on sale, I just bought ten DVDs for fourty bucks from Blockbuster. A few months ago I made a huge score at a yard sale, DVDs for a dollar each, I bought fifty of them. I admit, a few of them, although recently made, have been enjoyable and memorable, however, for the most part, the bulk of the newer offerings are predictable.

I have never watched reality TV except for a few minutes. It never caught my interest, so I turned it off.

I've haven't saved many of the books I've read because I've always felt that books should be shared, so I've passed most of them on. The older paper backs that my sister sent me and are no longer available, also showing their age, I've decided to keep. I guess I have about a hundred or so books stacked in various spots around my home.

I have no qualms about watching a movie over again, but for some reason, I've never read a book twice, not counting of course the piles of aviation, 'how to do it', books I have accumulated. For the last six years, those have been the bulk of my reading material, except for a few breaks now and then.

Since they foolishly awarded me a pilots license, it has been downright wonderful to come home and watch a movie or read a novel in the evening without feeling guilty for not studying.

Steingar, thanks.

John
 
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In the writing business, the genre you are referring to is called "commercial fiction" and it is exactly as you describe it. There is no intent to pursue prizes nor create classics. The publishers' only goals are to maximize sales.
 
I have a bad habit of bringing home DVDs, but I seem to purchase nothing but utter trash for eye candy. Possibly the sole exception is The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, which may be the only movie I own that I can watch without the slightest twinge of guilt.

For some reason I will happily re-read a book, and have done so on numerous occasions. Reading for pleasure is one of my most favorite activities, and I am always saddened that my situation and disposition conspire to disallow my reading habits.

I usually go home and work. I am writing a third book of Origami airplanes.
 
John Baker said:
I guess it's been over ten years since I've watched anything besides the news on television.
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I assume, then, that you never watched Top Gear.

TV news, on the other hand, is total garbage / hype / pandering / self marketing. I seriously avoid it.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
I assume, then, that you never watched Top Gear.

TV news, on the other hand, is total garbage / hype / pandering / self marketing. I seriously avoid it.
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I turn on the evening news when I get home from work. Sometimes, if the fluff gets my attention, I will sit down and watch it, but mostly it is on for the company, like background noise.

After my creatures are fed and catered to, I turn it off, then look for a book or movie to while away the evening with. What follows the news is generally complete stupidity, so I never go any further with it.

John
 
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