Angel Dust on 28/11/2009 at 09:13
Quote Posted by Kolya
There is a vampire movie I can very much recommend and yeah it's from the 80s but I don't think too many of you have seen it, despite the fact that several actors from "Aliens" play in it:
In
Near Dark ((
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093605/) imdb) a smalltown guy falls for (
http://pagesperso-orange.fr/vampyrworld/jphotoneardark.htm) a girl who turns out to be part of a travelling vampire gang with Lance Henriksen as their head. Bloodshed ensues.
I've seen it and it is a pretty good movie even with the lead actor being a bit meh. It was also Kathryn Bigelow's (
Point Break,
Strange Days,
The Hurt Locker) breakthrough.
Shug on 28/11/2009 at 15:00
Quote Posted by EvaUnit02
Yeah, we all have Tall Poppy Syndrome - we hate it because it's popular, it's also the same case with Dan Brown... Jesus fucking Christ, what a stupid non-argument.
no, this is pretty much the case
Starrfall on 28/11/2009 at 16:03
Quote Posted by Kolya
- When Edward says "I'm going to show you what I really look like" and walks into the sun you expect him to burn/become an ugly monster/die but not to sparkle a bit. What a let-down.
*sparklesparklesparkle* THIS IS THE SKIN OF A KILLER
Anyways I for one certainly don't hate the series. In fact I find it horrendously entertaining. Just not because it's good.
ercles on 29/11/2009 at 09:37
As far as tall poppy syndrome goes, I think that's an oversimplification of why people (myself included) have such strong feelings about situations like Twilight. It's not just that it (or the Da Vinci Code) is so successful, but it's also that this success displaces other works of far more value from the public arena. We all agree that these books are blatantly not very good, and the fact that these are being purchased and read like crazy (and the films are dominating the box office) means that a lot of people are quite simply sitting around reading things that do little other than provide escapist fantasies. It's nothing new, and neither are our elitist reactions to them, but it's frustrating nonetheless. Of course we can't sit around and read high minded literature all day, but the sad fact is that the numbers seem to indicate that for most people their reading habits don't extend beyond the realms of Twilight and it's fellow pulp fiction pals.
As to whether it matters or not, Twilight surely isn't doing anything positive for your brain, that is, you're really no smarter by the end than you were at the start. I used to stick purely to pretty trashy fantasy/sci-fi stuff, and whilst I still read a shitty novel once in a while, I now find that with my time limited, I prefer the feeling at the end of a thought-provoking book that my horizons have been broadened just a little. The unfortunate reality is that for most people, when faced with the choice between the easy read or the challenging novel, it's a no brainer, just as many people will choose fast food over a real meal: short term satisfaction vs long term gain.
This is something that I've been thinking about for a long time, and it certainly extends far beyond novels, with TV being the worst offender. Although, as I've already admitted, I understand that it's a horrible high horse to be on, I can't help but feel that we (at least being Western societies) would be a bit better off if our brains weren't kept under some sort of trance by a steady diet of current affairs journalism, fast food, and pulp fiction.
Vasquez on 29/11/2009 at 09:49
Quote Posted by ercles
It's not just that it (or the Da Vinci Code) is so successful, but it's also that this success displaces other works of far more value from the public arena.
Well, who can really define what's "valuable" in some absolute sense?
Not saying Twilight is high quality literature (although I haven't read it, so maybe I shouldn't even comment), but IMO it's still a good thing that people read books, even light and entertaining ones, enthusiastically. If someone, who hasn't been much of a reader before, gets hooked to Twilight, s/he is likely to learn to enjoy reading and with time move to other types of literature, too.
At some point the big fear was that internet will be the end of "real" reading ;)
ercles on 29/11/2009 at 11:07
I take your point, but in my experience of those who read Twilight, their reading experience has been limited purely to Twilight, or perhaps Harry Potter as well. None of the girls I know who read it have gone onto to read other things, they've just waited around for the next installment.
Just as an addendum, I think one of the real problems I have with things like Twilight is it's mutton dressed as lamb, crappy literature that takes itself far too seriously. Personally speaking, I prefer things that embrace the fact that they are just light hearted fluff, and use it to their advantage with no pretense of being high minded, Top Gear and Entourage being my two fixes of goofy humour.
june gloom on 29/11/2009 at 11:09
Anybody who tells you that a Dan Brown/Twilight novel is the best book they've ever read is probably not lying. I don't know if that helps ercles' argument or Vasquez's argument but it's 6 in the fucking goddamn AM so I'm going to bed, I'll let you fuckos figure it out.
Master Villain on 29/11/2009 at 12:01
My mother made an interesting point: After seeing the film, my sister read the first novel she's ever picked up.
So it's not entirely bad if it makes people who wouldn't touch a book to save their life actually read something. Maybe she'll read something other than the Twilight books eventually.
