I went out to see Alien: Romulus with the friends last night, and while I genuinely enjoy being with friends, the film itself left me a bit cold. It wasn't bad in a conventional sense--it was competently directed and acted, but seriously--I've seen this movie before! Literally, in some cases, as some scenes and dialogue were just lifted wholesale from previous films. The entire thing felt faintly poisoned by nostalgia.
Industries crave money, and apparently the movie money is now in squeezing Gen X's 'formative IP' (what a nightmare phrase!) until it is a dry husk. So I understand why a painfully tottering Harrison Ford (or his AI-generated double) gets dragged out for yet another Indiana Jones tale. What I don't understand is why these cynical, flavorless entertainment extrusions still have an audience.
I listen to the music and watch the movies of my youth, and a few select things hold up as art worth revisiting, but most of it is poor stuff, however meaningful it may have felt to me at the time. But a certain cohort will just _wallow_ in this shit. Ernest Cline's Ready Player One is probably the shameful pinnacle of this sort of pop-culture coprophagia, but I'm sure you can all bring your own examples.
The past, well polished by memory, is a better place to live for many, and I sympathize. But nostalgia in art is SO damn boring.
Bartender, maybe something with Malört? Apparently I'm bitter tonight :)
As corporate interests consistently misunderstand human experiences, it comes as no surprise to me that they think nostalgia amounts to "lmao look new thing is like old thing!" when that's entirely wrong.
To successfully appeal to nostalgia, you need to make things *feel* how they *felt.* Whether or not it looks, sounds, etc how it did is of no consequence.
> The past, well polished by memory, is a better place to > live for many, and I sympathize. But nostalgia in art is > SO damn boring.
"Art" suddenly seems an interesting metaphor for individuality. Restricting each to limited scope leads to, well... limitation. Why narrow the notions in the first place? Is there not wondrous art everywhere you look when refraining from insisting art is a small subset of The Whole Shebang?
Same with self/person/individuality. Why cling to smallness - e.g. "me" - in that department?
Just wondering out loud while impatiently awaiting ~tffb's next post.... :-)