Two Thumbs Way Down
Either I have really high expectations of my friends/family or else I am so out-of-touch, that I don't know what "good" is anymore. What I'm talking about is recommendations that I am given for movies and books from people that I trust to know what I would like. I just read a book that two of my close friends praised highly, saying I would LOVE IT. Well, I did not love it and felt it was a total waste of my time to read it. I got through to the end (yes, I skipped a few pages here and there, due to complete lack of interest) and didn't feel like I got anything at all out of it. I thought the characters were developed poorly and their emotions and reactions were not true to life. I also did not get connected to the characters which is, of course, what I desire mostly out of a good book. Total waste of time.
Then, I just saw a movie, again based on a recommendation that it was "better than Shawshank". Since I thought The Shawshank Redemption was an awesome movie, I figured this pick would be a good fit for me. Oh my god... firstly, the movie was 3 hours long and moved slower than molasses on a winter's day. It ended... eventually, and I was happy. The movie could have been made into a good 1/2 hour short film. And I can't even blame just the friend who recommended the flick... the back of the box was full of accolades... Oscar nominations, fantastic actors, captivating plot.
It must be me. After all, I can spend an entire day devoted solely to VH1s "I Love..." series or watching "The Real World" marathon without complaint. Maybe I am just not deep enough anymore for films and movies that capture the rest of America's interest. I like to think that I am above the rest of you and just have very refined taste and therefore cannot subscribe to your lesser ideals. Or maybe television has damaged my attention span so much, that I squirm whenever I am forced to sit and concentrate on something for more than 23 minutes.
Then, I just saw a movie, again based on a recommendation that it was "better than Shawshank". Since I thought The Shawshank Redemption was an awesome movie, I figured this pick would be a good fit for me. Oh my god... firstly, the movie was 3 hours long and moved slower than molasses on a winter's day. It ended... eventually, and I was happy. The movie could have been made into a good 1/2 hour short film. And I can't even blame just the friend who recommended the flick... the back of the box was full of accolades... Oscar nominations, fantastic actors, captivating plot.
It must be me. After all, I can spend an entire day devoted solely to VH1s "I Love..." series or watching "The Real World" marathon without complaint. Maybe I am just not deep enough anymore for films and movies that capture the rest of America's interest. I like to think that I am above the rest of you and just have very refined taste and therefore cannot subscribe to your lesser ideals. Or maybe television has damaged my attention span so much, that I squirm whenever I am forced to sit and concentrate on something for more than 23 minutes.
posted by Tracy at 8:49 AM
3 Comments:
Just out of curiosity, what was the book and the movie? I don't necessarily avoid the bad ones, but it helps to know going into it if I should get my hopes up or just kill them early on.
The Green Mile (was it a comedy? because I was laughing a LOT!)
and the book is one you would never read... a total chick book.
I read the Green Mile series and saw the movie, both were OK in my opinion. Not earth-shatteringly good, but not terrible either. I wouldn't say it was anywhere near as good as Shawshank.
I don't think you're the one with the problem.
As for the chick book, you can keep it. I don't read much these days anyway, unless it's subtitles.
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