Thursday, June 19, 2008

What's the World Coming To?

My husband and I were having a conversation yesterday about movies. We love movies and watch old movies all the time. Thanks to cable television, he watches one or two almost everyday! I made the comment that the older movies were much more satisfying to watch than the newer moves. Not that I don't enjoy newer movies, but I have a feeling when watching the older ones that is the equivalent of 'comfort food.'

We then began discussing why, and this is what we came up with; the older movies didn't seem to leave you morally empty inside. Of course, we are selective when watching movies, and when I say older, I mean anything from the 40s, 50s, or some from the 60s. Not that newer movies cannot have a good message and meaning, but there is always something that if they had just left on the cutting room floor, would have made it a better movie!

It seems that the newer movie producers and directors feel a need to put in some gratuitous garbage. I know some of the older movies have sex and scandal in them, and loads of smoking and drinking. But it seems to be set in a certain innocence that we have now seemed to have lost and are intent on our children losing as well.

To be fair, not everything about the older movies were perfect - my favorite - "Breakfast at Tiffany's" has two main characters who are so jaded they have sold themselves to the highest bidder or are content to live a half life never expecting anything more. Then there is a moment of redemption at the end. You know, of course, there is a lot of baggage there, but it leaves room for the happily-ever-after ending in our minds. Yet, even in the pre-redemption setting sex is only alluded to, never shown, drinking may be rampant, but it doesn't really look like a lot of fun, and smoking, well...smoking is what it was back then. Everyone then thought smoking was no more harmful than drinking coffee.

Why don't we have filmmakers who make movies like "That Touch of Mink" anymore? Or maybe the original "Father of the Bride" or any one of the Spencer Tracy/Kathryn Hepburn movies! Anymore we have bad things portrayed as good. Some examples on television are a cop that is bad, portrayed as a hero; a serial killer forensic scientist; and of course you have to mention the new series Swingtown, seriously people!

So is the moral decline in our viewing leading the moral decline in our world, or is it the other way around?

2 comments:

CurtissAnn said...

Oh, Sonja, I nod like crazy! And thankfully you and your dear are a lot younger than me. I sometimes think it is my age. But when you watch the old movies carefully, you can see so much passion, so much deep meaning. Surprising things that commented about life.

Anyway, so glad I stopped in-- your pic is dynamite! And so glad I saw you last weekend! I was just moving your link on my site that I've moved.
Big hugs,
CurtissAnn

Anonymous said...

Oh, Sonja I have to give you a big AMEN on the old movies. Life would be a sadder place without TCM. In the past we split our time between TCM and AMC, but then AMC added commercials, spoils the whole experience.

Bigstreetrod