Movies

[JohnL]

I also was one of those 12 year olds.

That was an exciting decade fascinated with space exploration. Moon shots and Star Trek. Kids like us loved it didn't we. Our teachers talked about it and got into the symbolism and the possibilities of life on other planets. It gave us some great discussions. I think social media has deprived kids of those kinds of conversations.

I discovered Star Trek in the 3rd grade and fell deeply in love with science fiction. I read tons of it, especially Bradbury and Arthur C. Clarke.

Yep I did too. Saturated ourselves with it. Man walked on the moon and that made it even more real. None of us in our little group ever got hired by NASA but we still enjoyed each other’s company. Nowadays I haven’t kept up with any sci fi books. I think Dune might’ve been the last one I read but never read any of the rest of the series. I just couldn’t get into Herbert’s style or world or whatever you want to call it. I thought JRR Tolkien’s Hobbit and Lord of the Rings was better. Books are all a matter of personal taste I reckon. My sci fi reading started to slide on by when the children arrived. I decided it was time I get to know my Bible better so I could pass along the faith as best I could.

[Soloist]

I'm sitting in the lobby at a garage while getting new tires on my car and working remotely. I'm trying to not be distracted by the audio from a movie that is playing on the TV but not being very successful. There are a variety of reasons why I rarely watch movies but one is that that the conversations are so fake and so samish.
Why do they all talk the same way? Same kinds of voices, same tone of voice. same kinds of sentence structure, and conversations that nobody ever does in real life, etc. And it is basically the same things I heard since seeing such stuff on TV occasionally since a child. And of course, interspersed with ads that are nauseating.
Why do people watch this stuff?

Wife: I don’t know what they were watching, but I do know some 90s sitcoms, and maybe other eras too, had an audience while they were recording, and there would always be the laugh lines. That’s why people sometimes say they don’t wanna hear anything from the peanut gallery. Or maybe I was the only one who heard that from my parents as a child.

I remember a few months ago, waiting at a Firestone while they were patching a flat, and they had “Friends” in the background, and I guess I hadn’t realized just how much they were constantly talking about perversion. I actually used to watch that as a child/teen. At some point, I decided to ask them to mute it or turn it down if nobody was watching it because I was tired of constantly hearing them talk about bedroom activities.

More recently. It was “Looney Tunes” at a different place. That usually just has “Animal Planet” on, which I tolerate a lot more, but it might have been a Saturday morning (known for cartoons). It was annoying, but manageable until Donald Duck got into some sort of seance, and I decided to move outside because I was sick of hearing it in the background.

I suggest just taking a walk if you can stand the heat.

[the-real-steve]

I'll admit, I do watch a movie from time to time. Our family used to be huge on DVD's but I feel my wife and I kept reasonable control on it. We now have streaming capabilities, but it doesn't have the allure it once did. The girls have all became "crazy chicken ladies" and the boys got into several outside and carpentry projects. No complaints here.

I love most anything based on history. Love my documentaries and such. I think I watch more on the truck when I'm bunked out that I do at home. Having three screens on the dash of the truck can be draining and once home, I enjoy a simple magazine or book.

I do enjoy various YouTube channels, many about other industrial trades and such (see my other thread on lumber jacks). Some on my occupation, some on cooking and whatnot.

[JohnH]

I'll admit, I do watch a movie from time to time. Our family used to be huge on DVD's but I feel my wife and I kept reasonable control on it. We now have streaming capabilities, but it doesn't have the allure it once did. The girls have all became "crazy chicken ladies" and the boys got into several outside and carpentry projects. No complaints here.

I love most anything based on history. Love my documentaries and such. I think I watch more on the truck when I'm bunked out that I do at home. Having three screens on the dash of the truck can be draining and once home, I enjoy a simple magazine or book.

I do enjoy various YouTube channels, many about other industrial trades and such (see my other thread on lumber jacks). Some on my occupation, some on cooking and whatnot.

I've wondered what Beachys, Brethren, etc do now that Redbox isn't in business anymore.

[eccentric_rambler]

In 1968 we had a cool group of sci fi fans when I was 12.

documentation for math purposes.
12 years old in 1968. that means birth year is 1956.
that also means 70 years old this year.

(all dependent on the month, of course)

Also see this post. 69 in April 2025. The thought plickens.

Oh yeah forgot about the fleeing to Gath.
Looks like the usual suspects have Lurched into taking fun threads too seriously again.

I think you’re still a bit young to be commenting on usual suspects. Maybe give it a few months more

69 ain't young and I've been reading the archives.

[justme]

score one for consistency
69 in 2025
70 in 2026
looks like my math was pretty close to accurate.

[temporal1]

I'm sitting in the lobby at a garage while getting new tires on my car and working remotely. I'm trying to not be distracted by the audio from a movie that is playing on the TV but not being very successful. There are a variety of reasons why I rarely watch movies but one is that that the conversations are so fake and so samish.
Why do they all talk the same way? Same kinds of voices, same tone of voice. same kinds of sentence structure, and conversations that nobody ever does in real life, etc. And it is basically the same things I heard since seeing such stuff on TV occasionally since a child. And of course, interspersed with ads that are nauseating.
Why do people watch this stuff?

This is funny. Because I’ve done the opposite. I have watched TV without the sound, and I was struck by the same phenomenon. Just watching without sound, I was impressed by the clear insincerity and exaggerated facial expressions and hand motions.

Yes, I've done that also on airplanes occasionally and noticed the same things.

FORMULA MOVIES / TV / ENTERTAINMENT - including “news” reporting

It’s no accident.
i first learned about it decades ago.

It really “gelled” in my head when i watched a documentary-style piece on the creator of 60 MINUTES (which i enjoyed).
From the famous introductory ticking clock - for nearly 100 years, they established a program pattern, stuck with it.

Employment security.

It fairly eliminates excellence. The tradeoff is steady income. It sells.