For 2009 - If Only Hollywood Would Consider These Changes
Friday, January 2, 2009

1. Keep all scenes dry: no more rain, please. I would like to see a film, especially if it is romantic, without people standing around in the rain. I don't care why - they add nothing to a scene. All it shows is a lack of imagination.
   
   Often, I'll watch these programs thinking: they're going to catch a cold! And eww, smelly wet hair!
   


2. No more kissing: it is disgusting to hear people smooch and lip smack. Let the viewers use their imagination. I don't want to see the filthy germ exchange.
   
   I would ban kissing in films if I had the power.
   


3. The minority sidekick to the white woman: it needs to stop. It's so lame. We all don't have an inner Oprah to tap to offer words of wisdom. Enough with the "sassy" minority woman who's gonna to take on the world to make things easy and accommodating for the "clueless" white chick (or man).
   
   It happened with Kate Hudson in Raising Helen, I wanted to choke the director and scriptwriter(s).
   


4. Whatever happened to black or minority sitcoms? I grew up watching shows with a black cast on television with my family. Now, all that's really available are re-runs on some cable networks. I think Lincoln Heights is the exception, but I still find the violence on the program excessive and disturbing.
   
   I don't need to see these programs, Kyle XY is my favorite, but a little variety would be nice. Not everyone wants to watch a program about vapid, bleach blond twits from Beverly Hills.
   


5. Is there a blond (any white) woman quota in Hollywood? One day I may do an actual head count. Off the top of my head, I can't think of one program on television, or movie, that doesn't have a white woman in it. She's included whether her character is integral to the plot or not. It's weird, sometimes they are brought on just because .... Some do nothing to advance the story line.
   
   For example, Heroes can't let go of Ali Larter. Although, I do like her. There are many, many story lines with other characters that would have made the show coherent. So many have been left unresolved. But nooooooo, they keep her, regardless of whether it muddles the stupidity factor of the show by a factor of ten.
   


6. Must there be a gun in nearly every film or TV show? Yes, some of us Americans are gun-totting nuts, but a good story doesn't need one either. How about just implying that people have one, and not show it?
   
   Not everyone who watches media entertainment is a 14 year old teenager who requires violence to stay interested in a program.
   


7. Please scale back the CGI effects. I can tell when it's used, and it still doesn't look convincing or interesting. People can't outrun a flood, rushing or rising waters. People can't survive a twenty-story waterfall in a ship, a car, or alone.
   
   I won't even go into the impossible stunts that the human body cannot perform. You know, those scenes where people can survive a head-on car accident, without seat belts, at 30+ mph.
   


8. Please, please, please make the actors audible. I know you enjoy loud music, and make most films for an international audience. However, I'd still like to pretend that dialogue is important to a movie. It'd be fun to know what's going on.
   
   The incoherent mumbling and overly loud, overly dramatic music needs to stop.
   


9. Make it illegal for George Lucas to release another Star Wars film. It's for the good of us all. He's made enough money. Star Wars is deeply entrenched into our modern culture. He can be proud, and not frightened by any thought that it will be forgotten.
   
   George, you can go away now. Thanks.
   
   I would include Star Trek, but I'm biased, so I'm ready for more of that sameness.
   


10. Make accessible 24/7 every Hollywood film ever made.
    


11. Every film made over the last 30 years old should be in the public domain. Congress and the Supreme Court needs to stop with this extra 100 year extension of copyrights every time it expires.
    
    It's not right.
    

Labels: black women, Hollywood, internet, Kate Hudson, minorities, Star Trek, Star Wars, television

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


Netflix: Instant Gratification Viewing
Monday, February 18, 2008

This is the worst feature in the world. (smile) I am always on the Internet. This option is horrible. (giggle)

Netflix's instant viewing only feeds my Internet addiction.

With this service there are no delays, no hiccups. Pictures are clear, crisp, and brilliant. The only complaint I have is lack of a closed caption option that's provided on DVDs. A number of movies have irritatingly loud music and mumbled dialogue. It only runs on Internet Explorer. Depending on your version of Windows, it could be a real pain in the ass to try watching.

I watch these movies on a digital projector. Get one! It hooks easily into the back of the computer. Make sure it's compatible with VGA to HDMI cable. If you don't understand, get a child to hook you up!

Alas, the only thing that keeps me from being a complete junkie is that Netflix doesn't offer all the latest (and greatest) films available like iTunes. However, it still has lots of anime, foreign, and obscure flicks.

Phew, thank goodness for small mercies.

Labels: internet, iTunes, Netflix, television

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


There Is a Writer's Strike? Go Figure!
Monday, December 24, 2007

Where have I been?

According to the New York Times, December 24, 2007:

...striking screenwriters keep late-night talk shows in reruns...

And this lovely gem:

... the Writers Guild of America strike, now entering its seventh week, shuttered every late-night show...

Damn, I never noticed that there was a strike! (Yes, I'm exaggerating.)

You telling me there are re-runs on now? Wow.

You telling me that all those TV talk shows were scripted? Blow me away with a feather.

The thing is - I don't own a television. I gave up watching television years ago.

I get my entertainment from the following online sources:
• Netflix - DVDs & on-demand,
• Joost,
• CBS,
• Fox,
• ABC,
• NBC,
• ABCFamily,
• AOL,
• and iTunes.
• Plus many more websites to be discovered.
• Last, but not least, YouTube.

The beauty of on-demand is that I can watch an entire season after it has ended. I can watch these programs whenever I want.

I mean, who sits around and watches television these days?

I support the writer's strike! Guys and gals, stay out as long as you like.

I don't think anyone is paying attention.

Labels: iTunes, Netflix, television, Writer's Guild, YouTube

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


Televison's Fall Season Schedule Lineup
Sunday, September 16, 2007

This isn't going to be a good year for television: that was my first thought when I saw the fall season schedule lineup.

CBS has a show called Men in Trees. Does that sound like a winner to you?

One new dramatic show, K'Ville, has a black male lead, with the sexy Cole Hauser as co-star.

I think Heroes and Lost killed eliminated most, if not all, of their token blacks. And don't hold your breath expecting to see a normal black woman anytime soon: the strident, asexual, best friend is back in style.

I didn't see Law and Order or Law and Order: Criminal Intent in the lineup. So there goes my favorite crime shows. Yeah, I know they're on cable.

Television shows get canceled so quickly these days, that when I'm ready to get around to watching - the program is off the air. Damn.

If Seinfeld was broadcast today, it'd be gone already. Seinfeld took nearly three years to hit its stride or groove. It became a hit once it was moved from Wednesday to Thursday completing NBC's heavy duty lineup. I doubt any show gets that kind of nurturing love anymore.

There is one show I'm willing to pay for and that's Kyle XY. I think the young man is hot. The storyline, his personality and character development is a vast improvement over Smallville's superman.

Maybe there will be a show worth downloading or web watching this fall. I doubt it. Hey, that may not be a bad thing, I may have a more active social life then.

Labels: internet, iTunes, networks, television, YouTube

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


Joost: Internet TV
Thursday, August 16, 2007

I'm an entertainment fiend. If it's free I'm going all over the internet to look for it.

I found a source of entertainment that I am liking a lot.

I don't have cable per se to watch, but I do use cable to surf the web. You know what kinds of speed I have? As close to T1 as can be. I never get disconnected to redial, etc. All of my computers are connected via a wireless network. (I have three PCs and two printers. I already have my eye on an iMac.) I can download huge files quickly.

Okay, let me stop bragging.

Joost is like having digital cable on your computer.

My folks have digital cable, so I'm able to peak and play with the features on their box. My parents only know how to: turn on the TV, raise the volume, and change the channel. So when I'm checking out all the features, they say: "Wait, how did you do that?" I try to show them, and they will lose interest after I point out the number of steps they need to take for those features. I can't say I blame them.

Joost has commercials, which is why it is free. At least for now. But the sweetness of it is in the ability to set up your own programming menu.

What do I mean? You can remove or add channels to your main menu selection. That means if you only like four channels - you will only see them, until you are ready to ask for more. It takes a while to get the hang of the menus, but once you get the hang of it - it's awesome.

Man, I am spoiled already.

Expect old shows, movies and not quite fresh content, but then again that's why I canceled my cable subscription. Even YouTube is vastly more entertaining than cable and network television.

I understand that there will be more applications like this from different sources coming along. I'll definitely keep an eye out for it!

Labels: cable, commercials, free programming, internet, Joost, television, YouTube

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


Grey's Anatomy: When Victim Groups Collide
Sunday, June 10, 2007

I don't own a television.

I don't watch "Grey's Anatomy." I could if I wanted to, but I don't.

I've read a basic outline of the show's plot. It is a mixed-cast soap opera, based in a hospital, where a number of men (black and white) have the hots for a very plain looking, squinty eyed, boney brunette. I think a number of them are interns.

So this is "ER", with a different slant. You know, where everybody is f***ing each other like "Friends." Since I don't like shows like that, I figure I'm not missing much.

Alrighty then, onto the drama amongst the fighting cast members. Isaiah Washington (IW) said a naughty (okay derogatory) word about another cast member, T.R. Knight (TKK). Then, in a moment of sheer utter stupidity, at an awards show IW said he never called TKK that word.

Wow. Can you say clueless?

Well, to make matters worse, as if they weren't bad enough, one cast member in particular, Katherine Heigl (KH), decided she had it in for IW. Because according to her, TKK was her friend and needed her support. (Smart move girl: great way to put yourself in the middle of the drama.)

IW was sent to rehab, maybe he apologized for being dysfunctional and it seemed that he was coming back. His boss, a black woman named Shonda Rhimes (SR) who created this show along with a half dozen other people, claimed he was staying.

The identity of the show's creator had me asking myself: Did IW act up, because he thought SR would back him? Was the bully behavior of calling another man a nasty name something he thought defensible?

I don't know what IW was on, did he do a bizarre calculation where because your boss is a black female and the target of your slur is a gay man, you would win that struggle? Is that because if you see yourself atop the victim hierarchy others would fall into line?

I saw this in terms (among other things) as who gets to be the most vulnerable victim of all victims. Now, I know IW wasn't the injured party, but I think he saw himself as one. Hence, the strange denials along the way.

He should have known to keep his mouth shut when KH started in on his case. I wasn't surprised he was canned. I am sure at KH's inital insistance, everyone was like, "Who is this chick?"

However, based on the tally from her recent hit flick "Knocked Up" the powers-that-be-said, "He's gotta go!" Since she's now a bona fide star - with power - she got her wish.

So, let this be a lesson, don't call others bad names when you're working with them - always curse them off work site and privately. Otherwise, you will be fired and being part of a politically protected victim group doesn't ensure immunity.

Labels: black men, black women, gays, Grey's Anatomy, Knocked Up, television, victims

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


TV / Movies over the internet
Friday, May 25, 2007

I don't own a television set. I gave it up around two to three years ago.

I cancelled my cable subscribtion long before the television was removed.

I don't miss either.

Well now, you may ask, how does she keep up with the television programs?

- I purchase episodes on iTunes, although not as much anymore.

- I watch Netflix DVDs to get an entire season. For a show like "24", it's required. I don't want to see any ads.

- When I was feeling quirky, I downloaded flicks off of Movielink, but now Netflix does the same.

Nowadays, I just go to the web sites of the TV networks and watch the shows. The commercials are limited, yet it's a richer experience based on my method.

When I gave up the television, I purchased replacements:

1. I bought a new computer (with a connection for an S-cable) and a big screen projector.


2. I connected the projector to the computer (S-cable) and the DVD player (component cable).


3. I connected the computer and DVD player to the audio / visual system. There are plenty of available input plugs for these items.


4. For the visual aspect, I only needed S-cables (pc) and component cables (DVD).


5. To keep my sanity, I ignored anything to do with DVI or HDMI or whatever they are called. Only because more crap will come down the pike and who needs the headache?

So, when I watch a rebroadcast of a show on the internet, it is done in surround sound, a darkened room, and in a complete movie theater-like setting.

I could't ask for more.

Labels: DVD, internet, movies, television

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


From "Heroes" to Zeros
Sunday, May 20, 2007

Should I even bother to complain about this one?

I liked "Heroes", so far. But I can only fathom that so many of the leading character are being eliminated due to budget concerns. I suspect the series will return (year 2) with a smaller (and much cheaper) cast.

Sounds cold, right?

I've been watching the show more or less faithfully and to be honest, the storyline (to me) is even more muddled than "Lost". This was the problem I had with "Star Trek: TNG" shows / movies and the successive "Star Trek" shows: timeline jumping that weakened a story, not made it better.

I hate that ridiculous plot device.

Does anyone see the sense in a character jumping through time and meeting up with the self in different time periods? Especially when each subsequent self should logically be going through the same experience right after the first time jumper? So isn't that like a hatch full of rabbits jumping willy nilly all over the place? This is so stupid.

It is a perfect conundrum to jump into the past to change yourself, a historical event, and then be able go back to the future having fixed the mistake. However, if you've change the past, then the future won't be same to return to, and based on the circumstances that changed you died or will die, thus unraveling and effectively changing many other events.

Wow, I just though of the perfect stories covering time jumping: Lathe of Heaven by Ursula LeGuin or the movie Lathe of Heaven DVD And one more: Twelve Monkees DVD Love me some Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt.

Labels: diversity, Heroes, miniseries, minorities, television

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment


"Lost" is Lost - Year 3
Saturday, May 19, 2007

I love serial television programs. They remind me of the days, when I was a child, networks presented 15 hours+ miniseries. One could watch a program with a beginning and a definite end.

Today, it's "What do you get for watching a program for three years?" A whole-lotta-nothin' and a whole-lotta-questions.

Aside from saying that Lost is an ABC television program about plane crash "survivors" on an island in the pacific, there's not much more to add. From this show's inception the writers - appear to me - pull all and any sundry plots out of the whazoo.

My issue with the series are as follows:

• The plane broke in 2. Year one was about the front, which was excellent! and dramatic!
• Year two dealt with the back section, and the elimination of each "survivor" one by one right into Year three.

Say what? Yeah, we see people take up a year of story time, and they add absolutely, positively no value to the overall plot (I use the word plot, because I can't think of what else to call it).

Try doing that mess in a creative writing class.

I've only got one question, since this is near the end of year three. If John's father (Sawyer #1) says that everyone was found dead: What happened to Michael and Walt?

I think I could forgive the writers if when they present the big "what the fook is that?" they answer it in the following year.

Now that's not too much to ask, is it?

Labels: ABC, Lost, miniseries, television

posted by GoldenAh
email this! | 0 comments | post a comment