The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Monday, March 18, 2013 - 7A
TV/NEW MEDIA COLUMN
'The Following'
doesn't know
what it's doing
d
F'
be
bendin
becaus
close. I
don't u
stand
it meat
And I'
startin
think t
becaus
doesn'
anythi
all.
"It's
violent
FOX se
Purefo
roll, a s
manipu
Ted Bu
deeds
bars. M
world,,
becaus
man: K
ever) a
rioratin
Carrol
At fi
think a
reenl
On. Te
a gift f
the pro
up and
the sho
definin
course(
louder
criticis
and "T
target.
Th
W
Th
Even
televisi
gets aw
that sla
In the
her ow
Carroll
in an E
Carroll
mer En
a pedes
mutilat
corpses
At th
Critids,
in Janu
Lindel
he offe
issue: C
ures fr
he poin
crepan
States
vast.
"We
movies
same vi
"Anyth
bears a
these k
and inc
the me
(but)
the maj
Englan
it's acce
guns."
He's
is powe
ways we
But to b
and gat
high ra
this cou
at acces
inacces
the met
serious
I don
tionshi
vision a:
one neci
by caus
it profo
on't understand "The we respond to tragedy. Media
ollowing," and that's not coverage of shootings almost
ecause it's some mind- always focuses on the killer.
ig, twist-ridden thriller, People demand a motive; they
e it isn't - not even demand answers; theywant all
I just of the details of the person who
nder- could be responsible for such
what horrible atrocities, and so we
ns. end up with lengthy magazine
m profiles of the triggerman - a
g to portrait of a killer, an inside
hat's look at the mind of a murderer,
e it the life of a gunman.
t mean KAY[A "The Following" doesn't
ng at UPADHYAYA probe this dark aspect of
human nature, doesn't question
too people's obsession with serial
," my mom said of the killers and real-life villains.
ries, which stars James Instead, it capitalizes on it.
y ("Rome") as Joe Car- The show glorifies Joe Carroll,
sadistic serial killer who makes him almost god-like in
ulates a cult of wannabe his ubiquity and power. His vic-
indys into doing his tims get barely any screentime;
while he remains behind and when they do, they're shot
ly mom, like most of the with the same amount of atten-
was drawn to the show tion given to a lamp. The care-
e of its other leading less, tone-deaf way in which the
evin Bacon (Every movie script executes violence elimi-
s Ryan Hardy, the dete- nates any sense of stakes or
ng FBI agent who caught emotional complexity. The kill-
I the first time around. ers are walking cliches, and the
rst, all anyone could overuse of flashbacks doesn't
bout once the show was illuminate them so much as fill
ighted was: Kevin. Bacon. time.
levision. It seemed like I'm honestly perplexed, and
rom the TV gods. But as not just because I never thought
motional tours kicked it would be possible for me to
screeners were sent out, dislike a show starring Kevin
iw's violence became its Bacon, but because I never
:g quality. As the dis- thought it would be possible
on gun violence becomes for me to dislike a show created
and louder, so too stirs by Kevin Williamson. This is
m of violent television, the man behind the "Scream"
he Following" is an easy franchise, "Dawson's Creek"
and "The Vampire Diaries." I'm
drawn to Williamson's work as
intensely as Carroll's acolytes
e blood isn't are to him. With the "Scream"
movies, he deconstructed slash-
rhat makes er film and flipped its most trite
tropes on their heads. But "The
'Gam e of Following" seems to be guilty of
exactly what "Scream" served
rones' great. to critique - a dead-behind-
the-eyes thriller that's all bark
and no bite.
Blood for the sake of blood
though it's on network doesn't make intelligent enter-
ion at 9 p.m., the show tainment. "The Following"
vay with the kind of gore tries its hardest to put on an
shes through cable TV. edgy, grisly show, but sputters
pilot, a woman gouges along recklessly. "Justified,"
m eye in dedication to "Breaking Bad" and "Game of
1. Next episode, a man Thrones" aren't great because
dgar Allan Poe mask - they're gory - they have much
[is a Poe devotee and for- more than that. "The Follow-
glish professor - lights ing" has Bacon, but he's given
trian on fire. Shots of little more to do than spit sassy
:ed victims and bloodied comebacks (in one episode,
s populate every episode. Hardy literally sits in a chair
e annual Television the whole time and makes fun
Association conference of the three Carroll-students-
ary, FX president James slash-revolving-sex-partners)
of silenced a room when and guzzle vodka from water
red his own take on the bottles. "The Following" has
iting gun violence fig- Natalie Zea ("Justified"), but
om the United Kingdom, she's given little more to do
ited out that the dis- than cry and give Bacon googly
cies between the United eyes and make Kim Bauer-level
and United Kingdom are poor decisions.
And none of it means any-
consume the same ... thing! The biggest takeaway is
,same television shows, ... everyone, literally everyone,
ideogames," he said. is probably a serial killer. Cops,
ing and everythingthat prison guards, former soldiers -
ny responsibility for no character inthe world of"The
inds of tragedies, up to Following" is exempt from being
luding what we do in a Carroll crew suspect. You can't
dia, should be fair game trust anyone, and asa result,
if you want to look at you can't care and suspension of
[or difference between disbelief becomes too much to
d and the United States, ask for.
ss to and availability of Regardless of how you feel
aboutthe ultra-violent programs
right, of course. Media dominatingtelevision these days,
rful and shapes us in they're not going anywhere any
e don't always realize. time soon. AMC's "The Walking
lame the television, film Dead" and "The Following" post
ming industries for the unbelieveable ratings week after
tes of gun violence in week. Violence sells. But there
intry without looking are plenty of smart, meaningful
sibility of guns and the series that know how to make the
sibility of health care for violence work without detracting
ntally ill downplays very from the story. "The Following"
flaws in our legal system. hasn't learned that lesson yet. So
it think that the rela- what's the point of following in
p between violent tele- the firstplace?
No Country fsr Old Men.'
Undercooked 'Emperor'
never reaches a boil
dry
Stilted script
ags down sloppy
adaptation
By CARLY KEYES
Daily Arts Writer
It's always a challenge to bring
a story in which not much "hap-
pens" (especially one that reads
more like a his-
tory lessonthan B-
a Hollywood
narrative) to Emperor
the big screenA
and entertain At Rave
the masses, but Krasnoff Foster
it's been done
many times in
the past and recently in "Lin-
coln" with great success. Unfor-
tunately, this isn't one of those
times.
"Emperor," based on real
events during the end of World
War II, takes place in Japan
amid the physical rubble and
emotional wreckage brought
upon by the atomic bomb. The
narrative follows General Bon-
ner Fellers (Matthew Fox, "Alex
Cross") who has only 10 days
to investigate imperial, politi-
cal and military officials and
determine whether Emperor
Hirohito should hang, guilty of
war crimes, or remain in his rul-
ing position as the United States
steps in to rebuild Japan.
As Fellers searches for the
truth about the Emperor's
involvement and intentions,
he quests for his former col-
lege flame, Aye (Eriko Hatsune,
"Girls for Keeps"), a Japanese
woman whom he fears perished.
during the bombing. Tommy
Lee Jones ("Lincoln") plays
General Douglas MacArthur,
Fellers's superior, the man who
has entrusted him with the
monumental task.
Director Peter Webber
("Hannibal Rising") crafts a
viewing experience akin to
walking into a beautifully deco-
rated restaurant with elegant
music, only to be met with
mediocre service and a strictly
average meal. Maybe it's just the
whole poignant-historical-film-
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set-in-a-foreign-country quality,
but the meticulous art direction
(Jill Cormack, "Avatar") height-
ens the authenticity ofthis period
piece and, along with powerful
and timely scoring (Alex Heffes,
"Love and Honor"), production
has set the stage for an aestheti-
cally stimulating journey, but one
that ends as soon as it begins.
Fox, in his first true leading
role on the big screen, resembles
more of a robot with an emotion-
al on-and-off switch than a man.
His character marches around,
vacillating between angry and
stone-faced and nostalgic and
teary-eyed, a combination that
confuses more than it convinces.
But it's not his fault - the film is
written that way.
Jones shines as a grouchy, yet
surreptitiously tender general
as he fast-talks circles of crudi-
ties and orders around his men,
a familiar and favorite role. This
much needed comic relief, and,
Jones's performance in general
(pun intended), garners far too
little screen time. But, again, it's
not his fault - it's written that
way.
Writers Vera Blasi ("Tortilla
Soup") and David Klass ("Walking
Tall"), who adapted the screen-
play from the book, "His Majes-
ty's Salvation" by Shiro Okamoto,
not only fail to capitalize on their
resources, such as a snarky Jones
and a "Fox" of a leading man, but
the story stews like a promising
batch of meat and potatoes that
never reaches boil, and it makes
for a bland main course. As Fellers
meets with affiliate after affili-
ate, it's hard to keep the affiliates
straight, especially with flash-
backs of his relationship with Aya
dangling in between.
While it "coulda been a con-
tender," the seriously sloppy
adaptation (one that misses
the bull's eye by a mile) leaves
"Emperor" as an inarguably aver-
age illustration of enduring love,
loss and compassion duringtimes
of war.
nd mass shootings is
essarily characterized
ation, but I do think
undly shapes the-way
Upadhyaya is rewatching all
of the 'Scream' movies. To join,
e-mail kaylau@umich.edu.
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