5A - Monday, October 20, 2014
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
5A - Monday, October 20, 2014 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom
TV COLUMN
Another television
revolution
"I am a millennial.
Generation Y. Born between
the birth of AIDS and 9/11,
give or take. They call us
the global
generation.
We are
known
for our
entitlement
and
narcissism.
Some say ALEC STERN
it's because
we are
the first
generation where every kid
gets a trophy just for showing
up. Others think it's because
social media allows us to post
every time we fart or have a
sandwich for all the world to
see." - Madison Montgomery,
"American Horror Story:
Coven"
I am a millennial.
Generation Y. Born in 1993,
the same week the first
"Jurassic Park" hit theaters,
part of this generation
Ryan Murphy rightfully
claims is known for our
entitlement and narcissism.
We are the Now Generation.
The generation of instant
gratification. We want what
we want, when we want it,
how we want it. We think
e-mail is too slow a form
of communication. Our
Twitter and Instagram feeds
continuously update like a
never-ending filtered fantasy;
a competition of who's better
than whom. Recent additions
to the Oxford Dictionaries,
courtesy of our generation,
include humblebrag, First
World Problem and selfie -
the culmination of our own
admiration that has inspired
television series, taglines and
an endless obsession with
cameras that point at our
own faces. We are the Now
Generation.
In the future, we'll
reminisce with our children
about a time when television
was an engagement - when
you had to sit down in front
of one device at the same
exact time as millions of
strangers. Before Netflix.
Before DVR. A time when
if you wanted to watch
"Friends," you did so
Thursday night at 8 p.m. But
in the 10 years since that NBC
comedy ended, everything's
changed.
Netflix will always have
the distinction of being the
first; its signature red logo
synonymous with streaming
and binge culture. It's the
service that pioneered online
television with "House of
Cards" and "Orange Is The
New Black" and made its
streaming website the envy
of the industry. And it's that
proliferation into the cultural
zeitgeist that has encouraged
consumers - consumers of
our generation - to demand
more and more from our
television screens (or our
television shows that we
actually now watch on our
phones and tablets).
Starting in 2015, Time
Warner and HBO will make
a long-rumored move: HBO
Go, direct to consumer.
Though the specifics of the
deal are still developing,
the service will presumably
offer the premium network's
vast catalog of series and
films - including originals
like "Game of Thrones,"
"The Sopranos" and "The
Normal Heart," as well as
theatricals from partners like
Warner Bros. and Universal
- all without any cable
subscription.
Like HBO paved the way
for original cable television,
the network will likely set off
an industry chain reaction
of offerings in the streaming
sphere; most networks
already feature streaming as
a supplement to their cable
package. From HBO Go to
Showtime Anytime to FX
Now, any network has the
means to make a similar play.
But this entire future will
hinge on HBO Go's yet-to-be-
released pricing plan. For us
Gen Y kids, that ideal world
in which you only pay for the
servicesyou want, and any:
content on any network is
just a click away, is still yet
to come.
Streaming doesn't
eliminate consumers'
reliance on cable companies,
who will continue to provide
the Internet service needed
*to access HBO Go or Netflix.
And as long as they're in
charge, they'll make sure
it's cheaper for you to add
a full TV service to your
Internet package than to pick
and choose from standalone
services that would bypass
their TV offerings entirely.
For the same price - or
less - as subscribing to
a selection of streaming
services, you'll be able to
buy a full premium cable
service from Comcast or
Verizon; HBO, Showtime and
all the series about murder
investigations and cupcake
baking battles you don't
watch or even know exist, but
also don't realize are actually
a good investment to make.
One thing is certain,
however. Time Warner
and HBO set off industry
fireworks. Just one day after
the HBO Go announcement,
CBS unveiled its own
streaming service - CBS
All Access. For six dollars
per month, All Access
will offer thousands of
episodes of present and
past programming (which
includes "Twin Peaks" and
"Star Trek"), as well as the
most up-to-date episodes
of current series (like "The
Good Wife"). And that's not
all; in 14 of CBS' biggest
markets (including New
York City, Los Angeles
and Detroit), All Access
will offer live streaming
of network programming.
In addition to the monthly
fee, the content will still
include advertisements -
and let's not forget CBS
is still technically a free
network. But despite being
shrouded beneath the
cloud of HBO Go frenzy,
CBS' announcement was
deceivingly groundbreaking;
the country's No. 1 network
getting Generation
Y-friendly.
We are the Now
Generation, and television
- once appointment
entertainment - is becoming
yet another thing we can
take control of. Go. Anytime.
All Access. What you want.
When you want it. Where you
want it. This is the beginning
of the most revolutionary
change since color television.
Sit back, relax and enjoy the
stream.
Stern didn't mention 'Extant'
in this column. To congratulate
him, e-mail alecs@umich.edu.
Irantelins?
'Fury' exposes. the
horrors of comb at
By KARSTEN SVIOLINSKI
DailyArts Writer
During World War II,
American Sherman tanks found
themselves outgunned and
out-armored
by the much A-
larger German Fury
Tiger tanks. For
an American Raveand
crew, their tank Qualityl6
became both Columbia
their home and
their potential
tomb. "Fury" gives audiences
an intimate vision of how
these tank crews worked with
their tanks, with one another
and with the mass death that
defined their daily lives.
Taking place during the
final days of the war in
Europe, the film follows the
veteran crew of a Sherman
tank named Fury and their
latest addition,. a typist with
no training or experience. It's
easy to reduce these characters
to stereotypes: the battle
hardened sergeant, the bible
thumper, the redneck, the one
non-white crewman and the
rookie. However, great writing
and acting reveal a depth
beneath the surface of each.
The bloodthirsty sergeant, Don
"Wardaddy" Collier (Brad Pitt,
"Inglorious Bastards") desires
the civility of a peaceful meal,
and the bible thumper (Shia
LeBeouf, "Transformers") kills
as mercilessly as the next man.
"Fury" really tells two
perfectly intertwined stories.
One is the story of a tank
crew steeped in cynicism
and camaraderie and their
struggle to survive to the war's
end. Their personalization
of Fury - the pinups, photos
and war trophies - makes
their attachment to the tank
feel very real. Also, despite
rarely getting along, their
synchronicity during battle
shows their deep reliance
on one another. When they
repeatedly say, "best job I ever
had," they're half joking and
half serious.
The second story is of an
innocent young man, Norman
Ellison (Logan Lerman, "3:10
to Yuma"), transformed by war
into an eager killer. It may seem
like a quick transition from
cleaning up the blood and flesh
of his predecessor to mowing
down dozens of Nazis, but the
atrocities he witnesses makes
the process believable. The
film's brutal gore, including'
bodies beheaded by tank shells
or flattened by tank treads,
displays the horror of war in
stark perspective. Eventually,
both Norman and the viewers
come to accept Wardaddy's
philosophy: "Ideals are
peaceful, history is violent."
Though the horrors of war
as seen through the lens of
WWII may seem like a well-
worn subject, the focus on a
tank crew helps "Fury"
stand out from the pack. One
notable scene captures the
terrifying power of a Tiger tank
as shell after shell bounces off
its armor. A unique tension
develops while watching
two tanks dance around one
another, each vying to score a
hit on the other.
Unfortunately, in a movie so
full of memorable moments,
the most disappointing scene
turns out to be the climactic
battle. In the film's most cliche
moment, German soldiers miss
their mark repeatedly while
American bullets find their
targets every time. The film
editing makes the heroes seem
hopelessly surrounded but
also makes audiences wonder
how they aren't getting shot
in the back. The course and
conclusion of the battle feel
utterly predictable.
Not particularly engaging as
an action movie, "Fury" stands
more strongly as a dramatic
testament to the horrible acts
humankind is capable of doing
to itself. Though the American
soldiers constantly demonize
the Nazis, a small gesture
at the film's end reaffirms
the humanity of the German
soldier. The separation of good
and evilbecomes as confused as
a soldier lost in the thunderous
noise and fog of war. The film's
final words, "you're a hero,
buddy," ring hollow in the
audience's ears.
Call: #734-418-4115
i ~~Email: dailydisplay@gmi~o
FILM REVIEWW
'Children' falters
in social critiques
By VANESSA WONG
For The Daily
In an age where everything
and everyone is just a text, tweet,
or Tinder swipe away, technology
permeates
everyday +
routines in a
way that didn't Men,
ten years ago. Women &
Jason Reitman's
("Juno") "Men, e n
Women & State Theater
Children" Paramount
explores that
effect with little
success.
The film follows a wide cast
of teenagers and their parents,
each of whose life choices and
pathways are directly affected
by technology. The scope is
diverse and tackles many facets,
positive and negative, of these
interactions. Tim (Ansel Elgort,
"The Fault in Our Stars") is a
former football star who turned
to playing online RPGs after
his mother left his dad. His love
interest, Brandy (Kaitlyn Dever,
"Bad Teacher") seeks privacy
from her strict mother (Jennifer
Garner, "Dallas Buyers Club"),
who obsessively reads through
all of Brandy's online profiles.
Hannah (Olivia Crocicchia, "Palo
Alto") posts provocative photos
of herself online in hopes of
jumpstarting her acting career.
Don Truby (Adam Sandler,
"Grown Ups") and Helen Truby
(Rosemary DeWitt, "The Odd
Life of Timothy Green"), a couple
bored with their marriage,
experiment with online dating
sites and escort services on the
sly.
There'ssomewhatofadisparity
between how high school kids
actually interact with technology
and how the film portrays them.
The issues it tackles are real and
show a deft view of Internet
culture, but doesn't always
grasp the teenagers' motivations
behind their actions. When
Tim talks about forming online
friendships through avideo game,
he uses the abbreviation "IRL
friends" (meaning "in real life")
in actual real life conversation.
Cue cringing. It's intended as a
comedic moment to mock the
linguistic change brought on by
texting and instant messaging,
but people don't actually act
like that. Instead, it takes on a
moralizing tone that seems to
come from an adult fascinated
by the advent of technology that
doesn't quite get it.
On the other hand, some of the
storylines work well. Allison's
(Elena Kampouris, "Labor Day")
efforts to impress a guy who only
likes her for her looks bring on
an eating disorder. She looks up
pictures ofskinny girls online and
uses an online support system to
motivate her not to eat. It only
occupies a small percent of screen
time, but it is raw and real.
Alongside all the complex
subplots, there's an overarching
theme, centered on Carl Sagan's
Pale Blue Dot, that none of it
matters. The film opens and ends
with with a too-long shot of the
Voyager space probe overlooking
the earth. The ideais that as seen
from space, the earth is just a pale
blue dot, so in the grand scheme
of the universe, human life and all
the complicated issues that come
with it are meaningless. On its
own, this could work, but stated
in a way that is so pretentious to
the point of satire, it's hard to take
this message seriously. It gets
hammered in constantly, with
shots from space interspersed
throughout the movie and a grand
total of three direct references
to the same concept in the same
book.
Maybe it's because it uses a
subject matter too intimately
connected to our generation,
but though "Men, Women &
Children" successfully ties in
many facets of the Internet's
effects,itdoesn'tshednewlighton
its cultural significance. Besides,
if you really ever wondered about
how technology changes your
life, you could always just ask Siri.
RELEASE DATE- Monday, October 20, 2014
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
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