Simon Pegg apologised recently for making geeky comments which I think are interesting. Oh well, I guess nobody's perfect. Whats the big deal anyway? He was only speaking his mind.
Despite his reputation as a poster boy for geeks, he told Radio Times magazine:
“Before Star Wars, the films that were box-office hits were The Godfather, Taxi Driver, Bonnie and Clyde and The French Connection – gritty, amoral art movies.
“Then suddenly the onus switched over to spectacle and everything changed … I don’t know if that is a good thing.”
Pegg, who played chief engineer Scotty in the recent Star Trek films, added:
“Obviously I’m very much a self-confessed fan of science fiction and genre cinema but part of me looks at society as it is now and just thinks we’ve been infantilised by our own taste.
“Now we’re essentially all consuming very childish things – comic books, superheroes. Adults are watching this stuff, and taking it seriously.
“It is a kind of dumbing down, in a way, because it’s taking our focus away from real-world issues. Films used to be about challenging, emotional journeys or moral questions that might make you walk away and re-evaluate how you felt about … whatever.
“Now we’re walking out of the cinema really not thinking about anything, other than the fact that the Hulk just had a fight with a robot.”
The Mission: Impossible star said he wanted to take on more dramatic roles.
“Sometimes (I) feel like I miss grown-up things,” he said. “And I honestly thought the other day that I’m gonna retire from geekdom.
I see the need to analyse... MUST A-N-A-L-Y-S-E ,,,, error error!!!! does not compute... (Sparks flying) Please! someone feel free to interpret - So much meaningful geekspeak here to analyse.... HELP!
Geek long and Prosper, bloggies, geeksters, nerdlings and trekkers. I think thats eveyone, lol.
10 comments:
There are still plenty of deep and thoughtful movies that reflect on life.
I don't think it's a dumbing down or revert to childhood. Fantasy and science fiction also reflect our world, just in a way we can handle it. Besides, when it comes to movies, my first goal is to escape. I want away from the world's problems.
In the era before Star Wars, we had a lot of dark, brooding, amoral kinds of films like Taxi Driver. Maybe we had a little too much of that, which is why Star Wars was such a breath of fresh air. I'll agree that the pendulum may have swung too far the other way, but that doesn't mean science fiction or geekdom in general are childish.
Can't see why he needed to apologise, people read too much ito what others say.
If that is geek speak I have just acquired a new label.
Why did he need to apologize? I just don't get it-he's entitled to his opinion and I agree with it in many ways. I look at it more that, since Star Wars...and Jaws actually, a movie is judged by how much money it made, not how well made it is. Pan is sinking but that doesn't mean it's a bad film although i haven't seen it. The Transformer movies made huge box office but they are not that great. In the end there is that simple thing called "Freedom of Speech" and i think he is entitled to his way of thinking.
We don't go to movies to be more depressed by the world's problems. We go to escape.
Simon Pegg is a gem. When I was visiting my daughter in Switzerland and stayed in an apt., the only video that would work on the DVD was Hot Fuzz. I watched it about 8 times. Loved it each time.
I think what he's lamenting is that the geek thing took over the mainstream, which made it far harder to be cool (in its odd geek way), and making it that much harder for the geek thing to do what the geek thing does, which is comment on social issues the same way the other movies he brings up used to. I wonder if this is Pegg trying to suggest the next Trek will either be heavy on social commentary, or his lament that it won't.
I definitely have superhero fatigue, so I get where he's coming from. I like intelligent films. I don't need to escape: my life is pretty great.But I wouldn't necessarily discount science fiction from being intelligent. Inception is sci-fi, and it managed to ask big questions while still making big money. And the grandfather of them all, 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Some movies are about 'escapism'. Who wants to really see a film about the same thing you are watching on the evening news? Where is the fun in that? That's what movies and TV were originally for, entertainment.
I for one will never stop geeking out. But when the time is right and I need to be serious and an adult, I know how to do that too.
I think that geeky movies can include thoughtfulness and serious, adult analysis. Gattaca, Interstellar, and many other movies are geeky and thought-provoking. I haven't seen The Martian yet, but I've heard it's more of a drama than an action flick. And . . . I still want to see Hulk smash robots sometimes. Why not? :)
I think the weirdest part for me with these comments is that I think the Star Trek movies and shows have always walked the line between pure entertainment and thought-provoking material . . .
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