| Author | Message | ||
     Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.238.54 |
Only a few years ago, I was interested in things as they arose in the news and elsewhere. Now, everything is streaming past me - and I'm beginning to be interested in nothing - even in things that once inspired me because they are now there - all the time - without effort. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 92.232.199.129 |
Hmmm, here are my thoughts, for what they're worth. Not sure if this is relevant to the way you feel or not, Des ... Back in 1972, I think it was, Alvin Toffler wrote a book called "Future Shock". It sounds like a SF novel but it isn't - it's about the increasing pace of change and how people can suffer a kind of shock or numbness from having so many "new" things thrown at them at once. Of course, since then the pace of change has been even greater than it was in the early seventies! I know that as I've got older and things have changed so fast, I've definitely got to the stage where I don't get at all excited about latest developments, latest new crazes, etc. It's all going way too fast for me now, so I just let it all go over my head! Case in point - music. I kept my old vinyl collection (in fact, I still have it!) and only changed to cassettes when I felt I really had to. By the time I started on cassettes, everyone else was using CDs! I then started on CDs and now everyone is going on about downloading music from the internet, iPods and so on. I haven't a clue what they're talking about!  Anyway, I'm rambling now. Don't know if this was the kind of thing you were thinking of, Des? I've felt like this for more than a few years. Perhaps I've "aged" quicker than you have even though I'm a bit younger?  | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.238.54 |
You're definitely on my wavelength, Caroline. des | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
I find myself disinterested in so many things too, Des. I can't hardly get motivated by anything. I would love to see Julian Assange quietkly level every government on Earth, that I'd like to witness. I'm swiftly becoming an anarchist, the more I see and learn of this rancid world of ours.... Sorry, but what's the Xmas season without some humbuggery?  | ||
| Steve Bacon (Stevebacon) Username: Stevebacon Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 90.209.220.6 |
Or just general buggery? | ||
| Jamie Rosen (Jamie) Username: Jamie Registered: 11-2008 Posted From: 99.241.48.210 |
Buggery's better when you hum. Bummery's better when you hug. | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
You know, it's so hard being humbuggered when you guys poke me like that. | ||
| Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker) Username: Stephen_theaker Registered: 12-2009 Posted From: 62.30.117.235 |
I wish I was less interested in things. I'd get a lot more done. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.238.54 |
Thinking about it, I now put more traction into things - more eggshell grit - by real-time reviewing books to their bottom bone of dug-out interest. | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 92.0.89.141 |
I certainly find it difficult maintaining an interest in, or an enthusiasm for, modern technology. I've never been what you'd call a technophobe, but it seems to me that every couple of months these days some new kind of ipad (or whatever) comes out, and is immediately marketed as being essential for modern living. It doesn't seem that long ago to me when we didn't even have mobile phones, and society ran just as efficiently. I know you can't halt progress - if it is progress - but I get frustrated when I suspect it's change for change's sake or that much of the driving power behind it derives from market forces. Why, for example, did we ever need cameras built into our telephones? Why did we ever need the facility to watch TV on hand-devices that are no more than six inches by three? There are masses and masses of applications that seem to serve no purpose whatsoever, yet young people everywhere are clamouring to purchase them. And it's not just in the world of communications, it's also in entertainment. The latest trend in cinema is to make movies in 3-D. Can I ask an honest question - is there anyone out there who DOESN'T believe that 3-D cinema is nothing more than an elabroate gimmick? That it doesn't do a damn thing to improve the viewing experience, and in some cases may actually spoil it? Call me a stick in the mud, but I am never again going to watch a movie when it's being shown in 3-D. The very best you get is that it looks like Monty Python style animation, with a bunch of flat images all moving around and behind each other, against a backdrop that is often blurred. It certainly doesn't make me think I'm actually there. And now preproduction on my movie CAPE WRATH has stalled badly because they're arguing about whether or not to pay for 3-D. Everything was ready to go before this 'Emperor's New Clothes type' silliness arose. I'm not so much uninterested in this stuff, Des, as frustrated that so much of it - IMO - is a con. | ||
| Steve Bacon (Stevebacon) Username: Stevebacon Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 90.209.220.6 |
I'm also not convinced about 3D television. It's a distraction. I think it's something else for the filmakers to focus on, at the expense of quality writing and direction. Like overused CGI. | ||
| Gcw (Gcw) Username: Gcw Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.155.172.153 |
There is too much distraction in life. Ipods, Iphones, TV, Facebook...This message board. All these things and more distract us from our creativity, but we still come back to them. A few weeks ago I stopped posting on Facebook & here (as if you noticed..  ) for a while and just got back to basics. My creativity re-asserted itself and my head felt a lot 'quieter' for doing it. gcw | ||
| Gcw (Gcw) Username: Gcw Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.155.172.153 |
Excellent.Killed it dead. gcw | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
GCW - you're right, mate. There are too many distractions in this modern multimedia world. It's stopped my recent hot creative streak in its tracks. I might follow your lead and have a period of radio silence so that I can rediscover my mojo... | ||
| Mick Curtis (Mick) Username: Mick Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.173.165.221 |
Excellent.Killed it dead. You're prolific enough as it is, mate - you stop all other things and the world will be awash with GCW albums! | ||
| Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker) Username: Stephen_theaker Registered: 12-2009 Posted From: 62.30.117.235 |
I've never bought a mobile phone, but I pre-ordered the iPad, and I use it constantly - I'm writing this message on it. Obviously it's not essential for modern living, but it is very, very useful. In the end this stuff is there to use if you want, ignore if you don't. I do find 3D at the movies very annoying, though. For a glasses wearer, wearing an extra set is very uncomfortable, and the glasses are too big for very small children, which makes it hard now to find suitable showings for the whole family. The biggest problem, though, is that it's affecting the actual content of the films. | ||
| Kate (Kathleen) Username: Kathleen Registered: 09-2009 Posted From: 86.142.147.0 |
3D gives me a headache and I resent paying extra for it. I wind up closing one eye during the non-FX scenes to give my eyes a break.  | ||
| Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey) Username: Ramsey Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.93.21.68 |
"Can I ask an honest question - is there anyone out there who DOESN'T believe that 3-D cinema is nothing more than an elabroate gimmick? That it doesn't do a damn thing to improve the viewing experience, and in some cases may actually spoil it?" For me seeing Dial M for Murder proved that 3D could be used expressively, and I look forward to seeing what Scorsese does with it. I did also think that the recent Piranha film would have been less fun without it. | ||
| Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey) Username: Ramsey Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.93.21.68 |
I should add that I thought the 3D version of the Hitchcock improved on the version usually screened. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
Having seen both the 3D and normal flat-screen versions of Avatar, I'd say the 3D version is actually twice as good as the other. It blew me away, to be honest. The technology was used to flesh out the world of the film rather than as a cheap gimmick, and IMHO it worked brilliantly. | ||
| Hubert (Hubert) Username: Hubert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 78.22.237.21 |
George Lucas is re-releasing all six Star Wars films in 3D, this time in chronological order. First up is The Phantom Menace, which will be released theatrically (!) in 2012. | ||
| Tony (Tony) Username: Tony Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.155.202.203 |
3D is fine - it's like arguing over black and white vs colour, sound v silent. But Des, yes, interest IS dying. I can no longer finish reading whole books without feeling the need to move onto another. I can no longer find anything that thrills me, makes me feel I need it. It's like a sickness with me. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
The key to maintaining interest in genre material is to be ultra-discerning in the books or TV shows you choose to invest your time in and take frequent breaks with quick doses of entertainment at the movies or in short story form. Many people imagine my ideal job would be as a book or film reviewer but if it involved having to watch or read countless hours of mediocre garbage I couldn't think of a worse fate! | ||
| Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker) Username: Stephen_theaker Registered: 12-2009 Posted From: 62.30.117.235 |
True, Stevie. Getting TiVo changed my attitude to TV completely. No more adverts, no more rubbish, no more soaps. Just the best TV cherry-picked and ready to watch whenever I wanted it. TV went in a flash from being mostly rubbish to being completely brilliant. Not sure why, but I don't mind reading and reviewing books of all kinds, good or bad, whereas I've quickly got tired of reviewing cheap, mediocre films for the BFS. Maybe it's because even the worst book has a huge special effects budget. | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
For me it's all about the amount of time needed to invest in a product. Novels take up a sizeable chunk of one's waking time so I only read the best, long-running TV series even more so, while films & short stories are good for a quick fix - even the less than great ones. That's why I gave up on those massive adventure/strategy role-playing computer games year ago... life's just too short and I much prefer a quick escapist blast (ala 'Doom' etc). It's all about being practical over what is possible to accomplish in one lifetime. | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 92.0.89.141 |
Maybe it's my eyes, but I found AVATAR awful in 3-D. Half the picture was blurred, the rest consisted of Pythonesque 2-D characters sliding in front and back of each other. When we finally watched it on DVD, in normal mode, I enjoyed it a lot more. After that and CLASH OF THE TITANS, I will never again - unless I have no choice - voluntarily watch a movie in 3-D. Each to their own, I suppose. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Maybe it's my eyes, but I found AVATAR awful in 3-D. Half the picture was blurred, the rest consisted of Pythonesque 2-D characters sliding in front and back of each other. I didn't get any of that...what I saw was a crystal sharp image, 3D technology used to expand and add depth to the world of the film rather than as a cheap gimmick. I thought it was brilliantly done. Did you watch it in the cinema or on DVD? | ||
| Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker) Username: Stephen_theaker Registered: 12-2009 Posted From: 62.30.117.235 |
Avatar was like that for me too, plus there were grey double-images all over the screen. Every film I've seen in 3D has been fine if you're sitting right in the middle of the cinema and looking at the "right" bit of the screen, but the rest of the screen always looks blurred and painfully out of focus. It just doesn't work with some people's eyes - though it could be that our cinema's projectionist is rubbish. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.77.197 |
Were you pissed again, Paul? | ||
| Stevie Walsh (Stephenw) Username: Stephenw Registered: 03-2009 Posted From: 194.32.31.1 |
'Avatar' was mindlessly enjoyable at the time of watching (while ticking off the plot "developments" and "character stereotypes" and "right on" messages) but left me never wanting to see it again, despite all the 3D gimmickry, it was just so bloody shallow and predictable - unlike 'Machete' (pronounced "ma-che-tay" in a solemn gravelly voice)! That's a film that was clichéd to fuck and still left me without a clue what would happen next from one minute to the next (and this movie packs more incident into a minute than most do in their entire lengths). I'm losing the fight to go see it again tonight with mates who haven't seen it yet... ah to revel in such joy again. | ||
| Mbfg (Mbfg) Username: Mbfg Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 212.219.63.204 |
"Looking for Today" by Black Sabbath sums up this thread's theme perfectly. Yes, you heard me, Black sabbath, not among the world's great philosophers but with this one they got it right. Cheers Tel-sabbuf rools-Grimwood | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.29.225.41 |
I don't agree that people these days lack an adequate span of atten | ||
| Weber (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.55 |
No they certainly don.. aww look at that cute little kitten | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.171.167.169 |
Attention is like saving things later to withdraw - but hardly any interest these days on any such deposits (mineral, financial or excremental): what the thread means. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.171.167.169 |
Watch my Facebook Wall on this. Use the Devil to defeat the Devil. | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
Here's something "interest"-ing, Des... I was going through a trunk, and found an old horror 'zine... and in it, is a story by you... and a story by me... appearing mere pages apart!  ... Well, maybe that wasn't so interesting after all. (I will not out said 'zine, because my story is vomit-inducing, and I don't mean in a good way) | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.171.167.169 |
Thanks, Craig. That would be even more interesting with names exposed. What name did yiu write under in those days? I no longer have any of my contributor copies, btw. | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
Just drop me an email, Des.  |