Today Netflix releases the complete third season of House of Cards. At the time of writing this, I'm still a few episodes behind, so we aren't going to talk about that today. What we are going to talk about is Netflix. This post will be something of the rant form, but also something of a list as I share various thoughts I have about Netflix in no particular order.
I will start by getting my few pet peeves about Netflix out of the way so we can move on to the things I love about Netflix. My biggest irritation with Netflix is the randomness of the "You may also like" feature. I have a problem with this for two reasons. Firstly, the Netflix matrix fails to take in to account how many times you watch a given show. For example one time I watched ONE episode of Gossip Girl for a class project and then for MONTHS on end Netflix kept spamming my home page with "Because you watched Gossip Girl" notifications. That was one time, Netflix. My second problem is with this feature actually accurately predicting what shows you will enjoy. I think one time Netflix suggested I would like Family Guy because I liked Breaking Bad. My point is not whether or not a person who likes Family Guy also likes Breaking Bad. My point is that the shows are too different in genre and format for Netflix to be crossing that boundary. However to Netflix's credit, 90% of the time when they think I'll like something, I will like it (even if it takes me years to come around). Whether this is because Netflix does a good job figuring me out or if this is because I like nearly every TV show I've watched, is still a mystery.
But those are minor complaints in comparison to the greatness Netflix has to offer. As we go forward I should clarify that I use Netflix almost exclusively for TV shows and stand-up specials. I do watch occasional movies on Netflix, but I usually use other sources and my own personal library for my movie viewing. I have heard many people complain that the selection of movies on Netflix streaming is poor. While I largely agree with this sentiment, I think the point of Netflix streaming is first and foremost for on demand TV viewing and that Netflix does very well.
Though it is difficult to say with absolute certainty, I think my favorite thing about Netflix is that it enables me to watch shows well after they air on TV. Historically I have been slow to catch on to greatness in regard to TV, but this has changed. The first time I watched Breaking Bad was early October 2013... a few days after the finale aired; I first watched Doctor Who in March of 2013... midway through the seventh season. But through the magic of Netflix I could binge watch my way to being relevant with the times in a few short weeks. Nearly every show I love on Netflix I didn't watch when it first aired, but Netflix gives me the chance to show up late to the party but not miss out. This goes for everything from The Office to Arrested Development. I know about all my favorite shows because Netflix lets me show up late to the party, but still feel fashionably late. For example I am only know finally beginning to see the greatness of Mad Men, but with Netflix I am still confident that I'll be current with the rest of the world by the show's return in April.
Another thing that I deeply love about Netflix is dedication to stand-up comedy. I was largely oblivious to current good stand-up until I discovered Jim Gaffigan a few years back. From there I watched more Gaffigan on Netflix and began a speedy journey from one stand-up special to another discovering favorites like Aziz Ansari, Dimitri Martin (no longer on Netflix), Mike Birbiglia and John Mulaney. In recent months Netflix has taken this one step further and is now a main producer of these specials. I love that move for two reasons: 1. I get more great stand-up specials in my life; 2. Netflix shows that they care about the future of comedy. I am even more likely to watch stand-up specials of people like Chelsea Peretti and Iliza Shlesinger only because Netflix produced the specials.
This transitions nicely into my final main topic of Netflix original TV shows. Like most TV shows, I was slow to get on board with Netflix TV because House of Cards was really slow at first and Hemlock Grove was an epic misfire. But I gave House of Cards and Netflix time (due largely to the greatness of Kevin Spacey) and they both came around. Now I give any Netflix original show the benefit of the doubt until it proves me wrong. And I think this 2015 year will not disappoint. Netflix has many shows in store like the Tina Fey and Ellie Kemper comedy The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Bloodline, tMarvel projects Daredevil and A.K.A Jessica Jones, Wet Hot American Summer (with almost all the original cast), adult animation in the form of F is for Family and season 2 of BoJack Horseman, a Wachowski sci-fi thriller called Sense8, House of Cards season 3, Orange is the New Black season 3 and many others. As you can see Netflix has a lot riding on this year, but I think most of these will be hits. Expect to hear more about these shows in the coming months.
Many other random things I love about Netflix include: good British TV that I would otherwise never see, the excitement of knowing what day a season is being added to Netflix, re-watching, binge watching, the fact that they save my place even years later, sophisticate taste profile that is very rarely wrong, the fact that everyone has Netflix and many more. If you couldn't tell, I really love Netflix. It is a source of nearly endless joy and happiness in my life. That's all until next time. I'm going to go watch House of Cards now.
Friday, February 27, 2015
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Simba, Prince of Pride Rock
Hello friends! I spend a great deal of time enjoying entertainment in many different forms, but I rarely get the space to voice my thoughts completely. I've tried other blogs in the past that never had much going for them, but I think this time will be different.
The purpose of this blog is to create a space to share my very random thoughts on all things TV, books and movies in the form of rants, rankings and reviews. The rants (like this post) will be random thoughts I have about things that just bug me about various movies and shows. The rankings will be my attempt to do the difficult task of comparing shows and movies to each other and determining the best in some aspect. This may also include lists of favorite things about a given show or other things of a list nature. Finally reviews will be more structured attempts to analyze the merits of a show or movie. In the past I've found reviews to be somewhat difficult to write, but also very rewarding.
So now without further ado, my first rant on a topic that has bugged me for years: The Lion King and Hamlet.
To preface this rant I will say two things. The first is that while I have always enjoyed The Lion King as a good classic Disney movie, it has never been a favorite of mine. Secondly I am not the greatest expect on all things Shakespeare, but I have what I would say to be a better than average level of Shakespeare experience. It is from that basis that I begin this rant. This rant is brought up time and time again by the claim that "The Lion King is basically just the story of Hamlet". This is a largely true statement, but it's always really bothered me because it presents a really limited view of Hamlet and a faulty view of The Lion King.
The basic story template applies equally to both tales: A young prince named, Simba/Hamlet, hears of the murder of his father, Mufasa/King Hamlet, by his uncle Scar/Claudius who then takes the kingdom of Pride Rock/Denmark under his control. But this is no where near the end of either story. In The Lion King Simba then leaves Pride Rock, interacts with various characters, learns the life philosophy of "no worries" and comes back to throw Scar to his death by hyena stampede. In Hamlet Hamlet stays around the kingdom and is even presented with chances to kill Claudius but DOESN'T DO ANYTHING! In the end his manipulation and inability to act gets everyone killed (including the totally innocent Rosencrantz and Guildenstern). He pokes Claudius with a poisoned sword then dies himself leaving Denmark in turmoil and the play as an obvious tragedy.
Though there are a few similarities between the two stories at the beginning, by the end the tales have had many different twists and turns. An argument can be made that Disney simply sanitized the deaths of Hamlet, but this argument is not substantial in that the entire message of the story is changed. Hamlet is about a prince who fails the simple request of his father's ghost to avenge his murder. The Lion King is about punk kid who does what he wants, runs away to learn a philosophy of not worrying (which isn't very kingly), then comes back to win and have a happy ending. The message of Hamlet is, more or less, inability to action will get people killed. The message of The Lion King is stop avoiding the past, grow up and take action.
In this way I see The Lion King as almost the ending to Hamlet if it were a comedy. They begin on the same basic path with immature irresponsible protagonists, but from there go in different directions. Hamlet follows on in the path of what happens if a person never changes this behavior and acts (what happens is death), whereas The Lion King veers off and shows us a truncated, largely unsatisfying journey of a character moving from immaturity to maturity. Personally I don't think Disney did a very good job showing this change, and I think the "hakuna matata" philosophy did more harm than good, but the intent was admirable. At the end of The Lion King I can confidently say that Simba has grown in maturity and will be a better king than at the beginning of the film. Community has been restored in the land.
But that's not what we see at the end of Hamlet. Hamlet ends with a giant mound of bodies reflective of how bad things can be if action is not taken to restore order. Nearly everyone in the whole play ends up dead because Hamlet couldn't muster the courage to take action and kill Claudius.
It is because of these polar opposite endings that I have a hard time with the notion that Hamlet and The Lion King are the same story. Hamlet is a tragedy of inaction. The Lion King is a comedy of growth and maturity. We are doing a major disservice to BOTH works if we compare them. Beyond the most bare bones beginnings to the narratives, Simba and Hamlet run is polar opposite directions. By stating that The Lion King is the story of Hamlet, we are setting up false expectations of a happy end that will ruin the message of Hamlet. Even beyond this factor it is a major mistake to expect the story of a good Disney movie to measure up against what is widely regarded as the best tragedy of all time. Hamlet is a remarkably good drama that showcase the finest elements of Shakespearean literature. The Lion King is a pretty good Disney movie that teaches lessons about growing up and has some really catchy songs. I think we would be wise to not compare or confuse the two.
The purpose of this blog is to create a space to share my very random thoughts on all things TV, books and movies in the form of rants, rankings and reviews. The rants (like this post) will be random thoughts I have about things that just bug me about various movies and shows. The rankings will be my attempt to do the difficult task of comparing shows and movies to each other and determining the best in some aspect. This may also include lists of favorite things about a given show or other things of a list nature. Finally reviews will be more structured attempts to analyze the merits of a show or movie. In the past I've found reviews to be somewhat difficult to write, but also very rewarding.
So now without further ado, my first rant on a topic that has bugged me for years: The Lion King and Hamlet.
To preface this rant I will say two things. The first is that while I have always enjoyed The Lion King as a good classic Disney movie, it has never been a favorite of mine. Secondly I am not the greatest expect on all things Shakespeare, but I have what I would say to be a better than average level of Shakespeare experience. It is from that basis that I begin this rant. This rant is brought up time and time again by the claim that "The Lion King is basically just the story of Hamlet". This is a largely true statement, but it's always really bothered me because it presents a really limited view of Hamlet and a faulty view of The Lion King.
The basic story template applies equally to both tales: A young prince named, Simba/Hamlet, hears of the murder of his father, Mufasa/King Hamlet, by his uncle Scar/Claudius who then takes the kingdom of Pride Rock/Denmark under his control. But this is no where near the end of either story. In The Lion King Simba then leaves Pride Rock, interacts with various characters, learns the life philosophy of "no worries" and comes back to throw Scar to his death by hyena stampede. In Hamlet Hamlet stays around the kingdom and is even presented with chances to kill Claudius but DOESN'T DO ANYTHING! In the end his manipulation and inability to act gets everyone killed (including the totally innocent Rosencrantz and Guildenstern). He pokes Claudius with a poisoned sword then dies himself leaving Denmark in turmoil and the play as an obvious tragedy.
Though there are a few similarities between the two stories at the beginning, by the end the tales have had many different twists and turns. An argument can be made that Disney simply sanitized the deaths of Hamlet, but this argument is not substantial in that the entire message of the story is changed. Hamlet is about a prince who fails the simple request of his father's ghost to avenge his murder. The Lion King is about punk kid who does what he wants, runs away to learn a philosophy of not worrying (which isn't very kingly), then comes back to win and have a happy ending. The message of Hamlet is, more or less, inability to action will get people killed. The message of The Lion King is stop avoiding the past, grow up and take action.
In this way I see The Lion King as almost the ending to Hamlet if it were a comedy. They begin on the same basic path with immature irresponsible protagonists, but from there go in different directions. Hamlet follows on in the path of what happens if a person never changes this behavior and acts (what happens is death), whereas The Lion King veers off and shows us a truncated, largely unsatisfying journey of a character moving from immaturity to maturity. Personally I don't think Disney did a very good job showing this change, and I think the "hakuna matata" philosophy did more harm than good, but the intent was admirable. At the end of The Lion King I can confidently say that Simba has grown in maturity and will be a better king than at the beginning of the film. Community has been restored in the land.
But that's not what we see at the end of Hamlet. Hamlet ends with a giant mound of bodies reflective of how bad things can be if action is not taken to restore order. Nearly everyone in the whole play ends up dead because Hamlet couldn't muster the courage to take action and kill Claudius.
It is because of these polar opposite endings that I have a hard time with the notion that Hamlet and The Lion King are the same story. Hamlet is a tragedy of inaction. The Lion King is a comedy of growth and maturity. We are doing a major disservice to BOTH works if we compare them. Beyond the most bare bones beginnings to the narratives, Simba and Hamlet run is polar opposite directions. By stating that The Lion King is the story of Hamlet, we are setting up false expectations of a happy end that will ruin the message of Hamlet. Even beyond this factor it is a major mistake to expect the story of a good Disney movie to measure up against what is widely regarded as the best tragedy of all time. Hamlet is a remarkably good drama that showcase the finest elements of Shakespearean literature. The Lion King is a pretty good Disney movie that teaches lessons about growing up and has some really catchy songs. I think we would be wise to not compare or confuse the two.
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