James Riswick
Assistant A&E Editor
Since this is a culture of mass diversion and apathy toward things that matter, I’m going to forego talking about the president’s State of the Union address. Frankly, I didn’t watch the thing nor did I watch any reaction to it. Mind you, I wasn’t exactly alone. “American Idol” drew more viewers than the president’s Feb. 2 speech.
So, forget the Union, I’m here to deliver the state of the entertainment industry. With the Golden Globes behind us and the Grammys and Oscars just around the corner, now is the perfect time to examine the previous year in movies, music and TV, and predict what’s in store for 2005.
At face value, the future looks grim and bleak.
As if Jessica Simpson’s own multi-media career isn’t irritating enough, she and her creepy father, Joe “My daughter’s got double-Ds” Simpson, managed to launch a career for less-talented, less-attractive, lip-synching, ho-downing younger sister Ashlee.
Then there’s Lindsay Lohan. Let’s just forget how she got famous, oh wait, does any one actually know how she got famous? It beats me. One minute she’s in two Disney remakes and in a film written by Tina Fey, and the next minute MTV has crowned her the next “it” girl. And then somebody gave her a recording contract.
When there are plenty of good bands out there struggling to get by and showcase their talents, it is pathetic that somebody like Lohan or Hillary Duff can so easily launch a musical career. Being able to act and being able to sing are not mutually exclusive talents. Similarly, being hot does not mean we want to hear you sing.
Meanwhile on the small screen, reality TV and spin-offs continue to rule supreme. Two weeks ago, “American Idol” held the top-two Neilson spots and episodes of “CSI,” “CSI: New York” and “CSI: Miami” were all in the top 10. In short, TV is getting stale and until people start supporting great shows like “Arrested Development” and take notice that a whole bunch of Globe nominees were on more risk-taking cable networks, we could be in for more of this sorry state of affairs.
There is some beacon of hope, however, and it can most be seen in movies. Although 22 percent of this year’s film gross came from sequels and there were a fair-share of big-budget blockbusters, this was largely the year of the Indie film. Movies like “Napoleon Dynamite,” “Garden State,” “Sideways,” “Hotel Rwanda” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” showed that little guys can make great movies (and make money to the tune of a record $1 billion with help from Mel Gibson and Michael Moore).
With continued support from moviegoers and award voters (most of the Oscar nominees are for non-blockbuster pictures), more of these movies can be made without the interference of market researchers and corporate tycoons. For instance, if “Napoleon Dynamite” was a typical movie, Napoleon would have been played by that Seth Cohen guy and he would have turned cool by the end of the movie, triumphantly winning the heart of Hillary Duff’s sister. It probably would have had some sort of discernable plot. Thankfully it didn’t and it was great.
Meanwhile in music, most of the best bands emerging are those that typically wouldn’t be excessively hyped by MTV. People, particularly college-age, seem to be really grasping onto the Indie music scene and if not technically Indie, then not exactly mainstream either. I hear a lot of folks saying great things about Postal Service, Death Cab for Cutie, Franz Ferdinand, Muse, Modest Mouse, Snow Patrol, The Shins and whomever is on the “Garden State” soundtrack, just to name a few.
Since the Grammys seem to applaud only whoever is popular or whoever just died, and as the hip-hop industry and pop starlets (including Maroon 5) continue to celebrate themselves and puke out whatever MTV deems cool, Indie-esque bands like those above are beacons of hope for entertainment.
Perhaps this is the birth of an Indie-lead revolution against the commercially driven culture of today. Maybe people are growing tired of formulaic, predictable things and want to be surprised or intrigued now and again. Even on TV, just look at the popularity of Conan O’Brien — he’s random, incredible creative and subsequently, quite a few people would watch him over Letterman or Leno any day.
So although there is still much to be done to rid the world of pop-starlet record contracts and blockbuster turds like “Catwoman” or “The Day After Tomorrow,” there just might be a great countercultural revolution brewing. So this year I urge you to forget seeing “Boogeyman” and instead see “Hotel Rwanda,” skip that Lohan album and pick up Modest Mouse, and finally, watch “Arrested Development” instead of “The Fabulous Life of Kanye West” on VH1. Only then can there be hope for the state of this entertainment union.
2-10-2005