I can't stand people my age.
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Nosferatu6979 — 17 years ago(March 04, 2009 04:57 AM)
Yeah, sadly, the ADD thing seems to be affecting just about everyone these days. I'm approaching 38 years old, and luckily I can still kick back and absorb a slow, well-made, character-driven type movie. A couple of my freinds are both in their 40's, and unfortunately they've both gotten to the point where they can't keep focused on any particular subject for more than a minute or two. 10 years ago, I could carry on a deep conversation with either of them, but not anymore. Even my mother, who's in her 60's now, has gotten to the point where she only wants to watch movies full of explosions and non-stop action. Btw, in reference to an earlier post, I absolutely detested Cloverfield! It needs to die a quick death and be buried in a shallow grave along with the rest of the movies that are filmed shaky-cam style and CGI'd to death! The dialog in that turd of a movie had me completely beside myself! Like when the helicopter is going to crash, and they're screaming bloody murder, then all of a sudden the camera guy is saying "I'm sorry, I'm sorry". WTF??? Or when he's gonna attempt to stop his buddy from going after his GF and he says "You're going to force me to tackle you and try to stop you, which will put us both in a very uncomfortable situation". That sounded so PC and un-ballsy, I felt like throwing up! LOL. I simply would've told the dude "suit yourself" and worry more about saving my own neck. But in this day and age, I guess nothing is more important than making sure to have a video recording of the whole ordeal, even though it cost the dumb schmuck his life! Oh yeah, one last thing. When he's getting ready to leap to the other building, and he says into the camera, "If this is the last thing you see, that means I didn't make the leap and I died". No sh*t Sherlock! LMFAO. That show was laughably pathetic! OK, rant over now. ;o)
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acmilan03c1 — 17 years ago(March 09, 2009 02:33 AM)
"Maybe it's because your freinds came asa pack and thus created that mood for goofying around. Maybe if there was only one of your freidns with you, and he noticed how absorved you were with the moie, he payed attention to it. Much of our behavior is imitation, right?"
That's quite possibly true. I had the same thing happen to me one day, a few years back, when I was trying to watch Rebecca on TV and some of my friends happened to be in the room. I never made that mistake again They kept bitching about how boring it was and making wisecrack comments, and it was really annoying. And, of course, Rebecca is NOT a boring movie, nor is it too dated. Anyway, at least one of them I know is a guy who knows how to appreciate a good movie (he's even a big fan of Ingmar Bergman's pictures) and yet he too was behaving just like the other two then, joining in the wisecracks. So yeah, group mentality was probably the reason. -
TOMASBBloodhound — 16 years ago(April 19, 2009 07:22 PM)
Come on, people! As we all know if you go into a video store, the best film they have is the one with the most copies available. For that means the film is the newest, and probably a "big hit" and therefore the best thing you could possibly see. Pay no attention to any films that are older than you are, as the values depicted in them have long been outdated. And any humor or the attitudes of any character in an "old" film have long been obsolete.
Can't we all agree that The Dark Knight is the greatest film ever made? Obvioulsy it has to be look at all the money it made. And it's barely a year old! At least until the new Wolverine movie comes out, The Dark Knight must be considered the best film ever made. Or maybe that master thespian Will Smith has something coming out soon..
Oh, and unless its rated PG-13, no film can possibly be considered for "great" status. -
rcvincelli — 16 years ago(July 26, 2009 07:08 PM)
Wow, what a nice post. Its refreshing to know young people such as yourself can appreciate a masterpiece like The Sand Pebbles.
I saw it in the theaters at the tender age of eight with my cousin when it came out in 1966. We were totally engrossed by it and loved Steve McQueen. We even had the good fortune of meeting Steve several times as he used to ride his motorcycle in the same area as we did (Phelan, Ca).
The Sand Pebbles is an epic film that needs to be experienced. All the performances are top notch, especially Steve, Richard Attenborough, Richard Crenna, and Mako. As for Candice Bergenwow, was she hot in this one.
As far as your friends are concernedsighwhat can you say? Its a shame that they do not have the attention span that you do; they missed out on a killer movie. But its not just young people that have no taste or patiencemany of my friends didnt get the movie or thought it was boring. I dont get them. I found it to be thoroughly effective as an action film, a drama, a character study and a love story. The power of the storytelling and emotional resonance is second to none. I have seen this film many timesmore than any other movieonly 2001: A Space Odyssey, Pink Floyd: The Wall and Jacobs Ladder come close.
Anyway, great post. Its wonderful to know that there are young people like you in this world.
Thanks for renewing my faith in our future.
Rich -
CactusHazretleri — 16 years ago(August 20, 2009 01:21 AM)
This movie was very good, and a very interesting theme; I'm a bit older I guess, at about 25, and I have to say that while I really liked the movie, there were a lot of places in which I felt the plot could have moved faster without losing anything. Yes, I'm sure people on here will criticize me for saying that (if they ever read this) but they really could have shaved of at least a half hour of this and maybe closer to forty five minutes and not left anything important out. Perhaps it's a function of people having more to do these days, but we have come to expect that if we haven't received a tremendous psychological blow in the previous scene - and we need to recharge from it - something new and important should be happening in the scene we're watching.
The whole point with a movie is to create an emotional reaction in the viewer and in that sense it's a lot like music - if you play it too quickly or too slowly the effect either changes or you lose it. This movie builds into a fascinating crescendo at the end, but I think it might have done a bit better to keep up the interest in the space before that.
Furthermore, to some extent, yes, movies do get better with every generation of movie makers - it doesn't mean they're all equal or equally original, but it does mean that they're standing on the shoulders of giants, so to speak, and therefore might be able to see just a tad farther - without any of that diminishing the accomplishments of their predecessors. Ever since Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket, we as audiences have come to take a bit more to turn our stomachs - the element of indescribable horror related to war has to be made explicit either through dialogue about how horrible it is or through a visceral reaction triggered by seeing something awful. That kind of jarring experience has worked its way into the more serious dramas of what can still be considered mainstream cinema today in a way I don't think it had at the time this movie was made. If the movie were made today, for example, the psychological effects on Frank of seeing his friend tortured to death might be explored more fully.
Having said all of that, it's still a phenomenal piece, a very refreshing look at an interesting time and place, which resonates with us now that the lessons of our neocolonial empire and its negative aftereffects start to sink in after 9/11, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
On an unrelated note, I'm kind of surprized the Taiwanese allowed a movie that critical of Chiang Kai Shek to be filmed on their island at that time. -
rcvincelli — 16 years ago(September 02, 2009 09:04 PM)
For starters, that was a very nice post!
Twenty-five? You are still a young person!
Glad you enjoyed itand yesthe movie proceeds at a very deliberate pace, but it has a story to tell, and it tells it well.
I loved Full Metal Jacket (all of Stan's work, for that matter), and Apocalypse Now (saw it on a hit of acid!) and The Sand Pebbles is far from shocking today.
But the emotional resonance of this film is second to none. While the shock value is low compared to more modern works, including those war films mentioned above, it has a way of getting under one's skin, simply by virtue of the fact you are inherently involved on an emotional level with the films characters. I wish more movies today had the ability to involve the viewer so acutely with what's happening on the screen.
My initial reply to the OP addressed these issues. With today's short attention span crowdwho are desperate for the instant payoff, this film will probably bore them to deathwhich is very sad.
I absolutely love your music analogy. Well doneand spot on.
I am a huge Pink Floyd fan. I remember trying to play 'Shine On You Crazy Diamond' for friends back in 1975, when I was in the US Navy. They made me turn it offbefore the bass and drums even began. I was forced to listen to Foghat instead (I actually like Foghat).
The point is, the payoff here takes timeyou have to invest a bit more of your life in this filmbut the payoff is huge. The hand-to-hand combat at the boom in the finale is, or rather was, gut-wrenching at the time. Which only added to the tension, which was already peaking.
Steve McQueen, one of the greatest athlete's in the world (if you don't think riding a primitive, ill-handling motorcycle at high speeds through the desert terrain is easytry it sometime), but I believe his acting skills were greatly underappreciated. And this IS his best film.
Thanks again for the nice post.
Rich -
kducklin2 — 16 years ago(October 10, 2009 12:25 PM)
Firstly, congratulations to the younger posters for proving that in every generation there are people who can recognize the real meaning of quality in a motion picture.
I guess that for us older birds, to watch "Sand Pebbles" is to wonder where the years have gone. For me, this McQueen's greatest movie. Maybe it's one of those strange confluences of actor and character/subject, but I think he reveals probably more depth here than in any other role. And it's a period piece too, which, unlike many recent historical movies, makes little or no concession to its modern audience. (I rather liked him in 'Enemy of the People" too.)
I am watching it again now for the first time in a couple of years, and depressingly It strikes me that if this film were remade today (deliver us) all the exteriors would probably be manufactured using CGI
"Duck, I says" -
deepblue742 — 16 years ago(October 16, 2009 11:22 PM)
I won't deny that there seems to have been a general dumbing down of the United States' younger generations as a result of the sharp decline of public education, which has generally failed to inspire or challenge the youth to do more than become obsessed with pop culture. Trust me, even when I was in high school (now 31 yrs old) I would watch "nerd" shows or historical drama like "Sand Pebbles" alone or with a friend who understood.
Majority of the members of many societies, no matter the time period, have no particular tenacity of intelligence and lack a basic curiosity for other cultures, history, language or science. Your particular age group, no offence, is a lover of short term A.D.D. like pleasures, new genre evolving music, vulgar comedy, action based visceral entertainment, no newsflash there, as most of us older folks have been there.
We all progress and mature in various ways at different times. I've had many a high school friend who was a complete idiot in high school mature to become a great friend in college, life is simply about timing: finding friends, lovers and colleagues who can enhance and reinforce who you are and where you both would like to go down the road. Heed some great advice told above. -
gdd55 — 16 years ago(November 24, 2009 07:46 AM)
It's not just the young people. I know several people of my own generation (40s and 50s) who don't like any movie unless it's in color. The audience of today prefers computer generated graphics, impossible car chases, and a lot of loud noises. They need to be wowed by explosions and have blood sprayed across the screen every couple of minutes or they get bored. I don't even bother discussing movies with most people. They just don't get them.
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bronze006 — 15 years ago(April 28, 2010 08:54 AM)
I know what your talking about, my older brotherim 23 and hes five years older than me..ill let you do the math. Anyways, i was watching this last night and he came in and wanted to change it to the disney channelTHE DISNEY CHANNEL!I literally had to yell at him so that i could see the ending of it and the amazing thing is he only does it when im watching an old movie like frank langella's Dracula (which is my favourite movie) or the Force 10 From Navarone which i also lovemy brother literally drives me up the wall and over it!
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powerslayer67 — 15 years ago(November 29, 2010 10:38 PM)
Some people on here said that we have Transformers and the 60's had Beach Party films. Yeah, but Frankie Avalon and the Beach Party gang didn't rake in a BILLION dollars either, distributing their cheese. I'm sure they would've been embarrassed had that been the case. Good thing they had films like The Sand Pebbles, The Graduate and Bonnie & Clyde to look at.
But to the OP, hang in there buddy. I was in the same shoes in high school and even now. Although now, I don't make an effort to try and help them see the brilliance of great films. I enjoy them with my brother and dad. Most of the time myself. Not alot of people are willing to gather around and watch a Charlie Chaplin film these days. I go pretty far back. I'm only 22. -
Hancock_the_Superb — 15 years ago(February 07, 2011 05:45 PM)
No movie made a billion dollars in those days, so that's a rather stupid argument. As is the whole "kids these days are idiots" (corollary: "I'm superior to them because I like old movies") line of argument, really.
"You are, in your own idiom, a punk - and a second-rate punk at that!" -
narnia4 — 15 years ago(January 29, 2011 09:13 PM)
Well, not everyone your (most likely "our") age is like that. There's been people like that for years, and some (like you) can obviously appreciate a good movie. Imo some of that often goes away when you get older, some of it stays. Of the movies that I first watched when I was younger, there are some I appreciate more and some I appreciate less.
You're right though, I can't stand the extremely shallow view some have, where only the very latest thing made in their lifetime is worth appreciating. There's centuries of great literature, a century of great film, and yet some people won't touch anything that was made more than five years ago. Pathetic.
But just to reinforce my point once more, it isn't necessarily just an age thing. There are younger people who will appreciate films from any era, and then there are some who only like certain kinds of films. For example, I have a friend who I know could NEVER watch this, but not just because it's an old movie. I showed him the original War of the Worlds movie (a very fun movie), and he liked it a lot. So I guess it's people of all ages today who are "programmed" to only appreciate certain kinds of films there are some old classics that most will appreciate (some of the top movies on IMDb are good examples of movies that "withstand the test of time" so to speak), there are movies that are more popular today than when they were released. Unfortunately, there are other classics that are largely ignored because they don't fit "modern standards" (I hate that phrase so much). -
mpae — 14 years ago(May 15, 2011 07:36 AM)
Why do people your age always have to make a big deal when they like an older movie. "OO LOOK AT ME I'M 15 AND MY FAVOURITE MOVIE IS REAR WINDOW."
I've seen so many threads where a teenager tries to pander to the older audience by constantly bragging how they are so different from others of the same age and how they are so much better because they don't like CGI. Its annoying.
Nobody is going to give you a medal or attention. Everywhere I go on these boards I look for interesting debates but instead find either "THIS MOVIE SUX" or "I AM 14 AND LOVE BRESSON, NOW WHICH OLD GUY WANTS TO TAKE ME ON A DATE?"