The Sword and Laser discussion

http://blog.blankbaby.com/2012/05/pie...

Now I kinda want a whole series: Ol' Codgers of Sci-Fi Tech Reviews!

(It would be great to get a Ray Bradbury rant-review, but he won't go near these satanic bearers of the evil of e-books, I reckon.)

I have an old issue of a magazine called Future Life (from the publishers of Starlog!) that contains a hilariously cranky article by Ursula K. LeGuin about how loud and obnoxious science fiction has become-- and specifically, the films of Lucas and Spielberg. She's particularly angry at all the loud noises in Close Encounters. While her point is certainly not lost on me, the tone of the piece veers away from "valid critical points" and into full on "get off my lawn" territory.

Ahh,when those who look to the future begin to dislike the future. It happens to must of us, I suppose. My mother, a bright woman by any measure, decided that she will never understand email (she could, easily) and steadfastly clings to this inability no matter what.

Compared to some I've read, Anthony actually seems to get on pretty well with his new gadget. I'd contribute to a kickstarter campaign for a film called "Ray Bradbury Using Pinterest"

That's funny about LeGuin -- I'd imagine Close Encounters would be sonically restrained in comparison with the sonic blasts meted out per minute in a typical Micheal Bay film these days, but it could also depend on how cranked up the speakers were at the theater she attended. ;)

Yes, I agree Anthony was actually not super-curmudgeonly, and I really liked the punishment he devised for designers who do not make on/off switches obvious.

Keith wrote: "I'd contribute to a kickstarter campaign for a film called "Ray Bradbury Using Pinterest"

Me too!

I'll try to remember to scan in the article, but the gist of her argument was that everything had to be noisy. The opening desert scene had to happen during a loud sandstorm with all the characters yelling at each other; the spaceships all made too many noises and played their music too loud; John William's score won't stop shouting at you.

I can't imagine how she'd react to Bay or the common practice now of mixing dialogue really quiet and jacking up the volume on every sound effect. As a person who watches a lot of movies from 11pm-4am and tries to be a considerate neighbor, I loathe that.