I'm Mad at "Mad Men"

I love a good TV series based on historical fiction. For example, I use to think American Dreams was great. Sure, it was a little political, but it was full of great story lines. For weeks, AMC has been tempting me with a new drama called Mad Men, which is about the birth of the modern advertising agency.

Mad Men promised slick scripts, great costumes, cool cinematography, historical relvence, etc. I must admit, when I turned it on it was eye catching. The sets were very appealing visually and the costumes seemed to match the historical timeline. But then the characters started to talk.

According to the episode I was watching, Readers Digest recently did an article about the horrors of smoking and the Mad Men make a living selling this vice's virtues. "Bold, beautiful," you get the idea. Everyone in the show smokes. I'm expecting the cats and dogs to puff away. The medical doctor comes into an examination room with a patient waiting and decides to fire up.

All of the characters are sinister, they know smoking is harmful and they promote them knowing that they destroy lives. This world is very politically incorrect, with men suggesting that they show more leg and to have weaker morals. After a while, I almost thought I was watching a remake of Star Wars. "Come to the Dark Side" Readers Digest. The nifty suits could be replaced with a Darth Vader costume. The leader of this group of evil Jedi's was even trying to recruit one of its members to manage the campaign of Richard Nixon for President! Terrible!
This show simply has too much of an axe to grind. I'll give it a few more tries, but I don't see this show sticking with me. If it does, don't expect to write a retraction.

Movies are Very Big Business

For a while we heard that the future of movies were in question, but I believe their future is very bright. I think of my own personal circumstances. For a while I simply never got movies or went to them, often for the same reasons I didn't watch network news, it was inconvenient and there were too many other easy sources for news (Fox News, MSNBC, CNBC, etc.) and movies (USA, AMC, TCM, etc.) on cable to go out of my way to rent movies or even go to them.

However, with the rise of the Redbox, where I can rent movies all over town for a $1 and leave them at any one of their locations, I find that my family is renting many more movies. Recently, I went by and noticed that the number I have personally seen was huge. I have also noticed a rising interest in independent films. Probably roughly half of the movies I watch falls in that category. These films are relatively cheap to make (sometimes only 6 digits) and through the numerous distribution networks available (theaters that cater to such films, rental machines, online services, etc.) the possibility of high returns is very good.

Now, it seems everywhere I go, I come across another aspiring movie maker. In fact, I have at least five friends who either have made or in the process of making a movie. Those who have made them have figured out how to make a little profit. New technology is exploding on the scene to make the production of movies more affordable and far easier to do. I'm hoping that the rise of independent films, particularly those of the pro-family variety, will give Hollywood and its culture a run for the money.