--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Bhairitu <noozguru@...> wrote: > > On 07/17/2011 03:48 AM, turquoiseb wrote: > > I'm a fan of television. I think some of the best > > work in the motion picture arts is being done on > > TV. The genre of a TV series or mini-series, in > > the wrong hands, can turn high art into low schlock, > > as lamentably happened with the American remake of > > "Life On Mars." Or, in the right hands, a TV series > > or mini-series can become the counterpart of a great > > novel. > > > > I've watched or rewatched a few TV series lately, > > from start to finish, in a kind of exercise in trying > > (a la "Manhunter") to recapture the mindset of good > > storytelling. So I've been thinking about what makes > > a good story into a great story. One of the things > > I've come up with is character arc. Do the characters > > stay pretty much the same through an entire 6-to-12 > > episode mini-series (or season of an ongoing series), > > or do they keep changing on you? I've found that I > > prefer stories filled with characters who change on me > > a lot, who have long and complicated character arcs. > > > > For example, two performances in the last couple of > > years strike me as standouts in terms of character arc. > > The first was in, of all things, "Spartacus: Blood and > > Sand." Early on we are introduced to -- and by "intro- > > duced to" I mean we get to see literally everything > > there is to see about her, nude -- to a character > > named Ilithyia. She is played by an Australian actress, > > Viva Bianca. When we first meet her, she seems a bit > > of a beautiful but shallow dingbat. But over the course > > of 12 episodes she turns into one of the most evil > > villains I've ever seen onscreen. Ilithyia is right up > > there with Hannibal Lechter. She did things in this > > series that completely surprised me and made me think, > > "Whoa! Reassessment time. This woman is not who I > > thought she was." I love that. > > > > Another actress who got to play a character with > > *tremendous* arc just got ignored in the Emmy nominations, > > which I think is a cryin' shame. Emilia Clarke gave a > > knockout performance as Daenerys Targaryen in "Game Of > > Thrones." Again, we are introduced to her naked, leading > > us as viewers to think we've seen all of her. When we > > first see her, she's a beautiful but naive virgin, and > > a bit of a spoiled princess. Technically she's not a > > princess; she's the rightful queen of the whole land. But > > she's still 15 or so and unformed. To watch the change > > in her as she is married off to a barbarian warrior lord, > > becomes the queen of his tribe, and gives birth not only > > to his son but a few more magical creatures as well is > > jaw-dropping. It's almost the definition of "high > > character arc." > > > > So this got me thinkin' about the arc of some of the > > characters on the TV series of Fairfield Life. Do we have > > a high arc, or a low arc? Do people tend to change over > > the years, or stay the same? And IF they change, do other > > people let them, or is there a concerted attempt to draw > > them back "into character" and replay the same scenes > > they played years ago, in exactly the same way? No > > answers here, only questions. Now to the fun part: > > > > What if Fairfield Life WAS a TV series? Would it be on > > during prime time, or as a daytime soap? Would it be on > > FOX or AMC or HBO or the Oprah Channel? How would TV > > Guide classify it -- would it be considered more like > > "John From Cinncinnati" or more like "Jersey Shore?" > > Which actor or actress would you want to play you in > > the series? Has the series jumped the shark, or is it > > just getting into its classic "Lucy" episodes period? > > > > This post, based on my watching of the series so far, has > > the potential to turn either into a fun thread or a > > contentious one. Or a mix of both. I'm curious to see > > what'll happen. > > > > I'm gonna go for the fun part. I'm thinkin' that I'd like > > to see my character played by Kevin Spacey, doing a kind > > of combination of Verbal Kint and Lester Burnham. Either > > that or Robin Williams. > > > Maybe the closest you'll get to FFL being a TV series: > http://www.hbo.com/#/enlightened > > That is if they ever schedule it. >
How about Children of the Corn? Children watching their parents slowly die in a small inspiring town from disease brought upon by being surrounded by fields of GM Corn, no one budging because enlightenment must be attained now, there...then a plan to care only for the young and raise them by what their parents mis-perceived, because the plan could work, without the presence of the mixed up minds of the parents who meant well, but were scarred from years of indoctrination of churches past?
