Imprinting on media

[Scribe]

EDIT: Do you think when you saw a movie/tvs how/read a book impacts how you view reboots/remakes/sequels?

Without a doubt. As I consumed it, it was correct. Any changes later are a blasphemy.

 

[MoonSong]

I've noticed a few things on this outside of imprinting about music. Some musicians just never adapt, and some others try, but are not really able to do it. The 80's turnover for instance, changed a lot of classic rock bands and not for the better. I think many producers tried to sell these artists on trends and it wasnt in their wheelhouse. Dont get me wrong, lots of artists are great with a synthesizer, but suddenly it was everywhere. Dare I say auto-tune was similar in the aughts.

There is a minor record company (Multimusic) that sells budget albums. They manage to do it through covers, alternate takes and later less popular records by the original artist. This latter group of songs sounds very, very off because the original songs were mostly acoustic ballads and the new ones heavily feature synthetizers.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Something I think about from time to time is whether I'll see a remake of Lord of the Rings in my lifetime. Probably. It took, close to 30 years for a remake of Conan the Barbarian, to little avail.

It's also fascinating to me when I read Lord of the Rings, I have the images of Gimli, Aragorn, Frodo, Sam, and company that I've had in my head for decades. But sometimes, I'll catch myself picturing Viggo Mortensen or Sean Astin in their roles as I read the books. I have to take a moment to correct myself back to how I pictured them. Though, according to Tolkien, I was wrong in that Aragorn should be clean-shaven.

 

[TheAlkaizer]

Like many said, I do think it imprints.

However, good quality is good quality.

There's some films or shows or games where I played a more recent version first, then went back and was able to enjoy it for what it is. Sometimes I go back to old movies and I'm like "I don't see where the genius is." There's a lot of art which impression comes from doing something new or different, which only works when it happens, not twenty years later.

One example is Blade Runner. It came out nine years before I was born, but I saw it when I was around 15 or 16 and it's been one of my favorite, if not my favorite movie since then. I was so ready to dislike Blade Runner 2049. I kept saying that Blade Runner didn't need a sequel, and it would ruin the original. I walked into the theater ready to hate it. And I left in love. It's just a good movie, very respectful of the original. It builds on it but is its own thing.

On the other side, I saw the OT of Star Wars a least a hundred times on VHS when I was a kid, and I saw the Prequels in theater when they released. I loved all of it. The sequels... I absolutely despise. I do think they are just poorly made movies, with non-sensical plot and they actively destroy what the previous movie builds. There's other Star Wars property that I just love, because it's well-made.

So yeah, we get imprinted. I do think it puts us in a more or less accepting position, it might close our mind or open mind to how certain things should be.

 

[pukunui]

Literally just crossed my path this AM:

The person posting it was musing about Live’s Throwing Copper (their 3rd album).

It wasn’t like their first two albums. It wasn’t like what followed. But it was chock full of hits & went platinum.

Huh. Today I learned that Live put out an album before Mental Jewelry! (EDIT: Actually, it's come back to me now. Yes, the band known as Live put out an album before Mental Jewelry, but it was under their previous name, Public Affection, which is why I tend to think of Throwing Copper as their second album not their third.)

For me, I think – perhaps because I had much older siblings and was something of a precocious child as a result – stuff imprinted on me as much in my childhood if not more so than in my teens.

My siblings were teens in the 80s and find a lot of 80s stuff cringey now. I was a teen in the 90s and while Weezer is still my favorite band, I find a lot of 90s music cringey. I think I probably prefer most music that came before or has come after the 90s.

I also grew up watching the OG Star Wars movies as a kid and love them, whereas I saw The Phantom Menace as an older teen and hated it so much that I didn’t bother seeing the other two until they were on free-to-air TV years later. (I like Ep III the most, and it’s the only one of the prequels I have on DVD.)

I like a lot of modern music and think it’s better than stuff from the 80s and 90s. I also tend to prefer modern movie / TV production values and find it harder to go back and watch older things now.

As usual, it seems I’m an outlier in the EN World community.

 

[Ryujin]

Something I think about from time to time is whether I'll see a remake of Lord of the Rings in my lifetime. Probably. It took, close to 30 years for a remake of Conan the Barbarian, to little avail.

It's also fascinating to me when I read Lord of the Rings, I have the images of Gimli, Aragorn, Frodo, Sam, and company that I've had in my head for decades. But sometimes, I'll catch myself picturing Viggo Mortensen or Sean Astin in their roles as I read the books. I have to take a moment to correct myself back to how I pictured them. Though, according to Tolkien, I was wrong in that Aragorn should be clean-shaven.

I think that some source material is just better suited to being either campy, or serious. Some can go either way equally well. I think that Conan needs a certain degree of camp for it to be the most true to its source. Robocop? Serious just doesn't work for it, as the source is meant to be a cutting criticism of capitalism. Battlestar Galactica was campy more because of when it was made, than it was inherent to the story. The themes were generally pretty serious, so it could work in a serious adaptation.

(I will not mention "Starship Troopers." I will not mention "Starship Troopers." I will not mention "Starship Troopers.")

 

[payn]

I think that some source material is just better suited to being either campy, or serious. Some can go wither way equally well. I think that Conan needs a certain degree of camp for it to be the most true to its source. Robocop? Serious just doesn't work for it, as the source is meant to be a cutting criticism of capitalism. Battlestar Galactica was campy more because of when it was made, than it was inherent to the story. The themes were generally pretty serious, so it could work in a serious adaptation.

(I will not mention "Starship Troopers." I will not mention "Starship Troopers." I will not mention "Starship Troopers.")

Paul Verhoeven is the man!

Yes, especially for that which shall not be named!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Huh. Today I learned that Live put out an album before Mental Jewelry!

For me, I think – perhaps because I had much older siblings and was something of a precocious child as a result – stuff imprinted on me as much in my childhood if not more so than in my teens.

My siblings were teens in the 80s and find a lot of 80s stuff cringey now. I was a teen in the 90s and while Weezer is still my favorite band, I find a lot of 90s music cringey. I think I probably prefer most music that came before or has come after the 90s.

I also grew up watching the OG Star Wars movies as a kid and love them, whereas I saw The Phantom Menace as an older teen and hated it so much that I didn’t bother seeing the other two until they were on free-to-air TV years later. (I like Ep III the most, and it’s the only one of the prequels I have on DVD.)

I like a lot of modern music and think it’s better than stuff from the 80s and 90s. I also tend to prefer modern movie / TV production values and find it harder to go back and watch older things now.

As usual, it seems I’m an outlier in the EN World community.

I can’t say I like modern music more than older stuff…or vice versa. They’re different, for the most part.

Even in genres I’m really big on, there’s almost always a difference between a style’s pioneers and those inspired by them. The history of Heavy Metal is a great example of that.

As for Star Wars? Phantom Menace killed the franchise for me. I always knew Lucas liked to beg, borrow & steal, but there was so much of it in that film- coupled with cribbing notes from RW racial stereotypes- that I haven’t watched anything beyond the trailers (and memes) since.

 

[pukunui]

I can’t say I like modern music more than older stuff…or vice versa. They’re different, for the most part.

I like some music from just about every era. In terms of popular music, I think I tend to listen to stuff from the 70s and 80s or from the 2000s to now more than I listen to stuff from the 90s. I was just trying to point out that the idea of musical taste at least being set in the teenage years didn't seem to happen for me (or for my siblings).

One thing I'll note is that most of the modern music I listen to is from solo (mainly female) artists, which is undoubtedly because I have three daughters and no sons. Most of the bands I listen to are from the 70s or 80s. Weezer will probably always be my all-time favorite band, but other bands have temporarily held that spot (including but not limited to The Kinks, Pixies, Crowded House, U2, and Simple Minds). My favorite solo artist is currently Marina, but Chappell Roan, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, and even Taylor Swift all give her a close run for her money.

Even in genres I’m really big on, there’s almost always a difference between a style’s pioneers and those inspired by them. Tge history of Heavy Metal is a great example of that.

Yeah, I'm not like that. Sometimes I enjoy a modern take on a classic more than the original. A radically different take can be a real pleasure as well (like M Ward's renditions of David Bowie's "Let's Dance" and Buddy Holly's "Rave On". Speaking of M Ward, he is probably my favorite male solo artist. Tom Petty is up there too ~ I tend to think of him as a solo artist even though many of his hits were with the Heartbreakers.)

As for Star Wars? Phantom Menace killed the franchise for me. I always knew Lucas liked to beg, borrow & steal, but there was so much of it in that film- coupled with cribbing notes from RW racial stereotypes- that I haven’t watched anything beyond the trailers (and memes) since.

I've never walked out of a theater mid-movie before, but the two times I came the closest to doing so was Jean-Claude van Damme's Knock Off and The Phantom Menace. I note that they were both late 90s movies.

 

[Ryujin]

I can’t say I like modern music more than older stuff…or vice versa. They’re different, for the most part.

Even in genres I’m really big on, there’s almost always a difference between a style’s pioneers and those inspired by them. Tge history of Heavy Metal is a great example of that.

As for Star Wars? Phantom Menace killed the franchise for me. I always knew Lucas liked to beg, borrow & steal, but there was so much of it in that film- coupled with cribbing notes from RW racial stereotypes- that I haven’t watched anything beyond the trailers (and memes) since.

I made it through the first two and then never watched the third. Same with "The Hobbit."