Turning Japanese

With the widespread influence of media on a global scale thanks to technological updates from long-distance calling to the internet, nations and peoples across the world have been pulled closer together than ever before without ever taking an actual step towards one another. What has, in turn, developed is a concept called globalization, or the increase in the opportunity for communication, the movement of people and ideas, and an exchange of both material and intellectual goods on a large scale. This flow of influence between populations has had its effects on the cultures involved, a process that means unification to some and wide-spread conformity to others.

One of the by-products of this globalization process is what Professor Straubhaar defined as hybridization, or the interaction or mixing of previously separate cultures with the progression of time. As peoples share information, ideas, and products, one of the eventual outcomes is the bringing together of cultural groups that would otherwise — thanks to geographical distance, predominantly — be quite distinctly disconnected. The result is an increased awareness of other cultures, customs, and thought processes, as well as even the adoption of some of these ideas into other populations.

While the United States of America is overwhelmingly considered to be the dominant spreader of the media, and thus ideals, of its culture, a prime example can be seen in an alternative situation: the flow of the concept of Japanese-style game shows into American television.

The Japanese game shows have a tendency to operate on extremes; entertainers, celebrities, and everyday people alike have the chance to appear on one and participate in a rather exaggerated series of tasks for prizes or simply the entertainment of an audience. "Takeshi's Castle," a Japanese classic that appeared on televisions across the nation from the mid- to late '80s, is perhaps one of the most famous examples of this. In the show, participants compete in a series of often absurd physical challenges, from "Super Mario"-reminiscent block-jumping to climbing a hill clad in protective gear while "guards" roll giant foam acorns and other nuts as obstacles down towards the approaching people. A failure in one of these events often meant falling into mud or water. The appeal of the show for many laid in watching the often humorous and slapstick outcomes of taking on the outrageous challenges.

A look at the original "Takeshi's Castle," as aired in Japan under the title "風雲！たけし城" or "Fuun! Takeshi-jo," can be seen below:

Over time, thanks to a combination of the internet and television, "Takeshi's Castle" made its way to the United States. In the early 2000s, Spike TV aired over 80 episodes of the show, adding humorous dubs to both spoof the series and introduce it to American audiences. The result was a trend in Japanese-inspired game shows. Most recently, shows like MTV's "Silent Library" and ABC's "Wipeout" have provided not a spoof on these game shows, but actually their own versions of them featuring American contestants participating in events strongly influenced and inspired by the original shows of Japanese origin. Some of them ("Wipeout") have even gone so far to do so that they have come under legal attack from the stations that originally aired the shows (Japan's Tokyo Broadcasting System) for allegedly copying some of the series completely.

"Mystery Pistachio"

As online media such as YouTube has exploded in popularity, entirely new kinds of celebrity have sprung forth through the form of vloggers, directors, and more. People who would otherwise be ordinary users uploading videos onto the website have come into fame, with loyal viewers, or subscribers, from across the globe climbing into even the millions for some of the more popular names. The pervasiveness of the media has grown with this, something I realized in further detail when I came across this video by MysteryGuitarMan, a musician who has become known for his inventive (and somewhat eccentric) music videos:

While advertising has entered into the online media scene with 30-second clips that play before and occasionally between streaming videos such as those from popular internet television source Hulu, I found this advertisement a particularly powerful example of how deeply embedded it can become. Even as audiences move away from other forms of media where advertising has made its mark, the industry doesn't fail to follow as made clear in this relatively new variety of product placement. By turning over the creation of the actual advertisement to an entertainer with a large following, as the number one subscribed director on YouTube, a catchy, amusing internet clip is created with a promotion for the Wonderful Pistachios product incorporated thoroughly into the mix.

As detailed in Professor Straubhaar's lecture, techniques to include product placement and the use of celebrity make this advertisement-in-disguise extremely powerful and effective, as a YouTube celebrity with an incredible following of 1, 104,780 subscribers (as of 8:20 on this Sunday night) creates a music video centered around the pistachio product, and is even still eating them during the vlog that follows the music portion.

The appeal of an advertisement like this can be found in the fact that, as the advertising industry discovered long ago, people want to become more like the celebrities they admire, to include purchasing the same things that they do. By seeing this video of MysteryGuitarMan eating Wonderful Pistachios, viewers are more likely to buy the product themselves, simply because he makes them "look good," or even something as simple as drawing there attention to it so that they're more likely to recognize and purchase some pistachios of their own during their next trip to the grocery store.

Additionally, a link to the Mystery Pistachio website in the information bar below the video directs users to even more celebrity endorsements, featuring famous faces from Snooki to Chad Ochocinco reveling in what is presented to be an extremely delicious pistachio snack.

Live Free or Die Hard ... in a 3 Acts

     In a pattern divergent from the classical tragedy structure followed most often by stories of moral questioning and life lessons such as Shakespearean tales, the structure of modern Hollywood's movies has fallen into that of a 3-act organization. Divided into portions that provide an introduction, a complication, and a conclusion as well as a powerful and pivotal moment called the climax, these movies provide well for scenarios where the stakes are constantly on the rise until, at last, that defining moment occurs. 

     One example of such a film can be seen in 2007's action-packed "Die Hard" sequel, "Live Free or Die Hard." In it, the crime-fighting protagonist John McClane is reintroduced with a host of new characters as well as one particularly formidable enemy.

    The movie opens with a first look into the lives of the main characters, and also provides background on their lives and their plights. Then, it moves into a stage full of twists and turns, as new information is uncovered and unprecedented difficulties arise. Finally, a climactic moment precedes an ending marked by falling action and a resolution between the characters in the story.

     The movie opens with a series of mysterious deaths occurring in the places of residence of several hackers, each occurring only after they have completed a deed for a mysterious, high-paying employer. From there, characters are introduced: Matt Ferrell, another hacker and secluded tech enthusiast, also fulfills the requests of the unknown entity, which is revealed to the viewer between close-up shots of details in his apartment, from the multiple monitor screens he uses to the screamo song playing in the background. Protagonist Detective John McClane is also given an introduction as he makes his way to Ferrell's residence as a favor to local law enforcement. The characters meet, followed by an explosive situation that forces them to stick closer together, as well as putting some faces to the antagonist shadow organization. The characters are forced to team up, and discover a pattern to the recent murders that reveals an even larger plan in the works to shut down the entire infrastructure of the United States through the use of a technique called a "fire sale," intended to shut down the nation's technological capabilities. Thomas Gabriel, the man behind the destructive plot, is revealed to viewers, as are those who work for him in his secret base. This takes approximately 30 minutes to unfold, an amount of time stated to be common for 3-Act structures by Professor Ramirez-Berg in lecture.

     The plotline progresses with the second step in the sequence, which makes up a majority of the film to introduce some variety of complication or difficulty for the protagonists(s) to over. This occurs in "Di Hard" through a series of events that raise the stakes for each character. Though it was shown McClane was being targeted by Gabriel to be taken down as a threat to his plot, some of the biggest action sequences in the film as, after winning a battle against Gabriel's love interest and right-hand woman Mai, he decided to focus all of his resources  on giving him the same pain that he's caused. In turn, a major step of the fire sale is completed, shutting down power to most of the Eastern seaboard, and a dangerous new move is taken when Lucy, McClane's estranged daughter introduced earlier in the film, is kidnapped to lure the protagonist to his doom. Furious, McClane goes on a full-out mission to destroy Gabriel and rescue his daughter as well as the country. As the FBI struggles to deal with the damages, other key explanations into the reason's for the antagonist's actions, however twisted, are revealed.

     Now in its third and final act, the action rises as McClane infiltrates Gabriel's location to rescue Lucy and the now-kidnapped Ferrell. He and Gabriel come face-to-face and enter into the climax, a deadly shootout that concludes with the antagonist pressing a handgun into his shoulder, ready to deliver a fatal blow. From there, the remainder of the action occurs, and the events and end situations of each character are revealed in a "happy ending" suited for the 3-act structure, as explained by Ramirez-Berg. This final act is noticeably shorter than the practically 60-minutes act that preceded it at a length of thirty minutes. 

     Audiences are left not only with an explosive action thriller, but also with a prime example of the 3-Act structure as it functions in much of modern Hollywood's works.

That Sitcom Show

As described by Professor Tait during Wednesday's lecture, the traditional American sitcom provides a snippet of story with each episode that ends cleanly at the end of every — normally 30-minute — installment. The episodic structure creates a view-friendly plot line featuring characters that change very little as the seasons progress, allowing people to tune in any time without any prior knowledge of the series and understand what is going on. Additionally, sitcoms tend to produce humorous pieces that are a bit hyperbolic in nature, making for a quick taste of comedic entertainment in a manner not unlike what Easy Listening does as a genre for the music medium.

 "That 70's Show," a period sitcom centered around a group of teens growing up in a small town in Wisconsin, delivered such snippets of comedic actions to viewers over the course of its 8 seasons on air. With plot lines that often focus in on exaggerated tales of teenage shenanigans, each episode has a tendency to serve as a skit-like event, linking together in a series that often has very few other common linkages aside. Episodes included the humorous aftermath of an impromptu graffiti session on the side of the local water tower to one of the main character's comical relationship with his stern father and extremely nurturing mother.

A television-centric stage set-up also provides a classic example of "people watching people watch TV," another aspect of TV sitcoms described during Professor Tait's lecture. The main hangout for the group, character Eric Foreman's basement, features a television set straight out of the '70s that the furniture in the area is arranged around. Characters also consistently gather around it, during which time snippets of comedic dialogue tend to occur.

Additionally, characters in "That 70's Show" undergo little development throughout the series aside from some love-interests that are interwoven across a span of several episodes, creating a viewing experience that is extremely accessible to anyone looking for a little entertainment.


Image courtesy of fanpop.com.

Shots and Angles in Modern Film

The final piece of the X-Men movie series that premiered in 2000, "X-Men 3: The Last Stand" was composed of a majority of high-action shots with memorable usage of special effects as two groups of "mutated" humans entered into a battle for control and the fate of the human race. While the intensity and sheer amount of action sequences the occurred throughout the film may at a glance appear to live little room for the more subtle usage of camera angles and shots, even here the techniques Professor Ramirez-Berg described in lecture are present. Within a single scene in the movie, three appear, as show in depth below:

As X-Men member Shadowcat (Ellen Page) flees from her attacker, the Brotherhood's Juggernaut (Vinnie Jones), much power is lent to the mammoth man's character, as his main feature is his unnatural strength and power to the point where he is smashing walls behind those that she runs through (her defining ability being able to pass through objects) during the chase. A sudden turn of the tables occurs as both of them suddenly sink into the floor however. It is here where an ironic use of the low-angle shot occurs. Usually meant to signify a character's power, here it takes a sarcastic look at a character that is usually incredibly powerful throughout the series as, though the viewer feels as if he or she is looking up at the Juggernaut, the expression of struggle on his face takes away that power thanks to the pairing of close-up shot that helps reveal the emotions there.

There is then a shift to a medium shot that reinforces the Juggernaut's loss of power, as he is now stuck in the floor. A movement from the low-angle shot to the eye-level shot also emphasizes that he is losing control of the situation in question.

Finally, through reverse-order shot progression, the viewer is able to gain the details of who has gained the power that the Juggernaut has lost. Another usage of the low-angle shot, this time more literal in meaning, gives the strength to Shadowcat as she stands over her would-be assailant. 

It is these subtle usages of shot and angle within the film that send messages to viewers that would otherwise be lost from live-to-film translation.

"X-Men 3: The Last Stand" movie stills courtesy of: Screencap Paradise

Star Works

In a time known as the "golden age" of Hollywood industry, when iconic actors and actresses like Humphrey Bogart and Judy Garland were still lighting up screens across the nation, a hierarchy of powerful film studios rose to the top, producing countless films and, among them, the classics still watched and remembered today. A look behind the curtain of these studios, however, reveals the complex and carefully structured process that brought to life the movies that marked the Classical Era.

One of the most essential parts of the Hollywood movie machine was a factory-based, vertically integrated system that gave studios complete control over every step of the movie-making process, from production to the actual screenings. As detailed during lecture, each studio possessed, for example, its own "stable" of actors and actresses to fill the roles for movies to be produced as well as directors, producers, and more. This, in turn, created a team of dependable artists available to be put onto the production of any movie necessary, whenever was necessary. In addition, as certain stable actors and actresses rose to fame, so, too, would the studios whose movies they would appear in.

One such example of the power of the "stable" of actors, known as the star system, appears in "Media Now" is Rudolph Valentino, who rocketed to fame following his starring role in the romance, "The Sheik." Following his iconic role in the movie, Paramount Pictures found that his fans, a majority of which were female, were interesting in viewing movies they perhaps normally wouldn't be, simply becuase he was in them. This, in turn, led to the placement of the starring actor's name being given even more prominence than even the title of the actual movie itself, as can be seen in the movie posters for one of Valentino's later films, "The Eagle."



The end result left studios focusing on promoting the star power of its actors and actresses in order to lend the companies their success. After all, by emphasizing a popular actor or actress as opposed to the title of the movie, profits could be boosted by a wave of that artist's fans coming in to view the movie.

All Family ... All Humor?

"All in the Family," a family-based comedy that first aired in 1971, according to IMDB, brought controversial issues from racism to sexuality to the forefront through the day-to-day interactions between infamously bigoted head of the household Archie Bunker and the other members of his family. Though met with a wide variety of both acclaim and criticism, the show remained an enduring part of American television history, remaining on air for 8 years and winning honors from Emmys to Academy Awards.

Since the times of "All in the Family," however, the content and types of shows to be broadcasted around the nation have changed greatly, though family-based comedies still exist. One particular comedy, "Two and a Half Men," follows the lives of a womanizing bachelor, his brother, and his brother's son, who have all found themselves living in the same beach-front home thanks to a messy divorce.

At a glance, these shows vary greatly: though relatives, the Harpers of "Two and Half Men" hold none of the familiar structure that "All in the Family" does, with the Bunkers consisting of a man, his wife, his daughter, and her husband. Simultaneously, there is much less focus on the concept of family tolerance and acceptance that occurs in the contemporary show as opposed to the classic one. However, both feature two strongly opinionated male leads, who serve as the leaders of their respective households. Charlie, the bachelor, is the owner of the house in which his brother and nephew are staying, and Archie is both the husband, father, and father-in-law to the other members of the house. Both address issues in society through characters intended to be bigoted, but with a charming quality, when one observes the insults gilded in humorous quip that make up many of these characters' lines.

One of the biggest differences, however, occurs in the variety of topics addressed. According to a list of episode summaries available online, "All in the Family" addresses a variety of topics ranging from homosexuality, as was featured in the episode that was screened in class, to others from rape to religion. "Two and a Half Men," however, seems to focus almost solely on what has been criticized as portraying women in a negative light, as many of the actresses who appear on the show are either manipulative, overtly sexual, or simply insane.

Both shows, however, do address controversial issues by containing characters who seem to be strong supporters of bigotry, and have found a receptive audience and fan following -- something evident in the long life of "All in the Family" and of "Two and a Half Men," currently in its eighth season.