The war of hipsters, housewives, and victory

[Yuko-san]

Saw a gif about Cera in all his rolls.

All of them are the same, all of them!

[Randolf]

Saw a gif about Cera in all his rolls.

Baked to a golden brown... bleagh!
For the record, it's R-O-L-E-S.

I never saw Arrested Development, but mysteriously despise anyone who has. Maybe I should have that looked at.

So if Cera's the hipster and Roberts is the housewife, where's the victory? I looked all through the Expendables, but I did not find it.

Wait a minute.

Robert Downey Jr. + Wizard of Oz shall = Victory.

So that is why I cannot find it. It has not yet arrived.
(If having said this They do not do it, then They shall burn slow and hot.)

[Brooklyn Luckfield]

I never saw Arrested Development, but mysteriously despise anyone who has. Maybe I should have that looked at.

You not missing a whole lot. I've saw the first season but didn't think it was anything amazing. It is however the basis for pretty much any role Michael Cera does, i.e the awkward teenager.

[Randolf]

You scarcely need to tell me; I have yet to see any television program or motion picture featuring an awkward teenager that yielded anything but embarrassing fail.

And this goes for damned near every show I see on every network perspiring to the mantle of hit show of the year. It's actually quite insulting.

[Tifaria]

So I read this article, which is basically a criticism of the criticism of this movie, and found it interesting.  I thought I'd see what you all think, since the consensus here seems to be a massive hate-on for this movie without even seeing it.  Is there any truth to it?  Do you think that maybe you have decided to already dislike the movie because you dislike the perceived audience for it?  Or do you really hate Michael Cera that much?

I'm curious, because I've talked to people who have called me a hipster like it's a dirty word for the sole reason that I saw this movie and liked it.  I'm still not really sure what a hipster even IS, but apparently I am one and therefore am evil and must be eliminated.  So I wonder, is that a big part of the reason for all the hate? 

[Randolf]

Having read the article, I strongly agree. In fact, I applaud this expert opinion. The writer makes an excellent point-- as do you.

Regardless, there is something to be said on the side of the haters. Much of modern youth culture can be alarmingly trite and dissociated from reality. Any teen comedy you see on the Disney Channel or others of its species will attest to the depths of triteness and faked fun to which they plunge in the name of "entertainment". However, this is a fault of an organization-- not of a group of people. And just because-- as the writer suggests-- I dislike or even hate a product of or for the culture, I need not hate the members thereof.

And not for a moment shall anyone convince me that "hipsters" are going to destroy civilization. It simply will not happen. If it were going to, it would have happened long, long ago. They are just people who enjoy certain things-- things which perhaps people who associate themselves with other interests hate passionately. But it will not unmake mankind. Stop that.

I'll admit, I can be a bit harsh against some networks for trying to propagate "hip" products. Sometimes, it just gets on my nerves. But if it's something you like, Tifaria, I can't hate you for it, because I know you're as much a human being as I am-- no matter how different our likes and dislikes are.

I'm not even sure if I'm saying what I really mean; I might be coming across all wrong, so take what I say with a grain of salt, for my sake.

[Ace of Spades]

I saw The Expendables on Sunday, it was badass.

The next day my GF drags me to see Scott Pilgrim vs The World, and I feel like hanging myself all the way through the movie.
Guess it's time to end this relationship.

[Tifaria]

Regardless, there is something to be said on the side of the haters. Much of modern youth culture can be alarmingly trite and dissociated from reality. Any teen comedy you see on the Disney Channel or others of its species will attest to the depths of triteness and faked fun to which they plunge in the name of "entertainment". However, this is a fault of an organization-- not of a group of people. And just because-- as the writer suggests-- I dislike or even hate a product of or for the culture, I need not hate the members thereof.

Oh, I definitely agree about youth culture being trite (and I would cite so-called "reality" television aimed at teenagers far more harmful than Disney channel programming, personally.  At least Disney programming is somewhat wholesome, in its way).  But I strongly agree that it is no fault of the people who enjoy it.  Youth today have been bombarded with trite pop culture since they were old enough to sit up and are used to watching sub-par entertainment.  They have little patience due to their being on phones constantly, texting, and tweeting.  So they're perfectly happy to watch trite entertainment that has little story and moves quickly.  They simply don't have the patience for much else, and it's not their fault, it's the fault of the people who create the trite entertainment and the parents or guardians who allow them to indulge in it.   </crotchety old lady>

I'll admit, I can be a bit harsh against some networks for trying to propagate "hip" products. Sometimes, it just gets on my nerves. But if it's something you like, Tifaria, I can't hate you for it, because I know you're as much a human being as I am-- no matter how different our likes and dislikes are.

I'm not even sure if I'm saying what I really mean; I might be coming across all wrong, so take what I say with a grain of salt, for my sake.

It gets on my nerves too.  I guess I didn't feel like this movie did that, though I have been told my other people I've discussed it with that they felt the TV advertisements were trying too hard, or like it was being shoved down their throat.  I mean, obviously I didn't feel that way, because I still went to see it opening weekend.  I can understand that feeling, though.  I have definitely avoided entertainment that I would have enjoyed because people pushed it on me and I refused to have anything to do with it for years(hello, Firefly.  Though I did end up liking that show, after everyone else calmed down about it).

I understand how easy it can be to judge someone based on their taste.  I had a hard time not judging my friends who enjoyed Twilight.  It's complete garbage to me, but I can't extend that feeling to the person who likes it.  It's not fair.  They are not the work.  It's okay to dislike the work without being condescending to the people who enjoy it.

And for what it's worth, I think what you said came across just fine.

I saw The Expendables on Sunday, it was badass.

The next day my GF drags me to see Scott Pilgrim vs The World, and I feel like hanging myself all the way through the movie.
Guess it's time to end this relationship.

Hey, but at least you saw it before you formed your opinion.  That's totally fine if you hated it.  Hell, I would probably enjoy The Expendables as well, it's just not something I feel the need to pay to see in the theatre-- I can wait for the DVD.  I just get really annoyed with people who form opinions without knowing anything about the work.  You could say, "Oh, that doesn't look like a good movie", or "That doesn't appeal to me", "I didn't enjoy the work it's based on, so I won't see it", etc.  What I mean is, there are better ways of saying that you don't like something besides attacking the audience who DOES enjoy it, or condemning it without actually seeing/reading/hearing it. 

[Randolf]

Well said, Tifaria. Well said.

I'm not totally sure about the relationship between parent's decisions and young people's choices based on attention span-- but then again, that's really not my interest. I just want to get along with others regardless of what I or they like or dislike.

I mean, take Ergo Proxy for instance. I don't think anybody else on this forum likes this show but me. Granted, it's not as likely to attract bashing like some shows might, but my enjoyment of it still sets me apart in a sometimes uncomfortable way.

Anyway... I'm glad at least someone around here can offer some sanity. Thanks, T. And don't worry about being a crotchety old lady... with age cometh wisdom.

[Sharpshooter005]

The next day my GF drags me to see Scott Pilgrim vs The World, and I feel like hanging myself all the way through the movie.
Guess it's time to end this relationship.

It's very, very easy to get a flask into a movie theater. Monday morning quarterbacking, but still.

Not enough theaters have followed the example of the one in gettysburg, which I have a couple of issues with, but they do let you buy beer. Not like I needed to try to raise my BAC to enjoy there will be blood, but it was still nice.

Do you think that maybe you have decided to already dislike the movie because you dislike the perceived audience for it?  Or do you really hate Michael Cera that much?

I think you linked an article I read, and if its the one I'm thinking of there is probably some of that going on with some of the reviews. My..distaste, for it aside, some of the reviews did seem to just kind of casually dismiss it. If you're getting PAID to evaluate stuff on its merits, thats probably a problem.

As for me? I've never read the comic, but thanks to the internet I've familiarized myself with what its about. To put it mildly this is not my cup of tea. I get video game references, this does not mean I automatically enjoy hearing them (that godawful control alt delete comic references video games, it's still trash). One review said this was "a movie that would appeal to the tetris generation", I'm actually afraid to put tetris on my cell phone or laptop because it'd totally murder my productivity, and I still have no interest in seeing this.

Do I really dislike hipsters. God. Yes. There may actually be a paragraph in my will detailing this, which the people at the reading will be forced to sit through, we'll see.

Michael Cera is only capable of playing one character, and it's a character type I do find fairly grating. Elsewhere nine once made a thread lamenting the rise of this archetype. So yeah, I don't much care for him.

It's a perfect storm of crap as far as I'm concerned. It tanked, I'm vindicated, game set and match.

(You wanna hear me go off on a movie I've never seen, just go find anything I've ever said regarding the movie juno, or the oscar they gave the dame that wrote it. Now THERES some grade a vitriol, that stuff can power your car.)

[Sharpshooter005]

I never saw Arrested Development, but mysteriously despise anyone who has. Maybe I should have that looked at.

I saw parts of it. As a show, during its first run, I had no problems with it, and actually found it kind of amusing (never really felt the urge to watch it all though, plus it seemed to be rescheduled every other week)

Then it got cancelled, and the internet does what it always does, it elevated it into a cult phenomena. Except the fans of it actually seem like a full on cult. So now, retroactively, the blooms fallen off of that particular rose.

Jason Bateman pops up in random stuff every now and then, and seems like a pretty good character actor working in sort of a small range (or the stuff I see him in, it seems like he's doing variations on a theme for a couple of scenes), so I give it props for apparently reenergizing his career.

My personal theory on why the internet adores it so much, is apparently the show was wildly self-referential, and rewarded insane, OCD style nitpicking of every episode so the viewer could later go "OH THERES (BLANK), WHICH IS A VARIATION OF (BLANK) THAT SHOWED UP IN THE FOURTH EPISODE OF SEASON 1.". And the internet likes getting patted on the back for rabid pattern recognition. I mean so does everyone to one degree or another, but AD fans seem to take it to an absurd extreme, where you're basically an illiterate dirt farmer if you can't instantly recognize what somebody saying "her?" refers to.

I'm still not really sure what a hipster even IS, but apparently I am one and therefore am evil and must be eliminated.

I can't give you a definition, I hate them with the fury of a supernova, but the exact taxonomy of them..is fluid..it's one of those "eye of the beholder" deals I suppose. I don't know you, but have no reason to brand you a hipster, but maybe its like in terminator where skynet transitions from the rubber-skinned t-600s to the ones that can simulate everything down to sweat.