90ies nostalgia

[martinemonster]

There's something nice and wholesome about movies from the '90ies. They all seem to say good things. Take "Peter's friends" for instance. It's a lovely movie about a bunch of friends who get together to celebrate new year's eve. Lots of trouble comes up to the surface, and the moral basically is: "Love each other and things will be okay. Oh, and by the way: wear condoms or you'll get aids." See, I love those good morals. Another example of this is Queer as folk. The moral there is: "Gays are awesome, but if you snort cocaine you get from strangers, you might die." Good morals.

Nowadays, people seem to make movies without these wholesome values I hold so dear. Nip Tuck for example, seems to say "Men are good, strong beings, while women are weak. Even lesbians really only long for the cock. Oh, and also, everyone would be slightly more happy if they had plastic surgery. Oh, and don't bother with ethics, snort coke instead, it's much more fun." In this anti-politically correct world we live in it's probably awesome, and I must admit part of me loves it, but another part of me longs for the good morals of the 90ies with it's agreeable set of values. Also, I think women in movies from the 90ies were generally stronger and more able.

But, to make myself feel better, I will also leave you with two images to prove why I don't miss the 1990ies too much.

Comments

[45hasle.livejournal.com]

I think it's taken for granted that we will be able to develop our own sets of morals without the aid of Bob Saget telling us that family is the most important thing of all. And come on; there are few things more annoying than when someone in a generally good movie starts sprouting morals. See Stardust. Great fun, up 'till little miss star starts talking about how beautiful love is and yada yada.

[martinemonster.livejournal.com]

Oh, that is ever so true. My problem with these newer movies and shows are that they don't seem to have good moral values at all. I don't want Bob Saget to tell me that the world will be good as long as I don't snort coke, but I like it when the moral of the movie I'm watching is something other than "people are shallow, ugly, and stupid. And men are better than women."

[sjokoladepiken.livejournal.com]

I hear you, sister! Remember the tight, dark blue Miss Sixty low-rise jeans? Or even worse, the mum jeans that dominated the female denim scene before Tom Ford entered the scene? And platform sneakers, metallic pastel lipstick, trousers with attached miniskirts, midriffs, early 90s matte lipstick, absurd ponytails, chunky heals, moon boots (like Uggs, only synthetic - and inflatable).....

Wow, you really hit a nerve there. Merry Christmas!

[martinemonster.livejournal.com]

*shudders* I remember it all, with horror. (Though chunky heels seem to be coming back. have you seen this spring's shoe fashion?)

Oh, and merry Christmas! Let me know when you're back in town, yes?

[(Anonymous)]

Chunky heels is bad? I kind of like chunky heels... :)

[martinemonster.livejournal.com]

And you are entitled to that opinion. I, however, don't. ;)

[sjokoladepiken.livejournal.com]

I am back, in fact, and after New Year's I have loads o'time. Yay! I say tea. Or wine, maybe. Ooh yes, definitely wine. Yummy.

[martinemonster.livejournal.com]

Mmm...I like wine!

[(Anonymous)]

I'm not too fond of the ninteys family valus... but I think you are right about women in the movies beeing stronger and more abel then. I think that goes for the women in music as well :)

Linkar til noko Lotten (som du kanskje har møtt?) skreiv om det http://pikemotsamtiden.blogspot.com/2005/10/so-long-90-tallet.html

G

[martinemonster.livejournal.com]

I think you're right. Sad, isn't it?

[aj-stalin.livejournal.com]

eeww. Look at that. Oh, and I like nip/tuck. I like coke.



...



I guess. There is no one who can prove otherwise.

I like his hair. And Spice Girls.

Yes. I do. Is nice. and just for that I might sleep with him. I am that shallow.

[sortkatt.livejournal.com]

I don't know whether it was because I grew up during the eighties/nineties, or just that I grew up period, but when the nighties where over, actually quite a bit before that, moralistic entertainment or really rubbed me the wrong way. The phrase "values" perhaps even more so. For one thing, these things are seldom universal. Don't drink, don't listen to metal, don't have sex before marriage, might pop up just as often as quite sensible advice such as condom use or claims that coke will make you into a fucking bastard.
Presumably, whoever makes entertainment these days either shares this view, or know their audience does.

My point might be that television and movies is a horrible way to get ones own ethics in place, and that one should not have to share the morals of the characters to enjoy the show. Even though I'm a bit in love with Nancy in weeds, I do not actually think selling drugs, even relatively harmless ones, are very ethical, or even morally acceptable. And even though I love sopranos, even I think he's a bit more violent and ruthless than is proper for nice human beings. Of course, at least sopranos (and even more: Deadwood) makes us consider these aspects by having main characters that on the one hand are fucking bastards, but on the other hand gets our sympathies. In my opinion, they don't say "It's ok to own bordellos and beat up your whores", but perhaps the point is simply that "things, and even more so, humans, are complicated". If so, that's a conclusion I could get behind.

Early rantings here. Now I'm going down to Thorsov to get my new assault rifle.

[martinemonster.livejournal.com]

Oh, it rubbed me the wrong way too and now I love seeing shows like Weeds or Californication, and every time a sit-com has that part of the episode where the main characters explain morals and good values to themselves and the audience, it makes me wanna barf. I don't want to go back to Bob Saget telling me what's right and good in this world.

But, that being said, I cannot help but think that humans design themselves through their own actions and people's reactions to said actions, and through inputs. That means, if I want to know how to act as a babysitter, and my only examples of acceptable behavior as a babysitter comes from American family comedies, I'd be kinda screwed. Is it so wrong to wish that movies to some extent showed us that actions have consequences and that the world, though not a good place, has some inherent justice in it? I miss thinking that it might.

[sortkatt.livejournal.com]

Ah.
Well, actually, perhaps it would be wrong. The only inherent justice in the world is what people make for themselves. Being a bastard to your friends will make them dislike you, thus there are consequences. Being a bastard to complete strangers will make them dislike you, but since you probably won't notice, there are no (discernible) consequences. Evil people does not have more random accidents than normal people, and I'm certain Chaney sleeps like a babe at night. Trying to teach people that some sort of "Karma" influences events would be wrong for at least two reasons: People might believe and expect it (leading to "it's OK that life is hell since we will get our reward later"-thinking) and because a lot of the audience might see trough it and think it's silly.

That being said, I miss thinking so too.