WEEKLY COLUMN ON TELEVISION, FILM, and ENTERTAINMENT NEWS, including: interviews with the creators and members of the casts of "must-see" TV shows and movies; critical reviews of new television series and newly released films; commentary on trends in the cultural industries; and, reporting on international film festivals and industry awards shows.
Ashley Elaine York
Int’l Film/TV Correspondent and Corus Entertainment PhD Fellow in Television Studies at the University of Alberta, Ashley Elaine York. Contact her at: TalkFilmandTVwithAshleyYork@gmail.com. All photophraphs and words are the creation of Miss York. ALL RIGHTS ARE RESERVED c. 2010.
The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards offered a few surprises (and a few stink balls) in last night's telecast.
Here are my 'Top 10' Takeaways from the three-hour broadcast.
10. Wow, can Jane Lynch sing, which makes me think she should be doing more of that on her hit TV series, GLEE. Her opening number was one of the best I can remember, as was its theme of the magic of television. How inspiring,
9. Ty Burell's acceptance speech (for supporting comic actor in MODERN FAMILY), which paid homage to his late father, was both touching and funny as hell.
"My dad passed away before he ever saw me perform. I can't help but wonder what he would think about all this. I have a job where, every day, I go to work in full makeup. I think he'd be thrilled that I get to work with such talented and loving people....But, if he were here tonight, I think he would say--'But why the makeup?'...To which I would say, 'Dad, just think of me as a very masculine lady.' And he would say, I do son.'"
8. And then there was Charlie Sheen's mea culpa:
"I want to take a moment to get something off my chest and say a few words to everyone from TWO AND A HALF MEN. From the bottom of my heart, I wish you nothing but the best for this upcoming season. We spent eight wonderful years together, and I know you will continue to make great television."
Ye gods! He should have followed Berger's lead from SEX AND THE CITY and just written it on a Post-it.
7. To his credit, Charlie eventually got over himself and presented the Emmy for lead actor in a comedy series to Jim Parson's of THE BIG BANG THEORY, who looked a little shellshocked when accepting the award. After all, Sheen had himself been nominated in that very category for four consecutive years through 2009. To sum up the surreal experience, the new poster child for geekdom eeked out:
"Wow, this is so odd for so many reasons."
It wouldn't have been--not nearly as much so--if Charlie had simply written his mea culpa on a Post-it!
6. 'Girl Power' was overflowing throughout the evening, from Jane Lynch in a dress--Yikes--to the ode to '50s and '60s garb of the dreadful 'Emmytones,' but we'll get to that in a minute.
When the six ladies nominated for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series rushed the stage as their names were read off, they showed the world that today the ladies of television rule the roost! It was a true Miss America moment when the Academy presented Melissa McCarthy (of MIKE & MOLLY) with a tiara and a bouquet of carnations, along with her Emmy. Later, when she and Amy Poehler (of PARKS AND RECREATION, a fellow nominee) came downstage to present the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie, they offered the gentlemen nominees this advice:
"We are so encouraged to see the many strong and interesting roles out there for men. Finally fellas, this year you broke through that glass ceiling, and you got to play real characters, instead of just handsome, pretty pretty things to look at....That being said, you always gotta be willing to show some skin guys. Just a little sweet shoulder, just a little lower back, that's the stuff....That's what keeps us coming back. It's true."
Oh how the tables have turned:)!
5. Speaking of transitions, how about those 'Emmytones?" The great band, THE ROOTS, sings, "It's all in the music." Well, I'm here to tell you, that ain't necessarily so!
If I could offer SURVIVOR-producer/Emmys-exec producer Mark Burnett one piece of advice, it would be this: Never again feature the 'Emmytones' on one of your broadcasts. First of all, they're tone-deaf. And, if that was the point of their inclusion, then they should have played it a whole lot funnier than they did.
4. Let's stay on this sad note for a moment. For it appears that only HBO and PBS can produce a good miniseries or made-for-TV movie. So says the members of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which shut out all but these two networks in its slate of 2011 nominated TV films.
So, my first thought is to say to broadcast and basic cable stations, "You better get your act together! Ever heard of 'Quality TV?'"
But then I hear a cacophony of viewers' voices shouting back at me the myriad values of sappy, soapy tear jerkers--the DALLAS fare of the modern age, if you will.
But, don't worry HBO, PBS, and the Academy, you don't have to concern yourself with them. They're part of Lifetime's target demographic, so they don't count anyway.
3. Only one more unpleasant takeaway, because I'm starting to get bummed out. A large number of film actors took home television's greatest award last night. Sure, it's no longer taboo for actors to transition from film to TV, or even to work in the two mediums simultaneously. But because of this industrial trend, the level of competition at the Emmys has never been keener.
Leave it up to our tell-it-like-it-is host, Jane Lynch (or, rather, her alter-ego Sue Sylvester), to deliver this news with the venom of a rattlesnake:
"Congratulations to Kate Winslet who just won an Emmy. She's a wonderful film actress. And there are so many movie stars doing TV now that TV stars have been forced into providing voices for video games. And those same video games are then tuned into movies staring the very people who put the TV stars out of work in the first place. 'Hakuna Matata,' my friends--the circle of life."
And, I add, 'May the force be with you,' just because I can.
2. Speaking of jokes (and, yes, on a more upbeat note), there were plenty of gay and lesbian jokes to go around during the three-hour telecast. The funniest may have been Steve Levitan's, when he accepted the award for Best Comedy Series.
"Last season, we were on location and a gay couple came up to us and said, 'You're not just making people laugh--you're making them more tolerant.' I thought to myself, well you're right! We are showing the world that there is absolutely nothing wrong with a loving, committed relationship between an old man and a hot, young woman. And, looking around the room tonight, I see many of you agree."
Ba dum bum!
1. My favorite moment of the 63rd Emmys came when the already canceled FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS finally got its due. I'm sorry Connie Britton didn't take home the Emmy for best dramatic actress (then again, one can only be happy for the gifted Julianna Marguilies of THE GOOD WIFE for doing so); nevertheless, FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS is one of the finest shows in television history. From acting, writing. and production values, to content that forced us to examine our own thoughts on race, gender, class, and regional differences, FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS brought it--week after week--during its five-season run. Thanks to the Academy for finally giving the show credit for its deft writing (with an Outstanding Writing Award to James Katims' for "Always") and extraordinary acting (with an Emmy to Kyle Chandler for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series).
I arrived in Matamata, New Zealand on Monday filled with excitement and anticipation at seeing THE HOBBIT movie set. Unfortunately, Peter Jackson, his crew, and many of the actors starring in THE HOBBIT were in pre-production 250 miles away in Wellington, New Zealand. Production, which was set to begin this past March, has been delayed by almost a year, due to the director's emergency ulcer surgery in late January 2011.
Having said that, Peter or no, I couldn't have had a better tour guide than Ian Brodie, the official THE LORD OF THE RINGS location guidebooks author. During our leisurely walk around the Hobbiton set, we discussed the effect of THE LORD OF THE RINGS on the now bustling New Zealand film and film tourism industries and the national economy, as well as the unique talent that is Sir Peter Jackson. Be advised that as a condition of my visit, I signed a non-disclosure agreement with Warner Bros, which prevents me from publishing the photographs I took within Hobbiton until after the release of the films in 2012 and 2013.
Visitor Information, Matamata
When I first arrived in Matamata it didn't seem possible that I was ten minutes away from the now-famous hobbit 'holes' that served as the key set of the biggest film franchise in history.
Along roadside in front of Hobbiton
The Waikato farming country that surrounds the town of 12,000 residents is indeed quiet, humble and unassuming. Yet, as I broached the outskirts of town, I encountered the lush country of rolling hills and deep green fields, which struck an emotional chord. That's when the light bulb went off about, not only how much this land in the middle of the North Island of New Zealand so effortlessly materializes the visual landscape of Middle Earth and the ancient England which Tolkien set down in THE LORD OF THE RINGS and THE HOBBIT, but also that Jackson's cinematic adaption of these books couldn't have been shot anywhere else.
Unsurpassed production values and expert literary materialization aside, the financial success of Jackson's franchise has more than trickled down into local economies throughout New Zealand. For example, the country's annual tourist influx jumped from 1.7 million in 2000 to 2.4 million in 2009. Tourism in New Zealand is a $59 million per day industry and, moreover, directly or indirectly employs nearly one in 10 New Zealanders (184,000 total) in full-time equivalent jobs.
The Shire's Rest Cafe
The Wool Shed
Matamata itself has welcomed 200,000 visitors to Hobbiton over the past eight years, with another 45,000 expected by the end of 2011. These guided tours in Matamata and set locations throughout New Zealand are mostly owned and operated by local companies, although, as of six months ago, the official bus and guided tours of Hobbiton are co-owned (50%) by Peter Jackson. With a tour bus departing from the I-SITE location outside Matamata Visitor Information Center every seventy-five minutes, visitors from all over the world descend upon this small town seven days a week to take two-hour group tours of the movie set, which includes a stop at the Shire's Rest Cafe, hands-on practice shearing sheep, and background information on the site of Hobbiton: the sheep and Angus beef cattle farm still owned and operated by the Alexander family, which bought the property in 1978.
Roadside in front of Hobbiton
In fact, it was Mr. Alexander whom Peter Jackson approached when his producing partner and wife, Fran Walsh, discovered the valley that was to transform into Hobbiton. Realizing how closely it materialized Tolkien's vision, the married New Zealand filmmakers already famous for MEET THE FEEBLES and HEAVENLY CREATURES asked Mr. Alexander to allow them to build a movie set on the property which would be used to film the THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy. Although Jackson asked the patriarch to keep it hush-hush, by that evening, all of the guys kicking one back at the local brewpub caught wind of Jackson's request. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Hobbiton is also the key set of THE HOBBIT, which is the prequel to THE LORD OF THE RINGS and the story of Bilbo Baggins, whose peaceful life in the Shire is interrupted by a surprise visit from his friend Gandolf the Grey. Like THE LORD OF THE RINGS, which was filmed back-to-back over 274 days, cost $281 million to make, and used 350 purpose-built sets in more than 150 locations all over New Zealand, THE HOBBIT is similarly expected to shoot for the rafters in terms of budget and production infrastructure and locations. The two-part 3D prequel is estimated to cost more than $500 million to make, and (it is hoped) will inject a cool $1 billion into the New Zealand economy.
Part of the rationale for the expected success of the upcoming films is the legion of fans Jackson brings with him from THE LORD OF THE RINGS. The cast of the prequel hasn't changed very much. Elijah Woods will once again play Frodo with Ian McKellan portraying Gandolf. Cate Blanchett will reprise her role as Galadriel, with Andy Serkis providing the voice and movement of Gollum.
The Hobbiton set hasn't change much either. Middle Earth is still lush green rolling hills that house a Party Tree, the Green Dragon, and rows of homes--some small, others smaller yet--with primary-colored circular doors that house our friends Sam Gamgee and Frodo, and the beloved Bilbo, along a curved path from Bagshot Row to Bag End.
Also, the houses along the path are still built to two different scales, so the characters appear to be the appropriate sizes. Frodo Baggins (as well as the average hobbit) is 3' 6" tall, whereas dwarfs are about 4' 6" and elves are five to six feet.
Some of the quintessential sets within Hobbiton are back in the prequel, including the seesaw and Dun-bee Hive, the watering hole, and the large water-wheel behind the old Mill. Similarly, the vegetable gardens still look lush and vibrant throughout the Shire. The Hobbiton groundskeepers where on the premises working during my tour, planting flowers and shrubs. Also extra sheep are grazing the land in preparation for the start of production.
Similarities aside, because THE HOBBIT takes place sixty-five years before THE LORD OF THE RINGS, some set adjustments have been made. For example, the wood carvings in the edging around the doors and windows of the homes throughout Hobbiton are, at once, expertly detailed and appropriately worn. Equally well executed are the scaled-to-height mailboxes and trees, the hobbit-style steps built into the hillside, and the thoughtful arrangement of knickknacks assembled behind the transparent stained glass windows. Even firewood is cut into tiny blocks and assembled into small outdoor enclaves in the front of many Hobbiton houses, as if chopped up and stored by hobbits themselves.
Finally, whether thatched or simply laced, the fences throughout Hobbiton take into account the available materials and level of skills of hobbits who lived 65 years before the time of THE LORD OF THE RINGS. I was especially in awe of the aged moss glued seamlessly to the fences throughout the Shire. At every turn, in fact, I was reminded of the painstaking detail with which Jackson and his design team at Weta Workshop create, and the pride they take in bringing Tolkien's vision to the big screen. I figure they deserve their many accolades and extraordinary box office grosses when a person, such as myself, who makes her living from critically examining the entertainment industries suspends her disbelief long enough to once again become a grateful, gooey-eyed fan of the cinema.
Brodie (l) and York (r), Shire's Rest Cafe
Ian Brodie's THE LORD OF THE RINGS LOCATION GUIDEBOOK (the extended edition) is now available for sale at http://www.ianbrodie.net/books/books.html. A unique guidebook author, Brodie details the fascinating history of the film and its locations, as well as recommends travel itineraries to fans who want to experience things around and in between the 150 New Zealand location sights. His book is ranked third "best seller" in New Zealand history.
ASHLEY ELAINE YORK TALKS WITH THE CREATOR THE FAIRIES
Watts (l) and York (r) at her corporate store in Adelaide, SA
At a time when parents across the globe are questioning the pop cultural influences of music, fashion, and media on today’s youth, Jen Watts, 46, creator of THE FAIRIES, hopes her Aussie series for preschool girls keeps them right where they belong: in the magical and innocent world of childhood.
I sat down with Watts to discuss her hit television show, the ups and downs of being a woman creator in the cultural industries, and her aims for her growing franchise in the future.
ASHLEY ELAINE YORK: J. K. Rowling and Stephenie Myer reimagined the way young adults could engage fiction and storytelling, in general, when they created their respective HARRY POTTER and TWILIGHT franchises. Did you hold similar aspirations when you conceived of THE FAIRIES in 1992?
JEN WATTS: Absolutely. My background was that of a singer, but not a really good one—not enough to reach any height of success. But I still wanted to entertain people. So when I later had a career as a corporate writer, converting their rubbish into something great, I realized my particular knack for writing material everyone could relate to.
YORK: THE FAIRIES is aimed at very young girls, right? And that particular market had not been targeted before that time.
WATTS: Well, the light bulb really went off when my son was about five weeks old. I had a first daughter, Abbie, who had just turned two, and I needed something to occupy her while I tended to my son. One day, I remember I was watching a television show and suddenly realized, “I can do that—and better.” There wasn’t anything on television for little girls at that time, So, within a week, I registered THE FAIRIES, then started the Fairies .com website, and have spent the last nine years building up the brand.
The Pink Fairy Rhapsody
YORK: Did your daughter inspire either of the lead characters: the purple fairy Harmony or the pink fairy Rhapsody?
WATTS: Abbie was into wearing my heels and singing and dancing around the house. I’m not a girly-girl—never have really been a pink girl. But Abby was. She wanted everything in pink. So I realized I can’t make a little girl enjoy trains, if all she really wants to be is a dancing pink fairly.
YORK: You were a hit across Australia almost from your first stage production. When did you decide to turn the live show into a television series?
WATTS: A few years after we first started the touring shows in 1996. In 1999 we produced a pilot of THE FAIRIES on DVD, and to date have sold over 50,0000 copies in Australia.
Even taking into account the success of the franchise in terms of direct-to-DVD movie sales and its ongoing live tour, because episodic television is far more expensive to produce and market networks are generally unwilling to bet on anything as novel as pink- and purple-clad musical fairies marketing to an audience of preschool girls. Due to this industrial constraint, Watts knew it would benefit her to produce a track record before she could endeavor to get her first television series on the air.
Her hard work paid off in 2005 when the Australian network, Seven, told her she could have their 9 a.m. time slot if she self-produced the complete first series of THE FAIRIES in five months--by October 30, 2005.
WATTS: When the offer came, we had no costumes, no locations, no sets or designs, and none of the infrastructure we needed to produce a television show. But somehow we delivered 26.5 hours of programming by the deadline.
Like Watts, Tyler Perry made headlines in 2006 when he elected to self-produced the first season of HOUSE OF PAYNE. It subsequently garnered high ratings on the US basic cable network TBS, after which Perry negotiated a phenomenal $200 million, 100-episode deal with the network. The creator of THE FAIRIES had similar faith in her vision, spending 2.8 and 2.9 million, respectively, on the first two series of THE FAIRIES to get it on Seven--a sum the creator is just now beginning to recoup.
WATTS: I wrote all of the episodes in the first series, 80% of the second, and 70% of the third. I acted in the first two seasons, as well, playing Harmony in the original DVD. But I didn’t enjoy seeing myself onscreen. My dream of performing to children was cut out, right then and there. I still sing on all of the CDs and DVDs, and write all of the lyrics. They’re age-appropriate lyrics for little girls, uplifting and magical, the way they should be.
Indeed, Watts has achieved a staggering level of success in a relatively short amount of time, which is partially due to her her particular knack for tapping into what makes little girls tick.
WATTS: Children love pop music; they always have. But their cognitive skills aren’t developed enough to comprehend the libretto of Lady Gaga’s songs, or even that of Taylor Swift or Katy Perry. So they make up their own lyrics when they sing along. I write lyrics that mean something to them. When they sing along, they’re also learning important lessons about themselves, and about self-esteem, problem solving, decision-making, and the environment.
Indeed, these themes run through the myriad plots and songs written for the series--and are also summed up by Watts as “The 5 Fairy Friendship Rules.”
Worries over the hypersexualization of young people are at the forefront of recent works by Australian reporters and nonfiction authors alike. In the August issue of Australia’s MADISON Magazine, investigative journalist Clair Weaver explores the negative effects of girls today who sing along with Lady Gaga’s "Love Game," chanting: “Let’s have some fun, this beat is sick; I wanna take a ride on your disco stick,” or wearing T-shirts with age-inappropriate phrases pronouncing, “All Daddy Wanted Was a Blow Job.”
WATTS: As a creator, I need to create a healthy product for little girls so they can stay little girls for as long as possible. So I rely on consultants, a PhD in Childhood Development and a Past Head of Children’s Programming at Seven who look over every new song and script to ensure that they are appropriate for a preschool age group.
Moreover, Watts is far from naïve. She realizes that ‘Girls will be girls,’ and will play ‘dress up’ in their mothers’ garments and dream of growing up as fast as possible—just like she did. But figures it is up to her to find ways of channeling those little-girl fantasies into healthier imaginings. Watts feels she can best do that through two mediums children are most drawn to today: television and music.
Fairland
WATTS: Little girls love pop music. But most albums have the F word running through it. It’s sad to have young girls listening to that. Actually, I get mad that they have to. But those are the songs radio stations play and kids listen to the radio. I write different lyrics, those that envision a place we call Fairyland in which a fairy is born for every girl, and an elf for every boy. A magical, beautiful place. Children can assess that in their young minds. Let’s face it, a lot of kids go through shit when they’re young, so I want to bring them to a place in their imaginations that is magical and wonderful. It’s not real; it's imagination—fantasy. But we purposefully bring fairies into the real world so that children can see and interact with them. And who is to say they can’t?
The whimsical, childlike side of Watts is ever-present during our interview; still, from the outset it was made clear she doesn’t suffer fools lightly. As an example, she has gone from expertly dodging a question so often asked of her—“Are fairy images all that good for little children to conceive?”—to the point that today, when asked, she won’t address the question at all. This fair-skinned woman with a cute, short blond hairstyle comes across as anything but feminine and fragile. She’s all woman, alright. But of the variety that is strong-willed, driven, and only a little bit defensive.
It may very well be her thick-skinned nature that has adequately prepared her to fight with the big boys in an industry that turns a cold should to women creators. Also, I surmise it has a lot to do with why she refuses to let the global media industries downturn of late affect the continued positive direction of her business.
Like the strategy of women’s blockbusters SEX AND THE CITY, MAMMA MIA!, and THE DEVIL WEAR’S PRADA over the last five years, Watts relies heavily on ancillary CD sales to boost and broaden the appeal of both her serial and the bottom line of her franchise.
WATTS: For several years, the world of money dropped out of the TV business. A lot of creators just handed over their television series to broadcast channels for the sole purpose of promoting their products. But stations in Australia can’t sell in-program advertisements for P classified series--those with a target audience under 5 years--like THE FAIRIES, so they won’t pay much for them since they can’t recoup their investment.
Watts has repeatedly petitioned the Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC) to put THE FAIRIES on its national network; as of yet, they haven't taken her up on her offer--even though she believes “THE FAIRIES would fit perfectly in line with their brand of children’s programming.” She has come up against the same resistance at Screen Australia—and with other national funders who are equally reticent to broadcast shows to a preschool audience. “They prefer to back films like Snowtown about psychotic people in Adelaide,” Watts says. The tinge of resentment and disgust not disguised in her delivery.
WATTS: I’ve never been able to tick governments’ boxes. I’m too different. So we haven’t gotten any governmental support in Australia.
Licensed merchandise of THE FAIRIES
The high-energy creator isn’t loosing any sleep over any broadcaster—or funders for that matter—who won’t support her products. And maybe their resistance to invest has pushed Watts to go above-and-beyond to tirelessly work to bring her company in among the top five children’s brands in Australia today. Watts has produced and distributes 19 direct-to-DVD specials, 10 musical albums, and stages live performances across Australia throughout the year. Since 1999, she has opened two corporate and five franchise stores in her home country, and offers a growing line of licensed FAIRIES-related merchandise including: costumes and swimwear, stationery, dolls, jewelry and hair accessories, linen and towels, novelties, and countless books and magazines—all targeted at little girls. So, although her journey may have been tough at times, who is to say she didn’t fare better in the long run?
WATTS: Going private has its own rewards, no doubt. I have no bureaucracy and no red tape. I do what I want. I surround myself with very clever people whose advice I take very seriously. If we continue to create a base of magical entertainment that enchants little girls all over the world, then success will come. We’ve already sold 500,000 DVDs, 700,000 books, and 78 thirty-minute television episodes. We continue to be a top-rated show on Seven and Nickelodeon in Australia, and broadcast internationally in the UK, parts of Asia, and we’re dubbed in Arabic in the Middle East. Soon we’ll release our first DVD in the US through NCircle Entertainment. And we’ve recently acquired the Australian, New Zealand, and UK rights for our first feature film.
As our interview drew to a close, Watts hinted at her next big goal for the franchise: to secure a deal to broadcast in Canada and the US. After all, she is interested in extending her Australia and (to a lesser extent) UK success story and now wants THE FAIRIES to spread its wings.
She recently took her first steps by debuting the series on Kabillion Girls Rule, a free-on-demand TV channel available to over 20 million US households, on May 5, 2011. In both May and June, THE FAIRIES ranked #1 among series with over 426,000 title views during those two months. In addition, the franchise's contest of late ranked as the third most-popular of all time for Redbox kiosks in the US. These two metrics indicate that Watts is well on her way to expanding her franchise into the American market. Moreover, it showcases another quality that makes Watts a candidate for the ranks of success to which few other women creators have broached: namely, her ability to sense the direction of changing global media industries and redirect her brand towards those new media horizons.
WATTS: Our upcoming feature film is alternative content, which works well because cinemas are moving in a digital direction. In the past, features had to be shot and delivered on film. Now the whole thing is put on a big USB. Since theatres need to get new people in seats, they’re putting on films at times that suit preschoolers—mornings and early afternoons. Our first feature THE FAIRY PRINCESS WEDDING will be digital. So that bodes well for us.
Watts certainly doesn’t have modest ambitions.
WATTS: All I want is to be the #1 franchise for preschoolers in the world.
Oh, that’s all.
Rowling and Myer did it. I’m betting Watts will, as well.
Singapore is a country rich in diversity. It has four distinct national languages and cultures that together represent the republic. This cultural mashup is used to produce the everyday local patois, Singlish, that leaves many visitors clueless in discerning the particular form of ‘English’ coming back at them in local conversations.
Yet it is also this fun and unique tapestry of mother tongues and distinctive South Asian personalities that MediaCorp offers to viewers of its six different local broadcasts: one in Tamil/Hindi, another in Malay, and two each in English and Mandarin Chinese. It is these latter two which are far and away the most popular for the conglomerate, in no small part because the Singapore government mandates that Chinese residents make up at least 75% of the population.
(L-R) Fong, Gow, and York, c2001 York
I recently spoke with two Chinese-language research writers at MediaCorp, Evelyn Gow with Channel U and Lam Yen Fong with Channel 8, about the shows they're writing and their respective experiences working for a global media giant that adheres to a conservative social code in the content it broadcasts locally.
Ashley Elaine York: Can you tell me about the shows you are currently researching and writing?
Evelyn Gow: Well, definitely, it's LADIES' NITE, the show I’ve been working on for four months. It’s a ninety-minute female variety show broadcast in Chinese on Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. on Channel U. It’s actually really popular with both women and men because we attract guys who want to better understand what their girlfriends are interested in.
This aim of the writers comes across in many aspects of the show's serial design, for it features two thirty-something female hosts--one married and one single--whose points of view and topics of interest mirror those of its broadly targeted viewers.
Gow: What I love most about working on this show is what we talk about, which is very challenging. That isn't the case with much of what's on television today.
c2011 MediaCorp
Ironically, at my initial screening of an episode of the program at http://video.xin.msn.com/watch/video/tips-for-ladies-11-fudge/1bbxapqa8, I surmised the potential reasons for the show's success had for more to do with its simplicity and popular appeal than the complexity of either its theme or format. First of all, the hosts are beautiful and interesting women. Also, Gow and her fellow writers structure the episodes into three relatable components: fashion trends, healthy lifestyle, and a cooking segment, all of which appeal to both male and female fans of the show. Gow went on point to these elements as potential reasons for the show's tremendous success.
Gow: We target a wide range of viewers--we have to today. Even the guests are carefully divided between men and women. Still, the overarching aim of the show is to empower women to get the relationship advice they need for modern living.
Gow is confident in the show's success--not only because of its high ratings, but also because her friends regularly relay glowing reviews when they speak of it.
Gow: It seems we offer advice on day-to-day living that is easily relatable to a wide ranging audience—and that's our main aim at MediaCorp. We try to appeal to the masses.
Incidentally, this aim of MediaCorp ironically reflects a longstanding Western (specifically “middle American”) point of view in its programming strategy; yet it takes the degree of content restrictions and conservative appeal to a whole new level by politicizes the nature of every frame and each line of dialogue in every program it broadcasts.
The Singaporean Ministry of Information, Communication and the Arts, a powerful government body, oversees all content and strictly mandates that shows fit within the narrow range of conservative social mores promulgated by the long-standing government officials.
The global hit SEX AND THE CITY, for example, was banned from Singapore broadcast for five years after its series premiere. Finally, in the summer 2004, amid historically low birth rates and a global ranking of last among sexually active nations for the second year in a row, this ban was lifted--but not before the straight-laced censors at the Ministry tamed the series in myriad ways, including cutting out nudity and deleting sexually charged expletives in dialogue.
The shows' feminist themes undoubtedly chafe at the traditional role of women espoused by the conservative patriarchal mores of the Singaporean government as well as many other Asian nations. Still, I raised my concern over whether the broadcaster (in this case HBO Asia) had the right to perform what amounts to significant content revisions on copyrighted scripts owned by the original writers and producers/broadcasters of the show. Gow and Fong only admitted to being part of a Singapore that is currently in a state of flux. And, when I used the example of local magazines (owned and operated by MediaCorp Publishing) enticing would-be buyers with stories on the local sex trades, the virtues of committed partners seeking sex outside of marriage, and how-to tips on nontraditional sexual positions that keep one's lover coming back to the chamber bed night after night, Fong offered her cultural insight.
Lam Yen Fong: Well, a person has to buy a magazine to read it. It’s a choice--an adult choice. But every household has a television; so children can watch whatever is on. TV has to be more conservative than magazines--or even films.
There's also the time-honored tradition of protecting the bottom line to which all businesses--from MediaCorp to its Western counterparts--pay homage. HBO (the distributor of SEX AND THE CITY) is a subsidiary of Time Warner, which also owns CNN. It was this news arm of the conglomerate that ran repeated reports of the banning of this highly popular television show in Singapore until its Ministry caved under the pressure and started airing the series (albeit replete with edits) in 2004.
Gow: I can’t comment on that show or the situation at another network. What I can say is that local culture is changing. For example, although most Singaporean viewers speak Chinese, our young people are more interested in Taiwanese culture and its language and songs today. It’s all the rage in pop culture--to watch Taiwanese variety shows. They learn all of the lyrics to the popular songs that way. They're learning Taiwanese the same way we learned Hong Kong Cantonese years ago: from watching TV. So the cable stations broadcasting Taiwanese-language shows do divert younger viewers away from Mandarin Chinese broadcasts.
Fong: To some degree, we’re keeping this more educated, younger Singaporean segment interested by airing quite a lot of American shows during the 10 o’clock hour. Shows like CSI, HEROES, the new HAWAII FIVE-O, FRINGE, and many reality shows like AMAZING RACE, AMERICAN IDOL, SURVIVOR, SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE? and DON’T FORGET THE LYRICS! American shows are really well received by Singaporeans. But, we broadcast them in two ways. We redo most of them in Chinese--we produce and shoot them here. We then air the original American version on Channel 5 and the Singaporean [Mandarin Chinese] version on Channel 8, so we get viewers interested in both formats.
I asked Gow and Fong to comment on another programming strategy at MediaCorp, specifically how advertising has affected both the content of the shows and their stars.
Fong: Our most famous stars are women--always have been. So all of the top shows cater to them. They are paid more money and given more exposure by MediaCorp outlets than their male counterparts.
Gow: It’s partly because of advertising because, let’s face it, we’re all attracted to beautiful people. And advertising is all about beauty. Just over the last two years, I'd say, we're seeing that change, with more guys in adverts than before.
York: Is that because of the growing number of metrosexuals populating not only Singapore but Asia in general?
Gow: Partly, but also because men are a growing segment of our targeted viewership. Lady television stars are more so featured in commercials for household goods like furniture and appliances, and toiletries like sanitary products. But males are advertising their own products more than ever before. Advertisements prop up a star’s image, and they also prop up the shows they actors star in.
As to the age old question of whether it's content or advertising that's king, Fong summed it up beautifully.
Fong: I keep hearing that content is king. But no one is paying the king!
TV PREVIEW: THE VOICE PREMIERS ON NBC TOMORROW AT 9pm EST
Heralded by Burnett and NBC as the ‘anti-Idol’ musical reality competition, “The Voice” takes the unprecedented step of fostering talent over image, as singers of all ages and from all walks of life compete for a chance to win $100,000, a contract with Universal Republic, and a management deal with Sanctuary Management Group, which represents Fleetwood Mac.
By marrying the creative talents of Burnett (CBS’s “Survivor,” NBC’s “The Apprentice”) with John de Mol (CBS’s “Big Brother,” NBC’s “Fear Factor”) and leading unscripted TV producers Warner Horizon Television (ABC’s “The Bachelor” franchise, MTV’s “Randy Jackson Presents America’s Best Dance Crew”), the “More Colorful” network hopes to take a bite out of "American Idol," the #1 Nielsen-rated television program since 2003 that draws an average of 22 million viewers a week.
NBC, which has been in a dead heat for third place with ABC (18-49 year old viewers) all season long, is coming out with guns a blazin' as we head into May Sweeps. Modeled after the top-rated "The Voice of Holland" which grabs 3.5 of 16.5 million Dutch viewers every week, this refashioned US version has mentor-judges Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Blake Shelton, and Adam Levine of Maroon 5 in the catbird seats.
Emcee Carson Dally (MTV's "Total Request Live" and NBC's "Last Call with Carson Daly") says "Voice" judges will have a stake in the success of individual contestants because they will judge, as well as act as vocal coaches throughout the 13-week competition. The addition of Jimmy Iovine of Interscope-Geffen-A&M as the vocal coach of “American Idol” contestants this season illustrates the kind of power this arrangement can wield, no matter the success or failure of any one contestant in the show. When Pia Toscano was eliminated from “Idol” on April 7th, the Chairman of Interscope signed his favorite ‘old school’ powerhouse balladeer to a contract the very next morning--and moreover has already arranged for her to sing on “Dancing with the Stars” alongside new boyfriend Mark Ballas tomorrow night.
The music business had a shakeup of a similar magnitude last year when music mogul Usher discovered and then delivered the young Canadian Justin Bieber to screaming tween girls all over the globe. If Aguilera, Green, Shelton, and Levine take even half the level of interest in their protégés as does Iovine or Usher, then the first winner of "The Voice" might have a fruitful and rewarding career.
It's been more than two decades since the music industry considered vocal talent before either star image or an exploding fan base of 10-20-year-old girls. In the 1980s, we had Madonna, who could sing well enough, but really mesmerized with her bewitching song-and-dance moves and edgy self-branding that caught the attention of a rebellious cohort of American teenagers just dying to wear bras-as-T-shirts and dozens of interlaced rubber bracelets up their arms. Yet, in all this craziness, there was still room for Canadian pop sensation Celine Dion, both in the music business, on the airwaves, and in our hearts. Neither an ethic beauty or a lingerie-clad diva, this pretty girl just stood on a stage and sang. But, oh, how well she could sing. Her French-language album found crossover success on US airwaves and so wowed fans and music executives alike that within no time she cut the soundtrack for Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast" and has yet to look back. Today, music phenom Katy Perry can't even stay on pitch during her sold-out performances, but it doesn't matter. Her 'cones' speak for themselves in drawing legions of fans to her concerts.
Burnett and NBC are hoping to bring creditability back to vocal ability with their newest reality venture. Carson says: "'The Voice' is well-produced, honest, positive, has integrity, is a ton of fun, and it's a gamble." On the latter point, who wouldn’t agree? But the show promises to be neither "judgmental" nor to rely on the “image marketability" of its contestants, and that's harder to swallow. After all, Burnett and NBC aren’t promoting them out of some small bar on Music Row in Nashville; they’re showcasing them on global television in a ratings war with “American Idol” in the weeks leading up to its season finale. Who are they trying to fool, themselves or the viewing public?
But the braggadocio of Burnett and NBC can't be overstated. Even though the two shows are broadcast on different nights, industry insiders and viewers alike will be watching to see how “The Voice” delivers in their ratings duel. “My whole career has taught me not to be afraid of competition,” Burnett says. “As long as it’s promoted and people know it’s on, if it’s good, it will work."
Well, call me a cynic, but I'm betting against "The Voice." With Simon Cowell staying out of the fray and premiering his "X-Factor" in September, I have a feeling it's going to be all "Idol" all Sweeps long. Moreover, not since 2005, when a fresh-faced 21-year-old girl from Checotah, Oklahoma named Carrie Underwood blew away the competition with her powerhouse pop/country vocal stylings have such talented singers as this season's Top 10 graced the "Idol" stage. With the long-running series currently at its best, I'm not sure what "The Voice" could offer to meaningfully compete.
Having said that, I'm not counting the new series out just yet. I first want to see what vocal talents come bursting through the gate tomorrow night. If Carson Daly isn’t exaggerating and "The level of talent is leaps and bounds beyond thewinners of any other competition show," then you'll hear a couple people vehemently cheering somewhere in the universe.
TELEVISION REVIEW: Season 15 Finale of THE BACHELOR and THE BACHELOR: AFTER THE FINAL ROSE ON ABC Edit post Brad Womack is certainly a nice guy. On Monday, he called 911 when he discovered a man having a panic attack in a park near his home. A southern gentleman in every respect, he displayed his care for people on myriad occasions throughout his two-season run as the Bachelor--which may be the problem. He cares for every one, but each about the same and in the same way.
That’s what the winner of THE BACHELOR season 15, Emily Maynard, told fans on ABC’s THE BACHELOR: AFTER THE FINAL ROSE on March 14th. She did so to explain why watching the weekly episodes every Monday night caused her to doubt whether her chemistry with Brad is special, or in any way exceptional to that which he had with some of his other suitors, including runner-up Chantal O’Brien, or fellow finalists Shawntel Newton, Michelle Money, or Ashley Hebert.
The normally poised and elegant Emily told THE BACHELOR host Chris Harrison that she and Brad fought every Tuesday morning since ABC began broadcasting her season on January 3rd. In fact, more often than not, Brad's grilling took place right after the show went off air on Monday nights.
“It ain’t good for Brad Womack," she said. "It ain’t a good day in his house." She continues: “Every Monday, I would have severe anxiety….[Brad] would call me—he knew it was coming—and he would go, ‘I love you so much. You are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.’ I’m like, ‘I heard you say that to two other girls tonight.’ I mean, I obviously knew it wasn’t going to be the Let’s Watch Emily and Brad Fall in Love Show. But, I didn’t think he would give them so much material to work with.'” (Emphasis hers, but inflected with a Southern drawl.)
Of course, THE BACHELOR is first and foremost a television show: not, simply, an event to help two people find each other and fall in love. Thus, the outcome is often unpredictable, to force people to tune in regularly; and, hopefully, over time, ratchet up the ratings. Brad Womack’s first turn as the Bachelor in season 11 set a series of failed relationships into motion. He rejected both DeAnna Pappas and Jenni Croft, the two finalists. After which, the former was featured in the fourth season of THE BACHELORETTE. DeAnna chose Jesse Csincsak in the end, got engaged, and then announced, just four months later, that they had broken up. The next Bachelorette, Jillian Harris, and the next three Bachelors, Matt Grant, Jason Mesnick, and Jake Pavelka, also got engaged to their winners, with each couple having broken up within months of their respective season finales. Brad and "Em," as he calls her, didn't break free of that after-finale, mixed message approach of which fans and producers have grown accustomed. Indeed, they followed suite in presenting their messy, if not murky, future after the final rose.
Emily commenced her segment of the episode by airing their dirty 'relationship' laundry straight away, which may have only spiked the ratings. According to the overnight Nielsen's, 13.87 million viewers tuned in to watch the two-hour season finale from 8-10pm EST (TVBYTHENUMBERS.com). But, an additional 88,000 viewers joined the hourlong AFTER THE FINAL ROSE episode which followed, wherein the couple dished about the relationship and other behind-the-scenes action. That night, ABC was all BACHELOR, all night; and, although BACHELOR's finale ratings were down 15% from last year, its 13.87 million viewers and an average ratings share of 4.5 in the 18-49 demographic put the network ahead of #2 FOX (with HOUSE and THE CHICAGO CODE), #3 CBS (with HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, MAD LOVE, and repeats of TWO AND A HALF MEN, MIKE & MOLLY, and HAWAII FIVE-O), and last-place NBC (with CHUCK, THE EVENT, and HARRY'S LAW) (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com).
Indeed, when the verbal spillage about their relationship ceased at approximately the halfway point in the broadcast, and Emily expressed her love for Brad by saying: "I just love who he is as a person and I know I can't see my everyday life without him in it. So, yeah, I absolutely do see us getting married", the ratings went down. Nielsen reported a loss of 1.4 million viewers (from 14.634 to 13.217), as well as a decline in ratings share (from 4.9 to 4.4) among the key 18-49 year olds--the demographic that draws premium advertisers and, therefore, pays the bills for programs like THE BACHELOR--when she stopped lambasting him (TV BY THE NUMBERS.com). Viewers like drama. But, maybe, they also aren't keen on totally happy endings in reality dating shows.
That said--and, okay. I admit their affectionate exchange, and Emily accepting her now resized ring, made me a bit furklempt--THE BACHELOR/BACHELORETTE franchise is sort of in a rut. But, it seems that all reality shows over the past few seasons have become somewhat stagnant in their format; and 2011 is the year that reality game shows, especially the playoff genre, got an overhaul, with many popular franchises changing their formulas for success.
One example that springs to mind is CBS's SURVIVOR, which began its 22nd season on February 15th. The longest-running reality competition recently changed the way it casts its gang of 18 castaways. As is traditionally the case, the game of SURVIVOR pits two teams against one other. But, starting this season, each team is now led by a notorious villain from SURVIVOR’s past: Russell Hantz, the self-professed millionaire oilman from Dayton, TX, who was the runner-up in seasons 19 and 20; and, “Boston Rob” Mariano, a reality “television personality," who came up short of winning three previous seasons of SURVIVOR, as well as two seasons of THE AMAZING RACE. Mariano has taken reality television by storm since he first appeared on SURVIVOR: MARGUESAS in 2002. Subsequently, he starred in a short-lived reality series, ROB AND AMBER: AGAINST THE ODDS, on the FOX REALITY CHANNEL in 2006, and finally took home the gold by winning the All-Stars edition of REALITY OBSESSED, a Canadian half-hour reality show, on TVtropolis in 2008.
The personae of Boston Rob and Russell well illustrate the current era of the mass production of celebrity, explored in no finer fashion than by Graeme Turner in ORDINARY PEOPLE AND THE MEDIA (2009). A critical media scholar, Turner coined the phase the 'demotic turn' in this book to describe the increased visibility of the ordinary person in the media today. Russell and Boston Rob, as examples, illustrate how an ordinary guy--not an actor or professional entertainer, but rather an oilman and a construction foreman/part-time bartender/head hockey coach (Rob's amalgamated profession prior to SURVIVOR) can become an overnight television sensation and, ultimately, a pop-cultural icon.
Although mass produced celebrity takes place across the cultural industries today--from talk radio to blogging and user-generated technology--the reality genre is inherently formulated to create stars out of regular people. By simply recording their lived experiences, and then producers, writers, and editors constructing and manipulating these personae and broadcasting them to the world, non-actors, amateur singers/dancers, and even less-than-talented wannabes can set themselves apart and parlay their 15 minutes of fame into a career (at least as a "television personality," ala Boston Rob and Russell).
One needs to look no further than William Hung, the famous AMERICAN IDOL (AI) failure, who secured a record deal with KOCH ENTERTAINMENT, based on 1.1 million (and counting) hits of the YouTube video of his AI audition with SHE BANGS (property of FOX TELEVISION). Hung couldn't sing his way out of paper bag--then, or now. He certainly doesn't look the part of an 'American Idol.' Those two glaring observations aside, he is the perfect poster child for the neoliberal ideology of reality TV. Hung was touted and rewarded for being a self-made, self-promoted, and self-disciplined individual who won at the game of AMERICAN IDOL (and life), even though he didn't actually win the season finale.
By sending voted-off contestants to “Redemption Island” instead of home after they've been voted off by their tribemates,this season's SURVIVOR, like AMERICAN IDOL, has added a twist that further promotes the mass production of celebrity. No longer about keeping the tribe strong, or taking care of your own alliance in the first half of the season, castaways must now consider the possibility that voting off a tribemate will give him the opportunity to play a gladiator-styled (two-man) competition to earn his way back into the game proper. With this added element, Mark Brunette, the creator of SURVIVOR, has not only increased the number of individual, as well as tactical and social skills required to survive until the merge at midseason, but has also added three key narrative archetypes which have proven to satisfy fans of all mediums of storytelling over the years: namely, that of the "hero's journey,'" the Darwinian notion of "survival of the fittest," and the exciting climaxes inherent in David-and-Goliath moments.
In terms of buttressing the bottom line of the neoliberal ideology of the television industry, these devises have merit, as well. For example, by proving their skills, man to man, an individual contestant can now further promote himself to fans and producers of the show as someone to get behind for the long haul--as a rising star, if you will. Which is where the third, though associated, trope of this retooled formula comes in. Besides tapping into the "hero's journey" and the concept of "survival of the fittest," this Gladiator move sets up David-and-Goliath moments that pit older stars against the as yet unknown stars in the making. For, on Redemption Island, even seasoned veterans can fall, as a crying Russell so brilliantly illustrated when he succumbed to the newbie, Matt, in a duel on March 9th--a loss which sent this antihero home for the first time in history. On the bright side, Matt turned out to be a formidable contender; and, thus, was put forward as the new "star," with whom Boston Rob may soon have to content.
Not to be left out in the year of refurbished reality TV formats, months before the 10th season began airing on FOX on January 19, 2011, the executive producer of AMERICAN IDOL, Nigel Lythgoe, announced that AI would change some of its rules, as well as add challenges within the competition. Of significance in terms of the outcome of the game, producers have done away with the series of rounds that shrink the Top 24 to the Top 12. Lythgoe told Natalie Abrams of TVGUIDE.com they changed the format because, in the past, "...[the top 24] were [not] very good." Moreover, he "was bored with them by the time they got there” (November 17, 2010).
So, after two weeding-out rounds in Hollywood, and a third one in Las Vegas, the cast was cut to 13: the five top five male and female vote-getters, as well as three 'wild cards' picked by the judges following a live sing-off on March 3, 2011. After the show went off air, fans lit up the boards, complaining of the "abrupt" downsizing and "elimination of some of the best singers" (e.g., Tim Halperin and Julie Zorilla) in this year's competition.
What most angered fans, ironically, is the neoliberal ideology that underpins reality TV. Because Halperin and Zorilla and others didn’t hit their performance out of the ballpark on that one night, they missed their chance to win over fans and producers. Tough luck. Because, in the world of television, especially as described by Graeme Turner as the "demotic turn" of new media industries, the pressure is on the individual to put up or shut up when he gets his one (and only) big break to become a star.
Lythgoe expounded upon this individualized philosophy of self-promotion and self-discipline when he told TVGUIDE.com's Abrams that American Idol producers would make contestants work even harder to make themselves over in season 10. “The finalists will face new challenges, including contests to make the best music video, to promote themselves, and to work with a band and dancers for an awards show-style performance.” If these new requirements don’t further support my argument in line with Turner's that reality TV (and television in general) primarily promotes a neoliberal ideology of the “self-made” contestant to fatten its bottom line and contribute to status quo North American capitalism, then I don't know what does.
Lythgoe as much as said this to Scott Huver of PEOPLE.com when he hinted that American Idol had gone off course in recent past seasons by touting singer-songwriters/instrumentalists, instead of the best recording artists to be found in the U.S. today. Lythgoe said: "People sort of lost a little bit behind instruments. I see no reason why we won't use guitars and pianos at least once or twice across the season, but I don't just want them everyday behind the bloody guitar.” One could argue that Lythgoe wants his hit show to veer away from the possibility that a guitar-strumming male will take the crown for a fourth season in a row, since the past three winners, David Cook (Season 7), Kris Allen (Season 8), and Lee DeWyze (Season 9), fall into this category, and also have had some of the worst selling debut albums in the history of the global IDOL franchise.
As part of the larger conglomerate behind AMERICAN IDOL, such dismal ancillary marking efforts have hurt the bottom line of 19 Entertainment (since 2010, known as XIX Entertainment), owned by Simon Fuller, the creator of the global IDOL franchise. Notwithstanding the spectacular success of the show proper, which is consistently #1 or #2 in weekly ratings, and their lucrative advertising and product placement tie-ins with official sponsors Ford Motor Company, Coca-Cola, and AT&T, XIX Entertainment has continued to lose money on the ancillary products of their singer-songwriter/instrumentalist winners, as well as those whose personae don't fit the cookie-cutter (skinny, cute, white, American Idol-next-store) mold of Carrie Underwood or Chris Daughtry, (e.g., Taylor Hicks and Ruben Studdard). So, again, these format changes are meant not only to make the genre somewhat shiny and new to entice old and converted fans alike to watch AI this season, but also to buttress the bottom lines of every corporation and interest group up and down the conglomerate food chain that is XIX Entertainment.
Coming full circle, then, THE BACHELOR has also implemented changes across its franchise this year that could not only affect ratings, but also (and more importantly) change the discourses and gender constructions at work in one of the most successful reality dating games in television history. For the first time, a returning Bachelor, a.k.a. Brad Womack, was brought back from season 11 to reprise his role. THE BACHELOR’s creator, Mike Fleiss, is never shy when talking to the press about his foremost desire to draw viewers of past seasons of THE BACHELOR to subsequent iterations, and to entice them to tune into 'BACHELOR' spin-off's, THE BACHELORETTE and BACHELOR PAD. But, as discussed in relation to the aims of the producers of AMERICAN IDOL AND SURVIVOR, Fleiss' overall audience strategy hinges upon the reality TV genre's ability to manufacture stars out of unknowns. Fleiss used that strategy again this past season; however, he ratcheted it up a notch by bringing back a Bachelor for a second time--and, moreover, the only one in history to chose neither women at the end of his first season on the show.
With this 'super-sized star' move, Fleiss has capitalized on Brad's known and longstanding (if notorious) “star" persona, rather than bank, as he traditionally had, on a Bachelor who was a mere suitor in a past season. After all, viewers had the entirely of ten episodes in season 11 to get to know him. He's been in and out of the press ever since. And even if viewers hadn't watched THE BACHELOR11, they may be enticed to tune in this season because of the significant buzz generated around him and his obvious commitment issues. Runner-Up Chantal O'Brien well illustrated Brad's impact on viewers past, and women in general when, "for all the women in American," she slapped his face upon meeting him for the first time.
Indeed, producers further exploited Brad's relationship troubles by choosing to tie in Brad’s inability to bond with either of the Season 11 finalists, DeAnna Pappas and Jenni Croft, to "his" decision to retain a on-air therapist throughout this past season to help him remain open to the women and the idea of committing to and marrying a woman and starting a family. By using such meta-discourses between Brad and his counselor to bring in a new theme of self-help to the series--not to mention using these discussions to talk about the effects of divorce on a child, a fatherless boy’s inability to love, and the ways in which psychotherapy can help a person to heal and commit--THE BACHELOR now speaks to a viewership more interested in this angle than in the girls evidently sole aim of getting roses at the end of the night.
That said, such an element in the show's serial design also mirrors the self-made and self-disciplined philosophy of neoliberalism that underpins the genre. For, broadcasting Brad’s therapy sessions as meta-texts (i.e., teaching tools), pushes the themes of self-improvement, as well as a recommitment to the ideology of the nuclear family.
The most progressive change in format came the morning after THE BACHELOR: AFTER THE FINAL ROSE, when Fleiss announced that the next Bachelorette is none other than third-place finalist Ashley Hebert. This is momentous because the 26-year-old is a 4th-year student in dentistry at the University of Pennsylvania, and will be the first professional woman BACHELORETTE in history.
Fleiss shared his reasons for picking Ashley with Ann Oldenburg of USA TODAY: “She’s kind of cool; she’s spunky; and she’s got a lot of personality," he said. "It’s also the first time we had an actual professional woman as a Bachelorette. She’s not a party planner, she’s a dentist.”
Well, not quite, Mr. Fleiss. She’s actually a 4th-year student in dentistry, and not a dentist. Not yet. But that’s just pulling hairs.
Fleiss continues: “[Picking a professional Bachelorette is] a good step for us. I think it’s a cool good lesson for young ladies out there to see an accomplished woman still struggling to put the personal side of her life together. That’s something a lot of women can relate to. She will be a different kind of Bachelorette.”
It is, indeed, a "cool" and progressive move for reality TV--and for nonfiction television, in general. But, as is often the case, Fleiss shows his hand by the end of the interview. He's either careless (which I doubt), or isn't afraid to broadcast the true aims of the television industry (possibly more likely). "There were a lot of possibilities [for the next Bachelorette]," he said. "We just felt Ashley had the most fan appeal.”
So there it is; that bottom line again. Thanks, Mike, for making it even clearer.
Okay, so I can't help but think the 2011 Oscars will provide as many surprises as did the Academy in 2010 (with The Hurt Locker and its sweep of 6 awards, including the first Directing Award for a woman, Kathryn Bigelow), or in 2009 (with Slumdog Millionaire bagging 8 Awards including Best Picture and Best Director).
Having said that, I don't think there will any surprises among the top three awards. I’m going out on a limb and saying that The Social Network should take home the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Why? Well, first of all, David Fincher is the wizard behind the curtain of this socially relevant film. And he's been up for the directing Oscar before (for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in 2008). But, now, he has the right product to go along with the pop cultural moment. 'Social networking' is all the rage over the last couple of years. And his movie is caught up in that Zeitgeist. Even the media can't get enough of the topic, writing incessantly about the contributions and negative ramifications of this new form of communication, from how it is harming our children's ability to spell, to the ways it has revolutionized dating in the new millennium. The Social Network is riding the wave of this social phenomenon, which should pay off for David Fincher when he wins a directing Oscar on Sunday night.
The producers, Fincher and the Hollywood 'kingmaker' Scott Rudin, also made some really first-rate marketing decisions which could bear fruit in their movie’s bid for Best Picture. Rudin is the man behind the surprise Best Picture Oscar Winner No Country for Old Men in 2008, as well as not one, but two of this year's Best Picture contenders: True Grit in addition to The Social Network. This team of producers cleverly released The Social Network on DVD on January 11, 2011, giving Oscar voters ample opportunity to screen it before they cast their votes beginning on February 3, 2011. This 'Hail Mary' move also garnered spectators an extra six weeks to make it part of their water cooler conversations, if they had ignored it at the box office. Those forty-eight days really has made all the difference. By now, The Social Network is on the tip of everyone's tongue. Even Mark Zuckeberg eventually came around, agreeing to meet Jesse Eisenberg on Saturday Night Live, which aired on January 29, 2011. This classy move by the social media mogul essentially christened the movie based on his image and made us fall in love with the “fictional” account of his unparalleled rise to fame all the more. So, I venture a guess that, going in to Sunday’s telecast, The Social Network is the movie to beat for Best Picture.
Aaron Sorkin, the Emmy-winning screenwriter of A Few Good Men (1992), The American President (1995), and now The Social Network, has waited a long time for his Oscar due. Now sober--and still brilliant, Mr. Sorkin will most likely be able to call himself "Oscar winner," as well, come Sunday night.
Unfortunately, I don't see any surprises in store for the best actor or actress nominees. It seems Colin Firth and Natalie Portman's statues to lose. That said, the surprises may come in the supporting acting categories, for I fully expect Christian Bale and Melissa Leo to take home the Supporting Actor and Actress Awards, respectively, for their equally brilliant turns in the much overlooked Irish biopic The Fighter.
After Leo put herself forward in a rather provocative way, by taking out full-page ads (donned in a low-cut LBD and a faux fur) asking Oscar voters to "consider" her, she had to go back on the publicity circuit to defend her actions. One Oscar voter told The Hollywood Reporter, "She lost my vote." Although some (including that person, I'm sure) would call Leo's tactic a cheap ploy, as a critical cultural media scholar I would rather describe her behavior as a perfectly situated twenty-first century marketing strategy; and, moreover, one that sets her apart from her contemporaries. So, I venture that this incredibly gifted actress from Frozen Winter and HBO's Treme (who, by the way, has already taken home this year's SAG and Golden Globe Awards in the same category) will bag the Oscar on Sunday night, as well.
There may be a surprise in store with the Foreign Language Film Nominees, but I suspect the category is all sewn up with Mexico's Biutiful. Too bad for the talented Javier Bardem that he's up against heavy-hitter Christian Bale, or he might be taking home an Oscar along with his film.
In terms of technical awards, I also don't think anyone would be surprised if the Oscar for Best Cinematography went to the remarkably talented DP Matthew Libatique for his exquisite visual portrayals in The Black Swan. Many of the Cinematography and DP trade mags have been pronouncing him the unofficial winner since the Oscars were announced on January 25, 2011.
Finally, a lot of people are talking about 127 Hours. Unfortunately for the Director of Slumdog Millionaire, I have a feeling this talented Brit won't have the same luck he had two years ago. Lightening doesn't usually strike twice, right? And, more to the point, this year's Best Picture, Director, and Screenplay nominees are chock full of talent. I do, however, think that 127 Hours will pull out a win for its striking and innovative Film Editing.
Check back on Monday, March 21, 2011, when (with egg on my face) I comment on the actual 83rd Annual Oscar winners. Until then, happy Oscar viewing. And, remember that you still have 48 hours to catch any Oscar nominated films still in theatres or already out on DVD.
TELEVISION REVIEW: MAD LOVE's MIDSEASON LAUNCH ON CBS
"Do you believe in Fairie Tales?" Well, the narrator doesn't. Or, so he says in the second line of the series premiere. Nevertheless, Larry Munsch (Tyler Labine of SONS OF TUCSON) proceeds forward with caution; and, lo and behold, by the end of the half-hour pilot, he and his geeky friend, Ben Parr (Jason Biggs of AMERICAN PIE), have both landed girlfriends.
What makes this premise especially funny is that only Ben realizes he's commenced a new relationship with one Kate Swanson (HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER and SCRUBS' Sarah Chalke), who just happens to be the best friend of Connie Grabowski (Judy Greer of ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT), who is putting up with Ben and his uncouth mate Larry only to be a faithful wingman for her gal pal. Of course, Larry is doing precisely that for his mate Ben. Thus, as well as in the case of the 1934 classic IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, this stock set-up works brilliantly to turn Larry and Connie's love-hate comedic escapades into what will surely become a beautiful relationship. Let's just hope it takes these characters a long time to get to that blissful stage of romantic love. Since, Larry and Connie's caustic behavior and verbal spitting match is the funniest thing about Mad Love's pilot. And, also, such a built-in sitcom setup replete with comedic promise pairs well with its similarly skewed CBS lead-in, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER.
That said, unfortunately CBS's new romantic comedy has as many misses as hits in its series premiere. On the plus side, viewers couldn't ask for a funnier ensemble cast than Biggs, Chalke, Labine, and Greer. The latter, alone, has guest starred in dozens of scene-steeling roles in shows that include: HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER and THE BIG BANG THEORY, as well as MODERN FAMILY, HOUSE, and CALIFORNICATION. Also, MAD LOVE brings the Judd Apatow-style underdog movie to television. Indeed, Mad Love's Larry channels the lovable loser Peter Bretter in FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL, or, for that matter, Sydney Fife in I LOVE YOU, MAN (Jason Segel plays the nearly identical characters). This newish, pop cultural icon: a husky, disheveled, beer-guzzling, rude but loyal 'guy's guy,' who musters far more confidence than you imagine he ever could, speaks literally and figuratively to the "everyman" in the show's viewership. The mere idea of it has been striking a chord in the American psyche since the 40 Year Old Virgin caught box office fever with its (to date) 109 million dollar grosses in 2005. If a lovable loser like Larry can get the girl, than any guy can; and, since he is...getting the girl...than "every" man can, right? It's a schadenfreude moment. For better or worse. Since its far funnier than it is true.
Mad Love's season premiere also has its fair share of laugh-out-loud moments. Its creator/showrunner Matt Tarses honed his writing and producing skills on critical favorites SCRUBS and SPORTS NIGHT. As in the case of these two shows, he makes comedic use of rapidfire, often intertexual, dialog to strike a chord with his pop culturally literate audience. For example, Ben and Kate meet in the serendipitous moment after she finds his lost red cellphone, and then overhears what he is in search of. Handing it over, she says: "When you push send, does it go right to Commissioner Gordon's Office?" Taken aback, he retorts, "I'm sorry, I'm not nerdy enough to get that. But, how cool would it be if I did?'' Thus is the start of their textual love affair, and ours with the tuned-in writing staff that thinks to include a Batman reference that makes us feel not only 'in the know,' but culturally literate, too. This quality aspect of serial design, no doubt, also plays up to MAD LOVE and its lead-in's more-educated viewership.
Unfortunately, the show also misses the mark, at times, in its ironically titled "Fireworks" pilot. Not only are the bits poorly strung together, but--as is often the case with sitcom pilots--MAD LOVE's characters and dialogue come off as self-conscious and stagy at times, quite in contrast to its smoothly executed lead-in HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER. Finally, and possibly most importantly, the jokes have been done (and done better) in 'bromance' genre films, such as Apatow's FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL and THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN, as well as his critically acclaimed (but short-lived) NBC dramedy FREAKS AND GEEKS. Tarses has properly learnt his craft and the bible of this new genre--that's evident from the pilot alone. His teleplay includes the requite jokes: one on masturbation, a couple on the duties of a good wingman, and just enough burp and fart jokes to make the nerdy characters cooler, their fairer prey put off, and us laugh. But, the question remains, Is that enough?
With ABC using the star-power of its hit lead-in MODERN FAMILY to launch MR. SUNSHINE, a phenomenally funny, sharply scripted, and expertly cast midseason sitcom starting Matthew Perry and Allison Janey, MAD LOVE may not fare as well as CBS expects. Garnering a 3.0 adult 18-49 rating and an 8 share with its pilot, down from 3.7 and 11, respectively, for HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, and 10% lower than RULES OF ENGAGEMENT (which LOVE replaced), CBS's goal of shoring up their Monday night comedy lineup may have failed, at least out of the gate. Although MAD LOVE's cast includes some seasoned television veterans, Perry and Janey are spot-on throughout the first two episodes of MR. SUNSHINE; and, moreover, serve as ABC's answer to 30 ROCK's Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy (played by Emmy-winning actors and Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin). Also, MR. SUNSHINE is bolstered by the street cred of executive producer Thomas Schlamme (SPORTS NIGHT, THE WEST WING, STUDIO 60 ON THE SUNSET STRIP). And, finally, unlike MAD LOVE, MR. SUNSHINE offers an always popular premise--that of the often complex workplace environment, replete with workaday mishaps and love's foibles that make office-centric dramedies from Mad Men to The Mary Tyler Moore Show impossible to miss.
We'll have to wait a few episodes to see is Mad Love can live up to all of that.
I'm not going to lie to you. I had been looking forward to Shawn Ryan’s newest creation, THE CHICAGO CODE, for weeks before it premiered last Monday. Mostly, my excitement stemmed from his compelling work as the showrunner for THE SHIELD and the second season of LIE TO ME; but the series' rich, diverse set of characters also compelled me to watch. Jennifer Beals, who played the feisty Betty Porter on THE L WORD for six seasons, now stars as Superintendent of Police Teresa Colvin. The always intriguing character actor, Delroy Lindo sizzles as Covin's sleazy and corrupt antagonist, Alderman Robin Gibbons. And Caleb Evers (previously "Luke Cafferty" on FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS) plays fresh-faced Detective Matt Lauria, the rookie partner of seasoned Detective Jarek Wysocki (Aussie Jason Clarke of Showtime's Brotherhood), the moral center of the show.
With the bevy of female protagonist dramas hitting the small screen in the intervening years since THE CLOSER premiered on TNT in 2005, viewers may wonder if THE CHICAGO CODE adds anything new to this almost overcrowded television genre. It certainly does in terms of how it doesn’t hem and haul about the power of a woman in charge! There’s no higher rank than Superintendent; and, because Teresa Colvin doesn’t answer directly to any man (unlike Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson, or even Cagney and Lacey, before her), this new series serves as an important first step in the development of female protagonists on American television today.
In one memorable scene, after a perp questions Covin's authority to ‘to deal’ with him, instead of playing cleverly coy, or even disarmingly feminine, as would Southern Belle detective Brenda Leigh Johnson--before, of course, hitting him over the head with a metaphorical anvil of her femininity and, now squarely in his comfort zone, lead him to unwittingly confess his crime before he knows what hit him!--in a move more reminiscent of less-empowered lady detectives, Colvin ‘defends’ her honor by explaining herself: "Superintendent means I'm the highest ranking cop in the city. Every cop in Chicago answers to me." Oh, so now we get it. Thanks. But, that's a bit too pat. So, show me!
Hence, the problem with the serial design of THE CHICAGO CODE doesn't stop with on-the-nose dialogue. In addition, the plot is choppy and hard to follow, and there are far too many instanced of backstory relayed in dialogue, rather than through compelling “action” that motivates the viewer to keep watching the show. For example, we know from the voice-over at the beginning of the pilot that Colvin’s sole goal is to vindicate the wrongs committed against her father by the corrupt Chicago political system. Then, a mere ten minutes into the episode, Covin's ex-partner Jarek Wysocki informs a young detective that his superintendent rose up through the ranks "faster than anyone in history;" that she was responsible for a cocaine bust--the biggest in the city's history; and that she secured her rise to chief of detectives in record time. Finally, that Alderman Gibbons put Colvin forward for the job to curry short-term favor with black and female voters, but his plan backfired when his first-choice candidate suffered a heart attack and he was forced to appoint her to the post. Now, it’s good gal, Colvin, and her good guy ‘partner in crime,’ Wysocki, against bad guy Gibbons in a cat-and-mouse game that defines the cop genre. Oh, the premise sounds so good. Yet, experiencing it in third-person dialogue and voice-over is nothing if not boring.
That huge caveat aside, besides offering a more empowered leading lady, the casting of this series is spot on. At least on paper, Beals is a good choice for portraying a Midwestern cop. She’s a Chicagoan by birth, and got her start playing a hard-scrabbled welder-turned-dancer in FLASHDANCE, similarly set in an industrial town. So, it’s difficult to say precisely why Beals fails to deliver in the series premiere. Suffice is to say that she never fully settles into her role as Superintendent Colvin during the forty-five minute pilot, and is upstaged by most of the cast including Jason Clarke, but especially Delroy Lindo.
Finally, one of the big draws of television as a medium is that it offers viewers an opportunity to get to know their favorite television character over the long haul—sometimes six or seven seasons or more—and almost as they would in real life. I can’t imagine being able to sum up the damaged-but-brilliant British Detective Chief Inspector (DCI), Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren), from PRIME SUSPECT’s pilot alone; or, for that matter, THE CLOSER’s sugary sweet, yet tough-as-nails Deputy Police Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson, who single-handedly turned around the once-fledgling TNT by consistently drawing over 7 million viewers an episode over the course of its now six-season run.
Either Ryan has lost his knack for penning worthy characters like Michael Chiklis (THE SHIELD) or Dr. Cal Lightman (LIE TO ME), or he’s hoping to deliver a show with high production values and a ‘soapy’ quality that brings in more viewers than his other two more critically acclaimed shows did; but, if that’s his aim, he might be sorely disappointed. The overnights showed that the pilot of THE CHICAGO CODE lost nearly 3 million viewers from its lead-in, HOUSE, and was down a solid 55% in ratings and share from the Hugh Laurie powerhouse dramedy.
Again, that doesn't mean there aren't good reasons to watch this show. First, it places unequivocal authority in its female protagonist. Second, it's perfectly cast. And these two already compelling reasons are only compounded by the contribution it makes to pushing beyond the boundaries of race on television today. Colvin doesn’t play white. Her ethnic background isn’t revealed, or meaningful, for that matter. She’s simply a woman cop; and that’s refreshing. With the exception of the exec-produced Jada Pinkett Smith vehicle HAWTHORNE on TNT, Ryan’s decision to cast a woman of color in the leading role is a relatively new and socially progressive development for female-centric television dramedies. Following in the footsteps of other socially progressive shows like STAR TREK (1966-69) and I SPY (1965-68), historically, or THE CLOSER and GREY'S ANATOMY today, THE CHICAGO CODE offers a range of characters that more so reflect the true ethnic demographics of its North American viewership. From Lindo and Beals to Todd Williams (Detective Isaac Joiner, formerly of IN PLAIN SIGHT), nearly half of the core cast is a person of color. Kudos to Shawn Ryan for continuing to push the envelope of televisual constructions of race and gender. And, for this reason alone, I’m sticking with THE CHICAGO CODE. At least, for now.
Watch THE CHICAGO CODE tonight at 9 p.m. EST on FOX.
