Comments on: Fasten your seatbelts, pilgrims… http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/ Meh. I've seen worse. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 03:58:55 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: DaveCausey http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5901 DaveCausey Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:37:08 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5901 Lyz-thats awesome about "Hellfighters"! :D I think you'll enjoy the viewing,and just may-be it'll qualify for your treatment! Lyz-thats awesome about “Hellfighters”! :D

I think you’ll enjoy the viewing,and just may-be it’ll qualify for your treatment!

]]> By: supersonic http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5884 supersonic Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:54:07 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5884 We do not recognize any such concept as "too far" here. We do not recognize any such concept as “too far” here.

]]> By: ProfessorKettlewell http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5883 ProfessorKettlewell Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:13:20 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5883 "So… my previous comment was entirely irrelevant, and I probably shouldn’t have posted it. Sorry. I’ll shut up now." No it wasn't irrelevant, and you certainly should have posted it ;) Comparative literature is all about 'ignoring the details' (even moreso if you've pretensions to structuralism like I have), or, if you like, trying to spot the tropes or 'rules' that underlie genres or types. Nathan over at ColdFusion writes insanely good articles on this kinda-subject. I wrote my OP because I was once involved in a University Drama Society production of Alan Aykbourne's "Way Upstream", which struck me at the time a cross between "Apocalypse Now" (Yeah, I know, "Heart of Darkness". I was younger and even more ignorant than I am now.) and "Airport". I guess I sometimes take the 'ignore the details' part a bit too far ;) “So… my previous comment was entirely irrelevant, and I probably shouldn’t have posted it. Sorry. I’ll shut up now.”

No it wasn’t irrelevant, and you certainly should have posted it ;) Comparative literature is all about ‘ignoring the details’ (even moreso if you’ve pretensions to structuralism like I have), or, if you like, trying to spot the tropes or ‘rules’ that underlie genres or types. Nathan over at ColdFusion writes insanely good articles on this kinda-subject.

I wrote my OP because I was once involved in a University Drama Society production of Alan Aykbourne’s “Way Upstream”, which struck me at the time a cross between “Apocalypse Now” (Yeah, I know, “Heart of Darkness”. I was younger and even more ignorant than I am now.) and “Airport”. I guess I sometimes take the ‘ignore the details’ part a bit too far ;)

]]> By: lyzard http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5881 lyzard Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:49:45 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5881 Matthew: yes, but whether because we don't call them "airplanes" or whether others objected to the word "high" in the title (I've heard both), I couldn't tell you. As for your terribly British disaster movie, <strong>Decision Against Time</strong> has Jack Hawkins doing pretty much exactly that. Dave: concidentally, I've just found out that <strong>The Hellfighters</strong> is on cable here next month. I'll take a look and let you know! Matthew: yes, but whether because we don’t call them “airplanes” or whether others objected to the word “high” in the title (I’ve heard both), I couldn’t tell you. As for your terribly British disaster movie, Decision Against Time has Jack Hawkins doing pretty much exactly that.

Dave: concidentally, I’ve just found out that The Hellfighters is on cable here next month. I’ll take a look and let you know!

]]> By: El Santo http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5880 El Santo Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:44:54 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5880 While we're on the subject of "Gilligan's Island" and what genres it might fit into, there's actually a specific term for stories about people stuck indefinitely in hostile (or at least inconvenient) pockets of wilderness, although that term doesn't see much use anymore. Such stories are called "Robinsonades," after <I>Robinson Crusoe</I>, and they were one of the most popular genres of fiction in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries, althouth only a handful (most notably <I>Swiss Family Robinson</I>) ever circulated in English-language versions. While we’re on the subject of “Gilligan’s Island” and what genres it might fit into, there’s actually a specific term for stories about people stuck indefinitely in hostile (or at least inconvenient) pockets of wilderness, although that term doesn’t see much use anymore. Such stories are called “Robinsonades,” after Robinson Crusoe, and they were one of the most popular genres of fiction in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries, althouth only a handful (most notably Swiss Family Robinson) ever circulated in English-language versions.

]]> By: Read MacGuirtose http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5879 Read MacGuirtose Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:15:18 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5879 Okay, immediately after posting the above comment it belatedly occurred to me that I perhaps should have added that, as much as the beginning of Professor Kettlewell's comment may have reminded me of <I>Gilligan's Island</I>, what really disqualifies <I>Gilligan's Island</I> (and presumably <I>Lost</I>) from being that close to a disaster movie is, of course, the lack of any external threat. "Being Stuck on an Island" is certainly a major inconvenience to the characters, but it's not an active Force of Nature to which they must immediately respond. So... my previous comment was entirely irrelevant, and I probably shouldn't have posted it. Sorry. I'll shut up now. Okay, immediately after posting the above comment it belatedly occurred to me that I perhaps should have added that, as much as the beginning of Professor Kettlewell’s comment may have reminded me of Gilligan’s Island, what really disqualifies Gilligan’s Island (and presumably Lost) from being that close to a disaster movie is, of course, the lack of any external threat. “Being Stuck on an Island” is certainly a major inconvenience to the characters, but it’s not an active Force of Nature to which they must immediately respond. So… my previous comment was entirely irrelevant, and I probably shouldn’t have posted it. Sorry. I’ll shut up now.

]]> By: Read MacGuirtose http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5878 Read MacGuirtose Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:11:23 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5878 <I>you round up a bunch of stereotypes in a confined situation from which there is no escape... and let them go to work on each others’ morals and class.</I> I read this comment, and immediately thought of <I>Gilligan's Island</I>. Okay, the "going to work on each others' morals and class" part is iffy, but, um, there are the Howells trying to tempt the others into a life of decadence, and... well, anyway. All right, so obviously <I>Gilligan's Island</I> doesn't really qualify as a disaster movie (even aside from the fact that, well, <I>it's not a movie</I>--okay, yes, there were TV movies made based on it, and given the current spate of movies made based on TV shows there will unfortunately probably be a horrible new <I>Gilligan's Island</I> movie soon, if it's not in the planning stages already, but anyway), but it was briefly amusing to think of it as one. (Then again, are there any TV series that are closer to the disaster movie genre than <I>Gilligan's Island</I>? That's a serious question; I'm not enough of an expert on old television series (or current television series, for that matter) to answer it myself. Oh, of course, maybe <I>Lost</I>, I guess, though I've never seen <I>Lost</I> and don't know enough about it to know how close it is...) you round up a bunch of stereotypes in a confined situation from which there is no escape… and let them go to work on each others’ morals and class.

I read this comment, and immediately thought of Gilligan’s Island.

Okay, the “going to work on each others’ morals and class” part is iffy, but, um, there are the Howells trying to tempt the others into a life of decadence, and… well, anyway.

All right, so obviously Gilligan’s Island doesn’t really qualify as a disaster movie (even aside from the fact that, well, it’s not a movie–okay, yes, there were TV movies made based on it, and given the current spate of movies made based on TV shows there will unfortunately probably be a horrible new Gilligan’s Island movie soon, if it’s not in the planning stages already, but anyway), but it was briefly amusing to think of it as one. (Then again, are there any TV series that are closer to the disaster movie genre than Gilligan’s Island? That’s a serious question; I’m not enough of an expert on old television series (or current television series, for that matter) to answer it myself. Oh, of course, maybe Lost, I guess, though I’ve never seen Lost and don’t know enough about it to know how close it is…)

]]> By: MatthewF http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5877 MatthewF Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:18:44 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5877 So Airplane is called Flying High in Australia, I did not know that. I don't know why, but I have a fantasy British version of this movie in my head with people like Trevor Howard and John Mills sitting around going "I say, I do believe the engines's cut out," and "my word, we're going to crash, what a blasted nuisance." So Airplane is called Flying High in Australia, I did not know that.

I don’t know why, but I have a fantasy British version of this movie in my head with people like Trevor Howard and John Mills sitting around going “I say, I do believe the engines’s cut out,” and “my word, we’re going to crash, what a blasted nuisance.”

]]> By: lyzard http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5873 lyzard Mon, 22 Jun 2009 05:15:06 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5873 "It's all good!" “It’s all good!”

]]> By: ProfessorKettlewell http://www.b-masters.com/2009/06/21/fasten-your-seatbelts-pilgrims/comment-page-1/#comment-5872 ProfessorKettlewell Mon, 22 Jun 2009 04:31:24 +0000 http://www.b-masters.com/?p=1428#comment-5872 Well, I guess in DM world, the answer to the question " what went wrong with these planes and how can we fix it? ", the answer is "it's those scientists!! They dared to tamper with things that Man was not meant to know, and were chastized for their Hubris! Bits of Comet at the bottom of the Indian Ocean....Ozymandias' disembodied feet in the desert.....giant ants rampaging around New Mexico.....it's all the same thing!" Well, I guess in DM world, the answer to the question ” what went wrong with these planes and how can we fix it? “, the answer is “it’s those scientists!! They dared to tamper with things that Man was not meant to know, and were chastized for their Hubris! Bits of Comet at the bottom of the Indian Ocean….Ozymandias’ disembodied feet in the desert…..giant ants rampaging around New Mexico…..it’s all the same thing!”

]]>