The movies or once referred to as "the talkies," is a global phenonmenon that contributes to the pasttime of probably most of you in this class. Movies were actually silent (with the exception of music playing in the theatre) up until the late 1920s. In 1926, Warner Bros. and Western Electric created a sound on disc system, which will later be termed as a vitaphone.
Not everyone benefitted from the sound films, though. Orchestra musicians' careers started to struggle because the musicians generally played live music during silent films.
Everytime you go to a movie in a theatre, you see what flash across the big screen? A notice to turn off phones and to stay quiet. Why? Well, it all goes back to the invention of the vitaphone. With talking pictures, audiences concentrated on hearing the movie, rather than those seated around them, leading many patrons to look down upon talking while the movie was playing.
Isn't it amazing how far movies have come? I even notice how the special effects change over time and how movies just keep getting better. It makes me wonder what movies will be like in the future. I think, "How can it get any better." That is, until I see a better version of what we have now. Is interactive movies the next big trend?
I got the movie Final Destination 3 on DVD and it had the feature of being able to choose one of two scenarios which would ultimately decide the ending. It was a neat way to watch the movie. One of the scenarios I chose from was to choose to what temperature the girls should set their tanning bed. We chose one, and after it was done, went back and watched it all over again, only choosing the other. I can foresee interactive movies becoming a trend, but I guess I'll have to wait and see.
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I had never really thought about the orchestra or people who played music during the movies who never got to see the movies. That would really stink. I would not want to miss out on the movies! It is amazing how far movies have come, even just in the past 20 years. It seems like they cannot get any better, but it is not like they are going to get worse. So the graphics and everything else can only get better. I love watching those interactive movies! Another movie that is like that is The Break Up!
ReplyDeleteCool connection to the vitaphone! I hadn't thought about how just bringing in "talkies" affected what we think about noise in movies.
ReplyDeleteAlthough, orchestras, organs, and pianos really do add an element of drama to movies. The Fargo Theatre has Silent Movie night at least once a year. Music is played throughout and it sets up the atmosphere of the scenes.
With your thought about interactive movies, I wonder if that would work in the movie theatre?...
That is really cool how movies back than affect us today. I didn't know that they had silent films and that is part of the reason why they ask us to turn off our phones before the movie begins. Movies have changed a lot. Every year is always something new and exciting. I think next that maybe at movie theaters they will actually make u feel like you are in the movie by having smells and smoke come out so you will feel how it is in the movie??!
ReplyDeleteMovies have come a long way. However, I only agree that some parts are getting better. One place that is not necessarily getting better is the special effects. I don't like how everything is getting computer generated. Call me gross but I love the old slasher movies where the girl gets her neck cut and the blood gushes out (weird, I know). I HATE like in 300 where every drop and squirt of blood was absolutely computer generated. I also like old movie car crashes with the stunt driver risking life and limb. Call me old fashioned.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you on what you said on the special effects! We've come such a long way. But I also agree with Zack. It gets to be a little much when everything in the movie is a special effect. Sometimes you just wish for the good old days when violence in movies was partially real. It sounds cruel and rude but the more real it is, the more believable it is.
ReplyDelete