Short Film

I recently worked on a very short film with Alan Aranha and Sudhanva Atri. The music was written and perfromed by Rohit Chaturvedi and Illustrator Pia Meenakshi a.k.a Gumani worked on the titles. I present to you, Junction.

Dubious Lather

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American Television

In the past, there was always a clear distinction between Film and Television. In most cases, one could distinguish between the two, right from their appearance. This was due to several factors such as budget, subject matter, casting, etc. Television was primarily concerned with entertaining the audience, as opposed to film, which was considered more artistic. The narratives it dealt with were not particularly intricate and were not considered very serious. 

With regard to the subject matter, television programming in America primarily concerned itself with individuals and their lives. Shows primarily revolved around the characters. There was no clear bigger picture. Two television genres that became hugely popular were the Soap Opera (General Hospital, Day's of Our Lives) and the Sitcom (I Love Lucy, The Brady Bunch, Full House, Seinfeld, Friends).

However, this has changed over time. With respect to the quality of production, the line between television and film has slowly been obscured. With cable television slowly gaining prominence, television budgets increased, more expensive sets were built, prominent Hollywood stars began starring in and making appearances on TV shows. Apart from the Soap Opera and the Sitcom, the Drama became a popular television genre. 

With respect to subject matter, more themes were explored. But it is only with programming such as HBO's 2002 series The Wire and the original C.S.I, that television reached new ground. The shows were not centered around the characters' lives so much as they were around the bigger picture. In the case of The Wire, it was the way the city of Baltimore functioned - from the illegal drug trade to the media. These workings were the highlight of the show and not the characters' personal relationships.

The newest sensation on television is the HBO series Game of Thrones. Passed off as an Epic Fantasy, The show has received praise from both the public, as well as the critics. Some are even predicting that it will be a major milestone in television programming. The show is set in a parallel universe, on a planet resembling Earth. It is set in the medieval period and follows the different skirmishes that incessantly take place between wealthy noblemen, . 

 

  

The Premise

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Game of Thrones takes place on a massive continent called Westeros. This continent was initially divided into seven kingdoms and ruled by seven kings. At some point in time, these kingdoms were  conquered and united by the Targaryen Dynasty and the Iron Throne was established - putting one king in charge of the entire continent. This is the state of affairs when the show begins.

The series begins fifteen years after the Targaryens have been wiped out. The house of Baratheon – a wealthy and powerful family has taken the throne. Robert Baratheon is the king. Now, one continent is far too big for one man to control hence, the kingdom is divided into several territories - run by different lords who all serve the king. It is only logical. However, deception runs rampant in Westeros and a number of these lords prepare to betray the king and take the crown for themselves. Apart from these lords, there are also others, trying to capture the throne - namely Daenerys Targaryen, the last surviving member of the Tragaryen Dynasty. To chronicle the events that have taken place in the two seasons so far would be a tedious task, simply because of the number of characters. Besides, it does not serve any purpose here.

Medieval Soap Opera

Game of Thrones, which is the television adaptation of a series of novels by George R. R. Martin,  aims to show a chaotic, medieval, cutthroat world, with everyone looking to get one up on the other. To clearly depict disorder, it becomes essential for a sense of order to be established first. When an entirely new world is crafted, a certain understanding of how it functions must be conveyed in order to show it being dysfunctional. If this is not done, then this new world simply becomes a device to flout the rationale and logic that one would be inherent in the real world. It is simple - Why not set it on planet Earth, during the medieval period? This is simply because medieval Earth already has a history, which would seriously hinder the coining of obscure names for people and places. It would seriously impede the number of fantastic elements they can introduce into the narrative. Setting it in the real world, would put the story into an external frame of reference, making it increasingly difficult for the writer to do as they please. Hence, they take the easy way out and create ANOTHER world, very much LIKE medieval Earth, but NOT medieval Earth. This is not so much the writer's creativity as it is his cunning.

 At no point do we see the functioning of the kingdom under the Iron Throne. What about trade? What about industry? What about the economics of Westeros? Where do these rich people get their money from? How do they win public loyalty? The show doesn't even tread anywhere near this territory. There is hardly ANY mention of the public gentry. We are told that these rich people have money and hence, the public of Westeros does what they say. And we do not see how these people are rich. The source of their wealth is never explained. Even where there are explanations provided, it is so banal that it is embarrassing, to say the least.
For example: One of the more prominent houses, the house of Lannister, is said to be the wealthiest house in Westeros. The source of their wealth? They happen to have gold mines on their land!


As far as the common people of Westeros are concerned, we don't know how they are governed. It's a massive continent-kingdom and we never understand how it works. Whoever wants to be king already has a massive army at hand or they manage to procure one fairly easily. 

Then why is it so popular? Has the intelligence of the average viewed diminished over time?
As I stated earlier, television was always been viewed as entertainment. However, with its visual quality matching that of mainstream Hollywood cinema, it has begun to be perceived as something more serious. However, perhaps it is the decline of Hollywood that has brought the two closer.

Game of Thrones follows a trend that is popular with most acclaimed Hollywood films today. It distracts the viewer and takes their attention away from all its inadequacies through its use of spectacle. Westeros has been created fairly well. The costumes, the sets and the shoot-locations are all fairly authentic and the show is impressive to look at. 

To avoid dealing with the bigger picture of Westeros, what Game of Thrones occupies itself with the personal lives of its characters and the relationships they build. It explores themes such as love, revenge, jealousy, betrayal etc. If we were to change the context from the from the medieval peoriod in a parallel universe to the fashion industry in today's real world - where you just have the head of a giant fashion  conglomerate in place of the Iron Throne. What you are left with, is The Bold and the Beautiful. Switch the context to a high school and you have Gossip Girl. Game of Thrones is a medieval soap opera that uses large amounts of sex and violence in order to appear otherwise. 

Because of its preoccupation with the personal lives of its characters, the show falters in places where it absolutely cannot afford to. In depicting battles. Throughout the show, there is talk of huge armies and massive battles. However, the scale of this is never realized. For instance, the whole of season builds up to a final battle. When this battle actually takes place, it resembles a moderately-sized college gathering. The fight is actually like a schoolyard scuffle.

The Smaller Picture

While it completely ignores the bigger picture, Game of Thrones toils away at unnecessary details - all in service of its authenticity. We see that each House has a motto and an emblem, not to mention a code. The designations of various individuals in court have been specially created for the Iron Throne - we have 'The King's Guard' and 'The Hand of the King' - all this serves absolutely no purpose. They are merely embellishments to draw attention away from the fact that it is a hollow embarrassment. 

Opinion: As an afterthought - I believe that fans of Game of Thrones are no different from fans of Gossip Girl. The sense I get, however, is that they believe otherwise. Since this is a blog post, I shall be informal and say - They are all morons.