I love Mo Rocca and I was really excited to see that he had this week’s commentary. I like how he named the most popular costumes which were mainly heroes (which took me way back to the Kit Carson and the Western Heroes readings we did and the discussions we had in class about what really makes a hero.) I think its funny how there are always a few trendy costumes that seem to repeat themselves as the trick-or-treaters come to the door. It really caught my attention when he referred to Saw IV has “pornographically violent” because we had just discussed the violence in movies like this in class and how it’s weirdly entertaining but that it might also be contributing to our nation’s rate of violence. I never really thought of saw as pornographical though. Also, I thought it was perplexing that everyone knows about Halloween but very few people pay attention to the following day, All Saints Day. I personally never knew there were so many patron saints for so many different things. I think All Saints Day should be celebrated a little more since it seems like a lot of the saints had pretty amazing lives and should be honored. All Saints Day seems like it should be a little more important than Halloween.
Comments (3)
It is interesting that he would say "pornographically violent" What I think he means by that is that the violence is just so explicit and really unreserved. Last weekend I saw Saw IV, and I really didn't want to but I was off campus with a group of my friends so I ended up going ; all I can say was that I found it disgusting. I had never seen a movie so disturbing, violent, and gross. I really can't explain why my friends wanted to go see a movie where a man's head was smashed between to giant ice blocks, or where a women's scalp was ripped off. It's the kind of violence that's just is so raw, it's unnecessary to me. So to be really long winded about it, I think thats what Rocca meant by "pornographically violent"
Posted by Katie Conway | November 14, 2007 8:27 PM
Posted on November 14, 2007 20:27
It is interesting that he would say "pornographically violent" What I think he means by that is that the violence is just so explicit and really unreserved. Last weekend I saw Saw IV, and I really didn't want to but I was off campus with a group of my friends so I ended up going ; all I can say was that I found it disgusting. I had never seen a movie so disturbing, violent, and gross. I really can't explain why my friends wanted to go see a movie where a man's head was smashed between to giant ice blocks, or where a women's scalp was ripped off. It's the kind of violence that's just is so raw, it's unnecessary to me. So to be really long winded about it, I think thats what Rocca meant by "pornographically violent"
Posted by Katie Conway | November 14, 2007 8:27 PM
Posted on November 14, 2007 20:27
Lexie, I share your love for Mo Rocca! I've been following him for years, from his bitingly witty commentary on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, to his love for all creatures on Animal Planet, to his reminiscence of the past on the programs I Love the '80s & '90s on VH1, to his political coverage on CNN. His commentary this week was definitely up to par with his previous work (and from the beginning of his public career, he set a high standard for himself). He always manages to make me think and laugh--my two favorite actions--at the same time. I agree that Halloween overshadows All Saint's Day dramatically. Could this perhaps be because of Halloween's commercial qualities and All Saint's Day's concentration on religion? Halloween was historically a Pagan holiday, and since Christianity is most prevalent in our society, All Saint's Day maintains its religious significance much more than does Halloween. Paganism is not considered as valid as a religion as Christianity in our country, so a holiday that celebrates Pagan values is more likely to be bastardized to represent commercialism rather than its original purpose (although some would argue that similar results befell Christian holidays such as St. Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, and most notably, Christmas). Anyway, thank you for your post because it definitely made me consider Rocca's commentary on a deeper level.
Posted by Didem Uca | November 14, 2007 10:44 PM
Posted on November 14, 2007 22:44