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View Full Version : Movies vs Series



spupy
November 1st, 2009, 01:06 AM
Do you watch more movies or tv series? Do you know why so?
I can watch a movie only with friends. If I start watching one alone I somehow get bored very quickly. It's some short-attention-span thing.
But series I can watch whole day. Even if I marathon a series, watching it non-stop, it's no problem. I got a friend who is the other way around - watches no tv series at all, only movies.

NCLI
November 1st, 2009, 01:10 AM
Hmm, it's very mixed for me. I watch a lot of Japanese tv, and a lot of American movies. Why? Well...

OPINION(Please do not kill me with fire)

The Japanese own at tv-shows(both drawn and live action), but suck at live action movies.

The Americans own at live action movies, suck at drawn movies, produce ok-ish live action tv series, and crappy drawn tv series. The biggest problem with TV series in the US is that they are low-priority, low-budget stuff. It's painfully obvious in otherwise awesome series like Battlestar Galactica.

joey-elijah
November 1st, 2009, 02:48 AM
I'm certain that having gorged on 45-minute format shows for the last few years that my attention span has been greatly reduced.

If i'm going to watch a film i -always- end up taking a break. When i pause the film, what time is it at? Around 45mins...

Groucho Marxist
November 1st, 2009, 03:05 AM
I voted for movies, as I prefer uninterrupted storytelling. With that being said, I prefer reading over watching television, and with the quality of movies in the twenty-first century, going to the theater.

Xbehave
November 1st, 2009, 03:29 AM
For most things series tend to be better, but for action/story telling chopping everything into 45min bites is quite annoying, IMO

film series (e.g starwars)
mini-series (e.g dune mini-series)
movies (e.g memento)
tv-series (e.g firefly)

However this doesn't apply to comedy.

I also comply disagree with NCLI
The japanese movies I watch (film4) tend to use less special effects and more story telling making them better than your average american film. For non-comedy US TV series can be awesome, although they often feel stretched out to fill the correct amount of time. Generally i think its pretty hard to generalise at all (other than to say animé sucks), it always depends on the director and their style.

Sunflower1970
November 1st, 2009, 03:40 AM
Husband and I are finding we are watching more TV series as opposed to movies. When we look at our Netflix list it's about 70% TV and 30% movies.

Ewingo401
November 1st, 2009, 04:31 AM
I was really torn on this, but I selected both. I think I have a slight preference for series though.

misfitpierce
November 1st, 2009, 04:57 AM
I prefer movies over series... I like TV show series too but movie is just more my thing.

Barrucadu
November 1st, 2009, 06:57 AM
Having just sat and watched the first five Saw films without a break, I think I can say I'm a movie man.

Tipped OuT
November 1st, 2009, 07:06 AM
I dislike TV series because it's like there's never any real conclusion, it just goes on and on and on and on, until finally no more.

I like movies because they're more straight and to the point, this guy dies, this guy becomes rich, she gets married to that guy, the end.

koshatnik
November 1st, 2009, 11:03 AM
Do you watch more movies or tv series? Do you know why so?
I can watch a movie only with friends. If I start watching one alone I somehow get bored very quickly. It's some short-attention-span thing.
But series I can watch whole day. Even if I marathon a series, watching it non-stop, it's no problem. I got a friend who is the other way around - watches no tv series at all, only movies.

I'm guessing you don't have kids or a demanding job? :D

cascade9
November 1st, 2009, 11:23 AM
Way more TV series than movies for me.


The Japanese own at tv-shows(both drawn and live action), but suck at live action movies.

The Americans own at live action movies, suck at drawn movies, produce ok-ish live action tv series, and crappy drawn tv series. The biggest problem with TV series in the US is that they are low-priority, low-budget stuff. It's painfully obvious in otherwise awesome series like Battlestar Galactica.

Tastes very eh? I actually really like some of the Japanese samurai cinema/fantasy movies, I've never seen a Japanese TV series I like. Which might have more to do with exposure than anything else. American action movies seem a bit to formulaic for my taste.

On the other hand, I hated battlestar. Even though I like Sci-fi TV. Yes, I know. Dont kill me with fire :)

spupy
November 1st, 2009, 11:53 AM
I'm guessing you don't have kids or a demanding job? :D

You guessed correctly! :)


I dislike TV series because it's like there's never any real conclusion, it just goes on and on and on and on, until finally no more.

That's the problem with western shows. It's like they want to milk it as much as they can. Even if they have to fill it with utter **** they do it anyway and stretch it to 5 seasons. One of the things I like about japanese animation is that it is mostly only one season long (~24 episodes ~22 min each.) (Of course there are exceptions as well.)

ctrlmd
November 1st, 2009, 12:21 PM
movies more entertainment :popcorn:

Bachstelze
November 1st, 2009, 12:26 PM
One of the things I like about japanese animation is that it is mostly only one season long (~24 episodes ~22 min each.) (Of course there are exceptions as well.)

"Exceptions"? That tends to become the rule nowadays. Just have a look at the lineup for the two or three last seasons: half of them are "X season 2", with X being pretty much any crappy show of the past few years.

purgatori
November 1st, 2009, 12:41 PM
I watch both, but I much prefer series. They afford a greater opportunity for the development of characters and more complex plot threads (check "the Wire" for a good example). Add to that the fact that the majority of contemporary movies are garbage -- and I'm not just talking about the ones from Hollywood.

Bachstelze
November 1st, 2009, 12:46 PM
Add to that the fact that the majority of contemporary movies are garbage -- and I'm not just talking about the ones from Hollywood.

This has been true since movies were invented. Like music, like TV series, like everything. You just have to be careful in choosing what you watch/listen to.

SuperSonic4
November 1st, 2009, 12:56 PM
I picked TV series because my attention span is low and the annihilation of originality hasn't been totally enacted in TV series yet

Just go to the cinema and try and find a title which is not a sequel/slightly changed from a basic formula

Bachstelze
November 1st, 2009, 01:00 PM
Just go to the cinema and try and find a title which is not a sequel/slightly changed from a basic formula

We have at least three of those in theaters now over here. Your mileage may vary, though, they are all French movies.

RandomJoe
November 1st, 2009, 02:04 PM
I prefer *well made* series, as the extra time allows you to get deeper into the storyline. Many of the shows I really like friends will complain "move too slow", but that immersion is what I like. I do enjoy movies, but am often left with more questions than anything else because so much had to be left out due to time constraints.

I would like to have a longer uninterrupted flow, though. I once took an anime DVD set and ripped / cut / appended so I had multiple episodes in a single file without the intro/credits. That was nifty - still a bit of a "stutter" since most episodes repeat a bit of the previous one, but not bad. Normally, I just have all the shows ripped to the server and can quickly open the next and a few taps of the right arrow jumps past the intro. (Computer is also connected to a projector and stereo, for that cinematic experience! :p )