Month: September 2016

See Queen of Katwe for free TOMORROW!

One of the great perks of living in a major city is getting to see movies before they come out. This week, we have free passes to see Queen of Katwe, the upcoming biopic about Ugandan chess player Phiona Mutesi, weeks before it hits theaters! The screening is tomorrow, Monday, September 12th, as 7pm in … Continue reading “See Queen of Katwe for free TOMORROW!”

One of the great perks of living in a major city is getting to see movies before they come out. This week, we have free passes to see Queen of Katwe, the upcoming biopic about Ugandan chess player Phiona Mutesi, weeks before it hits theaters! The screening is tomorrow, Monday, September 12th, as 7pm in Friendship Heights.

To redeem your pass, visit SeeItFirst.net and enter the code 625515. You can redeem a pass for one or two people. These screenings are always intentionally overbooked to ensure a full house, so plan to show up early to ensure you get a seat.

Do some TV shows work better un-binged?

So today, a contentious issue came up in Media Services: one of our staff members gave up watching HBO’s Deadwood. One reason it didn’t click, they thought, was that episodes might not play as well when watched one after another. Unlike some shows with slowburn stories that make sense to watch in extended sessions, maybe … Continue reading “Do some TV shows work better un-binged?”

So today, a contentious issue came up in Media Services: one of our staff members gave up watching HBO’s Deadwood. One reason it didn’t click, they thought, was that episodes might not play as well when watched one after another. Unlike some shows with slowburn stories that make sense to watch in extended sessions, maybe Deadwood flowed better with a week between episodes.

We tried to figure out if there was some consensus or scholarly thoughts on this subject, and of course, opinion is split. On the one hand, Grantland once made the strong argument that binge-watching “allows you to completely ‘immerse’ yourself in the world of your new favorite show.” “By binge-watching,” they say, “you are spending quality time with the characters, forming a deep emotional connection with them.”

On the other hand, NPR‘s Fresh Air points to The Jinx as an example of how rationing out a show through serialization gives the story more time to breathe. “Embracing new technology doesn’t mean abandoning old storytelling forms that work,” David Bianculli says.

Screenrant has similarly mixed thoughts. Some binge-watched shows benefit from a compressed narrative, but that sacrifices the opportunity to let those shows percolate between episodes.

Obviously, watching a show on DVD with a week between episodes is an artificial constraint, but changing the time dimensions in how you watch something does seem to have an effect on how it’s received. And kudos to you if you have the power to hold back that long.

Can someone give Mr. Robot a lamp?

from the trailer for season 4 of The Americans Current great television dramas are dark. We don’t just mean in terms of content, like Mr. Robot or the extremely tense The Americans. They are, literally, dark. Vulture‘s Kathryn VanArendonk wrote a great column about this phenomenon and how this impacts our perception of the shows. … Continue reading “Can someone give Mr. Robot a lamp?”

from the trailer for season 4 of The Americans

Current great television dramas are dark. We don’t just mean in terms of content, like Mr. Robot or the extremely tense The Americans. They are, literally, dark.

Vulture‘s Kathryn VanArendonk wrote a great column about this phenomenon and how this impacts our perception of the shows. VanArendonk compares Halt and Catch Fire and Silicon Valley: both shows are set in the same sunny California region, but because Halt and Catch Fire looks constantly gloomier even in daytime, it registers as a more serious show. This problem compounds itself. We associate bright colors with comedy, and so dramas are rarely brightly colored anymore. Compare this with Mad Men even a few years ago – or any of the USA Network’s former crime shows with extremely bright skies.

This seems like a problem from the same well as the orange-and-teal color correction of blockbuster movies. Audiences want dramas and comedies, and the presentation of those genres becomes polarized and exaggerated.

New Acquisitions – September 2016

With the first week of classes almost in the bag, we have the Labor Day weekend to look forward to. And with a tropical storm possibly bearing down on us, what better way than to escape a long, stormy weekend than grabbing a few movies? We’re continuing to add new films to our collection that … Continue reading “New Acquisitions – September 2016”

With the first week of classes almost in the bag, we have the Labor Day weekend to look forward to. And with a tropical storm possibly bearing down on us, what better way than to escape a long, stormy weekend than grabbing a few movies?

We’re continuing to add new films to our collection that classes are using this semester, but we’re also getting more blockbusters, critical favorites, and historically significant movies – like BellaDonna of Sadness, a Japanese animated film that has never been available since 1973.

Other interesting titles this month include ESPN’s riveting documentary series OJ: Made in America; Miles Davis biopic Miles Ahead; and The Mermaid, the highest-grossing Chinese movie ever. (And we also got the extended cut of Batman v Superman, which runs a whopping three hours.)

We could go on and on this month, but we’ll just let you read the list. Follow the link to see what’s new for September…

Home Use Collection:

Brief Encounter – HU BLU 4233
Veep, Season 4 – HU DVD 5980
Game of Thrones, Season 5 – HU DVD 10025
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 – HU DVD 10317
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 – HU BLU 10317
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 – HU DVD 10318
Maroc en Musiques – HU DVD 13225
Cartoon Roots – HU DVD 13226
Cartoon Roots – HU BLU 13226
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – HU DVD 13239
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – HU BLU 13239
Eisenstein in Guanajuato – HU DVD 13245
Eye in the Sky – HU DVD 13246
Cinderella – HU DVD 13247
Emptying the Skies – HU DVD 13248
Kanashimi no Beradonna = Belladonna of Sadness – HU BLU 13255
Boy & the World – HU DVD 13257
Boy & the World – HU BLU 13257
The Great Mouse Detective – HU DVD 13262
The Great Mouse Detective – HU BLU 13262
Midnight Special – HU DVD 13263
Miles Ahead – HU DVD 13264
Sisters – HU DVD 13265
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot – HU DVD 13266
House of Cards, Season 4 – HU DVD 13270
The Walk – HU DVD 13273
Under the Cherry Moon – HU DVD 13274
The Mermaid – HU DVD 13275
Only Yesterday – HU DVD 13276
Jackie Robinson – HU DVD 13277
Knight of Cups – HU DVD 13278
Silicon Valley, Season 2 – HU DVD 13282
The X-Files, The Event Series – HU DVD 13284
Lisbon Story – HU DVD 13287
Embrace of the Serpent – HU DVD 13288
OJ: Made in America – HU BLU 13289
OJ: Made in America – HU DVD 13289
Edifício Master – HU DVD 13300
Aparecidos = The Appeared – HU DVD 13301
La Jaula de Oro – HU DVD 13302
The Last Man on Earth, Season 1 – HU DVD 14295

In-Library Titles:

Métodos Anticonceptivos = Contraceptive Choices – DVD 13187
The Complete Uncensored Private Snafu: Cartoons from World War II – DVD 13229
Dpa’ Bo’I Lung Pa = The Valley of the Heroes = Ying Xiong Gu – DVD 13235
How to Smell a Rose: A Visit With Ricky Leacock in Normandy – DVD 13236
Berlin, die Sinfonie der Großstadt; Melodie der Welt – DVD 13261
Kumu Hina: The True Meaning of Aloha – DVD 13285
The Occupation of the American Mind: Israel’s Public Relations War with the United States – DVD 13286