Growing up in the beautiful haven that is the South Coast, left one surrounded by unimaginable beauty, tranquil night skies and beautiful people. However what we gained in ambiance we lost in the world of the arts. But for one escape, the cinema or as my folks would call it the Bioscope… Referring of course to the beginnings of popular cinema and the instrument used to project those magical moving pictures onto a screen. Indeed we have traveled light years from the days of silent movies. The pursuit of perfection innate in human nature never seizes to amaze me.
The cinema for me was much more than an excuse to get lost in the realm of fantasy, it was a family adventure. Seeing your dads eyes light up at him seeing an alien being knocked out cold by Will Smith in Independence Day or the bewilderment which overwhelmed him in seeing the Matrix for the first time. Its memories like these that made the friday night dinner and movie experience so memorable. Where else can the generation gap be so silently filled than in a cinema theatre?
However something strange has seemed to occur almost unnoticed by the masses. The big screen has seemed to have lost its luster. Where can we look for answers to this global phenomenon? Then the answer hit me lying in my bf arms and glancing over at the latest T3 magazine he was reading. Gadgets gadgets and more gadgets, each offering a new world of convenience to the user and the majority of which promoting a cinema quality like experience in your own home. There is no greater pretender to the thrown of cinema than High Definition.
High definition television basically provides us with a superior quality image than standard television. This is possible by HDTV being able to cram in a massive 1080 lines of resolution into the image it projects. This has thrust the world of home entertainment into the stratosphere. We, yes you and I can now experience near cinema quality entertainment in the comfort of our living rooms. Yes this comes with a price tag, but that is life I suppose. But where does that the leave my revered family experience?
The world of high definition has ventured far beyond the realm of HD and Blue Ray Discs. It’s now infiltrating our air waves. Due to a deal signed by the SABC and FIFA come 2010 all our favorite television shows will be beamed to us via a high definition signal.
The cinema for me was much more than an excuse to get lost in the realm of fantasy, it was a family adventure. Seeing your dads eyes light up at him seeing an alien being knocked out cold by Will Smith in Independence Day or the bewilderment which overwhelmed him in seeing the Matrix for the first time. Its memories like these that made the friday night dinner and movie experience so memorable. Where else can the generation gap be so silently filled than in a cinema theatre?
However something strange has seemed to occur almost unnoticed by the masses. The big screen has seemed to have lost its luster. Where can we look for answers to this global phenomenon? Then the answer hit me lying in my bf arms and glancing over at the latest T3 magazine he was reading. Gadgets gadgets and more gadgets, each offering a new world of convenience to the user and the majority of which promoting a cinema quality like experience in your own home. There is no greater pretender to the thrown of cinema than High Definition.
High definition television basically provides us with a superior quality image than standard television. This is possible by HDTV being able to cram in a massive 1080 lines of resolution into the image it projects. This has thrust the world of home entertainment into the stratosphere. We, yes you and I can now experience near cinema quality entertainment in the comfort of our living rooms. Yes this comes with a price tag, but that is life I suppose. But where does that the leave my revered family experience?
The world of high definition has ventured far beyond the realm of HD and Blue Ray Discs. It’s now infiltrating our air waves. Due to a deal signed by the SABC and FIFA come 2010 all our favorite television shows will be beamed to us via a high definition signal.
1 comment:
Really great post Carish.. I think you successfully managed to hit the nail on its head(more than once!!) The first and most valuable thing I'd like to comment on is what you dubbed "family experience". For me, that too becomes one of the things I get to cherish when we watch movies together- those expressions of amazement, smiles and serious tears. What else can we think of which such prestigious equivilence I say!
The other thing that got my attention is the bit about the transition (or rather time warp) we've made from the bioscope arena. I so remember that word now!! My granparents were the ones to use it last.. thats right. Hehehe, the bit about high def viewing really intrigues me also as it's something I wanted to write about too. I'm glad you did though, because it shows that many are taking notice. The thing I wanted to add though, is that hd viewing (especially with hddvd and blueray) is that it goes beyond what you see in the cinema. What's played in movie houses are compressed (downrendered) versions of the orinally shot movies that find their ways onto blueray discs and such. That's mainly because hd content is just so huge!! In that light, it ties in to the idea of the hyperreal element we've been talking about in class. Yes you heard it.. I WANT A BIG SCREEN HD TV FOR CHRISTMAS!! ^^
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