Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Culture and entertainment

Birmingham on Christmas Day: options?

Wordshore — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 15:07:48 -0800

Birmingham, England. Christmas Day. Is *anything* open at all? Looking for places to eat (if possible), and anything to do in terms of entertainment and culture. Ideally near or in the city centre, as public transport will be off and taxi fares exhorbitant. So far, have just got a few chains of Wetherspoon pub, and the occasional corner shop.

What do you 'like' on Facebook?

Artaud — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 10:07:26 -0800

What are your favourite interesting, informative or unusual FB Groups or Pages? I'm looking to expand my Facebook horizons beyond my friend circle and the pages of things I'm immediately interested in. What do MeFites 'like'?
I should point out that while my interests are broad, I'm not that into the flash-in-the-pan or snicker-and-forget options. Hit me!

What story and cultural references have outlived what they referred to?

the man of twists and turns — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 11:52:12 -0800

Can anyone think of cultural references that have replaced what they are referring to? I was watching 'Lady and the Tramp' last night, and I realized that 'Peg's' performance in the dog pound was an extended reference to Peggy Lee, the woman who voiced that and other characters. I also remembered reading that Bugs Bunny's schtick (carrots in a cigarette case, eating the carrots, 'What's up, Doc?') was a direct reference to an earlier movie. The audiences of these works would, at the time, be familiar with their references - but today, less so.

Are there other cultural/entertainment references that have surpassed their referents? That is, are certains things known more for being alluded to than in and of themselves?

There's no youth culture — only masks they let you rent.

Nomyte — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 17:56:34 -0800

I reliably get asked, by puzzled, well-meaning people, what makes me opt out of popular culture. How do I reframe the conversation so that it's clear that I never opted in? I feel that putting the conversation in terms of the first scenario already begs the question. It makes it sound as if I keep a constant, neurotic vigil. I start out on the defensive, having to explain myself. If I must explain myself, I say a subset of the following:

I have an international upbringing, so what I grew up with is not what most people my age grew up with.
I grew up using the public library for my reading, so my choice of reading has always been completely unaffected by how recently a book came out.
I watch no television, so I get exposed to less hype than most people.
I've always gone to the movies very rarely, meaning I never got on the treadmill of a new blockbuster every week.

This doesn't seem satisfying to many people. Their relationship with popular entertainment is very different from mine. And, frankly, I feel no reason to justify what to me feels like an effortless and natural state of affairs.

For whatever reason, some people find this attitude alien and even insincere. They check in with me whether I do this on principle, or whether I'm making some kind of stand against popular entertainment. This line of questioning really rankles me. It feels like a subversion of my preferences, sensibilities, and tastes. FFS, pretty much everything I like was at one point popular somewhere to some extent! Maybe not right now, maybe not this decade, maybe not in this country. I'm not trying to make claims of uniqueness by making some kind of public display of what I like and don't like.

How can I best nip conversations on this sordid topic in the bud?

Entertain me in Sao Paulo

ChrisR — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 14:01:46 -0800

I'll be in Sao Paulo, Brazil for the weekend of November 6-7 on business, and I'd like to find something entertaining to do. Any suggestions? I'll probably be staying near the centre of the city, if it makes any difference.

Arabic aliens? Gollum in Gaelic?

dmaterialized — Mon, 25 Dec 2006 08:23:23 -0800

Recently I've been fascinated with the way a good actor doing good voice acting can convey a very specific character in movies or video games. (This may seem dumb, but the Demonhunter Illidan in WarCraft III has a particularly memorable voice). What I'm really wondering about, though, is the fact that all the examples of really effective, specific voice acting seem to be English-based. As in, I can't envision what a spanish-speaking alien voice might sound like (and I speak Spanish). I can't really imagine the sound of a demon or angry deity in Chinese (and I also speak Chinese). Is it just subtleties that I can only pick up on in English, or is the practice of speaking very differently to convey very different characters simply not as common in tonal or heavily-accented languages? Is this why we stopped doing dubbing? I'm looking specifically for examples of "evil", "ominous" or just plain unusual voice acting in foreign languages, particularly ones with more tonal/accented characteristics like Japanese/Chinese/Greek/Arabic/Hindi/Gaelic.

Cool Hunting

JPowers — Tue, 12 Jul 2005 09:52:59 -0800

I'm looking for some really hip websites, magazines or podcasts that comment and report on arts, entertainment, culture and a little (just a little!) on politics. I already read Salon.com, Slate Magazine and Rolling Stone, but I need more. Any ideas?