The World in Slo Mo

 
For all the psychiatric sociologist studies and double talking mumbo jumbo about TV having no ill effect on people, I beg to differ and feel the time is long overdue for me to challenge this psycho babbling and suggest to these, so called professionals to get off their fat duffs, put away their pencils, pads and couches and get out here into the real world.    

As an ardent people watcher of many years standing I feel fully qualified to offer such a challenge and place my theories here before you for your comments.  Although first I think I should quantify one major point and that is that I was brought up on a limited diet of Saturday Kids Cinema and the odd real movie, some even in colour, so TV as a form of influence arrived late in my life.

However, being a huge fan of Tom and Jerry I realised at an early age that if you stood on the tail of a cat, as it ran past you, it was the whole cat that stopped and not just its skin.    Nor did I believe for a second that it you hit a cat full in the face with a frying pan that its face would immediately take on the shape of the pan.  

Also having once been dumb enough to take the back of a TV set off just to see if it was indeed full of dead cowboys and Indians, as I had been reliably told by an impeccable source, I have since become more sceptical and someone who now needs proof of everything.   Something of a pity that because it was the same impeccable source that tried to explain female anatomy to me and I didn’t believe him, trouble was on that occasion he was telling the truth but I had to wait another year before acquiring a female teacher... Ho Hum ! But that’s a story for another day !        

So how come I feel I’m right and all the smart arses in white coats are wrong, simple really I have walking living proof, we all have but perhaps the change has been so gradual that it passed you by, or unlike me you have more important things to think about.  Sad... but probably true... To the point, what are you wittering on about ?  

OK, the next time you sit before your super, duper, 60 inch 3D High Definition home cinema screen with eyeball rotating quadraphonic surround sound and there’s Sod All to watch, I suggest you take a closer look at the adverts, or the all action bits of most drama shows and ALL the latest movies.

What are you looking for ????   SLO MO !  That’s right Slow Motion ... It’s everywhere, every advert, every sports programme, every drama. It’s so common these days we don’t even notice it,  but trust me if you look and concentrate you will see I’m right.   

Check out the scene;  from Hair Swishing in Shampoo Adverts, to ‘Sit Coms’, especially those with a so called live audience,  all the cast is on stage, main character says his funny punch line, the rest of the cast react, look at their facial and hand gestures, they will hold these expressions until the audience stops laughing so as no one will miss the next line.  

Now they do it with computers in the editing room, so where as at one time you may have missed a subtle facial expression of emotion now it’s impossible to miss because of Slo Mo they will expand the moment.  Same with the emotional reaction to on screen shock, mouth opens in disbelief hand goes to cover mouth and is held seemingly indefinitely, but certainly it’s there long enough for you pop over to the fridge and fetch a cold one without missing anything.

With me so far ?  OK, now for shocking truth,  if you are lucky enough to have kids of the right age you won’t have to go too far for proof positive,  for the rest of you,  you may have to travel a little further afield to observed the interaction of the young of our species, especially the female members.

Life action Slo Mo !  No I’m not joking, just watch then ape their on screen hero’s,   watch them over react to anything and everything that is said to them,  the way they will make and hold a facial expression far longer than we would consider normal.  Overstressed facial and body gestures, again holding a hand to a mouth opened in an over exaggerated expression of mock shock, usually held until all those in attendance will join in and copy the gesture.

Is it life threatening ?  Probably not, unless over acting and ‘Hamming it Up’ suddenly becomes fatal, or they get a heft reality slap one day when they see themselves on CCTV and die of embarrassment.

It’s merely me people watching, then analysing why the shift in body language and looking to see where it came from.   One thing is for sure the TV Sit Com ‘Friends’ have a lot to answer for that’s for sure, they started it with the sheer length of time it takes any one of them to  say “Oh--My-- God !!!

Worse offenders, ‘Everyone Loves Raymond,‘   Watch it, if you can, makes me want to Hurl, but watch the faces, not the action and you will see my point... Life action Slo Mo.... Now they’ve got the Kids doing it on the streets.  

So, Sociologists, psychologists and psychiatrists eat your heart out, I know you abhor the term “Monkey See...Monkey Do...!”   But it’s true because they are doing it right in front of you and they could only have learnt how from the TV screen !!!      

Do I hear a Rebuttal in the Wings ?