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Tales from the Dark Side, Now Mainstream

Parade magazine is that familiar Sunday newspaper insert. Most of the articles are rather bland family fare The latest edition asks about the Child Care Crisis. In reality this is a crisis brought on by higher government taxes forcing more people into the work force as well as the idea that 'one person can live as cheaply as two' which is to say divorced. But that is not the topic today.

Rather I was taken aback but not surprised as the questions and responses in the Sunday July 19, 2009 edition.   In Personality Parade, usually a series of who is doing what in Hollywood we get these exchanges. See what this tells you about the mood of popular culture

  • Does CBS realize canceling its  vampire series Moonlight was a mistake?  The answer of course is yes.
  • Why would Mischa Barton choose to appear as a deranged stalker in her latest film? (The socionomic answer is because that reflects the public mood and will be popular but read her answer).  I am attracted to characters who are a departure from my own experience. My character goes to extremes which is why she was so much fun to play. Emphasis added 
  • Is it true that Megan Fox is playing a dead person in a horror movie? Half true, In the horror comedy (there is a genre for you) Fox starts out as a cheerleader suffering from demonic possession: a slight problem for some of her schoolmates. (only slight?)  I spent half the movie being dead Fox said.  Professor Elam comment The movie Jennifer's Body will be out this fall, perhaps just in time to catch Wave Three down in the markets.  

The point I am making is that fascination with the dark side has now moved fully mainstream. Up and coming personalities are playing darker and darker characters. This is not Julie Andrews in Sound of Music as the Dow hit 1,000 in 1965. This is the Exorcist s the Dow plummeted from 1,000 in 1973. Watch out below.   

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13 responses to “Tales from the Dark Side, Now Mainstream”

  1. Rick Avatar
    Rick

    Comeon, vampires are classic and will never get old. Of course I am big horror fan myself but don’t get me wrong, some of the new shows and movies are not worth watching.

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  2. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    Rick
    Whether you believe they are worth watching or not, people are watching, big time. Twilight and Sookie Stackhouse, Moonlight, and now rising youg stars are eager to play the such roles.
    Horror became mainstream in the downturn of the 1930s, it re appeared in the downturn of the 1970s, now it is bigger than ever,
    Anne Rice did well in the 1970s with Lestat but nowhere near as well as Stephanie Meyer with Twilight
    today’s teen is into blood, not Nancy Drew…
    DLE

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  3. Rose Avatar
    Rose

    i agree with the comment Mishca Barton made about her up coming movie and why she played that character.
    For example, i absolutely love books and movies on fantasy which include the Twilight saga, Harry Potter, Anne Rice ,LOTR, Eragon series etc… because it is a world of imagination that will never ever happen to me… I will never fall in love with a Vampire (they do not exist, or do they? lol jk), i’ll never meet a wizard whos lifes mission is to kill the wizard that killed their parents, Etc…. i like these stories because they take you to a world that is sooooooo different from yours… and that’s what i think entraces people to them… we need something that will pull us away from all the stuff happening around us, like the market being so screwed up… and not to mention that all these characters are unstoppable, immortal, have assets we do not, and are all most always the hero…
    People are looking for an escape, for a love story (because just in case you did not already know, Twilight is primarily a love story not a story about Vampires) or a Hero…

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  4. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    Socionomics holds that the mood swings of society determine events. When we are hapy we watch happy movies and sing happy songs. ANger howevere brings on a different twist. In the mid sixties we watched My Fair Lady and the Sound of Music. The Beach Boys became popular at that time singing about surf and California and cars. The Beatles began the same way but
    four years later we were watching Midnight Cowboy and hte Beatles broke up.
    True we like to read romance stories, but the teen couple in Twilight has a dark backdrop to the romance. Stories have similar plot lines. Both Harry Potter and Luke Skywalker are orphans on a quest.
    My point is that Mischa is not anxious to star in a re make of Sound of Music or My Fair Lady. It is no accident that we are neck deep, pun intended, in vampire stories. Tony Soprano caught our fancy as the markets ran up and down, now HBO turns to a darker theme as the markets have really turned sour.
    Thanks for hte post Rose!

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  5. Richard Delgado Jr. Avatar
    Richard Delgado Jr.

    i would have never make the connection between the “dark side” and the economy, without seeing the presentation you made and showed the class. I agree with Rick that Vampires are classic and will never get old but seeing the connection is eye opening. It is always strange to see the connections between the past and present. The cycle continues. You can even add that “classic” toys and clothes are making a return today. When it comes to what we are seeing on TV and in ads, I think it all has to do with the perception on how we are feeling. That is the only way to get people out of there houses to spend money.

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  6. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    I woudl be interested in examples of classic toys and clothes.
    DLE

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  7. LeAnna M Nesbitt Avatar
    LeAnna M Nesbitt

    I think the leading actresses and actors might be taking a risk when their roles influence younger generations to be fanes of these extreme character roles. They are acting out themselves by acting out and modeling the actors to some degree.

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  8. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    But i this case responding to exactly what the audience wants to see
    I walked through a blockbuster yesterday and the largest number of in stock titles were all variations of horror movies

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  9. Rob Earle Avatar
    Rob Earle

    Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the original.
    It came out in 1974, and has been a horror classic ever since. And now that I think about it this came out amidst the depression of the early 70’s.
    In short, this isn’t a new trend, but I never stopped to think that they’re might be a connection between the state of the economy and they type of movies gaining popularity.
    Adversely, in regards to Twilight, the books were popular before the crash a year or two ago of years ago…

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  10. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    The crash really began when the dot.coms topped in 2000, we hvae been in a bear market ever since down up down and now up again.
    And so the Sopranos were popular on HBO in the same way the godfather was in 1972, now however the mob was living next door as the reality of a downturn came to live next door to everyone.
    Stroll thru a bookstore or video rental and see what everyone is reading and watching…

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  11. Rob Earle Avatar
    Rob Earle

    Dr. Elam,
    You make a really good point. Now that I stop to think about it, the mid 90’s were a time of economic gain, and self-hep books were all the rage then.
    I also must note that, last night on the news the top three grossing movies of the year thus far are Harry Potter, UP, and Transformers. While transformers may have been a “shoot-em-up” movie, it ended on a positive note where everyone was happy. The other two movies were kids movies, and every preview i see coming out is also for a kids movie (G-Force, Aliens in the Attic, etc.).
    In regards to economic trends and societal moods, Dr. Butler, my cost teacher from last summer session, proposed that when the stock market was up skirts were short, when it was down skirts were long. She claimed that there was historical proof this was the case. While it is interesting o think about i don’t think that a valid cause and effect relationship can be drawn here.

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  12. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    See
    http://www.socionomics.net/
    I will post my presentation on the topic that I have done for soem acct groups in SA
    DLE

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  13. Rose Avatar
    Rose

    Dr. Elam,
    I found another article that kinda supports your point. Check it out.
    http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/movie-talk-depp-burton-dark-shadows.html

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