I've been thinking about this for a couple of days and I think I've noticed something very strange, something which never occured to me, but which seems so obvious now, and if I am off base, I have a feeling I will be corrected quickly.
Have you noticed that it seems like movies have ceased to exist as a medium in the Star Trek universe?
I mean, books exist, as they have been given as gifts a number of times through the various series and movies, but movies... where did they suddenly go.
I know some of you are saying they were made redundant by the holodeck, but I don't think that would be true, because there have been references to live theatre and other artistic media as well.
If Gilbert and Sullivan made it to the 24th century, then where did movies go? You'd think that on a ship that is out in space for months at a time, that having someplace on board where a large group of people could watch movies when they aren't on shift would be a good idea. Or with all the kind of computer resources that have access to the knowledge of the universe and replicators and such, it would seem like it would be possible for there to be a couple thousand movies in the databanks as well.
And there is video communication in that universe, but people don't really seem to take home movies. I know people have made logs, but those were all official. My memory isn't bringing up any instances where someone filmed their children doing things or stuff like that.
That's not to mention the absence of television or episodic entertainment as well.
Now given how some of the holodeck programs run, it is clear that someone somewhere in the history of that technology had seen genre film (like Tom Paris's sci-fi serial based holodeck simulations and Picard/Riker's film noire styled holodeck adventures), but it seems like for the most part, film does not exist as an artform in that era.
But when I think about it, it seems that in a lot of movies about the far future, it seems that film doesn't exist.
5 comments:
If there is no porn in the future, I want no part of it.
I guess the closest they come is Captain Proton in Star Trek Voyager which was developed out of Tom Paris' obsession with 20th Century pop culture specifically the scifi 40s serials.
I can't remember off the top of my head but I am certain characters have had movie nights and again I think it was Voyager but it's been a long time since I watched it and I may be confusing it with another show.
Here comes the ST nerd that being me. I'll add my 2 cents
(( people don't really seem to take home movies))
They actually had a home movie in the episode The Bonding on TNG.
I think the film/TV thing was GR kind of bashing the medium in say "humans have moved pass that crude form of entertainment"
In the episode The Neutral Zone they mentioned TV dying out at some point.
As far as Lee said, he's correct VOY had movie nights in the later seasons of the show with the crew watching an old movie back in holo theater.
Entertainment seems to be in the interactive holo-novels and holo-plays in trek. Voy goes into the holo-novel publishing thing too.
I also believe on DS9 Captain Yates watched baseball videos of her brother's games.
Ben: Here Here. Though think about the person who has to clean the holodeck after someone has themselves a little holographic orgy in there.
Lee: And Captain Picard with the noire holonovels. I sort of wish Aaron had responded too since he watched so much Star Trek episodically recently, he might have a better recollection. I know you and Dan have the films completely covered at the moment.
Semaj: I had hoped you would chime in since you do have good knowledge base about the shows as well.
Part of me is thinking that in that society, full time artists are not part of the equation. You may do things in your spare time with art in mind, but you could never have a career in it.
The Enterprise NX-01 had weekly movie nights:
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Movie_night
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