When was the last time you were entertained

Posted: Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Every Monday morning, the DSPR team holds an editorial meeting to discuss ideas for our blog. We all have our assignments and certain topics to focus on. For this particular week, my topic was entertainment. Facing writers block, I asked my fellow crew members to bounce some ideas off me. "How about the Disney-Marvel merger?" one said. Another brought up Sesame Street's 40th anniversary. 99% of the females in our office tried to convince me to write about the Twilight saga phenomenon in conjunction with the opening of New Moon (somehow my fiancee was able to convince me to give up two hours of my life this weekend, on football Sunday no less).

So that leaves me here, with the realization that nothing in a long while has "entertained" me. I've been to dozens of movies in the past year, none of which have left a lasting impression on me. I can't remember the last album (CD, iTunes or otherwise) that I've purchased. Many books have been read, and while some are good, there isn't anything worth writing home about.

At this point you're probably saying that I'm just negative or hold too high of a standard. That could be further from the truth. In reality, I think it comes down to one simple thing - lack of creativity. Just look at the movies playing right now. New Moon, The Blind Side and Where the Wild Things Are (to name a few) are all rehashes of books that are arguably much better in print than on film. Where is the originality? On TV, is it really necessary to have CSI: Vegas, Miami, New York, Fargo, etc.

I'm not naive enough to think that the entertainment industry is remotely about "art." I understand that it's a business created to make money (and lot's of it). Regardless, I choose to remain optimistic. It will just make the next time I'm "wowed" that much sweeter.