What can I say except 'Snakes! On a Plane!'?
My computer has royally died on me, so I found that there’s no better thing to do than composing my next blog post! Today, ladies and gentlemen, we shall be discussing the phenomenon known as Snakes on a Plane! It’s Snakes! On a Plane! Is there anything that can be better than that?Snakes on a Plane, or SoaP (or SoaMFP, if you’re a, excuse my language, badass motherfucker [BAMF]), for those of you who don’t know, is a movie coming out this August. It has a very simple plot: there are snakes on a (mother…nevermind) plane. By some miracle, which I hope to dissect here, it has achieved cult B-movie status long before filming even completed. It is perhaps one of the first films to be almost completely advertised by internet word-of-mouth. It has gained some media attention, mostly by entertainment magazines listing summer releases, as well as a few mentions in weekly publications. It’s starting to hit mainstream culture with Samuel L. (mother…okay, now it’s old) Jackson presenting the award for Best Movie in a SoaP tee-shirt.
It’s been blogged to death, I know, and that’s one of the things that are interesting about it. The Snakes on a Plane movement started with a simple blog named, creatively, Snakes on a Blog. It was first created by Josh Friedman, a screenwriter who was asked to work on the script. The blog gained Internet fame, and so did the movie
I sound like a Wikipedia Entry.
Anyway, why am I so fascinated with this movie? Alright, I can admit it; I’m freaking loving the idea of Samuel L. Jackson going medieval on some snakes on a plane in a movie filled with corny dramatic music, cornier lines, and gratuitous violence and nudity. But really, at the heart of it, I find Snakes on a Plane to be one of the most fascinating things to happen in the media world, academically. It finally bridges the gap between producer and consumer.
Producer and Consumer is one of the most basic ideas in Media Studies. The producer creates media (such as movies, books, television, music, etc.) based on what the consumer wants. The consumer knows what it wants because of what the producer created. The way it remained, for ALL TIME, was that the two were strictly separated. Naturally, producers look for inspiration from the consumer, but that was it.
Focusing strictly on film (and possibly straying into television), it remained that way up until the late 20th century. It was when editing became easy and inexpensive that consumers were able to become the producers, and often they worked with what they had. Thus, tribute videos were born. Blah, blah, blah, Red vs. Blue, moving on through the Media Studies lesson.
Anyway, the thing I really love about Snakes on a Plane is that the producer/consumer relationship has been completely dissolved. Fans on the Internet created their own trailers for SoaP, or their own versions of the movie entirely. The videos are especially fascinating to me, mostly having to do with the rise of websites such as YouTube (which I can also talk about at great length). These videos circulate the Internet, gathering almost as much fame as the movie itself. Tee-shirts were sold (I myself own one inspired by Jackson’s shirt at the MTV Movie Awards).
The producers of the movie went to the Internet, asking fans to create a real music video. And, impressing me the most, the filmmakers actually went back for reshoots of the film, upping the rating to an R (a rarity in the business, because it limits the potential audience). Lines suggested by fans made their way into the movie, and lots of extra sex and violence was put in. is truly a movie made by both producers and consumers.
But WHY did this phenomenon happen? Why is this movie so special? Really, it’s just a matter of personal preference. I’ve tried to explain SoaP to many people, and I get nothing but blank stares. People don’t like snakes, and people don’t like planes. That’s understandable. It sounds like a horrible movie, many of them have told me.
Well, that’s exactly it. The idea of a movie about snakes on a plane named Snakes on a Plane is so ludicrous it couldn’t be true. But it was. In fact, the idea is so simple the plot could probably very easily spread across different cultures. Then after thinking about it for a while, the idea of SoaP evoked many beloved movies of the past, the prime example being Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. It’s classic B-Movie fodder! By name alone, it’s so bad it’s good. But perhaps most of all, it’s just plain fun. People can talk about it’s significance in film (yes, me), or why it’s going to be THE MOST AMAZING MOVIE TO COME OUT THIS SUMMER OHMIGAWD!, but everybody can agree that it’s going to be a hell of a fun movie.
Everything about it is, when you think about it. The story of how a BAMF like Samuel L. Jackson got on board a movie is enough to make anybody laugh. He didn’t even look at the script! He just saw the title and signed on. How often does that happen to movies of this caliber? And when the filmmakers were going to change the name of the movie? Samuel Jackson said “NO WAI,” and that was that. Chuck Norris would be proud of him.
I could go on and on about how amazing this movie is, but really, you just have to find out for yourself. I suggest going to the Wikipedia entry for Snakes on a Plane, as well as Snakes on a Blog and the Snakes on a Plane entry on IMDb. I especially recommend taking a look at the forum’s list of possible SoaP sequels, with 1,100 posts and climbing (registration required). My favorite? Snakes on a Plane 3: Snanes on a Plake – “A non-sensical charming romp through the coma induced dreams of a 12 year old retarded boy. It could have a shocking twist towards the end revealing that the boy became retarded after watching Snakes on a Plane and it's sequels. And he's in a coma because he got hit by a truck... full of snakes...”
Next time? Hm. I think I’ll talk about Internet Memes: Chuck Norris, Lazy Sunday, and the Internet Wars.
Until next time!
The Devil in the Details
Taylor Lauren Amato
posted by Taylor Lauren @ 7/10/2006 01:33:00 AM
2 Comments:
its funny that in two posts you have probably written more in your blog than i have written in months. Don't get too happy with yourself. You have to deal with me in a month and a half.
rebel dawn is an idoctice and mentally changlled person with no social life and no purpose in life he/she needs to get a life you dumb whore!!!!!!
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