TV/Movies Megathread

[Syt]

I was watching a retrospective of All in the Family yesterday and it left me wondering - what are contemporary shows that fall into that niche? Working class families, dealing with everyday struggles/prejudices? The sitcom format is obviously no longer en vogue, but are there still any shows like that? Shameless comes to mind, but beyond that I seem to draw a blank. There used to be more, I feel - like Married With Children, or Roseanne (not counting the last few seasons).

[Josquius]

I was watching a retrospective of All in the Family yesterday and it left me wondering - what are contemporary shows that fall into that niche? Working class families, dealing with everyday struggles/prejudices? The sitcom format is obviously no longer en vogue, but are there still any shows like that? Shameless comes to mind, but beyond that I seem to draw a blank. There used to be more, I feel - like Married With Children, or Roseanne (not counting the last few seasons).

Thinking about it the examples that come to mind are all very middle class.
Which says a lot really.

[Sheilbh]

Thinking about it the examples that come to mind are all very middle class.
Which says a lot really.

I don't know that that's it. From a UK pov, there's a couple relatively recently like Things You Should Have Done (arguably Gavin and Stacey a bit).

From a UK perspective I think the shift isn't class so much as family isn't the centre of the story anymore. Instead it's friends, flatmates, workplaces far more than it used to be things like This Country or People Just Do Nothing or Stath Lets Flats.

Maybe it's downstream of there not being an audience of families sat around the TV watching the same show anymore who want to see themsleves reflected back?

[Josquius]

Thinking about it the examples that come to mind are all very middle class.
Which says a lot really.

I don't know that that's it. From a UK pov, there's a couple relatively recently like Things You Should Have Done (arguably Gavin and Stacey a bit).

From a UK perspective I think the shift isn't class so much as family isn't the centre of the story anymore. Instead it's friends, flatmates, workplaces far more than it used to be things like This Country or People Just Do Nothing or Stath Lets Flats.

Maybe it's downstream of there not being an audience of families sat around the TV watching the same show anymore who want to see themsleves reflected back?

I've never heard of Things You Should Have Done.
Gavin and Stacy....that's ollllld. :p
I tried to watch series 1 again a year or two back and its amazing how of a different time it is.

But thinking of families my mind went to (the great and should watch) Motherland, Outnumbered, Friday Night Dinner, Modern Family.... All pretty well off families.

But yes. Definitely less of a family focus these days. Where there is, as in Motherland, the kids are often  just a prop for the actual main characters to deal with rather than actual characters.

[Sheilbh]

I realise now that it is old

Honestly the only one of those family ones I've watched has been some Friday Night Dinner so it may be a taste thing too. Maybe Catastrophe too? Although, to your point also very middle class.

I'll give Motherland a go.

Having said all that I just looked at the comedy section of iPlayer and realise I should leave this conversation because I basically don't recognise 90% of the shows there....

[Duque de Bragança]

The Criterion Channel had a salute to the Golden Raspberries starting last month.  Some of the previous winners have gone through critical re-evaluation as time has passed; however not:

Xanadu (1980)

Olivia Newton John is a muse who escapes from a wall painting and roller skates away surrounded by some animated lines in a not-very-special effect.  She kisses unfulfilled commercial artist Michael Beck, who pursues her throughout the day leading him to run into... uhm... wait a second... isn't that... Gene Kelly?

Why yes it is, this is Kelly's last movie (aside for some made for TV ones.)  He's a former big band leader who's lead singer may have been Olivia Newton John.  The film isn't really clear about this but they do share a dance scene; which is about the only high point of the film.  In any event Kelly lost the girl, left the music industry and became a successful builder.  He longs to return to the music industry and works with Beck to open a roller-disco club called Xanadu.  Then Beck, Olivia Newton John and Kelly go shopping for some super-fly 70's era threads to replace the squaresville mid-century suits that Kelly had been wearing; in what may be the single most embarrassing scene in all of cinema.  In any event Olivia Newton John is summoned back to Olympus, Michael Beck gets all pouty, but Gene Kelly (dressed like he just escaped from the Jackson 5) gives him the go-get-her talk.  So Beck does what any reasonable person would do, he roller skates full force into mural of muses which, fortunately turns out to be a gate to Olympus which, as you probably expected is a vast empty hall lit by neon lights.  He convinces Zeus to let Olivia Newton John return to earth and they open Xanadu to an enormous roller disco party.

Not only is the story incoherent, the acting (other than Gene Kelly) is weak and they didn't really get how to shoot a dance scene.  The film, along with "Can't Stop the Music" inspired John JB Wilson to start the Golden Raspberry Awards.

The soundtrack did pretty well, both "Magic" and "Xanadu" were top 10 hits; I don't think it's ELO's best, but it was decent.

Great "so bad it's good classic".  Classic kitsch, but not for the faint of the heart. Best Roller Disco
musical comedy?   
Soundtrack is indeed one of the fortes.  Did you end up by a karaoke of the titles songs with your wife?  It's one of the boni on DVDs and Blu-rays (edition depending).

Oh, and there is a future Conan the Barbarian actress, as a Muse (not Terpsichore of course), Sandahl Bergman.
As for Michael Beck, it was far from the Warriors, but still somewhat not as bad as Megaforce. 

Let's say it's less kitsch than Village People's Can't stop the Music, with its Riefenstahlesque montage 

[garbon]

I realise now that it is old

Honestly the only one of those family ones I've watched has been some Friday Night Dinner so it may be a taste thing too. Maybe Catastrophe too? Although, to your point also very middle class.

I'll give Motherland a go.

Having said all that I just looked at the comedy section of iPlayer and realise I should leave this conversation because I basically don't recognise 90% of the shows there....

All fairly middle class but Motherland, Mum and Two Doors Down.

Oh and Here We Go.

Catastrophe was also good but I feel like had fewer and fewer relatable daily problems.

[Syt]

Thinking about it some more, I guess the "average Joe" series are mostly workplace comedies now? The Office, Superstore, etc?

[Sheilbh]

Thinking about it some more, I guess the "average Joe" series are mostly workplace comedies now? The Office, Superstore, etc?

I think so.

But I was thinking about your post and how we've shifted. Were there any sitcoms about friends or flatmates etc (not family and not colleagues) before the 90s? I can't think of any off the top of my head

Edit: Actually in a British context - maybe Hancock's Half Hour and Rising Damp.

[crazy canuck]

Thinking about it some more, I guess the "average Joe" series are mostly workplace comedies now? The Office, Superstore, etc?

I think so.

But I was thinking about your post and how we've shifted. Were there any sitcoms about friends or flatmates etc (not family and not colleagues) before the 90s? I can't think of any off the top of my head

Edit: Actually in a British context - maybe Hancock's Half Hour and Rising Damp.

Three's company

[Barrister]

I was watching a retrospective of All in the Family yesterday and it left me wondering - what are contemporary shows that fall into that niche? Working class families, dealing with everyday struggles/prejudices? The sitcom format is obviously no longer en vogue, but are there still any shows like that? Shameless comes to mind, but beyond that I seem to draw a blank. There used to be more, I feel - like Married With Children, or Roseanne (not counting the last few seasons).

I was going to suggest Young Sheldon (although I've hardly ever seen it), but reading the wiki page his dad is a high school football coach, so solidly middle class despite the presence of a "meemaw".  Plus is set in the past anyways.

But really - isn't the working class setting part of what made it so groundbreaking in the first place?  I mean how many shows take that kind of setting - ever?

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls069786537/

Listing of top sitcoms of all time.  Going through, which ones have a working class setting?

All in the Family (#4) sure, Cheers (#9), Taxi (#16), It's Always Sunny(??) (#24), Malcolm in the Middle (#30), My Name is Earl (#46) - and that's up to #50.  So 6, half of which are workplace comedies, and Malcolm and Earl are fine but hardly groundbreakingly topical.  (Note: I skipped over the foreign shows I wasn't familiar with).

Like - you can go back to think of shows that make fun of lower class people, like Beverly Hillbillies, or Green Acres, but the only one I can think of not named so far is maybe the Honeymooners, or Sanford and Son (and Sanford was explicitly named as a counterpart to All in the Family, and also developed by Norman Lear).

[crazy canuck]

The best working class sit com was probably On the Buses

[FunkMonk]

Just finished Shogun.

I'll be shocked if this doesn't win a shit ton of awards.

[Josephus]

The best working class sit com was probably On the Buses

My parents really liked that one.

[Admiral Yi]

The King of Queens?