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Is everything that’s new automatically bad? Are old things better by default?

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Hey y’all,

I’m not sure if it’s my imagination, but the more time passes, the more it seems to me that the saying “they don’t make ‘em like they used to” makes a lot of sense. Actually, all the sense. And the saying applies to everything from music and pop culture to home appliances, products, materials, the economy - you name it.

Movies are a perfect example - I love the original trilogy and older movies in general, right up to the ‘90s. Everything after that - especially the newer movies - seem to needlessly rely on CGI, explosions, bigger, better, soundier and superlatives in general.

Not every new movie is bad, but the majority are worse than the older films when directors and actors had to find ways to stay imaginative and creative. Nowadays you just let a computer program work things out for you and Bob’s your uncle. My dad, who is in his 60s now, agrees, especially since he lived through most of what I’m talking about.

For example, he was a college math professor and he used to love going to Vegas back in the day. It wasn’t really gambling for him because he understood the underlying science. He would win all the time and still plays to this day. Even he admits that internet casinos like https://www.casinoshortlist.org/ that are a dime a dozen can’t compare to the real thing. The internet makes life easier, sure, but has also destroyed plenty in the process. Would you agree?

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We remember the good old stuff because the bad old stuff wasn’t worth remembering. But we see the good and bad new stuff both as it’s happening.

So old stuff is automatically better but only because the bad stuff got throwed away already.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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The good ole days …
Growing up, our home had no A/C during summer.
We had three TV channels: ABC, NBC, and a static filled CBS.
FM was not around. AM was Top 40, Country, EZ Listening or Religious.
Movies. Two theaters, one screen each. One theater was constantly shut down for showing after-hours porn.
Internet? Are you kidding?
The military filled ranks with a draft.
At night, the overhead clouds often turned bright orange as molten iron slag was dumped into the river.
To earn enough money to enroll in college, I worked the coal fields. Strip-mining. I worked with the explosives crew, where we blew the tops off mountains to access the vein of coal.
Black lung? What’s that? Most everyone smoked 3 packs a day, anyway.
When we went on picnics, we always brought Jarts. The most lethal toys ever. Banned now.
It was what is was, certainly not golden.
Nobody knew what tomorrow would bring.
Still that way.

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Age of the person commenting would make this discussion a lot more honest. People in their 20s and 30s aren’t going to be able to speak to the question in an informed manner. Until you’ve passed through time, you won’t understand it. You just can’t. No amount of reading, studying, researching, interviews, etc is going to change that. Until 40 or 50 years have passed, you can’t even begin to comprehend what the good old days even are or how much your world will have changed.

To me, someone who has been around for many decades, nearly everything is better now. Cars, motorcycles, technology, healthcare/medicine/medical, communications, home entertainment, food safety, air quality, water quality, workplace environments & safety, and many others I’m probably forgetting.

The only thing better 40 years ago was the amount of time I had left in the journey.

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Anchorhead said:

Age of the person commenting would make this discussion a lot more honest. People in their 20s and 30s aren’t going to be able to speak to the question in an informed manner. Until you’ve passed through time, you won’t understand it. You just can’t. No amount of reading, studying, researching, interviews, etc is going to change that. Until 40 or 50 years have passed, you can’t even begin to comprehend what the good old days even are or how much your world will have changed.

To me, someone who has been around for many decades, nearly everything is better now. Cars, motorcycles, technology, healthcare/medicine/medical, communications, home entertainment, food safety, air quality, water quality, workplace environments & safety, and many others I’m probably forgetting.

The only thing better 40 years ago was the amount of time I had left in the journey.

And yet, if you believe the surveys over the past 20 years, people are less happy these days. Most of the stuff you mentioned above are simply related to technological improvements; very ironic given the fact that most of us on this website vastly prefer Star Wars from “the good old days” to the new Star Wars stuff.

You still remain an awesome dude Anchorhead.

“It is only through interaction, through decision and choice, through confrontation, physical or mental, that the Force can grow within you.”
-Kreia, Jedi Master and Sith Lord

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Hal 9000 said:

We remember the good old stuff because the bad old stuff wasn’t worth remembering. But we see the good and bad new stuff both as it’s happening.

So old stuff is automatically better but only because the bad stuff got throwed away already.

I think you hit the nail on the head. It’s exactly the same reason why old music seems so much better. The old movies you watch are just the best stuff at the time it was made. Sure, the old days got Star Wars, but also got crap like Slapstick of Another Kind and forgettable experiments like Modern Problems.

Now, I prefer the aesthetic of older movies (mainly pre-1985), but that’s just a preference and doesn’t say anything objective.

Another reason could be the shift in style of films. Everything changes, and so does film, and so it’s also likely your inner misoneist judging new movies.

Also, the MCU stands for Milked Cow Udder.

When’s something gonna happen?

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I think the Angry Video Game Nerd has the best explanation for this subject! Be warned, though. The clip contains a few naughty words, but is worth watching outside of work hours:

https://youtu.be/-XtToNPFU1E?t=23m20s

I have altered Lucas’ visions. Pray I don’t alter them any further.

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I still have a fondness for bad movies.
Not films that are deliberately trying to be bad (eg: Troma).
Films that are honestly trying to be good, such as Ed Wood’s output.
Or Lifeforce! Sheer awesomeness.
Bad cinema I can enjoy, but bad television - no.

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It depends on what it is but there are general trends in a lot of things that do get better or worse over time. For example, now is actually the best time to watch any of the movies from the past because we have much bigger TVs, screens, better sound systems, better physical media, streaming, etc. But the movies themselves could have only been made in their own time, which can’t be replicated.