Introduction: What is this World coming to?
Hmmmm... All this time I always thought TV was a harmless little box that entertained us in our households. When I watch TV, I know what is fake and what is real. However, now I know and pretty much everyone else in the world knows this isn't the case. Not by a long shot. Kids burn down their houses and blame it on something they learned by watching "Beavis and Butt-head". Even disclaimers like "don't try this at home" don't stop people from copying what they see on TV.
This report is all about how DRIVING is portrayed in Movies, Television, and in Commercials. Since I know what is real and what isn't, I never really thought about how bad driving shown in the media can change people's driving behaviors in the real world. Seeing how easily some people may be influenced by this has made me grimace with disgust. Almost all driving behaviors in the media is poor in some sort! In this report, I will look into several Television Shows, Movies, and Commercials, to show examples of such bad driving behavior. Later I will try to come up with a rating system of some sort to perhaps make people aware of what is real and what isn't.
To help me in my report, I have read the reports from students from a previous generation, and here are some fine examples of whatKristy Kato, Kristin Subia, and Jenifer Kaneshiro had to say on the topic of good or bad driving in the media. All of them had little to no trouble finding examples of bad driving in the media. Each of them agreed also that the media is of great influence on people and driving, which is a very important thing, is made to be so carefree. As Kristin put it in her summary on her report,"No matter what we watch-- whether it's a movie, cartoon, commercial, or sport - We develop a higher tolerance for bad driving, therefore decreasing the shock value of the consequences." Yikes. With 177 million drivers out there, the last thing we want is for people to be desensitized by the media.
Observations/Analysis and Evaluation:
Tsk Tsk. Bad Driving.
Ah, this was the fun part. Picking things for my observations were easy to obtain, for there were countless scenes simulating bad driving behavior. It's pretty funny, because I never really thought about these TV shows and movies in such fashion.
Obervation:
The first video I saw was "The Rock". It featured a chase scene where Sean Connery was eluding cops in a Hum-V while Nicholas Cage was in pursuit in a yellow Ferrari. They were driving very recklessly, and ran over cars, drove thru windows, and just barely missed hitting pedestrians. They de-railed a cable-car, and it crashed into a pole or something. However, noone was injured, in fact, they made some funny jokes about it. Another funny thing was that Sean Connery was supposedly in jail the past 30 years, but could drive like an expert throughout the streets of San Francisco.
Analysis and Evaluation
Haha there is no way something like this could ever happen. The chaos involved in this scene makes it kind of funny in the sense that there is way too many things happening. And conside who is doing the driving. A guy that has been in jail for 30 years, and a chemical specialist. No way could two people of such backgrounds drive like this in real life. This is pure action/entertainment.
Realism: 1
Action: 1
Influence: 2
Total: 4
Unless a person has no life or something, one shouldn't be tempted to simualate any actions from this movie.
The second video I saw was "The Toxic Avenger" which I saw about 100 times. In this movie these two couples play this game where they score points depending on what they hit with their car. Based on gender and ethnicity, points vary. One night they are driving around and they see this boy on a bicycle. He is supposedly worth a lot of points so Bozo, (The driver's name) turns his car around and hits the boy head on with his car. There is major celebration in the car, but it is cut short as it is noticed the boy is still alive. The boy is like writhing in pain on the ground. Bozo then reverses the car and runs over the boy's head. This is followed by more celebrating in the car.
Analysis and Evaluation
Not be mean, but I laughed throughout the entire sequence. I mean, the movie is in fact a comedy, and it is also low-budget. The scene is really cheesy. A person would be too busy laughing at the obvious dummy used in the scene, not the bad driving. The feet turn the other way on the dummy as it gets hit by the car. Seeing how fake the dummy is makes people laugh and laugh at how fake it is. Not once did I think the bad driving was influencing me. I mean, there are in fact drivers who actually try to intentionally drive over others, but I really feel the humoristic nature of the particular scene makes this non-influential.
Realism: 0
Action: 1
Influence: 0
Total: 1
I don't think road rage activists need to worry about this scene corrupting anyone. By the way, I highly suggest everyone see this movie.
The last video I saw was "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" which I also saw about 100 times. When Ace Ventura recovers a stolen dog from this evil dude, he goes back to his car which stalls on him. Then the guy who Ace stole the dog from chases after him and starts smashing the car with a bat, smashing in all the windows. Ace cracks several jokes then manages to start the car. The evil dude holds on to the car as Ace drives at high speeds. The guy finally loses his grip and goes rolling on the floor as Ace makes a getaway. With the windows smashed in, Ace is seen driving with his head sticking out of the driver's side window, watching the road.
Analysis and Evaluation
Hmmm... When I really think about this scene I realize that hey- this one could actually happen in real life. Also, kids who watch the show could think these acts of poor driving is cool. I've seen people riding on the hoods of cars, and I think they don't realize how dangerous it really is. People may become desensitized by this kind of behavior. It was kind of humorous, but when the dude flew off the car, it wasn't a dummy. It was a real guy. He looked like he was in pain too. Ouch. I remember one time in high school I rode on the hood of a car. I was scared. This movie must have made me do it. hehe. Boy was I dumb back then. A couple times I've seen people driving with their heads sticking out of their windows just like how it was shown in the movie. That Ace Ventura sure can influence people.
Realism: 4
Action: 3.5
Influence: 4
Total: 11.5 yow!
Cartoons
The first cartoon was "Pee-wee's Playhouse" which isn't really a cartoon, but more like a kid's show, so it's appropriate. At the end of each show, Pee-wee is shown riding his moped thru a desert and different backgrounds. He doesn't wear a helmet, and often takes his hands off of the steering wheel and stuff. He is like a role model for kids, and his driving behavior could be a bad influence. Of course what Pee-wee did in real-life made him a REALLY bad inluence. =)
Analysis and Evaluation
Everything on Pee-Wee's show is fake. The moped scene is no different. I suppose maybe his playfulness on the moped might make kids think that mopeds are play things. I may also make kids think that because it is a play thing, one doesn't need a helmet either. I personally highly doubt this, because of its fantasy nature. I mean, the desert background is totally fake. Everyone can tell he isn't REALLY riding his moped. Thus, I hgihly doubt anyone will buy into bad driving behaviors because of it.
Realism: 1
Action: 1
Influence: 3
Total: 5
The second cartoon which displyed bad driving was "Speed Racer", which is this really really old cartoon. It is really cheesy but funny at times. In this scene, Speed (the driver dude) is racing against his foe, nearing the finish line. The other guy tries to cheat by trying to pop Speed's tires with these drills that come out from the side of his car. However, something went wrong and the bad guy goes flying off the road and crashes into a tree. Of course the dude is unhurt, as Speed wins the race. His girlfriend Trixie congratulates him on a job well done and she kisses him as a reward.
Analysis and Evaluation
Realism: 1
Action: 1
Influence: 2
Total: 4
Of course in this cartoon there is a lot of fighting and stuff. There are lots and lots of driving sequences where the two enemies are shooting at each other. The problem is that everytime a car or jeep blows up, the drivers and the passengers are always seen running away from the incident unharmed. There are like NO fatalities on G.I. Joe. Everyone seems to survive no matter what happens to them. It's totally different in real life. hehe go figure.
Analysis and Evaluation
Realism: 2
Action: 2
Influence: 4
Total: 8
Commercials
This commercial talks about today's stop-and-go driving and the harmful effects it has on your engine. What is shown is a busy freeway, all backed up, and instead of people driving cars, the people are all driving drag racers, formula racers, and NASCAR racers. All of which were yellow also. They show a typical woman leering at the car next to her with the intention of "racing" that car next to her. The cars race from streetlight to streetlight, as if everyday driving was like a big race or something.
Analysis and Evaluation
Realism: 2
Action: 3
Influence: 3
Total: 8
In this commercial, the narrarator talks about having no limits, no boundaries. What is shown is a giant blue-collar worker and he is like in control of a city of some sort. He is moving buildings around and he is putting up street signs. He then notices the Isuzu Trooper, which is driving thru his city. The car drives past all the street signs, which upsets the man. Then the giant man chases after the car, trying to destroy it. The giant man trips over something, topples to the ground, and the car makes a getaway.
Analysis and Evaluation
Realism: 1
Action: 3
Influence: 4
Total: 8
It features a regular looking man in a vehicle, and he is driving on a busy street. The narrator says, "Wouldn't it be nice if we could synchonize traffic, eliminate all obstacles, nothing slows you down, even the trains stop for you?" As the narrarator says these things, things open up for the driver, and the world around him stops as he easily makes his way thru traffic.
Analysis and Evaluation
Realism: 3
Action: 4
Influence: 4
Total: 11
Rating: Wake Up to the REAL World, People!
Here is my rating system, made up of three components. The media was judged by me in the following categories...
possible 5 points
0 - No way is this possible in real life. Get real.
5 - It sure CAN happen. I've seen stuff like this happen!
possible 5 points
0 - Scene is clearly fake. Either a parody or something to not be taken seriously.
5 - Close attention to detail, people actually get hurt at appropriate times. Everyting looks real here.
possible 5 points
0 - Not influential at all. No one should be phased my this...
5 - Very influential. Bad habits and behaviors could easily be depicted by viewers.
I say this because for one thing, I know what is real and what is fake on a TV screen or movie screen. Seeing a car chase on TV is not going to make me want to chase anything at high speeds. I didn't even care squat about bad driving on TV until I did this report. Why? Because for one thing, I hardly watch TV, and secondly, I KNOW my limits of what I can and cannot do. So knowing bad driving IS bad driving, it doesn't even phase me or influence me in any way. I hardly ever believe anything on television anyways.
What this report HAS done was help me realize that this bad driving in the media is getting out of hand. Driving is an important issue, just like profanity, nudity, and the like. Thus, something must be done to rate these bad examples. This would lead to a huge debate and all, but I think if something was finally implemented, it would stick. We'd all get used to it. Like being forced to wear seatbelts, we'd grudgingly agree to any new regulation. We'd just get used to it after a while. Then it would be just automatic.
So yeah, bad driving in the media is something I learned much about and it has influenced me by making me more aware of its dangers and its effects on people. The media is a powerful thing. Left unattended, it could ruin people's lives. It's hard to regulate the media, but it's possible. We just have to think of a good way to handle it. Perhaps the ideas from our class could be of use in the future.