Oviya Ravi Week 7; The American Hallmark Christmas Movie
One thing about me is that I love a good, cringey, Hallmark Christmas movie. I'm aware that they are usually not the greatest pieces of film but you can catch me watching these movies year-round.
What always surprises me is how similar these movies always are. A lot of them start off with one of the lead characters in a bustling city like New York City who has some desperate need to go to a more rural city in the countryside. They discover small town life and understand the importance of having people close to them. They are able to take a step back from solely thinking about wealth and success.
There is a recurring theme of people “finding themselves” when they finally take a step back from the fast pace of big city life and are able to truly get in touch with themselves and the people around them. They learn about who they are and where they come from and they always end up happier after the life changing experience of visiting a small, rural town.
These movies are built off ideals of tight-knit communities where everyone knows each other and is looking out for each other. In a way, these movies reflect the ideals that many Americans have.
The picturesque suburban life of white picket fences and bringing food over to your neighbor’s house wherever there are leftovers is not a reality that most people experience. Today’s culture in America is much more individualistic with a greater emphasis on having successful careers and being wealthy. There is a desire that exists to go back to days when community and family life was the biggest priority everyone had.
One of the biggest selling points of classic Christmas movies is the comfort in a world where true relationships are being built and finances are not taking over a person’s mind. It reminds all of us in this country to take a step back from the monotony of everyday life and think about how we can build such picturesque communities with what we have. If there is one thing our country needs right now, it is to be more connected with the people around us, uniting us to fight the immense hatred that seems to be spreading; Hallmark movies (no matter how terrible the plot or the acting may be) may just be the trick to reminding us of that.
https://slate.com/arts/2017/12/hallmarks-21-movie-christmas-countdown-reviewed.html
Oviya, I love this. And although not Hallmark, just yesterday I watched Home Alone 2. It is definitely one of my comfort movies and I've never failed to laugh at Harry's and Marv's ridiculous outcomes and approaches to Kevin's traps. I also find it interesting you mentioned New York—not only because Home Alone 2 features New York but because I also chose to center my blog this week around New York. I find it especially interesting how you mentioned the characters "step[ping] back from the fast pace" of life, as I think that parallels what we do when we watch such movies. We find ourselves absorbed and so engrossed in the film that we forget what is actually going on in our lives; I find that highkey beautiful and love that cinematography is able to have this effect, but I digress as that is a topic I would ramble on for hours about. I also love the fact you mentioned "community" in your blog, and more specifically the DREAM of neighbors leftovers. On a more serious note, the whole paragraph pertaining to success and getting wealthy is so real; it made me reflect as I'm seeing how true it is. Community in general is such a prioritized value of mine and this part of your blog seriously has me thinking how I am going to do my part in creating more community. Another part of your blog that like (I'm not even trolling) deeply resonated with me was the "If there is one thing our country needs right now, it is to be more connected with the people around us, uniting us to fight the immense hatred that seems to be spreading" line. I'm not exactly sure how, but it just made me feel some sort of way to be a kinder human being, and talk and trully connect with more people. Overall and finally, I just wanted to say I truly loved this read, and loved how you connected a topic like movies to something so impactful.
ReplyDeleteI found your inclusion of the debate between individualism and collectivism really interesting—especially because I’ve come across a lot of people arguing that this is an East vs. West issue, rather than an America back then vs. America today issue. The source of this discourse comes from a lot of American immigrants from non-European countries expressing their frustration with American therapists advising them to cut off ties with families plagued with generational baggage. Many people believe that the source of this comes from non-European cultures often being deeply communal and placing emphasis on families making sacrifices to work together as a unit—for example, in many Indian homes, talking to your friends about problems in your family is considered not only a taboo, but a serious breach of trust. To a European, whose cultural philosophy has historically been shaped by humanism (appreciation of human individuals), this sounds much less serious and more like forming support networks outside of your home to help you sort through your feelings about your family. Both perspectives have merit; while one considers the feelings of other people, the other prioritizes being able to deal with your own feelings. Religion also plays a role in this: while non-European countries often consider religion and spirituality as a central component of their life, Europeans have had higher rates of questioning and even renouncing religion since the European Scientific Revolution.
ReplyDeleteIn my personal experience as an Asian, collectivism has its advantages: it allows for the formation of strong family units and helps people remain connected to their heritage and culture. It also has its disadvantages: excessive reliance on one’s family and an inability to form social networks outside of preestablished genetic or legal bonds can severely limit someone from developing full agency as a person and may make them overdependent on their family—as well as increasing the risk of passing on generational trauma. Conversely, individualism has its advantages: it helps people develop a sense of identity on their own, making each and every person unique and confident in themselves, and it ensures a sense of independence and resilience despite any situation that life throws at them. Yet, it can be a negative force by potentially estranging people from their families and communities, isolating them from potential ways to work through their thoughts and emotions.
Overall, I think a good balance is best to reap the benefits of both and avoid the drawbacks as much as possible. While I’ve never watched a Hallmark Christmas movie as far as I can remember (gasp, I know), your description of them seems to fit that balance pretty well, with a person living an individualistic lifestyle finding comfort in the collectivism characteristic of rural and suburban America. Maybe I’ll try watching one this year!
The repetitiveness of Hallmark movies is often presented as a flaw due to uncreative writers, so the new viewpoint of this repeated plot due to the key message staying the same is quite new and refreshing! The concept that the communities that these characters in Hallmark movies symbolize the American Ideal is a new point that is really interesting! To me, I’ve never thought of how lots of American movies tend to portray close-knit communities as the best places to be, so this presentation of how this reflects the American Dream really blew my mind, and I will definitely end up thinking about this the next time I watch a movie.
ReplyDeleteYour point of how lots of classic Christmas movies tend to focus on the building of close communities and how this commonality connects to the popularity of such movies makes so much sense! The transition from discussing the connections between traditional Christmas movies into how we need to do such things in our own lives, create close communities and work together to fight current issues is really smooth, and it help your end sentence about Hallmark movies being the key to unifying us hit harder.