'Spaced' is no doubt one of the most intertextual television shows aired on British tv; starring and written by Simon Pegg and Jessica Hynes who also play the main characters Tim and Daisy. It was directed by Edgar Wright, who has famously directed Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.
Spaced constantly makes references to 'Star Wars' and other cult movies; parodying and satirising as seen in the pictures below. In the show, there are frequent 'fantasy sequences' influenced by the American Television Series 'Northern Exposure'.
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Elements of Strinati's 5...
It challenges the distinction between high art and popular culture, by referencing to science fiction, horror films, comic books, video games and many more and is perhaps a more accurate view on life and culture in the 21st century. There is also a scene early on in the first series where Tim and Daisy meet Brian, a man who lives in the flat below them:
Daisy: What do you do Brian?
Brian: I'm an artist.
Daisy: Oh, Tim's an artist. What kind of thing do you do?
Brian: Anger.
[Shot of Brian attacking the canvas furiously]
Brian: Pain.
[Shot of Brian pricking his finger with a needle and whimpering]
Brian: Fear.
[Shot of Brian cowering in the dark as creepy music plays]
Brian: Aggression.
[Shot of Brian violently smashing an egg with a hammer]
Daisy: Watercolours?
Brian: It's a bit more complex than that.
Daisy: Tim does cartoons.
Tim: It's a bit more complex than that.
Some could argue that it has some aspects of bricolage as it borrows the 'visual language' of genre specific films and this is evident through Wright's style of directing, shot set-up and camerawork.
Strinati says that in modern times, we now make sence of reality with references to media texts, this is definitly evident within 'Spaced' as they reference their lives and situations they face to well known films.
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Baudrillard...
The idea that we live our lives in hyper-reality and connect more deeply to media texts - this is very apparent in 'Spaced' as Tim and Brian are both artists and connect deeply with their different styles.
'Spaced' is self reflexive however unlike '24 Hour Party People' it does not present it directly to the audience it is definitely aiding the audience in being aware of it's construction.
Surrounding culture (London) and the context of it brings normality back into this sitcom, for example when Daisy and Tim go to sign on because one of them loses their job and the other can't get work.
Spaced Jaffa Cakes
Mo Myspace Video
A brilliant 'slacker generation' sitcom. So much similarity to the opening set-up of Shaun of the Dead...
ReplyDeleteClear to see what a pop-culture enthusiast Simon Pegg is.
Great post. Well done.