Some films are not intended to have historical value. Consider Taymor's _Titus_, in which Titus rides a chariot but Caesar's sons drive cars, jazz and industrial rock abound in a film that mixes ancient Rome with about the past fifteen decades at least. Similarly, _A Knight's Tale_ is an updated adaptation of a Chaucer story, much like Baz Luhrmann's _Romeo and Juliet_. I think if young people try to get history from contemporary art, they are looking in the wrong place and one should not blame the artist. Similarly, it is also Luhrmann who made _Moulin Rouge_. Without updating, it would not seem in the artist's style. I believe this will continue as long as audiences are able to accept such anachronisms. They could not in the 1970s, as _Jesus Christ Superstar_ with its tanks and fighter jets failed to, but more sophisticated audiences seem to be going right along. Scott Andrew Hutchins http://members.home.net/scottandrewh "It's a queer world, and the longer I live in it the queerer I find it. Once I thought it would be a good idea to regulate things myself, and run the world as it ought to be run; but I gave it up long ago. The world's a stage, they say; but the show ain't always amusing, by a long chalk, and sometimes I wish I didn't have a reserved seat."--John Merrick, _Aunt Jane's Nieces_, by L. Frank Baum ----- Original Message ----- From: "Peter Rollins" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2001 10:09 AM Subject: Music in Film: Press Query PLEASE RESPOND TO THIS PRESS QUERY TO THE REPORTER AT HER PHONE OR INTERNET ADDRESS. NEEDS INFO SOOOOON. --Peter Rollins [log in to unmask] ______________________________________________ Two recent films -- A Knight's Tale and Moulin Rouge -- feature modern music used in a period setting. I'm searching for comments regarding this creative license: *Does using modern touches make the story more accessible/enjoyable to a younger crowd? (for example, in A Knight's Tale, the jousting seems more like a modern sporting event with the crowd singing "We Will Rock You" by Queen) *However, does the entertainment value overshadow historical value in the film? Are certain people, such as students, likely to believe the elements which are put in purely for entertainment? *Many classic tales have been updated with both setting and music -- such as many Shakespeare works including Romeo & Juliet, etc. -- but mixing the modern (music) with the old (setting, customs etc.) seems to be a new twist. Is it? *Is this a trend/will it continue? Thanks for your help. Send responses to me via e-mail or you can reach me by phone at (203) 574-3636 ext. 451. Kellie Lambert McGuire Waterbury (CT) Republican-American [log in to unmask] ---- To sign off Screen-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF Screen-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask] ---- Screen-L is sponsored by the Telecommunication & Film Dept., the University of Alabama: http://www.tcf.ua.edu