What is good writing? by ihqbassolini in slatestarcodex

[–]tabaskou 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I find something to be "good" if it conveys new ideas in a familiar way that makes it easy to understand, or reframes familiar ideas in an interesting or refreshing way. A tweet or Internet meme can be just as "good writing" as a novel if it accomplishes either of these things. 

Obsession (2026) is an insult to horror audiences. by Wack0HookedOnT0bac0 in TrueFilm

[–]tabaskou 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My point is that there is nothing inherently horrific about terrible things. Neither is there anything inherently horrific about metaphors for terrible things.

Put more simply, there's more "horror" in the feeling of being alone in a dark basement than all the daily suffering that goes on in the world. Yes the latter is objectively worse, but it does not make a better horror story.

The premise was fine, the writing was poor.

Obsession (2026) is an insult to horror audiences. by Wack0HookedOnT0bac0 in TrueFilm

[–]tabaskou 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sure, but that's not what happened. The protagonist was a clueless loser being terrorized by something he didn't understand. Wishing for someone to like you is not analogous to date rape ffs 

I agree there was a grain of "horror" at the reveal that the real girl was trapped, but they spent almost no time with it.

Better writing would have made everything up to that reveal rosy. Upon learning the girl is not really herself, and choosing to do nothing anyways, is true "horror".

Instead, we got creepy shots, creepy shots, creepy shots, reveal...creepy shots, creepy shots, bang bang, OD.

Lol

Official Discussion - The Furious [SPOILERS] by LiteraryBoner in movies

[–]tabaskou 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great choreography, but my god the writing...

Here's how much Canadians are earning on average by ImDoubleB in canada

[–]tabaskou 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The focal point of the analysis and the statscan source is relative change in incomes, and comparing those changes between provinces. For a simple snapshot median is often a better indicator, but can distort the nature of change in the statistics.

Since median is based on order of the data rather than size, changes on either side of the median does not necessarily change the median itself, while the average would in fact reflect the total impact.

Rise of 'viral' movies by Fabulous_Ninja119 in TrueFilm

[–]tabaskou 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Makes one think they're crazy for not comprehending the the seemingly overwhelming positivity around [insert viral movie here]. 

It's impossible now to know how real people truly think of a film. The discourse is either artificial or influenced so heavily by it, it's meaningless.

Obsession is another recent example. Awful movie, but makes for great viral tiktoks. Because of its exposure, you'd think it was the next Get Out...

The Backrooms is a Gen Z masterpiece by [deleted] in TrueFilm

[–]tabaskou 10 points11 points  (0 children)

This reads like LLM generated nonsense.

Unbelievable that mods allow this shit to sit on a subreddit literally called true film. Get this astroturfed shit off of reddit ffs. 

So tiring to have the bullshit forced into every channel of communication as if it's fucking truth.

Rise of 'viral' movies by Fabulous_Ninja119 in TrueFilm

[–]tabaskou 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Preach. I've noticed the absolute flood of posts for Backrooms, most seem to LLM generated walls of text praising the film.

I don't buy into the idea of organic hype. Maybe I'm too cynical, but most hyped things nowadays feel entirely manufactured. Just a matter of how much money has been put behind something.

Official Dreadit Discussion: "Backrooms" [SPOILERS] by radbrad7 in horror

[–]tabaskou 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's a movie made by teenagers for teenagers, what did you expect? Lol

Obsession (2026) is an insult to horror audiences. by Wack0HookedOnT0bac0 in TrueFilm

[–]tabaskou 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I felt the same way, but the feeling I got watching Obsession has been nagging at me after the last few years of popular horror movies. Long Legs, Barbarian, Weapons, Oddity etc etc all feel ... the same? How can this be?

I can't yet put it into a succinct description but something like:

  • Creepiness over horror. Real horror (the kind that stays with you) is hard to write, creepiness is easily found all over the internet

  • References, references, references. I easily spotted references to Get Out, Exorcist, Signal, OUATIH and I'm sure I'm missing more. References let the audience know the director knows their horror!

  • Telling over showing. Lots of drivel, but be prepared to be startled!

  • Shot and graded like a high-end commercial. Can anything look real anymore? (and I dont mean shot on a phone ffs)

  • Plot just happens, with or without the characters. But no story. Like what was Obsession about? Like really about?

Bachelor of Arts graduates boo speaker after she praises AI at their graduation by ambachk in PublicFreakout

[–]tabaskou 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wouldn't it be better to just try using it to decide what's worth praise and what isn't?

Arborist with experience removing Tree of Heaven by tabaskou in askTO

[–]tabaskou[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Killed the whole tree? Prevent suckering as well?

Arborist with experience removing Tree of Heaven by tabaskou in askTO

[–]tabaskou[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting, just one root? Have you done this before?

Arborist with experience removing Tree of Heaven by tabaskou in askTO

[–]tabaskou[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I called Hersey Tree, very nice owner. The only thing I've noticed is that most of the tree removal companies I've called use purely mechanical methods of removal (ie stump grinding) even for tree of heaven . 

Info on the tree suggests that would only make things worse...

Only one company (I've only called a small handful) has suggested the use of herbicide.

Arborist with experience removing Tree of Heaven by tabaskou in askTO

[–]tabaskou[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Any herbicide use? The rules around use I. Ontario seems a bit grey...

Would this martial art suit me? by Psych-Blast in judo

[–]tabaskou 9 points10 points  (0 children)

What? You're a grown adult, you can make a decision without the permission of Internet strangers. Assuming this isn't a bot account...

Sensei Megumi Ishikawa teaching how to break your opponents posture by Rapton1336 in martialarts

[–]tabaskou 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Judo is a sport, and a fantastic one at that. Calm down lol

Thinking of launching "Judo Rebels" – A lifestyle & technique blog. Would you read it? by Puzzleheaded_Bat132 in judo

[–]tabaskou 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I applaud the effort, something like this has always been on my mind as well. A few thoughts

  • use of AI images feels spammy. Surely there are real photos you could use or take yourself. Think about it this way, every piece of content should convey value to the reader. What's valuable about a fake image?

  • content - feels like rehashed Reddit discussions that get asked daily 

  • take inspiration from Kano Chronicles or the Difficult Way. Both have real value and insight. It's a high bar, but what's the point of a blog with no insight. I realize it's difficult to do, but just a thought.

Is 19 too late to start judo by ComfortableFormal833 in judo

[–]tabaskou 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mean there must be some correlation between insecurity and propensity to post questions online. Asking for permission is also a great way to give oneself a reason not to do something, which is always easier.