The Horrors of “Intervention”

Kind of off topic here folks, but what’s the deal with that Intervention show? It’s got to be the most depressing thing on Television today. They even show two episodes back to back so you get as much prime time misery as possible.

In case you’ve never seen it, each week a lucky Drug addict gets the chance for an all expense paid vacation to Rehab. We get the joyous opportunity to see the pain and anguish of the Drug addict’s family as well as lots of drugs being injected, eaten, swallowed, smoked and inserted. Even episodes that end with the addict going for help and getting clean always have that disclaimer at the end saying “36 minutes after leaving Rehab, Billy Bob was selling hand jobs for hits of Nyquil.”

I’m no psychologist, but is it really in anyone’s best interest to air this on TV? Shouldn’t an intervention be, oh I don’t know, a little more private or something? Hell, I don’t even like people knowing when I have to go Number Two, let alone if I was stealing from the Salvation Army to feed my motor oil habit.

Last week’s episode takes the cake for disturbing the crap out of me. A young woman was addicted to some kind of computer cleaner. Every 30 seconds she’s taking a freakin’ suck off an aerosol spray can! I’ve seen some pretty disturbing imagery in my time (the rape scene in  Deliverance, real animal slaughter in Cannibal Holocaust, trailers for Wayans Brothers’ movies) but that episode of Intervention takes the cake. So why the hell did I watch it? My girlfriend, who is clearly a sadist, made me! I guess it’s payback for telling her I spit On Your Grave was a Romantic comedy.

I think most Reality TV Shows are A) complete nonsense and B) completely staged. The cast of the Hills deserve SAG membership for crying out loud. Anyone that thinks the vomit MTV broadcasts is in any way “reality” has about as much brains as Ryan Seacrest has talent. Unfortunately, Intervention is the one Reality show that appears all to real. Sure, it still has the suspect editing and music cues, but that just makes it more slimy. I can imagine some Scumbag producer saying:

“The scene where the mother sells her kids to Michael Jackson so she can buy more heroin isn’t quite tragic enough… we better add in a baby photo montage.”

Listen, I hope nothing but the best for the people that appear on the show. Hopefully they get well and things turn around for them. I just think their being exploited (and not in the good porno way).

The producers of the show probably say Intervention is educational, provides an important public service, and that the show is helping people. I have to wonder; if it was their son or daughter hooked on crack, would they still feel the best way to help them was with TV cameras?

Pseudo Review: Diary of the Dead

What if Barbara, Ben, and the rest of the gang from Night of the Living Dead had had a digital camera and internet access at the old farmhouse? That’s the basic premise of George Romero’s newest Zombie opus, Diary of the Dead.This “sort of” of prequel to Romero’s Dead series takes place during the first night of the Zombie outbreak, yet the events that unfold clearly take place during present day. A Student film crew is shooting a horror film when news breaks of “the recently deceased rising from the dead.” Creed, one of the film students, decides these events must be documented for the sake of history and takes it upon himself to film the ensuing carnage. The movie is presented as if it were an actual documentary (shockumentary?) from the footage recorded that fateful night.

In some ways, Diary critiques our “Gotcha” culture that has manifested in this new digital age. Every 12 year old with a digital camera has the means to record someone engaged in all type of embarrassing activity. Look at the ridiculous amount of time the so called “legitimate” news agencies spend on Britney Spears whenever she’s caught in the act of some sort of social faux pas. Does everything need to be news? Do we need footage of every car wreck, tragedy and scandal? At times, Creed is more concerned w/ taping Zombie attacks than actually helping the victims. This doesn’t always show him in a positive light. Of course, if there really were a Zombie outbreak, we’d all want to see this footage regardless of the murky morality that lead to its recording.

On the other hand, Romero is also saying that since “legitimate” news agencies are more concerned with “Spin” and regurgitating whatever message the government wants us to hear, the only way to get the truth is to tape it ourselves and show it to the world. Everything we see on the news has been filtered in some way, be it for ratings or a political slant. You want the real truth? Go to You Tube or some Blog. Just don’t trust CNN and Fox News.

We’ve seen the “actual footage” gimmick used before in Horror, from Cannibal Holocaust to Cloverfield. Where those films used the technique more as a gimmick and to add a certain amount of realism, Diary uses it to actually make a statement about what we watch, what we need to know, and what to believe.

Amidst all this social commentary, we of course have some hot zombie action. Keep in mind, this film takes place at the initial stages of the Zombie outbreak. Compared to Romero’s other Dead films, Diary seems down right subdued. Don’t worry, there are still gore gags and copious amounts of the red stuff, but those expecting the blood bath of previous Zombie films may be disappointed.

The film seems to have divided Horror fans. It’s not perfect by any means but I definitely appreciate what Romero attempts to do. It was a bold decision to deviate from a tried and true formula and do some experimenting. 

Diary is certainly a worthy addition to the Dead series. I know the Zombie sub genre has become watered down in recent years, but as long George Romero is still able to get behind the camera, The Living Dead will continue entertain.