A remarkable short story by Henry James in which a husband and wife, fallen from their social class and finding themselves utterly useless, resort to modeling for an artist. As former members of the nobility they believe they are (obviously) the perfect choice for any painting which deals with that subject. Because, after all, they are the Real Thing. However, after making an honest attempt, the artist realizes he prefers a scruffy Italian and a "freckled cockney" named Miss Churm to the Real Thing. In trying to paint the Real Thing he found he had produced dismal crap instead of art.
So it is with the movie & the video game. At the outset of each, the medium was held in check by technological limitations, and as a direct result these early days were in my opinion the most fruitful artistically. But as soon as technology caught up to art, it became possible to merely imitate reality through the medium. Ever better imitations then became a permanent obsession.
Posted by Alan at March 7, 2004 07:45 PM