Do you like media with a strong political message?

I started reading a new book a couple days ago, and while it's fairly decent, it's got a really heavy-handed political message and it's kind of turning me off. I've run into the same thing with some movies (cough, elysium, cough). I'm not necessarily talking about things that are written specifically as political commentary.

How do other people feel about it? Do you get irritated when movies/tv shows/books have a heavy-handed political message, or are you okay with it? Does it matter whether the message agrees with your personal political views or not?

It irritates the hell out of me. I don't want the author of something that I am reading or watching for leisure, trying to persuade me about politics (or religion, unless it's a religious book).

The movie I turned OFF was "In Time," because it BEAT. YOU. OVER. THE. HEAD.

molten_dragon said:

How do other people feel about it? Do you get irritated when movies/tv shows/books have a heavy-handed political message, or are you okay with it? Does it matter whether the message agrees with your personal political views or not?

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Kinda depends what I'm watching/reading. But most of the time no, it doesn't belong.

molten_dragon said:

I started reading a new book a couple days ago, and while it's fairly decent, it's got a really heavy-handed political message and it's kind of turning me off. I've run into the same thing with some movies (cough, elysium, cough). I'm not necessarily talking about things that are written specifically as political commentary.

How do other people feel about it? Do you get irritated when movies/tv shows/books have a heavy-handed political message, or are you okay with it? Does it matter whether the message agrees with your personal political views or not?

Click to expand...

No, I view movies and TV shows as entertainment. If I like the show or movie I watch it regardless whether or not it has a political message. I was an original star trek fan, kirk, bones, spock, uhura, etc and that original series addressed the problems of the 60's and I love it. What I do not like is to go see a movie like Nixon, JFK etc. and see how far off they are from the real life of the person supposedly the movie is about. I suppose I should stick to docu's when the movie is about a person which I do now. But no, I view these things as entertainment, nothing more, nothing less.

molten_dragon said:

I started reading a new book a couple days ago, and while it's fairly decent, it's got a really heavy-handed political message and it's kind of turning me off. I've run into the same thing with some movies (cough, elysium, cough). I'm not necessarily talking about things that are written specifically as political commentary.

How do other people feel about it? Do you get irritated when movies/tv shows/books have a heavy-handed political message, or are you okay with it? Does it matter whether the message agrees with your personal political views or not?

Click to expand...

On a similar note ..

.. When a Hollywood actor uses the microphone placed in front of him, a mike he earned only because of his acting profession, to then speak about politics, I do not like that at all.

That's abuse of the media.

That the media allows/encourages that behavior for a quick and easy "story" is doubly disgusting, which underscores that most of media are really just entertainment tabloids, not of the quality of "the press" alluded to in the constitution.

I dislike rabble-rousers in general, and Hollywood types are the worst of the bunch, no matter what their message.

Some tales, like Jean Auel's Earth's childrens series, have a heavy dose of politics/religion in them but are still very good books. Even though her books are heavy on the feminism, inclluding God as being the Earth Mother, they are well written and entertaining.

Some books, that get on my nerves more, are those filled with minute technical details, like Tom Clancy's tales. I don't need to know all that crap (even though it is often quite accurate and informatiive) to get the gist of the story.

Other books, like the Steven King and Peter Straub's tome ]The Talisman, are so overwritten and crammed with detailed side adventures that the works bloat to over 600 pages making them a hard read - but I would love to see that made into a movie.