Your typical History Channel documentary may present an in-depth expose of J. Edgar Hoover's ongoing attempts to smear Martin Luther King, Jr., or perhaps a more uplifting story of the earnest do-gooder who used the "Superman" radio serial to humiliate the Ku Klux Klan. On Comedy Central's "Drunk History," you can see the exact same stories, re-enacted by performers--often quite famous actors--who are acting out the historical events as described by highly educated narrators--who also happen to be utterly, hopelessly drunk.
Today, on the website Dangerousminds.net, I watched "Star Drunk," a short science-fiction--"film" seems too strong a word, but what the heck--about. . . . Well, honestly, it doesn't matter what it's about. "Star Drunk" arose from an evening get-together among a group of writers, who decided to explore the effects of extreme drunkenness on their creative process. When they completed the screenplay, they decided to film it. . .using all drunk actors.
When did creative types decide that adding drunkenness to everything made it better? Oh, certainly, artistic types have been hitting the sauce since the advent of art--or the advent of sauce, whichever came last. But traditionally alcohol has been a behind-the-scenes handmaiden to artistic production, not a front-and-center component of the finished product (except perhaps in the oeuvre of Dudley Moore or some of your better-known Beats). It's like drunkenness is the new bacon, a tasty condiment sprinkled liberally on any and everything to give it an added salty zing!
One can't help but wonder where this will end? "Dancing with the Drunks"? "Gordon Ramsay's Drunken Kitchen"? "Drinking Game of Thrones"? "Drunk Monday Night Football""? (OK, I would totally watch that one.) And why stop at alcohol? There are any number of ways to spice up standard television fare by adding an innovative degree of difficulty: "The Epileptic Housewives of Staten Island," anyone?
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