Let’s All Boycott Carrie Bradshaw
Five months ago, I moved to New York City and like anyone coming here for the first time I had a number of expectations about what the city would be like. With New York as the setting for thousands of books, TV shows and films, it was hard not to have a pre-conceived notion of my soon-to-be Sex and the City-esque life. But now that I am in New York, the living, breathing, reality of the city, the fantasy has been disrupted by reality. New York is not the glamorous world portrayed in Sex and the City. In fact, New York City is not anything like what it’s like in the movies. I’ll never trust a line written by Carrie Bradshaw again.
Setting a story in a real-world location like New York may seem like a good way for TV and filmmakers to add credibility to their stories and characters, and make them appear more authentic. However, if viewers suddenly recognize the flaws in their portrayal of these real-world locations, it becomes difficult for them to suspend their disbelief when watching a TV show or film. This gives rise to the question: does an unrealistic portrayal of a city or other real-world location undermine the meaning of the story?
I think the best answer to this question depends on the context, for the true impact of set on story depends upon the story itself and how the characters operate within it. For example, in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, a comedy series about a happy-go-lucky kidnap escapee, we see a highly unrealistic depiction of New York City which would cause any audience to doubt the authenticity of Kimmy’s tale. However, the bright color palette of the set can be justified by Kimmy’s warped perception of reality and as we viewers are constantly reminded that it is Kimmy’s perception of reality we are receiving, not the truth, the set becomes an extension of Kimmy’s characterization rather than a representation of the real New York City. Thus, the unreality of the set works to the story’s advantage for we are given a reason to accept its unreality.
By contrast, shows like Master of None (A.K.A. Aziz Ansari walks around the Lower East Side and makes us think about life) try a little too hard to be true to New York in their depiction of the city, leaving its failures to accurately portray the city open to criticism. As a result audiences are led to accuse the show creators that an actor like Dev could not afford an apartment that size, let alone be able to live in Manhattan. This is a problem for the show because it undermines Dev as a character and makes his story less believable as a result. This is especially problematic as one of the key aims of Master of None is to engage its audience on a deeper level and ask them to think about the broader aspects of the life. If the audience doesn’t take the set seriously, this sends a message that the show creators don’t really know what New York life is like, and this undermines the more serious message of the show. Therefore these two examples indicate that setting does matter — how a storyteller uses it can make or break a tale.
One thing that can be said in favor of both Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Master of None is that both shows acknowledge the importance of setting, even if they do not always strike the right balance between fact and fiction. However, the majority of TV shows and films do not attempt to address the relationship between the real world and the fictional, and when these stories are set in real locations like New York and L.A. this is often to their detriment.
In an increasingly media-savvy world with an increasingly well-traveled audience, the role of set and city should not be overlooked as an important factor in the creation of a story. This is especially true when a story is set in a place like New York where a phenomenal amount of people live, work and travel to every day. Given that New York is everywhere, and so many versions of New York exist in the media, now that I have lived here my relationship with the media is forever changed, for I will spend the rest of my life noticing the flaws in the fantasy. For me at least, as an active media consumer and critic, this brings a level of enjoyment to my living in the city that I never expected. Watching how TV and filmmakers traverse the lines between fantasy and reality is something that adds depth to my experience as a viewer and makes me rethink the way in which I watch and consume media.
Looking forward, media-based storytellers will need to find more sophisticated ways to justify their use of setting and the mistakes (or lack of) they make in their portrayal of real-world locations as their audience also grows more sophisticated. Whether or not they succeed in this will be up to us, the viewers, to judge.
This blog was originally published at www.carolinemcevoy.wordpress.com.
