Can kids hang out in Suburbia anymore? - SubUrbia (1997) Discussion

[–] DevonChaos 17 years ago

Like 12 years ago, my friends and I hung out in random places around town. We'd get shoo'd away, and go somewhere else. Eventually people changed, and just 'hanging out' wasn't cool anymore.

Vice, Virtue. It's best not to be too moral. You cheat yourself out of too much *life*.

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[–] Lupin003 17 years ago

When I first saw this film in theatres, it was 1998 and I was living as an international student in London.

It was the first thing since I had moved there that made me wish I was back home.

I did plenty of "hanging out" at local 7-11's and the local "Mall" ... now, as a 30-something, while I no longer spend my evenings and weekends "hanging out" in theses places, I absolutely still see a new generation of teens doing just that.

And just as we were "shooed away" as a "nusiance" by the cops, they often do too.

I don't think that "hanging out" will ever cease in a commercial culture such as ours.

It's really sad that a great movie, as well as a great adaptation of a great play like this hasn't seen the light of day on DVD. Almost everybody involved has seen work since ... so it's not like there's no money to be made JUST in fans of "Parker Posey" or "Giovani Ribisi" ...

... sad really.

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[–] Killingforcompany 17 years ago

Actually, I think that things are far worse nowadays for teens... meaning, that whatever alienating environment teens grew up in during the 90's... things are far worse now with the internet and everything. Statistics show that socialization amongst Americans is going down and that people are in fact becoming more and more isolated with each new generation. Hanging out at the mall was at least something; nowadays kids sit in front of the X-box and the internet for long durations instead of socializing with their peers.

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[–] chbeebe 17 years ago

totally agreed. i, myself am guilty of this. i find myself more and more avoiding areas with crowds and sometimes going out at all. its not that i have a distaste towards people, its more along the lines of a comfort zone in my own apartment doing activities by myself that i know will be a positive experience in my own eyes.

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[–] violachild2002 17 years ago

Mmm. we hang out in Myspace now.

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[–] Danzence 17 years ago

who needs socialising when you got the internet :p

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[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Killingforcompany 17 years ago

^

Good point. I think kids are a lot more detached these days. Sitting still isn't even the case and we're always being stimulated by something -- whether it's television, cellphones, the computer, videogames, ect. If Suburbia was remade for today's day and age, then they would all be hanging out on the computer in their parent's basement instead of at the convenience store.

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[–] BbaySMH 15 years ago

Nah, it's pretty much the same in my real life as it is in the movie, though that's kinda depressing, lol. Half the cops are ex-classmates and ya tend to get to know the people working in the stores while hanging out there, so ya never get told to move along. As terrible as it sounds, I couldn't explain my life better then the synopsis of "SubUrbia", that is how most nights are spent. Really the only difference is us having cell phones (pay phones are pretty much extinct in this town). Sure people use the internet, but more when ur alone. When your hanging out with people, we tend to not huddle over a laptop inside, so not sure about that "basement scenario" (sounds more like the "We didn't get invited to prom" meets "Skipped school to see Episode 1" group).

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[–] MonteCarloMan 15 years ago

In the early 90s we would all meet up at a local park after hours until it would get noisy as more people would show up that a neighbor would ultimately complain and a sheriff deputy would drop by in the early morning to kick us out...the point being is that this was before internet social networks came about and it was actually boring to hang inside the house alone on a typical weekend with only TV to entertain us...you would get your networking done through word of mouth meeting up with people. Now that im 30-something and everyone my age has moved on with their lives, the irony of "staying in" has finally happened to me. With the internet, networking is at my fingertips literally right from home and i find myself cooped up for hours longer than i otherwise would be catching up on the latest gossip on facebook when it used to be done with those same friends long ago at the neighborhood park.

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[–] violachild2002 14 years ago

Kids huddling over a laptop. Is more depressing than hanging on a corner. My nephew hardly ever comes out of his bedroom. How are they going to handle adulthood.

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[–] violachild2002 14 years ago

Kids huddling over a laptop. Is more depressing than hanging on a corner. My nephew hardly ever comes out of his bedroom. How are they going to handle adulthood.

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[–] sly_feline 14 years ago

Huddled over their computers at work

Why does Andrew get to get up? If he get's up we'll all get up! It'll be anarchy!

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[–] violachild2002 14 years ago

In their old age, stooped over a computer.

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[–] SparklingLily 14 years ago

Yeah, but it's not the same. Now instead of socializing all they do is text and tweet each other even though they are standing RIGHT NEXT to the person.

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