New High Fidelity series trailer

I was excited for it but it looks to me like too much focus on relationships and not enough on the record shop.

 

I read and enjoyed the book nearly thirty years ago, I had reservations when the film came out, but ended up enjoying it, have watched it three or four times and would happily watch it again, I had reservations about the new series and some were based on changing Rob's gender as it's not like rebooting things with female leads has a great track record, but I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing, yes I have small quibbles, but the cast are great, the filming very good, the music selection is excellent and the locations are pretty good, I'm looking forward to another season.

 

Well, then, she’s a lucky lady to be able to afford about 5K sq ft of rental property in Brooklyn (apt + store).

 

Don't forget two staff, I think she'd struggle to afford the rent, rates (taxes), staff costs here, let alone in New York, but I think you have to allow them some leeway, also did you see how little she offered her brother for his records, NWA, Funkadelic, etc, that was a good crate and she offered $30 initially, she's obviously got huge margins on the used stuff.

 

Yeah I think she made the money needed to open that massive store when she would play Smelly Cat working in a coffee shop.

 

I stopped watching midway through episode 2, but I will go back to it based on some of the above recommendations. I joke about the rents but also know there is some creative visual leeway for these types of stories.

Shooting scenes in a cramped studio and small, cluttered one room record store does not make for great TV!

 

Used to live in the Midwest and always loved visiting Chicago most weekends. Was my favorite city at the time. I've lived in Brooklyn for over a dozen years now and there is no comparison. Brooklyn (even a rapidly gentrifying Brooklyn) is light years cooler than Chicago.

About the show, we've watched the first four episodes. Loved the part where she was talking about Fleetwood Mac to the guy in the bar and the part in the store where the woman wanted to buy a Michael Jackson record.

There's just a bit too much wallowing in misery after breakups for me, but I love Zoe and think her co-workers are a lot of fun.

 

Okay, we'll chalk that one up to Stockholm Syndrome then.

I haven't seen any of the episodes yet, but one of the problems with locating the record store in Hipsterland is that very early in the film, Rob mentioned that he deliberately located Championship Vinyl in an area that got very little foot traffic.

 

"Hipsterland" is actually Williamsburg (fading fast though with an influx of strollers) and more recently Bushwick. Crown Heights, where her store is located, is not officially Hipsterland.

 

Worrying about where the store is located is sort of missing the point. Brooklyn, even today, is rich with culture and a variety of types of people. Of course like San Francisco, gentrification has taken over, but both cities still have lots of diverse cultural mix.

With Zoe in the lead role, I think Brooklyn was the perfect choice. Plus the locations are rich and colorful. Who knows, the store could have been in that location for 40 years and she acquired it much later. Not all landlords are greedy scumbags. Some just want a good local tenant.

 

I forgot to mention something that bothered me in the first episode. When Rob was in her apartment and played an LP, it made me cringe the way she handled it.

She pulled it out of the sleeve by grabbing the disc with her thumb and fingers on the grooves, and then held it with both hands on the grooves while putting it on the turntable.

I don't remember if she used a tonearm lifter or just plopped the needle down on the disc. That's something I often see on TV or movies that really bugs me.

 

Burn the witch!

 

I think the minutiae of records such as vinyl handling along with the decks used, a shop would never use that cheap Pioneer, it just wouldn't last, are the things they haven't quite nailed, there is room for improvement in that area.

 

Based upon the interesting conversation here, I decided to keep going, and watched the second episode last night.

One other gear-related point: What is Rob's apartment setup? It looks like maybe an old Marantz receiver with a 'table on top of it! Sacrilege! I haven't noticed any speakers or other gear.

 

Ha, I'd assumed it was some sort of isolation platform, but maybe that's my prejudices coming into play, it does indeed look like an Ikea type table top now you mention it, I'm not a receiver guy, but I'm sure someone on here will know what it is, I didn't notice her speakers either.

 

The receiver is a silver Yamaha.

 

It's the "Friends" syndrome. Fabulously rich TV godz give them these huge NYC spaces that in real life they could never dream of affording.

We watched the first two and my wife likes it so I'm sure I'll see the rest. For years people (including my wife) have been going on about how babelicious Zoë Kravitz is - different strokes, I just don't see it and didn't in Big Little Lies, either. Maybe if she'd crack a smile I'd get it, but scowling is the modern way. I read the book and saw the movie decades ago but have mostly forgotten both. If this were all new rather than a retread I can't see it getting the attention it has on its own merits.

 

I watched it for about 20 minutes - not bad - but not my thing at all. It does not capture the real High Fidelity life.


Living the dream.

 

Many record store workers I’ve met today are not audiophiles and have old vintage gear. And yes I’ve seen them stack Tables on amps. In fact one of the stores I worked in back in the 70s had the table on top of the receiver.

it’s about the music for these folks and pretty spot on of that reality. These folks aren’t Hoffman forum members.
And what’s real High Fidelity life ? It certainly captures the essentials of the film.

 

What’s wrong with putting a turntable on a receiver? Better than the other way around!

 

Same here... I don't find her the least bit attractive... ditto for Lisa Bonet in the original film.

 

I assume it’s mainly a vibration thing. But lots of people have limited space. At our record store there was so much crap behind the counter, all the audio gear was stacked. Receiver, cassette and table on top.

 

Taste and attractions are subjective. I found her and her mother both beautiful and very sexy. Lisa Bonet in Angel Heart. WOW!

 

Totally. I love him the same way I love the clerk character from Kids In the Hall's Doors sketch. I am both amused by him, and yet, I identify with him at the same time. Hell, replace that clerk with me and replace The Doors with Van Halen, it would basically be the same thing, and somehow, that makes it even funnier.

I have no problem with the drama of Rob's personal life, but what attracted me was the love for music that he and his friends had and how it informed their life and his in particular.

 

Yes, Lisa in "Angel Heart" is indeed a wow, and Lisa in general come to that, she's also around my age, unlike Zoe who doesn't really do it for me and I think it's a good thing that a fair number of us aren't so enamoured by her as a Rob that everyone found super attractive wouldn't fit the character and would be somewhat distracting.