Modern Love

Print journalism is unfortunately a dying cause. The important moments in life have been moved from the page to the screen. Living in a digital era, it is not surprising that the most popular elements of pre-modern times have found space in new technologies. I just finished the mini-series Modern Love on Amazon Prime. Modern Love originated as a weekly column in the “Style” section in The New York Times and is now a book, podcast, and television show. The collection of stories about emotional relationships bring the audience to tears of joy, sorrow, laughter, and compassion. Each narrative is unique and sparks an array of emotions; however, I am left to wonder how the commodification of and the medium in which they are presented has impacted the effectiveness of these stories. The rawness and vulnerability of the words coming directly from the source have an influence on a reader that will not be recreated through an abbreviated, second-hand portrayal on TV. When words move to the screen, there are so many other elements, actors, set pieces, director biases, that diminish the authenticity of the author. That being said, we no longer live in a culture where writing and the newspaper are held in such high regard. People in my generation feed on entertainment which does not require much thought to enjoy. The Modern Love series is enjoyable to watch, yes, but it does not move the audience like reading the unfiltered version from the person who actually experienced the moment.

New York Times columnist, Maureen Ryan described the show as “the TV equivalent of a hand-knit cardigan or an Instagrammable latte; a mood of transitory wistfulness appears to be the goal, not some chest-thumping artistic statement about life”(Ryan, Review: ‘Modern Love’ is Charming but Uneven’). This assessment is especially fitting, coming from someone who writes for the NYT and knows the value of boundless writing. I agree with what Ryan conveys, the show is heartwarming and passes the time, but it does not contribute to a profound change in perspective or behavior of the audience. The show uses big-name stars like Anne Hathaway, Dev Patel, Tina Fey, and Andy Garcia to act out the stories of ordinary people; the normalcy of the characters is overshadowed by striking celebrities. We are seeing the story through character conversations and curated visuals, instead of through the internal dialogue of the writer. The means of transmitting information to the audience is edited by the appearance of the actors, how the directors frame the scenes, and what the producers of the show think will bring in the most revenue. The show holds an aesthetic that may not have been the intention of the author.

The beauty in writing is that the ‘middlemen’ do not hold so much power. The author and the reader are in charge. Each reader visualizes the story in her head. She is responsible for formulating the imagery of the words and that makes the story far more resonant and personal to her own imagination. When someone else is telling us how we are meant to understand the story through television, we lose an intimate connection to the tale, and the experience with the story becomes less meaningful.

It is common knowledge at this point that ‘the book is always better than the movie’. This theme holds true to every screenplay based on a novel that I have watched. Modern Love fits into this generalization. I would probably appraise Modern Love more generously if it were not based on essays from the NYT. However, when it is judged by comparison to the candid and unrefined language, its flaws as more noticeable. It feels obvious to me that the main priority of the creators and the team behind the making of Modern Love is to turn a profit and acquire positive press. When reading the NYT’s section, the author’s sharing comes across as therapeutic. The writer is not looking for fame or praise, but rather hoping to release pent-up emotion and in some way make a lasting impression on the reader.

Ryan, Maureen. “Review: 'Modern Love' Is Charming but Uneven.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 18 Oct. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/10/18/arts/television/modern-love-review.html.