Canadian cities American counterparts

[Gerrard]

Originally Posted by Acajack

It's actually a bit of an inside joke in some parts of the world (mostly non-anglo countries) about how Americans take fine wine (read= a good movie in its original language) and then pour so much Coca-Cola into it so that it doesn't taste at all like wine anymore, yet still pretend it's fine wine they're drinking.

Yes it is, of course. Because, Europeans never ever make the mistake of feeling culturally superior and having preconceived notions about what America is like.

It's a pretty good point though -becoz, so many European and Asian movies come across as bad copies of American movies. The influence is unmistakable and the hilarious thing is, American audiences (and I'll include Canadians in here too) for some reason find them more intellectually honest and different because they come packaged with subtitles and then turn around and remake bad copies of American films into worse American films.

The horror genre is probably the most pillaged of these sorts of movies. Martyrs, Frontieres would not exist without Hostel. The Horde wouldn't have been made without the Dawn of the Dead remake.

I remeber years ago everyone went nutz over La Femme Nikita. I saw it and thought it was a hilariously bad interpretation of any number of American films. But it caught on in N.A. precisely because it was an American film masquerading as a French one.

And what did they do? They made an even crappier remake and 2 stinky t.v. series.

[Gerrard]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I never called anyone worldly or dumb, and I was only replying to this comment by Gerrard:

Now if you were also trying to make the point that English speaking Canada is somehow more culturally rich because it is far more open to and accepting of the cultural output of the continent versus a small region of it, then you'd be correct there as well.

And BTW, I don't necessarily think that one has to be dumb to watch US TV, or that watching US TV makes you dumb. If this were the case, this country (and continent) would be in really big trouble!

For every NCIS, Law and Order and endless reality show crap (okay for every 20), there's a Mad Men, a Sopranos, The Walking Dead, Southland etc.

However, what do the Europeans eat up with a spoon? The Littlest Hobo, Dallas, Friends. The only other country that seems capable of making compelling television drama is Britain.

Frankly, European television is enough to make any expat invest in a satellite.

[freeweed]

Jerry Lewis.

That is all.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by freeweed

Jerry Lewis.

That is all.

Thanks Freeweed. You just won me 20 bucks!

I was discussing this thread with someone at the office and about the turn it was taking, and I said... I betcha someone will bring up the fact that French like Jerry Lewis! Bingo! Ding-ding-ding!

BTW, I must admit my mom likes Jerry Lewis and she is francophone...

[freeweed]

It just adds to the previous comment. I found it the peak of hilarity to see the European contempt towards American pop culture - only to discover that most of the most popular imports are some of the worst things the US has ever produced. It's kinda like how Americans knock the Canadian music scene, and then the biggest Canadian band down there is Nickelback.

America has plenty of good eats, yet I had a Royale With Cheese in Paris. Whether that says more about myself, the US, or Europeans is an exercise left for the reader.

[kw5150]

Calgary = Denver......not Dallas. Denver even has a free fare zone for the LRT in the Downtown area just like Calgary!

Yes, I know Denver's LRT is much smaller but they are expanding rapidly.

[jigglysquishy]

On the topic of Canadian art(film)

Quebec puts out more quality product than the rest of Canada combined. For 2010 they had Incendies, 10 1/2 and Heartbeats. English Canada had Barney's Version and the Trotsky. All are fantastic films and I absolutely love to see Canadian film, but the fact that Los Angelas and New York are right on our door step really hampers the Canadian film industry.

For French films the only options are France and Quebec. English films have the biggest names in film (New York and Los Angelas) as well as the arguable third biggest name, London.

[craner]

I've often wondered if Dallas and Houston have a rivalry similar to Edmonton and Calgary ?
What about Saskatoon and Regina ?

anyone, anyone . . . ?

[Big Sky]

I don't see a problem comparing Toronto to NYC. Sure Toronto itself isn't like NYC, but it's Canada's version of NYC. It's the largest city, it's the banking, financial and media capital of Canada. In that regard it is very much the New York of Canada.

[vid]

If I have learned anything from this thread, it is that Canadians from cities of all sizes are very insecure.

[goldeneyed]

Originally Posted by freeweed

Bay Street/Wall Street. Massive neighbourhoods/boroughs that used to be their own towns and have been absorbed into the borg, yet still retain much of their original identity. Iconic skyline. Home of 2 of the 3 longest Stanley Cup droughts in league history (the fact that Chicago is #2 is not lost on me).

Toronto is so much like NYC it's not even funny.

I'm pretty surprised nobody said Montreal is like NYC. Toronto's similarities to NYC are (financial, media, theatre centres) and Dundas Square/Time Square and the fact that they're both the biggest cities in their respective countries. Both cities and their suburbs look very different from one another. Montreal is more more NYC than Toronto is.

They are the two biggest food capitals (quality, restos/capita, cuisine). Apart for being known for regular things like pizza, hot dogs and poutine, Montreal is known for its bagels and smoked meat, two items NYC is known for as well. They have very similar architecture and cityscapes. Portions of Old Montreal and the financial district look like lower Manhattan. Both are very transit oriented cities with the highest transit riderships. Both have their countries biggest mafias based in them.

Other cool similarities:

- Both are islands and have many bridges
- Staten Island = Laval
- Montreal and NYC are the only two places in NA where you can't make a right on red.
- Central Park and Mount Royal park were both desgined by Olmsted
- 2 languages play an important role in the city (French in Montreal and and Spanish in NYC) apart from english.
- Both are huge party towns with the best nightlife
- Both have the biggest populations of Hassidic Jews
- The two WINNINGEST sports teams in NA, Yankees and Canadiens
- Big cosmopolitan centres with somewhat similar demographics (Jewish, Greek, Italian, Irish, Haitian, Indian, Chinese, Arabic)

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by goldeneyed

I'm pretty surprised nobody said Montreal is like NYC...They have very similar architecture and cityscapes

Nobody has said that...because they're nothing alike. Montreal doesn't look or feel anything like New York, sorry.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Originally Posted by craner

I've often wondered if Dallas and Houston have a rivalry similar to Edmonton and Calgary ?
What about Saskatoon and Regina ?

anyone, anyone . . . ?

People in Saskatoon hate Regina for some reason, not much the other way though

They (Regina) got the Legislature and the Riders

In Saskatchewan that's about all the bragging rights you can have as a city

[dsim249]

Originally Posted by BretttheRiderFan

People in Saskatoon hate Regina for some reason, not much the other way though

They (Regina) got the Legislature and the Riders

In Saskatchewan that's about all the bragging rights you can have as a city

The Riders, sure. But Legislature? Nobody cares about that.

Besides, we have the RiVeR!

[manny_santos]

Having been to both Toronto and New York, I can honestly say Toronto is not Canada's New York. While Toronto is an important financial centre to Canada, New York has a lot more global importance than Toronto. Toronto is a drop in the bucket in comparison.

I would actually say Montreal is Canada's Mexico City. On a trip when I arrived in Mexico City, the first thing that came to mind for me was Montreal - both cities when approaching on the highway at night appear to be an endless expanse of lights, both cities are cosmopolitan, both have a similar Catholic heritage, and both played a major role in the early history of their respective countries. Both are also major cultural forces in their respective countries.

I have never been to Paris so I can't comment on its similarities to Montreal.

[Ramako]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

Having been to both Toronto and New York, I can honestly say Toronto is not Canada's New York. While Toronto is an important financial centre to Canada, New York has a lot more global importance than Toronto. Toronto is a drop in the bucket in comparison.

I don't think you understand what "Canada's New York" means. It doesn't mean that Toronto is equivalent to New York in terms of global importance. It means that Toronto is to Canada what New York is to the United States.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Originally Posted by Ramako

I don't think you understand what "Canada's New York" means. It doesn't mean that Toronto is equivalent to New York in terms of global importance. It means that Toronto is to Canada what New York is to the United States.

No shit

I hate how so many people relate these things on literal scales

[goldeneyed]

Originally Posted by MonkeyRonin

Nobody has said that...because they're nothing alike. Montreal doesn't look or feel anything like New York, sorry.

Oh oh...I'm convinced. Great counter argument...

Montreal feels and looks like New York on and its own, but much more so than any other Canadian city. Instead of simply saying the opposite of what I said, please explain your reasoning like I did.

[manny_santos]

As a point of comparison between Toronto and New York, the Toronto CMA has 17% of Canada's population - about 1 in 6 Canadians. In contrast, New York only has 6% of the U.S. population, or about 1 in 16 Americans. Toronto is very powerful on a national scale.

Toronto's importance on a national scale in Canada might be comparable to Mexico City, whose metro area contains 19% of Mexico's population (1 in 5).

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by goldeneyed

Oh oh...I'm convinced. Great counter argument...

Montreal feels and looks like New York on and its own, but much more so than any other Canadian city. Instead of simply saying the opposite of what I said, please explain your reasoning like I did.

Have you actually been to New York? Because the architecture and built form of Manhattan bear little resemblance to Montreal outside of a few blocks (of course, there are also a few blocks in Toronto, Vancouver, and Winnipeg that look like something out of it, but not much). Granted, there is some resemblance to Brooklyn what with the stone rowhouses and all, though, if that would be enough to make the cities "similar", then Toronto must be just like London because of the Victorian rowhouses/semis we have all over that they have in some areas. But that obviously isn't the case.

Otherwise, the other similarities you pointed out are either incredibly superficial or blatantely false.

Of course there are a few ways in which the cities can feel similar, but to say that Montreal is actually similar to NYC is as much of a stretch as saying Toronto is like NYC (which has seemed to cause quite a stir in this thread).