damn, all those actors and actresses are not as good looking as I thought.

Hmm, usually I agree with you Julie. But I have to not on this point. I prefer perfect films (physically speaking) that look as close to real world as possible. And the same for my HDTV. Most films do not require such suspension of belief that grass is better grainy. Wizard of Oz, Willy Wonka, CTHD, stuff like that, ok, but that is the point of those fantasy films. And if there is an attempt like in your Citizen Kane comment to look like an older film that was not as high quality as today, that's great for an artistic choice. But if I'm watching something more realistic, say Bourne Identity that's on CBS tonight, I WANT it to look just like I'm looking out my window. Regardless of the original recording format.

I do still prefer film sources, though. But also for the opposite reason, HD video looks too video-y, less real to me. It's the colors. My Foveon/Sigma digital camera is the only digital I find that begins to match film's reality in colors. It'd be awesome if they could make a video version.

That's not what the author is getting at though. The show he uses as an example, The Sopranos, is shot on Super 35, and was a show he was fine with watching in regular NTSC. It's the increase in detail that he finds unsettling, not the method of capture.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0141842/technical

I think most people in this thread agree with the author that HDTV offers a more detailed, and thus more immersive and "realistic." The point of contention is whether or not this is a bad thing. The author seems to think so because he theorizes that the increased detail and more immersive experience will make it near impossible to distinguish between reality and the "hyperreality" of HDTV. That is where I disagree; I don't think anyone has been duped into thinking that the Sopranos is suddenly "real" because of an increase in image detail, or that they're no longer able to make the disconnect between the symbolism of fiction and the real world.

This may be similar to what Josh Hinkle has said about video games. He has said he prefers that games and their graphics are not too realistic because he looks at games as a means to escape real life in a fantasy world. When games look too realistic and play too realistically, it doesn't give him that detachment from reality that he wants in a game.

This guy would probably turn down front row seats on the 1st base line so he can sit in the bleachers and get the "real fan experience."