Decline of Hollywood and Western Cinema
A combination of factors resulting in a progressive decline in the quality of motion pictures in the western world, in reference to the quality of the story itself, the characters, the acting/directing/talent has resulted in disappointment to discerning audiences.
The financial model is wrong. THIS is what prevents the necessary incentive.
- Incentive to create quality entertainment
- Incentive to avoid unnecessary and offensive political statements
- Incentive to some degree of realism and believably
- Incentive to tell a new and original story
- Incentive to avoid overkill sequels prequels and so called reboots
Why do movies suck? Why do they ignore logic? Why do they insult your intelligence? Let me tell you why.
First, I work in the movie industry in a capacity that has allowed me to work on over a hundred films. I'm a crew member who is involved intimately in story and production. My S.O. is also in the industry and works in the realm of the Studio/Executive producer. So, I have seen first hand exactly how films are made, and more importantly, why films are made.
Second, let me state that I am aware that not all movies suck. I have worked on a film that won the Oscar for Best Picture, so I know that great film-making can be achieved. But why is it so hard?
To get to the answer, one has to understand the true nature of the movie industry. Films are made because deals are made. Deals are the genesis of the whole process. A very few, well connected people, some who have money, some who have powerful ties, some who represent talent, and less frequently, some who have massively bankable talent such as an A-list actors, decide which projects will be made. Let’s call these folks the “Above the above-the-line”. Everybody involved in this initial process will make a fuck-ton of money (except perhaps the investors) and all of this cash is guaranteed, regardless of the outcome of the project. Let that sink in for a minute. Once a film deal is made and a film is green-lit for production, the originators of the deal are going to cash in. What follows makes no practical-business difference to them. Sure it would be nice to have a box office titan but let’s be real; these folks are already rich. Their goal is to make big money, fast. That is what drives the business, not creativity, or a desire to entertain, or to inform, or to make a social statement. Those ideals are championed by the next level down.
Production. First to the trough, are the producers. They head the production companies that actually make movies. Think Castle Rock or Dimension. Some of these are wholly owned by studios and many are not. Each of these companies is headed by a producer and they receive very nice compensation each time they produce a film. They oversee writers, casting, location, budget and lastly, the crew. So next to feed, is what we call “above-the-line”. The writer, director, production designer, composer, and all the credits you see before a film begins. These are the big creative forces. These folks are paid very well and for the most part deserve it. They are almost always extremely talented. The hundreds of other crew members get what’s left in the trough.
Now that you know who’s involved, let’s talk about risk.
Remember that the big fish have already cashed in and they are likely moving on to the next deal and the next big check, so they’re now only slightly concerned with the outcome. The producers must now work with the director and the writers to make the film something “good”. Reputations are on the line and a bad outcome could ruin careers. By outcome, I mean profit first and critical acclaim second. The amount to which each of the above-the-line players will risk angering or challenging the status quo varies but, in general, a production designer, for instance, isn’t going to criticize the material if it means not working, so it is here where they lying starts. The director has likely already concealed their true opinions about the script when they were vying for the job and it isn’t likely that his crew is going to express their critical opinions for fear that they will be kicked out, so everyone begins to ignore the growing number of elephants in the room. Bad writing, stupid logic, tired clichés, poor casting, ridiculous locations... All these things are allowed to grow like a toxic mold. If the material was bad to begin with, it’s going to get worse. If material was brilliant to begin with, expect it to be watered down and compromised. Endless rewrites, overzealous actors with crappy opinions, budgetary constraints, studio notes, test-audience reactions... these can beat the film into a bloody mess and all the while no one wants to risk being seen as critical. Why should they? If the movie makes big box office, they’re seen as brilliant. If it doesn’t, blame the writer. Blame the director (even though everyone played a part in the making of a piece of shit and few if any tried to avoid it). Of course, there are strong-willed directors and producers with the clout to fight off some of this nonsense but we’re talking about most films here. Smaller, independent films can also avoid some of these problems but I’ve seen the lack of criticism alive in every project on which I have worked, regardless of size. Just yesterday I saw a preview of a movie to be released next year and I wanted to set the screen on fire. I was angry and appalled that a film that was so loaded with everything that makes a movie bad, had been allowed to exist. But I know better. I’m not going to change Hollywood with my opinion. I’m not going to help make the movie better with my criticisms. I will simply be expunged from industry from which I make my living.
So when I read the weekly posts on Reddit about movie clichés or movie logic that we hate, I can only take comfort in the fact that I don’t expect a movie to be smart or logical or good. Hollywood is a place where a deal is made by the rich and powerful and the end product is virtually irrelevant. That is why so many movies suck.
Covid Kills: BAD MOVIES 2020-2021
Covid-19 itself can not harm a motion picture, the economy, nor can it kill the majority of healthy people in the United States. This is not a debate on the dangers of the Corona Virus which is no more deadly than some of the worst flu strains and with notable exceptions among the very old and compromised which are at high risk under either circumstance. But when you combine Covid-19 with some powerful science.... political science, then we are all in trouble. Thanks to the government lock-downs, panic, and unnecessary antisocial behavior resulting from political propaganda not only did people everywhere suffer, so did the motion picture industry.
Few movies were being produced during the forced government lock-downs and antisocial climate created by mass hysteria, fear of the invisible bug, and those that were produced were total rubbish. Those films were most predominately awkward as it was impossible to hide the forced "social distancing" among the actors. Television and film production was either made by trying to use camera angle and other techniques to disguise the ridiculous physical space between actors, or even worse, the face-mask and other personal protection germaphobe gear was incorporated into the work.
Either way, no serious film maker wished to proceed with telling a good story of any reasonable production value and quality script while having to work under the personal protection and social distancing mandates for fear of spreading the invisible death bug. Those that did try to make movies either went overseas where they could work in countries with fewer regulations and relaxed restrictions or they just settled for producing complete rubbish.
Consequently, any film produced during the Government Lock-downs of 2020-2021 is most likely not worth a penny and this period of our history is best thought of as a very long and uncomfortable nightmare. Trying to sit though a film produced with actors practicing social distancing or wearing dopey face-masks everywhere they go is like sitting though a root canal procedure without the benefit of general anesthesia. I would not recommend it.
Militant Feminism Makes Movies Miserable
Classical feminism promotes equal rights among genders. Once feminists achieved their goal of obtaining equal rights, their mission evolved into greater representation, thus the manifestation of modern feminism.
Feminists today perceive any and all differences between the genders representative of patriarchy and the consequence of what they believe to be an unjustly male dominant society. So, when the feminists observe television programs and motion pictures depicting common social roles for men and women, they perceive it as being repressed politically. Each feminist feels the need to make a statement by either refusing the role or lobbying the director to allow for some creative changes by the actor to demonstrate strong womanhood.
Modern Feminists tend to be militant feminists, and in complete denial of actual physiological difference between the genders. They proclaim that film and TV of the past portrays men as strong and women as weak. Therefore these feminist women today with power and influence feel it is only fair to represent men as weak and women as strong to make up for the past. It is a revenge ploy deceived in the name of fairness and equality. Most of the celebrities in Hollywood support this version of feminism.
Just like modern liberalism is not truthful and classical liberalism, modern feminism is no longer an honest movement. Once these forces were forces of good and a benefit to the western world. As with all political movements, and activist groups there tends to be a real need and goal for the betterment of society. Once that is achieved, those that have gained power from their position within the movement refuse to let go and push further until inequality is achieved in the opposite direction. The movement becomes corrupt, the mission perverted by power, and the outcome a detriment to society. They start out by doing good, and making things better and then go to far.
The feminists have lost perspective and it is no longer about the lack of realistic representation of women in cinema. Women playing the role of the housewife and the mother are considered repulsive to the feminist, even if the period of the script, location, or culture represented is consistent. Our culture has shifted toward women being able to prioritize their careers and have lives outside of their families, therefore it should be represented as such in contemporary cinema. However, using film and television to further push for a woman dominated society with weak male figures lacking any degree of intelligence and masculinity is not an attempt to accurately portray our world but rather to forcefully influence and change it.
Celebrity actress Emily Blunt has publically stated she is [Sick of Feminism in Hollywood].
