Out of Character - An Essay on Film & Society
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"Out of Character" - An Essay on Film & Society
Why is it that the spectacle of cinema has been ruined by society? Gone are the days of Ben Hur or Gone With The Wind, Citizen Kane or even Ghandi, when the whole world went to see a movie. We are constantly barraged with a bevy of blockbusters and a smattering of schmaltzy cinema that keep us turning up at the Box Office for a little bit of a release from our every day existence and the chance to believe that good things happen to good people.
Few movies move a nation. Even less motivate a generation. Almost none inspire an entire race. Who is responsible for such an unfortunate turn of events? The studios? The media? The viewer? Or is it an amalgam of the three?
The studios option a 3 picture deal for every idea (I originally prefaced idea with new but most Hollywood ideas are unoriginal these days) that comes their way, and the execs pray to God that the movie makes its budget back in its opening 3-day weekend to justify a sequel atleast before they justify the need to bank-roll or write off a third.
The major studios want to maintain a turnover and even have magic number of films they must turn out a year regardless of their calibre. These films are usually filled up firstly by A-listers in epic adventures (Pirates of the Caribbean) or tent pole romantic comedies (Definitely Maybe) dotted out through the year. Then there are the filler films that are cluttered with
An exception to this rule is Saw. Ano budget movie with minimal locations and one A- list actor (Danny Glover) to garner bums on seats. Thankfully it also possessed an original idea. Saw was a psyche-thriller about a man who doesnt kill his victims but gives them the tools to kill themselves, or live with the pain of survival. The films underdog popularity hit the heart of its teen demographic and its place in the horror genre was cemented. It was even successful enough to spawn a trilogy and its two creators, Â both Australians mind you, had a lot to be proud of, and thankful for.
Their business acumen also prevailed and they creatively walked away at the end of the third film, though the Hollywood beast had well and truly taken control by this stage and what was once the perfect trilogy
turned into the only thing sweeter than a three picture deal ... a franchise! This epic story has been through the ringer of success and a 6th movie premieres this Halloween. To the dismay of even die-hard fans such as myself, a 7th movie is in development and it may meet a straight to DVD release if 6th fails to slaughter the Box Office this year (though with the figures it has been pulling I am not too sure they will put it to bed just yet).
So it is possible to achieve success in a world of low-budget features with little star power to speak of, but these gems are as rare as the creative writing and good casting that allow them to reach such feats.
Media and convergence in technology is killing the box office. Illegal downloads, peer-to-peer file sharing and torrent downloads make it all to easy for those with a decent home theatre to save the $17.50 a ticket at the box office and watch DVD quality movies in their own home and enjoy all the creature comforts that a Gold Class screening would provide ... at a fraction of the price.Â
It is no secret that since the increase in accessibility to such materials people have shunned the cinema, but the cinemas have their own role to play in keeping pace with a shift in attitudes. Sometimes it can be more than a facelift, or new seating, or better surround-sound that is required. A large part is price ...and the lack of competition.
As noted above for a Saturday evening session the average price is about $17.50 a ticket, add a candy bar combo (10.50 approx) for two people and you are $5 shy of the average price for an ADSL2 connection per month, with unlimited downloads (free movies). I can see where the punter is coming from.Â
The large chains are slow to battle in this war, and the only compensation I have noticed is to not bag-search people at he cinema, and generally allow snacks not purchased at the cinema to be taken into a screening, which only saves you about $5-6 anyhow.
Of course there are other ways of enjoying the movie experience on a budget. The infamous cheap Tuesday where you can effectively get a ticket for half price (or near enough) and the Movie Money booklets that allow you to buy tickets in bulk with a saving of up to $7 a ticket.
These Movie Money vouchers are fraught with danger however. Some, you can not use on a New Release movie. Some are only allowed on a Monday- Thurs. Some are not allowed to be used on a Saturday after 5pm, and they all have varying periods of validity.
Such is the criteria for use of these vouchers the movie-goer it almost forced to favour a full priced offering out of desperation ...and I think that is exactly the problem.
We should be encouraged to see a new movie, on a Saturday after 5pm without being over 65 and being left-handed with a newborn baby and not have to be subject to sub-titles to qualify.Â
Much is also being done, albeit slowly, to combat film piracy. The renowned Pirate Bay has been shut down after hopping from one international jurisdiction to another taking advantage of the lack of internet policing wherever the server was hosted. A European gaming conglomerate has now bought the site and will start charging for downloads in the near future.
It is foolish however for Hollywood not to look within for the root cause, as evidentially around awards season, the availability of titles spikes and DVD quality releases are available much faster than during the quiet time of the year. With an ever growing number of Academy members and film critics I am not surprised that these copies find their way online, wether from a disgruntled employee of a studio, a reviewer who wants to abuse his power or a young editing apprentice who wants to impress his facebook friends by showing how easy it is to evade studio security.Â
Once all these factors are removed from the equation the onus is on us, the viewer and audience to decide the fate of a movie. After all, we are what the powerbrokers in suits that write the blank cheques in the plush offices of the major motion picture movie houses use, as their yardstick as to what they will green-light.
If you like the look or sound of a movie, go and see it. It is that simple. A very recent example is the Bradley Cooper vehicle, The Hangover. Directed by relative unknown Todd Phillips. The poster looked like American Pie on steroids, the trailer looked like Dude Wheres My Car? The thought of boxing great Mike Tyson singing a startling rendition of the Phil Collins classic 'In the Air Tonight' sounded cheesey and woeful at best. But I LOVED IT. It was a classic example of word of mouth winning over expensive marketing stratergy and the film as full of unknown actors, one of which turned out to be funnier than Bradley Cooper or Heather Graham. Moral of the story is, even if you dont like the look or sound of a movie, go and see it. Why? Because you just might discover something new fresh and exciting, engaging and memorable. That is what cinema used to be all about. That how Ben Hur made its mark, that is how Ghandi shaped a race, and why Gone With The Wind was so memorable.
If we vote with our feet, the price of tickets will come down, the quality of cinema will get better, all movies will be released on the same day the world over rather than up to six months apart. Not because they studios feel like it but because we demand it from the visionaries that make the pictures sing on the screen.
Alfred Hitchcock coined the term McGuffin to demonstrate  the thing that the audience was never shown, but was always present in a movie. I think I have discovered what my McGuffin is. It is the opportunity to be moved, and inspired to change the face of cinema, from the comfort of Gold Class quality cinema for $7.50 a ticket.
Happy Watching! - CR
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"Few movies move a nation. Even less motivate a generation. Almost none inspire an entire race. Who is responsible for such an unfortunate turn of events? The studios? The media? The viewer? Or is it an amalgam of the three?"
All three. But on a larger scale you can blame capitalism.
"If we vote with our feet, the price of tickets will come down, the quality of cinema will get better, all movies will be released on the same day the world over rather than up to six months apart. Not because they studios feel like it but because we demand it from the visionaries that make the pictures sing on the screen."
Sounds awesome, but once again people are moved by money and so will not vote with their feet, the majority will continue downloading their flicks for free.
Thank God for the thoughtful minority. Articles like this one push the thinkers to action as well. Nicely done CR!