In the great internet landscape known as YouTube you get your fair amount of garbage. However you also get stuff like the Critical Drinker who actually offers some good insights.
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I have no idea if this dude ever wrote anything for the screen and frankly I don’t care. Usually that means a great deal to me but in this case? I’ll let it slide. Dude has some insight as to film and I like his vids. Let’s just leave it at that.
Recently he did a piece called, “Why Modern Movies Suck – They’re Written by Children.” Made a lot of sense. Got zero beef with his logic. So, if you were wondering, here ya go. This is a big part of what’s happening in Hollywood.
Modern movies suck for a variety of reasons.
First and foremost, there’s no imagination anymore. The industry trots out endless versions of Batman and Marvel comic heroes. A sure sign the business is on its intellectual deathbed. If you look at some of the great classics of the 1960s such as “A Man For All Seasons”. “Lawrence of Arabia”, “Becket”, “Dr. Strangelove” or “The great Escape”, by comparison, just about everything now is junk.
Back then, directors knew their craft, which is the art of storytelling and they did it well. Today’s directors are essentially dumb kids whose idea of “art” is “Godzilla” and Henry Potter Films. They have none of the finesse of the old school which employed flawed heroes, ambiguity, slow-developing suspense and grand historical themes. And they did it without the suffocating hype used today.
The pool of good acting talent has shrunk to mediocrity. Back in the 60s, you had Marlon Brando, Richard Burton, George C. Scott, Elizabeth Taylor, Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Lee Marvin, Henry Fonda, Jack Lemon, Yul Brenner and Robert Redford who wee giants compared to the peasants of today. Thesep people had a tremendous screen presence. Their intensity always came across as credible, not contrived.
Finally, there was a time when those who controlled the movie business cared about the art. Now, it’s all about the bottom line. These corporate types put more effort into advertising and promotion than the film itself. Because they know they’re selling junk and have to hype it.
My advice is, stock up on classic CDs and stop going to the theaters.
-Bob
I hear ya. The classics hold up. But I’m still clinging to hope and want to support filmmakers that are actually doing good work. Dune was pretty great. Villeneuve is doing a great job. Just going to be super picky with my box office bucks. PS. I’m hoping Santa brings me Laurence of Arabia for Christmas. The version that was shown in theaters back in the day. Think it was called cinema 70 or something. Bigger than cinema-scope. Saw it in re-release ages ago. Just jaw dropingly beautiful. David Lean was the man!