Speaking as somebody who had entirely cut myself off from modern cinema (I hadn't been to a movie theatre in ten years before this past summer), I've realized that I actually quite enjoy the feeling of putting myself in a room with nothing but the film and my thoughts about it. Unlike streaming, there's no need to worry about other things happening on Earth while you watch. I've found this a privilege worth paying for.
I am a naturally nitpicky person (I do write a Substack nitpicking small issues with opposing arguments, after all), but as long as the nitpicks aren't critically important, I see no reason to nitpick everything in the way that some do. When you do something like the Last of Us TV show or Hamilton, and cast a white person with a black actor, or pull a Star Wars VI, and entirely change the meaning of the ending in the re-edit, to me something feels wrong about that, and I do allow it to affect my enjoyment a lot. However, most issues people find are not as big as this. To walk about of a movie theatre feeling disappointed because a movie wasn't a 9/10 (according to whatever scale you use) feels like standards have crept too high.
You know, I don't know if that part is so bad. You don't have to have watched anything truly horrible to understand that what you're watching is not entertaining. For instance, blockbuster movies these days tend to be like Vince Russo shows. There's a lot of ... stuff. Most of it is not good stuff, but there's so much happening, with the idea to hook a casual on something. Not everything, but something.
As a human who does not watch movies casually (yourself is possibly like this as well), this does not entertain me very often, therefore often times I will leave a blockbuster (which I consider a genre) movie feeling disappointed. There are exceptions (Jaws, Black Panther, the new and old Invisible Man, etc.), but far too many movies (like the other modern Superheroes) leave me with the feeling of just having watched WCW 2000. There's so much stuff your head spins. Therefore, I tend to avoid any movie I've seen much advertising for.
Perhaps I am part of the problem you were discussing, with unrealistic expectations of any blockbuster I may go watch, but I also think there's a filler problem going on.
I feel it’s partly that we’re in the middle of such a unique monopoly with Warner, Disney, Paramount, & NBC/Universal. There used to be a lot more room for smaller developers & filmmakers to be more freely creative, but now everything is simply OWNED and pretty much decided.
It’s like post InVasion WWF.
When companies don’t have that incentive to be creative, they aren’t, and it’s silly.
I’m also a person who KNOWS I’m lucky to have so many of my favorite franchises get continuous content. I’ve experienced dry spells within multiple fandoms and it sucks.
I try to promote that we should appreciate even the worst, because we could’ve wound up in a universe where we never got it at all.
It's true. Everything is owned by some mega company, who is typically public, and therefore very risk averse. It causes art in this landscape to feel very risk averse also.
I like this. The way I deal with it is I just watch whatever I want to and form my opinion about it. Then I can choose to flock to the "comment section" afterwards. Everyone is a critic nowadays and blow it all out of proportion. People be hating for the sake of hating. Like the new Indiana. I love that franchise. Sure it wasn't Temple of Doom good, but it was still a decent movie. But all you hear people bitch about is the girl and how it's woke. The movie was still about Indy!!
So I do think that it's one of the reasons why cinema is struggling along with other reasons.
Completely agree. I RARELY look at the feedback for something nowadays, until after I've consumed the media myself. I feel blessed that I made it through the first couple of episodes of The Acolyte before I even knew there was backlash, hence the origin of the post. I have a rule for movies like the newest Indiana Jones, but in short, it's to remember to always appreciate supplemental media, when you may have never received it in the first place. Star Wars could've ended around 2005, and I'm happy it didn't. The paradox of letting our comments rest while we constantly re-animate what we love to take in.
I unfortunately saw so much backlash but I still wanna give it a shot and judge for myself. I love the SW franchise. Sure the newer stuff is hit or miss but there’s some stuff I still enjoy. Like you said, just glad we’re still getting stuff because it all could’ve ended.
Speaking as somebody who had entirely cut myself off from modern cinema (I hadn't been to a movie theatre in ten years before this past summer), I've realized that I actually quite enjoy the feeling of putting myself in a room with nothing but the film and my thoughts about it. Unlike streaming, there's no need to worry about other things happening on Earth while you watch. I've found this a privilege worth paying for.
I am a naturally nitpicky person (I do write a Substack nitpicking small issues with opposing arguments, after all), but as long as the nitpicks aren't critically important, I see no reason to nitpick everything in the way that some do. When you do something like the Last of Us TV show or Hamilton, and cast a white person with a black actor, or pull a Star Wars VI, and entirely change the meaning of the ending in the re-edit, to me something feels wrong about that, and I do allow it to affect my enjoyment a lot. However, most issues people find are not as big as this. To walk about of a movie theatre feeling disappointed because a movie wasn't a 9/10 (according to whatever scale you use) feels like standards have crept too high.
I feel too many armchair critics ruined it, because they’ve never actually watched anything truly.. BAD..
I’m a film addict. I’ve watched all of the great horror classics, and I’ve rented some of the worst independent nonsense on VHS you’ve ever seen.
I feel those who ruined it, don’t grasp the genuine size of the spectrum of good to bad as it pertains to film.
A lot of people have never watched a moment of Mystery Science Theater 3000 and it shooooows.
You know, I don't know if that part is so bad. You don't have to have watched anything truly horrible to understand that what you're watching is not entertaining. For instance, blockbuster movies these days tend to be like Vince Russo shows. There's a lot of ... stuff. Most of it is not good stuff, but there's so much happening, with the idea to hook a casual on something. Not everything, but something.
As a human who does not watch movies casually (yourself is possibly like this as well), this does not entertain me very often, therefore often times I will leave a blockbuster (which I consider a genre) movie feeling disappointed. There are exceptions (Jaws, Black Panther, the new and old Invisible Man, etc.), but far too many movies (like the other modern Superheroes) leave me with the feeling of just having watched WCW 2000. There's so much stuff your head spins. Therefore, I tend to avoid any movie I've seen much advertising for.
Perhaps I am part of the problem you were discussing, with unrealistic expectations of any blockbuster I may go watch, but I also think there's a filler problem going on.
It’s all opinion at the end of the day.
I feel it’s partly that we’re in the middle of such a unique monopoly with Warner, Disney, Paramount, & NBC/Universal. There used to be a lot more room for smaller developers & filmmakers to be more freely creative, but now everything is simply OWNED and pretty much decided.
It’s like post InVasion WWF.
When companies don’t have that incentive to be creative, they aren’t, and it’s silly.
I’m also a person who KNOWS I’m lucky to have so many of my favorite franchises get continuous content. I’ve experienced dry spells within multiple fandoms and it sucks.
I try to promote that we should appreciate even the worst, because we could’ve wound up in a universe where we never got it at all.
It's true. Everything is owned by some mega company, who is typically public, and therefore very risk averse. It causes art in this landscape to feel very risk averse also.
I like this. The way I deal with it is I just watch whatever I want to and form my opinion about it. Then I can choose to flock to the "comment section" afterwards. Everyone is a critic nowadays and blow it all out of proportion. People be hating for the sake of hating. Like the new Indiana. I love that franchise. Sure it wasn't Temple of Doom good, but it was still a decent movie. But all you hear people bitch about is the girl and how it's woke. The movie was still about Indy!!
So I do think that it's one of the reasons why cinema is struggling along with other reasons.
Completely agree. I RARELY look at the feedback for something nowadays, until after I've consumed the media myself. I feel blessed that I made it through the first couple of episodes of The Acolyte before I even knew there was backlash, hence the origin of the post. I have a rule for movies like the newest Indiana Jones, but in short, it's to remember to always appreciate supplemental media, when you may have never received it in the first place. Star Wars could've ended around 2005, and I'm happy it didn't. The paradox of letting our comments rest while we constantly re-animate what we love to take in.
I unfortunately saw so much backlash but I still wanna give it a shot and judge for myself. I love the SW franchise. Sure the newer stuff is hit or miss but there’s some stuff I still enjoy. Like you said, just glad we’re still getting stuff because it all could’ve ended.