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Comment on Hollywood Is Cranking Out Original Movies. Audiences Aren’t Showing Up.

brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

Heh, looking at the article and the cesspool of WSJ comments:

The major factor is algorithmic attention. If people are glued to feeds on phones/at home, that’s less time to chat about (and go to) movies that don’t have the critical mass to pop into your feed. That sucks, as there’s nothing movie studios can do about our toxic information environment.
Going by the comments… Seems modern movie goers have a thin skin. Even the slightest hint of something woke is apparently unwatchable? But themes and conflicts that make you uncomfortable are what makes fiction interesting. This may cut both ways too (with, for instance, military-themed movies turning off more leftist moviegoers? I feel that way to some extent).

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ReallyActuallyFrankenstein@lemmynsfw.com ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
This is a good list, and to add:

Consumer sentiment in general is terrible. A large part of the population are stressed and exhausted, and that’s not a “let’s go see something fun” mindset for many, it’s “let’s get through the day and watch comfort content.”

This is a bad time of the year I’m general for movie releases.

Because of that, studios tend to bury their “whatever” slate projects, and except Mickey 17 it seems like these all are pretty mediocre movies
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- brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  A large part of the population are stressed and exhausted, and that’s not a “let’s go see something fun” mindset for many, it’s “let’s get through the day and watch comfort content.”
  
  I’ve witnessed this, too! I even know family that relaxed their long-form TV watching due to work stress, and generally hit the YouTube algorithim and other quick comfort food instaed.
  
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  - MurrayL@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Yep, I totally feel that. 10+ years ago I was into all sorts - psychological thrillers, crime and mystery, prestige TV drama, etc.
    
    Ever since the pandemic, my taste has flipped dramatically to comfort TV (sitcoms and panel shows) and YouTube content like retro gaming channels, GMM, and Dropout.
    
    I see these huge shows like Succession, White Lotus, etc and while they might’ve interested me in the past I just do not have the energy any more.
    
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    brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    I find that tragic :(
    
    I understand though, unfortunately kinda sympathize, and don’t have any advice to counter it…
    
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SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

military-themed movies turning off more leftist moviegoers? I feel that way to some extent

I suppose that depends on how war is depicted in the film. War is hell, but sometimes it’s necessary. I don’t love the idea of war, but Slaughterhouse Five lives on as one of my favorite books about war. Understanding war and its impacts are important, even if we don’t like a world in which we have to resort to war.

Sure, a lot of American film makes war movies all “RAH RAH RAH USA USA USA,” but that doesn’t mean all films about war have to be that way, especially films about war made in other nations, who perhaps don’t have their military so deeply ingrained in the film industry.

Hell, Three Kings is still an underrated war film which has an undercurrent of themes regarding capitalism and consumerism and how it relates to war.

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- brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  Sure, a lot of American film makes war movies all “RAH RAH RAH USA USA USA,”
  
  Here are the 3 “original” movies in my local theatre, to get more of what I mean:
  
  Levon Cade left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss’s daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.
  
  harlie Heller (Malek) is a brilliant, but deeply introverted decoder for the CIA working out of a basement office at headquarters in Langley whose life is turned upside down when his wife is killed in a London terrorist attack. When his supervisors refuse to take action, he takes matters into his own hands, embarking on a dangerous trek across the globe to track down those responsible, his intelligence serving as the ultimate weapon for eluding his pursuers and achieving his revenge…
  
  Written and directed by Iraq War veteran Ray Mendoza and Alex Garland (Civil War, 28 Days Later), Warfare embeds audiences with a platoon of American Navy SEALs in the home of an Iraqi family, overwatching the movement of US forces through insurgent territory. A visceral, boots-on-the-ground story of modern warfare, told like never before: in real time and based on the memory of the people who lived it.
  
  The last one (Warfare) kinda stands out, but see the pattern? “Ex black ops protag” is super popular, and I posit that, on average, it’s a turn-off for leftists.
  
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  - SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Oh, I don’t dispute any of that. There’s tons of media in that vein, and it is indeed all a turn off.
    
    Hell, most of these just seem like movies that all want to be 2008’s Taken with Liam Neeson really badly. Even Taken was honestly very silly and absurd. Like, he just walks away from these situations where he fucks up half the city and the cops somehow can’t find him? It just cuts away and suddenly he’s fine and on to the next bit.
    
    However, it was an incredibly popular film, spawned multiple sequels, and there’s definitely a whole genre of films in this vein. Nobody said Hollywood was very original, even when it comes to an original film. They still want formulas that they think will sell. Action tends to be the most popular, and to make action believable you have to have some backstory that makes these guys top tier fighters.
    
    At least the John Wick films didn’t rely on him being ex-military, I guess.
    
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    brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Yeah. I mean, there was stuff before Taken (Bond, Die Hard), but Taken has to be one of the most influential movies of the millennium, lol.
    
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- FordBeeblebrox@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  military-themed movies turning off more leftist moviegoers? I feel that way to some extent
  
  Maybe but not because I’m liberal, because we’re shit. The fact that “The Covenant” exists is FUCKING INFURIATING to me. I signed up to put my ass on the line, knowing any flight out of CONUS had a return ticket. We not only told the terps we’d take them to the American dream but made them put their lives on the line…then flew away and made a fucking movie about how it’s too bad they’re all stuck in the suck.
  
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- Korhaka@sopuli.xyz ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  All quiet on the western front was a pretty good war film
  
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xyzzy@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

But themes and conflicts that make you uncomfortable are what makes fiction interesting

Most moviegoers want to shut their brains off and escape and be entertained for 90-120 minutes. Not be challenged or be uncomfortable.

I own thousands of movies on 4K and Blu-ray. I’ve had a surround sound setup since the mid-2000s. I have complete collections of many directors’ entire filmographies. Even in my case, the ratio of entertained to challenged that I want most nights is about 90% to 10%.

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- brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Eh… I think most viewers like compelling characters when they find them, even in comfort entertainment. And putting them in interesting situations is part of what makes them compelling.
  
  I guess this is why influencers (using that term very broadly) are so popular. That format cuts out all the plot and fluff and goes straight to characters.
  
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  - xyzzy@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    I mean, sure, but compelling characters and interesting situations is not what you said. You talked about making the viewer uncomfortable. It’s not hard to identify characters and situations that are compelling and interesting and yet don’t particularly challenge the viewer or make them feel uncomfortable.
    
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lordnikon@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
You nailed it and the minecraft movie proved them right. I’m predicting now that movies will be engineered to be memeable for TikTok videoing stupid dances in the theaters not to watch the movie you paid for but to make a 6 second video for the feeds.

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- brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Bingo.
  
  Ugh, that’s exactly what’s going to happen, isn’t.
  
  Also, it really annoys me how so many ponder why stuff like this is happening and miss the elephant in the room. Guess engagement optimization isn’t a trending topic…
  
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- humanspiral@lemmy.ca ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Minecraft is only technically an original movie. Video game “franchise” popular with kids is usual “formula slop” leveraging past pop culture.
  
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brygphilomena@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
I’m the opposite with TV. Most seasons are too long and just get filled with pointless interpersonal drama that feels far too contrived. I think mini series length is usually better.

I also personally feel that as series go on past the first, maybe second season, the story has been told and now they are just having to fill it with slop because the studios want anything making money to continue indefinitely even if there isn’t a good story needing to be told anymore.

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