Audience money dictates what Hollywood decides to make, and seeing as Hollywood has been chosing to make horrible movies that people continue to pay for, it's not surprising that the trend continues.
Maybe it's because modern audiences forgot what good entertainment was as a generation raised on reality television and effortless lazy production. It's frightening to think of where their creative inspiration will come from, as todays directors study the classics and the next generation has Britney Spears as an influence.
The industry is being leveled and it's credibility being destroyed by current public demands. I feel sad and ashamed. A lot of people wanted to see 'Snakes' specifically because it was supposed to be bad, I'm sure you can go to the movie theatre and buy a ticket for just about any movie released right now and you'll find yourself in the same boat. People also cited Samuel Jackson as "the man" and another reason to see this film. I'd love to see audiences try going to a movie for an actual script or one of quality as a deciding factor. And frankly, Samuel Jackson is not the man. I'm not saying he doesn't have his badass moments, but did everyone fail to notice that his performance as Mace Windu in the Star Wars series ranks among one of the worse performances I've seen an actor give in history? His performance and line delivery was as unconvincing, horrible, uninspired, and flat as Tom Hanks's in 'Da Vinci Code'.
These people are NOT bad actors, yet they can't muster up enough faith or belief in their role or character in either of these films to make them enjoyable (or believable) for a second. If an actor doesn't believe, then an audience can't believe. I've never seen such forced uninvested performances being delivered by talented actors.
I guess given the state of the industry, a film of this magnitude of badness was inevitable. Reality television has destroyed job opportunities for people with actual talent, particularly writers and performers. Not only have these shows cheapened the quality of the entertainment business as a whole but they have also stolen jobs away from people that have actually trained and worked hard to perfect their crafts. As someone who is still actively part of a union, I know how few jobs there were available to me when I was actively auditioning for projects because 90% of casting calls were for non-union regulars with no resumes or professional training. Already, the amount of projects SAG actors alone can audition for that aren't "reality television" is next to nil, their jobs and dignity have been stripped from them, and now reality TV people are not only taking away their sources of employment but also want the same pay and benefits people have in unions, people who put everything on the line and worked their asses off to become union in the first place. Being union is a privilege, and it is earned. This is why you have people like Paris Hilton now being a movie star. Anyone can be in films now. No training, no preparation, no effort. It reminds me of Mickey Rourke's quote, "It's like the word 'actress'. You know. Cate Blanchett is an actress. Paris Hilton is not… I mean, how can they use the same word?" Acting and writing aren't easy. Contrary to popular belief, they aren't things everyone can do. They take skill and are art forms like any other, though apparently the public doesn't want art and talent and sophistication.I really hope movie and television audiences start thinking for themselves and make smarter choices and cut out some of the fat in their entertainment diet.
No comments:
Post a Comment