What's Killing Hollywood?

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   Liberian1847posted 14 years ago

   Doesn't it just hurt when you finally get to see a long awaited, and highly anticipated Hollywood movie only to be painfully disappointed with the bad acting, weak dialogues, and horrible cgi images?? So, I wonder if Hollywood is suffering from a brain-drain or they are just becoming careless. What do you guys think about the couple of supposedly blockbuster hits that came out this year alone?

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      klarawieckposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      That happened to me with Avatar. I had been waiting for it for so long and I had such high expectations that I was truly disappointed. The previous week I had gone to see A Christmas Carol and found the 3D ten times better than Avatar. The plot didn't impress me in the least, very old - it was a combination of The Lion King and Pocahontas.
      I miss the old days when movies took longer to film, edit and produce overall. Films were awaited by the audience and everyone seem to enjoy the movie theatre experience a lot more.

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         OrlandoCposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         I agree Avatar was a bit of a rerun (more like Dances With Wolves) but movies that take long to make and are anticipated for a long time is a new thing. Movie budgets have gone up steadily over the years and the time it takes to release them has gone up along with them (along with public interest). Studios used to just churn out movies.

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         KCC Big Countryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         
         
         I agree with you! I saw "A Christmas Carol" just before "Avatar" as well and the 3D was incredibly better on "A Christmas Carol"!

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      kimberlyslyricsposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I think the cable channels and quick DVD releases have caused most to not attend the the theatres and making less money, I mean they have to be.
      
      Possibly less money rolls down to production budgets that can't come close to producing the films already spectacular.
      
      Just a brief expl. 
      
      

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      Stevennix2001posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      i think part of the problem is that we've seen basically almost any type of storyline people can think of that hollywood is starting to repeat themselves.  where if a film isn't some type of reboot or remake of another film/franchise, then it's basically a rip off of another movie. therefore, that should be a clear indicator that you know they're running out of ideas for movies these days.  Hell, they're reaching for super 8 and battleship here folks.  that's right.  hollywood actually has movies in development based off the magic 8 ball toy and the board game, battleship.  you know there running out of ideas if they're reaching for...THOSE TYPE OF MOVIES.

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         Andy Webbposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         You are spot on about seeing almost every type of storyline but Hollywood repeating themselves has been going on for decades. Look back at the movies of the 40s and there were many which were remakes of those in the 30s. Look at the 60s and the romantic comedies of Doris Day many of which were almost a carbon copy of each other. For whatever reason people have more recently become aware of all these remakes.
         
         Sadly those are not the only board games they are trying to make, I am sure I read that Monopoly was being made in to a movie.

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   Andy Webbposted 14 years ago

   The problem is that it's not all Hollywood's fault. They are at their heart a business and so churn out movies which will appeal to the mass market to guarantee making a profit. Because the mass market at the moment seem happy to watch movies full of CGI, over the top action, star names yet don't care for the quality of the acting or storyline, we keep getting more and more of these photo-fit movies which for me are all rather dull and predictable.
   
   It also doesn't help matters that a lot of the new power men in charge of the movie industry are those who grew up watching movies in the 70s & 80s, explaining why we're getting an influx of proposed no brainer remakes from those decades.
   
   So I don't think that Hollywood is so much brain dead rather just producing movies what will please the masses. Unfortunately that means they fail to please me and others who want something new, different and original.

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   ahorsebackposted 14 years ago

   Hollywood is producing some of the worst crap ever, much like te music industry , they build what sells the most , the music industry targets teenagers or those who purchase through the industries oulets the most .Try a diferent genre of movies , drama, foreign films , getting away from the latest action adventure ticket might be what you need.

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   tony0724posted 14 years ago

   The problem these days is Hollywood movies depend on gimmicks and special effects to market movies now. Back in the day they depended on actors and a good plotline in order to sell a movie. It is no longer an artform in cinema it is a product. How many weak sequels and superhero movies can we take ? I wrote a few hubs about movie making these day and I invite you to read them and share your thoughts.

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   skyfireposted 14 years ago

   Boring remakes and sequels, that is the problem of hollywood.

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      klarawieckposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Hello Sky!

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      Jim Hunterposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Yeah, gotta agree.
      
      There is not a lot of imagination in Hollywood these days.
      
      TV has gone the same way, reality TV is king and gone are the days of Norman Lear.
      
      I'll take Archie Bunker over "Dancing with the stars" any day.

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         Flightkeeperposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         I love Dancing with the Stars!!!
         
         Ooops! [runs away}

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      Merlin Fraserposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      This comment says it all,  a sad lack of imagination has turned a once great art into another Walmart, make it fast, lots of CGI and big effects that don't necessarily have anything to do with the plot and get it out there.
      
      
      I think the quick DVD release is to try and combat the pirates as is the desire to go 3D, more dificult to copy.
      
      
        PS to any movie Moguls out there looking for new ideas .....
      
        COO-E-EEE !  I'm over here, take a look, Murder Mystries with Paranormal, Supernatural and Conspiracy theories as well, what more could you want ?

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   skyfireposted 14 years ago

   Hi Klara ..

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      klarawieckposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      

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   europewalkerposted 14 years ago

   Lack of good writers resulting in poorly written scripts.

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      kerrygposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I don't think it's so much a lack of good writers as the fact that most Hollywood scripts are now written by committee, with multiple rewrites by different writers, and the producers, directors, and stars all getting the opportunity to take out their own red pens. What finally shows on screen may have only a passing resemblance to the original script.

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   MalcolmKlockposted 14 years ago

   Shockingly terrible scripts somehow make it all the way into production without being fixed. Studios either pouring money into CGI to sell a mediocre story, or turning out low budget, low effort horror or comedy films and marketing them just hard enough to turn a meager profit. Its hollywood living on a diet of subsistence, in the rare cases where real money really is poured into something with content (Inception) the results can still be as great as ever though.

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      Marlin 55posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Today Hollywood is geared for one thing and that is to make a profit. Making money is important, but not when it comes to sacrificing great movie making. I like Old Hollywood when movies were a creative endeavor by the entire crew. I'm glad to see the Idie film maker on the rise and still have creative control over their project. Could Hollywood lose steam and succumb to the new market of film makers?  It could be possible.

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   I am DB Cooperposted 14 years ago

   The audience is the problem. People saw Avatar and loved it in 3D so now they just convert movies to 3D, slap "3D" on the movie poster and people pay extra to see it. If a movie isn't actually filmed in 3D (like Avatar), it's going to look like crap if it's converted to 3D. Also, movies like Twilight have no problem selling out theaters, no matter how crappy the movie actually is. Why pay big money for great directors, screenwriters, and actors when what really sells is some emotionless teenagers trying to look cool for 90 minutes?
   
   The art of film-making is disappearing, and it's being replaced by mindless special effects and cheap sequels that attempt to cash in on an established franchise. In today's market, which movie is the better investment: Chinatown or a new Indiana Jones flick starring that kid who's on the cover of all the teeny bopper magazines? The answer is obvious.

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      klarawieckposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I agree with you. But I still didn't like Avatar. I found it very similar to other films. I was expecting more from Cameron. Anyways, you are right about the Twilight movies and all other teenage films. And what bothers me the most is that we are being bombarded with new films constantly and they are all starring the same actors! Honestly, I'm tired of seeing Angelina Jolie (as much as I like her as an actress) and this is the case with many other actors. It gets to a point where you see the trailer and you go: Bah! I'm not seeing this!
      It's ridiculous!

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    Glimmer515posted 14 years ago

    Remakes and to much CGI work is killing HollyWood

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    Canklefishposted 14 years ago

    There are plenty of quality films available for viewing, you just have to do a bit of research to find them.
    
    If you let your TV tell you which movies you should see, then 'Hollywood' will just keep churning out the stuff they know will appeal to the masses of sheep that pay their bills...

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    alternate poetposted 14 years ago

    christianity is killing hollywood - churning out the same old same old twaddle in shinier and noisier packages is counter to progress.  Like its religious owners it has run out of ideas and novelty.  The way to the future could well be the ability to step over the dead body of their god and get brave and imaginative and human.

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       CrimsonBelleposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I think the problem is that they've already made that step!!!!

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    spookyfoxposted 14 years ago

    Nothing is. Hollywood's not dying, it keeps spending enormous budgets in order to write tons of movies aimed at getting even larger amounts of money. What happens is that while there are still some good movies every now and then (Inception was a masterpiece), the number of them hasn't increased proportionally to the number of movies being made. So we get a few films worth watching, surrounded by a sea of unnecessary remakes, pointless adaptations and late sequels/prequels, along with "original" movies that are as bad as they can get.

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       Stevennix2001posted 14 years agoin reply to this

       yeah, that's true. i agree with you a 100 percent. plus, it seems like the vast majority of movie goers aren't looking for great quality films, as it's usually the ridiculously cliched films like "Transformers" that make all the money, so hollywood just keeps churning out crap to make a buck.

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    jerrylposted 14 years ago

    Everything has advanced to the point where movie makers find it difficult to come up with story lines or special effects that will satisfy the viewers. 
    There was a time when people listening to radio had to use their imaginations.  Everyone pictured story scenarios differently. 
    Today, the consumer expects more and more.  It's like starting out on a drug.  It's effects soon wear off, and you need a stronger drug.  I think we have reached the point where the stimulous we seek in motion pictures has become almost impossible for the movie makers to provide.
    We have already experienced the heroin of the movie industry. 
    How do we go up from there?

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    lxxyposted 14 years ago

    Reality television.
    
    It's slowly destroying the environment, not this climate change nonsense!

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    brimancandyposted 14 years ago

    One thing I have noticed, is that they have invested a lot of money in bringing back the old crap that didn't work the first time around. Like the Halloween movie, Clash of the Titans, and the A-Team. I don't know what they were thinking there.
    
    At least Avatar was something we had not seen before. I thought Avatar was very good, and the graphics in it were amazing. That, and, it was a great story. Most new movies are thrown together so badly that they are alomst confusing to watch.
    
    I recently saw the Scott Pilgrim movie. The one where he has to fight his girlfriends 7 evil ex's. Well, I didn't know what to think of it, other than it came across as a glorified video game that almost made no sense whatsoever. If it wasn't for it's unusual story-line and some decent scenes, I probably wouldn't have liked it at all.
    
    But, I do think hollywood has taken a nose dive in originality.
    It's almost as if they don't want to make a movie, because they are worried someone might accuse them of copy catting an idea, and they don't want to get sued. So, they wait for these old movies to run the experation of being considered copy, and spit them out again, hoping to make a profit.
    
    Hense, there is talk about a Yogi Bear film, and Magnum PI.

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