0 for 3 - Why are there so few good movies?

CheezeFlixz · December 19, 2007, 11:41:33 PM

I guess the main reason I'm drawn to B movies and foreign cinema is because of the crap Hollywood mainstream churns out, one damn squeal after another, one remake after another and the same old tired stories spun in a endless number of ways. It just gets old.

As some posted earlier, I'll take the golden era of the 30's-50's of mainstream Hollywood of the crap they make today. They can't even make a comedy you can take you family to because of all the cussing and rude jokes. Those are fine at times, but can they not make one film without wall to wall sex and cussing?

What even happened to intelligent comedy like the Marx Brothers or the slap stick of Abbott and Costello? You could take your entire family to see those and not worry about what might be in it.

Yep give me the classics, or the B Movies that know they are bad before they even make them.

asimpson2006 · December 20, 2007, 07:29:41 AM

Quote from: CheezeFlixz on December 19, 2007, 11:41:33 PM
I guess the main reason I'm drawn to B movies and foreign cinema is because of the crap Hollywood mainstream churns out, one damn squeal after another, one remake after another and the same old tired stories spun in a endless number of ways. It just gets old.

As some posted earlier, I'll take the golden era of the 30's-50's of mainstream Hollywood of the crap they make today. They can't even make a comedy you can take you family to because of all the cussing and rude jokes. Those are fine at times, but can they not make one film without wall to wall sex and cussing?

What even happened to intelligent comedy like the Marx Brothers or the slap stick of Abbott and Costello? You could take your entire family to see those and not worry about what might be in it.

Yep give me the classics, or the B Movies that know they are bad before they even make them.

I rarely watch any more recent films (2003 and up), unless I think it looks good. The most recent film I have watched was Casino Royale and that was great. \

I've started to get into foriegn films mainly Japanese films as I find them interesting to watch. I've only been watching b movies for about 11 months now, and I've been enjoying the ride every step of the way.

DistantJ · January 04, 2008, 05:50:19 PM

God damnit why the hell does everybody hate Halloween so much? I couldn't see ANYTHING wrong with it!

Oldskool138 · January 04, 2008, 10:55:03 PM

I know it's become chic to bash LotR but I enjoyed all the movies and still do. However, I'm not one of those Jackson suck-ups that says that everything he does from now on is gold.

You want a boring movie that has some cool parts but they are few and far between? Try Jackson's King Kong. I've watched it twice. Once on DVD to see what all the fuss was about and then again when I bought my HD DVD player (only because it came with the damned thing). I won't watch it again.

LotR will most likely be in my Top Favorite 10-15 movies for a very very long time. But bash away. You're not going to rile me or change my mind.

BTW, I liked Mr. Bean's Holiday.

DistantJ · January 05, 2008, 07:32:11 AM

Yeah, Lord of the Rings kicked ass. I liked Mr. Bean's Holiday too (though naturally it doesn't live up to the classic series). Loved Halloween. I enjoyed The Simpsons, too.

The internet makes me sad sometimes, there's always people with very furious complaints about movies which a lot of us couldn't ever find anything wrong with.

The Burgomaster · January 05, 2008, 08:01:08 AM

Wow. I see that someone resurrected this topic! Well . . . I have some updates to my original commments:

* I saw THE SIMPSONS again (on an airplane) and I thought it was better/funnier the second time.
* As much as I disliked HALLOWEEN (actually, I mostly disliked it after Michael Myers grew up . . . the parts when he was a kid were okay), I will probably buy the unrated DVD as soon as the price drops to $9.99 or lower.
* I haven't thought much about MR. BEAN'S HOLIDAY, but it's likely I'll eventually give that movie another chance, too. I'm a Rowan Atkinson fan, but that movie left me a bit disappointed.

I did see I AM LEGEND and I enjoyed it. The climax could have been better, but I thought Will Smith added depth to a character that most other actors would have played as a basic action-movie hero. Will took this role seriously and did a nice job with it.

I also bought THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM, THE KINGDOM and EASTERN PROMISES and thought they were all good in different ways. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for 2008 (especially IRON MAN).

Dennis · January 05, 2008, 11:44:28 AM

Hollywood movies are made by committee, they're more concerned with not losing money than taking a chance on something original, no one wants to be responsible for a flop. They aim at what they perceive is the lowest common denominator of their target audience and usually only make changes in settings or characters but only rarely in story line, which is why most are mediocre, liked by some, hated by some, but for most of us just OK. Having said that, I must also say that every year Hollywood produces a movie or movies that are liked by most, loved by some, and hated by few. These are the exceptions that lead to sequels and remakes. Finding a good movie is like panning for gold in a muddy stream, you go through a Lot of mud to find a little bit of gold. The gold that we find is different for each of us and that difference is what makes movies an interesting subject.

the ghoul · January 05, 2008, 02:32:31 PM

Hollywood churns out what they think people want to see, and in most cases, they get it right for that purpose. The majority of the general public has horrible taste in movies, music, clothing, and just about everything else. People tend to like boring normal things, and that might actually be a good thing for the rest of us, because if everyone started liking what we like, that would become normal and boring too!

Oldskool138 · January 05, 2008, 02:39:03 PM

Quote from: the ghoul on January 05, 2008, 02:32:31 PM
Hollywood churns out what they think people want to see, and in most cases, they get it right for that purpose. The majority of the general public has horrible taste in movies, music, clothing, and just about everything else. People tend to like boring normal things, and that might actually be a good thing for the rest of us, because if everyone started liking what we like, that would become normal and boring too!

That reminds me of a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon where they were looking at movie reviews in the paper and Calvin asks "This movie is rated R for Adult Situations. What's that?" to which Hobbes replies "I don't know. Paying bills and going to work." and Calvin says, "Why would anybody want to see a movie about that?" (I'm paraphrasing).

flackbait · January 06, 2008, 12:29:30 AM

Quote from: Oldskool138 on January 05, 2008, 02:39:03 PM
Quote from: the ghoul on January 05, 2008, 02:32:31 PM
Hollywood churns out what they think people want to see, and in most cases, they get it right for that purpose. The majority of the general public has horrible taste in movies, music, clothing, and just about everything else. People tend to like boring normal things, and that might actually be a good thing for the rest of us, because if everyone started liking what we like, that would become normal and boring too!

That reminds me of a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon where they were looking at movie reviews in the paper and Calvin asks "This movie is rated R for Adult Situations. What's that?" to which Hobbes replies "I don't know. Paying bills and going to work." and Calvin says, "Why would anybody want to see a movie about that?" (I'm paraphrasing).

I think I read too many of these comics because I know exactly which one your talking about. In fact I even think I remember which book it was.