Some thoughts on contemporary films

Some thoughts on contemporary films Nov 7, 2019 20:16:43 GMT spiderwort likes this

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Post by sostie on Nov 7, 2019 20:16:43 GMT

Nov 7, 2019 5:52:25 GMT spiderwort said:

Personally, I'm very tired of the cynicism that predominates in films these days. It gives a negatively lop-sided view of the human condition, which is primarily a direct result of truly cynical decisions made by the corporate media in order make more money. Sadly, audiences, especially young ones, seem quite willing to embrace this world view. That makes us as viewers complicit in such negativity, a fact that never seems to be acknowledged or discussed.

I believe in realism - or the cinematic illusion of realism - but a fundamental reality of the human condition is that there IS goodness in the world, not just bleakness, despair, and evil.

I'd love to see more films tilt in the direction of goodness and optimism so that we are once again inspired by what we see, instead of being assaulted by sensation for sensation's sake.

Of course, such films are being made today, but not as many as in the past, and too many of them fall by the way-side, lost in a sea of violent and sexually graphic films that offer little in the way of meaningful, life-affirming substance.

This is why I see fewer and fewer new films these days.

I'm not sure that they fall into the non-cynicism category..but the dominant force in cinema today that seems to get a lot of criticism are the blockbusters, especially those from Marvel (though some may argue they are cynical in their approach to making money).

I still love watching classics by the likes of Kubrick, Pressburger/Powell, Hitchcock etc, and still love watching the films I grew up on by Carpenter, Dante, Lynch, Spielberg, Mike Leigh, Scorsese, Woody Allen etc but over the last decade, as a lifelong comic collector, nothing has given me the consistent cinema going buzz that the Marvel films have. And I have to say, they are generally quite positive, optimistic films...something like Guardians Of The Galaxy (of which Spielberg said "When his projection was over, I left with the feeling of having seen something new in movies, without any cynicism or fear of being dark when needed), The Avengers, Ant-Man, Spider-Man Homecoming...I walked out of the theatre with a huge grin on my face. Sure they have their dark moments - Infinity War was gut punch unlike any other in blockbuster cinema.....but without that there would not be the emotional impact of Endgame.

The thing is I think beyond the blockbuster and family films cinema has always been dominated by cynicism, and the dark, certainly since the 70s. Maybe its a reflection of the sate of the world.

Personally I have time for both...this summer I went to the theatre and saw a double bill of my own making...Spider-Man Far From Home and Midsommer (an American's Overseas Vacation Double-Bill).

The films you are looking for are out there if you look. And with the advent of streaming and bluray not only do I think the choice is actually wider, but access to films of other nations is a lot easier (thank god for DVD and the internet, so many films from overseas I would have missed otherwise.

If I went off topic and turned into a disjointed ramble...sorry.