Is creativity extinct in Hollywood?

[Archae]

Just look at the upcoming movies.

The Smurfs.
Cars 2.

And now...a live-action remake of "Akira" with Americans in the roles. :eyes:

[kwassa]

1. Remakes and sequels are the raw material for Hollywood

the word "art" does not appear anywhere in the phrase "show business"

[Gidney N Cloyd]

2. Hardly any wonder why ticket sales are down 20% this year.

Theater owners are screaming for better stuff.

[WildEyedLiberal]

3. Most movies in the "classic age" of cinema were remakes of something too

Whether a movie version of a book, or a remake of an older movie, or something. The myth of Hollywood creativity is just that. Most stories have been told thousands of times; what distinguishes them to us is the telling.

[chollybocker]

4. True.

All art exists to re-interpret historical templates, and refer modern connotations to ancient human concepts.

The real question, I think, is how the 'quality' of a work is now equated with its financial bottom line. In art, altruism is a tough road (until the artist is honored, posthumously).

[CBHagman]

5. Full marks!

And of course Chaucer and Shakespeare borrowed, borrowed, borrowed -- plots, characters, etc.

That said, I do think a sizable chunk of American film industry is in a terrible rut.

[chollybocker]

10. Going back even further,

the classical Greek playwrights re-interpreted the primitive lore of ancient mythology in order to reflect and communicate with the audience of the times.

It's like love songs. Millions have been written, each repeating the same old theme; but a modern interpretation in the hands of an artist somehow sheds 'new' light on basic human nature, and connects with people in a contemporary way.

Touchstones tell us who we are, while art tells us what we can be. Or vice-versa, maybe. ;)

[Logical]

6. Naw, remakes are easier and more likley to make money. n-t

[edbermac]

7. Creativity only exists in the studio's accounting department.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

8. These days there's no incentive for Hollywood to do anything other than "play to the cheap seats"

I know that movie theaters are a fraction of the overall movie payday (cable, DVD, Netflix, etc)...

...but take a look at the people lining up for tickets at the local multi-plex sometime...I'd find it hard to believe that they have an appetite for anything other than Smurfs & Cars 2 or a new chapter of "Fast & Furious" or some other numbskull car chase/explosions extravaganza.

Cinemax & Showtime "dumbed down" the viewing public. HBO, I feel, had a higher quality, but I haven't had cable for over 3 years, so it might be as bad as the rest by now.

I am assuming that if you still go to the local "art house" theater or tune into Sundance Channel or IFC, the creativity is still live and kicking. But in the mainstream? No way.

[CBHagman]

22. I gave up cable too...

...despite loving TCM. But the thing is, TCM was one of the few cable channels, at least of those available in a standard package, that lived up to cable's potential. So much of the rest is merely edited-down reruns and second- or third-rate films, reality TV (No comment), and advertising. In fact I would say basic cable plummeted in quality during the time I was a subscriber.

I gave it up, partly for budgeting reasons, partly because I just couldn't justify the extra expense, especially when there were only a couple of channels I truly valued. I do think that in general we hold the media to a very low standard.

[jmowreader]

9. It's been this way for quite a few years now...

Movie X made money, so it'll make money again if they put some CGI, a little 3-D and lots more gunfire and/or sex in it.

Why do you think they remade "A Christmas Carol" 35 times, not counting Scrooged?

[Orrex]

11. Sequels and adaptations have been a part of Hollywood since the beginning

So what's the problem?

And although America loves to recast "foreign" films with American actors, other nations do the same thing. The US is hardly alone in this.

[LeftinOH]

12. Hell no! There are plenty of old TV shows which haven't been adapted for the big screen

yet. "Mr Ed", anyone?

[chollybocker]

25. Great idea.

Mr. Ed reminisces about his carefree days back on the farm, as he awaits his turn before the shredder at the glue factory. A true Horse Opera. ;)

[JitterbugPerfume]

13. If it isnt extinct

it is dormant

[raccoon]

14. Yes, IMO it's been extinct for some time. nt

[Yavin4]

15. Was Watching "Midnight Cowboy" The Other Day

That movie, which won for Best Picture, would never get made today unless a huge star like a Brad Pitt or Leonardo DiCaprio wanted it made, and even then, they'd have to fight like the devil to get it made and release.

Because of TV, for a very brief moment, Hollywood allowed creative talent free reign, and movies like Midnight Cowboy, Chinatown, Taxi Driver, etc. got made.

[LibDemAlways]

26. "Midnight Cowboy" could only get made today if it was

completely rewritten so that the leads were actually undercover cops hot on the trail of sexy female terrorists posing as hookers. There would also have to be plenty of action sequences involving blowing shit up, including that bus in the last scene.

[CBGLuthier]

16. Fright Night. Planet of the Apes. Conan. X-Men. Transformers. Pirates of the Caribbean .

All coming soon.

But I really don't care. I have seen around 4,000 films and there are at least a few thousand more already made and worth seeing.

Every year a few more good films are made. I will never run out of things worth watching and I can usually spot crap a mile away.

[deutsey]

17. Don't foget the remake of "Arthur"

Sigh.

[geardaddy]

19. Ugh. I know.

[Blue_Tires]

18. This thread title must have been frozen in time for the last 12-15 years...

I was complaining about all the remakes then...

[geardaddy]

20. Don't forget this swill that's coming out soon.

Atlas Shrugged: Part I.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0480239/

:puke:

Part I? How many parts are they planning?

[edbermac]

21. The Tree Of Life by Terrence Malick is out next month.

Just about the only film this year I'm making an effort to see right away.

[LibDemAlways]

27. Malick doesn't make many movies, but the ones he makes are always

special. Days of Heaven was one of the most beautiful movies ever.

[LongTomH]

23. Yeah! Just look at the trailer for the latest remake of "The Three Musketeers"

See the IMDB entry for the movie and the trailer. :puke: Yeah, that's an airship you got a glimpse of in the trailers.

A 17th century airship! :wtf:

What's the motive power? I think they hooked it up to Alexandre Dumas' coffin to harness the power of the author spinning in his grave! :crazy:

And just for the teenage fanboy crowd, they've got (deep sigh): Steampunk effects (the bloody airship!) and a revolving cannon; Matrix-like fighting effects (I shit you not!) with sword-swinging musketeers and maidens (Maidens?:wtf:), and I think I briefly caught a glimpse of some Ninja types for a second or two.

This really will be a teeny fanboy movie. You know, the type for whom the height of movie critiques will be something like: "Oh waw! Cool special effects, dude! Ninjas an everything!" :puke:

I swear to God, if they show this as the inflight movie, on a flight I'm on, I'm walking out! :grr:

Seriously, I saw an article a few years ago by a retiring director, actually the transcript of a speech he was giving to a film school class. This guy predicted this current crop of crap! At the time (mid-oughts), Hollywood was going through the sort of buyout mania the rest of American business was suffering through, and of course, when a buyout occurs, the company bought out gets saddled with the cost of the buyout as part of its debt. So, it's obligated to make a profit, a biggggg profit. All of which means the studios are loathe to take risks, so their output is remakes of remakes; loads of comic book movies (occasionally, those can be good: Witness V for Vendetta), and remakes of old TV series.

Oh yeah! The teen fanboy again! It seems they're anticipated to be the major audience for movies; everyone else is just renting the DVDs or downloading movies from the net. I hate to admit, I was a fanboy once. I moved on to more intelligent SF - like Kim Stanley Robinson; I even found a girl or two. Maybe some of these kids will grow up too!

[TheCanadianLiberal]

24. It died a long time ago...

But thanks to good marketing, people keep buying.

[provis99]

28. they're remaking Total Recall.

I guess the first one wasn't crappy enough...