Is Hollywood in a creative slump?

IMDB are carrying a rather insightful article on the problems of Hollywood and current cinema, leading off on the problems of Cinderella Man, Nikki Rocco, Universal Pictures distribution chief, says:

…the studio is going “back to the drawing board” following the box-office failure [of Cinderella Man]…”Good movies are supposed to buck this [downward] trend. You hear how it’s all about the product, but we have an excellent movie that people just aren’t turning out for. [The problem is] something bigger.”

Well I would perhaps dispute that in this instance, perhaps it’s people not wanting to see the star, or having an appetite for an older boxing movie just now, there could be many things not matching with the movie and the audience rather than looking for some big Hollywood failure. However, there are some further interesting comments. New York Times media writer David Carr suggests that…

…filmmaking [is] focused on “the wants and needs of 17-year-old boys on any given Saturday night.”

A fair comment considering the success of Hazzard ($30 million opening!), especially after John’s comments on the movie. From the article he goes on:

Carr quoted David Thomson, author of The Whole Equation, A History of Hollywood, as saying, “In the same way that audiences have lost their taste for film, filmmakers have lost their passion. … It is not surprising that some of the moguls are giving up as well. They are as depressed and tired of the business as the rest of us.” Carr concluded: “The people who built the current version of Hollywood did so by coming up with movies that people felt compelled to see — not as a matter of marketing, but as a matter of taste. What was once magic, creating other worlds in darkened rooms, has become just one more revenue stream.”

Okay, so stepping back a moment the article is suggesting that the people who make the good movies and the movie moguls are tired of the current Hollywood, well so is a huge cut of the audience…so why isn’t something being done to change it? Why isn’t Hollywood listening? $30 million opening for quickly and badly remade material and cheaper, good looking stars.

What do you think the reasons are, or do you think there is even a problem? How can Hollywood practically get out of the slump?

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lizardfreak12

Fuck all of this shit, i’m just going to go along and make my own movies and bring on my own innovations. I’m so sick of Hollywood right now, some inspiration hit me a few minutes ago and it’s time to finally quit bitching and slap the big FUCK YOU sticker onto Hollywoods old and ugly face.

We all need to quit bitching and get into action and take control of the situation. We all know whats good, we all know what we want to see, they don’t, they can’t, and thats because the “they” are Hollywood and they don’t give a trees leaf worth of sticky thick shit about what we think. Everyone take a sticker, and bitchslap the rusty and crumbling Hollywood into retirement, what we need now is…………..

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http://weblog.brunton.org.uk Richard Brunton

Good rant David. Let me also say that at the end of all that you should come back to the Movie Blog and post your feelings to make them heard.
David Terry

The only way Hollywood will change is if we force it to. This can be done in the following ways: -

1) Don;t go to films that are obviously going to be shite. Dukes of Hazzard was always going to be crap, so stay away. If in doubt, await for the DVD release and hire it.

2) Don’t go to watch remakes. I don’t care if they may look decent. The original in 9 out of 10 times was better, so hire that and watch that instead. This includes Hollywood remakes of Asian cinema. Have the patience and be open minded. Watch the foreign version!

3) Don’t buy into all this special edition / anniversay edition / extended edition bollocks when DVD’s are released. Don’t rush out and buy films as soon as they come out. Do some research and wait a while for the definitive edition to be released. The studios will soon realise that when sales of first edition DVD’s are really low, that they may as well release the super edition first.

4) Stand-up against the ridiculous prices that are charged to go to the cinema. Vote with your bums and don’t go! I know with some films that may be a huge sacrafice, but in the long one it will do wonders. Studios will be forced to charge the theatres less for the film, theatres will inturn be forced to charge the movie goer less money. So what if budgets drop on films! Is this always going to be a bad thing? All this crap about piracy threatening the future of film. Even shit films break even after the DVD release. Films can be and should be made for less. Pulp Fiction cost 8 million dollars (5 mill on actors wages). The majority of films can be made for less, which should be passed on to us the viewer!

Must end this rant now, as work calls.
http://weblog.brunton.org.uk Richard Brunton

Hate to tell you guys, but Politics does affect this kind of topic, and it’s okay to discuss it and not be afraid. More people should discuss Politics (in the right location and if it is relevant)!

Chris, your point about Kung Fu Hustle and Oldboy attracting huge audiences where you are is all well and good. Oldboy didn’t get a proper cinema release where I am, KFH did, although limited, and when I went the week after release I was the only one in the cinema. The only one. I think world takings are more what the Studios are interested in.

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Is Hollywood in a creative slump?

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