The Big Picture: The Numbers

[i7omahawki]

I said before and I'll say it again; the most damage to Scott Pilgrim was done by fans of Scott Pilgrim. Every self proclaimed "geek/gamer" and their cousin was spouting how it was this masterpiece of cinema from the rooftops (while also saying how the characters were flawed, the first part of the movie was boring, and the main hero had no redeeming qualities.. still not sure how that qualifies as a masterpiece) in the most obnoxious manner possible.

To top it all off I had to listen to those same people give me shit for seeing and getting some pop-corn-fun out of The Expendables. Was it some great cinematic revolution? Hell no and it was cheesy as Kraft factory explosion, but I had some laughs, saw some decent action, got to see some of my old favorite action guys on the big screen again, and got to relax in a comfy chair for a couple hours.

Mmmm, except more annoying than the 'hipster' fanboys are the 'Same again please,' guys.

Basically, you don't care about quality, you just want to sit in a comfy chair and watch your favourite action stars in decent action movie. Well: get a comfy chair, a TV of decent proportions and some DVDs. Oh, no, sorry it has to be the 'big screen'...of course, it's the size of the movie's projected image that matters, not its content or quality.

Good on those fans for being passionate about something they like. I'll agree that it was overproduced and really, I don't see how Universal were surprised it flopped at box office. But we got a hell of a movie out of it, and if it causes a delay to another, maybe better movie, then maybe the people who really want to bring that project to life will have more time to work on their material, and eventually it should get picked up. So those fans were possibly being douchebags (deserving to watch anything is of course ridiculous), but at least they cared about what they liked. That's not very hipsterish (maybe not a word, but 'hipster' barely is either). I find your attitude of 'same again' for the sake of your own relaxation a much more cynical and self-absorbed ethos than the people who geniunely, and passionately, enjoyed this good film.

 

[shadow741]

I heard people talking about the newest Fast Furious movie and praising it. I wanted to strangle them for watching such mediocre drivel, but I also feel bad for them because they probably didn't know there's better movies out there. Oh well, also, what the hell?! THEY DIDN'T GREEN LIGHT AN H.P. LOVECRAFT MOVIE!?!? I guess I'll just have to wait even longer for a proper one *sigh*.

 

[ZexionSephiroth]

My brother has this to say: "Fast and furious 4 was brilliant, but they derailed at #5 because they forgot that the series was supposed to be about the f*****g cars not a b****y bank heist."
That's a direct quote.

I myself think that most 'popular' (blockbuster etc.) movies were once either a risky experiment that worked, or a rip off. However the more optimistic thought fails when they make too many sequels without a clear cut idea of what the series IS and IS NOT!

 

[BlueHighwind]

Probably the most depressing single video ever that didn't have a baby die in it. I saw Scott Pilgrim in theatres, I got people to come with me, we all liked it. I don't know about the rest of the world. The Expendables sucked a hard one. I wanted to walk out.

Still, Fast and Furious 5 actually looked promising in its own weird way. It will be a rent.

Also, PG-13 can suck my ass. If you're going to make a horror movie, it has to be an R. The Wolfman last year sucked. And it was PG-13. See something there?

 

[Johkmil]

I happened to stumble over the news that Del Toro had his (and mine) AtMoM-dreams crushed once more the day after it was announced, and it nearly made me cry. This was a high-budget rendering of one of my my favorite authors, done by the only director I would trust not to rape the source materials. The thing I grief most for is how the creatures of Lovecraft are spread around in the ether with no regard to the existentialist dread that defines Lovecraft's greatest moments. The "point" of Lovecraft is not squid-monsters, fish-people and space cucumbers, but the dreadful realization of a man, raised to believe that he is of the dominant race of the god-imaged species that had the universe created for it, that his existence is without consequence for the greater picture of reality, that humanity is simply a result of cosmic coincidences and that the scope of time and space is so vast that life itself is meaningless.

 

[Eldritch Warlord]

Del Toro directing a Lovecraft adaptation? It brings a tear to my eye to know that such a masterpiece has been denied life.

 

[JIst00]

All I can say here, other than that I completely see and agree/understand where Bob is coming from here, is that I do my bit with the box office. I'm not saying that I only go to see artsy fartsy ppictures that mark me as an interlectual highbrow, or that I dont get it wrong on occassion and go to see a movie I thought looked good, but was trash, but I go to see movies I would be interested in seeing more of that type get made.

Yeah I know, 2 movie tickets isnt going to dramatically change the box office stats for good or ill, but all I can say here is; I'm doing my bit to support cinema, for good or ill.

It's like voting, you dont vote, you dont get to ***** about politics.

Unsure about a film, or think its gonna be generic trash, albeit generic trash that YOU like, wait for it on DVD, spend you money there. Me I'm a sucker for big loud action films, and unfortunately spent money on a theater ticket for the Expendables (May I burn in Hell for Time Eternal! =P), maybe I should of waited for it on DVD, or maybe I'd have heard how bad it was, and that would have maybe swayed me, who knows, but now I have to live with the fact that I inadvertantly help pave the way for a crappy sequel to a crappy film.

Like I say, for good or Ill, make your ticket purchases count!

 

[A Gray Phantom]

I'll admit it. I saw The Fast and the Furious," but only as a rental, that someone else rented, (same story with the Expendables). I haven't even seen, nor want to see, the sequels.

And yet I've seen Scott Pilgrim a few times in theaters, dragging my friends with me, and I own the DVD, and the whole graphic novel collection.

So I'm always skeptical when I hear these box office statistics and I question their accuracy.

 

[RN7]

So why not just go ahead and make a stream of shit-tastic films like Twilight and The Expendables to reap in the cash, pandering to the idiotic, waste-of-genetics, mainstream audience, and then use said money to create awesome films like Scott Pilgrim and the sadly-dormant At the Mountains of Madness?

Oh right. They'll just want more money after the first step. While I do like the thought of manipulating stupid people, the cost of sacrificing good artistic material pains me too much.

 

[CthulhuRlyeh]

The man is right. If this WERE a perfect world, only good films would make money, only good actors would become famous, and the likes of Uwe Boll and James Cameron would be out of a job.

But we're not living in a perfect world. And do you know why good films get snubbed while mediocre ones make millions? It's because of all of us! We're the problem, always going with the "safe" or "familiar".

I hope you realize just how dumb you made yourself sound. Yes, the director of Terminator, Aliens and Terminator 2, a person who came to the top through hard work is a worthless director and should be out of a job. Try and tell me that he is bad at his job after watching the making of Aliens. Just try.

 

[SapphireD910]

This video is a clear break down of why films like Watchmen, Sucker Punch, and Scott Pilgrim don't do well in the box office, yet, never get old or have an empty/thoughtless moment; they make the average movie-goer think or feel in a way they don't want to, and in fact a way they're probably trying to escape for a few hours. The only real respect paid to most movies comes down to award season, and even then, the movies we're focusing on here still get snubbed. So no, studios have ZERO reason, except to like their product, to do these films until more people open up to them, both audiences and the film industry insiders.

I'd like to note that Scott Pilgrim has been on cable a lot the last few weeks, and I have turned it on many times despite seeing it so many times. I feel like "I should be tired of this" or "it was just on several hours ago", but no, I still enjoy it all the same. I try this with a few other films and it fails horribly, even when it has been a long time since seeing it, and I can only get 15 minutes in before I roll my eyes and look for something else.

I wish that studios would consider theater sales and DVD/rental sales in their conclusions on a film. A lot of films cater to the theater, and go off shock value, neither of which translate to watching it at home on your TV (no matter how big).

 

[Gindil]

I'll admit it. I saw The Fast and the Furious," but only as a rental, that someone else rented, (same story with the Expendables). I haven't even seen, nor want to see, the sequels.

And yet I've seen Scott Pilgrim a few times in theaters, dragging my friends with me, and I own the DVD, and the whole graphic novel collection.

So I'm always skeptical when I hear these box office statistics and I question their accuracy.

YES! Please do.

And I'll say that there will be new ways to make movies coming. Kevin Smith is going to pave the way:

 

[ragsmorrison]

okay, Bobby, you keep bringing it up, without any sign of letting go. So now, I find myself in need of the heavy artillery. Here we goes:

in Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World,the kung-fu and videogame aspects were, in summary, the jellied mint strawberry icing on a dog turd pie. Themes and choreography alone do not a movie make, there needs to be a decent story with interesting and relatable characters at the core. With that in mind, you could take a story about two deadpan, unlikable hipsters falling in love and learning to be a pinch less unlikable but not by much, set it on the surface of Saturn's moon, Triton, throw in an army of walrus ninjas and have them communicate entirely via Brazilian dance-fighting, but at the end of the day, it's still just about two bland douches going through the same relationship motions every daytime soap couple since the dawn of man has gone through before.

 

[theApoc]

Seriously Bob, quit your whining. You act like it is ridiculous that projects that make money, beget more projects that make money, while projects that cost money get left by the wayside.

Every time I hear about some BS indie flick like Scott Pilgrim, I realize that they will never be as good as fanboy's think they are, no matter what kind of nerd buzz gets thrown behind them, and you know why? Because most things that only appeal to a niche market do so because they are plagued with flaws that are generally ignored so that basement dwelling teenagers can have something to talk about in between D&D games.

If Del Toro wants his flick to get made, he could have done a lot of things to do so, most notably, funding it himself or better yet, not going crazy with a ridiculous budget.

You know why they will make a FF6. Because it costs less than it generates, and when that formula stops, they will pick something else. And you know what? That is the way it has always and most definitely should be done, ask Rodger Corman, he has made a career of that. He makes the movies HE wants with the budget that makes sense based on the audience, and the ROI.

 

[rembrandtqeinstein]

Screw the big budget blockbusters. Leave them for the idiot drooling masses.

Speaking of Del Toro Pan's Labyrinth was made for less than 15 million euro. It had awesome acting, a great story, and meaningful special effects.

Man From Earth, Ink, Rec, Downstream etc etc etc

All decent movies for a low budget. We DONT NEED AVATAR!

 

[kuolonen]

whah..? There could have been a Lovecraft film with blockbuster funding? With that crew?

I.. I dont.. ..why? Oh GOD why? No please raptorjesus no! Damm it all to Hell! Screw you Hollywood!

...Well there goes my bright demeanor for the rest of the year.
PS: only F&F I've seen was the first. Meh.

Edit: Ok. Watched the video again. The rage keeps rising. To summarise my feelings right now I'd have to copypaste 50 pages worth of "AAARGH" with additional 30 pages with "!". But im fairly certain I would get a ban from that one.

 

[DevilWolf47]

We're losing out on cult classics because retard spawn with no standards watch flashy objects on the screen with garbage like Twilight, Transformers, and The Expendables.
...if that doesn't turn you into a misanthrope i don't know what will. Movie buffs may miss out on the next Scott Pilgrim or gamers might miss out on the next Silent Hill 2 because of safe bets due to an army of people whose standards match their fucking attention spans. Now is definitely a time where you wonder if we should turn towards natural selection and rip-off warning labels. See if fans of Transformers are more prone to driving dangerously as opposed to fans of The Godfather. Sure innocents might get caught in the crossfire, but that's a small price to pay for a chance to finally see a real successor to the Silent Hill franchise or another massive nerd wank like Scott Pilgrim.
...maybe this mentality is why i never made it as a writer.

 

[Beautiful End]

When I saw the trailers for Scott Pilgrim, I specifically exclaimed "Hey! That movie looks different and fun! I'll give it a shot! " while my friends shrugged and didn't care.
When the movie came out, I was truly excited about it. There were a few people at the movies and my friends probably didn't enjoy it at the same level as I did.
When I watched The Expendables, I yawned and laughed at the obvious action movie cliched and the lack of character depth, plot, or satisfactory resolution. However, the movie theater was FULL. Mind you, i was the only girl there; I went there with my brother because it was his birthday. Yeah, the theater also smelled like a sumo wrestler's underwear.

So yes, the only reason why movies like Fast and the Furious, Transformers, The Expendables and who knows what else sells is because of the three things that people like:
-Cars
-Half naked hot chicks
-Explosions
They don't care about the plot. Remember that Robot Chicken skit where there's a Michael Bay movie called Explosions and all they do is show...well, explosions? Yeah, that's what sells. Either that or your typical heartthrob drama. Anything slightly different than that is considered crap. People just won't take a gamble. It's understandable in a way; most people don't like to gamble with their hard earned money. But at the same time, whenever there's a reasonably different element out there, movie, TV show, whatever, the safe-bet elements usually crush this refreshing new thing. Or more accurately, the safe-bet fandom won't rest until this new-thing element is completely crushed.

Sounds like I'm a conspiracy nut but hey, it's true. It's not as dramatic as that, perhaps, but it still holds true.

 

[ironlordthemad]

More Scott Pilgrim bullshit? Also The expendepals was not that bad. There are worse movie out there like Twilight

Good too see I'm not the only one who likes the sound of today's ultra realistic gunfire over the sound of the 8 bit mario beeps and boops.

Not everyone was around in the 80's and even those that were may not have been a hard core geek who only wants his favourite comic book/novel/anime series made into a movie, some people are just people, the average joe is average because he is the majority and what the majority wants makes money for the industries. So they get what they want because by sheer weight of numbers they can pay for it too happen. I'm pretty sure if you got everyone who realy says they "want a movie about x" to split the bill evenly, it would either happen and they would shut up (or they wouldn't really get what they want and just ***** about it because after all this is the internet) or they would realise that stuff costs money and gain a little perspective and shut up.

Get over it bob, your team lost, or are you this guy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-6Tn0Ie-AQ

 

[2ndblackjedi]

So I went to Fast Five a couple days ago and...I'm sorry Escapist but I enjoyed it. It was really more a heist movie than an FnF movie, but I still had a good time. I didn't even realize what I was doing wrong until afterwards, but I found the action sequences to be crazy awesome and I liked The Rock in his over-the-top role as Agent Biceps. The chase scene with the vault was one of the greatest things I've ever seen and the after-credits plot twist was not only a huge shocker to me, but it made me want to see the next one and I feel terrible about this.

So folks, I'm sorry for going to Guillermo del Toro's house and peeing on his cat. I didn't literally do that, I don't even know if he has a cat, but it's become obvious that I've done the equivalent.

I suppose this is a bad time to say that when I got The Expendables on DVD for Christmas, I didn't throw it in a wood chipper and demand 10 copies of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World like I should have, but instead watched it. I didn't even put an axe through the TV afterwards as is apparently my obligation to do.

Again, I just want to say I'm sorry for having had fun watching Fast Five. I now realize that I am a terrible person and that I am part of the unwashed masses dragging all culture down with me. I'm already writing an apology letter to Del Toro, and checking to make sure he doesn't actually have a cat.