The Big Picture: The Numbers

[stonemaskstoryteller]

I remember the days when I actually got excited about to going to the cinema. It seems now I just go to meet friends and kill time...

 

[emeraldrafael]

It made me sad when Scott was fifth in its opening week. beaten out by Eat Pray Love and the Expendables.

and it also helped proved that yes, studios need to make money, and that this is why you cant do anything "original"

 

[Megacherv]

Ladies and Gentlemen, Call of Duty

Need I really say any more?

True to a degree.

You see, Call of Duty actually does what it does well, or at least better than others.

Yes, it's now the cookie cutter format for the modern FPS, but you can't deny that CoD titles are actually quite addicting. While I love to rage at those camping, heartbeat-sensing mofos which the game's shortcomings in design allows, it succeeded at holding my interest despite that.

Call of Duty is not analogous to "The Expendables"- poorly made games based on CoD are.
(^ I know you didn't say otherwise (since your post was short), but I thought it was a valid point.)

Thanks for doing what I hoped and not raging at me

 

[jovack22]

well said.

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

A big budget Lovecraft movie, made by the guy who directed Hellboy, was scrapped because the best movie of the summer didn't appeal to the mainstream audience.

Spoiler: ...............

[image/]http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a219/dkgojackets/fffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuu.jpg[/IMG]

 

[Connor Lonske]

Spoiler: Spoilers cause of offensive post, ignore this unless otherwise you might get offended. This is my actual opinion, and if I get banned for having my own opinion, than so be it.

I wonder how many people in this thread saw The Expendables instead of Scott Pilgrim back in September. If you did, you are now officially on my shit list, because I know you posted about how great this video is. Hell, this is probably the best journalist on the Escapist, and you are mocking him for saying he is right, yet you probably will continue to spend money on projects that will suck. Thank you very much.

Oh yeah, and if you saw The Expendables and Scott Pilgrim, than I'm indifferent.

 

[maninahat]

Whilst everything Bob says is sadly true, I can't help feeling that if tons of people went to the cookie cutter "shitty" movies and barely anyone went to the niche, indy, "cerebral" stuff, then why is it a bad thing that we get more of the big blockbuster action movies? That is clearly what the majority want! Why should we be prioritizing the tastes of the snooty few over the blood lust of the millions?

For the record. I went to see The Expendables twice and had a great time, like millions of others. I had to practically force myself to watch Scott Pilgrim (or rather, my girlfriend did), and I ultimately found it only okay. So I'm not too bothered by this current arrangement of dumb action being favoured by Hollywood over goofy niche stuff.

 

[Connor Lonske]

I'm open to a lot of movies of many different types. Sometimes, I think you do just need a "The Expendables" type of movie. It's action to its simplest. I loved it and I don't and will never regret enjoying it. But I also enjoyed Scott Pilgrim, I tried to get my Mom to take a look into it but when it came from Netflix she looked at it and completely passed over it even though I think she would have liked it too. It is always sad when good movies get completely skipped over. I also had heard from multiple sources that the new Pirates movie was terrible. I didn't see anything really horribly wrong with it, enjoyed it just fine. But I do completely get a lot of the things Movie Bob says on movies like The Expendables and Pirates 4. After watching his reviews for the Transformer movies, and then looking back on them (at the time I really enjoyed them) I did a 180 on my thoughts for them. I still found them "amusing" but, rather dull and unimaginative etc. Pretty much what Bob says about them in his reviews comes to mind and he says it better then I ever could. Anyway that's my 2 cents.

And now I feel like a asshole for my previous post. Damn it.

 

[DrMetal]

Ladies and Gentlemen, Call of Duty

Need I really say any more?

True to a degree.

You see, Call of Duty actually does what it does well, or at least better than others.

Yes, it's now the cookie cutter format for the modern FPS, but you can't deny that CoD titles are actually quite addicting. While I love to rage at those camping, heartbeat-sensing mofos which the game's shortcomings in design allows, it succeeded at holding my interest despite that.

Call of Duty is not analogous to "The Expendables"- poorly made games based on CoD are.
(^ I know you didn't say otherwise (since your post was short), but I thought it was a valid point.)

Thanks for doing what I hoped and not raging at me

That much is true, but consider this:

Those poor CoD clones wouldnt exist, much less sell, if CoD didnt rack in so much dough...
Same analogy goes for Korea and their MMO market...

and this is whole point, so sure CoD might be a good game, but because it sells to well, money others invest in is doing uncreative mindless clones, ratehr than experiment and advance the industry.

Same goes for everything, music, gaming, tv, movies and so on....

You know whats a great example of a good TV dying because of such system? Firefly.

 

[rda_Highlander]

As much as I understand his point, how Cthulhu movie would be awesome and the movie market is stupid. But I really don't know what is so special about Scott Pilgrim. It looks like an extended cutscene. Yeah, all the videogame cameos and unusual style is there, but what's with it's story? Why do all the people have superpowers? Why do defeated boyfriends disappear in coins? I read the original comix and it's not helping. It's a comedy on LSD. Just ejaculate everything your special effects division has onto the film and call it a day. It's the same Expendables, only for nerds instead of MANLY MEN.
Phew, that felt better. I understand how nerds could like it, but Bob is known for appreciating both originality and smartness in movies. Scott Pilgrim may be imaginative, but smart? Come on.

 

[maninahat]

Spoiler: Spoilers cause of offensive post, ignore this unless otherwise you might get offended. This is my actual opinion, and if I get banned for having my own opinion, than so be it.

I wonder how many people in this thread saw The Expendables instead of Scott Pilgrim back in September. If you did, you are now officially on my shit list, because I know you posted about how great this video is. Hell, this is probably the best journalist on the Escapist, and you are mocking him for saying he is right, yet you probably will continue to spend money on projects that will suck. Thank you very much.

Oh yeah, and if you saw The Expendables and Scott Pilgrim, than I'm indifferent.

I watched The Expendables, went to see Scott Pilgrim, and then ended up going to see The Expendables AGAIN because I just didn't feel like it. I eventually saw SP with pressure from my girlfriend and the furious fans of the show. But I'm glad you've decided for me which projects suck. Lord knows that the unwashed masses and I aren't allowed to enjoy the lowest common denominator at any cost.

 

[Connor Lonske]

Whilst everything Bob says is sadly true, I can't help feeling that if tons of people went to the cookie cutter "shitty" movies and barely anyone went to the niche, indy, "cerebral" stuff, then why is it a bad thing that we get more of the big blockbuster action movies? That is clearly what the majority want! Why should we be prioritizing the tastes of the snooty few over the blood lust of the millions?

For the record. I went to see The Expendables twice and had a great time, like millions of others. I had to practically force myself to watch Scott Pilgrim (or rather, my girlfriend did), and I ultimately found it only okay. So I'm not too bothered by this current arrangement of dumb action being favoured by Hollywood over goofy niche stuff.

Because if the people who want crappy blockbusters are getting in the way of the people who take value into their movies. As he explained, if the Niche movies don't make money, than no more niche movies will be made, and all movies will be The Expendables or reboots with no effort. And that day is coming so close that it feels like the movies will no longer be art, but just another form of pointless entertainment, which is one step closer to people being made with a cookie cutter as with the films and media they watch. And I bet you have no arguments with such a future, don't you. Want everyone to be uncultured and all think the same way as everyone else. And you know what will happen then. Fahrenheit 451(the book), if you don't know what that is then go look it up.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

The thing that turned me off of Scott Pilgrim, and I'll admit I still haven't seen it, was the fact that the plot seemed to revolve around guy trying to get girl. I HATE guy trying to get girl movies no matter how you dress them up. Or girl trying to get guy movies for that matter. Although given a choice between the two, I think I'd rather watch the girl trying to get guy movie. Sure it's sappier and mushier, but at least it seems like it means something and that the characters will be together beyond the end credits, as opposed to a featurette on SpikeTV What was I talking about? Oh yeah, Scott Pilgrim. If I actually thought my Box Office contribution could've helped, I probably would've gone and seen it, but it's a little late now.

 

[LordBojangles]

Isn't the whole business model for the film industry kind of broken nowadays? People haven't primarily used theaters to see movies for a while now...why such emphasis on box office?

because box office is what brings in a majority of the money as a LOT of people still go to the cinema and how well a movie does in the box office depends on whether it gets a squeal or not(most of the time).

I saw scott pilgrim and bought the DVD, I want my lovecraft.

No, I mean, the studios have a long proud tradition of screwing over the theaters to get maximum profit from 'em, but I'm not convinced they can't do the same thing to retailers, particularly subscription services...

 

[LulzOdin]

Thanks Bob! No seriously, thanks! Thanks for reaffirming my misanthropy.

Actually this sort of thing is the case for many of today's situations. I think somewhere in the history of humanity all that was genuinely good was lost and now douchebags have become major consumers in many fields I guess and that's why we have to put up with pretentious tripe because innovation isn't 'cool'.

Ugh! Sometimes people make me wanna become a comic book type of a villain.

 

[Silinrun]

Don't I wasn't offended by it. To each their own opinion and enjoyments.

 

[SonofSeth]

I totally agree with this apart from:
1. The expendables was actually a pretty good film.
2. Scott pilgrim was an incredibly poor film.

/shudder

 

[Jumplion]

Look, if you enjoyed the Expendables and hated Scott Pilgrim, whatever, more power to you. You have a right to like/dislike whatever movie you watch, though I personally preferred Scott Pilgrim more.

The thing is, though, even if you loved the Expendables, you have to admit that it's just yet another action movie. Above all, The Expendables is just your standard action film that has been done time and time again. If you liked it, good for you, but you cannot deny how utterly copy-pasted it is from so many other movies.

If you hated Scott Pilgrim, whatever, that's your opinion. But you cannot deny that it is a unique movie, at least compared to The Expendables. Its whole presentation, style, and entire being has more uniqueness in it than The Expendables does. That is what Bob is frustrated at, not the fact that The Expendables "sucked" and made money and Scott Pilgrim did not, but the fact that The Expendables is yet another action movie that made money while Scott Pilgrim did not.

 

[BigText]

I normally don't reply to anything unless I'm complaining about something, but I just wanted to say that this was a very good episode. I learned from it, and I feel terrible about the fact I never saw Scott Pilgrim until I was watching it on an airplane over the ocean to Italy.

To be fair, though, the last movie I saw in theatres was... Avatar, I think. So yeah.

 

[Rabidkitten]

Well except in the long run Scott Pilgrim will be a cult classic that will pull it's weight in DVD sales for years to come. No one should expect a good box office run with that movie. Many of our favorite movies were total failures at the box office, Blade Runner anyone?

But let's face it, the world is full of people who are dolts. Most people don't graduate from highschool in the US, which is sad because you pretty much just need to show up to graduate. All of us white collar college graduates sit around and wonder what is wrong with everyone because everyone we know and work with has good tastes. It's just that now that we all grew up and no longer associated with the masses doesn't mean they aren't still their loving Fast and the Furious, Professional Wrestling, movies starring big name HipHop stars, and so forth. That mass of people aren't reading this website, their at home getting drunk after a day of work at the construction yard.

Last I heard Wolfman was bad, and I think Hellboy two was pretty mediocre. Lame 10 minute beer commercial in the middle and all.