Kevin Willis on liberal propaganda movies
From the comments on a movie post recently, the great Kevin Willis writes:
I often debate the issue with lefties at the entertainment site, aintitcool.com, and I argue the number one problems is movies made with an ideological axe to grind (or itch to scratch) tend to be boring. The "atheist themed" Golden Compass will do in box office what a half-dozen of the current anti-war movies haven't, because movies like Lions for Lambs or In The Valley of Elah look, and are, boring and tedious. The trailers for Rendition made the movie look tedious. I wouldn't have gone to see it if it had been on the right side of the issue. Frankly, political policy is important to me, but I don't go to movies to learn about social security reform. I want to see a good story, a romantic comedy, or giant robots.
It's not a coincidence that modern liberals, making movies with ideological axes to grind, make boring and tedious movies. It's just a bad place to start. Even if they have a decent story, if the writers are trying to inject some of their personal politics into a movie (such as the line about no occupying force ever winning a war, spaketh by Tim Robbins in "War of the Worlds"), then that's usually the stupidest part of the movie.
But it's not just the war. Fast Food Nation completely tanked at the box office, making under $2 million dollars--it couldn't have been begun to pay for marketing. And it was a totally "America is Bad, Look we kill cows" movie, and worse that watching all the graphic images of cow slaughter is listening to characters try to insert liberal talking points into "conversation" like it's a PowerPoint presentation. And I could go on and on and on . . .
A followup post:
BTW, The Golden Compass will do good business, because it has Daniel Craig, and talking polar bears, and witches, and special effects, and all sorts of cook stuff, and isn't a bunch of eggheads sitting around talking about how stupid Christians are. But I guarantee you a lot of libs will see it as mainstream acceptance of atheism, anti-Christianity, etc. And then there will be the thoughtful Redford movie staring Meryl Streep as the reporter being harangued by Tom Cruise's fundamentalist paritioner. And that'll tank . . .
And this:
Lions for Lambs is tanking. Redacted (Brian DePalma's depiction of U.S. soldiers as murdering child rapists), for which DePalma has already won some awards (despite the fact many liberal critics have panned the film as godawful as a film) . . . Redacted will be debuting on HDNet (a cable channel with not a lot of market penetration) before it hits theaters, which seems to me a tacit acknowledgement that it's going to tank at the box office.
Again, interesting stories make for good movies. "America is bad" is not an interesting story. "I'm a Hollywood writer, and thus smarter and more moral than you rubes in flyover country, and this movie will teach you how to be smart like me" is also not an interesting story--in fact, it's a story that Hollywood has done way too much and it wasn't any good the first time.
I often debate the issue with lefties at the entertainment site, aintitcool.com, and I argue the number one problems is movies made with an ideological axe to grind (or itch to scratch) tend to be boring. The "atheist themed" Golden Compass will do in box office what a half-dozen of the current anti-war movies haven't, because movies like Lions for Lambs or In The Valley of Elah look, and are, boring and tedious. The trailers for Rendition made the movie look tedious. I wouldn't have gone to see it if it had been on the right side of the issue. Frankly, political policy is important to me, but I don't go to movies to learn about social security reform. I want to see a good story, a romantic comedy, or giant robots.
It's not a coincidence that modern liberals, making movies with ideological axes to grind, make boring and tedious movies. It's just a bad place to start. Even if they have a decent story, if the writers are trying to inject some of their personal politics into a movie (such as the line about no occupying force ever winning a war, spaketh by Tim Robbins in "War of the Worlds"), then that's usually the stupidest part of the movie.
But it's not just the war. Fast Food Nation completely tanked at the box office, making under $2 million dollars--it couldn't have been begun to pay for marketing. And it was a totally "America is Bad, Look we kill cows" movie, and worse that watching all the graphic images of cow slaughter is listening to characters try to insert liberal talking points into "conversation" like it's a PowerPoint presentation. And I could go on and on and on . . .
A followup post:
BTW, The Golden Compass will do good business, because it has Daniel Craig, and talking polar bears, and witches, and special effects, and all sorts of cook stuff, and isn't a bunch of eggheads sitting around talking about how stupid Christians are. But I guarantee you a lot of libs will see it as mainstream acceptance of atheism, anti-Christianity, etc. And then there will be the thoughtful Redford movie staring Meryl Streep as the reporter being harangued by Tom Cruise's fundamentalist paritioner. And that'll tank . . .
And this:
Lions for Lambs is tanking. Redacted (Brian DePalma's depiction of U.S. soldiers as murdering child rapists), for which DePalma has already won some awards (despite the fact many liberal critics have panned the film as godawful as a film) . . . Redacted will be debuting on HDNet (a cable channel with not a lot of market penetration) before it hits theaters, which seems to me a tacit acknowledgement that it's going to tank at the box office.
Again, interesting stories make for good movies. "America is bad" is not an interesting story. "I'm a Hollywood writer, and thus smarter and more moral than you rubes in flyover country, and this movie will teach you how to be smart like me" is also not an interesting story--in fact, it's a story that Hollywood has done way too much and it wasn't any good the first time.
posted by Walker at 9:03 AM
9 Comments:
I heard some guy who is smarter than me explain that the reason the Hollylibs crank out these sort of anti-American films is simply to impress their peers. They could care less what the rest of Joe Blow normal America thinks, it's what their fellow travelers think that matters!
All these so called 'big name' stars in these films have already made more money than God, so they don't care whether it's a box office smash or not. These films will tank and yet they will all be Oscar material-mark my words! It's the kudos from their pals they all crave. Jeez, Hollyweird has become one big immature jr. high clique!
I've already warned my youguns about The Golden Compass. It's NOT on our holiday movie list!
WTR, you are right as usual. I'm sure these anti-war movies are part of the Hollywood group grope. I'm wondering who in the hell they get to invest in them. Probably George Soros and company.
I've always been leery of fantasy movies. However the Golden Compas is a wolf in sheeps clothing.
The Golden Compass movie, from what I've read, isn't that bad, but the danger is in it's leading children to ask their parents for the books and the books are horrendous! In the end God has been killed. I posted on the movie last week warning parents of the danger of buying the books, but if the movie does well we all know that the books will be best sellers. What a horror!
Redacted is already tanking, but I'm positive Hollyweird will celebrate themselves regarding this traitorous pos. They're really twistsed out there!
Having said all of the above, I sincerely hope you and yours had a wonderful Thanksgiving. :)
Walker wants to shame me on the typos. But I feel like I should expand on The Golden Compass: I don't think it's a real issue. I don't think anyone is going to see the film, then read the books, and then renounce God. It's unfortunate that Hollywood is so anti-American and so Godless, but The Golden Compass is a fairy tale and a few books are just one tiny input into a person's life. If one pro-atheist tract leads to a crisis of faith, it ain't about the movie (or book). And it might say something about Hollywood's awareness that anti-American and anti-Christian movies don't make big money that they are toning down the atheist themes in The Golden Compass.
Anyone else see Brokeback Mountain? Libs loved it. Did decent box office, won several Oscars. Boring. Heath Ledger's worst performance ever (though, predictably, many libs thought his mumbling parody of a cowboy was brilliant). I'm a guy, so I thought the fifteen seconds where Anne Hathaway whipped off her shirt were pretty good . . . but the rest of it was just yawn inducing. Tedious would be a good word for it. In some ways, I think films like Crash, Brokeback, and Lions for Lambs are the penance the religion of Hollyweird makes us rubes in flyover country pay for daring not to accept their every pronouncement and personal opinion as holy writ.
Oh, did anybody catch Leonardo DiCaprio's propaganda-filled 11th Hour, about how we're ruining the planet? No? That's because is tanked at the box office, too! I haven't seen it, but I predict it was tedious and boring to watch. "Hi, I'm an idiot with no formal training in anything, but I think I'm smarter than you. Worship me, people! Look at my good intentions!"
I'm very angry with the comparisons they are making between Golden and Narnia & Rings. There is a fundamental difference in the books. I don't care if Compass ignores the "let's kill God" aspect from the book, it's there all the same. And, I am VERY angry at Nicole Kidman for having such a public reversion to faith only to appear in such a movie. It reeks hypocrite.
Actually, the Golden Compass movie lacks the courage of its convictions, so to speak. Narnia made clear the Christ allegory, references like 'sons of Adam', and even Santa Claus! The Golden Compass movie apparently completely neuters the end of the film, though I understand it's in the later books that that anti-religious stuff really gets hot. Still . . . the Golden Compass is a book/a movie. I think it's ironic that what sells the movie is all the fantasy/fantastic/miraculous elements--it's dressing up atheism in all the magic, mysticism, mystery, and unexplained miraculousness that they curse and laugh at in Christianity and Judaism (but not in Islam, as that would be insensitive).
Atheists (and many liberals) never want to accept on of the fundamental lessons of Christ: humility. To be humble before God. Global warming: we can destroy creation just by living our lives! We can save creation by our enlightened social policies! Golden Compass: we can kill God! We are Gods! Atheism shares a common aspect with many Christian heresies (heretical offshoots of Christianity that claim to be "the same" or "real" Christianity): a lack of humility. Godlike powers for humans, either innate or learned, or salvation (and/or mystical powers) achieve through works rather than grace.
the problem with activist movies is that people go to the movies to escape and be entertained. We do not go to think or be angered. Hollwierd has lost site of that simple fact. There is a reason action movies sell. It is exciting. There is a reason why romance movies sell. Women like to see something romantic that will never happen to them, but they oh so want it to. There is a reason why activist movies tank. They are not enjoyable. There is no escape. There is no entertainment. All fiction, no matter the medium, is about escaping and being entertained. If you cannot suspend your disbelief and enjoy the ride, there is no ride.
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