Movies piss me off

I don't think I'm inside my own mind today...

It seems that without fail, Hollywood is hell bent on discovering the next "Matrix" the next "Star Wars" the next big thing that will generate them millions of dollars. The next big thing that will rejuvenate the box office and have people talking for decades. They(the suits who run the film studios) have this down to a science, they think that they know what a movie needs for it to be a hit, that this formulaic process will guarantee success at every avenue and ensure greener pastures from here-on-out.

I mean, Lord of The Rings was good... but it wasn't Star Wars good.

Think of any movie that Michael Bay has made, you will agree that they all have an unprecedented amount of action in them. He's arguably one of the most visually innovative directors in Hollywood right now. It's just a shame his storytelling skills aren't in the same ballpark or we'd have a director on our hands who we might have looked forward to directing the Transformers movie... Please, lets be honest. It wasn't Shia LeBouf's fault... When I think about it, I wonder who else could they really have gotten to make that? The Transformers directed by anyone outside Spielberg would've been a joke to me. (But I think Michael Bay has received enough flak from the internet.) I didn't hate Transformers but I thought The Island was better...

The Pirates of the Caribbean movies were fun, but after the first movie it was clear that the fun of being Capitan Jack had waned in Mr. Depp's performances which really seemed less and less spirited in each film. If they hadn't worked so hard to make Jack Sparrow interesting in the third movie I almost shudder to think what a train wreck that trilogy could have been, no worse than The Matrix Trilogy, I suppose, I think it will be tough for something to crash and burn that badly, but we did make it through Star Wars episodes 1-3 didn't we?

Hollywood's preoccupation with action and excitement has lead a severe discourse in the way of quality. Do you think people are downloading movies just because it's more convenient, it's more cost-effective and because it's a lot easier to stomach a movie that sucks when you haven't just blown 20 bucks getting a ticket and some snacks. Movies are supposed to tell stories. The stories in the movies aren't good anymore, they aren't even trying. If you're watching a action movie. It's safe to assume you can check your brain at the door but then we get movies like Crank and I wonder if they're even putting any effort into it anymore. I think the biggest violator of this whole trend was The Golden Compass. This movie pretty much generated enough buzz on the whole religion fiasco that followed the pretense of the novel. Something that wasn't even touched upon in the movie, and yet it still managed to have as much action as it could muster for the entire film. I haven't read the novels. but can't children's movies just be about adventure anymore instead of having to turn into Lord of The Rings at the end with the epic climactic battle?

The movies that I treasure most are the kind that involve careful storytelling with a mixture of unique characters and quality cinematography. This is a movie, that doesn't just mean it has to look good you might as well take the time to tell a cool story too shouldn't you? Movies like Running with Scissors, Lars and The Real Girl, even Iron Man are great examples of movies that tell a careful story that are told around interesting characters who feel real, with real motivations . Iron Man may be a bit of a stretch as far as the fact that he's a billionaire super-genius but maybe Bill Gates could identify with that...

I'm sure this downward spiral will only continue to blow out of control and movies will get progressively worse and worse. There are a handful of filmmakers who sustain my confidence in film and help me look forward to seeing something.

Christopher Nolan: The director of a bunch of great films including Batman Begins, he is as meticulous a storyteller as there is in Hollywood right now. He puts a lot of care and time into his films and they always seem to entertain. The Prestige gets better with every viewing. With The Dark Knight coming up this summer, and my huge affinity towards the Caped Crusader, I have a bit of giddiness in my step looking forward to this, and any film he makes in the future.

Jason Reitman: The director of Thank You for Smoking and Juno has proven to me he is a versatile filmmaker who is capable of drawing any angle of the human emotion that he can. He tells stories in such interesting ways and his movies draw me in so quickly, if you've yet to see either of these two films they are highly recommended. He will be a director to watch in the future as he gets more movies under his belt I cannot wait to see what he decides to bring to the screen.

James Mangold: With 3:10 to Yuma and Walk The Line, he's got some hits under his belt. He's also made one of my favorite Stallone film's Cop Land which probably doesn't stand up to the previously two mentioned films but he makes engaging movies that I like to watch. Definately the kind of director who has a knack for making the moments feel right. His movies hit right where they need to and I can only hope he'll continue to bring some interesting films to theaters.

Guillermo del Toro: I regrettably have yet to see Pans Labyrinth although I've heard nothing outside of the fact that it's a fascinating film, but I do have to say I hold other films in his library pretty closely to my heart, mainly Hellboy and Blade 2. He has a pretty interesting way of storytelling that I think, after Pans Labyrinth especially I think we will only start to see his movies become more imaginative and interesting. With Hellboy 2: The Golden Army upcoming, I am also looking forward to the Doctor Strange movie, if they make it. I can't say I really care for The Hobbit but the fact that he's making those movies makes me a little bit interested to watch them.

Bryan Singer: Sure, Superman Returns might have been a misstep to some but it was a film I really enjoyed, and went to see twice in theater. It didn't hold up to either of his X-Men films which are probably part of the upper-echelon of the genre. The Usual Suspects is probably one of the greatest films ever, and if you haven't seen it you need to go to the movie store like now and go rent it. He's an executive producer of the TV show House. With the upcoming film Valkyrie starring everyones favorite Scientologist, a movie about one of the assassination attempts on Adolf Hitler, personally count me in for that! I always find his movies interesting to watch and I am sure that Tom Cruise won't kill that for me. I mean, I liked War of The Worlds...

Until next time, peace!