Why the Imaginarium that is Cinema is Broken

Hollywood Cinema over the last century has gone through major changes, ages but the current one that we do live in is inherently flawed. Now I am not the first person to arrive upon this topic but I am the most recent to view film events unfold and go sit in a corner and cry because of the sad turn of film as a whole. Yesterday there were two major stories that came into my personal sphere that really made me think. Firstly it was the rumor that Pacific Rim 2 has been indefinitely put on hold and secondly, the merge of the Godzilla and King Kong into a shared universe with the upcoming Kong: Skull Island. These stories at first glance seem unrelated but once you pull a magnifying glass and dig deeper into the endless void that is the internet the truth may be uncovered. Both films are currently under Universal studios, they both hold the main theme of giant monsters in our world and both would have astronomical budgets that would probably be the only thing that could take on the main characters. Pacific Rim is a huge loss since not only could it have had a great future even if the premiere film did not perform the best. As well as being the entrance to a complete new universe to explore with all the kaiju’s and jaegers bringing infinite new possibilities to the big screen.  While Godzilla and King Kong will no doubt have an epic scope and great visuals to their films, they have both been explored time and time again. Kong has a total of 11 films and Godzilla has over 2 dozen films to their name while the characters in Pacific Rim currently hold a total of 1 film. The world they brought to the screen and developed so thoroughly and personally I enjoyed Pacific Rim much more than either of the two others previous movies based on visual style, the world they created and pure bad ass giant monster action.

This is just the most recent development in our time of more established franchises taking precedence over independent or new ideas for cinema. As we begin I think we all should just be aware that I really enjoy watching new ideas and fresh takes on anything in a cinema as much as I love watching your Avengers or your Fast and Furious 14 but this is a trend I have noticed and personally believe it should be different. The main problem that I see is that studios are more corporately minded at this point that creatively driven. The idea that they want to make money over try new things is great for the studio but horrible for film as whole. If George Lucas chose to make a 2001 reboot instead of Star Wars, it wouldn’t have changed the world. If James Cameron made Dances with Wolves remake instead of Avatar would the world be completely different? Many times originality has pushed the boundaries of cinema and that is what we should want. Creative ideas are where we got these franchises from whether in started in films, books, comics or any other form of creative expression; someone had to take a chance at one point and without those people we wouldn’t have films as they are today. So why stop taking chances now, Hollywood is full of cycles and every franchise no matter how successful now will eventually come to an end and when that happens what will replace it? We should be seeding more and more new projects and putting the necessary time and effort into developing so we can get the next Star Wars or the next Superman who have only grown even bigger since their film appearances.

Originality is great, it is clear that cinema is still moving forward even if they are recycling ideas. With the Planet of the Apes franchise and the upcoming Jungle Book, CGI is currently being pushed through its own boundaries and making films more of a spectacle. We see more talent being put into mainstream movies, with actors like Robert Redford or Michael Douglas each taking their turn in super hero movies and many more coming in the future. The qualities of these films are only going up which raises not only the precedence as well as the attention that is being given to it not only by fans but now film authorities that previously thought they were too high and mighty previously see them now. The upcoming theme of Cinematic Universes now push writers and directors in ways that they not gone in before. Having to develop through lines through multiple films and have long running stories make filmmakers truly make those characters their own and who can truly say they made a tree and a racoon into the most loveable character, only James Gunn. Even as TV grows as the lines are currently blurring with shows like Legion, Limitless or Agents of SHIELD either continuing the stories after a film or developing through lines between films it is important to see that brining these large groups of films are truly changing the way films are made and even the way we look at them. It is even changing the way we watch them, before Marvel no one sat through the credits but now it seems that everyone expects there to be some secret revealed or a tip of the hat to the next movie after the credits finished rolling as it is some new unwritten rule. Re-boots and remakes are currently the top of the box office and with studios making plans well into the future it is sure that it will stay for the upcoming years but it is up to the people making them to not just use the same formula but to shake it up and continue to push film as a whole no matter what they are making.

Cinema as a whole has good parts and bad parts and whether it is original ideas or another remake there is merit to be given as it takes a lot of effort to put a project together. Would I love to see more original ideas be given chances and to see them receive the acclaim and celebration that they deserve. YES! But that sadly isn’t the age we live in. I will always support what I can and obviously it isn’t a lot but everything helps and one more person is another person that will be changed. You will probably will also find me opening night for the next 45 blockbusters over the next 10 years but take what I said above with a grain of salt but they make the money and get good reviews for a reason. All in all film should give more chances but if what they are currently turning stays as good as it is I have no reason to doubt their method.