Directors blaming the audience is a trend that needs to stop

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The film industry is currently in a difficult situation. The double punch of the 2020 lockdown and the new prominence of streaming services has threatened the business of cinemas in a way that has never been seen before in the entire history of cinema. Fewer and fewer people are showing up in theaters for anything other than big-budget spectacle films.

This put low and medium budget filmmakers in a difficult position. If movies don’t sell tickets, studios will have little reason to fund future projects of the same nature. This is a difficult problem to solve. But Hollywood filmmakers seem to be taking the opposite of the right approach of approaching the problem with the very ungenerous attitude toward the public that keeps the film industry going.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY Playing the Blame Game Sony Pictures

Few would have suspected two decades ago that the mere act of watching a movie would one day be seen as a deeply political act or societal statement. Yet this is how Hollywood’s advertising machine and social networks have transformed movie viewing. Take the case of Elzabeth Banks, who helmed the 2019 reboot of Charlie’s Angels.

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After the film’s failure at the box office, Banks claimed that the reason for the bombing was that “men don’t see women making action movies”, although Wonder Woman, Mad Max: Fury Road and Captain Marvel have become huge hits. the same time. Something similar happened when the all-female reboot of Ghostbusters in 2016 underperformed, which was blamed squarely on the franchise’s “toxic male fans” while ignoring very real story issues. and the characters the film suffered from.

Veteran Filmmakers Enter the Act 20th Century Studios

It’s not just the personal biases of audiences that filmmakers have recently blamed for their films’ box office failures. Acclaimed director Ridley Scott was understandably unhappy with the lukewarm reception of his 2021 action-drama feature The Last Duel. Scott claimed the film failed because of “the audience that was brought up on those f**king cellphones”, not coming to the theaters to support the film.

Sam Mendes is another successful veteran filmmaker whose film Empire of Light did not do well at the box office. Once again, the blame for the film’s poor performance was placed squarely on the public by Mendes, who claimed that viewers had developed such bad habits through a steady diet of blockbuster superhero films and franchises. like Avatar that prestige cinema including The Fabelmans, Bardo, Armageddon Time, and Babylon are plummeting left and right despite the massive talent attached to the projects.

Focus on the main problem Universal Pictures

Considering the current state of cinema as a whole, it’s hard to consider the attitude of Hollywood filmmakers as anything more than sour grapes. Otherwise, how would you see the case of millionaire filmmakers complaining about the horror that middle-class moviegoers don’t spend their hard-earned money on films that the filmmakers deem worthy of success? The same filmmakers who owe their success to moviegoers who have actually supported their films in the past.

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The truth is that the general public does not go to the cinema to enjoy the talent of the director/actor/screenwriter. The only reason to go to the cinema has always been to see a movie that could be an engaging viewing experience. In the past, it was movies like Jaws, Star Wars, and Gladiator, and today it’s the MCU, Fast & Furious movies, and more. If a movie doesn’t do well at the box office, the very simple reason is that its story failed to engage audiences despite all the artistry that might be on display in the movie.

That’s Not All Doom and Gloom Searchlight Pictures

Modern low- and mid-budget filmmakers often make it seem like mainstream audiences only show up for superhero movies these days. But it is far from being the case. The fact is that many low and mid-budget movies have been successful at the box office since the 2020 lockdown, including Smile, The Menu, Nobody and Marry Me.

What has undeniably changed is the fact that more and more movies of this type are finding a new home on streaming channels instead of theaters. But that shouldn’t be a bad thing. Streaming has become what DVD sales once were, a way for small filmmakers to create the kind of movies they want to make without the pressure of box office success. It’s a boon for many big-name directors like David Fincher, Martin Scorsese, and Rian Johnson, who have made giant streaming movies in recent years like Mank, The Irishman, and Knives Out 2: Glass Onion.

A Refusal to Look Inward Variance Films

Despite the pessimism of some filmmakers, Hollywood is actually more robust than ever. Not only are more movies being made than ever before, but foreign film industries like Korean and Indian cinema are also gaining prominence in the West thanks to streaming giants like Netflix championing their works.

Nowadays, it is still perfectly possible to successfully make a low- or medium-budget film. The only question, and it’s a question that has always remained at the heart of any film’s success, regardless of budget, is how its story can connect on a personal level to audience members. Instead of blaming viewers for their modern theatrical habits, filmmakers should look within and try to truly analyze what’s in their films that just isn’t appealing to audiences. Ultimately, audiences owe the filmmakers nothing, and it’s up to Hollywood studios to try and bring viewers back to theaters with an engrossing and memorable theatrical experience.

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