Well I am back. I know I missed my post last weekend but that is good for the readers because you get two this week! Today's article plus an article on Saturday night! Hooray for all! Except for me, I have to come up with the ideas. I jumped at the chance to do this because I always had the issue with something. If I wasn't complaining about something people would ask me if I was feeling alright. Well it seems it is happening more and more where I really have no issues, it's weird but I think I have reached a little bit of serenity. However, last night I stumbled upon a gripe. Welcome back to Drunken Wisdom.
Last night when I strolled in from work at an increasingly late hour my lovely fiance was sitting on the couch watching watching the end of Raiders of the Lost Arc. No, I do not have any issue with the Indiana Jones franchise so put your torches and pitchforks back. In fact, I absolutely love the franchise (including Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). It is exactly what an adventure/sci-fi film should be. People don't like to lump it in to sci-fi but it deserves a place there due to the subject matter from religious artifacts from Raiders, to sacrifices with a heart being pulled out with bare hands in Temple, to a knight being sealed away for 1,000+ years in Crusade, to aliens in the latest installment, Kingdom. The Indy universe has also been made huge by a multitude of books that send the most bad ass archaeologist known to man on many more adventures.
Another franchise that got this right was Star Wars. Not only the 3 movies (I am only counting New Hope, Empire and Jedi here) but also a universe expanded on in books and video games. I don't put the other 3 in this discussion because they do exactly what I have an issue with. More on that in a minute though, I have some more praise for the originals. This franchise has more of a die-hard following than any movie that fits this format made in the 90's or 00's. Play the sound of a light saber powering up, Chewie speaking in his foreign tongue, or just a single breath from Darth Vader (coolest movie villain ever?) and people will smile and remember a story so well conceived and written that it is a quintessential piece of American cinematic history.
Why were these movies so good? Story, characters, blending the fiction with truth, and great special effects/set pieces that really immersed you in the world they were trying to portray. This no longer exists. Stories are recycled. Characters are unlikable and have no depth whatsoever. Isn't anyone else tired of the misunderstood hero? The hero who throughout the whole movie is running away and asking the question, why is this happening to me? After the initial shock you never heard Luke Skywalker ask that question. Hell, an hour and a half after he asks that question of himself he is more than happy to join the Rebel forces and take down a space station that could blow up an entire freaking planet. He knew it was his job and just did it, no more questions. Indiana Jones? He willingly went up against the worst military/government known to man multiple times in the name of finding artifacts that were important to humanity. Whether it was to help a small poor village in the mountains or to get an item in the museum or just to get it placed into a huge warehouse where it couldn't fall into the wrong hands. Today's hero play the woe is me far too often.
As far as story goes it is more or less nonexistent in most action films we see today. How many movies can there really be on the end of the world? Are today's writers getting lazy? Do the producers (whom only should be dealing with money) have too much control over the story of the film? They pretty much sit down and come up with a story they think will make them money. The producers aren't in this to give us a satisfying story. They just want to fill the seats with teenagers who want to see huge explosions, over choreographed fight scenes, and whichever Hollywood star/starlet is on the cover of the latest tabloid they saw while in line at the local supermarket.
We should put these movies back in the hands of the men who are paid to come up with plot, story and dialogue. I want to see more movies like we saw in the late 70's to late 80's.
Next on my hit list is modern horror compared to the brilliance of the 40's - 80's. See you Saturday! Get me another beer!
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