A Lament of the Summer Blockbuster...

I am a fan of the cinema. I always have been. I like all genres. Comedy, Sci-Fi, Action, even the occasional Romantic Comedy. I also have a soft spot for B-movies (often discussed at the fun & educational http://b-moviecat.blogspot.com/).

I vividly recall the days when I anxiously awaited the new releases. I'd scan the papers & TV for upcoming movies like a junkie needing a fix.

Summers like 1981, when I stood in line to see Raiders, Superman II, Stripes, Clash of the Titans...

Or 1989 with Batman, Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade, Lethal Weapon II, License To Kill ...even Ghostbusters II and Star Trek V (okay...those two I'd regret).

But it's been some time that I was compelled to the theater more than once in a given few months. Some would say...I'd grown up. Those that would say that, obviously don't know me very well. Maybe my tastes have changed? Ah...no. At 40 years old, I sit in my office looking across the room at a Batman mask circa 1966, a Klingon Bird of Prey and a football signed by the Atlanta Falcons. If anything...I'm regressing. So, the next guess would be...it's gotta be the movies.

So, Ok then ...Maybe it's the type of film. Sure, I've tried to get into art films. However, I found Lost in Translation ironically hard to follow. Punchdrunk Love gave me a headache for what seemed like days. I like parts of Magnolia/Royal Tenenbaums/Life Aquatic but, overall, just not my thing. The list could go on...

Truth be told...I have been and always will be a "Popcorn" movie kind of guy. There's always plenty of those movies. Well...at least there used to be. Movies like the ones from my childhood (before the dawn of the home VCR). Ones like The Mysterious Monsters , Godzilla VS Megalon or The Private Eyes. Throwaway movies like those usually go straight to video now. Sadly.

So, it's back to the Summer Blockbuster. They seem to get bigger and bigger...yet, the excitement is missing. I tried to muster up enthusiasm for a number of movies throughout the past few years...The Phantom Menace, Spider-Man(s), Superman Returns...While these all were commercially successful movies and I enjoyed them, they didn't leave me with the sense of excitement before seeing it or the sense of wonder after seeing them that I experienced in years past. There could be a number of issues but, I think I've narrowed it down.

It's CGI. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I'm becoming less & less of a fan. With CGI anything & everything is possible. Filmmakers no longer struggle to translate the page to the screen. Gone is the technically imperfect film of days gone by. It's similar to an article I read regarding photography. No longer do photo albums display the red-eye, occasionally blurry photos of old. Digital cameras have all but erased the imperfect photo. The same can be said for CGI. Sure, some optical shops are better than others. There are a number of examples of poor CGI. However, it's the practice as a whole & not it's individual execution that is at issue for me. The magic of old seems to have been replaced with micro processors & An Adobe Suite.

Imagine, if you will, Richard Donner taking on the first Superman film in 1976. He accepted the job without a clue as to what technique to use to make the man in the cape fly. But, with time & a number of creative minds, the feat was accomplished. Was every optical effect flawless? No. But, I will compare it to the CGI-laden Superman Returns and the latter pales by comparison. This story and many like them are often reflected in DVD commentaries or documentaries. I own at least a couple dozen where the effects supervisor starts out an overview by saying "Now, remember, these were the days before CGI...".

As with all blogs, I sure some of you will disagree. And, I will allow that CGI should have a place in film. But, in the modern world where James Bond's car can actually become INVISIBLE and Die Hard IV's John McClane can seemingly defy gravity, I'd say it's time to dial it back a bit and use it sparingly.

The complete irony of this piece is that I make my living as a Graphic Designer. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you. Oh well...It's just a case of "do as I say & not as I do". That works, right?

Hopefully, one day, the magic will return. One can hope....