Hollywood is a Franchise Player

Hollywood is a Franchise Player

I’m writing today to tell you something. It’s not a piece of new information. I haven’t found the Holy Grail, and I don’t know the secret to Liam Neeson’s awesomeness. But, it’s a piece of information none the less and since your options are either reading this blog or doing something productive with your day, I’m afraid you’re going to have to listen. So come in closely while I tell you my key titbit. Closer, closer. That’s it. The thing I have to tell you is: Hollywood loves Franchises. 

There we have it. I imagine your mind is well and truly blown now isn’t it? OK, I admit it. There’s no surprise that Hollywood loves franchises. Why wouldn’t they? Franchises are highly profitable for the movie industry; they provide production companies the opportunity to produce films that will almost guarantee them an existing audience. No longer will they have to generate new audiences with thrilling characters. They just have to go into their back catalogue of ‘greatest hits’, pull out a movie that worked and either remake it or create a sequel, thus creating a franchise. 

This surely couldn’t work could it? We are an intelligent race that would realise that we’re being fobbed off aren’t we? If Hollywood did this, we’d just stop watching wouldn’t we? Well I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this, but sadly we wouldn’t because they do it and we still tune in. Eight of the Ten top worldwide grosses this year belonged to films that were part of a franchise. And one of the two that didn’t was Thor, which still belongs to a comic franchise, even if it was the first Movie starring the character. 

OK, so we’ve established that Hollywood does take an invested interest in Franchises and we as a movie going audience watch them. But, are they necessarily a bad thing?

Well kind of. There is no doubt that due to franchises success Hollywood as whole is producing less and less original movies. Yes, there is still quite a bundle of them coming out. But, not a lot of them get the fanfare and promotion that the big franchises get. It’s almost like an original film has to do well in spite of the studio, before it’s taken seriously. 

What Hollywood doesn’t realise is that without original films, they won’t be able to build new franchises. A franchise needs to start somewhere and if these original films aren’t given the time of day then they will struggle when a studio tries to spin of a sequel or a prequel. 

That being said, franchises aren’t always bad. Admittedly, some characters are so interesting that they deserve more than one story. Or stories are so griping that they deserve more than one film. That’s fine. I’m for franchises if it serves a purpose and tells a compelling story and in the most basic way, entertains me. 

However, I’m not for a franchise if it’s the studio spinning out another Pirates of the Caribbean, just to get people in their drones turning up to stare at Johnny Depp phoning it in while wearing eye liner. But, hey, if we didn’t see them, they wouldn’t make them. And if they didn’t make them, we wouldn’t see them. Talk about your vicious circles.

Until next time, enjoy the show. 

All feedback is good feedback. Feel free to email me at: cinemascreenandspandex@gmail.com

Or follow me on Twitter: @glamgrunge. 

Daniel Morris

The Chris Benoit film can be good.

The Chris Benoit film can be good. 

I understand how people feel about this subject so I apologise in advance if I offend anyone. That is not my intended intention in the slightest. With recent news of an independent movie company SRG planning a biographical thriller based on the former World Heavyweight Champion Chris Benoit’s murder-suicide, I thought I’d quickly pen my thoughts on the controversial news.  I have to say... I think it’s a good idea. 

First of all, I can understand why people are up in arms about the whole subject. It’s a controversial matter and I completely agree that what Chris Benoit did was beyond forgivable and should never be glorified in anyway. Any film that did that just to make money would not be worth anyone’s time or money. 

That being said, I don’t see the Chris Benoit movie being like that. First of all, it’s not a major studio that is doing this film; it’s an independent film company. Meaning, that there is a shift away from money making. If there’s a way a Chris Benoit film can be done, it is with an independent studio. 

Films aren’t just money making medium, they’re there to inform and educate and a Chris Benoit film can do that. Not just about the Chris Benoit situation, but an informative looks at professional wrestling as a whole. The film will be able to provide the masses with an inside look to what actually went on and how things can change in the pro wrestling business for the better. 

We all hear rumours and titbits about what goes on in the wrestling business, meaning that everyone forms their own opinion. But a film can educate the masses on the pitfalls and the problems in the wrestling business as a whole. It’s a fact that too many wrestlers die too early and I’m personally for any film that could change that. 

Some people say they don’t see why they would ever watch a Chris Benoit film, since the man committed serious crime. But there have been many films about subject matter a lot worse. These movies aren’t there to be nice and fluffy as all movies aren’t there to do that. Movies can go to the darkest places in the world and report their findings. Just what a Benoit film would be doing.

 I can see, people saying that movies about the holocaust were done years later, educating people in what happened. But those people have to remember that a film isn’t just for today, it’s for further generations as well. Do I think that future generations should learn about one of the most horrible events in professional wrestling? Yes I do. 

All this being said, I do have a worry. I don’t want this film to be another Wrestling hate film. But, I have a feeling it could be. Wrestling always gets stick, either for not being too real, being too violent or for the numerous cases of steroid abuse. What I don’t want to see is a film condemning Wrestling and putting a lot of blame on Sports Entertainments shoulders. Yes, I do think Wrestling played a part in the tragedy occurred, but was one of many factors and that needs to come across in the film, if it doesn’t, then I don’t want to see it. 

All in all, I can see the good in a Chris Benoit movie, but it has to be done right. 

What do you think? Let me know in the comments section. 

Follow me on Twitter @glamgrunge

Email me at: Cinemascreenandspandex@gmail.com

Until next time, enjoy the show.

Daniel Morris

Star Spotlight: Phillip Seymour Hoffman

Star Spotlight: Phillip Seymour Hoffman

First of all, thanks to everyone who read my first Star Spotlight on Ryan Gosling. My next star spotlight will be about a man who I consider one of, if not the best actor around today: Phillip Seymour Hoffman. 

I’m probably not alone when I say Phillip Seymour Hoffman is the greatest living actor today, after all, he has won an Academy Award. Despite this, I do think he’s criminally underrated and relatively unheard of compared to Hollywood A listers, who aren’t nearly as capable as big Phil. 

Acting since the early 1990s Phillip Seymour Hoffman had bit part roles in such movies like Scent of A Woman and Twister. Phillip Seymour Hoffman half got a break by being one of P.T Anderson’s go to guys offering great performances in Anderson’s Boogie Nights, Magnolia and Punch Drunk Love. However, outside of his friendship with Anderson, Mr Hoffman was still a bit part player in the big world of movies. 

In the start of the 21^st century, Phil’s stock rose slightly. However, it wasn’t until 2005 where Big Phil got his big break in 2005’s Oscar nominated Capote. This is arguably, where Phillip Seymour Hoffman showed us all how good of an actor he really is claiming the Academy Award for his portrayal of writer Truman Capote. 

Since then, Hoffman hasn’t looked back, staring in mega bucks blockbusters like Mission Impossible 3, Brit comedies like The Boat that Rocked and other Academy Award nominated movies such as Charlie Wilson’s War, The Savages and Doubt. In the last six years, Phil has really cemented himself as a respectable actor in Hollywood, who can give both Blockbuster and Award winning performances. 

The trend of Phillip Seymour Hoffman doing Academy Award nominated movies looks to continue as he’s just starred in George Clooney’s The Ides of March and alongside Brad Pitt in Baseball movie Moneyball, both possibilities in next year’s Award season. 

Unlike a lot of Actors, Phillip Seymour Hoffman has a light schedule of films coming up with only A Late Quartet and The Master in the works. The Master sees Phillip Seymour Hoffman teaming up with old friend Paul Thomas Anderson again. 

This light schedule could be one of the reasons that Phillip Seymour Hoffman may be overlooked when it comes to high profile roles. Unlike many other actors, it seems that big Phil doesn’t like to saturate the market with his face, bringing out only one or two movies a year with him in it. 

While that may seem like a bad point in becoming well known, it seems to work for him, because the man doesn’t do a bad performance. From The Savages to Mission Impossible to The Boat that Rocked to Charlie Wilson’s War, Phil does it all. All four of the films mentioned are very different in tone and genre, each offering up a completely different character for Phil. A task which, he accomplishes with ease. 

The Boat that Rocked is an average film at best, but Phillip Seymour Hoffman still steals the show with his portrayal of Radio Legend ‘The Count’. Furthering this, I think it’s unfortunate that Phillip Seymour Hoffman has only one Academy Award to his name. This is due to the fact that his performance ‘Gust Avrakotos’ in Charlie Wilson’s War is easily an Academy Award winning one. He was unlucky that it was the same year that Javier Bardem played ‘Anton Chigurh’ in No Country for Old Men. 

Despite, not being known by fans worldwide, it’s easily seen that Phillip Seymour Hoffman is acknowledged as one of the best in the world by his peers. And due to normally preferring ‘lesser’ known movies, I think he would prefer it that way. 

What do you guys think? Do you agree about Big Phil’s talent? Or think I’m hyping him up too much?

Feel free to let me know. 

Email: cinemascreenandspandex@gmail.com

Twitter: @glamgrunge

Until next time, enjoy the show.

Daniel Morris.