Any YouTube aficionado will have likely stumbled across movie and media commentary channels galore. Some offer simple reviews while others are thinly veiled fronts for political or cultural posturing. Either way, there is a lot of content out there covering the American movie scene. Sadly, there is a pattern to much of this coverage. American movies have been in steady decline for years and it looks like there’s no end in sight.
Or are the YouTubers looking in the wrong places?
Now, I am a movie lover through and through. I used to wait in line for hours to films on opening night. I briefly hosted a film review show on college TV. Movies hold connective memories to members of my family, key moments in my life, and the loci for life decisions. Allow me to illustrate.
Good Morning Vietnam (with Robin Williams’ seminal performance) will always link me to a night of dancing in the kitchen with my mom. Glory left me speechless as I left the theater and inspired me to research the true story of black American soldiers in the Civil War. Bloodsport drew me into martial arts.
Are there movies that do that today? Do families dance in the kitchen to the soundtrack of Justice League? Or Avatar (one or two, doesn’t matter, they’re both trash)? Or Jackass Forever? I’ll grant you the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtracks, but only for nostalgic reasons and because there’s a song from the second film my daughter calls “Daddy’s Crying Song.” You know the one. You know the scene.
The question remains: Do movies today shape us?
Perhaps a better question is how do American movies shape us today?
And that brings about the second part of my point: there are still good, engaging films we can connect to and that can connect us. Sure, there’s a lot of junk out there (looking at you Fast and Furious), but producers are still giving us Ford v Ferrari and Dog and Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. Amidst the big-budget pablum and the rehash reboots made purely because money is the target and studios can only afford to be creative ten percent of the time (if that), there are still lilies in the field.
Perhaps what we’ve lost is the magic of the movie experience. Despite extraordinary efforts by theater chains to draw us back to the shared magic of viewing a film alongside hundreds of strangers, we just don’t go. It’s too easy to wait a month for the film to be on X streaming service and then watch it at home, alone or in the company of family or a couple friends where you can pause for pee breaks and snack (aka beer) refills.
And there are so many choices fighting for our attention. Series programing, especially on those same streaming platforms, allow filmmaking storytellers to stretch and develop storylines over six, eight, twelve hours or more. I have to admit, I love that…when it works. It worked with Band of Brothers and Daredevil and (for a while) with Game of Thrones. However, creatives have gotten too comfortable with our joy over long series that can be binged or picked at as we see fit. Now they’re forcing stories that should be told in two hours into multiple-episode lead balloons (cough, Willow, cough, cough).
So, I’m not writing off the American movie, yet. What I am looking for is the next American movie to draw me into the theater and away from the familiarity of my home viewing experience. I am looking for the next movie that will shape part of my life. Any recommendations?
