Summer Sequels: Blockbusters and Clunkers

As an avid web user and film student my primary interest in the internet focuses upon the exploration of movie news sites. At these sites, which I will visit up to thirty times on a given day, I tend to immerse myself in up-to-the-second developments within the film industry. I find this both entertaining and educational in that these sites are multifaceted, dense, and often times more explicit in their news coverage than commercial newspapers or television networks. Film blogs, as the movie news sites I frequent daily (listed in a linkroll to the right of this post), enlighten readers to movie news stories provide an interactive platform where current events and ideas can be discussed and explored beyond the conventions of previous news media. With film weblogs such as /Film and Cinematical I have been able to immerse myself in ongoing discussions between web authors and users on current events in the film industry. Here I have addressed the pros and cons of Hollywood movie sequels, which sometimes results in a good and successful follow-up, but more often falls like a dead weight (often referred to in Hollywood as a "bomb" or a "clunker"). Ultimatly, it was my goal to reflect personal taste as most if not all film blog posts do and explain why I am looking forward to 2008's Summer release of "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," and am less than excited about 2009's "Transformers 2."

Shia LaBeouf Talks Transformers 2
Comment:
In describing the script for "Transformers 2," written mainly by director Michael Bay over the course of the recently resolved writer's strike, the returning "Transformers" actor Shia LeBeouf uses words "massive" and "insane." I, for one, am not surprised.

What is one to expect of a screenplay written by Bay himself, who in fact, does not posses any screenwriting credits on any film? Rather, Bay is known through Hollywood by another signature: fast cars, explosions, ridiculous action, obvious humor, and slick music video flair. All of which can be found in any of Bay's high-octane summer blockbusters including the aforementioned "Transformers."

When I walked into the multiplex to see the first "Transformers" this last summer, I was prepared for one of the crowning achievements of my young adult life. With a premise such as: evil alien robot cars vs. good alien robot cars, I couldn't imagine the lame and unsatisfactory story I was about to view. Especially from producer Steven Spielberg, who often times creates works unapologetically commercial but nevertheless supremely enjoyable.

Sitting in the theater, I was somewhat surprised at the lack of imagination that went into the film. This was not a "film," it was only merely a "movie." Still stunned by the great wealth of imagination that must have gone into the visual aspects, I was forced to modify the very personal relationship I had with Bay's picture. In other words, I grew to accept what it was: massive, and insane.

Overall, "Transformers" and Michael Bay came to turn a downtown roller derby into the next hot thing: a downtown roller derby with cool special effects and cars transforming into monster robots. This is fine, not great. Sometimes, audiences have to unfortunately ask themselves why a robot war spectacle is not enough. Why do we need a great story with great characters? Why can't we just blow shit up? Or, shall I say, blow it up artfully? Though this bit of news may be merely a flick of the great marketing strategy audiences will get slapped with come the summer of 2009, it only confirms Hollywood will once again take the same stale ideas from the fridge and re-microwave them to something nearly satisfying and eatable. But at least, this time, it is not pretending to be anything but the highly intelligent "bad-ass."

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Movie Trailer
Comment:
Of all the joys in my childhood, nothing comes closer to the exhilaration of experiencing one of Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones movies. Harrison Ford comes to define adventure masculinity and wit in his portrayal of Dr. Indiana Jones, a ragged, yet suave intellectual cowboy-bandit set against allowing the greatest artifacts of history to fall in to the hands of evil, often Nazi, souls. While the films, conceived in the dreams of filmmaker George Lucas (who later produced and receives a ’story by’ credit), were designed as a rehash of matinée cliffhangers from his childhood, they have become richly more in the masterful hands of director Spielberg.

Although often times more playful for the sake of pure adventure rather than realism, actor Ford’s ability to ground even the greatest most absurdly fantastic of events into a believable portrayal of strength, attitude and humor makes his realization on screen something worthy of not only one film but many. In fact, watching the new teaser for the long in development fourth installment, “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” ignites in me the very fire and spark of exuberance that I had felt as a child. Despite that, there is a concern present in modern-day Hollywood, as well as in the hearts and minds of Indy fans around the world, young and old, that we are not getting another installment of the franchise purely out of a desire to profit.

Obviously Hollywood would love to make another one of these films in that it’s high popularity over the last thirty years and the names involved with the series ensures a high profit margin. In Hollywood sometimes the most obviously profit driven bets are the ones that should be avoided in that the final product, while predicable, thus, and at a loss of originality seem to compromise the artistic integrity of a medium that must constantly produce profit to stay alive.

Franchise re-installments of the greatest and most memorable action heroes in the last few years, such as with the “Die Hard,” “Rocky,” and “Terminator” films, have been churned out with delicate kindness and above all else love from the filmmakers of the characters they are modifying and re-introducing into a world somewhat harsher against their independent idealism and more complex in the strongholds our characters must overcome to reclaim an equal success to ones created ages ago. John McClane (Bruce Willis) of “Die Hard” returns just as crusty and crazy to get in over his head because no one else will to get the job done. Rocky Balboa of “Rocky” aspires to become the champion he used to be despite the doubts of everyone, including himself. The Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is “baack” in “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” as a robot that now, rather than preventing the inevitable tragedy, must guide the future’s savior towards his destined salvation.

All these films comeback hitting hard and reopening the books that we had all assumed would be closed to our own imaginations for some time. While profitable and able to reintroduce these characters back into the mainstream from the retro back-burner, Hollywood must remember to stray from the trappings of star-studded sequel blockbusters because unfortunately they can not all be good. I, for one, trusting in Spielberg, Lucas and Ford, for the love of these storytellers who had been able to knock three out of the ballpark for us previously, am looking forward to May 22nd, when the man in the hat will don his pistol and whip and ride again.