Entertainment & Pop Culture - Movies

By Jerry Price - May 1, 2006 -

“The power of film is not limited to congressional hearings, merchandising, or history lessons. In his provocative book Life the Movie, Neal Gabler goes so far as to see American culture itself as taking on the characteristics of a movie. Life has become show business, where we each play a role and long for our moment of celebrity. Gabler argues that it is not politics or economics, but entertainment ‘that is arguably the most pervasive, powerful, and ineluctable force of our time—a force so overwhelming that it has finally metastasized into life.’ Fun, accessible to everyone, sensuous, and providing a release from order and authority, motion picture entertainment has captured the American spirit. For many Americans, life is now played out as if it were a movie. Our fantasies are more real than reality.”

Robert K. Johnston, Reel Spirituality (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2000), 23.

“Why do more Americans say they’re less likely to go out to the movies these days? When given a choice of four reasons why they might not go to the theaters more often, 33 percent say they ‘prefer to watch movies at home.’ Twenty-four percent say that ‘it costs too much to go to the movies,’ and 19 percent attribute it to the ‘poor quality’ of movies today. One in five (21 percent) say they just don’t have the time.

“The poll asked Americans whether five factors would make them more likely to see a movie in a theater. Seven in 10 say they would be more likely to attend a movie showing if ‘the tickets and concessions cost less money,’ including 43 percent who say this would make them ‘much more likely.’ Roughly the same percentage say that better quality films would make them more likely to go to the movies, although somewhat fewer (36 percent) say it would make them ‘much more likely’ to do so. About half would be at least somewhat more likely to attend if ‘the theaters were better’ or if ‘there were better controls on audience behavior.’ Forty-two percent say a delay of two years before movies appeared on DVD or VHS would increase their likelihood of seeing a movie in a theater.”

Linda Lyons, What Will Get Americans Out to the Movies? (Gallup Poll), June 28, 2005 [Subscription required]

“Why, oh why, has Hollywood seen its worst box-office receipts in 15 years? The Golden Globe nominees for 2005 Best Picture say it all. Thought to be the precursor for the Oscar, here’s what Hollywood thinks is their best of the year, and consequently what they think our culture should look like:

  1. A love story between two gay sheepherders (erroneously labeled ‘cowboys’ by the media, I suppose because they wear hats). Brokeback Mountain
  2. A film portraying as noble the efforts of journalists to demonize and ‘take down’ a US Senator whose anti-communist policies they did not like. Goodnight and Good Luck
  3. A film about, as one movie-going reviewer noted, ‘…the horrors of big business and the way they are willing to experiment on the poor to achieve their goals…’ The Constant Gardener
  4. The demonization of the average mid-western American man as someone who is no hero, but a cold-blooded killer at heart. A History of Violence
  5. And lastly, a Woody Allen film about infidelity. Well, he should know. Match Point

“Hollywood honchos continue to wring their hands over why you’ve stopped going to the movies. They blame ticket prices and DVD availability. They had better start considering the fact that filmmakers are so disconnected, so nihilistic, that the hopelessness and hostility they feel toward the world now permeates their work. Americans will no longer go see movies which are nothing more than the manifestation of the backwash of malignant narcissists. We’re also sick and tired of listening to actors lecture us about how awful the US is, and more recently, why a cold-blooded mass murdering gang founder should have been given clemency. Enough is enough.

Excerpted from Tammy Bruce, And Hollywood Wonders Why They’re Failing (TammyBruce.com), December 14, 2005

“Family crowds spoke louder than fans of racy stories or shoot-‘em-up action flicks last year at movie theaters, with PG-rated films hauling in more money than R-rated ones for the first time in 20 years.

“PG titles grossed $2.3 billion domestically, compared to $2.1 billion for R-rated films, according to figures released Tuesday by the National Association of Theatre Owners. PG-13 movies did the most business with $4.4 billion.

“Five of 2004’s top-10 moneymakers were rated PG, which means they were open to all audiences, among them ‘Shrek 2,’‘The Incredibles’ and ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.’ Out of the top 25, only four carried R ratings, which prohibit those younger than 17 from attending unless accompanied by an adult.

“‘We want to call on our friends in the studios to continue this trend and to continue to distribute to us family titles, because that’s where we sell more movie tickets,’ John Fithian, the group’s president, said at ShoWest, an annual convention of theater owners.”

Family Flicks Outperform R-Rated Titles (Fox News), March 16, 2005

Michael Medved, a movie critic, says that the front runner in this year’s Oscar race, “Broke Back Mountain,” is more than a story about two homosexual cowboys conducting an affair. He points out that both men are married and have children. The relationship eventually destroys both marriages. He goes on to say that the “main problem with ‘Broke Back Mountain’ isn’t that it’s pro-gay; it’s that the emphasis on following your urges rather than honoring your responsibilities is, at its heart, anti-marriage.”

Michael Medved, Movie Isn’t Just Pro-Gay, but Anti-Marriage (Jewish World Review), December 20, 2005

Check out a movie rating at the Web site of the Motion Picture Association of America (http://www.mpaa.org/movieratings/search/index.htm). Also see the movie reviews at Parents Television Council (http://www.parentstv.org/ptc/publications/moviereviews/main.asp)

Further Learning

Learn more about: Family, Pop Culture, Sexual Purity, Homosexuality