a short blurb on the state of film today.
That phrase is kind of loaded in a sense. It makes you believe that film today is not what it could be, and to an extent that’s true. But on the other hand, film today is better than it ever has been. I understand there are numerous instances of terrible movies with big budgets and countless moments of incredulous stupidity in terms of storytelling, technical aspects, and political and social agendas being shoved down the throats of the viewer, yet I still find that in the past few years there have been numerous films that I think will stand the test of time. So, with the introduction my teacher wants me to write, here is a breakdown of my thoughts.
I’m going to keep this brief because I think it will be better suited for the moments of conversation afterwards, rather than you, the reader, reading a 3 page breakdown on Top Gun: Maverick or Elvis or Avatar: The Way of Water.
Top Gun revitalized a style of movie that had been lost in the view of the film industry behind the glitz and glamor of Marvel films. It allowed thoughts of US brilliance to shine through, and that is something that seems to have been lost in recent years. Top Gun showed that audiences still respond to US power in film, maybe we still love our country, even just a little.
In Elvis it took a different turn. While it glamorized parts of his story, it also showed his flaws, and it did so in a way that shone a spotlight of diamond rings and silk pajamas on a lifestyle that most people don’t see anymore, even though the music industry is bigger than it ever has been. It was powerful because it was loud. The music was loud, the vibrancy of the shots were loud, and, most of all, Elvis was loud.
Avatar was different. The story was simple, there weren’t many twists and turns in a manner that makes you guess what is happening, and yet I was in awe the entire time. It made me realize that creative brilliance in storytelling doesn't always have to come from the story. Sometimes the spectacle is enough for enjoyment. The shots of Pandora looked real, I felt like I was enveloped by the world itself, and I think that makes up for a lack of crazy development in the story. The story didn’t need to be grand in its escape because the world was just that. The world is the story of Avatar, and I think that’s enough to create something that will last.
Each of these stories has something in common, they expected to be great. They wanted to be the best movie of the year. And I think they accomplished a part of that. It wasn’t something that will change the course of history, but each of these films will change something in the movie industry. Top Gun will bring back a less politicized version of global politics in films, something simpler, just to let the characters breathe. Elvis can’t be replicated. It was a spectacle, it wasn’t meant to be a biopic, it was meant to entertain. Just as Elvis did. Perhaps more films will attempt to entertain, rather than create a perfect picture of someone's life. And Avatar will change the way CGI and the technicality of creating worlds in film is used and portrayed. It made Marvel films tremble, and I hope it causes an awakening across films that this is what alien worlds can look like. Brilliant stories of a world away from our own, yet part of a never ending story of our world. That’s what film can be if it continues in the thread of these mentioned, great escapes, and yet part of our world in their own way.
Some good films to check out.
- Darkest Hour
- Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
- See How They Run
- Dune
