The Next Original Movie
A lot of people (myself included) have noticed how Hollywood doesn't seem to have any more original ideas. Plots are clichéd, characters are nothing more than cardboard cutouts, and the dialogue is worse than any grade-school paragraph I may or may not have written on what I did over my summer vacation. Throughout film history, there have been movies that have so captured the public imagination and love (due to their amazing quality) that they have inspired what people in the business dub "sequels". What inevitabily happens then is that the sequel is also very good and it then inspires another. Sometimes around then, the thing has run its course, but what has been acheived is what is called a "franchise". So with a lot of film franchises recently ending themselves--The Matrix, Star Wars, and arguably Star Trek--people are wondering: when is the next original film franchise going to come around and take off? When is Hollywood going to give us a truly original story?
On the originality of stories, there isn't a whole lot to say. I think it was Aristotle (though I'm probably mistaken) who said that there were only about 20 plots in the world. I think the next big original film franchise is going to find its success through the characters it gives us, rather than the plot devices or story elements it puts them in. That's where the true originality lies; in the characters we can identify with and get to know rather than how many cars were in the last big chase, or how many tons of dynamite it took to blow up that bridge that the enemy army so desperately needs in order to get to the other side so they can kidnap the heroine.
Another area where it will probably have to succeed to some degree is not in what it shows us, but how.
As an example: there have been a gazillion car chases in film history, and it's OK if you want to put one into the movie--it's a sure way to guarantee thrills--but what will set this car chase apart from all the others? What will be the objective? And (harking back to the previous paragraph) who are the people being chased and what did they do? Taking the time to think about that (and not just how many cars can we crash) is what makes an original car chase original. Also, finding something interesting for the cars and the people driving them to do; quite a challenge, but a truly talented director will be able to pull it off.
And I have to believe that one is out there somewhere, waiting to be discovered. Waiting for his chance to make the films he's had going through his head for ages. Just wait patiently, and give him time.
Be seeing you,
Steven
On the originality of stories, there isn't a whole lot to say. I think it was Aristotle (though I'm probably mistaken) who said that there were only about 20 plots in the world. I think the next big original film franchise is going to find its success through the characters it gives us, rather than the plot devices or story elements it puts them in. That's where the true originality lies; in the characters we can identify with and get to know rather than how many cars were in the last big chase, or how many tons of dynamite it took to blow up that bridge that the enemy army so desperately needs in order to get to the other side so they can kidnap the heroine.
Another area where it will probably have to succeed to some degree is not in what it shows us, but how.
As an example: there have been a gazillion car chases in film history, and it's OK if you want to put one into the movie--it's a sure way to guarantee thrills--but what will set this car chase apart from all the others? What will be the objective? And (harking back to the previous paragraph) who are the people being chased and what did they do? Taking the time to think about that (and not just how many cars can we crash) is what makes an original car chase original. Also, finding something interesting for the cars and the people driving them to do; quite a challenge, but a truly talented director will be able to pull it off.
And I have to believe that one is out there somewhere, waiting to be discovered. Waiting for his chance to make the films he's had going through his head for ages. Just wait patiently, and give him time.
Be seeing you,
Steven
posted by Steven | 5:44 PM
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