Originally Posted by
ringhunter
Asian studios produce much much higher quality films. The same applies to French/German films, however, I prefer Asian films by miles. The problem with most movies nowadays, is that they strive for equality and normality. Actors in lead roles refuse to distance themselves from predominant social norms, making for terrible movie experiences. Pride and Prejudice had Darcy portrayed as an admirable gentleman throughout the movie, downplaying his pride, and effectively annihilating his prejudice. Kick Ass had its ending tweaked to suit mass audiences more. Movies like 2012 and Avatar are heralded based on their CGI merit, giving little chance for people to argue that movies are also intended to have a moral. I don't want to see actors withhold their roles' potential, in order to seem "real". No one, and I mean no one regretted Ledger fitting into the Joker's role as well as he did. Chalk it up to a man wearing a mask; but as Hillary Duff's managers ventured to say at one point "She doesn't want to get stuck being thought of as the same role of Lizzie McGuire." The issue is actors avoid becoming their roles in the future. Bob Saget also joked about always being associated with Full House. People will always smile at Will Smith when they see him, even though he tried to venture into the action genre. I for one will always see Stallone as only suited for Cop Land (as opposed to his other pointless movies). Producers/screenplay writers/directors in Hollywood are generally willing to stray away from that, by never pressuring the actors into playing the role fully/not becoming the characters in real life in peoples' eyes.
That aside, it seems screenplay writers and directors at large are creating a dichotomy in the industry, between the few that believe fantasy based settings are the way to go with no relation to human experience (take for example any action movie released in the last 10 years) and the other camp that believes "normalizing" the experience, by making the characters extremely relate-able on the personal, situational and living standards level (even when it comes to cast race, settings of choice etc.) to the point where it's awkward watching the movie (think movies like He's Just Not That Into You/Knocked Up/Juno/Superbad. The line between the two camps is more distinct than ever, and directors are wavering on either side, instead of trying to hit a "soft" spot, between something movie goers can relate to, while also enjoying the fact that it is fantasy based.
The reason the Godfather/Pulp Fiction were successful is we got to see lead characters, in incredible roles, still struggling with average human burdens, emotions, and putting on display the fact that every man has a limit/breaking point. We got to see mobsters dealing with ungodly acts, while dealing with family and faith issues. We saw something completely fantastical yet completely tangible to our minds, because the line between fantasy/reality was blurred eloquently.
Asian films, to a large extent, retain that quality, and that is why they will always top Hollywood/Box Office hits for me.
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