Studios blow their marketing wad on like 20 films a year. The reason people havent watched Lady Bird or Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri isn't that they aren't accessible films, its that the studios see them a riskier option to dump massive marketing money into than Avengers VII: Winter Panther. If 1/5 the effort went into selling people on Three Billboards... as it did Avengers it would've been a hit on the level of No Country for Old Men.

The one actual film that did get big marketing money spent on it was Dunkirk, and it did really well at the box office.

I only watched one movie because someone made a post about it here : Get Out. It's the only movie we'll be talking about from this year in 20 years.

All these other movies I could not really give a shit about.

I heard something on the radio yesterday where the reporter said that the industry standard for a hit used to be 10% profit. Super hero movies have shifted that completely to where those films make 30%. It's hard to fault them for continually producing something that is so profitable and ultimately, as unhappy as it may make some people, so desired by the masses.

The reporter said she spoke with Disney's CEO at the Oscars and asked if he was unhappy that he had no movies up for any major awards. He laughed and said the Oscars are for his personal enjoyment because he likes movies. As a businessman he sees the Oscars irrelevant as he sits there with record profits and the top grossing films of the year in his stable.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Almost all the nominated movies seem depressing and the clips are always two people talking in quiet tones and frowning about some mundane life annoyance. Why do I want to watch depressing real life movies about other people? We considered watching Manchester by the sea this weekend but decided we didn't want a 2 hour depression fest so we watched Spider-Man Homecoming.

I know plenty of sad movies were nominated and won before but they seemed to be more than real life thinkpieces about how life sucks, teenagers are annoying, and a sea alien can find love.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Did I read correctly where they didn’t have Casey Affleck present best actress this year because of the “optics” of the DV / SA allegations he had in the past?

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

I thought about watching Get Out last weekend, right up until I had my son tell me about the movie. That he said to me that you really have to watch it twice to pick up all the clues wasn't in it's favor on an otherwise sunny day.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

They should make a depressing movie of people discussing mundanities with you in it and call it Forums of Endearment

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Correct. And we'll see if the same will happen with Gary Oldman next year due to his past allegations.

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Didn't stop them from giving Gary Oldman a statue!

You should watch it. It will give you a good perspective on the black experience.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

That's so crazy: allegations of violent criminality against women doesn't prevent you from winning an award from the Academy, it just prevents you from presenting am award given out by the Academy?

Even with this in mind, it was a dismal year for most studios at the box office. Disney of course was the exception. I don't think 2018 will be much kinder to films. Even Disney may under perform as the Han Solo film looks like a colossal clusterfuck. Granted the Avengers film is a guaranteed billion at the box office so that helps them.

At least we'll get some really good Half in the Bag episodes from Red Letter Media over this year's upcoming schlock

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“When I walked in this morning, and saw the flag was at half mast, I thought 'alright another bureaucrat ate it.'" - Ron Swanson

I'm gonna sound like our spiritual leader Senor Columnist here, but no one likes going to the movies. It's expensive and inconvenient and you have to be around strangers who might be loud and dumb and smell bad and you can't pause it to go to the bathroom. I'd rather stay at home.

So with that in mind, even if you don't go around talking like Dan Bernstein, you probably check more than half of those boxes. People don't like going to the movies like they used to. The only thing that gets people in the door is the superhero bullshit because that culture is all about publicly demonstrating what kinds of toys you spend money on. Lady Bird and Three Billboards... are objectively better films, anyone without the brain of a child can see that, but what about them would compel you to see them in theaters, when, if anything, they're probably better at home?

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you have that option now, staying at home. going to the movies actually seems archaic now, but i still like to do it if i know there won't be a crowd. unless you get those posh comfort la-zee-boys to sit in and your own little area. that seems to be the selling point these days. get your IMAX 3-D and bring your drinks in, and enjoy.

Pretty much the only time I'm going to a theater today is if it's a Dunkirk like film that needs to be experienced in an IMAX setting.

Otherwise, yes I'm going to stay home. I didn't buy a 4K big screen and surround sound system for the media room just so I could watch some stupid sitcom in there. I get to pause the movie when I have to take a piss and can turn it off and stream another film if it ends up being awful.

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“When I walked in this morning, and saw the flag was at half mast, I thought 'alright another bureaucrat ate it.'" - Ron Swanson

That kind of ties in to the comment in the David Ogden Stiers/MASH thread regarding laugh tracks. The perception among studios was that people preferred watching with other people (or having the illusion they were watching with other people). Maybe that doesn't hold true anymore, or perhaps it still does somewhat for comedies.

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Fucking insanity.

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

It depends on what exactly you want movies to be. Ultimately, they are a form of entertainment. I don't think it's a requirement that a film has some deep moral lesson or you spend 2 hours questioning the very meaning of humanity because some quirky teenage girl acted all quirky. It's kind of like how you will clearly get more "culture" going to the opera but that doesn't mean that Book of Mormon or Million Dollar Quartet isn't "better".

Now, obviously I'm not saying that the superhero movies deserve these awards. These awards are won mostly by people who are looking to win awards. I'm guessing I, Tonya is the only one that when they were filming they weren't saying let's do what we can to get nominations. The superhero movies just don't care about that as they want to be entertaining and make huge money so of course they don't deserve to win awards just like "People frowning for 2 hours + maybe a transgender person" doesn't deserve to make a billion dollars.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Exactly. That's why Kobe can win as well.

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Would you extend this to literature as well? I think the requirement to instruct as well as entertain is clearer there: there's much less argument over whether sci-fi or horror or 50 Shades of Grey is just as good as a Russian novel where people sit around being depressed (and for way more than two hours).

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I don't think literature is as closely linked to entertainment as movies are. Literature is dependent much more on storytelling whereas movies celebrate visual arts and special effects even at these events. I would guess even you have plenty of movies you like that have weak storylines. I doubt you have many books that have weak storylines.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Popular literature maybe, but again, it doesn't mean it is good. I like A Song of Ice and Fire series by George RR Martin. The storytelling and world building is great. But is he a great author? The prose of the novels is ok at best. Or take Ready Player One. A very popular book that is horribly written. I like a lot of Hemmingway's works. His stories are not always the best. But his writing and prose is great.

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Too much effort here twisting yourselves in knots. Either like a movie or don’t. Either watch an awards show and like it or don’t. Much like other seemingly silly debates or ratings like sports tv ratings who cares?

If I loved a movie I give zero fucks if I were the only person to have ever seen it.

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Elections have consequences.

Bernstein?

No.One.Is.Making.You.Watch.It.

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The Oscar's were on?

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