The trend has thankfully gone the way of the Pog, but a few years ago, every big-budget 2D movie was converted to 3D. Not because the visuals were eye-popping, but because theaters could charge a few extra bucks for a ticket, and studios could boast about Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, or whatever, being their first animated film in 3D. Moviegoers eventually wised up and stopped paying $3 for plastic glasses, and the 3D phenomenon is essentially dead. Shrek Forever After ruined it for optically stunning films like Avatar and Coraline that were meant to be seen in 3D.
The unnecessary R-rating might be the next 2D-to-3D.
Deadpool made all the money in the world this weekend, because, to quote our own Vince Mancini, “the R-rating proved to fans that it was serious, and while I don’t think what comic book superfans think matters nearly as much as studios think it does, Deadpool‘s R-rating helped differentiate it at a time when just being a superhero movie is no longer that big a deal.”
Meanwhile, here’s a Hollywood “suit”‘s take on why it’s so popular.
“The film has a self-deprecating tone that’s riotous. It’s never been done before. It’s poking fun at Marvel. That label takes itself so seriously, can you imagine them making fun of themselves in a movie? They’d rather stab themselves.” (Via)
That inaccurate opinion inspired James Gunn, who’s learned a thing or two about undercutting Marvel as the co-writer and director of Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, to respond on Facebook.
After every movie smashes records people here in Hollywood love to throw out the definitive reasons why the movie was a hit. I saw it happen with Guardians. It “wasn’t afraid to be fun” or it “was colorful and funny” etc etc etc. And next thing I know I hear of a hundred film projects being set up “like Guardians,” and I start seeing dozens of trailers exactly like the Guardians trailer with a big pop song and a bunch of quips. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.
Deadpool wasn’t that. Deadpool was its own thing. THAT’S what people are reacting to. It’s original, it’s damn good, it was made with love by the filmmakers, and it wasn’t afraid to take risks. (Via)
Gunn predicts that in the next couple of months, desperate studios will greenlight films “like Deadpool,” and “by that, they won’t mean ‘good and original,’ but ‘a raunchy superhero film’ or ‘it breaks the fourth wall.’ They’ll treat you like you’re stupid, which is the one thing Deadpool didn’t do.”
It’s the ultimate movie-studio thinking. “Hey, this one new thing is popular. Now let’s make a million of them!” Meanwhile, 20th Century Fox and Marvel released something original, insomuch as an existing comic book character who appeared in X-Men Origins: Wolverine can be considered original, and it’s going to be one of the year’s highest grossing films. Take something familiar to audiences (like superheroes), and add a twist (like swearing and pegging and chimichangas) — that’s how Deadpool made $135 million.
Those who don’t know 3D history are doomed to repeat it with R-rated movies.
(Via Facebook)
