Movies as a commodity

Gary Collins4 said:I’ve noticed a few posts where people are comparing this movie to "spoiled food," suggesting that you’re entitled to a refund if that's the case. And sure, technically, you are. But I think that comparison is totally off base. The film didn't malfunction in the theater; there wasn't any audio glitching or picture issues... nothing like that. Personally, I’d look at it this way. Imagine you pick up some 😁 at a grocery store, and even though they turn out to be terrible, they aren't actually rotten. They’re a staple that everyone else loves and keeps buying, but for some reason, you just can't stand them.

Are you really going to head back to the store and get into a heated argument with the cashier just because those mushrooms didn't suit your palate? Of course not—you can't, and you shouldn't, because you chose to buy them. It’s the exact same thing with movies.

They wrap all sorts of mediocre stuff in flashy packaging to make it look appealing, knowing a small group of people will absolutely love it while everyone else just rolls their eyes.

Jesse Thomas7 said:a-ha, listen up everyone, I’ve actually got the BASICS ready for a lawsuit! Obviously, there’s a 99.99% chance I’ll end up as a punchline in the local papers under some "ridiculous" headline right next to that guy who tried to argue in court that he actually owns the sun, but hey, I can still sue them. If I somehow manage to pull off a scheme where the judge is forced to watch Tron: Legacy the night before making his ruling, my chances of winning this suit are absolutely MASSIVE, haha.
So if I actually pull the trigger on this, you guys can all point and laugh at me when they publish my photo with a caption like: The girl who thought she could force Universal to preview their products before actually paying for them!

Btw, I see people are still totally missing the point. You’re all obsessing over how easy it is to stay INFORMED these days—which, fine, nobody is disputing that—but I’m just saying that out of all that noise, none of it matters to the one person who ends up NOT liking the movie. I mean, isn't half of those critics getting paid to sing the praises of absolute garbage? Don't they have their own little circles of bloggers and forum trolls doing the exact same thing? But noooooo, of course everyone is just writing the truth, pure truth, and nothing else...

Jeffrey Fisher61 said:You don't have any grounds for a lawsuit because there isn't a single law that allows for it, and you won't even get in front of a judge since no lawyer in America is going to take a case like that.

Jesse Thomas7 said:And you're supposed to be some kind of expert? (and clearly one without a shred of a sense of humor, either).
Oh, I have plenty of grounds for a lawsuit—we're talking three different angles here. Honestly, "emotional distress" is the easiest one to pull from; under the law, anyone can sue anyone else on those grounds, it’s just a matter of whether they can actually prove it in court. (Too bad I didn't get an EEG and a blood pressure reading before and after the movie, hahaha).
As for this idea that no lawyer would dare touch such a juicy little problem... yeah, I don't buy that for a second. These guys absolutely CRAVE precedents that guarantee massive media coverage; it's basically free advertising for them, which doesn't happen every day....

Chloe Martinez5 said:Look, take that massive storm that brewed around Inception—I know plenty of people who aren't exactly die-hard moviegoers but still went to see it. And man, they were all disappointed.
And how could they have avoided that? What, by reading a review in the New York Times? The Wall Street Journal? Maybe a film journal in two years (which, let's face it, would probably be the only thing left unsold in the US)?
And as for IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes—even if people here find it weird—those are legit movie sites, at least from our perspective. Sorry, but not everyone spends their entire life glued to the internet and forums like you and I do. 😁

As for your other question, yeah, I feel totally coerced into watching trailers whenever I hit the AMC Theatres—unless, of course, I purposely show up late just to dodge them. And honestly, they work brilliantly. Sometimes you really get the feeling that a trailer can actually ruin a movie just by looking at it—not to mention the sheer hype alone.

Jesse Thomas7 said:I guess I’m still one of those stubborn idealists who actually believes everything can be fixed if enough people just decide to step up and make it happen. By now, I really should have learned that's just not how the world works...
Anyway, everyone's acting like my constant complaining is solely because of Tron: Legacy, but honestly? That was just the spark that lit the fuse. This stuff has been building up inside me for years...

Joshua Smith5 said:I love watching new users fall for northerncrane4's sophistry. 😍

Jesse Thomas7 said:And you're supposed to be some kind of expert? (and clearly one without a shred of a sense of humor, either).
Oh, I have plenty of grounds for a lawsuit—we're talking three different angles here. Honestly, "emotional distress" is the easiest one to pull from; under the law, anyone can sue anyone else on those grounds, it’s just a matter of whether they can actually prove it in court. (Too bad I didn't get an EEG and a blood pressure reading before and after the movie, hahaha).
As for this idea that no lawyer would dare touch such a juicy little problem... yeah, I don't buy that for a second. These guys absolutely CRAVE precedents that guarantee massive media coverage; it's basically free advertising for them, which doesn't happen every day....

Roger Long67 said:Well, sure—as if ratings and reviews are anything more than marketing fluff. There’s really no way around it; true objectivity comes from combining actual viewing experience with established film literature. That’s the only way to reach a legitimate judgment on a film's value (setting aside personal bias) and to assess its quality, even just based on a trailer. If we reduce everything to mere subjective impressions, we degrade the very idea of film criticism and open the door to total relativism where nothing has any real value. After all, we’re on this forum because we believe we know "a little more" than the average person, right?

Speaking of the topic at hand, the influx of capital into global—and specifically American—cinema over the last decade has essentially doubled. Consequently, movies have become more commercialized than ever before. Much like any other commodity, they've become more perishable and disposable. At the same time, the widespread democratization of filmmaking and access to tools has lowered standards and diluted overall quality, but I suppose that's just the cost of global capitalism. Film has undergone a fascinating transformation throughout its history: back in its early days, to draw crowds into theaters, it had to establish itself as an art form, whereas today, to attract an audience, it has to abandon the pretense of being art altogether!

Jesse Thomas7 said:a-ha, listen up everyone, I’ve actually got the BASICS ready for a lawsuit! Obviously, there’s a 99.99% chance I’ll end up as a punchline in the local papers under some "ridiculous" headline right next to that guy who tried to argue in court that he actually owns the sun, but hey, I can still sue them. If I somehow manage to pull off a scheme where the judge is forced to watch Tron: Legacy the night before making his ruling, my chances of winning this suit are absolutely MASSIVE, haha.
So if I actually pull the trigger on this, you guys can all point and laugh at me when they publish my photo with a caption like: The girl who thought she could force Universal to preview their products before actually paying for them!

Btw, I see people are still totally missing the point. You’re all obsessing over how easy it is to stay INFORMED these days—which, fine, nobody is disputing that—but I’m just saying that out of all that noise, none of it matters to the one person who ends up NOT liking the movie. I mean, isn't half of those critics getting paid to sing the praises of absolute garbage? Don't they have their own little circles of bloggers and forum trolls doing the exact same thing? But noooooo, of course everyone is just writing the truth, pure truth, and nothing else...

Roger Long67 said:Well, sure—as if ratings and reviews are anything more than marketing fluff. There’s really no way around it; true objectivity comes from combining actual viewing experience with established film literature. That’s the only way to reach a legitimate judgment on a film's value (setting aside personal bias) and to assess its quality, even just based on a trailer. If we reduce everything to mere subjective impressions, we degrade the very idea of film criticism and open the door to total relativism where nothing has any real value. After all, we’re on this forum because we believe we know "a little more" than the average person, right?

Speaking of the topic at hand, the influx of capital into global—and specifically American—cinema over the last decade has essentially doubled. Consequently, movies have become more commercialized than ever before. Much like any other commodity, they've become more perishable and disposable. At the same time, the widespread democratization of filmmaking and access to tools has lowered standards and diluted overall quality, but I suppose that's just the cost of global capitalism. Film has undergone a fascinating transformation throughout its history: back in its early days, to draw crowds into theaters, it had to establish itself as an art form, whereas today, to attract an audience, it has to abandon the pretense of being art altogether!

ruggedjackal46 said:So, I was under the impression that the whole point here was to critique the actual quality of the movie. But apparently, I missed the mark entirely. It turns out the real issue isn't whether the film itself holds water, but rather that one specific individual just didn't get what they wanted out of it despite having already paid for the ticket. Is that really how we're playing this? $12So, it looks like I was being a bit too generous with my interpretation, but hey, if you’re insisting that's the point, then fine... I guess I'll take your word for it.

I can get behind the take on how things look right now, but I have to push back on the nostalgia trip regarding the past. Seriously, when was "the majority" of the audience actually interested in art? And when exactly were most movies considered "great"? We all have this habit of cherry-picking the absolute masterpieces from decades ago while conveniently scrubbing the mountain of garbage from our memories. That’s fine for a conversation, but using that selective memory to claim the ratio of good-to-bad films has shifted drastically since the old days just isn't a fair argument.

Jesse Thomas7 says:
Whether you look at this from a personal or a global perspective, one deeply concerning fact—in my humble opinion—is that movie studios seem to be the only industry completely absolved of any accountability, whether moral or financial, toward customers who aren't happy with what they bought.

says:
Look, there was a massive storm of backlash over this guy. I know plenty of people who consider themselves die-hard cinephiles but skipped his flick. They were all disappointed.
What could they have done to avoid it? Read a critical review in the New York Times? The Wall Street Journal? Maybe some film journal in two years? (And that’s the only one competing with Hollywood blockbusters for unsold copies).
And regarding IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes—as weird as that sounds to some people here—they count as film sites, at least from our American perspective. Sorry, but not everyone spends their life scouring the internet and forums like you and me. 😁

Yeah, to answer your big question: sure, I watch trailers under duress whenever I hit the theater—unless I intentionally show up late to dodge them. And they work damn well. Honestly, sometimes you get the feeling a trailer is actively staining the reputation of the actual movie, not to mention the hype.

Jesse Thomas7 said:Research before buying?! Are you kidding me? You mean a massive pile of propaganda and hype fed to you right before release, backed up by a meticulously edited trailer that has absolutely nothing to do with the actual movie? They misrepresent the product to you—like telling you some trashy comedy starring Meg Ryan is going to be a riot—and they don't care that they're lying to you...
As for Tron: Legacy, I don't really have a specific 'Film genre' that I stick to; I'm not boxed in by any categories. A good movie is a good movie. But look, Blade Runner and Tron: Legacy are both Sci-Fi, yet one is a masterpiece and the other is total garbage.
Regardless, Tron: Legacy is marketed like it's the greatest thing ever made, so I sit there, take the hit, and then who am I supposed to complain to when they lied to my face?

placidjackal36 said:It’s not Throne, it’s Tron: Legacy.
You're totally misinterpreting what happened with the Throne. ThroneLook, I’m telling you, that movie just doesn't have anything to do with... Throne. 😛

Yeah, look, the movie is pretty thin when it comes to actual substance. It doesn't hit me like those typical Steven Seagal or Jackie Chan action flicks where they just churn out a fifteenth sequel with the exact same title, but you have to admit—it’s definitely lacking in terms of depth.

I honestly don't get why you even started this thread. You clearly just opened it because you're pissed off. Look, I run into absolute garbage movies all the time, but I don't go running to a forum to start a whole debate every single time I see one.
The movie theater experience is going downhill by the day. It’s pretty obvious why, too—the corporations running the show don't care about actually showing good cinema anymore. They only see a profit in pumping out endless blockbusters, and let's be honest, most of them are absolute garbage.
What can you even do about it? You just have to be more careful when you're picking things out next time.

I don't really get why this thread exists. You only started it because you're pissed off. Honestly, I watch total garbage movies all the time and I don't feel the need to start an entire online debate about them.

placidjackal36 said:It’s not Throne, it’s Tron: Legacy.
You're totally misinterpreting what happened with the Throne. ThroneLook, I’m telling you, that movie just doesn't have anything to do with... Throne. 😛

Yeah, look, the movie is pretty thin when it comes to actual substance. It doesn't hit me like those typical Steven Seagal or Jackie Chan action flicks where they just churn out a fifteenth sequel with the exact same title, but you have to admit—it’s definitely lacking in terms of depth.

I honestly don't get why you even started this thread. You clearly just opened it because you're pissed off. Look, I run into absolute garbage movies all the time, but I don't go running to a forum to start a whole debate every single time I see one.
The movie theater experience is going downhill by the day. It’s pretty obvious why, too—the corporations running the show don't care about actually showing good cinema anymore. They only see a profit in pumping out endless blockbusters, and let's be honest, most of them are absolute garbage.
What can you even do about it? You just have to be more careful when you're picking things out next time.

Christian Taylor3 said:I just caught this—she doesn't even know the actual title of the movie (and she's actually trying to get a refund over it). 🤦 🤣

I don't really get why this thread exists. You only started it because you're pissed off. Honestly, I watch total garbage movies all the time and I don't feel the need to start an entire online debate about them.

It wasn't even a user who started it; regardless, the whole thing just turned into a massive waste of time.

Jesse Thomas7 said:I honestly can’t even tell you what the name of that thing was, but I guess that just goes to show how much it actually hit me. Still, you guys have a point—if I had actually bothered to do some digging instead of just following the crowd like a sheep, maybe I would've seen some red flags popping up before it was too late.