#retroblasting #film #sequeltrilogy Support us on PATREON: / retroblasting Michael parses the silly words of a growing movement of filmgoers that "only the emotions matter."
I still remember the exact moment i walked out of The Force Awakens. It was when the good guys got onto Starkiller Base and everything they needed, and all the people they needed to interact with were handily nearby despite the thing being the SIZE OF A PLANET.
"Emotions" are the frosting on top of the cinematic cake. You need the rest of the cake, the stuff that makes you think, to keep an audience engaged beyond a surface level. If you ate a cake that was only frosting, you'd only eat it once because it was too sweet. But if you ate a cake that had some substance to it beyond the initial hit of sugar and chocolate flavoring, you'd ponder that cake a bit... and perhaps have a second piece.
Same! And Michael seemed like most of that.... was just off the fly!" Proof once again that if you actually love, (or even just respect) a property, good ideas for it can often flow naturally!
right!? havnt we all just thought of a hundred different and no doubt vastly superior ideas just like that? how the F was that thing made like that!? i personally like the idea of adding Han entering the ship and yelling at chewy then seeing rey in the seat pilots seat and he tells her to get out of his chair... ala how he took the hat back from mutt in crystal skull. wth is with hollywood thinking we want to see our heroes disrespected and denigrated and knocked down? even or especially for the purpose of fraudulently raising up another character? jesus we dont. theres a reason we love these characters in teh first place. so assanine.
@@troypeterson2156They don't think you want that, they want that and they want that because people with money, influence, and a activitist axe to grind also want that and tell them to make that happen.
I even loved his ideas for Rise of Skywalker from the last video! I still have never even seen it. Seriously. Michael exposed so many of the plot holes and sheer contrivances in part of his "Canon Is Overrated" video, that I literally can't make myself even try to watch it. So after he spoke about maybe just grafting in a dark Luke Skywalker clone as the 'big bad', that would have actually given me JUST enough interest to at least try to watch that movie!
Best analogy of the difference between today's movies and what came before them, the journey vs the rollercoaster ride. One is an epic story that you leave the theater wanting to continue, the other is a short thrill ride that offers nothing after it's over except an emptier wallet.
I wish I could engrave this on a plaque and post it in every writers room. I'd give you Quote of the Month (and nominate you for quote of the year) if I could, sir.
😂 I hope it wasn't me that he was referring to. I say a lot sometimes and wouldnt remember. I wanna say this - that from an audience standpoint it kinda is all about emotion and relating. For the writer its about good writing to be able to elicit emotion from your audience. But I think what exists now is within audiences there are groups with predetermined emotions ever before watching a movie. This is the distorted emotion thats wrong to have - the emotion thats predetermined, overwhelming of the individual and impervious to common sense and objectivity. And sadly there are fandoms out there that have the distorted emotions - they'll see a garbage trailer or movie and care nothing for the quality (theyre just glad the movie was made).
Exactly. Only thing that matters is the emotion? Okay, then the movie makes me feel disgusted and ashamed for it. "Then you're a disgusting and shameful person!" Wait, I though you said the only thing that matters is the emotion? You can't even stick to your own rules? "Noo, we mean the emotion you are meant to feel!" Ohhh, you mean the emotion of the mob, as powerful and thoughtless as it is. You're in a cult! "No, no, we mean if you feel bad emotions, then you're a bad person! That's what that means!" Okay, then go watch baby movies. Stick to watching nothing but movies that were made for babies. Keep watching movies intended for babies and toddlers, have no bad emotions and feel amazed and captivated all the same.
I think the thing that bothers me most about the sequels is the lost potential. Daisy Ridley and John Boyega are genuinely likeable and charismatic actors. Oscar Isaac was criminally underused, and say what you will about ROS (which was generally terrible) the three of them together had great chemistry. Keeping them apart until the final film was boneheaded. All three of their characters (Finn especially) had interesting setups that could have been ripe for exploration in the hands of better writers. Instead, we got what we got.
The entire sequel trilogy was a wasted opportunity. And they waited entirely too long to make it. Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford should have been in whatever sequels decades ago. It’s a colossal shame that the three of them were never on screen together again in these movies. I wanted to see them on one last adventure, most of all. What we got instead was Luke Skywalker sitting on a rock alone hiding from everybody else.
its like writing a sequel of an ongoing continuing story and not reading the original story and just listening to someone tell you their favorite parts of it and just slapping together callback moments and just writing whatever based around those said moments that you only heard about. building a house without a floorplan or a foundation, they are unqualified for their own profession.
You touched on something that I hadn't really thought of. There isn't much alien language in Disney star wars. The existing characters all keep their cannon languages but I can't think of many new non droid characters who dont speak English. Did Disney think subtitles would distract people from the feels?
Loved your take on this, Michael. Just that brief, head canon dialogue between Rey and Han and that "garbage" ship. THAT took me back 'emotionally' to EP 4 with Leia and him. THAT is authentic emotion because those first films had story telling at the forefront. THAT is what these films could have been, even just riffing from your own mind. Nailed it again, sir.
Yes! For me, that's really the key of this entire video: AUTHENTIC emotion vs. MANUFACTURED emotion. And like Michael said, it's so baffling how many actually prefer the latter!
Man, when you’re describing your alternative explanation of how they get on board the falcon I honestly welled up with “Chewie get us out of here”. I’ve paused your video ‘cause I just had to lyk, brilliant Michael, absolutely brilliant 💕
I walked away from Hollywood and American TV well over a decade ago. Each time I see the new hotness coming up, I'm reminded that I'm still not missing anything.
This just makes me think of the fact that one of the earliest _Star Trek_ things I ever saw was _The Wrath of Khan,_ and I was invested in the whole story, and was emotionally bulldozed by Spock's death at the end, because that entire film was a satisfying journey. Even now, knowing that Spock is brought back, watching that TWOK affects me emotionally, because it is so well made. Conversely, I had watched the original and prequel _Star Wars_ trilogies countless times before seeing _The Force Awakens,_ and while Han Solo's death was a bit of a jolt the first time I saw it, it's just an empty event now. It had no motivation. There was nothing noble or important about it. It certainly didn't tie into any sort of broader narrative themes for the film. In both cases, the character died because the actor wanted him to. Nicholas Meyer and Harv Bennett took Leonard Nimoy's request/demand as a creative opportunity. JJ Abrams and Kathleen Kennedy took Harrison Ford's as a box to check off in their laundry list of a movie.
Your therapy suggestion made think of the scene from the original 80s *"V"* miniseries where the priest gave the bible to the alien leader Diana and suggested she read it. She later admits to him that it made her feel a certain way she's never felt before and also vulnerable. The priest becomes encncouraged. But then Diana, the lizard alien, switches gears and says those emotions are very dangerous and not neccessary then fries the priest with her weapon then blasts the bible to ashes. In much the same way I don't think current Hollywood would respond too well to a structured, compitently guided journey of self discovery. Most likely they're all on a spectrum and were left flailing there then abused.
Excellent point. The reason a lot of modern movies don't resonate with me is you can tell they are aiming to get an emotion/reaction from the viewer, but it doesn't feel justified. The Star Wars sequel trilogy is full of that. Example: Rey kissing Kylo Ren in Rise of Skywalker. That was out of nowhere. They had interacted with each other, but there was never a sense of physical attraction from either of them.
@@jaztermareal yes but honestly, does anybody care about the characters in Andor as much as they do about the original trilogy characters? I sure as hell don’t. I only found Andor half-interesting and the rest was a total and utter slog. I’ve no intention of revisiting it anytime soon.
Spot on! This probably explains why I have been enjoying foreign films far more recently and feel more emotionally satisfied after watching them than I have more recent american stuff.
This is actually more common then you might think. People get different things out of media, and for many just having emotional moments is enough for them to say the films good. Like when I tell my mother that something was poorly written she says she doesn't care.
Spot on the money with this video. I didn’t love Rocky because of music cues, I loved it because I got invested in well written characters and an excellent third act.
I love my wife dearly but she will watch anything that is put in front of her. She can tell and appreciate when it’s well written and produced but after really observing how she consumes media I realized that she probably represents the majority. Most folk aren’t that concerned over what they ingest and don’t want to overthink on what they watch or listen to. This sucks for the minority of us who after growing up through a few decades of things getting better. Then we had to watch a lot of genres drop off a cliff into an abyss of crap. Don’t know how to fix it but it’s nice that I found channels like yours and others that share in the desire to have structure and continuity that makes sense in story writing. It will have to get better again at some point I just never imagined how determined the 1% who control it all would be at staying the course of suckage. What really nails it home in my cynicism is that I used to think people got ahead by talent and hard work. I really respect competent professionals, even ones with difficult personalities, as to me the results are what matter at the end. Just wish this ethic applied to the things I like in western media. I’m more into eastern stuff as of late. Go figure.
It's an extremely pernicious and destructive idea, but it's just a rebranding of 'you have to turn your brain off.' I think it was Park Chan-Wook who said 'if I want to turn off my brain, I'll take a bath.'
Excellent video! I completely agree with your opinion of The Force Awakens and where Marvel Studios has been taking things, but I feel the same way about Rebel Moon (both parts).
The Social Media generation has a short attention span....they enjoy flash emotions because social media made them awkward in social setting or reality.....they are babies....that cries for everything...hungry ,tired angry...
This is an interesting idea, and a good one for a video. Feeling on its own is unimpressive. We all get feelings every day that come and go. But feeling mixed with thought is what makes something last. When you experience one, it goes hand in hand with the other. It's the same as having self-awareness with the drive to act on it. Both are great together, but less impressive when apart. Sadly, the modern world is very much more focused on emotion than thought these days. Especially in the reasoning department. Similar to Koyaanisqatsi. A life out of balance.
This was such a great take, thank you for the video. I think that we both feel the same way about the writing and the movie industry, especially with titles that they keep on feeding the public just using nostalgia or forced/non-organic emotion. One of my favorite videos of yours was the one where our generation, born around the 80's, can't seem to let things end (Terminator/Star Wars/Dr. Who even, I would now say Ghostbusters). The public, largely, will just accept anything with movies that don't have a great story so long as it has something they recognize - "I remember it once being good, so I trust it still will be. That's a title I recognize, so I'll go see it even if they bastardize the whole thing." I try to have the conversation with people around my same age. A lot of them, who I wouldn't call movie buffs, are happy with just that ("How was the new Ghostbusters movie?" "It was good" "Really, what was good about it?" "Dan Ackroyd and Bill Murry are still alive making a Ghostbuster movie". I've lost hope with current movie makers. They don't tell a great story with worthwhile dialog. Buying DVD movies that were made 40, 50 or 60 years ago. That's my *new* going to the movies. It's new to me and they can tell and write a great story.
So many moments from good movies in the past that got to that emotional payoff but took you on a well scripted journey to get to that point...and how movies are now, it's the equivalent of shaking keys in front of a baby to make them laugh...have people now become that banal? Also, very good example of that being from raiders of the lost ark when Indie thinks Marion died, everything that led up to that moment paid off in the emotions you got from Indiana after. Also a scene popped into my head the moment you mentioned people being directed to feel emotions, it's from tmnt the secret of the ooze, when shredder is introduced to tokka and razar. Shredder: Babies! They're babies! Professor Jordan Perry: What did you expect? They'd come out quoting "Macbeth"? Shredder: They are stupid! Professor Jordan Perry: Well, they're not stupid, they're infants. Rahzar: [knocks Tokka on the head with a metal pole] Bang! Tokka: Ow! Professor Jordan Perry: Okay, they're stupid infants.
I very much so agree with the points you brought up in this video. I’m in gen z, and currently in high school. It seems that so few people my age have appreciation for good story telling. That really scares me, because pretty soon my generation is going to be the ones taking over control in Hollywood, and if there isn’t appreciation for good film, good films aren’t going to get made.
Well said. And it's very strange that these "emotional" types don't understand that the better written and well-structured a story, the higher the emotional payoff you get, because realism and plausibility push emotions even higher.
The best thing John Boyega has ever done is the criminally underrated Attack The Block and omfg I wish they'd do the sequel. One movie that actually deserves one
The only feels I got from the last 3 was only in The Rise of Skywalker. I know, hold on, but I’m in the theater with my son, he’s really into SW at this point in watching all up them up to this point but realizing the original trilogy is the best, but how that movie right out the gate was jammed with action and lets go, I remember thinking for any kid growing up with this new movies not know what the originals were like and finding that passion in this franchise to only be let down to find out the toy line for the movie was a flop when they asked their parents to go hit the store and get SW toys. Thats what was emotional saddening for me that the kids today will never have that feeling or experience what we had.
Michael has been saying this for nearly a decade, and is proven right every time. I'm recalling your DC/WB video, & the "Style Over Substance" message. Now we don't even get Style.
mind boggling... still simply and thoroughly MIND BOGGLING that supposed mature professional, semi intelligent adults with actual experience in the very industry, in some cases decades of professional successful experience, were responsible for or even remotely involved in the creation and production of the sequels. They created that. they were pleased and proud of that. they believed in that and felt confident in that and they believed people (forget existing fans), but felt regular audiences, would enjoy and respond positively... to THAT. unfathomable. un-freaking fathomable.
I'm glad I'm not the only one that sees these films as roller coasters. It's unfortunate that you didn't get to do a rewrite of The Force Awakens shooting script. I'm with you on this topic 100%.
Those that run solely on emotions are often the ones that create problems in our world today, not just with movie goers. Facts, data, logic all go out the window with such people.
thanks for this Michael! really sad that these studios are just creating for the sake of content and the absence of good writing and execution have taken out the cultural footprint that these legacy franchises have established before. there are a few outliers there though. i hope one day you'd get a chance to see Andor (i believe it is in physical media already) and i can say that the writing quality is quite better than other disney star wars content
I can only admire the fact that you still have the strength to argue with these people. The only thing that matters is Star wars in the title, no matter how little it has to do with it. The sooner we stop being attached to these brands, the better. That people begin to look elsewhere, perhaps at something that is not in the hands of soulless corporations without an artistic vision.
Allen Dean Foster should start a writing workshop that every Hollywood writer would have to take in order to keep thier union card. Maybe also include some other really good retired screenwriters and novelists as guest assistant instructors.
Dan o Bannon, for suspense and horror, if you can line up whoever wrote the 96 Matilda for family content, for comedy id actually get tim Allen or Jerry jhul. ( From the Muppets), or even mel brooks. But a.d f. Would be lead teacher, and they would ALL have to take the class AND PASS IT to keep Thier union cards. I chose foster because, though he's flexible to other people's visions, he writes in such a way as to explore the concepts already there and expand the depth and detail. And because I.m.o. he understands characters on a deep level. Not just going for illogical cheap feels.
Your ability to just riff and think outside the box on things such as force awakens is fantastic. It *should* be really simple writing to put the characters in the situations and build some credible plot and context to set a script up, but they have been failing for years, I agree. Dial of Destiny is another classic example. Just feels, *we're going to make it like Raiders* and then it is everything but Raiders. Thanks for your passion about this Michael.
Michael, speaking of good writing and Doctor Who, have you ever seen/heard of the British TV series “Press Gang”? It ran from 1989 to 1993 and was entirely written by Steven Moffat. It stars Julia Sawalha and Dexter Fletcher. It’s ostensibly a kids show but is very well-written and is definitely enjoyable by adults. If you are unfamiliar with it, I highly recommend it and I think you and Melinda would really enjoy it. It is available on DVD in a region 2 box set (probably the best it will ever look unless it’s somehow released on Blu-ray as it was filmed instead of recorded in on videotape).
After I've seen Gojira Minus One and Boy and the Heron, i swore off not to pay any US films anymore unless its releases free at a specific theater. I'll be giving my money to South Korea and Japan entertainment from now on.
"They only care how they feel in the moment" sounds like the motto of any given sociopath you see a true crime doc about. Yes, emotions are important and having a film, album, story etc that evoke an emotional response are a good thing, but it needs to be earned through investment in solid characters and writing. Just as an example that's near and dear to my heart: The way that the events of Dawn of the Dead finish up and the investment paying off in these characters and plots evoking a roller coaster of emotions coupled with the sense of tension coming from the uncertain future, versus the nothing burger that is Diary of the Dead with the flat characters, empty plot and music stingers to tell the audience when they need to be "scared" or "sad".
Thank goodness for a true voice as clear and succinct as yours; your content over the past 12 plus years includes structure and appreciation for your audience. (It has also included insight, humour and incredible quality of production, to name but a few clearly effort full attributes Sir) I truly hope that your voice and influence travels towards Disney and Hollywood in general, in the same way that it has had an effect appon Hasbro and it's affiliates/competitors. Without Retroblasting's bravery, commitment and honesty - it seems extremely likely that the toy manufacturing landscape would be entirely vapid, having not been brought to account.. Let's hope that Francis Ford Coppola isn't offered several billion dollars by Disney - that way, we'll never have to suffer Anthony Corleone's alpha- spaghetti Mafia empire.. A true fan, and greatful for what you do mate 👍
I feel the same thing as you about Hollywood writing and especially Disney. The only Star Wars movie I enjoyed under Disney was Rogue One. The only series I enjoyed was Andor because I enjoyed the heist theme. I’m watching almost 75% Korean movies to 24% Hollywood movies now because Hollywood has gotten so bad at writing and Korea has some of the best. Not all movies because nothing is blanket, but majority I’ve seen. Korean writers, every little thing has to have a reason, and no matter how brutal the scene it’s in full detail as long as it plays a part in devolving the story.
I had the experience of a person on a message board having asked for movie recommendations, and after having several people offer suggestions, proceeded to reject almost all of them for the shallowest of reasons, often stopping after 15 or 20 minutes of watch time but still giving ratings for them. And this was a person in their mid 30s. But they have the mentality of a small child. And this is the same perpetual child mindset of people who are writing modern Hollywood film and television.
RU-vid doesn't show you everything you subscribe to. It also shows you other content. Figure it out. Also, there's the door. You're welcome to leave. We won't miss you based on this comment.
Great video as usual! I can always rely on you to give a take that is both unique and compelling. As an aside, I think it's a good idea to note that while some components of a story may be absurd or fantastical, there is usually a method that allows a story can maintain a coherent plot with these elements Using Star Wars: A New Hope, for example, there's no reason r2d2 should have a personality. He's effectively an appliance that can rogue. This doesnt make sense in the real world, but in star wars it works because although fantastical, it remains a constant. Its just part of that world's fantasy, and the writers didnt change that based on what would be easier (at least in A New Hope) Contrasted with the exmaples in the video, coincidence without explanation is the opposite of a constant in a story. A constant is something characters can use their agnecy to interact and manipulate, coincedence removes the feeling that the character's actions matter
That sequence from the Force Awakens you mentioned is literally the first thing I thought of when reading the title of this video. "Only Emotions Matter", that is the mantra of a lazy writer.
And before leaning on empty emotional evocation, their "go to" for bypassing decent writing was lazily leaning on themes. They love to push the evocative elements but don't want to spend time building to them.
I need three things that make a movie good enough to watch a second time: the story including the dialog, the music as a strong supporting leg to the story, and tone to allow me to enjoy the story. (if there is a tie to my perspective and experience in the story then great. this is why i liked the last jedi, it isn't the star wars I would have made as a fan of the star wars universe, but as a stand alone film it works for me) well so do most zombie movies and I love Caveman and Yor. but none as must as I loved Star Wars, Empire and Jedi. but without the story i don't feel anything.
It really blows my mind that Disney, who has purchased super successful companies/IPs, has no idea what made those franchises successful in the first place. Pixar, Indiana Jones, and Star Wars took us on journeys with story telling that have shaped and changed our lives. Disney doesn't look at the work that the creators put in to build that strong connection with fans, they only concentrate on the monetary returns that resulted from that hard work and dedication. They want to exploit that with little to no effort. Because of this the sequels were just a mess of sloppy writing, missed opportunities and just a complete absence of creativity. Right there with you Michael!
I cannot understand how I even went to watch the Star Wars prequels from 1999, 2002 and 2005 but then I was done. Did not watch anything else afterwards (except, I admit, from some clips on youtube).
I wish I had a dollar for every time I watched an interview and the Producer/Director/Writer says, “I didn’t watch…” or “I didn’t read” the source material. All they are interested in is making their version of Sex In The City or Law & Order using Marvel or Star Wars characters. She Hulk besting Hulk, Rey holding her own with Kylo Ren, and lightsaber wounds not being fatal all are perfect examples of this.
I remember seeing the toys either before or shortly after Force Awakens was released and those didn't do anything for me whatsoever! I'm much more prefer the Prequel Canon than the Clone Wars animated series. The only problem is when I talk about things like that, I have never seen anything post 2005 other than the Force Awakens. While I think Disney only succeeded with Rebels I haven't seen that either, its imagery does kind of harken back to the friendships of the original cast. The only things I'm nostalgic for these days other than the Original Trilogy and the Prequels era is the controversy surrounding the Last Jedi - I do miss those years before the Rise of Skywalker.😂 And I do have a major problem with the post Disney purchase of Lucasfilm, because I believe that Disney began inserting paid for fans "phony baloney" fans to infiltrate the fandom to perpetuate Disney corporate culture.
I love the twisted ending of movie "The Mist", Stephen King also liked it to the point of saying that "I should have done that" during an interview because he considered it better than his book in making the viewers emotional and talked about the scene after leaving the theater. I think the manner of execution leading to the end showed how good are those who were involved in this movie which is something I can't say with the status of Disney who are not story-driven and focused too much on DEI and other political correctness.
