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4/16/2005: Originality isn't on the marquee

When television came along, Hollywood feared it would kill the movie business. Same thing when home video came along, but the movie business has continued to thrive in spite of tv, videotape, DVDs and the internet. It's surprising how well the movie business is doing really, when you consider that there's very little originality down at your local multi-screen cinema complex.

Right now the top ten moneymakers in theaters are Sin City (based on a comic book), Sahara and Fever Pitch (based on novels); Guess Who (sort of based on another movie); Beauty Shop (spun off another movie); Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous and The Ring 2 (movie sequels). After this weekend The Amityville Horror (movie remake) will probably climb onto this list.

Notice a theme?

Rounding out the top ten this week, only three have apparently original scripts: The Pacifier, Robots, and The Upside of Anger. I haven't seen any of these, but from what I've heard they don't sound very original at all..

So what's up with that? Either moviegoers don't want to see anything original; or moviemakers just can't be bothered to think of something new and audiences have no say about it. People go see what's provided, and the moviemakers think that equals approval for what they're doing plus demand for more of the same.

Maybe it's just me, but when I see a movie I haven't seen before, I want it to be a movie I haven't seen before. Sure, it's fun to go see a big FX extravaganza or even a "little" movie to escape reality for a couple hours, but it's kind of sad how most of the top movies anymore are just recycled versions of last week's top movies.

The summer blockbuster season promises much of the same. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was a book that's already been made into a radio and a tv series (although I am looking forward to that one). Other coming attractions are Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, Batman Begins, Fantastic Four, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Curious George, War of the Worlds, House of Wax, etc. etc. It's deja vu all over again.

"If these two are tired of having sex with each other, what hope is there for the rest of us?" - Tina Fey, SNL When Mr. and Mrs. Smith comes out we'll hear more about the Brad-Jennifer-Angelina triangle than we hear about the movie

There are a few originals due in the next couple of months. Kingdom of Heaven is a Ridley Scott period piece with Orlando Bloom. The Wedding Crashers with Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn sounds like a typical romance/comedy/buddy movie (aka "date flick"). The Island, a futuristic sci-fi, has Ewan McGregor once again out to prove he can be more than just "that Star Wars guy", but since Star Wars will be in theaters at the same time, he may have trouble this time. Mr. and Mrs. Smith is also due out soon and it will likely generate a lot of buzz - but more for the Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie gossip angle than for the film itself.

We know there are countless talented writers out there with new ideas that we haven't seen before, and countless directors and actors who could breathe new life and freshness into the movies, but most of them don't stand a chance of having their work seen. Hollywood and the movie industry at large just isn't too interested in originality anymore, and for whatever reason, audiences don't seem to mind plunking down $10 to watch another rerun.