Its a thought that's been bugging me for about 18 months. So many films are based on books & comics these days.

 

Off the top of my head:

 

The Lovely Bones

The Time Travellers Wife

Alice in Wonderland

Revolutionary Road

How to train your Dragon

Shutter Island

Harry Potter

Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief

 

The only blockbuster I can think of at the moment that wasn't based on a book is Avatar.

 

Or is it because the cinemas are only showing things they know they'll get an audience for?

 

Interested to see what others think

I haven't been to the cinema in ages, mainly through lack of interest. The only cinema I can go to in my neck of the woods tends to only show the big-budget blockbusters, most of which are a waste of money, time and effort.

However, it now looks like I'll be going next week.;)

I don't think it's a lack of ideas, I just think that comic/book movies are a fad recently.

 

 

:shrug:

i think the studios are playing it safe also given the bad global economy...they want movies that are guaranteed successes to make sure they have the money to make more movies at the end of the day. so that means less risks as far as movie genres/stories go.

they are also doing a lot of remakes. :\

i think the studios are playing it safe also given the bad global economy...they want movies that are guaranteed successes to make sure they have the money to make more movies at the end of the day. so that means less risks as far as movie genres/stories go.

That's a good point.

Fans of those books are like the guaranteed audience, even if it's only to be able to say "the book's been better".

We're showing the second movie of Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy at the moment and there are so many people coming! :stunned:

 

Or is it because the cinemas are only showing things they know they'll get an audience for?

That as well.

Before the general crisis of the cinema business a movie theatre could show a certain film for many weeks without getting in trouble about how to pay the bills.

Now if a film is not successful in the first weekend it's likely to be removed from the schedule because the amount the cinema has to pay for renting the copy is high (more than 50% of every ticket) and the owner of the cinema has to focus on keeping the number of visitors high enough.

 

My general feeling is that the frequency of good movies has decreased as well. :bigcry:

I was talking about this with a customer just a few days ago.

We wondered if it's just our impression or if there really haven't been many movies lately that were standing out.

"The Hurt Locker" was a good movie but that it got 6 Oscars is a sign (for me at least) that it had been a weak year for the cinema.

My general feeling is that the frequency of good movies has decreased as well. :bigcry:

I was talking about this with a customer just a few days ago.

We wondered if it's just our impression or if there really haven't been many movies lately that were standing out.

"The Hurt Locker" was a good movie but that it got 6 Oscars is a sign (for me at least) that it had been a weak year for the cinema.

 

yeah, a friend of mine who watches loads of movies was saying the same thing. he feels that this year there aren't really any good "Oscar worthy" movies so far, even during the usual "Oscars season". the biggest thing so far was Avatar, then Hurt Locker (but only after it won a bunch of Oscars).

 

 

btw, loving the Gene Genie avatar! :D

I blame Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. Both boring as hell film adaptations that were box office successes. YAWN.

I miss my cinema card :( but i guess Sam is a good exchange :lol:

 

when i did have the card, as much as I love the Potter films, I got fed up when they were released. you'd turn up at an 11 screen cinema and 5 or 6 screens would be showing that film so there was very little other choice on. and they got my money every month whether i went to see a film or not.

I blame Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. Both boring as hell film adaptations that were box office successes. YAWN.

Am I lucky that I haven't seen any of them then?! (well maybe the first hour of a LOTR one, but its very vague)

harry potter? i'm sure you went to one with me, vicky & tim. or was that charlie?

 

was the one where at the beginning of the film harry's under his bedcovers with his wand sticking up and my dear sis was making rude remarks :lol:

it definately wasn't me!!

must have been charlie then.

Am I lucky that I haven't seen any of them then?! (well maybe the first hour of a LOTR one, but its very vague)

 

Bored my arse off watching the Lord of the Rings films. After that and the disaster which was Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets I promised myself never to see a fantasy movie ever again.

harry potter? i'm sure you went to one with me, vicky & tim. or was that charlie?

 

was the one where at the beginning of the film harry's under his bedcovers with his wand sticking up and my dear sis was making rude remarks :lol:

 

Chamber of Secrets.

 

I'm not sure if it's a lack of ideas or not, but as a big reader, most of the movie adaptations are just terrible and get me mad. One of my favorite "chick lit' books is being turned into a movie right now, and they have sold out and cast people who do not fit the characters just to make a lot of money at the box office. It makes me not even want to see it.

 

I do agree that it has something to do with the economy and having a guaranteed audience. And I have read that film companies always have someone browsing through new books looking for adaptable material.

Bored my arse off watching the Lord of the Rings films. After that and the disaster which was Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets I promised myself never to see a fantasy movie ever again.

you didn't bother with avatar?

you didn't bother with avatar?

 

Correct! I didn't! I don't think I'll never see it - but 3D? Who cares??!

It's all for the money now.

my downtown Indie theater here is the only place I've been able to find anything somewhat unique or intriguing, and even then it's fifty-fifty.

Maybe they are but their are a lot and lots of movies coming up that im gonna definitely watch ... IRON MAN2 ANYONE?

The only blockbuster I can think of at the moment that wasn't based on a book is Avatar.

 

Avatar was based off a book. Am I the only one who noticed this :inquisitive:

Avatar was based off a book. Am I the only one who noticed this :inquisitive:

 

what? i dont think it had a book... but a book came after it. a kiddie book i saw

what? i dont think it had a book... but a book came after it. a kiddie book i saw

 

Just looked it up, it didn't. Weird, I read non-stupid people talking about reading something that Avatar was based off that did mention the Na'vi people... eh.

Maybe they are but their are a lot and lots of movies coming up that im gonna definitely watch ... IRON MAN2 ANYONE?

 

nope. I like RDJ, but you know the plot will be absolute crap. Oh wait, I forgot I was talking to an avatar fan...

They definitely are.

 

Every movie you see advertised on TV now is titled The something or just one word "Fighting" it ticks me off.