The Evolution of Movies
Interesting to see which movies have stood the test of time and which haven't, during my tour of my Netflix queue. "The Royal Tenenbaums," which I loved when it first came out, falls flat as I watch it again. It's trying too hard. Gene Hackman is still great, but I just don't really care about any of the characters. It's like Wes Anderson wanted to show off his different camera angles (and also, everything in the movie is a reference to another movie, if the audio commentary is to be believed).
On the other hand, "A Mighty Wind," which I thought was just so-so when it came out, is better than I'd thought. It's got some believable emotional pull to it, and ends up being genuinely touching.
Some of these changes over time may reflect who I was when I first saw these; maybe I was less mature then (okay, definitely I was less mature, but maybe that had something to do with this) and since then, some cinematic dimensions have become more important to me and others have faded. Others of the movies I've watched, I think, reflect the times for which they were made more, and now seem anachronistic. The converse-example (? I'm making this word up, but hopefully you see what I mean) is "The Big Lebowski," which I hated when I first saw it, but over time have come to appreciate its genius. I think that movie was ahead of its time. I like noticing this stuff, about how the process of appreciating something over time involves changes in yourself, mostly, since works of art or music or movies aren't changing. The exception is when a work is so multifaceted and well crafted that you keep discovering something new each time you experience it. I think that must be at least part of what defines greatness.
On the other hand, "A Mighty Wind," which I thought was just so-so when it came out, is better than I'd thought. It's got some believable emotional pull to it, and ends up being genuinely touching.
Some of these changes over time may reflect who I was when I first saw these; maybe I was less mature then (okay, definitely I was less mature, but maybe that had something to do with this) and since then, some cinematic dimensions have become more important to me and others have faded. Others of the movies I've watched, I think, reflect the times for which they were made more, and now seem anachronistic. The converse-example (? I'm making this word up, but hopefully you see what I mean) is "The Big Lebowski," which I hated when I first saw it, but over time have come to appreciate its genius. I think that movie was ahead of its time. I like noticing this stuff, about how the process of appreciating something over time involves changes in yourself, mostly, since works of art or music or movies aren't changing. The exception is when a work is so multifaceted and well crafted that you keep discovering something new each time you experience it. I think that must be at least part of what defines greatness.
posted by Radish | 7:26 PM
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