Cynicism and Film

For consumers of media, it is undeniable that we stand in the threshold of great change. The way in which we view media has fundamentally changed in the past few years; the world of even just 10 years again feels distant and antiquated.

Never before have there been so many streaming platforms catering up movies and TV to viewers than there are today.

Never before has technology allowed us to watch a blockbuster film from the comfort of our own homes and on the screens of our smartphone.

Never before has the amount of content been so diverse and so individually catered. The major motion picture is now the realm of action blockbusters and our favorite franchises; our need for character development, original storylines, and original storytelling now accessible at the press of a button on the smallest of screens.

All of these factors have changed the landscape of media consumption in the twenty-first century and their contributions to those changes cannot be underestimated. There is, however, another factor that has changed our view of media drastically and yet imperceptibly:

Cynicism.

To illustrate: early this week I opened Twitter and saw a tweet promoting the cast of the upcoming mystery thriller, Death on the Nile. The film, an adaptation of Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel, is the follow-up to Murder on the Orient Express (2017), another Christie adaptation, starring Kenneth Branagh as Christie’s celebrated sleuth, Hercule Poirot. Branagh was in the director’s chair for Orient Express and he returns to both rules for Poirot’s sojourn down the River Nile.

The accomplished cast includes Gal Gadot, Letitia Wright, Armie Hammer, and Annette Benning to name but a few of the film’s stars.

Needless to say, I was excited with the news and hit that Retweet button to both spread the word and flummox my followers.

But then I scrolled down and began to read the replies. Amidst the spattering of fellow fans excited to see the Queen of Crime’s novel adapted to the big screen, there were numerous others that were already putting the film down, mocking the film’s cast, and letting it be known that they would be skipping the film’s release.

I was shocked by the near-vitriolic level of criticism that the film already received when it should be noted that not one frame of film has been shot yet and the movie is not slated for release until October of 2020.

A whole year from now.

Some might say that there is no such thing as bad publicity and by actively tweeting their reservations, a host of twitter users are in their own way promoting the film; inciting at least one fan to use the upcoming release as evidence in his article for a college newspaper.

And it is certainly short-sighted to suggest that pre-production word-of-mouth does not touch most major film releases today. Did we not do the same thing when Marvel released the titles for their upcoming Phase Four releases? Were we not taking to the Twitterverse and posting our thoughts, feelings, and opinions on a series of movies that none of us have seen yet?

Pre-release discussion can be good. Todd Phillips’ Joker (released October 4, 2019) has generated much buzz ahead of its wide release, many commentators fearful of the film’s potentially harmful underlying message and presentation in today’s society. These informed discussions can be beneficial to not only devoted filmgoers but the public en masse.

Yet, we cannot forget that these discussions are occurring before most people have even been able to rule on the subject with evidence to support them.

In the case of Death on the Nile filmgoers dissatisfied by the Murder on the Orient Express film are already writing off this forthcoming effort.

Are we really so hesitant to stray from what we know as media consumers nowadays?

Unless something has been recommended to us on our favorite streaming service, are we unwilling to give a movie or television show the benefit of the doubt?

Do we lean so heavily on the accessibility of our favorite media that it is an arduous task to go out and experience something new?

These are all questions which buzz through my head as I contemplate the media landscape in which we live and I cannot help but feel like the answer to all of the questions posed above is yes.

That answers why films have morphed into literal events – three-hour epics depicting our favorite franchise characters and built upon cast lists that are a mile long – moving away from the kind of totally original storytelling that is now consigned to the realms of Netflix Originals and HBO series.

The cynicism is all too rampant, the justification all too familiar:

Why go through the trouble of getting out of bed and putting on pants and driving all the way to the movie theater and paying for popcorn and soda?

The movie will probably be disappointing anyway.