Why I Am Disappointed With Hollywood

Where should I begin? Well, to begin with, Hollywood has been a disappointment to me for the past 15 years. They have been putting out mediocre, dull, uncompelling, nonsense for quite some time now. Practically every time I go to the movie theater I feel as if I am watching paint dry. Prior to 2004 movies would utilize various shots, long lenses, well thought out editing, flawless cinematography, well produced music, sound effects and sound design, strong character arc and story development. It was as if prior to the mid 2000s, Hollywood was pushing its boundaries and limits. Now when I see a movie in this day and age, it feels as if I struggle to find anything great about a film. The story is simplistic, every shot is edited as if it was drawn out and paced incorrectly. I don’t even feel involved or drawn by the characters and there seems to be less and less camera movement and varying shots. Where is the originality? Where are the thrills and over the top story lines? But most importantly, where is the magic that Hollywood once had? I remember a time when Hollywood would push boundaries both subtly and explicitly with every movie they made. I am starting to believe that maybe we have shifted to an age of brain dead, simplistic nonsense. I am also frustrated because given all of its resources, the massive crews, sound stages, equipment, funding, distribution, that Hollywood could then utilize their resources to make incredible work. But instead they are creating moot, pointless drawn out rubbish. That’s what I cannot comprehend? Given all of their assets, they are still putting out pointless films. They were on the right track but by the late 2010s there was a drought of anything original. Don’t get me wrong there have been a few gems here and there, but for the most part it has just felt disappointing. Hollywood has devolved into a shadow of its former self. The films are also lacking in variety of genres. Throughout the 1980s and 90s you had a variability of different genres, from action, to sci-fi, thrillers, dramas, romantic comedies, screwball comedies, various children films, independent films, you name it. But at the same time, they were both entertaining and well done. But now we are in the age of a few franchises such as Marvel, DC and Fast & The Furious franchises which isn’t a bad thing. But again, with all of the money that Hollywood studios are making off of these film franchises, one would think that they can collectively come together and make a slew of different genres outside of the “super hero” genre? This effects young filmmakers as well. Because I feel that they are being influenced by unoriginal content, and will continue the cycle of creating subpar content. Hollywood has taken a nose dive for the last 15 years and has become a mess. Maybe it’s the up and coming generation of filmmakers in Hollywood? Maybe it’s my nostalgia of the past? Or maybe it’s squarely Hollywood’s fault? Whomever it may be. I am not going to play the victim and remain silent anymore. No. Instead, given my foundation of great movies. I am going to continue to aspire like “the greats” and continue to make films that reflect that. I am going to make films like the ones that influenced me growing up. I also felt like growing up, that I was in one of “Hollywood’s Golden Ages.” Hopefully, through my work, I plan to bring it back. Regardless of what is out there right now. I will look to film past and create content that equates to what I have been exposed to in the past. Hollywood maybe in a slump right now. But I will not give up hope. It’s sad to see it turn out this way but at the same time I understand it can come back. I have hope for Hollywood because they have done it before. But until I see some improvement, I will continue to be disappointed by Hollywood and how it doesn’t contribute to its own medium.