Good answer. I actually think this is an exciting development...a hack producer who just paid Bruce Willis beaucoup to make "Things Go Boom" probably wouldn't agree though.

I'd posit a big artistic reason (aside from practical stuf about prices, cable, the environment) as the conundrum of niche markets. If you want to make $200 million per movie, you have to appeal to a really big niche. Unfortunately, the teen-blow-em-up niche is too fast-moving and too jaded to buy tickets to the same movie ten times -- that mine is exhausted right now.

You could make smaller movies, and thus make a profit sooner, but (A) the machine's not really set up that way right now and (B) your marketing department still has to spend zillions of dollars to get butts in theatres.

The next big thing right now seems to be Chick Lit movies, and all of them seem to be starring Reese Witherspoon or Kate Hudson.

Has anyone seen that Witherspoon Heaven movie? My friend saw it, because she's trying to make a movie where one of the characters is dead, and wants to see how other movies handle it.

She told me how it ended (Reese isn't even DEAD. She's in a coma. Happily ever after) (she hated it) -- I'm wondering how others might be feeling about it.

4. They keep trying to make the same movies twelve times and act like we don't notice. Wow, Tom Hanks is heartwarming and befuddled again...didn't see that coming.

5. Embarrassing television remakes.

6. The prices are still really high but the films aren't worth the commitment.

These three are all of a piece, and the execs just don't get it. We want good writing, interesting characters, and to be entertained, damnit! Even plain old popcorn films that just bring on the pretty/action/funny have to provide something different, otherwise it's just a big yawner. What made the Hitchhiker's Guide adaptation more entertaining than Fantastic Four was the good acting by the guy who played Arthur and the fun quirkiness of the Guide itself. FF had none of that, and was boring as a result.

7. People act like the theater is their living room.

This is a pain in the ass, and some of my friends and family are just as guilty as others, especially the ones that like to chat during the film (drives me nuts!)

Has anyone seen that Witherspoon Heaven movie?

No, but I have to confess that your whitefont makes me way more likely to rent it eventually. I'm still annoyed at City of Angels, because I was looking for a jackass Hollywood happy ending, and instead I got Meg Ryan hit by a goddamned truck! Sometimes I like the bullshit happy ending.

I'd also add that, no matter how many surveys they have stating the opposite, everybody (generalization ahoy!) hates the goddamn commercials (as opposed to trailers) before the movie. As in "I can get that shit at home if I want it".

I'm still annoyed at City of Angels

Heh, your whitefont is the ONLY thing that could have made me watch that movie. I'd have laughed and laughed and thought all my Xmases had come.

signed,

Huge WINGS OF DESIRE fan

2005 box office to date (from boxofficemojo.com):

RankMovie TitleStudioTotal Gross / TheatersOpening / TheatersOpenClose 1Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the SithFox$380,115,6523,663$108,435,8413,6615/19- 2War of the WorldsPar.$233,144,3893,910$64,878,7253,9086/29- 3Batman BeginsWB$204,694,1473,858$48,745,4403,8586/15- 4Wedding CrashersNL$204,006,0003,131$33,900,7202,9257/15- 5Charlie and the Chocolate FactoryWB$203,644,5293,790$56,178,4503,7707/15- 6MadagascarDW$192,381,4294,142$47,224,5944,1315/27- 7Mr. and Mrs. SmithFox$185,380,9683,451$50,342,8783,4246/10- 8HitchSony$179,495,5553,575$43,142,2143,5752/117/21 9The Longest YardPar.$158,032,6613,654$47,606,4803,6345/27- 10Fantastic FourFox$153,524,7223,619$56,061,5043,6027/8- 11RobotsFox$128,200,0123,776$36,045,3013,7763/119/5 12The PacifierBV$113,086,8683,181$30,552,6943,1313/47/14 13The 40-Year-Old VirginUni.$91,686,9733,006$21,422,8152,8458/19- 14Monster-in-LawNL$82,931,3013,424$23,105,1333,4245/139/5 15Are We There Yet?Sony$82,531,1602,810$18,575,2142,7091/216/16

FF might have been more boring than HHGTTG, but it's done better (also relative to the posted production budgets).

We might want good writing and interesting characters. But many of us wanted Firefly and Wonderfalls too. Doesn't make them viable.

It was just not what I was expecting.

See, I'd have watched the Heaven movie to see how the conundrum resolves. Learning that there's no conundrum? FUCK NO.