Why Bad Movies?

“The Wrestler”–it’s violently gritty, sexually raw, at times heart-retching, and at times hilarious. I’ll admit I even cried, but what has my jaw hitting the floor is how nearly no one saw this Darren Aronofsky film (He’s the same director for “Requiem for a Dream”).The Wrestler is just one of several award winning movies that not many went to support this season. Yet films like “Madea Goes to Jail” and “Friday the 13th,” with absolutely no substance or internal depth, made millions at the box office. Don’t get me wrong, I saw and enjoyed audience favorites like “Pineapple Express” and “He’s Just Not That Into You” too but I also made it a point to see acclaimed “Slumdog Millionaire,” which I already have my own reservations about. Agreeably, there have been plenty of highly praised films in the past that may have stolen a bit of your soul and time, “Milk” and a few others come to mind; it was inspirational and I love my gays but that plot dragged and derailed.My point is, however, that watching a film with even a bit of image intricacy, plot cohesiveness, and performances that our neighbors couldn’t just emulate, only to be bombarded with boredom should be less disheartening than seeing a film with a guaranteed “no substance” and “nothing in return” entertainment policy. What great debates can possibly derive from “Mall Cop” or “My Bloody Valentine” other than a definite retrospective regret that you’ve just spent that 8 dollars and received nothing in return? If films are the new books, then we’ve officially become a society that prefers magazines over novels. They’re easier to sit through, shorter, and require little or no thinking. Sadly these films, along with other entertainment mediums, consequently shape our minds and attitudes of how we perceive and internalize our surroundings. At this rate, possibly for the simplistic worse.