The Rise of TV & Declining Standards of Film

Actually, this post is an expansion of my previous (deleted) post on 10th June 2014 which was a short commentary on the falling standards of movies and films in our local cinemas in contrast to the content on our TVs that have improved by leaps and bounds largely due to cable networks and giant streaming channels like Netflix and Amazon Prime who have invested heavily in many expensive and high quality TV movies, series and mini series (now more popularly known as limited series) that include a diverse range of stories from different parts of the world. Since 2014, I had noticed a sharp decline in the quality of movies being shown in my local theatres and have been avoiding them during outings with my family as I felt that the price of the ticket was a sheer waste of my money. Back then, movies that were being shown were mostly unoriginal and unimaginative with repetitive themes and storylines that relied instead on the big names of their stars to draw in the crowds. Remakes of old films, sequels, films based on children's fairy tales, poor adaptions of books aimed at teenagers, 'kaiju' films and superhero movies from Marvel/ DC seem to flood our cinemas until today. Although movies from the 1980s and 1990s lacked the spectacular special effects found in our current line-up of movies, they always had epic, fresh and exciting stories to tell the audience thanks to trailblazers like Spielberg and Lucas and studios who were not adverse to taking risks. Are they getting better? Honestly, not really for me as I had not gone to the cinema for nearly 2 decades. However, the only movie that got me strangely a little excited was the 2022 movie, The Batman, from director Matt Reeves and starring Robert Pattinson. I thought it was a really good reboot of the Batman film franchise and Robert Pattinson's performance as the brooding Bruce Wayne/ Batman was surprising in a good way (he is also very good at playing brooding vampires). But the film is still another remake from the DC universe nonetheless which proves my earlier point right? The idea is if there are too many LEGO movies out there, why don't we do a movie about Barbie instead? No condemnation or judgement is reserved here for those who enjoyed these movies, but you have to admit that there is a serious lack of variety and original films in our cinemas today.

On the other hand, because of streaming platforms, movies that have just been released in cinemas are almost instantaneously available on our small screens which eliminates the need for most of us to visit the local cinema frequently. Streaming platforms also allows us to participate in "binging" apart from the more traditional 'appointment' viewing. In other words, we get to see multiple episodes or even whole seasons in one sitting at the time most convenient to us. No more waiting for episodes to be shown on weekly basis or checking the time slots for them. Personally, I feel that streaming has changed the way we watch TV and this new attachment to our TVs, home entertainment systems and mobile phones (especially after Covid-19) is a major factor that pushed for better content on our small screens. Cable networks like AMC, HBO, Showtime and FX are constantly breaking new ground with high quality classic shows like Mad Men, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, True Blood, Breaking Bad, Dexter and more recent ones like Shogun. Most of these series have achieved cult status with huge and rabid followers. Another instance of TV taking the higher ground is the cult TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer which premiered in the late 1990s. The series creator, Joss Whedon (The Avengers, Firefly). initially wrote Buffy as a movie which was screened in 1992. However, due to interference from the studio 20th Century Fox, the story was changed so much that Whedon decided to re-write a darker version of the story for TV instead. Needless to say, the series became a hit and an icon while the film received mixed and average reviews. 

TV is a medium where writers are able to develop long and complicated story arcs over the course of a few seasons. This translates to a better channel for writers to be more creative and to tell their stories at a more leisurely pace. Characters who have more time to develop are also better fleshed out. So it is hardly surprising that a lot of famous actors, talented screenwriters, prominent directors and established producers are turning to the small screen. In fact, I was further reminded of this while watching an interview of prolific American actor, Kevin Bacon, who was at that time starring in the 2013 Fox TV series The Following, with Peter Travers on ABC News. Here, he mentions about why so many actors like himself and writers are migrating to TV. By the way, the series is written by Kevin Williamson who is responsible for the Scream movies. So instead of paying for a pricey movie ticket and popcorn, I might just settle in my cozy sofa in front of the telly because there is where the good stories are😊.

(Interview Video Courtesy of  Popcorn with Peter Travers-ABC News)

Lately, I have discovered some interesting articles from Forbes that is related to this topic and have included the links to these articles for those who are interested in reading them.

How TV Viewing Habits Have Changed (Forbes) By Falon Fatemi 

5 Ways Streaming Changed Television Forever In The Last Decade (Forbes) By Toni Fitzgerald