Is Originality Dead in Hollywood?

I  don't know if you've noticed this but creativity seems to be dead in Hollywood, especially in the movie industry. 

You've probably noticed this. 

It isn't exactly that hard to miss. 

After all, everything released in cinemas in the last decade are adaptations of books/comics (apparently every single best seller must be converted into a movie, otherwise it's not really a best seller), or it's a sequel or a prequel to an already existing movie. There's even been a few remakes/reboots. 

Nothing too original in the top blockbusters of the last 13 years. I mean there's the odd completely original movie in there. But they're a rare thing. They're mostly just adaptations, sequels/prequels or reboots. And I'm getting sick of it. For a start, it's making me lazy: there really isn't point reading the book if it's going to end up on the big screen in a couple of years anyway. Or the movie turns out to be a massive let down, because the original was better or the original story was butchered in the adaptation (which I guess also fits into the whole "the original was better" argument). Don't even get me started on sequels. They're pretty much hit and miss, which is better than prequels, which usually suck. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm loving all the Marvel movies, and the latest Batman movies (but not superman. Never really been a Superman fan), and I am looking forward to seeing Catching Fire movie later this year (even if none of the tributes except Finnick look anything like I imagined them [anothet issue with adaptations]). And I'm also really looking forward to the Veronica Mars movie, and I really want Captain Planet to be made into a movie (if only so a whole new generation can experience the awesomeness of Captain Planet). 

But what I really want to see happening again is movies that aren't some kind of adaptation, sequel or prequel or a remake. You know, something that's vaguely original. 

Unfortunately, though, originality seems to have left mainstream culture these days. Although, I suppose that's a good thing for all those struggling indie writers. They're now getting more of a chance at success. Or, at least, they will once people start tiring of all of the unoriginal movies being presented in mainstream cinemas. 

Or maybe it's just me with this issue. Let me know what you think. 

Peace out!

Fox

It Is Time for a Captain Planet Movie

Ok, so last week we heard rumours that Sony is in final negotiations for a Captain Planet film, sparking excitement in the hearts of 90's kids everywhere who grew up watching the animated series on TV. 

Well, actually, tentative excitement would be more accurate. We've heard these rumours before and we're still without a Captain Planet movie. There were even rumours of a live action TV series being made in the late 90's (although, I only heard this the other day). 

I've said before that rumours and hearsay are the best kinds of evidence. But in this case, they're really not. They just get everyone's hopes up only to smash them again when nothing happens. We just have to wait with bated breath (and crossed fingers), and hope that something happens this time. 

But that begs the question: why hasn't there been a Captain Planet film made yet?

I mean, since X-Men debuted in 2000
(wow, that was a long time ago), superhero movies have proven to be extremely popular with movie goers. So much so that there's even been reboots in a very short amount of time. So there's very little doubt about the public wanting superheroes. Plus, you know, so many people grew up watching Captain Planet as kids. Everyone will flock to the cinemas just to see their favourite Eco hero on the big screen. It'll be just like what happened with Tomorrow When the War Began all over again. 

And then there's the whole Eco hero thing: in the last decade or so, saving the environment has become a big thing. It's all about going green and saving the world. What better way to help spread this message and get people to start thinking more about the environment than with a massive blockbuster propaganda movie? I mean, let's face it, that's pretty much what the TV series was back in the day: short twenty minute episodes of pro environment propaganda. But you know what, it worked. It made so many kids more aware about saving the world and looking after the environment. It helped to convince me that littering wasn't cool (although I did always want to meet Captain Planet and the Planeteers). 

Although, the rise in Green did kind of coincide with 911, and Captain Planet and the franchise's fans do like to use the term "Eco-terrorist". Maybe the powers to be felt that a movie that contained the term "terrorist" and wasn't about some crazy Middle Eastern people trying to bring down America wasn't appropriate. Or maybe they were scared that it would spawn a whole new breed of terrorist that wanted to save the environment and not focus on any kind of political agenda (egads! The horror!). Green Peace and anyone else concerned about the environment were already creating too much noise and getting too much attention (those bastards). 

But now, a decade or so on and things are completely different: the world's leaders are talking about what can be done to save the environment and prevent climate change, the world isn't so highly strung about the term "terrorist" and (more importantly) superhero movies have more than proven themselves to be popular. 

The world is ready for a Captain Planet movie. And now is the perfect time for a movie about a superhero who is all about saving the environment and preventing climate change. Let's hope that these rumours about Sony and their final negotiations are true and we finally get to see our beloved Eco hero on the big screen.