Author: strawmat000

Another Home Alone? What are people’s thoughts and takes

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Another Home Alone? What are people’s thoughts and takes

Yes, you read right, another Home alone movie. They have milked it to the last drop but even this is pushing it. After the original release in 1990, they have made 4 others. In my opinion, they should have stopped at one and left the Christmas classic alone as it should have been. The family favorite will be coming back again after the last release in 2012. It was released on November 12, 2021.

 

The Drive Against It

After Disney announced the trailer on October 12, there has been an extremely negative response. Most say they should not reboot yet another movie and just stick to the 90s classic. On YouTube, most of the videos that showcase the trailer have a greater amount of dislikes than likes. I completely agree with them! One movie was a classic, an amazing concept that everyone loved. Two movies were pushing it but easy to ignore. But then they didn’t stop coming. More and more came out and honestly I haven’t watched them and I would not like to. After ‘Home Alone 2: Lost in New York’ everyone was done. The OG made $476.7 million and it went downhill from there.

The fans aren’t the only ones that have actively spoken against it. The original director Chris Columbus gave his opinions to Insider in 2020 “No, nobody got in touch with me about it, and it’s a waste of time as far as I’m concerned. What’s the point? I’m a firm believer that you don’t remake films that have had the longevity of Home Alone,” he said. “You’re not going to create lightning in a bottle again. It’s just not going to happen. So why do it? It’s like doing a paint-by-numbers version of a Disney animated film — a live-action version of that. What’s the point? It’s been done. Do your own thing. Even if you fail miserably, at least you have come up with something original,” Columbus continued.

Though Macaulay Culkin hasn’t shared his opinion he has disclosed that he will not be in the new reboot. He won’t even be making a cameo.

 

Repetition

Surprise surprise, it’s about the same thing as before. A young child left alone for Christmas, a big chaotic family, burglars going for the house, and a witty mischievous child. A press release from Disney shows how the movie is the same.

Max Mercer is a mischievous and resourceful young boy who has been left behind while his family is in Japan for the holidays. So, when a married couple attempting to retrieve a priceless heirloom set their sights on the Mercer family’s home, it is up to Max to protect it from the trespassers…and he will do whatever it takes to keep them out. Hilarious hijinks of epic proportions ensued, but despite the absolute chaos, Max comes to realize that there is no place like home sweet home.

As you can see, it is the same. Max (Archie Yates) does the same thing as Macaulay Culkin except for having new tricks and traps.

 

My Opinion

     So I watched it, and as expected it was bad. I didn’t like the concept at all, and I disliked how the movie ended. The acting wasn’t good at all, and the storyline was strange and not at all realistic. Yes, the whole concept is unrealistic but it was very very out there. While I disliked it as a whole, some parts such as the trap with the treadmill, and the references to the original movie did make it better. That was about all I liked about it though. Overall it was just a failed attempt to redo the classic. It was overdone and too confident. Even if there had been no original and ‘Home Sweet Home Alone’ was a new concept, I must say I still wouldn’t have liked it. Maybe it’s all an inside joke about ruffling the feathers of the fans by continuing to make more of the same movie. I hope so because this movie was a joke. 

 A Big Break For The Sci-Fi Nerds in the Form of Dune

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 A Big Break For The Sci-Fi Nerds in the Form of Dune

The 2021 Dune adaptation directed by Denis Villeneuve, has been a major success and the sequel has already been approved. As of now, the sequel is set to be released on October 20, 2023. The classic 1965 novel by Frank Herbert has come to the big screen once again and is better than before. After David Lynch’s 1984 film, Denis Villeneuve’s has taken it to the next step. 

The Film’s overpowering success

After being released October 22, 2021, in theaters and on HBO Max, the movie has unsurprisingly been a huge success. As of November 2, ‘Dune has made over $300 million. It was the biggest opening for Warner Bros this year. After its major success, it is no surprise that the sequel’s release date is already set for October 20, 2023.

In terms of timeline, ‘Dune’ the film only made it halfway through the first book. We are left with an incomplete story that seems to just be getting started. This movie focuses on world-building and politics in this new universe. As someone who has never before even taken a glance at the world, after watching this film I feel I have a deeper and more educated understanding of what is going on. I think that Villeneuve showed beautifully the present and future through Paul Atreides’ visions. 

On top of having an amazing director, this film is packed with everything, like an amazing cast featuring Zendaya as Chani, Rebecca Ferguson as Paul’s mother, Lady Jessica Atreides and, Oscar Isaac as Paul’s father, Duke Leto Atreides. Even Jason Mamoa is in this film playing Duncan Idaho. Our main character Paul Atreides is played by Timothée Chalamet. Along with an amazing cast, the cinematography is close to unmatched. Along with filming in studio sets, they also captured much of the film on location. They used the deserts of Jordan and the United Arab Emirates for the environment of the harsh desert planet of Arrakis. 

The great success of the film didn’t come without challenges. When asked what the biggest challenge Denis Villeneuve faced on ‘Dune’ he replied “Dealing with Timothée Chalamet’s Hair. It’s Alive.” – Venice Film Festival

   

Strong Opinions

That wasn’t the only strong opinion of Villeneuve. He wanted people to experience Dune the way it was meant to be seen, on the biggest screen possible. He encouraged people to watch it in theaters and actively fought against ‘Dune’ being released on HBO Max. In an interview with Deadline, Villeneuve says, “I encourage people to see it on the big screen… It has been dreamed, designed, and shot thinking about IMAX. When you watch this movie on the big screen, it’s almost a physical experience. We designed the movie to be as immersive as possible, and for me, the big screen is part of the language.” 

Though he strongly fought against it, Dune was released in theaters along with HBO Max. 

I think they did an amazing job and I praise their excellent work. With this movie’s success and the anticipation for the next it will be challenging to wait so long to see the desert land of Arrakis on the big screen again, but rewarding when we can get more of the story.  

The Film Industry Changed by Covid is Now Back on Track

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The Film Industry Changed by Covid is Now Back on Track

Many movies that were affected by covid-19 are now back on track and getting released into theaters again. The entertainment industry is getting back on track! During COVID-19, most if not all movies were put on hold or when permitted, were extremely cautious while filming. Movies that were released during COVID-19 were all released online and not in theaters. Because of this, movie theater chains that used to be booming with business were empty and bare.

While others suffered greatly, online streaming services flourished with all the people quarantined and stuck at home. Though this trend of streaming service viewers was previously going up anyway, covid-19 sped up the process. Revenue climbed to $61.8 billion with an increase of 31%. While that was flourishing, physical entertainment like DVDs, blue-ray, and rentals dramatically declined. In 2020 digital entertainment only totaled only $7 billion, less than half of the $14.9 billion in 2016.

Streaming services gained many watchers and in 2020 totaled 308.6 million subscribers, a year-over-year increase of 32%. Because of the online subscribers, revenue grew 35% totaling $24.7 billion. TV programs that broadcasted dropped because of production delays. It dropped from the record high of 532 programs to 493. Production dates of release were moved to 2021-2022 and the slow down of shows being released had caused Netflix to drop in production of original content by 12%. While those declined programs like unscripted shows, children’s shows, and day-time dramas, have not experienced that large of a decline. The number of releases has stayed steady over the last five or so years.

Screen time, in general, went up from 13% in 2019 to 17% in 2020. 14% was accounted for by time spent on mobile video. Movies, like TV, declined dramatically with release dates going into 2021 and beyond. There were only 338 theatrically released movies, a 66% decline from 987 in 2019. Also in 2020 the estimated number of movies to start prediction declined 45%.
Because physical movie viewing was canceled, movie theaters and studios scrambled to find a way to increase revenue by getting video entertainment into homes instead of theaters. They released the movies online with or instead of theater releases. The box office dropped in ticket sales dramatically. From January to March, the box office was $1.8 billion. This accounted for 80% of the year due to the very notable drop that happened in March.

Godzilla vs. Kong was the beginning of getting back on track. It grossed over $69.5 million in the first two weeks and then $350 million globally. Finally, movies and TV shows began to get back on track but with extra caution. While COVID is still fluctuating, we start to get a steady stream of movies once again. Cast, directors, and others that work in the film have had to use caution in their workplace, including wearing masks, frequent COVID-19 testing, and keeping everything as clean as possible.

COVID-19 has changed so much in the film industry. Not only has it changed the industry, but it has also changed the people that work in it and the people that don’t. It’s easy to say that the experiences and challenges that it has gone, through will change it forever. This also showed that even though there are many challenges, people were able to persevere. It was a slow process but now we are getting back on track, and people can enjoy the movie theater experience again. It’s been wild but now it is finally coming to an end and a new beginning.

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