Films That Don't Stand the Test of Time

[Mal12345]

From a Cracked.com article -

"The end result is films that absolutely don't stand the test of time, because once the audience is immune to the spectacle, all that's left is a bunch of lackluster mouthbreathers."

Which films does this colorful statement describe to you?

The first and only movie that popped into my head upon reading that was Independence Day. The excitement I felt when seeing the previews of this movie only rivaled (at the time) the excitement I felt seeing previews of "Star Wars" on TV (and it's not "Star Wars: A New Hope," just "Star Wars").

(THIS IS NOT A STAR WARS THREAD! and I sincerely doubt it's one of the movies which didn't stand the test of time.)

ID4 has both the spectacle - and the build-up from Hollywood advertisers - and the mouth-breathers such as Harvey Fierstein who played "Marty Gilbert," a character that should have been listed alongside "Man in office."

To my discredit, it took 5 straight viewings of ID4 to see it for what it was - typical Hollywood schlock.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Avatar will probably be this.

 

[Luke O]

From another thread, The Matrix

Mind you, would any "cyberpunk" themed film go here?

 

[Qlip]

From another thread, The Matrix

Mind you, would any "cyberpunk" themed film go here?

Blade Runner is often considered cyberpunk, although it preceded the 90's popularity of the genre in film. I honestly can't think of any others that could count as timeless.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Blade Runner is often considered cyberpunk, although it preceded the 90's popularity of the genre in film. I honestly can't think of any others that could count as timeless.

Bladerunner is an excellent film.

One can interpret the "replicant" thing as a metaphor for existentialist issues.

 

[Tellenbach]

The Red Balloon. It worked and fascinated me as a 5 yr old, but now...it's just a fricken balloon floating around.

 

[Evee]

From another thread, The Matrix

Mind you, would any "cyberpunk" themed film go here?

Came in to say Matrix.

 

[Magic Poriferan]

Just to generalize, I'd say there are three things that typically make a movie fail the test of time.

1: It rests on technological effects and productions that become outdated.
2: It depends on topical references that cease to make sense to future generations.
3: It strongly features concepts that are no longer comfortable for contemporary mores.

 

[BadOctopus]

When I was a kid, I thought The Neverending Story was amazing. As an adult, I can plainly see that it's terrible. And that the flying dog is hella creepy.

It's too bad. The book was actually very good.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

When I was a kid, I thought The Neverending Story was amazing. As an adult, I can plainly see that it's terrible. And that the flying dog is hella creepy.

It's too bad. The book was actually very good.

I read the book. They cut out a lot of stuff; it's extremely different, but quite good. It's much darker than the movie. They kind of really cut out a lot of the subtext with the problems with his family which put the whole thing in perspective.

I haven't watched the movie in a long time, but I remember the flying dog being kind of endearing, if not accurate to the book description. I'll probably always have a soft spot for those 80's style effects/puppets. Blame my tertiary function, if you must.

 

[Magic Poriferan]

Thinking about my general reasons, I have what I think is a very good example.

King Kong. The original.

 

[BadOctopus]

King Kong. The original.

Or most of the old monster movies, really. Like The Blob and The Wolfman and The Creature from the Black Lagoon. People are getting more and more desensitized to violence and gore and horror in general; the stuff that used to scare people in the '30s and '40s are extremely tame and even laughable to modern audiences. I really don't see future generations enjoying them.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Or most of the old monster movies, really. Like The Blob and The Wolfman and The Creature from the Black Lagoon. People are getting more and more desensitized to violence and gore and horror in general; the stuff that used to scare people in the '30s and '40s are extremely tame and even laughable to modern audiences. I really don't see future generations enjoying them.

Do you think that is good, or bad?

 

[Magic Poriferan]

Or most of the old monster movies, really. Like The Blob and The Wolfman and The Creature from the Black Lagoon. People are getting more and more desensitized to violence and gore and horror in general; the stuff that used to scare people in the '30s and '40s are extremely tame and even laughable to modern audiences. I really don't see future generations enjoying them.

I just want to point out that not only are the effects really old, King Kong also has cringe inducing racism at times.

 

[BadOctopus]

Do you think that is good, or bad?

Uh, bad, actually. It kind of worries me that people these days are so entertained by horrific violence and nightmare-inducing imagery. People have always loved being scared, of course, but it didn't used to be so extreme. They keep pushing the envelope, making movies, TV shows, and video games more and more graphic and disturbing. I don't think it contributes to a healthy state of mind.

But anyway. That's for another thread.

I just want to point out that not only are the effects really old, King Kong also has cringe inducing racism at times.

When I think of "cringe-inducing racism", the first movie that immediately comes to mind is Breakfast at Tiffany's. Holy hell. Mickey Rooney as a bumbling, buck-toothed Japanese guy. I wish I could un-see that.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Uh, bad, actually. It kind of worries me that people these days are so entertained by horrific violence and nightmare-inducing imagery. People have always loved being scared, of course, but it didn't used to be so extreme. They keep pushing the envelope, making movies, TV shows, and video games more and more graphic and disturbing. I don't think it contributes to a healthy state of mind.

Right, but these things exist in the world. Is it bad that people are exposed to them? I've experienced things in my life that creep my out more than any movie probably could.

I do find the zombie craze very baffling.

 

[BadOctopus]

Right, but these things exist in the world. Is it bad that people are exposed to them? I've experienced things in my life that creep my out more than any movie probably could.

No. I find it creepy when people find it entertaining and enjoyable. I don't think there's anything enjoyable about watching someone get graphically tortured or mutilated. But that's just me.

Anyway, like I said, it's off-topic.

 

[BadOctopus]

Are you talking about horror movies, or action movies? Can we clarify what we're talking about? I've never been into anything like the Saw movies. Generally, I don't bother with horror.

Horror.

Again, this is not the topic of the thread. You can make a new thread about it, if you like. At any rate, I'm tired of talking about it. My interest in the horror genre is almost nonexistent.

 

[Luke O]

With regards to special effects, we have more of a critical eye these days. Previously our brain would fill in the gaps to immerse ourselves in the movie (i.e. Use our imagination to make it real), nowadays we're looking for how the CGI is unreal. Maybe more CGI is harming our imagination. I don't see this with my young daughter, she's OK with watching older things and getting into it.

 

[Mal12345]

Just to generalize, I'd say there are three things that typically make a movie fail the test of time.

1: It rests on technological effects and productions that become outdated.
2: It depends on topical references that cease to make sense to future generations.
3: It strongly features concepts that are no longer comfortable for contemporary mores.

4: It contains amazing visual effects but no real story and bad acting with schlocky characters.