Things are slow today, so I thought I’d keep this conversation going. Jeffrey Wells has responded to Drew McWeeny’s piece about crotchety film critics calling foul on the American movie-going public (and the younger generation in particular). Click here for the background, then take a look:
McWeeny has argued against this, primarily, by playing the age card and describing what’s been written as the result of generational bias and illusion. The age-old “damn these kids!” phenomenon that every older generation has bitched about since the hey-hey day of the Greeks and the Romans, etc. Older farts do this so pay them no mind, etc. The title of the article is “Why do older movie critics suddenly want everyone off their lawn?” and the lead image is that of Clint Eastwood snarling in Gran Torino.
Playing the age card is easy, of course. Just point or allude to the ages of the people you’re disagreeing with and go “wow, crankheads!” and “these guys need to flush out their arteries” and so on. Throw in some patronizing attitude for emphasis and people your age and younger will buy it.
As for a rebuttal to this, commenter Wrecktum nails it:
I’m SO confused. I read Wells and Ebert and Scott and whoever, and I learn that the young generation are useless, mouth-breathing heathens. But then I read Millennials Rising and other demographic studies and I learn that the young generation is the most politically engaged, positive and hopeful generation since the pre-boomers.
Who the hell is right?????
The rest here.
Comments
7 responses to “Wells on McWeeny’s generational argument”
There was a trend early in 2009 that proved audiences cared about quality and listened to critics. Star Trek, Up, The Hangover, and Harry Potter made bank while Land of the Lost, Year One, and other such trash tanked. Critics were smiling. It took one movie to disrupt this movement, and a big ass steaming pile of phallic-symbol shit at that: Transformers 2. Peter Travers calls it the worst movie of the decade and box office makes it the best movie of the year. Now critics are calling foul and claiming “dark age” although until mid-July audiences were listening.
Hopefully in time we can prove: TRANSFORMERS WAS A GIANT, TRAGIC ANOMOLY. WE STILL CARE HOW GOOD MOVIES ARE. Turn out for Where the Wild Things Are or Invention of Lying this fall instead of Emmerich’s 2012.
The truth hurts Mr. Wells!
I find it odd that Wells, who seethes at the mere thought of Republicans, berates the generation that nearly single-handedly elected Barack Obama.
If this same generation of dumbasses is smart enough to move beyond Wells’ generation’s bigotry and fear-mongering politics, then I think they should be allowed to watch whatever movies they please.
Can we please avoid making blanket statements about entire generations? The polls and the box office are two entirely different matters.
At least you kind of got it, Bill.
Bill, your two posts are right on the dot. Politics do not equal movies at all.
And I do hope that movies like 2012 bomb and WTWTA is a critically acclaimed smash hit… I don’t understand how one can watch the trailer and not want to see it immediately.
The whole generational argument has been huge this week, and I collected my thoughts and wrote a post for my blog. It is too long to paste here, so I’ll attach the link:
http://marshallandthemovies.wordpress.com/2009/08/11/mindlessmoviegoing/
I don’t think my generation (I am 16) is responsible for a “gathering Dark Age” as Ebert calls it. Bad movies will be made no matter what happens.
I hope that you check out my post because I put a lot of thought and effort into it.
Marshall
marshallandthemovies.wordpress.com