You know what, I didn’t think of the SyFy channel and the weirdness it’s been going with lately! Good point. And @catgrin, I think the fact that SyFy HAS to rely on lower budgets makes them more creative and possibly therefore more subversive and I think that’s what @L_Mariachi was at least alluding to. There was a great article about this recently, actually. Indie horror and sci-fi will always be more subversive and have more to say than (most) any mainstream film, I think, but that’s quite true about any genre or subject. Indie budgets and indie expectations and the freedom that comes with that means you get away with a lot more.
I think it’s GREAT that people are starting to realize you can tell a really awesome, engaging story without a huge budget.
And related: Behind the Candelabra was not able to get backing to become a normal film, even with big actors behind it – but it was quite successful on the small screen, and I think the small budget enhanced its campiness, which is only a good thing when it comes to Liberace.
I feel like horror often subverts this because in horror, the deaths are (usually) supposed to matter and happen for a reason and those deaths are supposed to make you feel, well, horror.
Maybe not so much with the more mainstream horror movies (which are kind of passe, now) where random hot, dim teens are used basically as violent fantasy murder porn. And don’t get me started on SAW and the like, particularly the later ones where they are just violent and bloody for the sake of violence and blood.
I’m not even much of a horror fan (Criminal Minds freaks me out enough as it is, and my younger sister once seriously traumatized me with one of the Rob Zombie movies omg lol) but this is a fascinating subject.
Yes, but the problem remains that all modern US cinematic/television media are based on a decades-long foundation of Production-Code morality and conventions.
Yes. I am aware, and you’re repeating yourself here…
But it’s not just the Production-Code morality and conventions. It’s also our culture and what is culturally acceptable. It influences us greatly. Nothing happens in a vacuum. But this is probably an obvious comment.
In the 1970s, TV movies were being made with a lot of care - that ended in the 80s with the movie megaplex and has only recently started back up in real force as cable actively competes with the theaters against online competition.
Here’s an example of a TV movie crossing over later to the big screen (I loved the original - it’s totally creepy!). Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (1973) - TV movie
In the original, a young bride inherits a house with a creepy secret. In the Guillermo Del Toro remake, it’s a family’s daughter that has the experience. I don’t think the extra money (or the CG) makes a better film. The actors in the original give memorable performances, and the puppetry work (with creeped-out whispered voicing) is really awful for a small kid to watch!
After reading the entire discussion, it’s clear that we all understand how storytelling in general shapes our morals, and the better the storyteller, the better they can transfer the moral lesson within the story.
What makes movies so special, though, is just how much pressure the combination of storytelling, music, camerawork and acting can put on shaping our morals. Movie sound directors have become experts in tweaking the soundtrack just right to make us like or loathe the character on the screen at the moment.
We need many times more such attempts to get a few more good low-budget flicks. The good part is that with today’s tech the cost goes down and the enjoyment is not directly relevant to the perfection; see many successful (albeit as a niche) machinima examples.
The game rendering engines together with what would just a few years ago count as supercomputers under our tables further lower the cost and increase the quality of the results.
Also, a big feature-scale example of things done right: Star Wreck. (edit: more specific link)
And @catgrin, I think the fact that SyFy HAS to rely on lower budgets makes them more creative and possibly therefore more subversive and I think that’s what @L_Mariachi was at least alluding to. There was a great article about this recently, actually. Indie horror and sci-fi will always be more subversive and have more to say than (most) any mainstream film, I think, but that’s quite true about any genre or subject. Indie budgets and indie expectations and the freedom that comes with that means you get away with a lot more.
