I agree with a lot of this - but even the author seems to concede an uptick in quality of cinema this year, as well as WB’s success with a diverse slate of films. I would never compare 2025 to 1968 in terms of box office, but the last few years has absolutely seen a rise in quality films being produced and celebrated. There are incredible global filmmakers from Chan-wook to Hamaguchi to Bonello (and many many more as well)
I’m kinda hoping that Linklater’s “Nouvelle Vague” will become the Dazed and Confused for the aspiring young filmmaker set. Given the excitement for repertory screenings on 35mm and 70mm and increase in repertory theaters in NYC - I’m much more optimistic about cinema culture. Appreciate this more cautious perspective tho!
Enjoyed this very much. There used to be movie people, storytellers, actual creative people in movie making. I’m not sure how many of those exist in studios anymore. Today’s’ suits make yesterday’s suits look like cosplay fanboys.
What a great piece, thanks for this, and for the reminder of a time (70s and 80s) when cinema really seemed to matter, when you could go to a theatre and see 1900, or Come and See, or Providence (just three of my important films). What is disappointing in the present era of streaming is how hard it is to see classic cinema. Why is it so hard for the majors to give access to a library of film. It is, after all, only by watching great cinema that you can come to understand how it is made, come to want to emulate those works.
Good piece though I cannot cosign sneaking the White Noise adaptation into that list. I thought about this sort of thing when I was leaving One Battle After Another. Whenever I see a really good and entertaining new movie like that I always leave the theater happy but it's tempered with a feeling of... hang on, we can still do this? Why aren't we doing it all the time??
Great piece! I highly agree with your diagnosis of contemporary Hollywood. However, I couldn’t stand The Phoenician Scheme and I thought One Battle After Another was highly flawed.
I agree with a lot of this - but even the author seems to concede an uptick in quality of cinema this year, as well as WB’s success with a diverse slate of films. I would never compare 2025 to 1968 in terms of box office, but the last few years has absolutely seen a rise in quality films being produced and celebrated. There are incredible global filmmakers from Chan-wook to Hamaguchi to Bonello (and many many more as well)
I’m kinda hoping that Linklater’s “Nouvelle Vague” will become the Dazed and Confused for the aspiring young filmmaker set. Given the excitement for repertory screenings on 35mm and 70mm and increase in repertory theaters in NYC - I’m much more optimistic about cinema culture. Appreciate this more cautious perspective tho!
Enjoyed this very much. There used to be movie people, storytellers, actual creative people in movie making. I’m not sure how many of those exist in studios anymore. Today’s’ suits make yesterday’s suits look like cosplay fanboys.
What a great piece, thanks for this, and for the reminder of a time (70s and 80s) when cinema really seemed to matter, when you could go to a theatre and see 1900, or Come and See, or Providence (just three of my important films). What is disappointing in the present era of streaming is how hard it is to see classic cinema. Why is it so hard for the majors to give access to a library of film. It is, after all, only by watching great cinema that you can come to understand how it is made, come to want to emulate those works.
Good piece though I cannot cosign sneaking the White Noise adaptation into that list. I thought about this sort of thing when I was leaving One Battle After Another. Whenever I see a really good and entertaining new movie like that I always leave the theater happy but it's tempered with a feeling of... hang on, we can still do this? Why aren't we doing it all the time??
Great piece! I highly agree with your diagnosis of contemporary Hollywood. However, I couldn’t stand The Phoenician Scheme and I thought One Battle After Another was highly flawed.