The Bigger The Movie, The Crapper The Movie
Although somewhat slight, academically speaking, this paper on Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring did come up with a sentence that neatly encapsulates my reaction to LotR: Return of the King:
It often seems that two completely separate crews worked on this film - one, caring deeply about Tolkien’s vision, on the sets, costumes, and locations, and another, interested only in entertaining a mass audience, on the script.
My contemporary rule of thumb with films is: the more money that has been spent on a film and the more media hype it has (the two are closely connected, BTW), the shittier (but prettier) it will be. My historical rule of thumb (yes, I have two thumbs), is that films made before the mid-70s are generally watchable and those made afterwards are generally unwatchable (there are, of course, plenty of exceptions).
It often seems that two completely separate crews worked on this film - one, caring deeply about Tolkien’s vision, on the sets, costumes, and locations, and another, interested only in entertaining a mass audience, on the script.
My contemporary rule of thumb with films is: the more money that has been spent on a film and the more media hype it has (the two are closely connected, BTW), the shittier (but prettier) it will be. My historical rule of thumb (yes, I have two thumbs), is that films made before the mid-70s are generally watchable and those made afterwards are generally unwatchable (there are, of course, plenty of exceptions).