Snakes! On a Plane!
Aug. 19th, 2006 01:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sinanjuSo ecstatic reports of having viewed Snakes on a Plane are all over LiveJournal. Audiences (apparently) are cheering the very title, Samuel L. Jackson's name, the first appearance of the snakes, the first snake attack, and (of course), the moment when Jackson utters those immortal words "I want these motherfucking snakes off the motherfucking plane!"
I read that audiences are taking handfuls of tiny rubber snakes with them into the theatres to throw into the air at an appropriate moment. I see comments that people are thinking about taking rattles with them for future viewings, and otherwise gearing up a la Rocky Horror Picture Show. Will Snakes on a Plane become the next Rocky Horror phenomenon?
I suppose it's possible, but probably unlikely. A news report I just looked up says the film made $1.4 million on its opening night--not weekend, just the first night. Since it only cost about $40 million to make, if the word of mouth buzz I've been seeing gets around and puts butts in seats, it could be very successful.
And I can't help but think that all this ironic, post-modern appreciation for the absurdity of the movie is playing right into the hands of the walking, talking cliches who run Hollywood. Yes, I can imagine someone pitching a movie to Hollywood execs saying, "It's about Snakes! On a Plane!" It punches all the classic buttons. It's High Concept! It's Original! The ad campaign practically writes itself! All of which is true--as is the absurdity and preposterous nature of the story.
So no matter how ironically cool and mocking the fandom behavior is...it's validating everything those cliched Hollywood execs think is true. "Big, stupid, mindless films with preposterous premises which can be summed up in four words make money!" is true. They're right to think they can greenlight something so stupid and expect the audiences to flock to theatres to see it. They don't care if the audience thinks it's stupid or absurd, don't care if they are there only to mock and point and laugh. The ironic, jaded audience's money is just as green as anyone else's.
I read that audiences are taking handfuls of tiny rubber snakes with them into the theatres to throw into the air at an appropriate moment. I see comments that people are thinking about taking rattles with them for future viewings, and otherwise gearing up a la Rocky Horror Picture Show. Will Snakes on a Plane become the next Rocky Horror phenomenon?
I suppose it's possible, but probably unlikely. A news report I just looked up says the film made $1.4 million on its opening night--not weekend, just the first night. Since it only cost about $40 million to make, if the word of mouth buzz I've been seeing gets around and puts butts in seats, it could be very successful.
And I can't help but think that all this ironic, post-modern appreciation for the absurdity of the movie is playing right into the hands of the walking, talking cliches who run Hollywood. Yes, I can imagine someone pitching a movie to Hollywood execs saying, "It's about Snakes! On a Plane!" It punches all the classic buttons. It's High Concept! It's Original! The ad campaign practically writes itself! All of which is true--as is the absurdity and preposterous nature of the story.
So no matter how ironically cool and mocking the fandom behavior is...it's validating everything those cliched Hollywood execs think is true. "Big, stupid, mindless films with preposterous premises which can be summed up in four words make money!" is true. They're right to think they can greenlight something so stupid and expect the audiences to flock to theatres to see it. They don't care if the audience thinks it's stupid or absurd, don't care if they are there only to mock and point and laugh. The ironic, jaded audience's money is just as green as anyone else's.
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Date: 2006-08-20 12:33 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2006-08-20 09:20 pm (UTC)See Boat City-- Population: Boats at the bottom of the page.