Life goes on in the rest of the world as the crisis in the south slowly transitions into the long recovery. After watching true and ongoing suffering I have no sympathy for the discomfort of the Hollywood fantasy industry. If fact, I hope reality takes a bite out of the smug superiority of the entertainment elite.
Hollywood Suffers: Summer 2005 was the worst since 1997 for movie attendance, which dropped sharply and rattled the complacency of studios.Count me in the half of adults thinking movies are getting worse. My opinion is definitely influenced by the ongoing parade of entertainers sincerely believing the ability to repeat dialog and emote on demand confers wisdom. I wonder if the working of the market place will make any light bulbs come on in celebrity heads. Bad writing, cliché humor, flashy bright bursts, and profiteering on concessions no longer attract my consumer dollar. If that was not enough, it doesn’t lure my discretionary spending when performers make clear they despise my values.
With so many other entertainment choices - video games, limitless TV programming, home-theater setups - audiences may be edging away from moviehouses. In an Associated Press-AOL News poll in June, nearly three-fourths of adults said they would prefer to stay home and watch movies on DVD, videotape or pay-per-view rather than traipse to a theater. Almost half said they think movies are getting worse.
