Are Superhero films dying?

[Paul Farquhar]

My late mother loved violent action movies, and was bored by romance.

Sexism is assuming all people in a category are the same.

 

[Thomas Shey]

For "bad" read "formulaic".

But again, I don't even think they're more fomulaic than most movies have been for a very, very long time, and a lot of those still made money.

Basically, I'm kind of just disagreeing with the premise that anything has really changed at the movie-making end (other than, obviously, blockbuster costs, but that changed some time ago now and didn't initially create overwhelming problems).

What's changed is habits. And those have been caused by a mixture of causes including streaming and what people got used to during COVID. And what they've done is likely make only the top end results (in either quality or hitting the zeitgeist) particularly viable.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

But again, I don't even think they're more fomulaic than most movies have been for a very, very long time, and a lot of those still made money.

MCU movies are very formulaic - how many do not end with a prolonged superpowered battle? How many don't have antagonists with powersets and origins connected to the protagonist? How many don't require the protagonist to resolve a personal issue before they are ready to face the antagonist? How many don't have an antagonist devoid of personality?

But the main thing is we have had a heck of a lot of that particular formula in a very short space space of time. Westerns are formulaic, but we don't see that formula very often any more so people are not bored with it. They sure were in the 1970s though!

 

[Ryujin]

MCU movies are very formulaic - how many do not end with a prolonged superpowered battle? How many don't have antagonists with powersets and origins connected to the protagonist? How many don't require the protagonist to resolve a personal issue before they are ready to face the antagonist? How many don't have an antagonist devoid of personality?

But the main thing is we have had a heck of a lot of that particular formula in a very short space space of time. Westerns are formulaic, but we don't see that formula very often any more so people are not bored with it. They sure were in the 1970s though!

But isn't it all just basically "the hero's journey"? The formula has been around since prehistoric times.

 

[Thomas Shey]

MCU movies are very formulaic - how many do not end with a prolonged superpowered battle?

Most action movies and many detective stories are very formulaic, too. That never stopped them from making money.

Basically, I don't think your statement here changes mine appreciably.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

MCU movies are very formulaic - how many do not end with a prolonged superpowered battle?

SuperZeno: I don't know how much longer I can keep fighting.

SuperAchilles: Don't worry, Brah. We're in the third act.

SuperZeno: Third act? What are you talking about?

SuperAchilles: Look over there. Giant Sky Beam. We're almost done!

 

[Deset Gled]

SuperZeno: I don't know how much longer I can keep fighting.

SuperAchilles: Don't worry, Brah. We're in the third act.

SuperZeno: Third act? What are you talking about?

SuperAchilles: Look over there. Giant Sky Beam. We're almost done!

SuperWill: Well back in days of mine, the play had acts of five.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

I don't think it's about formulaic-ness, so much as about the execution. The difference between things naturally leading to a confrontation at the end, versus heroes flying off at the end of one scene to go face the random impersonal villain of the story in a featureless room where they have just been waiting for the heroes to come so they can have the mandatory fight scene where nothing is really at stake and the room isn't even there because they haven't even decided where this will take place so it's all just CGI-ed in post.

But I do still like giant sky beams.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

This is hard for me to process.

There is a vast array of male superhero flavours to choose among. A small fraction as many that are primarily about a woman superhero. But the complaint is that "they need to do male characters better"? This does not compute for me.

Edit: To echo the point that I think Snarff is making, it seems odd that a lot of guys take it personally if a film isn't primarily about them. Not saying you are do this, but it comes up a lot, and I think it reflects an assumption that if a film isn't always directed at men, then men are being disrespected somehow.

Also...Aquaman? That film is SUPER directed at men. It's basically a bunch of explosions occasionally interrupted by exposition. And an awesome drumming octopus. They should make the sequel about that octopus - I would go see that in a theatre.

Like me counter with Jason Mamoa's abs. Seriously alot of women went to watch Aquaman, I'm not saying WB planned it like that, but they weren't upset by it. Pre Jason, Aquaman was primarily the but of jokes of the Fandom, Robot Chicken being a prime example.

 

[MarkB]

Like me counter with Jason Mamoa's abs. Seriously alot of women went to watch Aquaman, I'm not saying WB planned it like that, but they weren't upset by it. Pre Jason, Aquaman was primarily the but of jokes of the Fandom, Robot Chicken being a prime example.

That hasn't particularly changed.