Big movies then, inappropriate now? Vice versa too?

[Quasqueton]

I rattled off a movie quote last night to my wife when she couldn't reach a dish in the upper cabinet: "Because you're small. S. M. All." -- Dean Martin to Sammy Davis Jr. in Cannonball Run.

That got me to thinking on something. . . Would general theater audiences accept a movie like Cannonball Run today? Lots of drinking and driving.

What popular movies from previous decades could not be released to theater audiences today? (I'm not talking about being re-released, or remade.)


What popular movies released in this decade could not be released in previous times?


Quasqueton

 

[dravot]

I rattled off a movie quote last night to my wife when she couldn't reach a dish in the upper cabinet: "Because you're small. S. M. All." -- Dean Martin to Sammy Davis Jr. in Cannonball Run.

That got me to thinking on something. . . Would general theater audiences accept a movie like Cannonball Run today? Lots of drinking and driving.

What popular movies from previous decades could not be released to theater audiences today? (I'm not talking about being re-released, or remade.)

What popular movies released in this decade could not be released in previous times?

Quasqueton

Blazing Saddles would never be released today.

 

[Dark Jezter]

When Star Wars was released back in 1977, it recieved slight criticism because it had no black characters whatsoever.

If Star Wars were to be released today, that criticism would be much, much louder. You'd be seeing editorials about how blue-eyed, blond-haired Mark Hamill opposing the black-clad Darth Vader was subtly rascist, you'd be seeing Photoshopped pictures on the internet of George Lucas wearing Ku Klux Klan robes, you'd be seeing blog entries about how Chewie was Han's "slave", etc.

I mean, if the Lord of the Rings movies were accused of being rascist, what chance would Star Wars have?

 

[Pielorinho]

The drinking in old movies always astonishes me. Watch Invasion of the Body Snatchers or The Thin Man, paying attention to alcohol: you almost never see a character who ISN'T holding a drink. And then there's the Hitchcock movie that begins with some ha-ha drunk driving (no, not that one, the other one--Notorious, maybe) that demonstrates what a carefree spirit the female lead is. Whoopee!

And then you've got your Birth of a Nations, movies that reflect even less savory aspects of their culture.

Movies today that couldn't have been released earlier? Sure, sure: a huge number of movies made today, anything with an R rating or above, couldn't have been released before the MPAA came along.

Daniel

 

[FCWesel]

Blazing Saddles would never be released today.

Sure it would. Look at the SCARY MOVIES line of movies. They are far more offensive and have far less meaning or commentary.

 

[Tarrasque Wrangler]

After re-watching Fight Club for the umpteenth time a couple of weeks ago with my girlfriend, she remarked "They'd never be able to make this movie now." I think 9/11 really took the edge off of some movies.

That said, I was sorta surprised to see NY get trashed again by Roland Emmerich in The Day After Tomorrow. I mean, it doesn't bother me seeing some fakey-looking city get flattened, but I could just imagine some suits in Hollywood saying "You can't destroy New York after 9/11!"

Hey, if Roland Emmerich can't destroy New York for our entertainment than the terrorists have won. But anyway...

 

[Crothian]

I think they could be made, but I don't think Hollywood would take the chance. Hollywood is too conservative and the days of 24 hour news that allow people to complain about the smallest things and get air time ruins a lot of things.

 

[takyris]

I watched Blazing Saddles recently, and it's a brilliant movie. I think that it would get released today, and it would probably get released by a black director. The issue isn't that it isn't relevant or intelligent. The issue is that we think it's being racist or just mean because the director was a white guy.

A white Jewish guy who made a Tony-award-winning musical about Springtime for Hitler, in fact.

 

[Dagger75]

Song of the South by Disney. Was considered racist then, and still is considered racist.

 

[Dark Jezter]

Song of the South by Disney. Was considered racist then, and still is considered racist.

Indeed. If I recall correctly, it's just about the only Disney movie that's never been released on video or DVD, at least in the United States anyway (I know for a fact that it's been released in Japan and some other asian countries).