View Single Post
psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2019-12-07, 17:23

Not keeping up with this property as I once did, what else is on the horizon? Is that Obi-Wan thing still proceeding? Didn't I hear about Ewan McGregor's involvement? This show is proving (for now, anyway...everything eventually runs its course, whether it's six months or six years) that well-written, entertaining SW fare can succeed on the small screen (like those various Clone Wars shows a few years back), so you have to assume there are some meetings and brainstorming taking place at Disney/Lucasfilm to figure out what other non-Skywalker saga characters or storylines might be worth pursuing.

It would be interesting if, three years or so from now, everyone just kinda associates Star Wars with home TV viewing via Disney+, vs. big multiplex/feature film releases every 2-3 years. Things have changed enough in recent years where such a suggestion doesn't sound as nutty and off-the-wall as it might have just 10-15 years ago. Most people have nice, large HD TVs in their house (and they're only getting larger and more HD it seems), and all these streaming services have changed how we think about screen-based entertainment. And I don't know anyone without really snappy broadband to pipe all this stuff in. And I figure in another 5-10 years, it'll be even more widespread.

If I were a producer/writer/director type and truly felt that I had a big, sprawling story I wanted to tell in this universe, I think I'd prefer the multi-episode Disney+ route, like this Mandalorian show, vs. trying to cram everything into a single 135-minute movie (or even 2-3 of them, over the course of 4-6 years).

Off-topic (click to toggle):
The Sopranos, Mad Men, Game of Thrones, etc. have all generated as much passion and following as any big-screen release or property I can recall. 25 years from now, the thought of going to a movie theater to watch stuff might seem like a weird, out-of-date and "can you believe that's how we used to watch movies?!" laugh/eyeroll trigger.

Scorsese and his peers will lose their minds at such a transformation (if not outright loss) of "cinema", but they're not going to be around in 25 years anyway, so...

Things change. We don't go to sock-hops, buy 8-tracks (or, hell, even CDs) or smoke on airplanes either...watching original, first-run Star Wars (or anything) in your underwear on your 128" 12K Samsung may be the norm at some point in most of our lifetimes.

But such a thing also opens up other opportunities. The multiplex as we know it may cease to exist in 2-3 decades, but the opportunity for enterprising types to capitalize on nostalgia and "the old days" could be huge. This past summer, I went to the Tivoli Theater in downtown Chattanooga (old, ornate movie/performance hall that's been around for ages...the balconies/boxes, big red curtains, all the decor/lighting, a big Wurlitzer organ on the side, etc. to see Raiders of the Lost Ark on the big screen for the first time since 1981. It was the most fun/enjoyment I've had in a movie theater in decades. It was awesome, so I could do with more of that, and less of the Flick-O-Rama 38, that's for sure. I think a lot of people could. It was so fun, just the entire vibe and presentation. That may be how things transition...mainstream, first-run viewing at home, with friends and family. And then for "special" outings, you go to a restored movie house with great sound and ambience to see showings of classic, timeless movies? Way back in the 90's, my girlfriend and I saw Casablanca in that very same theater, and it was the same sort of joy/thrill. Something about those kinds of movies in that environment just elevates the evening/experience. For me, anyway.

Last edited by psmith2.0 : 2019-12-07 at 17:38.
  quote