James Cameron has brought so many blockbuster movies to the silver screen, each one raking in more cash than the next. Yet each movie that he comes out with is usually released one every couple of years. Through the fast-paced, glitz-glam of Hollywood that changes moods more than Madonna changes her image, how is James Cameron able to work with the evolving trends so effortlessly while consistently pleasing us? He babysat my childhood when he came out with the first Terminator installment. He scared my soul two years later with Aliens. Then back again with Terminator 2. Then, made me laugh and scream three years later as my Governor fought crime in True Lies. Then, made my heart throb in Titanic three years later. And twelve years after that, he just made my imagination run through three hours of Rave-atar. As writer and director, I want to know what James has that makes us all come back and wanting more, more, and more.
Not afraid of killing a main character: When you watch a movie and someone is poor, you can bet that in an hour and a half montage, they will be rich. When you watch a movie where someone is down on their luck, best be believin’ that pretty soon they will be rolling sevens in Vegas. It is just a formula that has worked for the entertainment industry and they very rarely veer from it. It sells, it works, just print it. But when Rose and Jack were talking about their future together as they whisper through the onslaught of hypothermia in the Atlantic, Jack doesn’t make it. Jack dies. In Avatar, the entire human cast basically dies, except for one who turns into a blue guy. James Cameron is not afraid of killing the character you know and love. Movies started during the daily grind of war times, so they had to be uplifting and help you escape reality. Nowadays, though we are still in a war-time, we have the luxury to use movies as more. A good movie isn’t just skipping down a yellow brick road anymore; it makes you think, it makes you cry, it makes you scared, it makes you feel SOMETHING. Cameron has done just that; he has capitalized the “tearing at your heart strings” movie market.
He makes a world: Movies are supposed to tell a story and they have to transport you from zero to fantasy before two hours is over. But some movies, mostly the comedies and flops, just skim the surface of context. In Titanic, it was not just a rags to riches, love story and a boat that sunk. It created such a build up of characters that when she finally leapt to the boats edge to live or die by her decision to stay by Jack, the audience jumped with her. In Avatar, Cameron created an entire LANGUAGE for the characters to speak. Analogizing that, to the success of The Lord of the Rings trilogy or the Star Wars empire, the more context and creation you put into the movie, the more the audience believes and cares.
These are just conjectures and maybe a little influx of the Deputy’s personal bias, but the figures are clear, Cameron makes movies that make money. The Deputy would love to star in Cameron’s next feature, maybe taking my robe off for an artist in my personal quarters only wearing a heart shaped diamond necklace. The role of the director does more than tell the actors where to stand; they have to tell the actors who they are. And that sells tickets.
No comments:
Post a Comment