"I'm going to be stuck going to see 'Mama Mia'" my friend and movie buff SeaBass admitted Friday at lunch. His wife is insisting; he got a pass on the "Sex and the City" movie, but on this one there was no chance of him getting out of it. "The one redeeming quality will be the female lead looks really good." It was at that moment I realized that SeaBass had fallen for the biggest trick movie producers play on men. For years, movies have used special effects to bring in crowds. During the glory days of Sci-Fi movies (see: the good Star Wars, Star Trek, etc), special effects were used to enhance the experience. They made these movies epics, and they brought in a lot of male viewers.
But then something happened. Producers realized that good effects can be used to bring in a crowd, even if the movie isn't that good (see: Independence Day). With the use of CGI, it is easier to add in mind blowing effects, at a fraction of the cost. As a result, you get a lot of incredible effects with not much substance behind them. Special Effects do not a movie make, but they do bring in crowds.
This is exactly what is happening with "Mama Mia". You wouldn't expect Special Effects in a chix flick, but that is exactly what Amanda Seyfried is. The young female lead is designed to bring in a bunch of dum males into the theater and have them leaving happy. She may not be CGI, but she is another special effect.
From now on in my book, really attractive woman who can not act are special effects. They are designed to bring in guys, just like explosions, car chases, and spacecraft. The only difference is that the woman are not CGI.
Not yet, anyway.
1 comment:
All I can say is that I can't wait for this movie to come out! Woo hoo, Abba.
And, I went to see the original musical in London with a crowd of male & female friends. The guys liked it just as much as the women.
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