We’ve had some discussions here and here about studio choices for movies this Christmas weekend with special attention paid to “downer” movies like Marley & Me. I doffed my faux studio executive hat and provided my own analysis:
* If the primary movies for the holiday season are (A) holiday related, (B) big blockbuster movies, and (C) late season Oscar entrants on a few screens to qualify for Acad Awards, then I suppose ‘downer’ movies could be considered “counterprogramming,” the idea being that this is a time of year where people have time and like to go to movies, if everything else is sold out, why not go see the sad dog movie.* People like dogs.
* People like a good cry.
* People like Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston.
Now the LA Times chimes in with an article:
Hit any multiplex these days and you’ll know when the latest showing of “Marley & Me” has just ended — simply observe the stream of tears pouring out of the theater.“I promised myself I wasn’t going to cry, but I couldn’t help myself,” Lakewood resident Billie Peterson said, dabbing her eyes after a weekend “Marley” showing at the Edwards 26 in the Long Beach Towne Center, which she attended with her two daughters. “But we weren’t the only ones. The whole theater was sniffling at the end.”
In a season with no shortage of sad cinematic tidings, the most doleful dog story since “Old Yeller” has all but cornered the Kleenex market. “Marley,” based on John Grogan’s mega-selling memoir, sits as the nation’s No. 1 movie, having taken in more than $50 million since opening on Christmas.
Stories serve many purposes. One key purpose is that they provide a ‘safe’ place for viewers to experience scary / violent / sad / whatever moments. We’re a nation that loves dogs. So here comes Marley & Me which celebrates the intense nature of the relationship between humans and dogs, but also the ‘dark shadow’ that hangs over those relationships: Dogs age 7 times faster than people — which means we have to equip ourselves to handle the death of our dogs.
The director of the movie David Frankel had this take:
Frankel took his 7-year-old twins to see the film and doesn’t think there’s anything in the movie that kids can’t process.“We, as Americans, don’t deal well with death,” Frankel said. “I think it’s good, the questions the movie raises. It’s a nice way to bring up the subject and not avoid it.”
This is basic stuff, folks. When people watch a movie,they want (A) to be entertained and (B) to feel something. As screenwriters, we underestimate the importance of this latter point at our peril. In a time of multiple wars, economic distress, environmental disasters, bad governance — there’s a whole lot of shit going on out there. John Q. Public has zero control over all those ‘big’ issues. But we have our feelings. No external entity can take those away from us.
So now more than ever, if we write a comedy, make the reader laugh. If we write a thriller, make the reader scared. If we write a fantasy, transport the reader to another world.
And if we write a sad story, don’t be afraid to aim for the tear ducts.
In a time of palpable confusion, people rely on their feelings. And that’s probably the best explanation why nearly 10 million Americans got off their ass this week, drove to the nearest multiplex, and plunked down hard-earned cash to watch a movie about a dog who ends up dying.
The dog dies! Spoiler!
When we saw it, there wasn’t a dry eye. One little girl near us was sobbing. It is a universally touching movie about love, death and the patience born out of a pet’s unconditional love for and trust in his people.
Seriously, this movie does exactly what it is supposed to do and as you so succinctly put it, “provide a ‘safe’ place for viewers to experience scary / violent / sad / whatever moments.”
Over the years, the movies I remember most are the ones that made me scared, cry or be angry – the emotional movies.
A couple of weeks ago, you featured this interview with Ray Bradbury. In it he discusses writing his short story “The Lake” about a little girl he knew and his first real experience with death. In the interview he says, “ when I finished the short story I burst into tears. I realized that after 10 years of writing I’d finally written something beautiful. I turned a corner into my interior self. I wasn’t writing exterior stuff; I wasn’t writing for the right or the left or the in between. I was writing for me. And I discovered that was the way to go.”
Bottom line is he wrote a very personal story; something that was undoubtedly therapeutic and cathartic. That is what I’m striving for.
My question about the timing of the release you answered quite well with the economic implications. “This is a time of year where people have time and like to go to movies.”
Have a safe and Happy New Year!
Tom
Tom, thanks for transcribing that quote from Ray Bradbury as I was struck by it, too. As important as it is to consider screenwriting theories, track market trends, and understand the mindset of Hwood buyers, it is absolutely critical for each writer to find something in the stories they write with which they resonate emotionally. As Bradbury says, that is the way to go.