Simon Pegg got critical of Sci Fi and Genre movies.
So you might have heard about this and thought "Why Simon? Why?" After all, he's not Simon Cowell.
Or you may have been one of the many people who felt so insulted that Simon Pegg has a different opinion about your favourite (or one of your favourite) genres that you felt you had to write a long insulting post about it and put it up on a forum somewhere, or on your Facebook account, or on your blog.
Ahem.
Well, I'm not one of the people who feels insulted. In fact, I can see where he's coming from, or might be coming from.Below is my post on the mater that I posted on a Facebook group I belong to. Slightly expanded as I've thought of other examples. Ok, at the end of the day he's as entitled to his own opinion as anyone else here is entitled to theirs, and I can see where he might be coming from here.
Does Michael Bay's take on Transformers look good? Sure, they are a visual treat, Bay's movies usually are, but they tend to be light on character development and story lines, something the original comics and cartoons were noted for doing quite well depending on the writer and his vision.
Has there been a movie worthy of "2001"?
Has there been a modern day Western that hits all the right buttons like "The Magnificent Seven"? Is there anyone out there who could make a movie to rival the "Back to the Future" series?
There has certainly been some absolute mindless dross over the last few years, but they have sold well and made money. And some have been marketed as Sci Fi when it's more just a Big Budget Blockbuster using Sci Fi as a backdrop. And if we want Sci Fi and Genre movies to be as good as they can be, we have to have the studios allow the creative talent the room to develop the ideas they have into a fully realised form, not just rush things through just because a certain Genre is the in thing now, or is going to be the new thing, and make sure it has this person who is going to get bums on seats because they are so photogenic to the opposite, or same gender.We have to remember the story is important. The Characters are important. The audience having a good time and being able to connect to what they are watching, is important.
Not every sci fi movie is going to be "Wrath of Khan", or "Undiscovered Country" or "That one with the Whales". You'd be hard pressed to find another sci fi movie that matches the style and artistic merits of "Bladerunner" (plenty have tried) or have the depth of some of the best "Outer Limits" episodes (or even the worst for that matter) or the complexities of "The Prisoner".
Or you may have been one of the many people who felt so insulted that Simon Pegg has a different opinion about your favourite (or one of your favourite) genres that you felt you had to write a long insulting post about it and put it up on a forum somewhere, or on your Facebook account, or on your blog.
Ahem.
Well, I'm not one of the people who feels insulted. In fact, I can see where he's coming from, or might be coming from.Below is my post on the mater that I posted on a Facebook group I belong to. Slightly expanded as I've thought of other examples. Ok, at the end of the day he's as entitled to his own opinion as anyone else here is entitled to theirs, and I can see where he might be coming from here.
Does Michael Bay's take on Transformers look good? Sure, they are a visual treat, Bay's movies usually are, but they tend to be light on character development and story lines, something the original comics and cartoons were noted for doing quite well depending on the writer and his vision.
Has there been a movie worthy of "2001"?
Has there been a modern day Western that hits all the right buttons like "The Magnificent Seven"? Is there anyone out there who could make a movie to rival the "Back to the Future" series?
There has certainly been some absolute mindless dross over the last few years, but they have sold well and made money. And some have been marketed as Sci Fi when it's more just a Big Budget Blockbuster using Sci Fi as a backdrop. And if we want Sci Fi and Genre movies to be as good as they can be, we have to have the studios allow the creative talent the room to develop the ideas they have into a fully realised form, not just rush things through just because a certain Genre is the in thing now, or is going to be the new thing, and make sure it has this person who is going to get bums on seats because they are so photogenic to the opposite, or same gender.We have to remember the story is important. The Characters are important. The audience having a good time and being able to connect to what they are watching, is important.
Not every sci fi movie is going to be "Wrath of Khan", or "Undiscovered Country" or "That one with the Whales". You'd be hard pressed to find another sci fi movie that matches the style and artistic merits of "Bladerunner" (plenty have tried) or have the depth of some of the best "Outer Limits" episodes (or even the worst for that matter) or the complexities of "The Prisoner".
So in a way he's right, BUT it's more to do with whose writing the material and whose in charge of giving that material the ok. I've been underwhelmed by movies like "The Matrix" which have had great concepts, and fantastic visuals and set pieces, but the stories have been lacking, even the first one (which everyone raves about) and getting progressively more so with each sequel. We all know what went wrong with the X Men series, and how long it took to get it back to form. "The Hobbit" was hardly to the same standard as "Lord of the Rings" but I'm not sure if that was due to mistakes on Peter Jacksons fault or the film company, I've never been sure who wanted to go from two movies to a trilogy with that adaptation.
And let's bear in mind what's been quoted here is most likely only SOME of what he had to say, most likely the juiciest bits too as that would help get more people reading the item and passing the link on. There's a few things I can actually agree with what he's said, and I would love to see what else he had to say on the matter. But's it's only natural that as an actor and a writer he would want to try other things and not be seen as a one trick pony.
I will say this as well though, as much as I like seeing something deep and meaningful in the cinema, and on TV and even in comics, I also like something that isn't. So I see no shame in going to see a movie where a big green guy beats the living do dah out of a man in heavy duty tin foil every once in a while. You do need variety and if that variety gives you a good story, great characters and a desire more, so much the better.
And let's bear in mind what's been quoted here is most likely only SOME of what he had to say, most likely the juiciest bits too as that would help get more people reading the item and passing the link on. There's a few things I can actually agree with what he's said, and I would love to see what else he had to say on the matter. But's it's only natural that as an actor and a writer he would want to try other things and not be seen as a one trick pony.
I will say this as well though, as much as I like seeing something deep and meaningful in the cinema, and on TV and even in comics, I also like something that isn't. So I see no shame in going to see a movie where a big green guy beats the living do dah out of a man in heavy duty tin foil every once in a while. You do need variety and if that variety gives you a good story, great characters and a desire more, so much the better.
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