Film is one of American culture’s most iconic mediums of artistic expression. Hollywood has been the world’s film capital since the 1920s, playing a crucial role in shaping American culture. Beloved book series such as “Harry Potter” and “The Hunger Games” have led to some of the most enduring film franchises that continue to be celebrated and discussed today.
It’s no secret that franchises have become a Hollywood staple due to their overwhelming box office successes and die-hard fan bases. This has resulted in a new trend in the movie industry: the domination of franchises through sequels, live-action remakes/reboots and spin-offs.
But the perseverance of franchises begs the age-old question: do they breathe new life into the industry, enriching original fans’ love and enticing those unfamiliar to join in on the shared excitement? Or, do reboots, sequels and live actions tarnish the once-beloved franchises’ legacies, disappointing its devotees and deterring new viewers from the franchise as a whole?
Because of how integral cinema is in today’s culture and the fact that art is constantly evolving and changing, for better or for worse, The Statesman was curious about what Stony Brook University students thought about the topic.
We had five Stony Brook students of different majors participate in a Google Form survey.
Students believe that certain franchises pull off sequels and spin-offs when they have a plotline that is sensible, is in line with previous installments or has some basis from previous films. However, they agreed that several franchises today do a poor job of continuing their once-great storylines, and they wish to see more fresh and inventive movies produced instead.
“All these remakes and sequels are a blatant cash grab,” commented one participant. “The relationship is no longer [between] the artist and the viewer. It’s now the company and the buyer.” She also said that the constant creation and releases of franchises take away the substance of original ideas.
“I definitely have noticed that [the latest releases] tend to be a lot of sequels and remakes. The movies I grew up watching weren’t sequels, remakes or adaptations,” another participant said. “I feel like you don’t see new movies like that as much anymore. I can’t remember a single sequel that I watched as a kid, yet kids nowadays are watching ‘Cars 3,’ ‘Despicable Me 4’ and ‘Toy Story 4.’ I don’t know if those moves are all necessarily bad, but I [also] don’t know if they’re relevant or necessary.”
This wasn’t the only complaint; students believe that most film productions, whether they are sequels or not, warrant similar criticism.
“They try too hard to either be groundbreaking or appealing for a very specific audience,” another participant said. “They all want to be the next big thing, it’s just not working.” When asked about what franchise films they enjoyed in the last five years, one responder reported only liking “Dune” and the “Spider-Verse” saga.
“I really enjoyed ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ [2022]. It’s a sequel, but the story is original and the art style is unique,” said one of the participants.
For some, this has made avid film watchers feel that film is losing its original spark.
“In a word, [films are now] boring. Not everyone has to be so candid all the time. It’s been done over and over, and now we’re sick of it. Films need new directors, producers and ideas. It’s tiring seeing the same faces and storytelling narratives,” said one of the respondents.
One participant said that in Disney and Pixar movies, “you can easily tell the same person writes it … All the movies have the same plot. They are catering to the younger generations. Before, most movies were for all ages, but now they often only appeal to children ten and under. [It feels like] they’ve stopped caring.”
Students also acknowledged the decrease in 2D animation in the industry within the past five years.
“They’ve completely gotten rid of 2D animation. It’s just sad that [movie companies] don’t want to pay talented artists to create masterpieces [like they did before]. I loved the early Disney and Pixar movies,” said one participant.
Other students who completed the survey expressed how repetitive recent film premises have been and how much of a turn-off they are for viewers. Another critique about current film trends is that the live-action versions aren’t often successful or enjoyable.
“I watched the ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ [2023] movie as a joke. As an old fan of the games it was adapted from, I wasn’t the biggest fan because it made up its own story,” a participant said. They also said how the movie strayed away from the source material and, despite this, is slated for a sequel.
However, the biggest secondary complaint regarding current film culture is that most movies fail to create complex female characters. Either they’re quirky man-haters who contribute little to the storyline, or they’re used to uplift male characters meaninglessly.
“They saw that movies like ‘Tangled’ [2010] worked and now they have taken it to a whole new level of cringe,” one responder said. “It’s been done over and over and now we’re sick of it. It’s the same girl with a different face every time. I want diversity not only on the outside, but also on the inside — all the personalities of recent female protagonists are the same.”
One of the responses also mentioned changes in Chani’s character arc in “Dune,” who is played by Zendaya.
“It seems that a strong female character either sacrifices everything for the male lead or completely separates herself from everyone else. There’s no middle ground.”
These Stony Brook students shared a general appreciation for the arts and the fact that trends come and go, but in a world with so much creative potential they said that they can’t help but wonder why they keep seeing the same concepts over and over.
