High Expectations

Have you ever watched a movie or played a game where you go in expecting to be utterly blown away and instead leave feeling let down? I think this is a growing phenomenon as media evolves. As a collective judge of entertainment, we are often quick to be critical of things like the creative decisions of directors. This amplifies when we are holding a high expectation for specific content. A great example is the new star wars trilogy.

It’s hard enough to make people care about new characters and even more difficult to simultaneously transition out cultural icons like Luke Skywalker, Han Solo or Princess Leia. Now consider that these new films take place 30 years after the original trilogy. The cultural significance of these characters was almost legendary by the time Disney bought the right to Lucas film and began to build a new franchise. If that pressure wasn’t enough, fans and filmmakers alike have entirely different visions for the direction of star wars. Directors hired and fired so rapidly destroy a unified vision across three movies. Still, I wonder what could have been.

Other films in the star wars universe are thriving. For example, I have yet to hear anywhere near the number of complaints about Rouge One. It is almost as if the real crowd pleasers have been afterthoughts of Disney. Allowing decent filmmakers to express a vision in conversation with the established norms of Lucas film should be at the forefront of Disney as the stories they build continue to emerge. That’s the kind of forward thinking that should stretch across entertainment for shows and games to truly thrive. Creativity and passion for a project should make up more of a business model than trying to market all of the toys and t-shirts that could follow a franchise. Maybe you disagree. What are your thoughts on the future of media or Lucas film?