When Hollywood Hype is the Entrée, What’s Left?

When James Cameron’s Avatar finally poured out of movie screens, there were just as many negative comments regarding character and plot development in the film as there were positive remarks regarding the visual experience. Part of the disappointment for cinema traditionalists, who see narrative filmmaking as an extension of literature, was due to their own expectations, rather than any failure of the director to deliver on his vision. This is what Cameron does – big sandwiches, lots of lettuce and cheese, and very little meat. Titanic was a similar dish and shame on any of you for expressing the idea that Avatar could have been something grander … shame on you for buying into the pre-release hype.

Hollywood is Hype Central; publicists throwing dozens of snowballs down the mountain, in the hope that a few will gather the mass and momentum necessary to make some film the next “must see” box office smash. Trailers hit the movie screens months before editing on the actual film is complete, planting a seed of desire in moviegoers to see more.

In truth, there are dozens of trailers that affected me so positively that I said to myself, “I’ve got to see that one.” Yet, to my recollection, there are few that I can remember actually following through on. By the time of release, after the storms of publicity mentions and star interviews leading up to the premiere, I’m burnt on the thing and sick of hearing about it. It’s one thing to enjoy an original pitch and another to sacrifice my money and time to honor a vow made long ago to an overly ambitious, self-promoting charlatan.

A case in point is the approaching Tom Cruise/Cameron Diaz adventure comedy Knight & Day. When I first heard about it, it was called Wichita. Cruise and Diaz appeared together in a video spot on The Jay Leno Show, pictures from the location set in Austria were showing up online and the word-of-mouth was loud. Then the trailer arrived. It was a nice trailer, allowing me to see Cameron Diaz (whom I love though currently, according to sources, she’s busy picking A-Rod’s cooties from her various body parts) in some physically demanding snippets. The websites dedicated to movies, numbering in the hundreds, each took their shot at flogging the beast, without a clue as to the merits of the movie. This is classic movie hype at work.

The New York Times published a piece centered on the evolution of Knight & Day last week. Apparently, the project was over a decade in development and the point of the Times story was that this is an unlikely drawn-out gestation by Hollywood standards. What I found telling were three bits of detail presented as casual asides, since it was the process, rather than the film itself, dominating the article’s focus:

1. Director James Mangold is still editing the film. At this point, you’d think that the type of editing handled by the director (scene ordering and inter-scene cuts) would be done, leaving the polish work of timing and continuity for the person with the three initials after his or her name. Major editing, at this late stage, is a warning sign that there is a problem with story flow.
2. Both Cruise and Diaz were giving major input during filming. This is never a good sign, no matter how valid the opinion of actors might be. Perhaps it’s the reason Mangold is still fussing with it; to undo the damage caused by appeasing his stars during filming.
3. Mangold, Cruise and Fox executives were all unwilling to give interviews to the Times reporter regarding the film. Ms. Diaz wasn’t approached (understandable in light of the cootie problem). With an impending June release date, the hype suddenly stops – this portends a looming critical disaster (or a delayed release, even at this late date) for what was originally billed as a fun/action movie.

The kind of hype that we’re seeing presently goes beyond that of the sequel to an established hit (think Iron Man 2), or an adaptation of a popular book or play (think Wicked). Certainly, the hype leading up to the release of Gone With the Wind must have been numbing. However, had the finished product been less than stellar then the big lead up to the premiere might have seemed ridiculous in retrospect. The new hype, fueled by film websites and stoked by bloggers and tweeters, threatens to escalate expectations for B-level movies to the point where they collapse upon arrival from the shear weight of their undelivered promises.

When the publicity machines run so hot they consume the things they intended to promote, we find ourselves surrounded by ashes. All we wanted was to see a screaming Cameron Diaz straddling Tom Cruise on a motorcycle. We may not be poorer for the loss, but I hate to think that such circumstances leave only A-Rod getting the straddles and the screams.




Abstract Invention by Charlie Accetta is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.