Dustin Hoffman says the cinema is at it's worst.

Yeah. Look at all them B-movies. At least Marvel films, as crazy as these B-movies can be, have good acting for the most part.

 

I was comparing Marvel and the B-movies at the time. Problem?

 

Children's movies are not Cinema.
Bozo is not Bogart.
.

 

Close-minded statement is close-minded.

 

Yep, and I don't care about cover art, slipcovers, or steelbooks. I'm an adult.
.

 

The OP offered "the Marvel films" as his tentpole to support the premise that good films are still being made. That is equally one-dimensional, as I'm sure "the Marvel films" genre is as hit-or-miss as any other. I enjoy some Marvel movies, but to offer them as a "rising tide that lifts all boats" example regarding film quality is silly.

To follow your "b-movie" line of thinking, I don't think we'll see The Avengers challenge Rear Window or The Searchers at the top of a greatest films list anytime soon... at least not until everyone that has seen those films is dead anyway.

 

Just because I listed Marvel's films first doesn't mean I think they're the end all, be all of good films of this generation.

 

I'm sure film buffs of the future are going to be writing nostalgic pieces about The Avengers and Fast Five the way 45 year olds today write nostalgically about Star Wars and Superman and other films from their childhood adults thought were junky in the late 70s.

 

I wouldn't be surprised one bit if that happens.

 

Probably. But the real question is how will the film buffs of the future compare something like Avengers or Dark Knight to say The Godfather or Citizen Kane?

 

It depends if they're considered among the best of the genre they belong to. I would consider at least the first Avengers film to be among the best superhero films I've seen in a while when it first came out and I still think that. Same with Dark Knight.

 

I wouldn't disagree that Marvel's films alone would be a solid tent pole to support his premise by itself--but it is part of an example of quality filmmaking.

When a Hitch was making his thrillers, they were seen as just that without any sort of appreciation of their darker, richer contrasts.

As for The Avengers, I wouldn't put it in the same class as either one of those films but the best of them (for example Captain America: Winter Soldier) has a solid undercurrent of social commentary and recalls films like Three a Days of the Comdor a genre film that Hoffman might dismiss (although he could just as readily dismiss Marathon Man a movie he was in). As you know, films occupy multiple levels at the same time with Entertainment mixed with other elements that reflect our time.

Much the same could be said of the classic Universal horror movies and yet they continue to resonate and dealt with themes that were important to the day.

I guess my overall point is not to dismiss one type of film (even the Marvel films occupy difference niches as far as Entertainment with some more morally complex than others) because of the genre it belongs to.

I'd also point out that truly "comic book" movies have only started to come into their own after years of being little more than junk food for the eyes. There will always be those that ARE little more than that but there will also be more morally complex and ambitious ones to arrive.

In 1954 I doubt that "Rear Window" was thought of as a contender for a top 100 film list of all time.

 

But movies like Godfather and say Shawshank Redemption are considered the best of the medium, not just the best of the genre. However, based on current fan opinion it would seem they're ranked toe to toe with something like Avengers, which I would think from a critical standpoint is a completely meritless point of view. It does make one wonder, however, when the "classical" mode of thinking in regards to cinema gives way to the comic-con generation will something like Avengers be considered an artistic triumph of the medium itself, not just a pillar of comic book fare.

 

Yeah..."good acting..."?

 

Well, it's not even a decade old yet so let's really wait and see what happens.

 

Well, that acting of B-movies of the 50's and 60's reflects the decade they are apart of. Compare them to Marvel, where the actors are having a blast.

 

All of our opinions are subjective...

 

I guess I should've worded it better.

 

I disagree with Dustin...many excellent movies out there.

 

The calibre of people they get for these comic book movies is considerably higher than old B-movies got, given that they are now the most widely seen movies on earth. Whether they give good performances in them I guess is more open to interpretation.

 

I disagree...

 

I agree...the past few years have been excellent!

 

...to what degree, if I may ask?

 

unless you are a fan of CGI...