Making the Necessary Distinction Between 3 Types of Films

There is something to be said about a film’s “watchability factor,” where such films rank in our our collective consciousness, and what gives films that special Oscar quality.

The small number of people who went to the theaters to see Precious were likely preparing themselves for emotional and intellectual suicide. That’s just what they got. After all, Precious is a brave film with brave performances, seen by people brave enough to sit through it all. Such movie-going experiences are difficult, sad and heart-wrenching. Albeit essential.

Mo'Nique in Lee Daniels' "Precious."

Interestingly enough, many Academy members have been missing screenings for Precious and putting off watching their watermarked copies of the film even though it remains a legitimate Oscar contender.

Similar films which have gained notoriety for their depression-inducing effects are Schindler’s List (1993),  Platoon (1987), United 93 (2006),The Elephant Man (1980) and most recently The Wrestler (2008) among countless others. Even many who cherish these films can bare to watch it only once in their lifetime.

Feel-good flicks and childhood favorites (see article on “cover movies“) we normally watch at least once a year. And yet some of the most disciplined movie-goers will dismiss these films as “low-brow” and non-essential. Then again there’s the argument that taste is in the eye of the beholder.

Measuring the Chances of Oscar Contenders

As we countdown to the Oscars and place bets on our favorite contenders, let’s consider both sides of this spectrum and discuss the merits and flaws of some contenders. I will go out on the offensive right now and proclaim that unless a film which rests on either extreme end of the spectrum (”Cover Movies” vs. “Suicide Flicks”) is incredible and indisputably groundbreaking, it does not deserve to win Best Picture–at least this year. 2009 is a defining year for this decade because we will soon be transitioning into a new decade.

Hard films to watch versus easy films to watch. Yet the ones which fall in between are often the most beloved. These are the films that strike a great balance between art and entertainment.

Suicide Flicks of the year include Precious, Brothers, and The Hurt Locker to name just a few. On the opposite side of the spectrum are easy-viewing flicks such as The Blind Side and Invictus. Last year, the film that won Best Picture was Slumdog Millionaire. Like Forrest Gump, Slumdog satisfied both ends of the spectrum. These kinds of films are undefined and beyond classification.

So which films are in between the spectrum of feel-good and heart-wrenching?  Well, for starters, the films in between the spectrum are my favorites for Best Picture. Most of these films strike the perfect balance between strict art and straight entertainment. This is no easy feat.

That being said, I believe that 2009 is the year of the blockbuster. My top picks in predicting this year’s Best Picture are two films brought to us by masterful auteurs of the trade: they are Inglourious Basterds and Avatar. These films share a lot in common. Both are big-budget, box-office spoilers with brand-name visionaries at the helm. Cameron and Tarantino seem to have surprised many with their spectacular returns to glory. Each film takes a challenging, complex stance towards its subjects and its subject matter. Cameron and Tarantino are not traditionally the kind of filmmakers that concern themselves with dangerous politics. And yet it is impossible to see each of their films and not seriously consider the message purveyed by both films.

Tarantino single-handedly and boldly revised history in his movie. Forget about his political tensions (if even there were any). Tarantino was able to deliver a film (a commercial film at that) which portrayed the events of history in a fictional way–a way so powerful that the film itself transcends its own genre restrictions. While on the surface, Basterds is a revenge thriller and war picture, it is also a criticism of the history of the human thirst for blood. And just as Crash was able to depict people in positive and negative lights, Tarantino achieves a similar approach that becomes so ambiguous that we are no longer sure if it’s appropriate to root for the Jews in his movie!

Avatar which is more direct in its message challenges both preemptive war and retaliatory war while also firmly believing that war is an evil which inevitably affects both the attackers and defenders. Cameron’s magnum opus also touches on many of the issues plaguing the world today such as environmental preservation and the challenges of globalization.

But while I consider Avatar to be landmark I have a difficult time calling it great. It is one of the most derivative movies I have seen to date. Oddly enough, Cameron was somehow able to recycle various concepts and story-lines while also managing to tell an original story.  The high-quality of the CGI and special effects is also a testament to how far we have come and how capable we have grown to tell stories. If you look at the short films that were being made in the late nineteenth century or even at the quality of early 20th century nickelodeons, I don’t believe anyone could have guessed we would come this far to advance the medium. Will it “change the way movies are made?” No, I don’t see how. But give James Cameron credit for creating an entire world from scratch. A world rich with lots of detail and an uncompromising imagination that is reminiscent of Star Wars and The Matrix.

So I expect either Basterds or Avatar to snag Best Picture (although quite honestly I believe Inglourious Basterds rolls over the competition). These two films in many ways are the anti-anti-war films of the 1970s and 1980s as their messages are sometimes more subliminal and their films more challenging. Instead of representing propaganda, they serve a better cause of stimulating discussion and debate.  Their philosophy: war is complex because there is always something worth fighting for.

Charlie Wachtel is a Senior Writer for The Film Crusade and Founder of www.filmcrusade.com.