The Hollywood flop fest: IBD asks a pertinent question

A little background is needed here. Back when I was in college, and earning money to support my bills, I worked at a video store. That was one of the funnest jobs I've ever had. Why? Because I'm an avid movie buff. From classics to Disney; from the astounding to the asinine, I loved them all. Sure, I came across a few stinkers, but for the most part I enjoyed the ones I watched. (This experience also led to the extensive movie collection I have now -- almost enough to start up my own video store if I wanted to.)

But my days of going to the movies are limited. I work hard for the money I earn, and I'm not apt to head out to the cineplex these days. Why? Because there haven't been a lot of decent movies coming out of Hollywood these days. Marcie agrees. We're not too impressed by many of the so-called actors/actresses out there, most scripts start out decent and fail by movies' end, and the special effects -- if there are any -- are tired, rehashed, or unprofessional. (Truth be told, the last movie we saw in the theater was Serenity; yes we missed 300 on the big screen, and yes, I'm still kicking myself over that.)

Today, Investor's Business Daily has a timely piece on the antiwar films presented by Tinsel Town this holiday season (how messed up is that?), and asks if Hollywood has learned it's lesson yet, or if they're still playing the game in a numb-from-the-brain-down fashion. If they are now in the business of propaganda, then they better be prepared for less receipts at the box office::

Why doesn't Hollywood cut to the chase the next time it wants to insult the public with a new war-on-terror film and just call it "Bombs Away"? As movies depicting U.S. troops as bad guys and terrorists as sensitive, misunderstood souls continue to crank out, the industry needs to take its puny box office returns as a wake-up call from the public.

Despite top star billings, big-foot directors, the best publicity money can buy and critical acclaim, the public just isn't biting. The problem is the content.

"Redacted," gave us the Christmasy theme of Iraqi rape starring U.S. troops as rapists. It drew just $10,039 over the Thanksgiving weekend, according to BoxOfficeMojo, and $34,000 at its open.

Meanwhile "Rendition," which showed terrorists as pensive souls, bombed too. "A Mighty Heart," depicting terrorists' war on the West as "understandable," was a dud. "Syriana," portraying U.S. intelligence officers as crooks in bed with Big Oil, also fared poorly. "Lions For Lambs," a long anti-war monologue, bored people out of the Cineplex.

Critics say the lousy returns show the public is fatigued with the war. But name one film supportive of the U.S. war in Iraq, making heroes of the war's real heroes, such as our troops or even Iraq's democrats. Name one that portrays al-Qaida terrorists as the cold-blooded Islamofascist killers they really are.

The public isn't sated on good Iraq films; in reality, it's famished.

What's offered is an insult. Hollywood imagines it can educate the rubes in the heartland with its propaganda.

But the U.S. war effort is a vast enterprise that touches the lives of millions of moviegoers who know what's going on in Iraq. They're actually the experts. The public is not fooled by leftist propaganda.

What's more, good movies still make money. Disney's fun kid flick, "Enchanted," packed them in this weekend with $34.4 million in box office receipts. Not one anti-U.S. note in it.

Then there's the argument that Hollywood has gone global and anti-U.S. movies are just catering to world tastes. Really? Foreign box office sales account for only 15% of Hollywood's returns.

What's at stake is whether Hollywood really respects its audience. Unless it can shake its left-wing preachings, it's going to keep getting empty Christmas stockings from a disgusted public. Hollywood better start getting that straight.

This is the point that Hollywood doesn't seem to get. We need to remember that these are the nuanced ones; the ones that look down their nose at the "little people" and click their tongues at us when we offer up the "Why don't you do something positive or truthful on the war." I doubt Hollywood will learn it's lesson. Back in the day they had no problem showing the differences in good and evil.

Back in the day -- in Hollywood's "golden age" -- that was never a serious problem. During World War II, there were no antiwar films being shown. Washington, DC embraced Hollywood, and Hollywood did it's best to keep up the spirits of the people here in America as members of their families fought the Axis powers abroad.

But now, we're dealing with a new breed of Hollywood actors, actresses, directors, and producers. They're in the business of being pro-active politically. While they are still entitled to their opinions, all too often they speak out as thought they have experience. These people live in a fantasy world with "yes-men" surrounding them daily, and act at their beck-and-call. Gone are the days where Hollywood acts out of patriotism, love of nation, or even need of nation. Today, they are out there to ram their ideology down our throats.

Let this season serve as a reminder to Hollywood -- People go to movies to be entertained, not to be preached to. If Hollywood chooses to proselytize, then they will reap what they sow. They produce garbage to America, they'll be the ones unemployed; fired by the free market and Americans voting with their wallets.

Publius II