I bet many people disagree initially but please read ahead. I don't believe there are fewer quality films today than any other decade before. The issue is saturation.
For decades, a handful of companies dominated the film industry including Disney, Universal, Paramount, Columbia, Warner Bros., and 20th Century Fox. Smaller companies would pop up here and there, but they were dwarfed by these.
These companies are all around today, but now throw in several smaller production companies and a multitude of streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, Apple+, and more.
According to Box Office Mojo (source), 35 movies were released in the USA in 1977 which is when "Star Wars: A New Hope" came out (Yes, I know it was just called "Star Wars" then). The industry hit 200 film releases halfway through the 1980s. The peak was 2018, right before COVID, at over 800 films. That's twenty-five times the amount in 2019 vs 1977. Even pandemic era years stayed over 300 and 400 releases.
That's called saturation.
In an industry overrun, you will have dozens of terrible films. You'll have dozens more that you disagree with politically. However, there are a plethora of high-quality films made in modern day.
Movies like "Mad Max: Fury Road", "Inception", "1917", "Django Unchained", "How to Train Your Dragon", "La La Land", "Hacksaw Ridge", "Richard Jewell", "Mission Impossible: Fallout", and "Anchorman" hit different genres, and they're all modern-day pictures. The list is extensive.
There aren't fewer quality movies, there are more sub-par movies that exist because of the high volume.
Don't watch the movies you disagree with or don't like. That seems obvious, but we do it all the time including myself although I've gotten better. Give your money and views to the good ones that still come out every year. I understand politics heavily influence the industry, but it was never pure. Let's be honest here. It's worse today, but don't kid yourselves and say Hollywood started out with outstanding morals.
Remember, there are still plenty of great movies today. Enjoy them. Don't feel like you have to jump on the trend of disliking this film era.
The "Star Wars" prequel trilogy is finally getting some love because it's no longer trendy to hate them. It's become trendy to act like James Cameron's "Titanic" isn't good. Don't fall for it. If you like the movie, enjoy it and don't care what some others think.
Movies are still an escape from the pressures of everyday life. Enjoy it even if it's only for a couple of hours.
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