cormack12
Gold Member
There are probably countless examples of this, but probably the biggest examples to draw from as a starting point are Harry Potter and Star Wars. Those two should light fires.
So Chris Columbus directed the first two films (Philosopher's stone, Chamber of secrets), and I'm not sure of the specifics behind the scenes but it was after this the director changes started to creep in and we ended up with a sequence of Cuaron, Newell and Yates. All of these directors spoke when passing the torch on, but it was visibly apparent to me that ultimately there was so many shifting changes and choices, but the worst was the oneupmanship that started on the cinematography. It was as though the criticism of Columbus that they weren't dark enough was taken literally, and with each iteration they threw another filter on the lens. If it stopped there that might be enough, but then there was radical departutre from established characters, deviations from the books that made massive plot holes. While it was always a series that needed to be truncated from the source material, I felt these directors made those choices based on cheap emotional payoffs and completely ruin the big organic moments (Dumbledore's funeral etc.). Then obviously special effects and conflict was padded out. Rowling's input was pared back to allow the director's more freedom and I think they completely fucked it up. Having said that, some of the scenes in the later films are beautiful but as a series, the continuity is just ruined.
Star wars is star wars. I can write at length about that but we all know enough here about the prequels with George, and the ongoing battle of Johnson and Abrams. I just feel the director's responsibility to the audience has been superseded by ego and wanting acclaim for the direction of the movie itself, or being 'brave' by subverting viewer expectations. You could argue that the plot and background story was salvageable if (ironically) Lucas had stepped down and forced a director change, but having seen the sequels, that brings its own problems.
I feel now these creatives are more about seekign validation and being proclaimed as auteurs and are chasing that dream instead of just producing work that might attain or support that accreditation.....thoughts?
So Chris Columbus directed the first two films (Philosopher's stone, Chamber of secrets), and I'm not sure of the specifics behind the scenes but it was after this the director changes started to creep in and we ended up with a sequence of Cuaron, Newell and Yates. All of these directors spoke when passing the torch on, but it was visibly apparent to me that ultimately there was so many shifting changes and choices, but the worst was the oneupmanship that started on the cinematography. It was as though the criticism of Columbus that they weren't dark enough was taken literally, and with each iteration they threw another filter on the lens. If it stopped there that might be enough, but then there was radical departutre from established characters, deviations from the books that made massive plot holes. While it was always a series that needed to be truncated from the source material, I felt these directors made those choices based on cheap emotional payoffs and completely ruin the big organic moments (Dumbledore's funeral etc.). Then obviously special effects and conflict was padded out. Rowling's input was pared back to allow the director's more freedom and I think they completely fucked it up. Having said that, some of the scenes in the later films are beautiful but as a series, the continuity is just ruined.
Star wars is star wars. I can write at length about that but we all know enough here about the prequels with George, and the ongoing battle of Johnson and Abrams. I just feel the director's responsibility to the audience has been superseded by ego and wanting acclaim for the direction of the movie itself, or being 'brave' by subverting viewer expectations. You could argue that the plot and background story was salvageable if (ironically) Lucas had stepped down and forced a director change, but having seen the sequels, that brings its own problems.
I feel now these creatives are more about seekign validation and being proclaimed as auteurs and are chasing that dream instead of just producing work that might attain or support that accreditation.....thoughts?