Movies Pre & Post 20th Century. Why The Big Change?

[Cacc]

I've always been interested in movies. Mostly because I can learn a lot from the character's actions and worldviews. But overtime, I started to gravitate towards the older generation of movies. Mostly those made from the 30s to early 90s. I noticed there are a lot of differences between the older movies and the newer ones.

Apart from the obvious difference that the older movies have men being more masculine and women being more feminine, there is something else to it. The older movies depict more of a connection and bond between characters, and the characters themselves, even villains, tend to be more likable. The characters also tend to be more thoughtful, less prone to being overly opinionated.

Newer films, apart from having feminine men and masculine women(which in itself turns me off movies), the characters tend to be more unlikable and guarded. Characters are more prone to snap in emotional outbursts. Characters emotional connection is a lot more shallow and the films are devoid of stoic badasses. I've also noticed newer films tend to be constantly on the move, which gives a sense of urgency and doesn't allow me to relax and drink in the atmosphere like older films which are more still and calm.


Not everyone likes the same thing, but the different elements in newer films have personally turned me off watching any new films to the point of not watching anything post 2005. I am strictly talking about Hollywood films here, btw. I'm sure there are still manly, unguarded films out there not from Hollywood. Sadly I just don't know any.

What do you guys think? Why the change in Film?

 

[Mike&Ikes]

I think it has a lot to do with Hollywood trying to appeal to the newer generation. I don’t know how old you are, but the teens and young adults really, really love these new movies. Everyone tells me how great some movie is, but I just laugh and know that it appeals to current society, and that they are the proponents of such.

I just got done watching The Outlaw Josey Wales with Clint Eastwood, and I realized that the characters back then were more relatable and had more depth to them. They were realistic people with struggles. Nowadays however you have movie characters that reflect the ideals and morals of western society; they aren’t realistic, and they usually aren’t people you would try and get to know in real life.

Completely agree,
-Mike

 

[Cacc]

I'm 20 Mike.

I'm a big fan of Harrison Ford and his movies. You can learn a lot from him.

 

[Ken]

Cacc,

The reason for the change of film is mostly because of the changes in society. Many people now support things like feminism, and support minorities and women getting a bigger role in society. Where movies in the past had a white, straight male lead (and some still do now), movies today are no longer limited to that. For example, two of the most successful superhero movies of the past two years, Wonder Woman and Black Panther, had a female lead and a non-white male lead respectively.

It is more socially acceptable for men to be more emotional. A majority of people no longer want women who are damsels in distress and get killed off to make the male hero angst. Instead, they want the female to save the day without the aid of a man, they want a woman to do the same things that a man could. They want minorities to be the main character of a story. They want the women to be the hero of the story. In the past (the 60's or so), every main character was white, male, and straight. Now, filmmakers are no longer limited to that, because filmmakers now are more diverse than ever. If movie companies don't appeal to the mainstream and their wants, then they lose money and go out of business.

Also, I've been meaning to see older films for a while. The majority of films I see are modern ones, made in the 2000's and the 2010's. What makes a man more masculine, and a woman more feminine? How are the characters more likable in older movies than in newer movies? How are they less prone to being opinionated? How are men feminine now and women masculine now? How are they more unlikable in newer movies? How are the emotional connections more shallow?

 

[Cacc]

Ken,

Also, I've been meaning to see older films for a while. The majority of films I see are modern ones, made in the 2000's and the 2010's. What makes a man more masculine, and a woman more feminine? How are the characters more likable in older movies than in newer movies? How are they less prone to being opinionated? How are men feminine now and women masculine now? How are they more unlikable in newer movies? How are the emotional connections more shallow?

Why not find out for yourself?

 

[Mr.Rob]

I agree with Ken, its the social climate that has changed and movies although they add to the adherence of new social values/beliefs they also reflect the emerging popular social values/beliefs so its a bit of push pull type of effect.

I love watching old movies and emulating the masculine behavior. So much to learn and take in.

Some of my personal favorites include:

1. "McClintock" - John Wayne (really badass relationship management study)
2. "12 Angry Men" - Henry Fonda
3. "The African Queen" - Humphrey Bogart
4. "Casablanca" - Humphrey Bogart
5. " To Have and Have Not" - Humphrey Bogart
6. "The Quiet Man" - John Wayne (a bit corny but cool relationship management/seduction study.. plus has some funny parts)
7. "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" - Clint Eastwood
8. "The Man With The Golden Arm" - Frank Sinatra (impeccable acting)
9. "The Hustler" - Jackie Gleason
10. "His Girl Friday" - Cary Grant (not the greatest from a masculinity standpoint but a truly funny comedy)

You guys have any old movies that you'd recommend?

-Rob

 

[Cacc]

Mr deeds goes to town - Gary Cooper (my favorite sex symbol)
Notorious - Cary Grant
To kill a mockingbird Gregory Peck (one of the greatest movies of all time)
The great escape - Steve Mcqueen and James Garner really good movie
Cool Hand Luke - Paul Newman a movie about non comformity abd rebelliousness. This movie resonates with me most

I've seen pretty much all the films by old sex symbols... 12 angry men is great. If you liked it you'd like To kill a mockinbird

Old sex symbols if anyone wants to look them up by name and pick a movie:

Gary Cooper
Harrison Ford
Sean Connery
James Garner
Cary Grant
James Dean
Steve Mcqueen
Marlon Brando
Paul Newman

 

[Seppuku]

Hey guys,

Apart from the obvious difference that the older movies have men being more masculine and women being more feminine, there is something else to it. The older movies depict more of a connection and bond between characters, and the characters themselves, even villains, tend to be more likable. The characters also tend to be more thoughtful, less prone to being overly opinionated.

Newer films, apart from having feminine men and masculine women(which in itself turns me off movies), the characters tend to be more unlikable and guarded. Characters are more prone to snap in emotional outbursts. Characters emotional connection is a lot more shallow and the films are devoid of stoic badasses. I've also noticed newer films tend to be constantly on the move, which gives a sense of urgency and doesn't allow me to relax and drink in the atmosphere like older films which are more still and calm.

A lot of these are actually pointing at societal changes. Men *were* notably more masculine 50 years ago, women *were* more feminine. Since then, women made it a mission to compete with men in the realms that were traditionally more masculine, and in the process, became more masculine. Men were taught to dial down their sexuality, and became more feminine.

Another thing is the improvement of cinematographic techniques. The things that are possible to do now, were just unthinkable 50 years ago. Since you couldn't hide lack of content with overwhelming visual effects, you had to rely on good scenarios. The stories were revolving about people, rather than breathtaking action. It was more story than show.

That being said I'm not throwing stones at new movies. There still are lots of good stuff. Avatar, Lord of the Rings, the Marvel movies, Jurassic Park franchise, the newest James Bond, all the Tarentino movies, just to name a few, I loved them all. This is where good technique actually serves a good story. A little bit out of mainstream Holliwood, check out the Jacques Villeneuve movies (Prisoners, Enemy, ...) for instance.

But we didn't need all this technique to produce awesome movies in the past. I find it sad that younger people are not more aware of them. I was once in public transportation and I overheard the 18 years old teenagers next to me, calling "Avatar" an "old movie". LOL.

So here are some of my favorite oldies (in addition to the ones already mentioned).

North by Northwest (Hitchcock)
The Birds (Hitchcock)
Psycho (Hitchcock)
Dr Strangelove (Kubrick) - absolutely awesome cold war story. In my top 10 all time movies.
The Ten Commandments
Ben Hur
Dr Zhivago
The Dirty Dozen
Where Eagles Dare
The Wages of Fear (French. Have subtitles ready. But awesome)

Seppuku

 

[Cacc]

I'd like to add The Hustler to my list. If y'all get a chance watch it. Just wow..