Cinema Lounge, a film discussion group, takes place at 7:00 PM at Barnes and Noble, 555 12th St., NW in Washington, DC (near the Metro Center Metro stop). The group meets informally on the second floor in the open dining area, seated at round dining tables. You do not need to be a member of the Washington DC Film Society to attend.

Cinema Lounge is moderated by Daniel R. Vovak.

When Hollywood Risks Pay Off

On June 8, 2009, we discussed "When Hollywood risks pay off." The first comment was a throw out: "I don't think Hollywood takes risks any more." Another person added that "Studios minimize risks, which is what those guys are paid to do."

Star Wars (1977) was a risk for George Lucas because he was not a major director and he tried the genre of "space" that had not been tried in a long time. Because of it, Lucas became a (rich) genius because he took ownership points in the movie and made his fortunate because of it.

Stephen Spielberg took a risk with Duel (1971) by tackling an ambitious shooting schedule which went several days over. Remarkably, he was not fired, thus launching his career. Another risk for him was when Spielberg delayed the visual introduction of the shark in Jaws (1975). Apparently production conflict delayed the filming of the shark scenes until later than scheduled. Somehow, those conflicts inspired the script to be changed, successfully building immense tension in the film.

Mel Gibson put his entire reputation on the line with The Passion of the Christ (2004). In addition, it was even riskier because the entire film was in a foreign language. Moreover, the movie directly reached out to Evangelicals and Catholics, something no expert in Hollywood had done in decades.

Jim Carrey took a risk as an actor with The Cable Guy (1996), by shifting his traditional role as an actor. Quentin Tarantino took a risk with Pulp Fiction (1994) by putting John Travolta in a lead role. At the time, Travolta seemed like a dead star, following the collapse of the disco movement. Nowadays, anything with Lindsey Lohan appears risky because it seems she is insurable.

The latest Rocky movie was risky because it was the sixth, rejuvenating a seemingly dead franchise. Casting the blond Daniel Craig as James Bond was risky because it returned the franchise to the gritty Bond, moving him away from the suave Bond. Casting Robert Downey, Jr. in Iron Man (2008) was risky because Downey had not been a major star in a long time. Gods and Generals (2003) was a risk because it was four hours long, though it was about the same long length as Gettysburg (1993). Consequently, the movie bombed, though that isn't meant to be a pun.

Not having any broadly recognizable stars in Twilight (2008) and Slumdog Millionaire (2008) was a risk that paid off heavily. Further, it could set a trend that movies move away from highly-paid stars and over-played faces. Heaven's Gate (1980) was a risk that did not pay off. Consequently, it created a Hollywood shift away from director-controlled movies. Another bomb was Roberto Benigni's Pinocchio (2002). In 1995, Toy Story was risky because an animated film for adults had not been done in a long time. Gladiator (2000) was also within a genre that had not been attempted in a long time. In 1973, Badlands was risky because it glorified a killer.

The quote of the day was this: "Mr. Clooney, I've seen all of your films, but I don't think you've done anything great since you fought those killer tomatoes" in Return of the Killer Tomatoes (1988).