Directors hyping their movie.....has it ever worked out well ?

[matrix_ghost]

I was actually thinking about this as i read the Terminator:Salvation's BO reports.
Before the movie came out McG was constantly talking about how he thought Bale was the only one who he could see portraying Connor ,, having Jonathan Nolan rewrite the movie , having Stan Winston & ILM working on the movie , having Conrad Buff edit the movie etc. With all this talent , in the end the movie didn't meet the expectations of alot of people.
The question here is whether the movie was ovverhyped or that people went in with too high expections (partially) due to McG's talk.

This reminded me of Ghost Rider when the director ( Mark Steven Johnson) was also very vocal about the production of the movie. Look how that turned out. Hell i'm a big big matrix fan and althought the wachowski's never talk to the press , they got Joel SIlver to promote the matrix movies.


Then you have guys who have a relative low media profile and ultimately wind up making some of the best movies of late.

Chris Nolan when he made TDK.
Gore Venbinski when he made the POTC movies.
JJ ABRAMS when he made Star Trek.
Spielberg when he makes all his movies

The only director i can think of who really talks just how awesome his movie is and in 95 % of the cases it actually turns out to be awesome is ...you guessed it Michael Bay

 

[Octoberist]

I think the lowkey approach is the best way to handle it, honestly. I think McG felt like he had to sale Terminator to the geeks; and for the most part, it worked. But I think he tried way too hard and in the end - let's face it- he didn't deliver.

 

[Wesley Dodds]

Hmmm. Well you see, the movies you've cited there arent actually movies at all... At least not primarily. No, primarily they're products. Something to sell as quickly and effectively as possible to as many people as possible.
People like McG and Johnston arent directors, they're salesmen. Hired by studios to assemble something as quickly as they can.
They dont tell stories, they tick boxes.

 

[Octoberist]

I think it may hurt McG because now anytime he talks about an upcoming project, the first thing I would yell out is "Bull*****", you know?

But you're right Dodds, McG is a salesperson not an auteur. lol.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

As somebody who didn't even dislike the film I have to say that McG freakin embarrassed himself. I hate when director talk up their movies too much.

If Bay can come back from the Island, McG can come back from Salvation which will make far more money than the that mega bomb the Island.

 

[Crook]

Generally speaking, the big-talkers are the ones that have to make up for a lack of efficiency/talent. That's why they have to compensate by being great pitchers. MCG is the perfect example of this.

It was apparent he tried to win over the geek crowd with getting as many reputable people on this film as possible. And it worked, but his skills are too high on marketing and so little on filmmaking, that he doesn't belong handling anything but run-of-the-mill, simplistic, films. If at all.

 

[Octoberist]

I think he embarrassed himself with the geeks and fanboys all right. I think it's because he was so misleading, which is SOOO Hollywood.

I think, however, that he is still better than Brett Ratner.

 

[Octoberist]

Generally speaking, the big-talkers are the ones that have to make up for a lack of efficiency/talent. That's why they have to compensate by being great pitchers. MCG is the perfect example of this.

It was apparent he tried to win over the geek crowd with getting as many reputable people on this film as possible. And it worked, but his skills are too high on marketing and so little on filmmaking, that he doesn't belong handling anything but run-of-the-mill, simplistic, films. If at all.

And it's funny because after reading that chud.com article and after the Bale rant, I feel like McG is actually very passive as a filmmaker. Like he can't fully control the set when he needs to.

 

[Rishi]

...are they supposed to say it sucks?

 

[dude stannis]

Look at Grindhouse.

Tarantino talked up Death Proof.

Rodriguez stayed low key on Planet Terror.

Who won?

 

[Crook]

And it's funny because after reading that chud.com article and after the Bale rant, I feel like McG is actually very passive as a filmmaker. Like he can't fully control the set when he needs to.

Ultimately I think he lacks the creative ballsiness and control that Cameron, and many other great directors, have. It seems every facet of this production was prioritized as a means to satisfy a small population that would have torn him to shreds if they smelt any scent of blood.

It might seem like a weird thing to critique someone for trying to please the audiences, but there comes a point where a director has to stick with his vision and block out too much outside input. Too many cooks in the kitchen, with no commanding chef, is always a recipe for disaster.

...are they supposed to say it sucks?

No, but then again directors don't exactly need to go out of their way to constantly hype up the movie.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Look at Grindhouse.

Tarantino talked up Death Proof.

Rodriguez stayed low key on Planet Terror.

Who won?

Nobody, because the movie flopped.

 

[dude stannis]

Nobody, because the movie flopped.

No kidding. Quality wise?

 

[[A]]

Look at Grindhouse.

Tarantino talked up Death Proof.

Rodriguez stayed low key on Planet Terror.

Who won?

I know who lost. Me.

 

[matrix_ghost]

Nobody, because the movie flopped.

Ehm.

Deathproof and Planet Terror were released as 2 separate movies in international markets . I can't find the BO results from both movies however based on what i saw in Holland , i'd say that Planet Terror performed FAAAR better then Deathproof , audience wise

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

No kidding. Quality wise?

Both movies were okay but I admit to liking RR's more and thats saying something because I think that he is a pretty useless filmmaker.

 

[Rishi]

It's not like Death Proof was worse cause of hype. It was worse cause it was the worse movie (badass car chase though, probably top 10 if not 5)

 

[dark_b]

why dont you listen to me he he he

i need to whait 2 weeks for TS. but months ago i told you he is BS. at comiccon he was doing a ''Favreau''. or when he talked about Bloodgood's boobs. you could see in her face that she was angry.
he was pathetic.

 

[Rac]

Then you have guys who have a relative low media profile and ultimately wind up making some of the best movies of late.

Spielberg when he makes all his movies

 

[Bim]

I think the lowkey approach is the best way to handle it, honestly.

Agreed. Personally, i think McG tried too hard.

 

[Heretic]

M Knight Shyamalamadingdong embarrassed himself with the promotion for The Village.

 

[StrainedEyes]

No kidding. Quality wise?

I thought Death Proof was better then Planet Terror.

 

[Dr. Evil]

I was actually thinking about this as i read the Terminator:Salvation's BO reports.
Before the movie came out McG was constantly talking about how he thought Bale was the only one who he could see portraying Connor ,, having Jonathan Nolan rewrite the movie , having Stan Winston & ILM working on the movie , having Conrad Buff edit the movie etc. With all this talent , in the end the movie didn't meet the expectations of alot of people.
The question here is whether the movie was ovverhyped or that people went in with too high expections (partially) due to McG's talk.

This reminded me of Ghost Rider when the director ( Mark Steven Johnson) was also very vocal about the production of the movie. Look how that turned out. Hell i'm a big big matrix fan and althought the wachowski's never talk to the press , they got Joel SIlver to promote the matrix movies.


Then you have guys who have a relative low media profile and ultimately wind up making some of the best movies of late.

Chris Nolan when he made TDK.
Gore Venbinski when he made the POTC movies.
JJ ABRAMS when he made Star Trek.
Spielberg when he makes all his movies

The only director i can think of who really talks just how awesome his movie is and in 95 % of the cases it actually turns out to be awesome is ...you guessed it Michael Bay

I've only seen two interviews where JJ Abrams has promoted Star Trek: On PBS during an interview with Tavis Smiley and a syndicated show called "Made in Hollywood." Nolan was interviewed for that show.

 

[matrix_ghost]

The thing with McG on Salvation at least is that is some ways he needed to be vocal . The director is the one who calls the shots ( well unless you work for Fox ) and he/she is ultimately responsible for selecting the right performance , selecting the right VFX shot , selecting the scene.
An actor could come and deliver an Oscar winning performance but the director screws up everything , you're left with nothing.

Despite the talent attached to Terminator : Salvation ( Bale , Conrad Buff , Stand WInston & ILM) , he's the director. When this movie was first announced , just how many people were skeptical about this ? There was a sigh of relief when we heard that BAle would star as Connor , but there were still ( many) doubters .

A low key approach would've never worked . McG needed to win the confidence of the geeks and to some extent that worked when he showed the footage of the movie. HOWEVER the thing most likely backfired when he started to oversell the movie thereby creating too high expectations. Based on the reviews , i think ALOT of people were expecting this movie to be on the same level ast T1/T2 whereas the expectation for this movie should've been such that T:S should surpass T3 and also be a good movie.
Compare TDK and Batman Begins. TDK is far superior to Batman Begins however Batman Begins is better then the previous 4 Batman movies AND also is a good movie on it's own.


Jon Favreau is good example of a director who talks to his fans and the media but at the same time is able to meet the expectatins the audience expects based on what he's telling.

 

[dark_b]

Jon Favreau is good example of a director who talks to his fans and the media but at the same time is able to meet the expectatins the audience expects based on what he's telling.

i dont remember favraue talking how awesome hes movei is or good everything looked. he talked like an inteligent guy who is happy that is doing the movie.

MCG lied. yes he lied