In Aug of 2021, I wrote a post about “The Connection Between Superhero and 80’s Hair Bands.” The premise was that, like hair bands in the 80s, where authenticity was replaced by more hair spray and copycat sounds, Superhero movies would suffer the same fate.
I postulated….
Superhero films are becoming redundant, clones of themselves, checking boxes with similar origin stories, providing another escape you’ve forgotten by the time you get a snack from your refrigerator.
What I call Films for Adults will make a comeback. Stories that take place in the real world, dealing with real problems and personal struggles. Some will push social agendas, others, corruption in corporations or politics. Some will focus on injustice, while others will show stories of light in a world of darkness. Some will play off our fears, while others will inspire joy.
But, none of the heroes will wear masks or have capes.
They’ll be like you and me. Flawed. Broken. Struggling. Hopeful. Loving. Inspired.
It appears that time has come.
Enter Sound of Freedom, a tremendous film about child trafficking (and one of the best films I’ve seen in a very long time) that expertly tells a troubling true-life hero story without sensationalism or exploitation. Made five years ago and abandoned by Disney, it found a distributor, went up against Hollywood’s best, including Indiana Jones, and won.
Made for $15 million, it’s grossed over $90 million in just two weeks. Through word of mouth and a tremendous marketing campaign, it’s making more money each week instead of making less.
I knew this time would come.
Sound of Freedom literally hits every item in my Film for Adults list.
- a story that take place in the real world
- deals with real problems and personal struggles
- explores social agendas, corruption and politics
- focuses on injustice
- shows light in a world of darkness
- plays off our fear
- inspires joy
- the hero does not wear a cape or a mask
- the protagonists are flawed, broken, struggling, hopeful, loving and inspired.
The questions is, will it create a new movement of future Films for Adults, or will it be a one-off?
I think it will be the latter. The actor/writer strike will halt production for some time because their very future existence against deep fakes, voice cloning, and AI is at stake. I don’t think that will get resolved anytime soon.
In the meantime, those costly superhero movies and series will have to pause.What cinematic experience will use this opening to shift the paradigm?
I can’t wait to find out.