Hollywood Heads in the Sand

Laura's Weekly E-Blast ^ | 3/4/2004 | Laura Ingraham

[kellynla]

Can anyone remember the last time Hollywood seemed so bummed out over a film making a boatload of money at the box-office?

The Passion is poised to make $350 million in North America alone—making it undoubtedly one of the biggest smashes of all time--and yet studio heads still don’t get it. They haven’t stopped grumbling and grousing—Dreamworks executives Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen told the New York Times that they are angry over the film. Other studio chiefs privately vowed never to work with Gibson again.

Now who’s blacklisting whom?

Entertainment honchos are busy convincing themselves that the main reason the film is doing so well is the pre-release controversy. It was all just a big marketing ploy by Mel Gibson. (And we know how Hollywood dislikes hype!)

Some of my friends who saw The Passion with me speculated that its success might inspire more religiously-oriented film projects, perhaps exploring the amazing lives of some of the saints—Peter, Paul, Luke, Matthew. But here’s where Hollywood’s anti-religious prejudice rears its ugly head: it doesn’t matter if there is a huge market out there for such films, traditional film studios don’t seem interested.

“I don’t think this will set off a rash of movies about the Bible. This is just the one that will break the rules,” speculated Variety editor Peter Bart in USA Today. Since when did Hollywood ever take that attitude? It lives off sequels, remakes, and copy-cat productions.

We are used to hearing the elites in the entertainment and media worlds complain that conservatives like President Bush are “out of touch” with the real world, they don’t identify with the lives of real people. But real people are showing up in droves to see The Passion. Real people hunger for entertainment that speaks to their souls, that confronts the consequences of sin, that takes on the new aggressive secularism. Real people are weary of having their values and beliefs derided by the Big Thinkers in the entertainment industry as backward and ignorant.

Tom Shales bemoaned the fact that at the Oscars “someone was sitting with a finger poised on a sanitizing switch,” all because of Janet Jackson’s breast. Apparently Shales thinks that the artists should have an unimpeded right to express themselves, but that the people who actually own the airwaves (you and I) should just sit still, be quiet, and take it in silence. He sees us troublemakers as “fostering a climate of suppression and fear.”

Salon.com’s Ciantra Wilson spat more of the anti-Gibson bile in her dissection of the Oscars. “I think the horrendous cash success of the Passion of the Mel was responsible for all possible fun being extracted from this year's ceremony,” she wrote. “Cranky old Oscar figured out that most of America hates sex, dancing, gay people, ethnic people, ribald or drug-related humor, and opinionated or irreverent takes on current political events….” Now that’s a woman in touch with the values of Middle America.

Mel Gibson made an important film. And its importance is not just what it shows on screen, but what it brings out in people off screen. Hollywood may not have learned much from the success of The Passion. But we’ve learned a lot about Hollywood.

[kellynla]

Laura hits another home run!

[TheSpottedOwl]

Ah yes. Hollywood experiences mass schadenfreude....

[freeangel]

C,mon, now. We all really know where hollywood heads are and it ain't in the sand.

[dirtboy]

“Cranky old Oscar figured out that most of America hates sex,

Only when it's thrown in our faces

dancing,

That's dancing? You could have fooled me

gay people,

See sex

ethnic people,

Only when they call us racists to distract from their own shortcomings

ribald or drug-related humor,

It would help if it was actually humorous

and opinionated or irreverent takes on current political events

It would help if they were factual and relevant.

What this twit is demanding that America celebrate not just their right to be amoral idiots, but to pay them handsomely for exercising that right as well.

[ClearCase_guy]

As they say, the Bible is the Greatest Story Ever Told. I'd love to see a good movie of The Book of Esther, or Ruth, or any of a number of inspiring stories.

But if Mel doesn't make them, no one will.

[lilylangtree]

H'weirdos are insulated in their own little world that they forget about the REAL world. These same H'weirdos complain, whine and deride people and their values outside of their own. The conservatives way of life are their punching bag because conservatives think pretty much the same way. However, when one of their own, a celebrity, thinks outside of the liberal leftist communist way that H'weirdos want the rest of the world to think these same style weirdos use a McCarthy approach of blackballing and blacklisting. Sheesh! The real reason for this atrocious action comes down to the bottom line regardless of excuses given by Katzenberg and Geffen, etal: MONEY! Mel's getting it and they aren't.

[lilylangtree]

H'weirdos are insulated in their own little world that they forget about the REAL world. These same H'weirdos complain, whine and deride people and their values outside of their own. The conservatives way of life are their punching bag because conservatives think pretty much the same way. However, when one of their own, a celebrity, thinks outside of the liberal leftist communist way that H'weirdos want the rest of the world to think these same style weirdos use a McCarthy approach of blackballing and blacklisting. Sheesh! The real reason for this atrocious action comes down to the bottom line regardless of excuses given by Katzenberg and Geffen, etal: MONEY! Mel's getting it and they aren't.

[lilylangtree]

H'weirdos are insulated in their own little world that they forget about the REAL world. These same H'weirdos complain, whine and deride people and their values outside of their own. The conservatives way of life are their punching bag because conservatives think pretty much the same way. However, when one of their own, a celebrity, thinks outside of the liberal leftist communist way that H'weirdos want the rest of the world to think these same style weirdos use a McCarthy approach of blackballing and blacklisting. Sheesh! The real reason for this atrocious action comes down to the bottom line regardless of excuses given by Katzenberg and Geffen, etal: MONEY! Mel's getting it and they aren't.

[LisaMalia]

Laura hits another home run!

Indeed! I love her work, and this is no exception. This one's a keeper.

[Sunshine Sister]

Well said. Thank you!

[Dr. Eckleburg]

A domestic box office of $350M usually results in an overseas box office of an additional $350M-plus.

This means Mel Gibson's movie should gross upward of one billion dollars before it's finished.

The fact that a subtitled religious movie with no well-known stars which had to beg for distribution has made this amount of cash is unprecedented.

Hollywood is having a fit.

[kellynla]

Lily, I think you've had to much to drink...you're hiccupping LOL

[Oldeconomybuyer]

bump

[syriacus]

Mel broke this rule:-- Filmakers are not allowed to present morality or spirituality in a manner that might make film people feel "guilty" about their hedonistic lifesyles.

[kellynla]

Not bad for a $25 mil initial investment...and wait til it goes DVD/VHS. Every Christian home will likely have a copy. It will become a Good Friday mandatory viewing.

[Aquinasfan]

This is actually great news. Hollywood is painting itself into a corner. Mel is going to have the Bible-based movie niche to himself. And other independent Christian movie companies might find it much easier to raise cash.

[robjna]

The Oscars are a farce. for a few years now , the winners of best actress and actor goes to the agenda of the times, not to
best performer, ergo julia roberts pedestrian performance as Erin Brokovich saluted just causes, denzel(although great actor, just not oscar winning in training day) and hale barry to prove hollywood is in touch with the black man. and this year sean penn and tim robbins being rewarded for their outspoken misguided bile on current affairs. Jeez, just stick to movies

[TheBigB]

Mel to Hollywood: Go Kerry yourselves.

[MineralMan]

"I'd love to see a good movie of The Book of Esther, or Ruth, or any of a number of inspiring stories."

Both Esther and Ruth have been the subjects of movies. Do a Google search for "Book Esther Movie" or "Book Ruth Movie" and you'll find them, both available on DVD.

[VOA]

bump