Mike’s Top Ten of 1977
1977 changed moviemaking forever. This is when the blockbuster began. Technically Jaws is the grandfather, but this is the year the floodgates broke open, and the one that changed cinema forever. Ironically, this is the year that ended whatever future the auteur era of the 70s had. After this, the studios all got bought by conglomerates, and we moved toward where we are today, a cinema built on franchises and tentpoles. There are still some twists and turns along the way, but that’s what this year ultimately led to.
The big movies take a bit of the air out of the room this year, and you also start to see a bit of the changing of the guard anyway. The auteur works that defined 1971 to 1976 are all starting to look a little stale. They aren’t working as well as they used to, and you start to see a couple of big failures start to happen, which is what will ultimately (after 1980) push Hollywood away from that system and a more studio-driven format.
Still, there’s some cool stuff here. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “What do you do?” “I’m a well-to-do, retired millionaire. How ’bout you?” “Same.” (75th Anniversary)
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