TV is the new movie: What happened, Hollywood?

Viewpoint by Kenney Kost/editor-in-chief

The movie-going experience used to be the ultimate in entertainment with the best actors and actresses, writing and set design. It seems television has taken over the proverbial crown during the last 10 years.

In 1999, HBO premiered The Sopranos. Nobody knew much about it other than the series was a show about an organized crime family. The writing, acting, directing and cinematography were on par with anything Hollywood was putting out at the time. By the end of its run, it had compiled five Golden Globes and 21 Emmy Awards.

During this time, good movies were still being made in Hollywood. Fight Club, American Beauty, Office Space, American Pie and The Matrix all came out in 1999 and represent a nice variety of genres and creative storytelling.

Flash forward to 2013. Theaters are dominated by blockbuster action movies devoid of any complexity and character such as Superman, Iron Man 3, Pacific Rim and Thor. Even the good movies that have come out over the past couple of years are either remakes or books turned into screenplays.

While the content in theaters has been on a steady decline, cable networks have been churning out series after compelling series with top-notch writing, acting and directing. Series like AMC’s Breaking Bad and HBO’s The Wire weave complex plotlines, social commentary and great characters into gripping dramas that simply blow anything Hollywood has to offer out of the water.

To be fair, more can be done with a story and character development when everything doesn’t have to be condensed into a 90-minute to two-hour movie. A 10-to-16-episode season allows for much more complex character development, setting and plot.

That being said, the most appealing thing about these television series is they are all original ideas as opposed to the bad comic book and movie remakes flooding theaters. There is no excuse for Hollywood on this one. The originality is just not in theaters anymore.

The bottom line is great stories are being told, but not on the big screen.