the Disney-Fox merger and film/TV production/exhibition hegemony in general

Also, like, outside of a theme park attraction and Blu-Ray sales, what's its place in popular culture? Do people still talk about Avatar a lot, or learn Navi or whatever? It may have made money but it seems to have left no cultural footprint whatsoever otherwise.

My son's introduction to avatar was the avatar ride in Disney World. I could totally see him wanting to see these movies just because of that.

its weird to realize that there was a movie as big as avatar that didnt get a sequel for over 12 years. hard to imagine that ever happening again in the current climate. thats even longer than the time between revenge of the sith and force awakens

The ride is undeniably awesome. However, the lead-in to the ride was a ten-minute video loosely recapping the plot of Avatar because who the fuck remembers what happened in Avatar.

NB, I saw Avatar for the first time earlier this year.

Have not seen avatar yet, do not think that will change in this lifetime.

I didn't think it would, either. The things we do for love.

Also, like, outside of a theme park attraction and Blu-Ray sales, what's its place in popular culture? Do people still talk about Avatar a lot, or learn Navi or whatever? It may have made money but it seems to have left no cultural footprint whatsoever otherwise.

The number of people who spent hundreds of dollars visiting the Avatar theme park in 2018 is roughly the same as the number of US viewers who watched the most recent ep of game of thrones, seems like a massive cultural footprint tbh, just not talked about on twitter as much

there were those folks who got depressed that they couldn't live on navi

oh pandora even

Avatar Land was pretty cool and has some nice environmental design but I don't see it being a huge draw for terribly long, particularly once Star Wars Land opens. Like the Navi restaurant was kind of a turdburger.

Not so. Feige has already telegraphed their intention to continue milking that particular cash cow.

ok so there is no upside

C'mon, don't pretend you aren't excited for that live-action Home on the Range remake.

I forgot the existence of a Haunted Mansion movie but my friend who would watch horrible movies and then fast forward through to show me the "highlights" showed me part of Country Bears

completely stock script, with Christopher Walken as the human foil

When clearly he should've been playing all of the bears instead.

I didn't think it would, either. The things we do for love.

Enchanted Tiki Room movie or gtfo

I also strongly want them to bring back Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, unchanged, and then make a movie about it

xxpost Oh, it just means I once took my once-strident stance against watching Avatar and threw it in the gutter like so much dishwater just because my gf asked me to, no big.

I also strongly want them to bring back Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, unchanged, and then make a movie about it

there have already been several films but Disney did not manage to steal the IP as effectively as they did with Milne

the Python / Coogan one is p dece iirc

lol I looked it up and it got dumped in NYC porn theaters at theatrical US release, then Disney picked it up for video and retitled it after their theme park ride

welp

this is otm. When I tell friends I still get Netflix DVDs through the mail they react with astonishment, as if I told them I've decided to give up electricity. This weekend somebody saw a red envelope on my coffee table, pointed to it and literally said "Oh my god, have you been saving that all this time as a memento?!"

lol otm. It's not students in front of whom I have to explain my attachment to Netfix: it's so-called adults over thirty who don't get that you can't stream every fucking thing.

hmmm there was a 2006 Wind In The Willows by a future Dr Who director, starring two future Dr Who companions and Bob Hoskins

nah, I'll be right, ta

then Disney picked it up for video and retitled it after their theme park ride

their secret of survival in a v nasty world iirc

I was more referring to a movie based on the ride, which I believe they decommissioned. It was nearly original to Disney World, and was flat cartoon images on the walls and a car that followed a twisty track through a relatively tiny building

Not a wild ride

(Wind in the Willows book is great)

Avatar was the first movie to be a huge hit in China. I believe the sequels make their money back internationally, even if they don't do so well in the US.

Christopher Robin: The Movie: The Ride: Avatar Edition

you don virtual reality goggles to experience life as a frustrated workaholic middle-aged man. your childhood hallucination, Pooh, returns to take you in a journey to the world of Avatar

in related news

NEWS: Viacom and CBS boards agree to merge, according to an executive with direct knowledge of the deal. Details to follow.

— David Folkenflik (@davidfolkenflik) August 13, 2019

Does Viacom have one good and popular current show outside of South Park and Spongebob?

i don't live in the US anymore but... those are "current" shows??

LOL

I would think the appeal is in the brands themselves and not individual pieces of content

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_assets_owned_by_Viacom

They are still coming out with new seasons! South Park is still funny! Spongebob may have jumped the shark after Hillenburg left, but I haven't really been paying attention to new 'Bobs

yeah recent SP has been good

I mean, it's just such a different era than like 10 years ago when Viacom was just dominating with Jon Stewart Daily Show and Jersey Shore

yeah. CC has some other good content (I love Corporate for example) but AFAIK the ones you cited are the obvious stalwarts

oh for the days when jersey shore ruled the tube

well this sucks

wasn’t sure if i was allowed to say anything about this yet but it’s true, all of our fox contacts were fired and we’ve been all but straight up told as an indie theater that we can no longer book fox titles (rep or smaller new releases), but congrats on the fantastic four movie https://t.co/dfY1GSmc6X

— josh lewis (@thejoshl) August 27, 2019

Curious as to how that would affect Rocky Horror screenings, although I guess most theatres still doing them own their own copies on disc or DCP.

this seems to indicate rocky horror is an exception but who knows - https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2019-08-09/will-disney-let-theaters-screen-old-fox-movies

I foresee theatrical speakeasies in our future.

Disney’s long-standing policy is to not allow first-run theaters or commercial discount cinemas to screen movies from its library, whether it’s an animated classic such as “Lady and the Tramp” or a more adult-oriented film such as “The Sixth Sense.”

I'm confused now, doesn't first-run theatres mean, well, most theatres? Wiki says "First-run theater: A theater that runs primarily mainstream film fare from the major film companies and distributors, during the initial new release period of each film." - is it usually used in contrast with big chains or something?

yes most cinemas, the only ones allowed screen films from the library will be those that only show repertory screenings

First-Run theatres that would be effected would mainly be Alamo Drafthouses, art houses that do midnight shows of stuff other than RHPS, and chain theatres that do Fathom Events satellite screenings.

So this is the rep rather than the smaller new releases, then.

disney has long kept its repertory on a super tight leash - the only non-current release of theirs i've ever seen big was a spellbinding showing of Snow White at a glorious 1920s movie palace a couple years ago. this being extended to the entire 20th century fox library is a very daunting prospect.

XP Yeah, but it's been speculated that those smaller Fox releases will be fewer and further between, as supposedly Disney has cancelled a number of risky projects and downsized departments at the studio specializing in such fare.

(my reminisce above excludes pre-1990-ish proper theatrical rereleases, including what may have been my first ever cinema experience... Song of the South)

heh, i remember seeing Song of the South as a kid at a local grocery store that was screening it (i'm sure illegally) against a back wall

forks, you're my age I think, and there was a full theatrical rerelease in 1986.