Americans and Their Movies

Of late, fewer and fewer Americans are going to see foreign films. While foreign films made up 10% of the U.S. box office in the 60s, they now make up about 0.75% of the American box office. There has been a sharp decline over the years, particularly in the last decade. Perhaps because of this great decline in attendance, fewer and fewer films are even making it into the American market. They once were the primary genre shown at art cinemas, but now even these movie theaters are showing a great decline in the screening of foreign films.

This decline has resulted in a great disparity in the exchange of culture. We are spreading the American way of life throughout the world through American produced movies, but we are rarely exposed to other cultures as a result of this lack of foreign movies.

There are numerous hypotheses about the cause of this steep decline. Some think that Americans just don't like reading subtitles. This is hard to imagine though, because Avatar had the greatest box office profits in history and great portions of it were subtitled. Other examples of successful subtitled movies include Slumdog Millionaire and Inglourious Basterds. Others say that the foreign films just aren't there- there aren't enough, and the ones that do break into the market just aren't good.

I think that the major problem is that Americans don't want to learn about other cultures and foreign films are literally too foreign for them. They seem inaccessible to such an narcissistic culture that values the English language far and above all others. We consider ourselves to be the center of the universe, after our status as the world power, so why would we need movies from anywhere else? In general, we are not very accepting of other cultures, as made obvious by our treatment of immigrants. There is a great fear of everything we consider to be "other," and I think this definitely extents to our views of foreign films. I think this is the reason that attendance has dropped so drastically.

Another reason is perhaps that we've gotten used to all the smoke and mirrors of Hollywood. Billions of dollars go into the moviemaking business with unlimited special effects and this is what often hooks many potential viewers. They want to be wowed by the newest technology, regardless of the plot line. Foreign films, on the other hand, are much lower budget and usually have a higher message. I think this is too deep for many Americans who just want to go to the movies and let the pretty pictures wash over them. Not as many people are interested in a thought provoking performance, and this is one of the great benefits of many foreign films.

Either way, no matter the reason, it is a shame that Americans are closing their minds to the great influence of foreign films. I think there is much to learn and a great deal of insight to gain from these movies.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/entertainment/20100509_Americans_are_seeing_fewer_and_fewer_foreign_films.html?viewAll=y