Are audiences so sensitive and offended by movie content nowadays?

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The movie making business is just that, a business and so it makes financial sense to make films that appeal to the broadest audience possible.

As far as Taratino and the 'n' word goes, people get offended about racial slurs in any film. I remember reading about the Dambusters in IMDB threads years ago and most of the threads were people complaining about the name of Gibsons Dog, demanding it should be cut out of all copies of the film.

So it is not a recent thing as i read those threads several years ago. It's just others have already said, social media gives everyone a voice and it gets peoples complaints (however trivial) into the public conscious and people jump on the bandwagons and it gains momentum.
I said to my wife recently that i don't think rising sea levels are down to global warming, its down to all these delicate snowflakes melting.
But that's just it though. If the complaints are trivial, then why are they taken seriously by the film industry? How come they do not know it's trivial?



I can't think of any trivial issues with Hollywood as the Me Too movement, racism and sexism are not trivial in the slightest. But Hollywood, like others on here have said are all about making money and will do there best to push their films into a wider audience as possible.

The trivial thing i mentioned is mainly things like at the Auatralian Open Tennis a year or two ago, there was a post on instagram from a woman complaining that the womens trophy was smaller than the mens, with the hashtag #realequality. It had hundreds of likes and hundreds of replies with similar posts. I replied back asking if she knew that women got the same amount of prize money as the men despite playing a shorter format than the men. And also that the womens Wimbledon trophy is bigger than the mens.



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Yes, despite the ability to turn it off and check out something else... But no, they have to absolve their own personality defects by being pious and self-righteous, even if they don't believe it. They know where the wind blows. They covet money just like most.



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Well if these complainers are just a minority on the internet then, then why does Hollywood listen to just a minority, rather than the majority?



Because they're not always a minority, and it's hard to tell the difference. And sometimes they don't stay a minority if they make enough noise. And sometimes it's not worth the hassle or risk of a small number of people maybe getting picked up and arbitrarily amplified by a sympathetic media outlet and then the whole thing is in the periphery of the otherwise disinterested majority in a way that actually hurts the property.



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Oh okay, but what I don't understand is, why is that other movie industries, other than Hollywood are making movies that are more risky? The South Korean film industry or European ones for example. Hollywood has the most money, so wouldn't you think that the film industry with the most money would take more risks?



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
If you have all the money why risk losing some of it? What is to be gained if profit is the motivator?

If I have nothing then I'm more likely to take a risk to gain something. Even if it's just for attention because I've nothing to lose. If I already have everything, why would I risk it for maybe minimum gains or more likely losses?

Also, maybe everything Yoda already typed?



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Well I just thought that with all of Hollywood's money they could afford to lose more compared to a film industry than South Korea's or even India's, which take more risks.

But what I feel that audiences are more sensitive to movies nowadays than ever, and wonder what the movie industry did to them to make a lot of people feel this way. Even if it was a minority, and then they got other people on their side to become a majority, what did the movie industry do, that that feel they are on such thin ice with their customers? I thought maybe it was the Metoo scandal which originated in Hollywood, but if it wasn't that, why is the film industry on such thin ice with moviegoers?

I think there is a lot more too this, than being afraid of some complainers on the internet who like to hear themselves talk. There is something that the industry must of done to cause this, that goes deeper than that.



That elusive hide-and-seek cow is at it again
I doubt it's anything the industry did specifically but more likely a reflection of society and the wave of social media that loud people can use to make louder noise.

I have no idea. But I doubt it's a simple cause and effect.



I don't think I've ever watched a Shirley Temple film from start to finish, but I caught this clip and wondered how it would be viewed today.
Adorable or Racist? (or adorably racist)?




If anything, the people getting offended are the ones who rant on about things being PC every time you have a person of colour or someone who’s LGBT in a film, or always bring the discussion back so white men are the victims.

The Internet means you have a vast amount of opinion, often at extremes, and people may jump on the bandwagon or simply have more conviction in their opinion because others seem to think the same thing.

People were sensitive in the 70s and 80s- video nasties for example. Also, a TV example but on Dynasty, the gay son had to stand a certain distance away from his lover, no kissing, because some people wouldn’t have been offended.

Also, there is a difference between someone remarking that a joke hasn’t aged well and someone insisting a film or TV show should be banned because of it.
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An interesting aspect of the Shirley Temple clip - despite Shirley's singing style and some of the words she uses when singing to her black doll, the doll appears to be dressed as a wealthy society woman wearing some highend looking fashion (as opposed to having her dressed like Aunt Jemima or something like that). So I guess that's a good thing.



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Well for example, my friend say that a show like Boston Legal wouldn't be allowed to be aired today, cause of some of the jokes, even though it only ended 10 years ago.

How would the Shirley Temple click be views as racist? Is it cause one of the dolls, from what I could tell, looked to be of a different culture than hers?



Well for example, my friend say that a show like Boston Legal wouldn't be allowed to be aired today, cause of some of the jokes, even though it only ended 10 years ago.

How would the Shirley Temple click be views as racist? Is it cause one of the dolls, from what I could tell, looked to be of a different culture than hers?
They were all different cultures from hers: a German (or Dutch), a Russian, Chinese and African American presumably, and she tries to copy the accents of each in the song.

Performing accents of most other nationalities is not considered racist these days... but performing a Chinese accent is (consider Mickey Rooney's role in Breakfast at Tiffany's).

Referring to a black person as a "pickaninny" (even in doll form) is strictly taboo in modern times and would be considered racist... including if a white person inserted words like "honeychild" & "Mammy" in a song that's referencing black culture.



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Well I mean let's say you have a movie where an Asian little girl is playing with a white cowboy doll. Would that be racist? I wouldn't think so? So if not, then why is it when you see a white little girl playing with non-white dolls. My niece is white and she has a doll of a black barbie she plays with and I don't think it's racist, is it?



Well I mean let's say you have a movie where an Asian little girl is playing with a white cowboy doll. Would that be racist? I wouldn't think so? So if not, then why is it when you see a white little girl playing with non-white dolls. My niece has a doll of a black barbie she plays with and I don't think it's racist, is it?
Good question.
I don't think any of it is racist.

I don't think celebrating national, cultural or ethnic differences or simply acknowledging such is racist as long as it's not done with animosity, or with some suggestion of superiority, or the inference that different (from the local majority) is somehow inferior or bad.

But I don't make the rules. The topic is about modern audiences and, as we know, there's a current portion of our society that sees "racism" everywhere and is constantly looking to be offended by it even when it's not offensive and has no harmful intent.

The label of "Racism" or "Racist" seems to have become an accusation to hurl at others as a form of political or social aggression. It's a label everyone is afraid of being smeared with, yet one others are ready to use against those they disagree with simply as a weapon whether there is any racial component to a situation or not (and no matter whether if it is benign or not).



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Another thing audiences are being sensitive about it, is that I think one of the reasons why so many comedies lately, with women characters, haven't been that good over the last few years, is because the filmmakers are afraid to portray women as stupid, like they do with male characters in comedies. So because of that, we have comedies with female characters who are not dumb enough to be funny as a result. Has anyone else noticed this?



Another thing audiences are being sensitive about it, is that I think one of the reasons why so many comedies lately, with women characters, haven't been that good over the last few years, is because the filmmakers are afraid to portray women as stupid, like they do with male characters in comedies. So because of that, we have comedies with female characters who are not dumb enough to be funny as a result. Has anyone else noticed this?
Firstly, why do female (or indeed male) characters need to be dumb in order to be funny? There are female actresses who play dumb- Rebel Wilson scratching her groin in Cats wasn’t exactly high wit.

Besides, if you want to watch films with dumb female characters, you have plenty to choose from. Why do you think we need more?

Most comedies have ‘women characters’- if you mean, why are the female remakes of comedies not as good, partly it's just because it’s a remake. The remake of Ghostbusters wouldn’t have been much better or more respected had there been male actors in it.



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Why do female characters need to be dumb to be funny, I suppose they don't maybe it's just my personal taste, as I like comedies with stupid characters doing dumb things, as long as it's well done and funny.



Why do female characters need to be dumb to be funny, I suppose they don't maybe it's just my personal taste, as I like comedies with stupid characters doing dumb things, as long as it's well done and funny.
There are plenty of comedies where women are playing silly humorous roles. Besides, people tend to already have their favourites for those type of comedies- they’re comfort films.