They are so used to these brooding comic book heroes that they can't come to terms with a man who is aggressive and, par
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Bullet to the Head
psychoanalysis86 — 13 years ago(February 13, 2013 05:04 AM)
They are so used to these brooding comic book heroes that they can't come to terms with a man who is aggressive and, partially, arrogant in his machismo. There is a pridefulness in Stallone and Co. that threatens the hipster's commonplace attitudes of self-deprecation. They see these guys and remember the times they got pushed around by jocks in high school. It turns them off. And, its no secret, the majority of young moviegoers are little hipsters who are unable to enjoy anything unless it is presented to them with a sense of smug irony. That's why The Expendables films did so well. They were marketed as "post-action films" that poked fun at themselves instead of actually portraying aggressive male dominance and pridefulness. A common insult thrown at Stallone is "I don't want to watch some old man acting tough." Well, I think this is most telling of all. Even at 66 years of age, Stallone is the alpha male to his co-stars and, certainly, to a young hipster audience. This emasculates the audience even more.
What they don't get is that we don't have to agree with the character's attitudes to enjoy the film. Stallone, in this film, is a stone age tough guy. We dont' agree with everything he says or does, but we enjoy watching him act on his aggressive tendencies. When I say "we," I don't mean those who have been severely bullied by larger children on the playground. I can understand your hesitancy. -
thefoodfather — 13 years ago(February 13, 2013 07:35 AM)
Its not just comic books though, its everything hipsters represent, from the Iphone generation to people who wear skinny jeans.
You are were spot on that the younger generation just can't get around the fact that actors like Sly and Arnie have built their careers around machismo, they see it as almost unbelievable. And its because they have been brought up on comic books where everyone needs character flaws and where nerds get the girls or the second you put on a mask, you become an instant bad ass
Guys like Sly and Co didn't need this crap, Sly was right when he said Velcro muscles killed the action genre, and it just kept on getting worse and worse. -
XSIV4C — 13 years ago(February 13, 2013 01:33 PM)
You know, I never thought of it like that. You guys are definitely on to something. I call it "the pussification of society". Look at the "leading man" in the Twilight franchise. Which leading man would have played that role back in the 70s and 80s? Sandy Duncan? Sorry if that reference is obscure but I am old. LOL!!
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Suriname86 — 12 years ago(May 25, 2013 05:46 AM)
Juiceheads were never really big with women. When you look at male icons, yeah you have your Brandos and Hudsons, but for every Hudson you also have your Oliviers, James Dean, River Phoenix, Cary Grantmen who were not known for their bodies. Women like muscles but, you've got to have a nice face to match and Arnold and Stallone were never very handsome so, they were more popular with men.
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Suriname86 — 11 years ago(January 09, 2015 07:53 AM)
Snarky remarks doesn't change the fact that muscles aren't enough to appeal to female fans. Jason has the beautiful face and charisma to further appeal to his female fanbase. Arnold and Stallone never had that.
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hoboboxerjoe — 12 years ago(August 08, 2013 03:38 AM)
What the hell do you guys know about comic book culture? I'm both a comic book geek and a boxer. Have been for a long time. More than once I've put an overrated wrestling or football jock in the dirt for trying to bully myself or a friend.
You talk as if you're prideful of bullying or picking on the weak or creating a pecking-order based on genetics. The world doesn't work like that anymore. Generalizing people to such a degree doesn't work that way anymore. Sorry.
I don't know if I'd qualify as a hipster but I'm very liberal, though I have a 9mm strapped to my hip as I type this (cross-draw/weaver stance is my pref).
My point is that you can't judge people entirely based on their favorite types of movies or if they do or don't like an actor. It's one thing to use deduction on a single person or to develop programs of deduction if you're and well trained in the field. But when you psycho-analyze an entire generation of movie-goers you're just being ridiculous. Let's be real here, okay? I don't agree with Arnold's politics or Stallone's for that matter. I'm pro-cannabis, pro-gay atheist-agnostic blah-blah-blah. Doesn't mean I can't set that aside to watch a throwback movie.
Tarantino uses 70's grindhouse to a great success and has for 20 years. Good movie-making develops fanbases of all kinds, colors and creeds. Just think about it at least. Have a good day. -
cultfilmfreaksdotcom — 13 years ago(February 13, 2013 04:24 PM)
this is an awesome post.
And My Movie Reviews
www.cultfilmfreaks.com -
XSIV4C — 13 years ago(February 13, 2013 10:36 PM)
I can't see what 3 of the posts said. They are on my ignore list. It must be over 1000 users now.
Setting aside what I said about the "pussification" of society, us old school men have to accept that the genre is done. Think about it. When i was 10 we had Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, even Sly then. When i hit my teens we had Arnold, etc. Before that there was John Wayne kicking ass but I grew up with the reruns on Saturday afternoon.
I am trying to wrap my mind around this. I can't even imagine a 10 year old today watching the sort of thing we did growing up. And teens today watch Twilight and think Hunger Games is cutting edge. We watched Death Race 2000 when we were 9, I believe, if the original was 1975. And Mad Max 1 and 2, not so much 3. At the drive in no less that our parents took us to.
I got off topic. What I meant by the genre being done is that, it doesn't matter "why" today's action flicks don't make money, it only matters that they don't. Stallone and Arnold, more so Arnold, are gonna have a tough time getting big budgets for coming films. They just aren't making their money back. It doesn't mean the movies are not good. Although The Last Stand was bad. But that was a casting problem for me. But again, irrelevant. Bullet and Last Stand did not make money. Case closed. I gave Bullet 7 out of 10 for what it was and Last Stand 5 out of 10 for what it was. -
crownklown — 12 years ago(August 21, 2013 01:35 AM)
Lol what?
Last stand while still a failure was nowhere near as big a failure as Bullet to the Head.
Last Stand grossed around 37 million versus a 45 million budget. Bullet couldn't even break 10 million and cost 55. I think stallone out of the two is in a worse position, if for no other reason Schwarzenegger can still fall back on a franchises like Terminator, that even when mediocre can bring in a decent haul. -
dakinariten — 12 years ago(October 07, 2013 02:03 PM)
Yes, Schwarzenegger can fall back on Terminator. Hmmm, what can Stallone fall back on, oh, I don't know:
Rocky
Rambo
Expendables
Stallone is far more bank-able than Arnie, though I'm not sure how/why Bullet to the Head did so badly. I really enjoyed it, and would put it in the same league as the 80's/90's action flicks - it's never going to be riveting entertainment however it does entertain, and I find very little fault with it. Contrast that with most modern films which are filled up the gills with fault after fault, and that is rather depressing. Then again, I'm a dinosaur
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jedi7 — 13 years ago(February 28, 2013 09:15 AM)
Totally agree.a great thread!!!!!
Not sure what's going on in today's societypussification as some of you put it. But I actually know some wackados that will not allow their children to watch the original Star Wars until they are 8-9 years old because it's too violent. Yes, I'm serious.too violent. My 5 and 3 years olds can quote the films. They have seen LOTR, Spiderman and Indiana Jones which they love. -
Linness_Yusof — 13 years ago(February 14, 2013 08:29 AM)
It's not that they don't want to see the film. They CAN'T watch it; its very title makes them piss their pants.
Perhaps if this film was called, I don't know, Bouqet to the Heart? Bonbons to the Hip? That doesn't even make sense. Sorry.
