Mike's Corner

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I love movies. So let me ramble on for a minute about my views on today's movies. Good movies, bad movies, dramas or comedies: I love them all. My favorite movies tend to be about people who actually lived, and their accomplishments. I get more out of movies such as Ghandi, Cinderella Man, Hotel Rwanda, Apollo 13, Coach Carter or Miracle than I ever could from Lord of the Rings, Speed, or How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days. Obviously, there are the movies that cheat a little, by putting fictional characters in real settings: Titanic, Gladiator, Saving Private Ryan, etc... I've read that we are witnessing a box office slump not seen since the mid-80's. That's partly due to big screen televisions, pay-per-view and video on demand. But it's mostly the fault of the movie makers. Quit putting out crap and we'll start coming back to the theatres. While movies remain a great source of entertainment, they have gotten more and more boring or absurd over the years. Whoever signed off on Harold and Kumar go to White Castle needs to be fired...Trump style. People want to be educated while being entertained. Even Batman Begins educates you on how Bruce Wayne became Batman. Master and Commander: Far Side of the World has even been used at management seminars by some companies. My advice to movie executives: Quit treating the viewers as dumb-asses, and they will come back for your $8.00 tickets, $6.00 popcorn and $4.00 drink. I'll get off my soap box now. Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.