Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Where Have All The Grown-Up Movies Gone?

Watched True Lies the other night with Ian and I got thinking about how there really don't seem to be date movies for grown-ups anymore.  You know, the kind mom and dad left you home with a babysitter or made you go to bed while they watched in the living room.  Some action for the men, some kissy stuff for the ladies, and enough humor to make it enjoyable for everyone.

When was the last time one of those came out?

Movies for people who pay their bills and have jobs and don't live with their parents fall into two catagories: Adult-alescent action movies (i.e. anything starring Jason Statham) and chick flicks.  Girls get dragged to watch some skank like Megan Fox or Olivia Wilde tongue a dude in some vague application of "love story" and guys have to see some emasuculated toad like Ryan Gosling play video games (but then be forced into giving them up for the woman he loves)  in some vague application of masculinity.  And let's not forget some laughs from the writers/producers/caterers of Insert Judd Apatow-Type Movie Here.  Girls poop in a high clas department store!  Steve Carell is encouraged to date-rape a drunk girl!  Oh for fun!

What happened to movies for grown-up couples?  Not 35 year old adolescents playing Xbox and farting on each other and miserable housewives fantasizing that Pierce Brosnan and Hugh Grant would fight over them while singing?  And when did we, as women, start embracing the concept that we could be gross too?  What would Arlene Dahl say?

Also, sexy scenes.  Where did those go?  The striptease in True Lies is far sexier than anything Hollywood could soft-focus today.  It's a little raw and a lot clumsy and kind of romantic, which keeps it being as exploitive as a lot of similar scenes feel.  It's not Showgirls.  Jamie Lee Curtis is awkward, and that's what makes it feel real . . . and real is sexy.



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