Why are old movies so terrible?

Recently i've been watching a lot of old movies, from 1940 to 1990 (the 80s being by far the best) I gotta say they really suck bad, not because of special effects or anything, the acting is just lame, the plot is dull and boring, dialogue is crappy and the directing is just terrible.

for example yesterday I watched F.I.S.T with sylvester stallone...its a movie about some union worker or something like that, well it was super boring and at the end of the movie, the guy arrives to his home, and realizes that his wife and children are missing, the guy goes crazy and takes his pistol and start looking for them, and as soon as he gets to the staircase, 2 men shoot him, but you cant even see the guy dying, as soon as they shot, you see the man getting the shot, and then the movie stops and it fades to another scene where a truck has a sticker saying "where's johny?" then the movie ends! at first I was like "well...depressing...but I guess its because it was based on a real life story"t

turns out the movie was fictional, there was never some union worker called johny kovak...so they could have made anything, anything to fix that terrible ending, why didnt they?

and i've watched a bunch of classics, seriously its just...no challenge at all.

I watched this clint eastwood movie that tells the story of the men who escaped from alcatraz...the movie had no, how to say, action, no tense situations, as soon as the guys start the prison break, you would expect something like the guards finding out and chasing them, but nothing happened, the guys started the break and the cops didnt noticed until they escaped, then the movie ended.

a lot of other movies, where the directing is just terrible...so why are old movies so fricking bad?

are you saying that Alfred Hitchcock's movies are bad? :x

are you saying that Alfred Hitchcock's movies are bad? :x

Crazyguy105

Charlie Chaplin movies are pretty good. Modern Times is one of my favorite ones. You can't get much older than thoses.

My two favorite movies are from before 1970 so I can't say I agree with youJML897

lot of good movies in the 80s..Most of the 80s are arnold and sylvester some of my favorates hehe..Good times good times..Seriously we had a lot of good comedies in the 80s..Feris beulers day off..In the 90s we had my all time fav shawshank redemption can watch that show over and over and over..

Seven Samurai disagrees with you. Theres lots of good movies from a long time ago, watch westerns, a lot of those are brilliant.

No fancy CGI or attractive actors/actresses.

But it's all the same.....There are gems among an ocean of **** though.

but we are not discussing this here, we are discussing about old movies.lightleggy

Ah, okay.

Any other old films that you didn't like?

they're not terrible, they are just dated

but yeah, for the most part I can't help but laugh when you hear the typical "Man, they dont make 'em like they used to" comments concerning entertainment. I am sorry, but the acting, cinematography, and general plot of older movies is downright atrocious relative to new movies.

We may complain about how Hollywood is churning out movies so quick and of such poor quality, but believe me when I say we do not want to return to how things used to be.

If a movie tried to pull a "I'm Spartacus" moment like that, it'd be laughed at. It worked back then because standards were lower, but doing the equivelent of that would get the movie slapped with "corny" and "preachy" and "overacting" titles.

Seven Samurai disagrees with you. Theres lots of good movies from a long time ago, watch westerns, a lot of those are brilliant.

sailor232

ironically, a lot of westerns were based off Akira Kurosawa (guy that did Seven Samurai)

they're not terrible, they are just dated

but yeah, for the most part I can't help but laugh when you hear the typical "Man, they dont make 'em like they used to" comments concerning entertainment. I am sorry, but the acting, cinematography, and general plot of older movies is downright atrocious relative to new movies.

We may complain about how Hollywood is churning out movies so quick and of such poor quality, but believe me when I say we do not want to return to how things used to be.

If a movie tried to pull a "I'm Spartacus" moment like that, it'd be laughed at. It worked back then because standards were lower, but doing the equivelent of that would get the movie slapped with "corny" and "preachy" and "overacting" titles.

mrbojangles25

Care to list some more of the old movies you've seen? 1940's to 70's specifically?

I need to know how hard I need to laugh. Thanks.

but yeah, for the most part I can't help but laugh when you hear the typical "Man, they dont make 'em like they used to" comments concerning entertainment. I am sorry, but thecinematographyis downright atrocious relative to new movies.mrbojangles25

Really?

Care to list some more of the old movies you've seen? 1940's to 70's specifically?

I need to know how hard I need to laugh. Thanks.

TreyoftheDead

Can't say I agree with you, but it's good to see a thread that does not complain about modern entertainment sucking for a change.

[QUOTE="JML897"]My two favorite movies are from before 1970 so I can't say I agree with youmattbbpl

The Good The Bad and The Ugly and Seven Samurai.

[QUOTE="mrbojangles25"]

but yeah, for the most part I can't help but laugh when you hear the typical "Man, they dont make 'em like they used to" comments concerning entertainment. I am sorry, but thecinematographyis downright atrocious relative to new movies.sammyjenkis898

Really?

Yes, really. And the images you posted are more about pretty scenery, not about doing something with that scenery.

Care to list some more of the old movies you've seen? 1940's to 70's specifically?

I need to know how hard I need to laugh. Thanks.

Yes, really. And the images you posted are more about pretty scenery, not about doing something with that scenery.

mrbojangles25

That's because they're images. Try watching them in motion.

Inception's style is about as bland as you can get.

[QUOTE="mrbojangles25"]

Yes, really. And the images you posted are more about pretty scenery, not about doing something with that scenery.

sammyjenkis898

That's because they're images. Try watching them in motion.

Inception's style is about as bland as you can get.

Care to list some more of the old movies you've seen? 1940's to 70's specifically?

I need to know how hard I need to laugh. Thanks.

Old movies are far from terrible, as a matter of fact I'd rather watch a classic and well thought out movie rather than some movie about zombies for the umpteenth and a half time. If anything movies have gotten WORSE

[QUOTE="sammyjenkis898"]

[QUOTE="mrbojangles25"]

Yes, really. And the images you posted are more about pretty scenery, not about doing something with that scenery.

imaps3fanboy

That's because they're images. Try watching them in motion.

Inception's style is about as bland as you can get.

fair enough, but if you look at the image theyre taking a complete sterile, symmetrical room with tons of straight lines and turning it on its side. It looks so incredibly wrong, it is actually kind of pretty.

It's one thing to say that you don't enjoy them but it's another to state that they're "terrible" as if it's a fact. I can understand having opinions and different tastes than others, but I think you're being a bit pompous stating everything as if you have some sort of better judgment than the rest of the world. There are plenty of excellent older movies. It's too bad that you can't enjoy them, but that's your problem.t3hrubikscube

ya this

fair enough, but if you look at the image theyre taking a complete sterile, symmetrical room with tons of straight lines and turning it on its side. It looks so incredibly wrong, it is actually kind of pretty.

mrbojangles25

There you go.

Yes, really. And the images you posted are more about pretty scenery, not about doing something with that scenery.

mrbojangles25

You can find better images than that by doing a simple google image search for "film noir". :P

They aren't as good as today's movies in terms of acting and so on, i agree. Anyone who disagrees is clearly being too sentimental.SolidSnake35

What does this even mean!?

[QUOTE="SolidSnake35"]They aren't as good as today's movies in terms of acting and so on, i agree. Anyone who disagrees is clearly being too sentimental.TreyoftheDead

What does this even mean!?

[QUOTE="TreyoftheDead"]

[QUOTE="SolidSnake35"]They aren't as good as today's movies in terms of acting and so on, i agree. Anyone who disagrees is clearly being too sentimental.SolidSnake35

What does this even mean!?

Still not making any sense, buddy.

Most people don't hold older films up to different standards to give them a free pass if that's what you are insinuating. I'll take Peter O'Toole's performance in Lawrence of Arabia, Alec Guinness' performance in The Bridge on the River Kwai, Orson Welles' performance in Citizen Kane, Maria Falconetti's performance in The Passion of Joan of Arc, or Gloria Swanson's performance in Sunset Blvd. over most of the pathetic, overly sentimental performances I've seen in some of the modern "great movies."

Great acting existed in the 30's and it still exists today; people are just too shallow to comprehend different acting styles.

Got to disagree with the TC. A lot of my all time favorite movies are decades old.

the **** did you just say!!? :P