The last year has been a trying one if you’re a fan of blockbuster films with great effects. We’re approaching a nadir for CGI overuse, from Marvel shitting out one terrible movie after another (with the exception of tonight’s sole MCU nominee) that are basically just shot on green screens now, to science fiction shlock festivals that only exist to rip off other established IPs and stroke the ego of Hollywood’s premiere dude-bro. Even tonight, as I’m writing this, I have just come back from seeing the latest effort in this regard, Madame Web, which sadly only continues the trend. I’ll be reviewing it tomorrow if you want details. I have… thoughts. So many thoughts.
But really, it’s all just a symptom of the true disease, which is studios wanting to maximize profit with minimal effort. Effects budgets in this country are typically only a tiny fraction of the total production, yet so many franchise films rely on them to generate any excitement. And unfortunately, in most cases you get what you pay for. Ever since the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, just about every major studio has tried to replicate that achievement through cheap knock-offs or shoehorned interconnectivity without realizing that it took time for the MCU to catch on. It had to be earned through compelling characters and story, not just throwing fake explosions all over the screen. There was a time when the effects were a truly innovative part of the process, bending the rules of reality to convey the tone and otherworldly feel of the comic inspirations.
But once the property got too big for its own good, the powers that be started cutting corners. They figured if they could make a billion dollars off a movie with a $200 million budget where $50 million was spent on effects, then they could surely make more than a billion with the same budget, but only $10 million devoted to VFX and the other $40 million spent on advertising. Elsewhere, the competition was just making even more distasteful copycats because all they saw was the bottom line that a “cinematic universe” succeeded, so why not just invent one out of whole cloth and shove it down the audience’s collective throat? This is why Sony’s Amazing Spider-Man series failed, as did the Universal “Dark Universe,” and ultimately, the DCEU. Like the Underpants Gnomes from South Park, they wanted to buy an IP, then jump straight to profit without figuring out that all-important second phase. And while Marvel has had the most staying power, it’s been clear for some time that this dead horse has been beaten to a pulp, because viewers can tell when they’re just being fed the same shit, only lazier and lazier each time. Macaroni and cheese is delicious, but if you have freshly made mac on Monday, by Friday you’re going to want to throw a box of Kraft instant out the window.
Most of the nominees in this year’s race offer a modicum of hope, in that at least three of them show what happens when you have dedicated people working on a project they believe in, even if it’s on an economical (or even microscopic) budget. The other two, not so much. Hopefully the eventual victor serves as a catalyst to get the industry going in the right direction again. Either have actual good ideas, properly paid artists who can effectively execute them, or ideally, both.
This year’s nominees for Visual Effects are… in the video below!
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There’s not much more to say on the matter, other than a sincere hope that things will get better this year. Dune: Part Two comes out in a few weeks, and in May we’ll have the Furiosa movie, which I hope will be a real high point. Mad Max: Fury Road won this award nearly a decade ago, using a brilliant mix of effects that focused much more on the practical than the digital. If that happens again, we might be alright.
My Rankings:
Are in the video.
Who do you think should win? Vote now in the poll below!
Once again, as I’ve been doing this year, if I complete an Academy shortlist, I’ll share my personal rankings for the full announced field of candidates. I know listing it here kind of defeats the purpose of directing you to the video to see the category rankings, but since when have I ever cared about defeating my own purpose?
1) Godzilla Minus One
2) Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
3) Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
4) Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3
5) Society of the Snow
6) The Creator
7) Poor Things
8) Napoleon
9) Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
10) Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire
Up next, the Blitz is off for the weekend, for writing anyway. The plan is to watch all three Shorts categories tomorrow, and hopefully Robot Dreams on Sunday to finish all viewings. I’ll have my review of Madame Web tomorrow, and on Sunday we’ll polish off a few more Independent Spirit nominees. Then on Monday we’ll get an almost instant analysis of one of the three categories I’ll be watching tomorrow while it’s still fresh in my memory. It’s Animated Short!
Join the conversation in the comments below! What type of effects do you prefer? Do you think we’ve hit rock bottom and it’ll only get better from here? What possible purpose could a hole at the base of the skull serve for robots? Let me know! And remember, you can follow me on Twitter (fuck “X”) and YouTube for even more content!
I Actually Paid To See This 
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