Do you think older films have more memorable quotes/scenes?

nyarlothothep

I was just thinking that films from the 70s/80s and a few from the 90s have a lot of scenes and lines which are unforgettable. For example films like Falling Down, Total Recall, Full Metal Jacket, Dirty Harry, Robocop and so forth have an abundance of unintentionally (I assume) hilarious yet memorable dialogue and action. Whereas perhaps films nowadays have to pander to an increased sophistication in audience tastes to the extent that such scenes are avoided unless they're engaging in homage or parody in which case the magic is lost.

krudler

I guess, a lot of it comes from watching those movies multiple times and having them stick in your memory, most action movies in the 80's were cheesy sh1te but they had a charm that modern ones don't.

Sad Professor

Is there not the nostalgia factor as well? The films you saw when you were younger always seem more memorable.

nyarlothothep

I didn't see Full Metal Jacket until I was 17, so the nostalgia factor would have weakened on that one, I have several films I prefer over it, it wouldn't be in my top favourites although it is a very good film. The drill sergeant dialogue however is classic comedy and quite imaginative in the imagery and metaphors. However if you combine the delivery with the actual content I'm not sure nostalgia comes into it, they'd have to be pretty convincing the first time before the nostalgia factor would kick in, otherwise people would forget about them.

SVG

nyarlothothep wrote: »

Do you think older films have more memorable quotes/scenes?

Only the ones you remember, the less memorable ones are forgotten.

seamus

Definitely a case that you're more susceptible to the influence of films when you're younger, so you get more immersed in them and you're more impressed by dodgy action scenes.

I remember seeing "The Rock" at 15 and thinking it was great. Saw it on telly a couple of months back. It's crap.

Nostalgia will always get the better of you and convince you that there were more original movies when you were younger and you got your money's worth. In reality there were just as many remakes and ripoffs back then as there are today.

The age thing also creeps into your memory. As a youngling, you're more likely to commit something to memory and be able to recall detailed plotlines of a movie after seeing it just once. Now I just about remember the rough story of a movie and whether I enjoyed it or not.

Kind of like it this way as you can then enjoy it more on each rewatching cos you don't remember half of what's coming up

nyarlothothep

Ah I don't know, I saw Magnum Force for the first time last night, average film but some brilliant scenes in it like when Eastwood says "a man's got to know his limitations" after blowing up a car. I saw Little Shop of Horrors 4 years ago and thought this kinda sucks, even though as a kid I watched it constantly.

I agree with much of whats being said, however I get the feeling that nowadays films don't have the same sense of fun that they used to probably because audiences are now much more critical and aware of cheesiness in film history which would have slipped under the radar in the past. At the same time, there are certain lines that are sheer genius when combined with the actor's delivery and the whole scene set up and I find this to be prominent in older films. One of the few really impressionable scenes I can recall from a relatively recent film is in the Matrix where Keanu Reeves becomes so awesome that he doesn't even have to look at Agent Smith as he spars with him near the end of the film, he just looks to the side, thinking "I am the one, wow, I'm just so brilliant I'm in awe of myself."

johnny_ultimate

The concept that older films are inherently and generally greater than newer films is an inaccurate one. Only the good is remembered, and there are as many wonderful films being produced today as there were in yester years. If it seems like there's more crap today, well that's because we're subjected to it more. Be assured there are countless buried films, which have no right to see the light of day. Generalisations like 'old > new' are hugely inaccurate (as generalisations usually are), even if many people fail to see it (and people's insistence on believing it can lead to many a headache when it comes to film discourse of any kind).

And nostalgia is indeed a cruel mistress. Sure, there are many hundreds of films dating as far back as the dawn of cinema (stuff like Voyage of the Moon) that are remarkable today. But affection can cloud judgement. Look at Star Wars from a critical perspective - which most SW fans, through no fault of their own, are unable to do - and it's shambolic in terms of writing and pacing. And I always hear people talking about how great the Predator films are, when in reality they're beyond stupid :P

al28283

nyarlothothep wrote: »

I was just thinking that films from the 70s/80s and a few from the 90s have a lot of scenes and lines which are unforgettable. For example films like Falling Down, Total Recall, Full Metal Jacket, Dirty Harry, Robocop and so forth have an abundance of unintentionally (I assume) hilarious yet memorable dialogue and action. Whereas perhaps films nowadays have to pander to an increased sophistication in audience tastes to the extent that such scenes are avoided unless they're engaging in homage or parody in which case the magic is lost.

why so serious?

nyarlothothep

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

The concept that older films are inherently and generally greater than newer films is an inaccurate one. Only the good is remembered, and there are as many wonderful films being produced today as there were in yester years. If it seems like there's more crap today, well that's because we're subjected to it more. Be assured there are countless buried films, which have no right to see the light of day. Generalisations like 'old > new' are hugely inaccurate (as generalisations usually are), even if many people fail to see it (and people's insistence on believing it can lead to many a headache when it comes to film discourse of any kind).

And nostalgia is indeed a cruel mistress. Sure, there are many hundreds of films dating as far back as the dawn of cinema (stuff like Voyage of the Moon) that are remarkable today. But affection can cloud judgement. Look at Star Wars from a critical perspective - which most SW fans, through no fault of their own, are unable to do - and it's shambolic in terms of writing and pacing. And I always hear people talking about how great the Predator films are, when in reality they're beyond stupid :P

I wasn't saying they're necessarily better, just that they had more humour/cheese/silliness which was artfully executed in addition to more quotable dialogue.