Tom Cruise is still a very powerful Hollywood star whose movies make a lot of money. Through various factors, he has become one of the highest paid stars around and is still leading action blockbusters. Cruise is very well paid and has a net worth of $380 million. He has used this for some philanthropic activities. He took part in America: A Tribute to Heroes and became a founding Board Member for the Hollywood Education and Literacy Project. He has supported:
In his personal life, Tom Cruise has been married and subsequently divorced 3 times. Due to his failed relationships, involvement in the controversial Church of Scientology and various public meltdowns, Tom Cruise has also been the subject of controversy and media ridicule.
AUDIENCES: HOW?
From VHS to DVD, viewers have had access to new special features and have had more control over the DVD viewing experience. DVDs are better quality and use better technology, so in general home releases have been better and longer lasting. In my opinion, the new special features enhance the film and make the DVD more interesting. They perhaps reduce the suspension of disbelief by showing how things were done and overall make the viewing experience more interactive and interesting.
In mainstream cinema, style is definitely more important than substance. This is because the blockbusters aren't about story and are primarily entertainment based. They typically feature eye catching visuals, simple plots and plenty of enjoyable elements for the audience. Major blockbusters are marketed heavily with posters, trailers and online content. This allows the marketing to reach more people and makes the marketing more interactive, diverse and able to reflect the film and the promise of its premise better. Viewing experiences are now more individual since films can be watched in planes, cars, drive thru theatres, on handheld devices, computers and more.
AUDIENCES: WHY?
This poster is for a rom com and promises a funny and touching romance story with some well known actors. It looks like something many can relate to and it looks amusing.
There is often pressure to watch a genre, as genres have different genders linked to them through connotations. Action is linked to male, while rom coms are linked to female for example. I like going to see action films and also quieter, dramatic or less conventional movies. Action, horror, comedy, science fiction and any other genres emphasizing excitement are popular at the moment as they can be blockbusters.
THE EXORCIST (Friedkin, 1973)
The hype and controversy probably helped it to become one of the most successful horror films ever. This made everyone more curious to see it and informed them they hadn't seen stuff like it before. The clip from the film is disturbing even by today's standards and certainly partially deserved the hype. 70s audiences will have been more affected as they'd likely never seen anything like it before, or if so only a little.
FANS
Valkyrie did fine at the box office, but was affected by controversy to do with Cruise's links to Scientology and the Nazi subject matter made the film more of a risk. Fans often influence films a lot and their criticisms are frequently more powerful than those of the critics. Valkyrie didn't do as well as it might have done since fans were reacting negatively to Tom Cruise's role in Scientology.
I think fans drive the marketing since the producers are doing all they do for the fans, and the fans influence what goes into the marketing. The producers work to please the general public.
TOM CRUISE
I think the websites are mainly affectionate in tone and boost his popularity, showing that there are many fans who like him enough to make websites. There was one called Tomisnuts.com which would not present him in such a good way but most of them do not harm his image and are biased towards him. I think fans are sometimes being exploited as their demands are usually what shapes a films marketing and the producers often refer to the general public when promoting movies.
Fan behaviour is powerful enough to influence the film industry since they are the ones producers are trying to please and their reactions often affect a film's commercial success. Negative fan reaction often negatively affects a film for example.
AUDIENCES: WHERE?
The Exorcist clip
Parents: Watching it with my parents, it would likely be more awkward. The Exorcist is the kind of film I prefer to watch alone.
Nan: Watching it with my nan would be even worse.
Girlfriend: It would probably be a more jokey atmosphere and more relaxed, with a feeling of getting scared being fun.
When seeing a film, audiences may affect it. For example, watching a children's film in an audience full of young children and their families would make me feel out of place and embarrassed. Watching a more grown up film with adults feels more awkward as it is very easy to assume they are finding it a lot worse than you are. If it's a scary or emotional film, watching it alone is often more comfortable so that reactions to the film can be private. As for circumstances, certain films are suited to certain circumstances. For example, blockbusters are suited to a big screen and horror is suitable for watching with friends. Trying to watch a nasty horror film with your family would be a bad idea. Overall, circumstances do affect the enjoyment of the film and how comfortable a viewing experience it is.
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