Don’t Boycott Trash; Champion Quality

Movie buffs love to berate others for paying to see—and therefore perpetuating—bad Hollywood movies. “Stop going to see Transformer movies,” they prophesy, “and they will disappear.” But even if that were true, it’s not the way to improve our cinematic landscape. Don’t boycott bad movies; champion good ones.

Nevermind for now the fact that no one should feel guilty for going to see bad pop. If it entertains you, no apologies necessary. The Twilight series doesn’t bother me, so long as Let the Right One In sees the light of day. It’s okay to front the cash for the junk-food flick of your choice, but we must also pay to support quality work, so that those artists can keep producing.

Standing outside Fast and Furious 12 with a sign saying “no more garbage” won’t hurt that franchise, and it certainly won’t help whatever up-and-coming filmmaker is drowning right now on Kickstarter. It’s hopeless to try and rid the cineplex of lifeless movies, and it’s facile to complain about them. Better to spend your breath recommending flicks that deserve my ten bucks.

This principle applies to every form of pop art. Bragging about not reading Stephen King does not help Richard Bausch. Hating on Katy Perry will not get more sales for Brandi Carlile. Forget boycotting trash. Champion the kind of art you want.