Why should audiences be fooled into watching musicals?

and Wonka and mean girls It’s safe to say that the live-action musical, which has topped the box office in recent weeks, is finally back.in pairs Evil Although the arrival of movies is just around the corner, the genre doesn’t seem to be relinquishing its dominance over movie theaters any time soon. People keep proclaiming that live-action musicals are dead, but audiences continue to flock to certain productions of the genre in droves. Of course, all those dollars Wonka and mean girls Every high-profile movie deserves a bit of attention in terms of how it reflects the future of big-screen musicals. Both of these titles (and the color purple) They hid the fact that these movies were musicals.

It’s no coincidence that trailers and TV spots for . Wonka and mean girls There were no song or dance routines. Marketers for these films have openly talked about how marketing these productions as non-musicals was a deliberate choice to attract moviegoers who were immediately hostile to musicals. The perception of these promoters is that musical films automatically scare away many potential moviegoers, so it’s best to promote these titles as just comedies or simple family films. This is a strange phenomenon, but it’s not just a phenomenon related to his two recent musical hits. Given how common it is for musical films to hide the fact that they are musical films, it has to be asked… Why should audiences be fooled into watching one of the most enduringly popular forms of spectacle-driven cinema?

mean girls

Cady Heron makes the mistake of falling in love with Aaron Samuels, the ex-boyfriend of Alpha Plastics’ Regina George, and becomes popular with the Plastics, the top girl group at her new school.

release date

January 12, 2024

director

Samantha Jayne, Arturo Perez Jr.

Many modern musical films don’t advertise themselves as such.

In December 2007, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street It was preparing for a big theatrical debut. However, in the days leading up to the release of this film, stephen sondheim and hugh wheeler A controversy arose over this recognition. Sweeney Todd Trailers and commercials concealed the fact that the film was a musical.Instead, these ads were just promoting Sweeney Todd as another weirdo Tim Burton/Johnny Depp Even though there was more bloodshed than there was in this movie. charlie and the chocolate factory. This was a strange move considering that everyone on the planet knew Sweeney Todd first and foremost as an iconic stage musical. but, It also reflected the nervousness of studio executives getting over the idea of ​​showing off the musical movie as a movie made up of people screaming their emotions at the top of their lungs.

In the years that followed, marketing musical films as non-musicals became the de facto standard for such titles.of Into the Woods In the teaser, people singing was hidden, Cat The ad only gestures towards a big musical number, while rock of ages Signs were kept to a minimum. Most infamously, Disney responded to the film’s perceived poor performance. princess and frog The 2010 movie was renamed (promoted like an old-school Disney musical) rapunzel to tangled, Created a marketing campaign that emphasized the film’s male protagonist and hid all traces of the film’s musical numbers from the public.. Hollywood will avoid promoting movies as musicals whenever possible, if they can help it.

One of the strange things about the modern-day resurgence of this phenomenon is that for a moment Hollywood marketers seemed to feel comfortable selling musicals as musicals.Immediately after that frozen It became a pop culture phenomenon in 2013. la la land Two separate first teasers hinged open and closed ryan gosling and emma stone They sing “City of Stars” and “Audition” respectively. following year, the greatest showman the final trailer for its 2019 update made no attempt to hide the fact that it’s a big, bold musical. Aladdin. However, here are the costly mistakes of 2021. west side story, Dear Evan Hansenand in the heights It seems like Hollywood has changed its tune. The industry is retreating from marketing musicals as anything other than movies filled with song and dance.. Try to find evidence of show tunes. Wonka For example, a trailer.

What makes this practice even more puzzling is why, in the modern internet age, this ruse doesn’t hold up for long.All you have to do is google for something new mean girls Adapt it so you know it’s a musical! This scam only promises that some moviegoers will be dissatisfied when they sit down to watch the final movie. Additionally, suppressing the musical elements in the marketing of these films could alienate fans of the original stage shows on which many of these productions are based. Some of the hits in Broadway musical history include: strange loop to show boatgained notoriety through its catchy and powerful songs. Why erase the very elements that place these properties on the map?

Aversion to musicals is rooted in harmful beliefs

point blank, The main reason studios avoid promoting musical films appears to be because they fear alienating a certain segment of moviegoers..whole decision tangled The marketing, which did not include a song, was to ensure that the feature would attract young boys.hide musical numbers Sweeney Todd The idea was to ensure that male horror fans who loved Burton’s other films wouldn’t avoid the film just because it featured a song.Beyond the movie, U2 talks about the Broadway show they had planned at the time. Spider-Man: Turn Off the Darkthese musicians emphasized that the production was not a musical, as they found such types of shows boring.

Musicals have a very bad reputation with the general public, and men in particular will bend over backwards to reassure everyone that they’re still “cool” if they’re participating in something that has song and dance. You have to bend over. This phenomenon has clearly influenced the way Hollywood musicals are marketed, withholding musical sensibilities in trailers and commercials to create films that focus heavily on songs, lest they alienate potential male moviegoers. There is. It’s an affront to male sensibilities, and the mere fact that a musical is perceived as being “more feminine” results in immediate condemnation.

It must also be said that the perception that musicals are “gay friendly” definitely emphasizes the reluctance to promote musical films as musicals. This awareness is so widespread that neil patrick harris He dedicated an entire satirical opening musical number at Tony’s one year to reassure people that live theater was “no longer just for gays.” Recall that as late as 2010, movie marketers would slap up phrases like “Electric cars are gay” in trailers for blockbuster comedies. It’s not hard to imagine that the studio was worried that the movie’s musical trailer might alienate straight viewers. These companies want to capitalize on the big brand names of major stage musicals; They’re careful about reminding the public of the highly marginalized voices that built many of these shows. While the queer artist has written show tunes that have brought untold wealth to corporations, countless musicals have been deeply influenced by her connections to the LGBTQIA+ community. God forbid that movie trailers featuring these show tunes come across as “a bit gay.”

This marketing technique unfortunately speaks to the lack of imagination that pervades many Hollywood adaptations of classic musicals. Major film studios, worried about not making something broadly commercial, tend to root these musicals in boring reality. Titles like 2017 beauty and the beast, Catand Dear Evan Hansen It does its best to squeeze “logic” and “realism” out of a medium that is so interesting because it avoids reality.flat mean girls The song was simply cut out of concern that it would remind audiences too much of the film’s Broadway roots. The joy of stage musicals lies in creating spectacles that would be impossible to see in real life, while often creating surprisingly appealing characters in the midst of stylized eye candy.However, American live-action musical films often reek of self-consciousness about being musicals in the first place.. This is a recurring problem that is clearly reflected in the default and disingenuous marketing approach to selling musicals.

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Is it possible that musical movies will experience a resurgence?

This marketing tactic won’t disappear anytime soon, but it should.

given that Wonka and mean girls After a marketing campaign that de-emphasizes each musical element, it would be a pretty good return for everyone involved, but I don’t see this way of selling musical films going away anytime soon. Strangely enough, There have been no reports of departures caused by avalanches. Wonka or mean girls I realized that I had been tricked into watching a musical, so I watched the screening in a frenzy.. Without such significant public backlash, word of mouth for these projects remains unaffected, making this style of marketing even more attractive to studio executives.

Still, just because a movie’s box office potential isn’t automatically ruined doesn’t mean it’s a good thing to market a musical movie in such a sneaky way. There’s nothing embarrassing about musical movies. Singing is just one of the exciting ways characters in movies can express themselves in big, bold strokes. Just because it’s not the default standard for what people think of as “typical” entertainment doesn’t mean you should erase all music numbers from your next music marketing. Wonka It comes down the pipeline. Embrace the qualities that make musicals unique and the genre so enduring.

Imagine if the final cut of the movie looked like this: sing in the rain, hedwig and the angry inchor Mamma Mia! Musical numbers were missing, as were marketing campaigns for features such as (just to name a few): Wonka. Will they still be seen and seen by a passionate fan base? For that matter, what will a Broadway show look like? Evil If it weren’t for their iconic songs, wouldn’t the movie have been made? The answer to both questions is “no.” It’s time for Hollywood marketers to stop being so self-conscious. The next time you promote your musical movie, take more cues from the trailer. la la land than the trailer of mean girls and tangled.

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