Before I start I'd like to say that I enjoy movies, I've paid for a lot of them and I understand exactly what that means when I say what I'm about to say.

Does anybody else get ill sometimes when you think about what a sick amount of money a lot of people get proportionally to the rest of the country simply based on what their industry's going rate is? Or based on their talents vs. those of the working class? Does anybody honestly think that Julia Roberts is worth what she makes? Like $20 million a film? Honestly? Or Cameron Diaz? I honestly have less a problem with the Hilton sisters mooching off their parent's hard-earned cash than somebody like Ashton Kutcher, who's probably still pulling in checks from Punk'd and The Butterfly Effect or that awful digital camera commercial that a retarded monkey could have performed while shitting in its leathery palm whilst flinging its poo in every which direction.

Can you imagine if somebody like you or me performed at our place of work like Ben Affleck has in pretty much anything he's ever done? We'd be homeless assholes licking boots for pennies to try and stave off another night of food-less starvation. That retard is probably living in some mega-mansion off his Pearl Harbor paycheck. Fuck you, Michael Bay.

Why do we allow this to go on? Why do we say, "yeah, that will probably suck, but I'll spend money I've earned to see it anyway," as if poor performance deserves to be rewarded? I've recently started going to this smaller art-house theater that costs a little more but shows more well-done, smaller films that don't smack of overpaid, overwrought horrible actors, scripts and everything else. At least it doesn't feel like Tobey McGuire is destroying me from behind this way. I'm all for escapism, but why do we have to pay marginal talent to get it?

There are so many people in this world that deserve what these stupid assholes get that it makes me fucking crazy sometimes. Role reversal is really in order. Blarghinharminaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

It's just ridiculous to think about what people get paid, especially when it's work that isn't much work at all.

My dad works with so many people who voluntarily travel the globe to fight poverty and AIDs, to spread education to the less fortunate, who give time to be with people who grieve... these people are barely scraping by while Tom Cruise uses his latest Tropic Thunder paycheck to further fund Scientology or whatever fucking retarded kick he's on now.

I understand that our current construct just makes that the way it is, so in that respect I understand the situation. But it sucks all the same. Why our society isn't set up to honor those people who are really changing lives really, really baffles me sometimes.

I know money isn't the end-all-be-all for these people that are changing lives, and for that I'm thankful... and perhaps it's the fact that they have less that makes them all the more able to keep a level head. But it still doesn't help allay my anger at mediocre products getting millions and millions on the back of successful advertising.

Yup.

Supreme lols.

People are stupid. Welcome to life.

The fact is, these people have a talent, a skill, or a charisma (often all three) that are not found in 99.9% of the population. Its not like a teacher, fireman, policeman, etc where anyone can do it with the proper amount of heart and effort. All noble professions- but they dont require a talent to do any better than most. In acting/the arts there are talents that can not be duplicated.

To be able to make people want to spend their money to watch you work is a very special talent that should be paid whatever people are willing to pay.

I understand this argument within the construct of our fucked up society, because I hear it all the time in sports. It's the idea that these people deserve what they're being paid because society has dictated that the going rate for Adam Sandler is like $25 mil a film. But I'm not talking about the way it is, but rather why it should be that way in the first place.

But when you watch Don't Mess with the Zohan, are you honestly saying that in a vacuum, he's worth whatever paycheck he earned for that abortion? And again, I'm not talking the "well he's worth whatever the market pays him," because that's so far beyond the point.

it's not the system that's fucked, it's people's perceptions. if adam sandler gets shitloads of money for a crappy movie, it's because a LOT of stupid people think it's funny and go see it and then get the fuckin dvd where the extras are adam sandler farting and love it.

This is certainly a large bulk of the problem.

These are just enormous stakes for something that I'm sure a lot of people know is a bad product before it's ever finished. Adam Sandler doesn't have a "unique" skill that nobody else could do, he's just filling a role.

If you're putting up $200 million for a movie, you have to make sure it makes some money. Therefore you have to put people in the movie that are going to get lots of box office. Therefore you have to offer those people lots of money to be in your film.

It's rough, but that's what you get for wanting to make hundreds of millions off of one movie.

The thing that bothers me is that it is already so difficult to make a movie that the extra effort required to make a good movie isn't that much.

is $ really worth what we say it is?

It isnt the "market" arguement of "its worth what you can get for it".
It is simply that the people possess a talent that make other people willing to part with ANY of their money are few and far between. It really is an amazing ability to engage (positively or negatively) someone to that level.

I wont listen to what most people have to say for free, or in some cases even if you paid me. Yet David Simon produces a new TV series, id pay to see it.

And i think its insanely ridiculous to the point you're trying to make to bring up a specific person, much less in a specific role and complain how much they made for it. At the point its hindsight where as your point seems to more far reaching.

go to forgetting sarah marshall thread and talk to the problem

Prepare to be disgusted: I liked that movie.

I spoke with a Hollywood "insider" on a plane flight out of LAX years ago and he commented that anyone making a living as an actor in the film business is equivalent to hitting the lottery. I don't mind a talented actor like Daniel Day Lewis making millions per movie, his talent is deserving of a big payday. What bothers me is a guy like Adam Sandler, who basically plays the same character in every movie, has made countless millions by appealing to the lowest common denominator with his frat boy comedies, and by comedies I'm speaking in the classification sense only.

Yeah I kinda did too, but I never would have paid to see it.

Sandler at least stepped out of his comfort zone and had a memorable role in Punch Drunk Love.

Look, we all agree that teachers and any other public servants are criminally underpaid. But....

Let's go back to the first post and the term escapism. I'm sorry, but I find Sandler's films funny (I haven't seen Zohan but the more it is explained to me the more I want to. The hummus with everything, having sex with everyone, etc..) I like most Will Ferrell movies. I believe that nominates me for the "lowest common denominator/frat boy" crowd.

I have big economic problems, like anyone else, and if I enjoy a fart joke now and then, so what? Do I agree that they should be paid what they get for that? No. Do they make me laugh and make me forget that I'm too scared to look at my 401K, for at least a few seconds? Yes. I realize alot of posters here regard these movies as trash or whatever, but I consider myself an intelligent person who has a crass sense of humor and I'm guilty of supporting this shit.

Unfortunately, people like me have a demand for it. The fact that Sandler makes $25 million a picture is ridiculous, but we could go to the N&D forum and talk about what CEOs make and golden parachutes and such. Not so funny. It's ridiculous, but at least I know where my money is going.