The 2010s were a whirlwind decade, with the passage of time giving rise to changes in what were previously considered cultural and societal normalities. But how did the film industry interpret these changes? Some filmmakers chose to snub societal development; nonetheless, other filmmakers embraced it.
Often, the experimental cineasts of this decade were actually the direct cause of evolutions in common belief for oft-debated topics - such as how we see ourselves and others, how we process and understand beauty, and how we experience euphoria. Today, we'll be looking at the most thought-provoking ways the world changed cinema, and cinema changed the world - for better or for worse.
The Sony Hack Highlights The Need For More Advanced Cybersecurity
Back in 2014, a plethora of data regarding film studio Sony Pictures (including confidential information about their employees, discussions between executives regarding future releases, and even video files of upcoming Sony films) leaked onto the Internet, thanks to the "Guardians of Peace", an anonymous organization of black hat hackers.
While the hack was primarily connected to political controversies - the self-proclaimed Guardians were offended by the upcoming Seth Rogen comedy The Interview, which depicts the death of a North Korean leader - it tied in even more to the general public's growing need for personal data protection, allowing them to see, many for the first time, what hacking professionals were truly capable of.
Animation Becomes More Detailed And Breathtaking Than Ever
Since the release of Pixar's Toy Story all the way back in 1995, CGI has been the backbone of animation - but I think it can be definitively said that the technology developed the most over the last decade.
Nearly every film nowadays relies on computer-generated special effects to draw the audience into the action, and animated films like Nezha, Frozen II and Into The Spider-Verse only serve to confirm just how far animation quality has come over the years - showcasing awe-inspiring and unbelievably detailed visuals that prove that animation remains an unbelievably beautiful medium to tell a story with.
The Academy Awards Begin Their Fall From Grace
The Oscars have been a cultural staple for the near-century they've been given out, but over the last decade, various controversies have hindered their growth. While, for the most part, they've avoided the accusations of bribery and mass monetization that plague many other awards shows, issues plaguing the Awards still include continued underrepresentation of minorities and the Academy's unrestrained acceptance of "Oscar bait" films.
And, yes, the Oscars are dealing with several of these issues, but ratings are still lower than ever, indicating that maybe they've missed their chance for redemption.
Netflix Ushers In The Rise of Streaming Services
It's hard to believe, but Netflix launched its groundbreaking streaming service all the way back in 2010, and, as we all know, it became an unprecedented phenomenon. While services like Hulu had been around since the late 2000s, Netflix's business model and content layout were unique, and their lucrative video-on-demand venture soon overtook their comparatively small DVD rental business, leading to many other companies launching their own streaming services.
With such a large selection of ways to watch movies and TV for consumers to choose from, it's a wonder that movie theaters didn't disintegrate into an abnormality. One of the reasons for this is that studios tried extra hard to draw in filmgoers, which led to...
Sequels, Remakes, and Reboots Taking Over Cinema
Let's face it - original concepts are just hard to come up with. Bringing new life to old hits has proved a much more reliable method for Hollywood to churn out the moneymaking flicks they require to fund their still-massive empire, and this has become particularly evident over the last decade.
Just look at all the Disney remakes we get every year, or the continuing film franchises still telling oft-told tales - some of which many want to end, but which still continue their rampant production - because continuing franchises provides studios with security compared to the risk of going with an original idea. While we had some great original films this decade, like Frozen and Inception, continuing old franchises just became the norm - and it's likely to stay that way going into the 2020s.
Superheroes Becoming Undefeatable - Especially At The Box Office
Superheroes have been a cultural staple for longer than nearly anyone can remember, but superhero films becoming worldwide hits is actually a fairly new trend. While films like The Dark Knight and Spider-Man shook up the box office back in the 00s, the real box office titans were released in the 2010s. And these weren't all Marvel or DC, either - Incredibles 2, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Split are all examples of films from the last decade that benefited from the increased attention superhero films have been getting.
The question of whether these films are actually cinema suddenly became a heated debate, but with Avengers: Endgame becoming the highest-grossing film of all time and Black Panther snagging a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars, it seems audiences are leaning towards yes.
The House of Mouse Having Their Greatest Decade Yet
Yep. While the event didn't surprise many, the scope of it did. Over the 2010s The Walt Disney Company, which was launched as an animation studio all the way back in the 1920s, had its most successful decade to date.
Here are some of the biggest milestones the corporate overlords at the House of Mouse enjoyed: they acquired Lucasfilm and the Star Wars franchise, they enjoyed continued success with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they acquired Fox and associated properties (for over $50 billion) in a landmark deal, they released 23 films that grossed a billion dollars or more, and they created their own streaming service, Disney+. What does the future hold for Disney? Well... more of the same, most likely.
The #MeToo Movement Challenging Hollywood Harassment
Harvey Weinstein was once considered to be a fairly respectable film producer - the co-founder of Miramax and the Weinstein Company, a somewhat vain but harmless cineast. All of that changed in October 2017, when long-held accusations of sexual assault against the Hollywood titan finally begin to spread, permanently ending his career. This led to a viral trend of victims of harassment and assault speaking out, many for the first time, sparking the social media hashtag "Me Too".
The trend changed a generation's understanding of truth and justice and had a broad impact on what precautions businesses took to prevent workplace harassment - and it all started in Hollywood, whether that's a good thing or not.
Hollywood Showcasing Diversity and Acceptance Like Never Before...
The real meanings of diversity and acceptance have long been debated by adept theologians and scholars, but many agree that in the end, they boil down to a golden-rule-like epithet: treat all equally. 2017's Get Out experimented with investigating the underlying causes of racism, while 2018's Won't You Be Neighbor? encouraged audiences to be kind to all.
Films like Crazy Rich Asians and Coco changed the way Western audiences looked at rich, unique cultures they may not have previously thought about - while never being disrespectful to the cultures they depicted. And many films throughout the 2010s offered brief but poignant looks at themes of universe camaraderie - working, slowly but surely, to make the world a better place.
...Even Though They Still Have A Long Way To Go
So... not everything was all fine and dandy throughout the 2010s. While diversity and acceptance in cinema became much more common, there were quite a few controversies that show not everyone in Hollywood adheres to the "golden rule" principle. Whitewashing was still an enduring problem, with films like Ghost in the Shell and Doctor Strange casting white actors in historically non-white roles. Marvel introduced their first openly gay character in Avengers: Endgame, but his appearance is a mere cameo at best.
And even in 2019, there were still films being released promoting racist and sexist stereotypes, like Loqueesha, which follows a white man who becomes a popular podcast host by impersonating a "mad black woman" - so, basically; Hollywood can definitely step up their game, and hey! a new decade is on the horizon - so hopefully they will.