David Fincher Thinks There Are Only Two Kinds of Movie Seasons Now

David Fincher always speaks his mind, but maybe his new film has made him even more open. Mank is about the ins and outs of Hollywood, and when the question inevitably comes up, Fincher has been honest with the way he views the town. In fact, his new movie does most of the talking for him. 

And his words are sobering. 

"Unless you’re making a tentpole movie that has a Happy Meal component to it, no one’s interested,” Fincher tells Total Film. 

These restrictions could be why the filmmaker has chosen Netflix over other distributors and studios for his new movie. He's happy without the pressure of opening weekends and doesn't mind that Citizen Kane, the movie he's talking about, doesn't live on the service. He jokes that “it’s not particularly a smart business plan to make a love letter to another movie that’s on [rival streaming service] HBO Max... But, listen, if we only did the stuff that was smart, there’d probably only be Marvel and Star Wars and Jurassic Park movies.”

There's obviously a ton of awards chatter around Mank, but Fincher doesn't buy into that much. 

“Look, the only reason we have these kinds of conversations is because of the lack of imagination on behalf of the people who have behaviourally modified the audience’s expectations," he says. 

He went on to lament the current state of cinema, saying, "There’s really only two seasons for movies. There’s ‘spandex summer’ and there’s ‘affliction winter.' You’re making your movie for one of two seasons. And if you miss, you’ll fall into one of those other two seasons, which are nominally dumping grounds. Does that make sense?”

What do you think of this assessment? And how do you approach it as a creator? Maybe being aware of these limitations can help you find a place of your own in the industry like Fincher has.

“I’m not really just a jaded fuck,” the director says. “I’m an informed, jaded fuck.”

While I would love to see Fincher do a superhero movie, I understand why he favors stories that are more personal to him. And I hope Hollywood begins to learn a little from Netflix letting people make the stories they are passionate about, though I think the box office will always dictate their decisions. He has already trodden that territory with Alien 3, I don't expect him to go back any time soon. 

Let us know what you think in the comments.  

Source: Total Film