Netflix just keeps getting better at making entertainment, with the buzzy docu-series “The Making of a Murderer” dominating everybody’s holiday viewing this week. (Confession: I have awards screeners that I am ignoring as homework to binge-watch this compelling miscarriage-of-justice tale by Laura Ricciardi.)
Amazon is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to build a library of original content, and has the deepest pockets imaginable to continue that strategy.
Traditional TV networks like HBO, Showtime and CBS are scrambling to keep up by launching streaming platforms, but many of them may be late to the game. And so Wall Street is continuing to punish Hollywood for not getting ahead of this shift.
Disney CEO Bob Iger must be horribly frustrated to see his company’s stock continue to trend steadily downward since late November, despite the historic success of “Star Wars.”
Iger made a brilliant deal buying Lucasfilm, and his team executed a brilliant rollout of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” But still Wall Street seems to say that making beloved stories that drive audiences to theaters does not matter enough in the larger picture.
Which brings me to the second trend. We’ve reported that movie theaters experienced a resurgence this year. From the standpoint of numbers, this may strictly be true: The domestic box office is set to hit a record $11 billion, and attendance is back up after four years of downward movement.
But Hollywood, let’s not kid ourselves. None of us really believe that this is anything but a happy hiccup thanks to “Star Wars,” “Jurassic World” and the normal ebb and flow of business.
Make no mistake, exhibition is in serious trouble. The only thing truly rising at the box office is the average age of moviegoers. I’ve never seen so many seniors out and about than at the multiplex on a Saturday night. Other than “Star Wars,” I cannot think of when my teenage and early-20s kids made a plan to go the movies.
Domestic box office is still less than two-thirds of the global business, so that is some relief to Hollywood movie studios if not American exhibitors. But the long term trends are not encouraging. Movie-going is meant to be mass entertainment, but the masses are moving elsewhere.
I am not trying to be a doom-sayer, but I have been beating this drum for some time. The only solution is going to be smart alliances between traditional entertainment companies and the tech giants that have cast a wanton eye at the content industry: Facebook, Amazon, Snapchat (yes, like it or not) and Apple.
Recently, I heard that HBO chief Richard Plepler was out in Silicon Valley, having a private dinner to meet the local power players. That’s a smart move — few can rival Plepler at a charm offensive.
And for a few years now, Ted Sarandos at Netflix has organized a retreat in Montana for a diverse cross-section of the high and mighty, from producer Brian Grazer to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. They eat, they drink, they hike, they yoga — they bond.
It’s not a zero-sum game, but Hollywood needs to make a more active effort to court digitally minded partners. My idea? Media companies should resolve to spend more time wooing counterparts up in the Valley in 2016. (Silicon, not San Fernando.) If we work together, the declining and rising trends can dovetail and result in winning strategies for media companies both old and new.
Finished 'Making a Murderer'? 9 More Infuriating Documentaries Streaming on Netflix (Video)
Before we go any further, we have to make sure: You've seen "Making a Murderer," right? If the answer is "no," then what are you waiting for? Watch the trailer to get an idea of what all the hype is about.
"The Central Park Five" (2012): Documentarian Ken Burns examines the 1989 case of five black and Latino teenagers who were convicted of raping a white woman in Central Park, and spent between six and 13 years in prison before a serial rapist confessed. This one might also appeal to fans of HBO's "The Night Of" for its look at how the criminal justice system works... and sometimes fails.
"The True Cost" (2015): This deep dive into the fashion industry not only exposes the deadly cost of cheap clothing, it shows just how little executives at some of the most successful companies capitalizing on foreign labor care about it. Even more upsetting, though, is the uphill and seemingly hopeless battle workers in poor countries are facing for working conditions Americans take for granted.
"The Race to Nowhere" (2010): Remember what it was like to be a kid without any responsibilities? Lucky you, because this documentary exposes a sad reality that grade-school students across the country are bombarded with so much homework and pressure to prepare for college before they even hit high school that they're already as stressed out as working adults. And some of them end up taking their own lives as a result.
"Kids for Cash" (2013): Prepare to be even more disgusted with the criminal justice system, as this film details the disturbing decision of a once-celebrated judge to sentence kids to outrageously long juvenile detention sentences in exchange for money from the private company building the detention center.
"Divorce Corp." (2014): As if the criminal justice system hasn't failed enough Americans, this documentary makes family law seem downright criminal. After watching this terrifying exposé on how the big business of divorce ruins the lives of parents and children caught in the crossfire, you'll think twice about ever popping the question.
"The Farm: Life Inside Angola Prison" (1998): This doc chronicles the lives of several inmates inside the nation's largest prison. While some of them were guilty of their crime, it's heartbreaking to see one who swears he's innocent show a parole board evidence to support his claim, only to have them promptly disregard it.
"Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father" (2008): This heartbreaking film focuses on an unbelievable custody battle between a murdered man's parents and the ex-girlfriend who took their son's life, while pregnant with their grandchild. One would think this strange scenario would be an easy decision for a judge, but get ready to get angry.
"Fed Up" (2014): The tragedy Katie Couric's voiceover presents in this documentary isn't just that both the government and food industry place profit above public health, it's the realization that even those parents who are actually concerned about their children's poor diet have no idea how to eat healthy themselves.
"How to Survive a Plague" (2012): This Oscar-nominated documentary will make your blood boil when you see how the American government and members of the medical community turned their backs on homosexuals and HIV patients during the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s. Thanks to the tireless efforts of groups like ACT UP and TAG, the country has made substantial progress on the issue, but remember this battle when society inevitably finds another population to stigmatize and stand up before it's too late.
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The best documentaries are enlightening, infuriating and sometimes even frightening — ”Making a Murderer“ certainly was. But if you’ve finished all 10 episodes of the true-crime saga, check out these docs currently streaming
Before we go any further, we have to make sure: You've seen "Making a Murderer," right? If the answer is "no," then what are you waiting for? Watch the trailer to get an idea of what all the hype is about.
