How One Movie (1990's "Days of Thunder" with Tom Cruise) Killed The 1980s

[TMC]

LANGUAGE WARNING

Genre Turning Point: Film journalist Stephen Metcalf has argued that the film's wretched production excesses, and their attendant impact on the film's profits, made auteur-driven filmmaking acceptable again a decade after the notion had been discredited by the box-office failure of Heaven's Gate. United Artists' willingness to indulge Michael Cimino on that film had led to a backlash where studios favored producers like Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer who were effectively the sole creative forces behind their films, with directors merely taking orders from them. After similar excesses on the part of the producers, studios would let directors assert themselves creatively again, and it's no coincidence that Days director Tony Scott's critical reputation improved over the course of the '90s.

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation:

• 00:00 🎬 The video discusses the impact of the movie "Days of Thunder" on the 1980s American filmmaking era.
• 02:30 🎥 Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, known for producing high-concept films, played a significant role in shaping 1980s cinema.
• 05:12 📽️ The episode reflects on the decline of mid-budget, original films and the changing landscape of mainstream American cinema.
• 09:08 🎞️ The high-concept formula of movies from the 1980s is discussed, involving key elements like mentors, contests, and superior women.
• 14:09 🎵 Many of the films produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer featured frequent music montages, enhancing their appeal.
• 19:01 🎬 "Days of Thunder" experienced a chaotic production, with constant meddling, ballooning budget, and excessive partying on set.
• 25:47 ☕ The conversation briefly diverts to discussing a scripted comedy idea involving a coffee shop and the character Nobl.
• 26:17 🚗 "Days of Thunder" follows a familiar high-concept structure similar to "Top Gun," featuring a talented but cocky protagonist and a skilled rival turned friend.
• 26:30 🎬 The movie "Top Gun" had a clean setup in its first scene, establishing the protagonist as a skilled but cocky pilot.
• 27:09 🏎️ In contrast, "Days of Thunder" had a convoluted setup for its racing plot, with a retired car builder and an inexperienced driver.
• 27:50 💑 While "Top Gun" focused on a love story between Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis, the romance in "Days of Thunder" was almost an afterthought and introduced later in the movie.
• 28:17 🤣 Tom Cruise's character in "Days of Thunder" is named Cole Trickle, a name that sounds humorous.
• 28:58 🎶 "Days of Thunder" deviated from the usual formula by not featuring as many pop needle drops and montages as other similar movies like "Top Gun."
• 30:52 🎥 "Days of Thunder" focused more on the narrative, whereas other films like "Top Gun" emphasized catchy songs, powerful visuals, and romance.
• 31:19 🚗 The movie aimed to be hyper-capitalist but also wanted to be taken more seriously as a piece of art, which presented challenges.
• 32:29 🎬 The relationship between mentor and student, a recurring theme in Tony Scott's work, is a central story in "Days of Thunder."
• 34:48 📜 "Days of Thunder" faced production challenges with a changing script and multiple delays, which is still a common occurrence in modern blockbusters.
• 35:28 💰 Despite its budget and production issues, "Days of Thunder" did not perform as well as expected at the box office, leading to the end of the Simpson era in filmmaking.
• 38:00 🎬 "Days of Thunder" marked the end of the hyper-capitalist 1980s movie era, paving the way for a shift in blockbuster filmmaking in the 1990s.
• 42:53 🎶 The movie "Be Here Now" by Oasis is compared to "Days of Thunder" as both being emblematic of an era but eventually becoming excessive and losing their appeal.

[TMC]

Days Of Thunder Was Such A Mess To Produce It Killed An Era Of Cinema

The Simpson/Bruckheimer partnership was made for the 1980s, as they produced beautiful action-packed films populated by beautiful people, with perfect needle drops. They were responsible for some of the best films of the decade. With all of that success behind them, they were able to ask for, and get, whatever they wanted. Simpson allegedly blew studio money on his own beach-side gym to attract women, whom he would ply with gifts and experiences as a means of seduction.

It only took five months from the release of Days of Thunder for Paramount to kick the money-leaching partnership out of the house and tear up their five-film contract. Look, I love this film, but it was never going to be the massive success of Top Gun. There’s no denying that this is a 1980s movie, despite having come out in 1990. But it killed the type of movie that the 1980s were known for: Character-driven slick pictures with montages and overcoming adversity with natural talent were out, and this movie was the end of it all.

[Hawkee]

In sports movies we have seen movies about football tennis soccer hockey baseball and basketball but one sport that had been rarely been seen in movies was racing and when you put NASCAR racing into a movie you can tell it will be a classic sports movie of all time. With Days Of Thunder I think it showed NASCAR racing in a whole new light and when you put Tom Cruise in the role of Cole Trickle you can see why he made Days Of Thunder a hit because when if you ever watched Days Of Thunder in your life you understand that it's not just a movie about NASCAR racing it's an underdog story because when the movie begins we see Cole Trickle as the new kid on the block in NASCAR and as we get to know Cole a bit more throughout the movie we can see he has the talent to become NASCAR's biggest new star. But when Cole Trickle suffers a terrible crash in the movie and has to recover he becomes a character with a Jeremy Renner-like attitude but when he meets Nicole Kidman's character she helps Cole recover from his accident and tries to get him back on top but at the end of the movie Cole became a Comeback Kid to NASCAR racing and becoming a star again. But one of the reasons why Days Of Thunder was a slow starter at first was because people thought Tom Cruise was hoping for a smash hit after his 1988 movie Cocktail was a slow starter and many people thought another action movie and a movie about NASCAR would do him good. I own Days Of Thunder and have seen it many times and I think it's an awesome movie and I wonder if a Days Of Thunder II would be made in the future soon with Bradley Cooper as Cole Trickle's son following in his father's footsteps becoming a superstar race car driver like his father

[Dude111]

I love Tommy in Risky Business (I dont like anything newer with him)

[TMC]

I look at the history of Jerry Bruckheimer Films, noted for the many successful action spectacles the mega-producer has made for Disney and Paramount.