Mike M

Works of art do not have to be esoteric to fail to get a big audience. Often, just having some art can do that. Certainly, having obvious crowd-pulling moves will get an audience (aka 'giving the audience what it wants'). Hollywood (tho' not only H.) is shameless for doing stuff to get the biggest possible audience.

Lots of rubbish does that.

Lots of art doesn't do the shameless bit, and is no less great.

And we should distinguish what is designed just as entertainment (what a lot of people want only) or merely to get the biggest possible box-office takings, from what has higher aspirations.

For example, catharsis, to move, to hint at reality, to enlighten, to express deeply, to offer a new understanding, to produce a beautiful object, as a means to development,       and other stuff.





       Ivor