Entertainment Industry

Entertainment Industry

The movie industry is sometimes referred to as the entertainment industry, together with video games, music, spectacles and other forms of amusement. Movies have different paths. Public exhibition in theatres is the outcome for some, straight to television or DVDs – for others. Indirect profits are also being made with such franchises as wellknown in the past Planet Hollywood, the theme restaurant chain jointly owned by Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Demi Moore.

The science fiction genre main players would have to be the theatrical series Terminator, RoboCop, Star Trek, Transformers, and X-Men with Hugh Jack man as Wolverine. Avatar has captivated many a mind with its flying mountains, blue aliens and 3D effects. Fantasy movies include The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Chronicles of Narnia, Harry Potter movies and Stardurst, where the beautiful blonde blue-eyed Michelle Pfeiffer plays ancient witch Lamia.

Many animated works display magic, medieval décor as well as paranormal activity. Walt Disney, after whom the first animation studio was named, has its own worldwide known characters: Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald and Daisy Duck, Pluto, Goofy, etc. While the animated series from those days are rarely viewed today outside collector circles, the Disneyland parks are there to remind you of the Disney Miracle. A primary destination for children, there is a Disneyland in Europe (Paris, France) and in North America (US, California) that recreate the many memorable characters of Walt Disney’s productions (The Little Mermaid, Bambi, The Lion King, Aladdin, Pocahontas).

New York Police Department. Photo by Elena.

Warner Bros West Coast Studios were founded in 1918. Movies evolved dramatically (no pun intended) from being black and white and silent, with some deficiencies in frames that made actors look as if they moved too fast, to today’s packed with special effects, loud and colourful cinematographical works.

Some of the classic Hollywood fundamentals were Casa Blanca (Ingrid Bergman, Humphrey Bogart), Gilda (Rita Hayworth) and Gone with the Wind (Vivien Leigh). Classic Italian movies are Dolce Vita with Marcello Mastroianni, The Hunchback of Notre Dame with ravishing Gina Lollobrigida as Esmeralda and Life is Beautiful with distinguished Ornella Mutti.

By the way, Montreal has many great cinemas. Back in the day, there used to be a cinema on Sainte-Catherine, right at the watch store next to present day Guido & Angelina restaurant, where you could see a movie for only $2. The only catch was that it came out 6 months too late, but hey, Europe and North America usually have an approximate 6 moths of filmographical jetlag anyways…