Movies from the Heart—It’s a Wrap

Wow. I’ve been talking about movies from the heart for over a year now… can hardly believe it.

So why? Why talk about this genre for SO long?

Easy. It’s universal. Love makes the world go ‘round… love is in the air… love, love me do… stories from the heart touch us, remind us of what it means to be close to another person, to care about someone, to get outside of yourself and give something to someone else.

There’s just something about stories that touch our emotions that—in my mind—makes them the most important stories. They’re BIG stories, with universal truths and appeal. But too often Hollywood sees them as small stories and dismisses them, choosing instead to make another superhero film.

I’d like to think it’s just a phase, but I’m doubtful. Look at what’s happening in movies today. Movies are getting made that have ties to merchandising—that’s the direction the studios are going. From Transformers to Lord of the Rings to Barbie, so much of film today is about selling products to movie consumers.

Let’s take Lord of the Rings. The three films in the trilogy were made for about $281 million—but they grossed over $4 billion. Wow. An amazing profit, right, and one the studio should be over the moon about.

But guess what? The studio made much more on the merchandise sales that the film generated. From action figures to Lego kits… there’s SO much Lord of the Rings merchandise that the film generated. But surely, you might say, merchandise couldn’t have made more than the actual film? Well, you’d be wrong about that.

Depending on which financial analyst you believe, as I write this in early 2025, merchandising sales for the Lord of the Rings trilogy totals between $10 and $15 billion.

So what does that mean? That means we’re going to see more and more films where the goal is to sell merchandise. Does a small, heartwarming film generate such income for the studios? Certainly not—so fewer of those films will get made.

Products are driving art.

Makes me want to cry.

But I have to believe that the small stories about people will never die out, that the stories that come from an emotional center will never go out of style.

So that’s why I’ve spent so much time talking about romantic, moving, heartwarming films—I want to keep them alive. And I hope you do too.

Next week I’m switching to dramas and we’re going to look at some great dramas—from classic to contemporary… many are small stories, some are broader, but they have one thing in common: they’re human and they’re thought-provoking. So let’s shift to the dramatic side of film next week—hope to see you there!!

But I have to believe that the small stories about people will never die out, that the stories that come from an emotional center will never go out of style.

So that’s why I’ve spent so much time talking about romantic, moving, heartwarming films—I want to keep them alive. And I hope you do too.

Next week I’m switching to dramas and we’re going to look at some great dramas—from classic to contemporary… many are small stories, some are broader, but they have one thing in common: they’re human and they’re thought-provoking. So let’s shift to the dramatic side of film next week—hope to see you there!!

Copyright © Diane Lake

30Mar25

Email Diane a question to Diane@DianeLake.com