When Bad Movies Fail Can You Really be Surprised?

The Times today ran an article on Universal execs responsible for movies that recently bombed. Of course they are now full of hand-wringing and angst. How could this happen? What went wrong? Whose going to loose their job?

I was struck by the movies mentioned in the article. No, I was not surprised that these toilet ringers were on the list. What' shocking to me is that there wasn't a single person on any of their seventy million dollar budgets with enough sense to say: Hey Mr. producer, these suckers are DOA!

What follows is my take on a few of these duds. Nope didn't see them, just reviewing the premises:

The Tale of Despereaux: Okay this may have been an okay movie and I love a great kid flick, especially the recent "Up," but really, another movie featuring a mouse/rat/rodent as the protagonist? Did someone at Universal not see Ratatouille? Does the name Mickey ring a bell to anyone?

Frost / Nixon: Obnoxious British reporter "grills" former President. Hey let's make an entire movie about a television interview! Nothing gets my blood going more than a Matt Lauer interview. Oh that they could all be two hours long! The movie was further doomed by the fact that most of the principles on whom the movie was based completely denied and discredited most of the film. What was left? A fictional television interview. Exciting!

Land of the Lost: I loved the original TV show with its campy special effects and seventh grade acting, but really, did we really need another movie with people running from dinosaurs? Did anyone finish JP III and find themselves just wanting more? And to make it a PG-13 movie too?

Public Enemies: This one just flat out bewilders me: another gangster / mob movie. How did this get made? Critically may have been a well done but really, haven't we beat this genre to death already? Folks, this horse is dead!

Funny People: Dying comic learns greater fulfillment in life. Doesn't sound too bad right? Except this is a Apatow film meaning the movie must have sex and nudity literally falling out of the theater doors and launch more F-bombs than a boatful of sailors (there were 151 and I'm not making that up) . With so much garbage, who could really feel the touchy feely stuff? Dumb!

Honestly, isn't this all further proof that the studios no new ideas? At what point do we run out of comic books and old TV shows? I want originality!

Still, I can't wait for Smurfs the Movie in 2010.