Just because they make ugly, demented movies that does not mean that they themselves are ugly, demented human beings. It's tough to see behind the films they're usually associated with, but they are not savages. They are smarter than you think. (Piece of trivia: Wes Craven graduated from college with a B.A. degree in English and Psychology as well as a masters in Philosophy). Craven and Raimi (more so) want to show that they have the ability to change styles with different material, that their talent is not so one-dimensional.

Successful Results?

For Love of the Game: Raimi abandons his signature POV 'shaky-cam'. There is not a single shot of a flying baseball hurtling towards the camera. He tries to focus on character instead, and creates a neat little technical effect using screen silence, which allows us to get into Billy's mindset when he pitches. Raimi claims that he now avoids using the camera style that made him famous because he felt that he only ever used them because they looked cool. What a shame. My problem with his logic, is that by doing what he's doing, all that Raimi proves is that he too can make a styleless, invisibly cut, indistinctive motion pictures. A typical Hollywood studio movie -- why would you ever want that? So he doesn't like the motives behind his signature talents? Then instead of suppressing them, he should work on finding a way to use them so that they do carry meaning and substance. Lessons should be taken from his buddies, The Coens, who jump from genre to genre and never sacrifice their distinctive style for story.

Music of the Heart: Except for Roberta's son getting in a schoolyard fight, there are no onscreen killings, violence or mayhem of any sort. He is also faithful to this woman's true story and puts in no extra conflicts to increase the tension. Only, by telling the film straight-edged it becomes really quite boring. Something is lacking. I'm not saying he should have spiced it up by throwing in a death or two, but the story does drag.

This theory has as more going against it then it does going for it. If you ever watch The Dead Next Door and it's "making of" featurette, it will show how Raimi took a chance on director J.R. Bookwalter by funding it with the salary he was making off of Evil Dead 2. Guys like that aren't in it for the money. Instead, Raimi makes his millions by having an "executive producer" title at the end of his producing partner, Rob Tapert's campy shows Xena and Hercules. Similarly, if Wes Craven wanted to make lots of money, he'd just make a Scream 3. Oh, you mean to see that he is making Scream 3? Okay, then how about this angle? Wes Craven is always given pathetic, piddly budgets for his films and he's always trying to save the studio's money. He has even prevented bankruptcy -- A Nightmare On Elm Street's production company, New Line Cinema, is still known in the industry today as "The House That Freddy Built". Maybe he's bidding to make a big-time, Hollywood movie for once. From his vantage point, he probably deserves the chance. Similarly, Sam Raimi has yet to have a box-office hit on the big screen and by making one, it could give him more leeway to option more diverse projects.

Successful results?

For Love of the Game: How to make a big, money-making Hollywood movie? Get a big hunky movie star -- Kevin Costner, star/director of The Postman and Waterworld! Hmm... let's re-phrase that. Kevin Costner, Oscar-winner and star of Bull Durham and Field of Dreams! Have a prominent movie soundtrack to play throughout key moments of the film. Check. Have a feel-good happy ending. Check. As of 10/9/99, the film's box-office intake: $28.3m

Music of the Heart: It tried to get a big, beautiful movie star -- Madonna. Unfortunately, the deal fell through. Instead, they got Meryl Streep, probably the greatest living actress in the world right now. If Craven made this movie to bid for an Oscar, he certainly picked the right woman to carry his film (the movie is also based on an Oscar-nominated documentary called Small Wonders). Still, Meryl Streep doesn't exactly bring in a huge crowd. To consolidate for losing Madonna, they cast another rock star, Gloria Estefan. Not quite the Material Girl, but the film does boast a new song by Estefan which plays through key moments of the film...