[quote=“Col. Crazy Kenneth”]
I give you a better example: Transformers 2, like it or not, was one of my greatest cinema experiences of recent times, and it was not about telling a story, but mostly about kick ass visual/audio experience. And they used 10 tons of CGI for that. Michael Bay is not the enemy of cinema today. The real enemys are those who still try to convice us that movies should primarly be about story. Next thing they tell us videogames should be about story as well.[/quote]
In the field of game studies, there is to this day ongoing debate between the ludologists and the narratologists. The ludologists believe that videogames should be studied and understood in a way separate to other temporal arts of narrative storytelling, based on the rules of a game and on gameplay. The narratologists believe that games should be considered a form of narrative and studied using the existing theories of narrative.
So, yeah, a lot of respected scholars do maintain that videogames are about story. They consider it a form of dramatic storytelling with the gamer interacting with the drama.
On the subject of film, I have never subscribed to the belief that there is such a thing as style over substance. I maintain that the visual aspect of film is unique in its temporal way and therefore important to the stand-alone identity of cinema. I do, however, believe that film is primarily a storytelling medium and style should serve some purpose, whether it be story or in the case of the avant-garde, thematic vision or something similar.
The truth is that people love stories, there will always be room for storytelling among humans. Films follow in the footsteps of the stage and of literature, expanding on a fine tradition of storytelling. Not even painting is about hollow extravagance. There’s a meaning or story behind good art that elevates it. At the end of the day, flashy robots and explosions aren’t going to hold up if there’s nothing behind it. The ability to resonate strongly with an audience is something that is relished in cinema and is something that will forever be out of the reach of Mr. Bay.