Who Framed Roger Rabbit began the brandscape blockbuster genre

Evidence

Who Framed Roger Rabbit can also be credited with starting a cycle of films we might call the brandscape blockbuster—or, if you prefer, the intellectual property management film or the metaverse movie. It contains all of the necessary components in nascent form: a world that parallels our own, heavily populated by licensed, branded characters and stories, which are explored for the viewer as if in a nostalgic travelog. Disney and Warner Bros., with the deepest of catalogs, are the main purveyors of these stories. With a mix of live action and animation (traditional, computer-generated, or both), the brandscape blockbuster often depicts two distinctive worlds, one simulated and happier, in contrast to a darker, real world. The conflict often involves a populist rebellion against a tyrannical villain who aims to homogenize the world for their benefit, an intergenerational struggle over values, or both. It is a “four-quadrant movie,” designed to appeal to all four major demographic “quadrants” as defined by ­Hollywood—men/women, over/under twenty-five—by offering action, adventure, romance, wit, nostalgia, and reflexivity. Though otherworldly and spectacular in their aural-visual representation, these films are arguably more “realistic” than any other cultural form operating today. The average American sees roughly five thousand brand names and advertisements in a single day, maybe even as many as ten thousand. With strategic licensing agreements and merchandising deals, these brandscape blockbusters seek to develop a fantasyland made in the image of the financialized marketplace, reflecting our dystopian reality back to us as a playful fantasy. It’s a dreamworld that comes with a heavy price, literally and figuratively. — Andrew deWaard, Derivative Media, 402

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines the ‘brandscape blockbuster’ formal template: parallel branded world, four-quadrant appeal, populist-vs-monopolist conflict.