Let’s face it: Hollywood has no originality nowadays. Every other movie Hollywood puts out is a sequel, an adaptation, or (God forbid) a superhero movie. Perhaps the reason why we tend to watch sequels, adaptations, and franchises is that we feel obligated to do so. I grew up on the James Bond franchise, so I will always see the next film whenever it is released. The same applies to Trekkies and Potterheads; they grew up on the franchise, so there is no stopping them from seeing new movies like "Into Darkness" or "Fantastic Beasts." I can’t blame you for wanting to see your childhood on the big screen — unless it’s "Transformers"...

Now don’t get me wrong. There have been spectacular sequels and adaptations like "Blade Runner 2049," "It," and "Spiderman: Homecoming," but I’m tired of all them. Hollywood produces all these unoriginal movies because the studios know they are all profitable. Through aggressive marketing campaigns, the unoriginal blockbusters overshadow the diamonds in the rough that are low-budget films.

You might not realize it, but some of the most profitable and memorable movies are low budget ones. Here are a few examples. 1996’s "Swingers," a film about a group of single struggling actors in Hollywood, cost $200,000 and it made back 23 times its budget. It’s also a pretty damn funny movie that immortalized the line “Vegas, baby!” 1994’s "Clerks," a film about two twentysomethings working a convenient store, was shot for about $27,000 and it made $3.2 million (roughly 118 times its initial budget). "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" cost $300,000 and it grossed 100 times its budget. In 1977, there was a movie made on a budget of $11 million, which is modest by today’s standards, and it grossed $775.4 million. The movie was called "Star Wars."

Now that you know how profitable these movies are, it’s time to take a look at what makes them original and profitable. If there is one thing that almost all low-budget movies have in common, it’s that they have a story to tell and lesson to teach. "Clerks "doesn’t need much to get its lesson across to the viewer, just dialogue. The movie has one recurring line that encapsulates the movie’s entire theme: “I’m not even supposed to be here today!” This line alone motivates the viewer to take charge of their lives if they find themselves in undesirable, dead-end circumstances. "Swingers "uses the same method with the line “You are so money and you don’t even know it,” which tells the viewers, particularly the male ones, that they have confidence and charisma; all they need to do is let go of themselves to tap into it.

The dialogue is only part of the originality, though. The story and technique are what make low-budget films original. I had never heard of the movie "Boyhood "until the 2015 Oscars, and after hearing of the concept and its production technique, I knew I had to watch it. In telling the story of growing up, the movie captures twelve years of filming in two hours. In those two hours, viewers explore the hardships of divorce, dysfunctionality, and adolescence all while reminiscing about youth and relationships. I have never seen a more original, human film in my entire life and probably never will. The film that comes closest to this one is 2016’s "Moonlight." Both took $4 million to tell a coming-of-age story, but the only difference between the two is that race and sexuality are themes in "Moonlight, "not "Boyhood." This is not to say that blockbusters have nothing to tell. "Spiderman: Homecoming" told us ever so subtly “With great power comes great responsibility,” but how many times have we heard that lesson before...? Exactly. It’s such a cliché.

Sometimes the best movies out there are the ones you’ve never heard of, and the reason why you never heard of those movies is that the movie’s quality was paramount. You know a movie is good when you hear people talking about it months after its release. You know a movie is a classic when you hear people talking about it years after its release. That being said, do you think you’re gonna be talking about "Transformers: The Last Knight" ten years down the road? To think that "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" spawned an entire franchise on $300,000, it’s only appropriate to take a break from all the big-budget blockbusters for a low-budget masterpiece.