The new literalism plaguing today’s movies

I have definitely noticed the same occurring in North American cinema, but I do not think this is a new phenomenon. Rather, it's just a symptom of the increased commercialization of indie cinema - commercialization requiring film for all to understand.

If one is to broaden their horizons, overseas cinema is still devoid of this literalism. European cinema, Korean cinema, and the famously show not tell Japanese cinema still produce ambiguous stories that compete for awards - just look at recent pictures in Anatomy of a Fall, Zone of Interest, Drive my Car, Decision to Leave.

For other relatively recent movies I'd add:

  > Evil Does Not Exist
  > Godland
  > The Beast
  > The Worst Person in the World
  > Misericordia
  > The Banshees of Inisherin
  > Amanda [0]
  > Afire [1]

[0] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18469872/

[1] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt26440619/