Please review and provide feedback for this AWA essay“The producers of the forthcoming movie 3003 will be most likely to maximize their profits if they are willing to pay Robin Good several million dollars to star in it—even though that amount is far more than any other person involved with the movie will make. After all, Robin has in the past been paid a similar amount to work in several films that were very financially successful.”Essay:
The argument states that the producers of the movie would be able to maximise their profits if they pay a sum of money that is more than any other person involved in the movie, to Robin Good. As it currently stands, the argument relies on several assumptions without any evidence and factual data to back the reasoning presented. Consequently, it has a few flaws that make the argument as a whole unsound and unconvincing.
Firstly, production of a movie has several components that a production team looks at, not just one actor who is being paid a huge sum of money. The argument states that the producers will still be able to maximise their profits if they pay Robin Good several million dollars to star in the film. However, it fails to consider other factors, for example the money paid to co-actors, travel costs, and other set related costs. Not including these other factors into consideration would not rightly justify the claim that the producers would be profitable. If a proper cost-benefit analysis was presented it could strengthen the argument.
Secondly, there is also an assumption that if they pay this huge sum to Robin Good in particular, the movie production would maximise profits. However, it fails to consider that let's say all other costs are kept under the productions’ budget, it is possible the movie doesn't perform as per their expectations, for instance due to Robin Good's sub-par performance. So making this point would be assumptious if not backed by clear evidences and factual data.
Lastly, the argument is also basing its conclusion on Robin Good's previous works where the star was paid similar sum of money and the film turned out to be successful. There is a possibility, that things might work here as well, but if something works in one scenario does not mean it can be applied, and it would surely work in another scenario. What if the storyline presented by the producers is not well-formed? What if the co-actors' performance is not up to the mark? What if Robin Good gets sick during the shoot? These factors change the situation as a whole, considering which, we cannot apply the findings from his previous works in this case.
In conclusion the argument is not convincing because of the above mentioned flawed reasoning. If the author had clearly presented factual information, a cost-benefit analysis and not linked one work of art to another without clear evidence, it could have strengthened the argument. In its current state, the argument has several flaws, is weak and unsound.