The question here is "sells well compared to what?" Not "what sells well according to this climate?"
No Country for Old Men, great, quality movie. Box office receipts are a pittance compared to Transformers. Crazy Heart, awesome film that explores the life of an old, drunk, has-been country singer that was better than anything else out in theaters at the time. It made no where near the bank that Twilight did. I can also rattle off about a dozen or so TV shows that were cancelled despite their quality because they couldn't get ratings.
As much as I hate Bay and how he holds the craftsmanship of film making by the hair, forcing it down face first into a rusty tub of water until the bubbles stop, his movies and movies like his make money. You and I may want quality in our entertainment, but the masses at large settle for shiny, polished, gilded turds.
