Monday Morning Quarterback Part II
By BOP Staff
April 7, 2009
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Kim Hollis: Given what has been happening at the box office in 2009, including Fast & Furious, should we be poised for the biggest summer ever?
Tim Briody: Barring a miraculous turnaround in the economy, I think so. This year is demonstrating more than any other time that a trip to the theater is affordable escapism.
Brandon Scott: We've certainly got a nice thing going so far, but remember it's not all blow me away box office results. Didn't Watchmen flame out at just over $100 million, which meant it was seen as a big disappointment? We are on a nice pace, but I am not ready to say this will be the biggest summer ever just yet. It's too early.
Josh Spiegel: The possibility of a massive summer is here, but I'd also be a bit wary here, not only because of the lack of consistency in amazing results, but because some of the tentpole films have just as much a chance to fail (Wolverine having a major leak a month early; Star Trek never being a frequently successful franchise; Terminator not having Schwarzenegger, and on). Still, if all of the movies perform as well as a Paul Blart or Taken, in terms of outperforming expectations, we could be looking at history.
Kim Hollis: I am cautiously optimistic. I think that the environment is certainly right for the summer box office season to be explosive. The pieces are all in place, with May alone giving us Wolverine, Star Trek, Angels & Demons, Night at the Museum, Terminator and Up. Other almost certain biggies are Transformers, Ice Age, Harry Potter and Funny People, with surprises that could arrive in the form of The Hangover, Drag Me to Hell, Bruno, I Love You Beth Cooper and Orphan. My only concern is that May is a bit top-heavy and could result in a bit of overkill, leaving audiences a little weary of going out to every big thing.
If she's not boringly pining for a vampire with ludicrous hair, we're not interested.
Kim Hollis: Advertureland, Kristen Stewart's first post-Twilight movie, opened to $6 million. Are you surprised that the film didn't gain more of a bump from its star's newfound Twilight celebrity?
David Mumpower: If I'm her representation, my argument would be that the film made $6 million because of her presence in it and would have done less than a million otherwise. Yes, I'd be lying, but that is what a celebrity's representation is paid to do. The reality is that the film was exhibited in 2,825 locations BECAUSE the theaters remembered how much Twilight carried them last November. There was the hope that Stewart would be a big enough star by now to open a film on her own, which was a bit ambitious given how low key a production this was always intended to be. Stewart is just The Girl in Teen Comedy #4,197. Expecting her to mean more to this one is asking for the proverbial rabbit pulled out of the hat, and Pixar already did that last year to magnificent comedic effect.
Tim Briody: Since Adventureland didn't have any vampires, I'm trying to figure out why any Twilight fans would have gone to see this.
Brandon Scott: You need more carnies to make Adventureland work. I am not surprised at all, and despite her presence, I think by far and away the biggest marketing aspect of the film was the "makers of Superbad" angle, which didn't work out so well. I heard this is not funny at all but much more in the coming-of-age vain, and just a so-so venture. $6 million is what it deserves, just ask John Cena? Who? Exactly.
Kim Hollis: Adventureland is 89% fresh at RottenTomatoes, which is close to as good as it gets, Brandon. I think that puts it pretty well above so-so in the eyes of most who have seen it. It's just tough to market something like this, especially when there's not a Seth Rogen with a recent big hit a la Superbad to carry you. And I'm not sure Kristen Stewart's presence mattered much one way or the other. It's not like the studio pushed the film heavily.
Josh Spiegel: Kristen Stewart's presence in the film was definitely not the top marketing angle, though it arguably could have been if Miramax hadn't gone down the "This is a wacky comedy" route. Adventureland is more of a coming-of-age movie, one that I thought succeeded pretty well, but despite having some SNL actors make appearances and some solid comedy, the marketing was too deceptive. Also, I'm not sure the marketing was as wide as it could have been; still, Stewart's been seen in more independent projects, whereas a Twilight is the exception to the rule. Anyway, she's probably too busy trying to pretend she's in love with a vampire to care.
Apparently, God is against dancing (Footloose) and so is the devil (C Me Dance).
Kim Hollis: Something called C Me Dance was dumped into 151 venues and had a per location average of $199. Say something funny about C Me Dance.
David Mumpower: We're going to have to update all of our Delgo jokes now. When you're looking at a $237 per-location average with jealousy, you know you're in rare bomb territory. $199? I think I paid more for a tank of gas last summer.
Tim Briody: Clearly, C Me Dance gets an F.
Brandon Scott: C Me Macarena would have opened bigger. C Me Humpty Dance would have been huge!! C Me Hump While I Dance is a direct-to-video title, you can find it filed under Jenna Jameson.
Josh Spiegel: C Me Dance, C Me Dance....C Me Scratch My Head and ask what C Me Dance is. I think the $199 average was better than expected with the dearth of advertising for this film (or documentary? Seriously...no idea what this is).
Kim Hollis: The poster for this film is so ludicrous - a pair of evil red eyes looking out over a dancer. What the hell? Why would anyone want to see it? My understanding that this is intended to be a Christian-targeted film, but you've got to do a better job at making a grass-roots effort to get people out to see this kind of thing. Or even have a plot that people are interested in, you know?