Monday Morning Quarterback Part II

By BOP Staff

October 10, 2012

Colts Colts Colts!

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Max Braden: In my mind that's a typical opening range for a decent comedy without a big hook or big star. I did expect more though based on the strong limited release box office it pulled in last weekend, and on the strength of the trailer. I think everyone just went to see Taken 2 this weekend. Despite what this means for the movie, I think this is a win for Rebel Wilson ("Fat Amy"), who is apparently a supporting character, yet the trailer has focused on her as much or more than Anna Kendrick. I could see Wilson's career taking on the arc of Jonah Hill's.

Edwin Davies: This is perhaps a bit more than I expected since, as I said last week, I fully expected the early release strategy to burn off some of the demand for the film in a way that didn't happen with Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, which used a similar release pattern last December. I definitely think that has happened to some extent but it's hard to gauge. You could argue that the film might have opened to $20 million if the $5 million from last week was added to this week's, yet at the same time we can't really tell how much of this week's total was earned as a result of the early release schedule and word-of-mouth. Regardless, I think this is a very solid result and a small yet significant demonstration of how this kind of mid-scale platform releasing can work to create fanfare for films that might not have anything else to focus on.

Tim Briody: This is fine and I'd argue that the small opening last weekend actually helped it this weekend, and I would like to see this release pattern again in the future. It's much better than a Wednesday opening, which usually siphons box office off of the weekend and isn't enough time to create additional buzz via the magic of social networking. A targeted release a week ahead is perfect for this, however. More please, and good on Pitch Perfect for already beating its budget.




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David Mumpower: I agree with Tim and would go so far as to say that Universal's decision to platform the film is the reason why it didn't open in single digits. Building consumer awareness through organic word-of-mouth always has been and still continues to be THE best way to promote a movie. For a disposable movie whose two biggest stars are Anna Kendrick and McLovin to earn $21.7 million in ten days is spectacular.

Kim Hollis: This is a terrific weekend result for a film that already was looking like a winner thanks to its strong debut last weekend on limited screens. Think of it this way: It made as much this weekend as Rock of Ages, a musical with a much more recognizable star (Tom Cruise), did during its *summer* opening. Keeping in mind that the audience for these films is not massive to start with, the fact that it has more than $22 million after two weekends is a stellar accomplishment.


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