February 22nd, 2015
The Oscar ceremony is tonight and we will be live-blogging the winners... assuming I don't get bored and wander away. On a serious note, while my job is all about movies and I love watching movies, I love paying attention to box office numbers, I even love Awards Season. I hate ceremonies. As per usual, here is the list of nominees marked according to predictions / wishes. Nominees in Bold are the ones predicted to win by our readers. If I predicted a different film, those are in Italics. Meanwhile, the nominees I want to win, but don't think will win, are Underlined. There are a few categories where the film I really think deserves the award were not even nominated, plus a few I don't have a real opinion on.
More...
February 14th, 2015
The Writers Guild of America winners were just announced and there wasn't a lot of surprises to talk about, but enough interesting things happened that it wasn't boring.
More...
February 2nd, 2015
There were not a lot of new releases to reach the top twenty on the Blu-ray sales chart this week, but we did have a new film on top. Gone Girl earned first place with 342,000 / $6.64 million for an opening week Blu-ray share of 43%. This isn't bad, for a thriller.
More...
February 2nd, 2015
Gone Girl led the new releases on the DVD sales chart with sales of 460,000 units / $6.97 million during its opening week of release. This is a good start for the film and probably enough to get to 1 million units before it is done. Eventually.
More...
January 24th, 2015
Left Behind led the new releases on the DVD chart, at least in terms of units sold, with 201,000. Its sales for the week were $2.05 million, giving it third place by that metric. This is not great for a first-run release, but not bad compared to the film's box office. It is also much better than its opening on Blu-ray.
More...
January 24th, 2015
The first set of new releases for Blu-ray didn't result in a change at the top, as The Equalizer remained on top of the chart during its sophomore stint. Over the week, it sold $143,000 / $3.48 million for two-week totals of 821,000 units / $17.08 million. This gives it a two-week Blu-ray share of 51%, which is good for an action film. It does have a slightly older target demographic, so that explains why it isn't as good as say...
More...
January 24th, 2015
We are getting back to weekly home market analysis this weekend, but before we do that, let's have a brief look at the home market in 2014. The overall winner was Frozen, which just destroyed the competition. It sold more Blu-rays (7.23 million units for $152.93 million) than the nearest competitor, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire sold total units, and had more combined sales than the next three best-selling films. It is the second-best selling Blu-ray off all time and will soon top Avatar for first place. Additionally, the film surpassed 10 million DVDs sold by a significant margin at 11.03 million units for $185.48 million, while its overall home market sales for the year were 18.27 million units for $338.41 million in total sales.
More...
January 17th, 2015
The Oscar nominations were announced early in the morning, when all sensible people were asleep. There were some surprises, as well as some results that would have been surprises had it not been for the previous Awards Season nominations. Seventeen films earned two or more nods, led by Birdman and The Grand Budapest Hotel, both of which picked up nine nominations, while The Imitation Game was right behind with eight.
More...
January 11th, 2015
The BAFTA nominations were announced yesterday and unlike most other Awards Season voters, the BAFTA voters gave us some real surprises. For instance, Birdman didn't lead the way. In fact, it was a comedy, The Grand Budapest Hotel, that earned the most nominations at 11. Granted, Birdman and The Theory of Everything were tied for second place with ten each, but it is still strange to see a comedy leading the way.
More...
January 10th, 2015
The Writers Guild of America nominations were latest to be announced, but were there any real surprises? Yes. Birdman didn't get a nomination, but Guardians of the Galaxy did. More on that later. Besides those two films, there are not a lot of surprises here and the usual contenders are present, including Boyhood and The Imitation Game, but there are also some other notable films missing.
More...
December 9th, 2014
It is a very shallow week on the home market. Granted, Guardians of the Galaxy is coming out this week on DVD or 3D Blu-ray Combo Pack and it would be a clear contender for Pick of the Week even on the busiest of week. However, after that, there is a sharp decline in quality. Calvary and Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead are two very different movies, but both are contenders for Pick of the Week. In the end, I went with Guardians of the Galaxy as the Pick of the Week.
More...
December 8th, 2014
At the moment, Guardians of the Galaxy is the highest grossing film released in 2014. (Mockingjay, Part 1 still has a chance of catching it, depending on how well it does over Christmas). It is also one the the best-reviewed wide releases of 2014. As a fan of Marvel Comics in general and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in particular, I had very high hopes for this film. Was the buzz warranted? Or was this a case of too much hype?
More...
November 26th, 2014
This Thursday is Thanksgiving, which means this is Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and a ton of shopping. It also means the first installment of our Holiday Gift Guide. Over the next month, we will talk about TV on DVD releases, independent releases, foreign language releases, classics, etc. but this week we start with Major Movie Releases. These are first run releases, franchise box sets, etc. In some ways, this is better than last year, as there were a wider number of big releases that would make great gifts. However, in other ways it is much weaker. I can't think of a single big franchise box set that came out this year. There are some smaller ones, like the Halloween Box Set, but while the franchise has lasted ten installments and 30 years, how many can you really say are worth repeated viewing? Fortunately, there were plenty of great films to come out this year, starting with what is currently the biggest hit of the year.
More...
October 29th, 2014
Annabelle rose from fifth to first place on the international market with $26.5 million in 62 markets for an international total of $126.7 million after a month of release. Obviously there will be another installment in this franchise. This past weekend, the film dominated Latin America earning first place in Mexico with $7.61 million on 2,742 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $10.87 million. This was double the original film's opening in that market. The film also earned top spot in Argentina ($1.4 million on 202 screens) and in Peru ($1.3 million). The film was pushed into second place in Brazil, but still managed $2.13 million on 388 screens over the weekend for a three-week total of $11.35 million.
More...
October 22nd, 2014
Not only did Guardians of the Galaxy return to top spot on the international chart this past weekend, it reached two major milestones along the way. Over the weekend, it pulled in $23.1 million in 22 markets for totals of $404.8 million internationally and $732.6 million worldwide. The film earned $37.97 million in China, but that was for the full week, giving it $69.04 million after ten days of release. The film has yet to open in Italy and it might have a shot at $800 million worldwide by the time it ends its run there.
More...
October 16th, 2014
Dracula Untold rose to first place with $33.9 million in 42 markets for a two-week total of $62.6 million. This week's biggest new market was Russia, where it pulled in first place with $9.81 million on 1,068 screens. It opened in second place in South Korea with $2.65 million on 477 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $4.29 million. Mexico led the holdovers with $2.78 million on 1,624 screens over the weekend for a two-week total of $9.30 million in that market.
More...
October 1st, 2014
The Maze Runner easily won the race for top spot on the international chart with $28.8 million in 62 markets for a three-week total of $92.4 million. This is already enough to cover its production budget, so the studio should be very, very happy. The film remained in first place in South Korea with $4.37 million on 655 screens over the weekend for a total of $11.94 million after two weeks of release. It also topped the charts in Russia with $3.13 million on 1,486 screens for a two-week total of $10.49 million. The film has yet to open in Italy, the U.K., Germany, France, Japan, and others. It should surpass $200 million internationally and $300 million worldwide before it is done. That is excellent for a film that cost $34 million to make.
More...
September 30th, 2014
The Equalizer easily won the race for the top of the box office chart this weekend earning almost as much as the next two films combined. Those next two films were The Maze Runner and The Boxtrolls, both of which exceeded expectations, albeit by tiny margins. The strength of these three films helped the overall box office reach $106 million, which is 4% higher than last weekend. On the other hand, this was 2% lower than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2014 has pulled in $7.51 billion, which is a massive amount when you look at it without context. However, it is nearly $400 million or 4.9% lower than last year's pace, which is also a massive amount. It is technically possible for 2014 to catch up to 2013 before the end of the year, but only if October is a really strong month at the box office. It won't be.
More...
September 24th, 2014
Just as it did on the domestic chart, The Maze Runner earned first place on the international chart. It did so with $38.0 million in 51 markets for an early total of $50.7 million. Its biggest market was Russia, where it placed first with $5.59 million on 1,748 screens, while South Korea was close behind with $4.88 million on 648 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $5.41 million. It also earned first place in Australia with $3.19 million on 305 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $3.31 million. The final major market debut of the weekend was Brazil, where it earned first place with $1.96 million on 316 screens. It slipped to second place in Mexico with $1.73 million on 996 screens over the weekend for a two-week total of $5.92 million.
More...
September 22nd, 2014
The Maze Runner easily won the weekend box office race this past weekend beating expectations by a little bit with $32.51 million. Unfortunately, the other new releases were not as strong and their combined totals were about 25% lower than the number one film. Overall, the box office was $103 million, which is 14% higher than last weekend and 18% higher than the same weekend last year. This is a fantastic result, given the box office troubles of the past several weeks. Year-to-date, 2014 is still behind 2013 by a large margin at $7.38 billion to $7.75 billion, which is a 4.8% deficit. Hopefully this win will help the box office going forward and the fall will be better than the summer was.
More...
September 17th, 2014
Since this time last week, Lucy topped $200 million internationally. Considering a significant number of people thought it wouldn't reach $200 million worldwide, this is a great result. Over the weekend, it remained in first place with $24.9 million in 59 markets for totals of $230.6 million internationally and $354.1 million worldwide. The film opened in first place in Russia with $9.77 million on 1,013 screens, which was more than $9 million more than the second place film.
More...
September 16th, 2014
No Good Deed led the box office this weekend with a surprisingly robust opening of $24.25 million. This was more than double last week's number one movie, Guardians of the Galaxy. Dolphin Tale 2 also topped last week's number one film, even though it didn't live up to expectations. Overall, the box office pulled in $90 million, which was 37% more than last weekend. Unfortunately, this was still 13% lower than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2014 has pulled in $7.26 billion, which isn't an insignificant amount. However, it is 5.2% or nearly $400 million behind last year's pace. 2014 still has a chance to catch up to last year, but the odds of it doing so are getting slimmer and slimmer each week.
More...
September 14th, 2014
Movie fans are ignoring the critics this weekend and turning out in big numbers to see No Good Deed. The thriller, starring Idris Elba and Taraji P. Henson will easily win the weekend with an estimated $24.5 million, in spite of earning only 17% positive reviews from critics. Audiences are giving the film a 71% positive score so far, which represents a huge difference of opinion. Dolphin Tale 2, which was considered the more likely weekend winner, and is enjoying excellent reviews from critics and moviegoers alike, is under-performing at the box office and should make about $16.5 million according to Warner Bros., down from the $19.2 million opening for the first film in the franchise.
More...
September 11th, 2014
Last weekend was the worst weekend in more than a decade. This weekend the box office will bounce back, because it has to. It can't possibly get worse. There are two wide releases debuting this weekend: Dolphin Tale 2 and No Good Time. Neither film is expected to become a big hit; in fact, if either film earns more than $20 million over the weekend, I will be impressed. That said, they will still be a step up from what happened last weekend. The biggest news of the weekend will come from Guardians of the Galaxy, which will become the first film released in 2014 to top $300 million. This weekend last year, Insidious Chapter 2 opened with more than $40 million and the combined openings of the two new releases this weekend will likely be below that. Worse case scenario has neither film opening above last year's number two film, The Family. There's almost no chance 2014 will win in the year-over-year comparison.
More...
September 10th, 2014
Lucy reclaimed top spot on the international chart with $26 million in 54 markets for totals of $193 million internationally and $314 million worldwide. I don't think a lot of people thought this movie would reach $300 million worldwide, so this is a great run. The film opened in second place in South Korea with $7 million, but includes weekday numbers. The film remained in first place in the U.K. with $1.96 million on 506 screens over the weekend for a total of $17.26 million after three weeks of release. Lucy opens in Russia and China this weekend and could remain in first place.
More...
September 9th, 2014
The weekend box office was an unmitigated disaster. Guardians of the Galaxy was the only film to crack $10 million over the weekend and there were no other releases that came close. The only new "wide" release was The Identical, and it missed the top ten. Overall, the box office fell 40% from last weekend to just $66 million. It goes without saying that this is the worst box office of the year so far. In fact, it is the fifth worst box office weekend since 2000 running 23% lower than the worst weekend from last year. The worst weekend from last year was this weekend last year, so that makes the comparison so much easier. Year-to-date, 2014 has pulled in $7.15 billion, which is 5.1% lower than the last year's pace. Things better turn around soon, or we can say goodbye to any chance to catch up to last year.
More...
September 5th, 2014
It's the weekend after Labor Day Weekend, which is historically the one of the two worst weekends of the year. Only the weekend after Thanksgiving really competes with it. This year there is only one wide release, The Identical, and it technically not opening truly wide. It is practically guaranteed that Guardians of the Galaxy will win the weekend box office race for the fourth time in its run and there likely won't be many changes in the top five. (As Above, So Below will drop out and The November Man will take its place.) This weekend last year, Riddick opened in first place with $19.03 million. No film this week it going to match that figure and the depth this year isn't going to help. Look for a big loss in the year-over-year comparison.
More...
September 4th, 2014
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes rose from eighth to first place thanks to its debut in China. Overall, the film made $51.2 million in 29 markets for totals of $408.0 million internationally and $613.3 million worldwide. It dominated the box office in China with $45.13 million and if it has any legs in this market, it will reach $500 million internationally and $750 million worldwide is within reach after its run in Japan.
More...
September 3rd, 2014
Labor Day Weekend was dominated by holdovers. The two new releases were As Above, So Below and The November Man, which opened in fourth and sixth places respectively. Guardians of the Galaxy remained in first place over the weekend and climbed into first place for the year in the process, overtaking fellow Marvel Film, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Overall, the box office fell 4% from last weekend down to $110 million. Compared to last year, the box office was down 11%, which is troubling. Year-to-date, 2014 is now behind 2013 by a 4.5% margin at $7.07 billion to $7.40 billion. This is the weakest post-Labor Day weekend running tally since 2008 and that's before you look at ticket price inflation. With ticket price inflation, you have to go back to 2005.
More...
August 31st, 2014
A lackluster Summer comes to an end this weekend with an third weekend win for Guardians of the Galaxy, which, in the process becomes the top-grossing film of 2014. That’s reason to cheer for Disney and the Avengers franchise, not least because the movie Guardians overtakes is their previous franchise outing, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The Marvel juggernaut was much too much for this weekend’s more low-key openers.
More...
August 28th, 2014
It's Labor Day Weekend, which is historically the worst long weekend of the year. This year As Above, So Below and The November Man are trying to avoid bombing this weekend. It looks like As Above, So Below will be a middling hit thanks in part to its low production budget. On the other hand, The November Man only managed fifth place during its opening day and it will likely get worse over the weekend. This leaves Guardians of the Galaxy with an easy path to first place for the weekend, and coincidentally, an easy path for first place for the year so far. Labor Day last year was led by One Direction: This is Us and there's really no chance the new releases this year will do the same. 2014 does have better depth, but I don't think that will be enough to continue the winning streak in the year-over-year comparison.
More...
August 28th, 2014
Lucy rocketed to first place with 34.0 million in 42 markets for totals of $104.4 million internationally and $218.1 million worldwide. Its biggest opening of the weekend came from Taiwan, where the movie opened with $6.2 million on 88 screens. The film also opened in first place in the U.K. with $5.10 million on 486 screens and in Spain with $3.32 million on 387. More impressively, it remained in first place in France with $4.43 million in 615 screens over the weekend for a total of $29.93 million after three weeks of release.
More...
August 26th, 2014
Of the three wide releases, none topped expectations and only If I Stay did decent business at the box office. It only managed third place, but it did have the best per theater average in the top twenty. This left holdovers atop of the box office chart with Guardians of the Galaxy returning to first place and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles slipping to second place. Overall, the box office was down 20% from last weekend to $115 million. However, this was 4.7% higher than the same weekend last year, which is the more important metric. Unfortunately, 2014 is still behind 2013 by a large margin of $330 million or 4.7% at $6.91 billion to $7.24 billion.
More...
August 24th, 2014
Even though it is nine years since original movie opened with $29 million and topped a fairly lackluster April weekend, few predicted going into the Summer that Sin City: A Dame to Kill For would finish in 8th place on debut. In spite of little competition the neo-noir thriller will post about $6.5 million from 2,894 theaters, putting it in third place among the openers. Tearjerker If I Stay is the best new release this weekend, with an expected $16.35 million from 2,907 theaters, for a very respectable average of $5,600. It will be third overall behind Guardians of the Galaxy, which will pass $250 million today, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which falls to second place with $16.8 million this weekend and $145 million in total. With a little over $1 million separating the top three, it’s conceivable that the order could change when final results are reported on Monday.
More...
August 21st, 2014
Last weekend, there were three wide releases, but only one of them did relatively well. This weekend, there are also three wide releases and hopefully they will perform better at the box office. There are some positive signs and some analysts think both Sin City: A Dame To Kill For and If I Stay will open with more than $20 million while When the Game Stands Tall could make more than $10 million. That's on the high side. On the low side, none of the new releases will open in first place and Guardians of the Galaxy and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will be in a battle for first and second place. That said, this weekend last year, none of the three wide releases earned more than $10 million during the weekend and only two films in total reached that mark over the weekend. Even low-end expectations for this year are more bullish than that, so 2014 should continue its winning streak in the year-over-year comparison.
More...
August 20th, 2014
How to Train Your Dragon 2 debuted in first place in China with $26.32 million. This helped the film earn first place on the international chart with $37.7 million in 28 markets for totals of $366.0 million internationally and $537.2 million worldwide. The film is already ahead of its predecessor internationally and worldwide, so the studio should be happy, even if it didn't earn as much domestically.
More...
August 19th, 2014
Only one of the three wide releases this past weekend did reasonably well over the weekend. Despite earning reviews that were flirting with single-digits, Let's Be Cops was the best of the new releases this weekend earning an acceptable opening. On the other hand, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Guardians of the Galaxy held on well earning first and second places over the weekend. The overall box office plummeted from last weekend down 23% to $143 million, but this is still 2.5% more than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2014 is still behind 2013, even though the gap shrunk a little bit at 4.5% or $6.75 billion to $7.07 billion.
More...
August 17th, 2014
Three lackluster debuts have allowed Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Guardians of the Galaxy to keep the top two spots at the box office this weekend. Turtles will be down a fairly modest 57% in its second weekend for $28.4 million, and $117.6 million in total after two weekends. Guardians will be down 41% in its third weekend for a total of $222 million, and will remain on track to become the highest-grossing film of the Summer. Things look much less pretty for the openers.
More...
August 14th, 2014
The strong opening by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles allowed summer to be extended one more weekend. This week three films look to avoid flopping, thus signaling the end of summer, but in order to do so, they must defy critics. The Expendables 3 is the biggest of the three films opening this weekend, but the franchise appears to be on a downward trajectory. Let's Be Cops opened on Wednesday, but with simply awful reviews, the word-of-mouth could kill it by the time the weekend starts. Finally, The Giver is the latest Young Adult adaptation, but this genre has produced more flops than even midlevel hits. Frankly, the most interesting aspect of the weekend box office will likely be milestones reached by Guardians of the Galaxy and other movies, rather than the new releases. This weekend last year was also arguably the the end of summer. The Butler was the only movie to make more than $20 million, while three of the four wide releases opened in fifth place or weaker. It looks like 2014 will continue its winning streak.
More...
August 13th, 2014
Guardians of the Galaxy remained in first place with $47.1 million in 50 markets over the weekend for a total of $138.8 million internationally and $315.3 million worldwide after just two weeks of release. It is already ahead of the lifetime total of The Incredible Hulk and should pass another Avengers film or two by this time next week. The film finished in first place in Australia with $6.08 million on 586 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $8.24 million. The film was pushed into second place in Russia with $6.01 million on 2,097 screens over the weekend for a total of $24.32 million after two weeks of release. It had a very similar result in the U.K. with the film landing in second place with $5.59 million on 561 screens over the weekend for a total of $23.24 million.
More...
August 12th, 2014
The Admiral: Roaring Currents had a stunning opening with an estimated $43,000 in its sole theaters. It will be interesting to see if the film can maintain this success as it expands wider. The overall box office leader, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, was second with an opening weekend average of $17,055. The Guardians of the Galaxy remained in the $10,000 club for the second weekend of its release earning an average of $10,305.
More...
August 11th, 2014
Despite earning some of the worst reviews of the summer, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles easily won the race for the top of the box office chart unseating Guardians of the Galaxy, which earned some of the best reviews. The rest of the new releases were well back. Overall, the box office was down from last weekend, but by less than 0.5% to $185 million. Compared to last year, the box office was 16% higher, which is a great result. Year-to-date, 2014 is still behind 2013, but the deficit was down to 4.4% or $300 million at $6.52 billion to $6.82 billion.
More...
August 10th, 2014
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles didn’t just overcome the bad guys in a movie this weekend. They also overcame almost universally-scathing reviews and an end-of-Summer release date to top the box office. With expectations going into the weekend ranging from the low 30s to $50 million or so, an opening that Paramount is projecting at $65 million as of Sunday morning is a triumph. Even with the prospect of steep declines in the weeks ahead, the film should hit $150 million domestically, and with international markets expected to be the film’s strong suit, a sequel or two are likely to follow. The weekend’s other openers have less rosy futures.
More...
August 7th, 2014
Yep. It's August alright. There are four wide releases coming out this week, the largest of which is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which is currently earning 17% positive reviews. It's not even the worst reviewed film of the weekend so far, as Into the Storm is a little worse. There are a couple of films that might earn overall positive reviews: The Hundred Foot Journey and Step Up All In. None of the new releases are on track to match Guardians of the Galaxy. In fact, all four combined won't make as much as Guardians of the Galaxy opened with last weekend. This weekend last year, there were also four wide releases, three of which earned more than $20 million. I don't think that will be true this year, but I think based on the strength of Guardians of the Galaxy and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 2014 will win in the year-over-year comparison.
More...
August 6th, 2014
Guardians of the Galaxy opened in first place internationally with $67.4 million in 42 markets. This includes a number of major markets, led by Russia with $12.90 million on 2,097 screens and the U.K. with $10.70 million on 554 screens. It also earned first place in Brazil with $5.27 million on 472 screens. It wasn't as strong in South Korea with $3.83 million on 575 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $4.78 million. There was a massive local release in that market, so that partially explains that result. The film also opened in second place in Australia with $2.15 million on 244 screens, but this was just the film's previews.
More...
August 6th, 2014
The winners of our Galaxy of Prizes contest were determined and they are...
More...
August 6th, 2014
The overall box office leader, The Guardians of the Galaxy, also led the way on the per theater chart with an average of $23,118 in just over 4,000 theaters. Second place went to Calvary, with an average of $18,537 in four theaters. The final film in the $10,000 club was Magic in the Moonlight, with an average of $11,396 in 65 theaters.
More...
August 5th, 2014
Finally! Finally we have a week where there's nothing but good news to talk about. Guardians of the Galaxy crushed high expectations breaking the August records for biggest day and biggest weekend. While Guardians dominated at the box office chart, Get On Up did okay in the counter-programming role. This helped the overall box office soar, rising 20% when compared to last weekend to $186 million. More importantly, this was 35% better that this weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2014 is still behind 2013 $6.26 billion to $6.62 billion, but the gap was closed a little bit at $360 million or 5.4%.
More...
August 3rd, 2014
It was a big, big weekend at the box office with Guardians of the Galaxy pulling in an estimated $94 million. The majority of analysts thought it would break the August weekend record, but very few thought it would have one of the top five openings of the year. Additionally, the film earned some of the best reviews of the year and could become the biggest hit of the year... at least untill Mockingjay, Part 1 hits theaters in November. Get On Up did not do as well earning $14.03 million and grabbing third place along the way. This is barely more than Jersey Boys opened with in June. Its reviews should help it earn better legs and it wasn't an expensive movie to make, so the studio should be relatively happy with this start.
More...
August 1st, 2014
July was... well... let's just pretend it didn't happen. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes did well, but week after week 2014 fell further behind 2013 in the year-to-date comparison. At the moment, we are roughly $400 million behind last year's pace and while I don't think August will continue the losing streak, there's really no chance August will put a dent in that number. It looks more and more likely that Guardians of the Galaxy will be a hit, especially given its early reviews, but it could be the last $100 million hit till October, if the bad buzz surrounding Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles turns into bad ticket sales. Last August there were two films that reached $100 million, plus two others that came close. This August might match that, while the biggest film this year should top the biggest film from last year. I think the slump 2014 is suffering through will end the first weekend and overall I think it will cut the deficit a little bit. That said, summer 2014 will still end as one of the worst recent summers at the box office.
More...
July 31st, 2014
Guardians of the Galaxy will likely become the biggest hit of this August. It might become the biggest hit of any August. The buzz is powerful, as are the reviews, and this could add up to a record-breaking opening. It isn't the only film opening wide, as Get On Up is also coming out this weekend. That film is a biopic of James Brown and it is earning stellar reviews, but will be limited to the counter-programming role. This weekend last year, the box office was led by 2 Guns, which made $27.06 million during the weekend. Guardians of the Galaxy should make more than that during its opening day. It looks like 2014 should finally end the slump it is in.
More...
July 29th, 2014
Guardians of the Galaxy opens on IMAX this weekend and hopefully it will be a hit, because the format could use some good news. The second quarter numbers were released last week and there are some troubling signs. For instance, global ticket sales for DMR titles generate $216.0 million during the second quarter of 2014, which was down from the same time period of 2013. Granted, it was down by less than $4 million or just under 2%, which is much better than the overall market was like during the same time period. The average per screen box office fell more dramatically down 15% from $353,300 to $299,800. Obviously IMAX is still going strong and the continuing growth in total IMAX screens is evidence of that, but like non-IMAX theaters, they could really use a monster hit to boost the box office numbers.
More...
July 25th, 2014
Next weekend the summer film I'm most interested in seeing finally opens, Guardians of the Galaxy. In fact, out of all of the The Avengers: Phase Two films, this is the one I'm most interested in seeing. To celebrate, we have three T-shirts from Shirts.com, specifically their Superhero / Marvel collections. (You can choose any T-shirt on the site; we are just highlighting these collections.)
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win one of three coupons for Shirts.com.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will also win one of three coupons for Shirts.com.
Finally, one additional entry will be chosen, regardless of the accuracy of their prediction, and that person will win the final of three coupons for Shirts.com. So if you are really bad at predicting box office numbers, this is the contest to enter.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
More...
-Thumbnail.jpg)
-Thumbnail.jpg)
-Thumbnail.jpg)
