In The Supe
Superman Returns opens today. Just as he's gonna save the earth from evil, Hollywood is hoping he'll save the summer from the doldrums. Oh, the numbers have been okay, but 1) the reviews haven't and 2) grosses may be up due to ticket price, but attendance is down.
The next two weeks, with Superman and Pirates Of the Caribbean opening, will pretty much determine how big the summer is. But I feel the age of the blockbuster, as least as we've known it, is coming to an end.
Tom Shone's thoughtful book Blockbuster, which looks at Hollywood's big hits from Jaws up to the present, describes how the change has taken place. A lot of megahits in the 70s and 80s were actually pretty good, and there was enough room to go off the beaten path. Now it's a grim industry, where tremendous amounts are spent to create franchises and the audience, even when it turns out, is rarely surprised. In fact, that's precisely what Hollywood doesn't want--audiences are given what they expect. The sense of spontaneity is gone.
Also, the audience is staying home more than ever. Not avoiding the movie, just watching it on their own TV. DVDs, tapes and so on have surpassed theatrical gross--the tail is wagging the dog. This trend will continue, and movies will no longer be primarily a communal experience.
When I was growing up in Detroit in the middle of the blockbuster era, and something like Star Wars or Superman opened, we would go across town to the huge screen at the Americana Theater. It was an event. Young people are still the most enthusiastic moviegoers, but in ten years, even they will be more likely to wait for it to come out on DVD (or whatever format they have then).
posted by LAGuy @ 12:25 AM
2 Comments:
I was just discussing with a friend about the glory days of Westwood Village here in LA, when the Friday night opening of a big movie was a major happening. You came to one of the huge theaters, you made friends with all the other movie geeks on line around you, there was a mad stampede to get the best seats, there was rousing applause during the opening credits and any particularly thrilling movie moments; it was an EVENT. Now people take phone calls in the middle of a movie they've just paid 10 bucks to see.
E.T. made more money in its fourth weekend than its first. Hit films used to sustain. Now they're front-loaded and drop 50% in the second weekend. It's exceedingly rare a blockbuster has legs, like Wedding Crashers. As events, though, it's become, for the most part, an empty ritual.
I remember in early 1998 walking around Westwood (people don't even do that as much as they used to) on Tuesday night and seeing a long line outside the Village Theatre. Was this some special event? Nope, just another showing of Titanic. That's when I knew this was a hit to be reckoned with.
Perhaps people use their phones in theatres now because 1) they can and 2) they're used to watching films at home.
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