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Your demonstrating that you really don't understand this business, nor have you done your homework. You seem to be doing the 'Terry McAuliff School of Accounting' in order to get to the conclusion you want.

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You cannot get to 'Brokeback Mountain isn't a commercial success' through numbers, or based on any industry standard.

Every reference I have ever seen of "commercial success" with respect to a movie has been in box office draw. Period. You hardly ever see reference to profit and when you do it is an afterthought to box office gross. THE "Industry Standard" is box office gross! To claim otherwise is just misleading.

As for getting the conclusions that I want, that is simply not true. I really couldn't care less if Brokeback did well at the box office or not. If they did, good for them, I admire people that find creative ways to make money.

My only reason for making the previous post was to demonstrate, based on ACTUAL box office gross (THE INDUSTRY STANDARD) that Brokeback Mountain is not as successful as some people want you to believe. Do I think that it is a failure? No, obviously it isn't. But to argue that it was a commercially successful movie requires a deviation from the traditional method of determining so.

BTW:
Cheaper By the Dozen 2 -- Cost:?? , Gross: $81.4 mil
Are We There Yet? -- Cost: $32m, Gross: $82.6 mil
Passion of the Christ -- Cost: $30m, Gross: $370 mil
We Were Soldiers -- Cost: $75m, Gross: $78 mil

Every reference I have ever seen of "commercial success" with respect to a movie has been in box office draw. Period.

I see you aren't letting the facts get in the way of your spin.

If you've seen that, which I doubt, you've probably seen it from people who are as clueless as you are.

You obviously don't understand the industry, and you would have to be a brain-dead moron to define success by box-office-take alone. What, are you seriously going to argue that if you spend $150 Million on a movie, and make $100 Million on it, (you lose $50 Million) that it's a 'success' and that if you spend $10 Million and make $50 Million, that it's a 'failure' (you gain $40 Million)?

I'll tell you one thing: No accountant with all his marbles would ever say that. Nobody who's ever invested money in anything would say that.

Here's a fact: Brokeback Mountain grossed more then FIVE TIMES it's production cost in domestic box office recipts alone. That's a 500% profit margin.

This is mind-bogglingly stupid. Beat on the films social message all you want, but you have to be brain dead to say something is a 'failure' when it has a 500% profit margin.