Posted on 08/11/2005 6:50:44 PM PDT by wagglebee
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A bumpy ride at the summer box office and signs that booming DVD sales may be slowing have Hollywood studios looking for new ways to win fans as the movie industry faces increased competition.
But studio executives say the key to recapturing audiences is to make better films -- an age-old answer in Hollywood -- and industry watchers are divided over whether film and DVD markets truly are weakening.
"If you believe all the press reports, we are in the middle of Armageddon with box office erosion," said Peter Chernin, president of News Corp., parent of the Twentieth Century Fox film studio. "I believe that is a definite overreaction."
Movie studios and theater owners have had a rough summer, which is a problem since the season makes up nearly 40 percent of annual movie ticket sales.
By September's Labor Day holiday in the United States, the box office is expected to be down 7 to 12 percent after films such like "The Island" and "Stealth" failed to connect with audiences.
Tracking service Exhibitor Relations sees ticket sales at around $3.7 billion for the season, about 7 percent below 2004's $3.96 billion, marking the worst summer since 2001.
Admissions, or the number of people attending movies, are seen down 9 percent at 578 million for the worst year since 1999.
But Exhibitor Relations President Paul Dergarabedian admitted his figures were optimistic. By contrast, Boxofficemojo President Brandon Gray figures summer box office will be off 12 percent.
Others are quick to point out that a strong line-up of fall movies could still rescue the year. "I think fall is going to be exceptional this year, financially," said David Poland at the Web site, Movie City News, citing upcoming films like November's "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire."
MAKE BETTER MOVIES
Industry watchers cite many reasons for weaker ticket sales -- competition from video games, the narrowing of time between a film playing in theaters and on DVD, and Internet piracy -- but the one factor that seems to outweigh all the others is that some of this summer's films lack a fresh appeal.
"We can all try to blame the closing window of DVD and all that, but you see the movies that are really distinctive still going out and doing really well," said Mark Gill, president of Warner Independent Pictures, which released surprise summer hit nature documentary "March of the Penguins."
Films like "Batman Begins" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" were often mentioned as two films that won fans with fresh takes on tried-and-true Hollywood formulas.
Roger Birnbaum, co-founder of Spyglass Entertainment which had modest spring success, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" said some summer releases were "a little tired."
Birnbaum said Spyglass, which is behind fall films "Memoirs of a Geisha" and "The Legend of Zorro," will not change the way it develops or makes movies just because of one bumpy summer.
In recent years, difficult times at box offices would be offset by the booming DVD market where studios would recoup their investment and profit from films. But there are signs that DVD growth may be slowing, too.
Earlier this week, Bob Iger, the incoming chief executive of The Walt Disney Co, said industrywide DVD sales were about the same this summer as last. But because the number of homes owning DVD players had risen, the average number of sales per home had fallen, he said.
"One thing is clear, consumer choice is increasing, making quality ... content more important than ever," he said.
I'll probably go see "The Great Raid" this weekend, and then that will be it for the next three years or so.
That's it. They keep reeling off left wing tripe and wonder why no one's buying...
I agree with this assessment. But it is grossly oversimplified. "Picking up a camera" is not even particularly easy, if you consider that a used Arriflex can run $20K, and that's without any additional lenses, a tripod, or film mags. Then there's the sound deck; you probably don't want to use your KMart tape recorder for production sound, so be prepared to shell out for tape deck, mics, booms, tape, and editing gear.
Let's not talk about lights, sets, costumes, transportation, and miscellaneous expenses. And that just gets the film in the can.
Then there are the post-production expenses: editing, sound sync, special effects, copying, distribution. Then there are the marketing costs: advertising, insurance, promos, posters, etc..
All this means that someone with deep pockets has to be willing to step up and take a risk with a conservative filmaker. I've never met such a critter.
Oh, and by the way, Hollywood -- which owns most of the distribution apparatus -- will be fighting you all the way. And their whores in the media will skewer the movie before it's even on the projector.
The moon landing was easier. And cheaper.
Wedding Crashers was a good summer comedy. Definately for Adults, but I laughed harder than I had at the theater for a long time.
Stay home and read about it in the book--Ghost Soldiers instead. Screw Hollyweird!
My own thoughts are that is is overrated. As horrible a candidate as John F. Kerry almost got elected to the presidency, so people can't hate insipid liberalism that much. More likely, the problem with Hollywood really is that the movies are just not that good. They have perfected the special effects, the technique, of moviemaking (just look at any of the last three Star Wars movies), but have last lost the art of storytelling. The ability to tell a good story, even on a low budget with mediocre to poor effects, will by and far trump the ability to make good effects. You add this to the fact that most of their recent movies try to sell either sex or violence or both rather than tell a good story, and you have a recipe for the slump Hollywood is in. My own prediction: if/when Hollywood discovers this, you will find a Rennaissance in their fortunes, regardless of the fact that they are, as a group, a bunch of Reds.
I think you can get away a lot cheaper. I have THX, 120" screen, and leather couches. Plus I can pause it and have a cockatil and a cigar if I want to.
The technology moves so fast that you can do an excellent home theater for a lot less than $100K. $10-25K is closer imo and it gets cheaper every year.
Yes I agree. Even the feature animations for kids have really bad character traits introduced to the kids. I guess that's okay as long as the character is played off as bad, but all too frequently they aren't. And then there's the cheap shot stuff that chldren don't need to be exposed to anyway. It's really too bad.
I don't remember all the particulars, but I was disappointed in the overall story. The parents of Shrek's girlfriend didn't like her because she wasn't pretty anymore. I really didn't like that.
Sometimes you really have to wonder if the people writing these story lines have ever been exposed to kids, or have been responsible for the upbringing of one, ever.
That will pretend to be patriotic, and thus sucker people in to then get the leftist propaganda shoved down their throats.
Make ticket prices $5 !!
It has been a ONE movie summer for me: Cinderella Man, which was outstanding and reflective of good American conservative values. I am still amazed it made out so poorly at the box office.
The Ugly Stepsister voiced by Larry King was straight. True, men voice women's roles less often than women voice boys' (IIRC all the regular-cast boys on the Simpsons are voiced by women) but the character was definitely female.
No, but from what I've read here I'm intrigued. My parents friends went and saw it. Don't know what they thought though. Also, interesting to get more info. on Hotel Rwanda. Now I may have to rent that one.
Fat chance after having their left wing lunatic actors lecture us on everything from politics to the environment to child rearing. Why would I pay to have my intelligence insulted?
Decent? Buddy SIN CITY is coming out on dvd next week. Marv is my hero. Women wearing almost nothing! Gunfire! Cannibalism! Frodo having a bad day!
If that doesn't qualify as decent I don't know what does. :o)
A couple of FReepers have said the penguin movie is very good. I probably would have seen it without their recommendation since #2 boy really likes penguins.
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