Unhappy Endings:Big Studios Find Quality Films Too Often Are a Losing Proposition (Hollywood FAILS!)

The Washington Post ^ | May 7, 2003 | Sharon Waxman

[Timesink]

Unhappy Endings
Big Studios Find Quality Films Too Often Are a Losing Proposition

By Sharon Waxman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 7, 2003; Page C01

LOS ANGELES

When Amy Pascal, chairman of Columbia Pictures, gave director Spike Jonze a green light two years ago to make his offbeat film "Adaptation," she also gave him a warning: Don't go over budget, she said, or she'd have to get involved in the production.

Jonze didn't exceed the $20 million budget, and the studio didn't tinker with his vision. But "Adaptation" still ended up costing a small fortune, because Sony (Columbia's parent company) spent another $20 million to market the film. Despite Oscar nominations for screenwriter Charlie Kaufman and stars Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper (who won), the film brought in just $22 million at the U.S. box office.

"I wish it had done better," laments Pascal. "It deserved to find a better audience."

But "Adaptation" is not the only prestigious, critic-pleasing picture from a major Hollywood studio to run into trouble at the box office of late.

[valkyrieanne]

The original "Solaris" was world-reknowned as one of the single most tedious, interminable motion pictures of all time. And Grand Master Clooney managed to crank out a remake that was WORSE.

Have to disagree here. The original Tarkovsky-made Solaris is a beautiful and poignant film, as well as terribly sad. The remake was different but good in its own way. If one was expecting an action-adventure shoot-em up, then yes, there would be disappointment. Tarkovsky's original film was inspired by Stanley Kubrick's 2001 (another wonderful classic sci-fi film.) Intelligent science fiction film has deteriorated markedly since Kubrick & Tarkovsky's original films. Fortunately there have been some films like A.I., Minority Report, eXisTenZ, Dark City, etc. to keep *intelligent* sci-fi before the public, even if it never makes as much money as the babes in tight leather with blasters films.

[strela]

Latest losers (movie that did not make production budget much less marketing costs) ... The Core

Weird, this. Everybody and I mean EVERYBODY I've talked to says they went to see The Core and absolutely loved it.

Gods and Generals

I thought it was riveting in places, but the subject matter is a buzzkill and the movie was 4 hours long. Can't wait for it to come out on DVD - crank up the Surround Sound during some of the battle scenes.

[BushCountry]

The story is that the core only made 30,000,000 and cost 85,000,000 (budget and marketing). I actually like it as an escape movie, kind of like Armageddon (I am surprise at how poorly it did).

[strela]

I suspect it'll kill when it gets released to DVD.

[PsyOp]

"There's plenty of good entertainment out there where consumer politics doesn't even factor."

Yes there is. I saw "Tears in The Sun." Excellent movie. people are staying away from specific movies due to the actors, and others, I think, because they wanted to stay home and follow the war on TV. Therefore, they suffered accross the board. Now that the war is off the news 24/7, selectivity will assert itself in the movie-going public.

[discostu]

Just goes to show how milage varies. No one in my group expressed even the slightest interest in seeing The Core. Looked pretty cruddy to me, kind of a bad combo of Armegedon and The Day the Earth Caught Fire (I'll give you guys the IMDB link because it's really ancient http://us.imdb.com/Title?0054790 ).

[maxwell]

I had an idea of what I was in for with "Eyes Wide Shut".

Yeah well I didn't, having been dragged by the fingernails to see it... I don't remember much except some vague impressions of folks running around in various stages of undress and derelicti-whatsit in a real dark house... Gad, that was a long movie... That makes my a$$ hurt just thinking about it...

[strela]

Just goes to show how milage varies. No one in my group expressed even the slightest interest in seeing The Core.

I think you probably hang out with a better class of people than I do. Either that, or I've contaminated my friends with showings of drek like "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and "Glen or Glenda" on my home theater.

[strela]

That makes my a$$ hurt just thinking about it...

Seeing Nicole Kidman (for all her faults) in her shift made another part of my body a bit painful ...

[discostu]

Oh we watch that too, we used to joke about suing MST3K for spying on us. It's that midrange we aren't into, absolute crap is OK, good is OK, somewhere inbetween we're not drawn to.

[Petronski]

Schindler's List made gobs and gobs of money. Saving Private Ryan rolled in cash.

But most of the time the hollywood idea of 'quality' is a laugh-out-loud proposition.

[maxwell]

Seeing Nicole Kidman (for all her faults) in her shift made another part of my body a bit painful ...

Nyuk nyuk nyuk...

[Captain Peter Blood]

Gangs of New York as of April 17th, 2003 had made about $200 million worldwide. Added revenue of video, dvd and tv will put that movie into the profit column.

[okiesap]

Dates are an exception.

[STONEWALLS]

"I didn't see them myself, but word of mouth was "The Hours" and "Solaris" expanded the limits of the word "boring"..."

...my wife wanted to see "The Hours" so I tagged along......it was definately a downer IMHO.....the major themes were depression, suicide, homosexuality, lesbianism, AIDS and child abandonment...nice huh?....for that I spent 20 bucks?

[TheWriterInTexas]

It sucked so badly because Loren and O'Toole COULDN'T SING!

Eighteen years of smoking has taken its toll on my voice (which was a strong Soprano in my youth), but even I could hit the high notes in "Dulcenera" better than Loren. Listening to both of them was an exercise in cinematic masochism. The line, "to be willing to march into Hell, for a Heavenly cause..." should have been sung with feeling, with depth and breadth and throaty courage. Out of O'Toole's mouth, it sounded like a cat choking on a hairball.

[Richard Kimball]

Now, trivia question. What Saturday Night Live skit did I copy those lines from?

I don't have an HD TV yet, but I just got the new 1 gh iMac with the 17" screen, and the quality of DVD's on this thing just blows me away. When HDTV's come down in price, I'll be right in there with you. I would still love to see an HDTV football game.

[okiesap]

My best guess: Wayne's World.

I don't actually have an HD TV yet, but I did marry into a good 46 inch screen. Fortunately, our rectangular family room accomodates it. HDTV and the accompanying "surround sound" now available are great but placed in a small living room........I'd probably stick with the old stuff.

[Richard Kimball]

Actually, it was one of the funniest bits they ever did on Saturday Night Live. William Shatner was addressing a Star Trek convention, and finally broke over the attendees having no life other than living in the fantasy world of Star Trek. If you ever get a chance to see it, it's hysterical.