The 1 Reason Media Won’t Cite for Bad Box Office
Hollywood is having a lousy summer, and there’s no relief in sight.
Domestic box office revenue for the season is trailing last year by 11 percent and none of the major releases still coming are expected to change that trajectory. In fact, things are likely to get worse for U.S. studios before the leaves change. Without a film debuting widely over the Labor Day weekend, BoxOffice Media predicts the film industry will end the summer of 2017 with sales down by up to 15 percent.
The ugly numbers inspired the usual array of think pieces pointing to several suspects.
- Social Media
- RottenTomatoes.com
- Poor product
There’s a problem with those theories, particularly the first two. Both social media and Rotten Tomatoes have been readily available for years. That’s not to say they don’t impact interest in a particular film.
They do.
But they did last year, too. And the year before. So why do they suddenly hold such sway over our film choices?
And while this summer showcased a one-two punch of rancid movies (“The Mummy” and “Transformers: The Last Knight”) the season produced a number of solid blockbusters (“Wonder Woman.” “The Fate of the Furious”) and original treats (“Baby Driver,” “The Big Sick”).
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Esquire.com coined “dazzle fatigue” as part of the problem. Too many noisy blockbusters squeezed into one modest space. As theories go, we’ve heard much worse.
So what’s missing? The one theory makes more sense than most, even if it can’t be measured in any traditional sense. And, of course, it involves the man who’s been sucking the oxygen out of the news cycle for the past seven months.
Only you can’t blame President Donald Trump for this. He’s actually the victim here. Or, to be more precise, those who pulled the lever for him last November.
‘He’s Hitler!’ Lather, Rinse Repeat
Hollywood’s insane reaction to Trump’s ascent may be coaxing customers to skip the multiplex this summer.
Here’s the rub:
Many Americans who lean right, support Trump or check both boxes are aghast at what Hollywood has been up to for the past year. They’ve read the tweets, seen the interviews, watched the smug videos telling them how to vote and heard stars directly attack their candidate.
He’s Hitler. And you’re a Nazi for supporting him. Amy Schumer called Trump voters KKK members (guess which comedy star saw her 2017 film tank at the box office?) Michael Shannon told a reporter Trump votters were ready “for the urn.”
More recently, “Scandal” star Joshua Malina called Trump voters homophobic, anti-semitic, misogynistic and transphobic.
This only intensified following the cowardly attack on protesters over the weekend in Charlottesville. Suddenly, stars like Mark Ruffalo are calling out Trump and his supporters (again) in the ugliest ways possible.
But please see our movies! See the disconnect?
Anecdotal, but Telling
This reporter is very active on social media. For the past year I’ve seen and heard conservatives rail against Hollywood like never before. They’ve had it. The celebrity rhetoric is too much – too mean, too alienating and sometimes too ill-informed.
And social media amplifies every last message coming from Tinsel Town. You can’t miss it. Select Red State dwellers wouldn’t mind sending a message by refusing to directly support Hollywood product.
It couldn’t be easier, too.
Want to see a movie in 2017? Parents have to arrange for a sitter for a night at the movies. Teens have to pool their cash to pay for the increasingly high prices of the average ticket. Families eager for an afternoon of air-conditioned fun get sticker shock at the concession stand.
That doesn’t mention those unruly patrons talk through movies, yapping to each other or on their cell phones.
Life Is But a Stream
So why aren’t we seeing a stark plunge with TV show consumption? HBO’s “Game of Thrones” keeps drawing viewers in, and everyone is taking about the latest Netflix originals.
It’s simple. Watching TV or streaming devices takes virtually no effort. A few calculated clicks and you’re suddenly asked to choose between hundreds of shows for a fraction of the price you’d pay at the theater.
Who could resist?
Now, compare that to going to the movies. Many right-leaning Americans are saying, “thanks, but no thanks.” The fact that it might send a message to an industry hostile to their world view is icing on the outrage cake.
Some may not actively wish to boycott Hollywood. But it’s a breeze to say, “what about seeing a movie?” and decide on a half dozen home-based options instead.
Battling an Ugly Stereotype
Now, there are many stars who don’t say a peep about politics. A much smaller group are magnanimous toward President Trump (see Jeff Bridges and Tom Hanks for solid examples).
The industry’s image, as a whole, is another story. Conservatives think “Hollywood” and they imagine an elitist group smiting their world views, their candidates … their values. So even if a film features a gaggle of stars who are respectful of others’ views it’s too late. The stereotype has taken hold.
You can point to a number of reasons for the sluggish summer ticket sales. Just don’t ignore the political factor. It’s real, and it may be growing.
Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Foter.com / CC BY-SA
Can’t disagree with Mr Toto. Annoying patrons is my number 2 reason for not going.
Have a projector and screen and love watching classics with my wife.
Way better than listening to teens talk and the constant glow of cell phones.
That “glow of cellphones” is something that is really hurting films. Word of mouth is already out, before the film is half over.
I’ve been watching movie ads for a bout six years, now. I’ve gone to some, but I like the idea of boycotting those stars who are unthinking followers. One person hasn’t made a difference, but the fact is, I’m not at all alone.
A simple analysis. Trump is just a symptom, go deeper. a) Hollywood (like the Dem Party, colleges, etc..) have adopted cultural Marxism b) which demonizes the great unwashed white middle and working class c) so Hollywood cannot use cultural norms, historic examples, and heroic motifs that we’ve had since Homer d) so now Hollywood can neither entertain nor educate and e) surprise! the middle class has turned away.
Yep. The bad guys always turn out to be evil military, evil corporations, corrupt cops, neo-nazis, or our own government in bed with the bad guys. Because making anyone else the bad guy would be racist.
Everything is so predictable. The exposition of the ‘twist’ comes out 90 minutes into the movie, and it so unsurprising. I’m sick and tired of it.
Give me Amazon Video and all the great movies made before 1990.
amazon is the far left, bezos is a scumbag ,owns the washington post.
Hell yeah. I wanna see Bruce Willis’s John McClane take down a bunch of towelettes with James Woods playing McClane’s nastier, older buddy.
The Trump-as-symptom point is one that is often overlooked. The other point overlooked is that going to the movies is usually a social outing. The offended Trump supporter has a group of friends, many of whom aren’t political. When the discussion comes up about what to do this weekend, there is soft pressure away from going to a movie, and toward doing something else. Before you know it, there is an 11% drop.
Love trumps Hollywood hate, too.
I can not watch movies faster than they can make ’em.
I can manage to wait for superhero films, 6!, and retarded art and/or vanity films until they hit Netflix. Perhaps not even then.
The product is crap, and the people are overpaid clowns. Why should I participate? So that I can pay $5 for a oversized cup of sugar water and $6 for some fairly crappy popcorn? I’ll pass.
Politics kills the movie industry for the conservative half of the population. So far the only movies my family has gone to this summer are Dunkirk, and Moulan. I would have gone to A Dogs Purpose, but my Golden Retriever died less than two years ago, and its too soon.
Saw Dunkirk recently, which was the first time I’ve darkened the door of theatre since Avatar (blech). It was preceded by a dozen irritating explodey superhero trailers. I might be back in another ten years, but I doubt it.
When waiting for Dunkirk to come on I actually left the theater because the trailers were so horrible. I stood outside till I heard the feature presentation fanfare.
If you’ve seen 5000 Hollywood explosiony films, you’ve seen them all.
There is more to cinema than cool explosions and shaky cameras.
Amen. My list of actors, directors and studios (Disney/Marvel) was getting so long that it’s become easier to remember the short list of people I will watch.
This summer my big movie was Dunkirk (twice, once with GF and again with a buddy). When I said as much on another comment thread, I got a snarky reply that it was a boring movie, I felt like asking him what the length of his attention span was, but figured that he’d Zone out before he could reply. Then another reply said it was just like the evacuation of Saigon in ’75. Now there is a keen understanding of history. (I forget, was it ’78 or ’79 that Ky landed in South Vietnam and liberate the country from that particular group of fascists?
Thank God for my at home library of old movies. This weekend I’m running Mrs. Miniver.
The African Queen and Moby Dick, now there you see some actual acting and dialogue.
No cool explosions though, but I’ve learned to get by without them.
The Caine Mutiny is also excellent.
I just finished the My Name Is Trinity series too.
the lion in winter
the first one
1968 – o’toole, hepburn, hopkins, dalton, and nigel terry (if youre familiar)
top5 favorite movies…
if they remade it, I dont (and dont think I want to) know of it
Agreed, they did, unfortunately, remake it…
Have you seen the ‘sequel’, “The Miniver Story”?
I stopped going to movies at the same time I proclaimed, “I will forgive Jane Fonda when the Jews forgive Hitler.”
Don’t miss movie houses. I no longer get stepped on, cussed at, sneezed over, or otherwise disrespected. I watch when and what I like. Gone are the days when I would order a soft drink at gasoline prices. And taste. No more crying little rug-rats, undisciplined miscreants, inattentive parents, and sticky floors.
It’s good to be a discriminating viewer.
You would have liked to be there the second time I went to see Dunkirk, a dick in the row in front whipped out his smart phone and began flashing it around. The old guy with the naval service cap sitting next to me leaned forward and jabbed two fingers into the kids neck and said “Shut it off”.
He did. And when the credits came up he was out of his seat and gone in a flash.
The Hollywood elites are certainly entitled to say anything they want, however, they need to understand that free speech sometimes has harsh consequences. I know that I have my list of actors and actresses whose films I will refuse to pay money to see. Sadly, the list is growing.
I see all the movies at a budget theater. Only $2.00…makes it slightly worth it.
Boy do I miss the days when (living in Ohio), I would go weekly to the two dollar place and see all the movies I wanted.
Same thing doesn’t exist in NYC, and sure does not exist where I am now, in Tel-Aviv. Btw, the one thing I changed when I moved to Israel was I gave myself permission to watch movies online – which I never would have done in the USA. So now all the old and great movies are just a click away on my laptop.
I still see movies frequently at Alamo Drafthouse, but even going almost weekly, I’ll only see a first-run movie every few months. Dunkirk and WW back to back was unusual for us (and mainly because the wife really wanted to see WW — left to my own devices I would have passed.)
In fact, let me pull up my order history… I have Unforgiven and Fight Club scheduled. Before Dunkirk, it was Spaceballs, Full Metal Jacket, Big Trouble in Little China, Twister, Office Space… I have to go back 13 Movies before I get to a first run — Civil War, in May of last year. (FWIW, I did see the Harry Potter NYC creatures movies whose name I can’t remember, but it was while visiting family out of town and was more for the shared experience than because I wanted to see it.)
Not only is Hollywood toxic now, but their movies suck too. I would see a good movie, even with the toxicity. They just aren’t putting any out. (I’m looking forward to The Death of Stalin when it hits major release.)
I read this before so it’s not an original thought. The 120-180 minute format does not give much time to tell a story, develop characters, allow a story to unfold in a rich manner. A long form TV series, on the other hand, can give the detail and unfolding nature to video that only a well written book could do. We have had long form shows before, but on demand streaming changed all that. It used to be you had to block out time to see your show, and if you missed an episode you were lost. With Netflix and others, you can start watching a great story and allow the story to develop over five seasons. TV is where the great writing resides. Movies are forgetting this.
I would say that the opposite is the problem. Cinema is an immersive experience that requires your total attention, so a shorter format is necessary to avoid audience fatigue. I find that the ideal length of a feature is 90 minutes and that the tendency of Hollywood to equate value with length is the same mistake that publishers make when they insist on turning a thin plot into a doorstep of a book.
Today, we commonly see 180 minute films that in the heyday of cinema would have been event pictures with an intermission. Now we have to sit through 240 minute features without a break and rather than being thrilled by the climax, we’re thinking about how uncomfortable the seat is and how long we can hold out against our bladder.
True, but Hollywood in the past nevertheless did know how to tell a story within the limits of the medium. They don’t know how to write a story any more. Most movies that even try have maybe at most an interesting premise or setup. But within 30 minutes the writers have lost their way, descended into formulas and cliches, or both. I usually find myself looking at my watch after about 30 minutes. Or rather, I used to. I literally can’t remember the last time I went to the movies.
I think the budgets have a lot to do with it. Decisions to green light a project are made based on precedents which encourages more of the same.
Hollywood won’t hire the writers who do know how to tell a tale. I’ve looked into screenwriting, and its all about having the right look and political leanings. They don’t look for originality anymore because they fear taking a risk on someone who isn’t part of their circle.
Not many 120+ min movies these days. 90 is closer to reality so they can have 2-3 more showings per screen per day. Leeches.
I gave up on Hollywood 15 years ago. I went from going to the movies half a dozen times a year to once a year… maybe.
You have more foresight than I do. I only gave up 5-6 years ago. OTOH I’ve been multi-plex free since that last movie. No doubt I’ve missed a good movie or two.
Last time I was in a theatre was Tarantino’s Planet Terror / Death Proof double release. Never again; not Tarantino movies, not Pervywood product.
Back in the day, I virtually had a reserved seat in the local theater for the 7pm Saturday night movie, whatever it was.
The last movie I watched in a theater was “Star Trek: First Contact”, back in ’96. I’ve watched maybe five Hollywood movies since then.
The article mentions both major reasons why – the politics of Hollywood and the declining quality of the product.
I used to go about 48 times per year. Sometime during Obama’s first term, I cut it down to twice per year. Now I don’t go at all. I was going to see “The Post”, until I read Spielberg’s politicization of it.
What spoiled it for me was it went from being “hippie Left” to “Communist Left”. It went from being we went to Woodstock and enjoyed it, to we hate deplorables. I am not and never have been a hippie, but they don’t deeply offend me.
Down to 48 this year.
This “sub human racist deplorable” does not go to the movies anymore for the reasons cited in this article. I am NOT going to spend my hard earned money to empower left wing clowns to insult me and my beliefs.
Like your tag.
Exactly.
I will not give the Hollywood traitors one single dime of mine.