Box Office Numbers, Why Care?

[Marine Mike]

A question has been bothering me for the past week that I just can't seem to figure out. Its been brought up on several threads here on Blu-Ray.com, but it hasn't been directly addressed from what I noticed.

How does box office numbers affect the consumer, you and I?

I mean, there are numerous threads about people speculating as to how much a movie will make opening weekend. I've gathered that some think that if the movie is a good movie that it'll do well at the box office. Others think that it doesn't matter how good a movie is as long as the hype is high then it'll do well.

Though one thing that hasn't been answered to me is, Why should I care if a movie does well at the box office? Sure some people on here may be apart of the film and be financially invested and will make monetary gains if it succeeds, but I highly doubt it. Will the movie be better when it goes on sale with more special features? More of a chance with a sequel featuring more of the original actors if not more successfully?

So far I've gathered on my own research and opinion that movie ticket sales do not correlate as to how good the movie is as its all subjective.

Me personally I'm looking for a good response so I can care more about these figures a lot of people seem so invested in and seem to take personally if a movie doesn't do well at the box office.

Please don't get me wrong as I'm not trying to attack people that care about how well a movie does at a box office, but so much as learn as to why as I can understand this better.

[DetroitSportsFan]

People who like a film want it to do well so there will be sequels.

The same can be said about genres. For example, if a few horror films do well, there will be more horror films made. Unfortunately, this also applies to the parody movies.

[Grimshaw23]

Bigger box office numbers means possible sequel in the future. I don't know about you but the majority of movies that had big box office number are usually good movies. It made money for a reason.

[Blu Titan]

Obviously, a big box office is not an indication of how good the movie is. However, the movie's profitability assures more of the same type of film being made. For example, after the finacial success of Sex and the City this year, you can safely bet that more chick flicks will be produced and heavily marketed in the upcoming Summers. I also have some fun keeping up with the Box Office tallies.

[dgator783]

I keep an eye on it because its fun to predict and ive been playing www.hsx.com for the last 7 years.....lol.....which box office results count....basically u invest in a movie stock based on how well u think it will preform overall....it lists movies that are coming out or might be coming out in the next 4-5 yrs....if its at least a concept (ex. Back to the Future 4, Aliens 5) or in development (Superman sequel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows pt.1and 2) its listed.....its pretty neat and addictive and free to play....im ranked in the top 99% tile out of a few million players (ranked 2188)....you start off that 2 million dollars (im worth 544,489,000).....i recommend it to all movie geeks like myself

[GreenScar]

It is fun. But to expand on what others are saying, if you have a favorite director, you want him to do well so he'll get his picks of better projects. The same goes for actors/actresses. For some directors, if their numbers are consistent enough, they may get the coveted 'final cut' of the film overruling even the studios.

You could say the same about Football for example. Passer ratings, all the statistics...When it all comes down to it, it's one that matters and that's the big W in the Superbowl. In movies, the stat that matters most (to most of us anyway) is if it's good or not.

[obiwopkenobi62]

There are many movies that make very little money that are great in my opinion. There are also a lot of movies that are blockbusters that are not great. I will give an example. While I like the following movies movies I don't think they were great and they made tons of money.
Jurassic Park
Twister
Independance Day
Spiderman
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
The Mummy
Star wars The Phantom Menace(and I'm a Star Wars nut)

Now here are a few that weren't blockbusters but I think they were fantastic movies.

La Femme Nikita
Memento
The Usual Suspects
From Hell
Equilibrium
Reign of Fire

Then you have some blockbusters I loved
Almost all the Star Wars movies
Iron Man
Pirates of the Caribbean Curse of the Black Pearl
The Incredible Hulk
Batman Begins

I don't think a blockbuster definitively means great movie. To me it means great advertising and marketing across a wide demographic. If you can make everyone want to see your movie then it will more than likely be a blockbuster, but it doesn't mean absolutely great movie.
There are a lot of movies that could have been blockbusters but were barely marketed. They seem to get abandoned and only put in a handful of theaters. They don't stand a chance.
Just my two cents. I think I started rambling.

[Slackr89]

personally i dont really care...if i like a movie then great. i dont care how many people went to go see it.

[rubberghost]

i could care less about the numbers.

[BirdManJr]

If ebert and roper give it there approval thats the only way i will view or let my family view the movie..

I'm kidding....thats stupid....But all the movies i like even if they get bad reviews somehow make a killing at the box office....

[statikcat]

It can dictate sequels.. and if you are a big fan of a movie or franchise you want to see it do well. That, and it's just a nerdy thing fans like looking at.

The real question is : Why do you care that we care? Maybe you are just curious - which is probably how most people you are referring to feel about box office $. Just because we talk about it doesn't mean (in every case) we really care that much.

[Marine Mike]

First of all, thank you very much for all of your responses.

I do have to say that for the most part the responses have been pointing toward the direction of sequels.

Though I did however find a response that peaked my interest which stated that if a certain type of movie did well at the box office then it indicated that more movies like it would be produced. I can see the trend of that with the Comic Books doing well with the start of Spiderman.

So apparently the bottom line is that if a movie does well at the box office then its a good indicater that there will be a sequel as well as more movies of that genre to be made in the near future.

Again, thanks for your responses as its made me have a richer apprecition for the box office.

[DeathByAsh'aman]

Originally Posted by DetroitSportsFan

The same can be said about genres. For example, if a few horror films do well, there will be more horror films made. Unfortunately, this also applies to the parody movies.

Thats why i care about some of the numbers, mainly the genres i enjoy.

Kind of on a different note, thats why i care about the #'s on blu movies like Tekkonkinkreet, Paprika, Appleseed, etc. I want them to do well so more of this genre makes it to blu.

[Cplhicks]

Sequels, yes, but I also believe it means a certain genre has a better shot. Why do you think there were a bunch of attempts at fantasy films after LOTR? There are other reasons as well-- if you like a certain actor/actress/diretor, if their movie does well, they will be the hot item and get more work. If they bomb consistently, they are going to be on the outs in Hollywood. If you want to see the same director on a sequel, box office will effect that as well. Lastly, box office effects your ability to see it in theaters. If you don't go the first weekend, the box office will determine how long you have to see it. If it bombs, it's gone in a week or two. If it's a huge, long running hit, it will be around for a couple months at least.

[owa]

If it's a movie I like, I want it to do well so that there will be sequels or other movies in that genre (as others have mentioned) or so that they'll be more likely to finish a series. I've been really worried about the numbers for Prince Caspian, for example. I'd like them to complete The Chronicles of Narnia but with the way things are going, I'm afraid that won't happen.

[ThePhantomOak]

Bigger box office means a LOT of things. First, the studio will make more movies that have the same genetics (ie more of the same).

2. the Home Movie will be treated better (more extra's, better PQ, etc).

3. Be in theaters longer (if you really like Iron Man, you could wait a couple months and still be able to see it on a huge screen).



Mega box office hits like Iron Man and Spiderman gives studios reason to make bigger budget action movies, and I like the thrill. It also gives the Studio money to risk on real movies that are more than blockbusters.

Minor hits like the 6th sense can give shamalama an excuse to keep making movies for a few decades (good or horrible).




There are some good reasons.


My real reason is because I like to hear big numbers attached to things. Waterworld and Iron Mans numbers both bottle my mind, but the numbers go different ways.

[Grant Matrix]

In addition to all the sequal posts, as a fan of Blus and DVDs how much money a movie grosses is very important because it is going to determine how much time, money and energy a studio will invest in it's home video release of that movie, for example bare bones DVD vs. ultimate two disc special edition Blu ray set, not to mention how fast it will get to the home video market.

If Cloverfield didn't make the money it did, it probably would not exist on Blu and I would be very sad. If Lord of the Rings was not the gigantic cash cow it was, we might very well have never seen extended editions. If the Harry Potter movies didn't bring as much money as they did WB would not have taken a chance and released them on high def.

Movie profits have a huge impact on home video market as studios hope to replciate that success and make even more money.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by DetroitSportsFan

People who like a film want it to do well so there will be sequels.

All I can think about, is how many great movies have been tarnished because of crappy sequel's being made......

Please stop with the sequels!!!!!

[olds403]

I also do not care about the numbers, either I like it or I don't. Either I go see it or I don't, other than that it doesn't matter.