I gave up on getting riled over movie stats a long time ago. How much a movie grosses, how well it gets received by critics and how many awards it wins are all things that are out of my hands, so what’s the use of any frustration? All that really matters at the end of the day is how much I liked the movie itself. That being said, I’m tremendously disappointed by SCOTT PILLGRIM VS. THE WORLD’s box office performance this past weekend. It was really one of the best movies I’ve seen all year and certainly one of the most endlessly-fun experiences I’ve ever had at the movies...
...and it only grossed $10 million.
So what happened?Everybody’s got an opinion. And there’s been a lot of commentary at the LA Times, Deadline, Geeks of Doom and ComicsBeat, to name only just a few.
I think the answer’s as basic as it being really, really unfortunate timing to open this against THE EXPENDABLES and EAT, PRAY, LOVE. Both movies were already counter-programming eachother - - the ultimate guy’s movie vs. the ultimate chick flick, an ensemble throwback to the macho 80s action vs. a darling of Oprah’s book club. So what did that make SCOTT PILGRIM? Counter-programming to counter-programming? The movie was a hybrid of romantic comedy and kung fu action - - something that could straddle the gender lines and make for a great date movie on any other weekend. If they’d opened it against PIRANHA 3D, NANNY MCPHEE RETURNS, TAKERS or anything else coming out in the rest of August, I think it would’ve cleaned up. But most people only see one movie on a weekend and this positioning forced casual audiences to choose.
Another explanation is that too many free, advanced screenings cut into the core audience (something that supposedly hurt SERENITY’s performance as well.) I don't have any numbers before me, but that sounds like it'd be a reasonable contribution. If fans have already seen a movie for free, how many are really going to pay to see it again?
I wonder if this might represent a generational divide, too. Everybody keeps saying how "anybody over 35" doesn't get this or KICK-ASS. Well, KICK-ASS did alright at the theaters (some called it an underperformer,) but now Bleeding Cool's pointing out that it's making a lot of money on Blu-Ray, DVD and download. Maybe it’s just an issue of the "young people" preferring to watch it at home, just a few months later, instead of in a packed, noisy theater?
Regardless, seeing this movie debut at #5 and get labeled a flop already is a bitter pill to swallow. Especially when it's getting so many good reviews. I haven't seen any other movies more than once this year, but I'm making a point to go see this again and as for you Comic Vine maniacs, if you haven't seen this movie...
GO SEE IT!
Tom Pinchuk’s the writer of HYBRID BASTARDS! & UNIMAGINABLE. Order them on Amazon here & here.
