Listen. Can you feel it? It's as if a million movie theater owners cried out in terror, and then, suddenly, silence. Welcome to week 20 of the never-ending box office slump.
Mindless panic is in full swing because movie theater revenue is down 7 percent from last year. After a series of movies that merely did well -- "Revenge of the Sith" ($366 million), "Hitch" ($179 million), "Madagascar" ($172 million), "Batman Begins" ($154 million) -- Spielberg's "War of the Worlds" clinched the slump by having only the second-biggest opening on a Fourth of July weekend, ever.
Clearly the industry is doomed. People just aren't going out to the movies the way they used to way back in 2004.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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quote: Get rid of the memberships that award points for ticket purchases and start awarding points based on personal behavior. If you're quiet during the movie, you get discounts toward more movies. Eventually natural selection will produce a pleasant evening for everybody.
posted
heh. That article is way cool. im still a kid so i don't mind the theater at all. I think all the noise contributes to the atmosphere. I guess some people just don't get it.
Posts: 332 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
You've written another great column there, Chris. Loved it.
I personally still go to movies because I don't have a big-screen-surround-sound home theatre system at home. I love the big screen experience. (I don't even have a DVD player at home, as far as that goes).
However, if I could ever get some of these systems like I see in some people's home, I agree there would be absolutely no reason to ever have to leave the house to see a great movie.
posted
I love the idea of a season pass for movies, and I wanna figure out a way to actually do it.
Problem 1 - Movie theaters don't make money off the ticket sales, most of that goes to the production company, distributor, and the one other thing whose name I've forgotten.
So movie theaters make their money off refreshments (now you know why so little for so much). The season pass would be great for them, but they would have a hell of a time getting everybody else on board.
Problem 2 - You'd still need a way to track what movies you're seeing, so those movies could be paid accordingly.
These aren't insurmountable, but I give up anyway.
Posts: 5462 | Registered: Apr 2005
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I have a buddy whose grandparents own a chain of theaters across the southeast (cha-ching) and I've actually played Xbox on one of the big screens, and yes, it was fantastic.
Halo hasn't been the same since.
Posts: 5462 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
How about different ticket rates for different movies? They don't charge the same for all DVDs, after all, they charge you what they think they'll get based on the movie. I can't say I'd ever go see a Rob Schneider movie even if it was only $2, but it couldn't hurt.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
All kidding aside, some of those were fantastic ideas. I love the concept of having one showing of a movie per night be adults only. Also rewarding good behavior, though that would be kind of tricky to keep track of.
And I've been wanting to play video games on the big screen since the original Dragon Warrior. Sigh.
Posts: 1814 | Registered: Jul 2004
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posted
Allowing advance ticket sales at Web sites like Fandango.com and MovieTickets.com has proven to be a huge success as moviegoers can now avoid long lines at the box office by going straight to the long line at the advance ticket kiosk. So why not let me order everything that way?
I want to step up to the kiosk and get a bucket containing my tickets, buttered popcorn, a Coke, and a Butterfinger Crisp. Ideally in separate containers.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
I would like that, but I think the theater loves the idea of the 11 dollar impulse buy (oooh, they have nachos!).
Here's a good article on where the movie grosses actually go, for anyone who's interested.
I would also like to see different ticket prices for different movies, but it'll never happen with the theater's layed out like they are now. Once you get by the velvet rope (and by that I mean the seat belt between two plastic poles) you can go see anything you want.
I'd be buying a Rob Schneider ticket every week, and then going to see the newest blockbuster.
Posts: 5462 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
Well, they could always have staff outside each theater that checks your ticket as you come in to make sure you're actually going to the movie you paid for.
Posts: 1814 | Registered: Jul 2004
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posted
Adding more staff means spending more money, which is what they're trying to get away from.
Thing is, I was trying to be funny but I kept coming up with ideas that were frivolous, but had enough truth behiund them to make you go "Hey..." Sure most of these would never work (although, hey, Tasers) but the fact is that theaters had better do something to bring people in.
Last year DVD sales and rentals brought in something like three times what theater revenue did. I love going out to movies, seeing big spectacular deals on a huge screen surrounded by the palpable nejoyment and wonder of the crowd. But I hate being insulted by the prices -- the theater closest to me stopped posting snack prices entirely, they just have package deals listed, apparently on the "if you have to ask" system -- and it's rare to see a movie anymore without wanting to punch somebody nearby.
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posted
Another thought I started to use but decided to hold back, partly because it would have diminished the impact of the ending suggestion and partly because it could be a column of its own: why do movie companies keep remaking good movies? Why not remake one that had a great plot but poor presentation or the wrong actors or a lousy director?
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
I think they think it's easy money. "Hey, we can just recycle this plot and crank out a little more revenue! It was a good movie the first time, so there's no reason why it won't be good this time, right?"
But that stinks that there are always obnoxious jerks in the theater with you. The last time I wanted to punch a fellow moviegoer was during the last James Bond movie (the one with the North Koreans and the space laser thingy). Apparently a group of Koreans had heard about the movie and decided to come and heckle.
Posts: 9945 | Registered: Sep 2002
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What I would like is a complaint buzzer on my chair. If someone is say... talking too loudly, kicking my chair, and being overly distracting.... I can simply push a button on my seat that will alert attention to where I'm sitting, then the theater people just look and if they see these rude things they first warn the people doing the stuff, then if it continues, take them out and give them a courtesy fine.
And the nicest part, I wouldn't have to expect any beatings afterwards from it being completely anonymous.
Well, on the idea of a season pass, EL JT de Sprang is right, theaters don't really make money off the tickets, so to give a pass would really cut back on total profit for the movie makers.
So, maybe what they could do is have the service digital in a membership database. You pay maybe a bit more, like $75 over $50. Then to get in the theater is much cheaper for each movie, like $2 dollars or so. Then, after the season is over, the money you spent for the pass will be split between the makers of the movies. If you saw more WB movies than anything else, they get more money than say... Disney. If you saw no Disney movies, no money goes to them.
So in the end, if you were to watch only five movies, all of them being WB over the season, they would get $85 as opposed to about 60ish.
Posts: 1831 | Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
Be a pain, as was pointed out, to figure revenue for specific movies.
How about making them more interactive? Film four or five times as many scenes as needed for a single movie and do it in a which-way style so the audience can vote on the protagonist's next move. That way you could be watching a horror movie and yell "No, don't go in there!" and they wouldn't. Then you'd be more inclined to see the movie multiple times to see what happens (or to bring more friends to stack the voting).
Of course, that requires a talented director/writer/cast to make it interesting no matter what gets chosen.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
I like the season pass idea, because it's something I could really take advantage of.
Just like anything else, if you set the price high enough, you'll make money off of the people who don't use it enough, and you'll lose money on people like me, who'll go 3 times a week as long as there's something worth seeing.
You just have to get the studios on board and assure them their revenue will stay the same, or even go up. You'd still have to pay them per ticket. You just install scanners at each theater door, and make the season pass be a magnetic strip card. Scan it, go on in. Theater pays whoever whatever they normally pay.
Everybody's happy.
Chris, another great idea that people overseas are doing (I think it's the Netherlands) is installing cell phone jammers. This is illegal here (stupid FCC) but I think this would help a ton.
Posts: 5462 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
Yeah, but I've been fooled into trying them more than once, only to decide that stale chips and tepid cheese in a yogurt container is not what good nachos are made off.
Posts: 5462 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
Good article. Something of a tangent, but I'm curious: I keep hearing about the box office slump like it's a horrible crash, but the numbers are only ever compared to last year. For movies aren't there just good years and bad years like anything else? It doesn't even sound like this is a "bad" year, more of an average year and last year was really good. Does every summer movie have to top the one before it to be considered succesful?
I don't really follow the numbers side of movies that closely, so if anybody does please let me know what's going on.
quote:I keep hearing about the box office slump like it's a horrible crash, but the numbers are only ever compared to last year.
That was why I was... we'll go with "mildly sarcastic" in the beginning of the column. Sales are indeed down from last year. Last year when "Passion of the Christ" made a ton of money from people who don't generally go to movies, and aren't likely to come back in to watch Tom Cruise. "War of the Worlds" didn't break the slump because it somehow failed by being only the 2nd best Fourth of July weekend opening in history, not up to Spider-Man 2's record-setting take. Which was also last year.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Chris Bridges: Allowing advance ticket sales at Web sites like Fandango.com and MovieTickets.com has proven to be a huge success as moviegoers can now avoid long lines at the box office by going straight to the long line at the advance ticket kiosk. So why not let me order everything that way?
I don't get these services. If you buy the tickets online you still have to wait in line to pick up the tickets and there is a dollar service fee. At least that was the way it worked the only time I tried to use movieticket.com. The only reason I can think of to do it is to guarantee you have ticket if you think it might sell out.
As far as the slump goes, the number of tickets sold as dropped each year since 2000, they have just made more money each year because of higher ticket prices. One of the main reasons: DVD releases keep getting closer to the theater release date. The average DVD used to be release 188 days after the release date, but now it is down to 130. sooner for movies that flop. So most people figure I’ll just wait and see it on video in 4 months.
Another major complaint is the rising price. It cost a family of four $50 to see a movie if they get a few concessions. Or they can buy the DVD for $19.99.
The next big complaint from Hollywood will be DVD burning. My roommate has a burner and makes a copy of every DVD he rents (less than $1 ea.) he now have like 400. So as soon as everyone upgrades their computer and sales start to drop Hollywood will be joining the music industry to fight illeagel burning.
Posts: 555 | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
If you go to a movie on opening night, or even just a popular one on Friday or Saturday night, buying tickets online is handy. Ever been stuck in line to buy tickets? You can usually walk right up to the kiosk -- which is not at the box office, but off to the side -- stick your credit card in, and get your prepaid tickets printed out immediately. Very handy.
Also good for movies that will sell out quickly, like the Serenity advance screenings that sold out two weeks before the showing, in some places as fast as five minutes after they were put on sale.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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quote:You can even require that for every three action movies I see I have to watch something with subtitles.
I loved that.
Actually, just to rant, I haven't had too many bad experiences with rude people in my theater. I guess I've just been lucky. But on Monday night, during WotW, there were all of 20 people in the theater, all spread out...and there were two guys down my row, sitting two seats away from each other (I guess so they didn't have to share armrests) who narrated the ENTIRE MOVIE IN SPANISH to one another. Loudly. No amount of 'shhh' or even (in my case) angry eye contact with them would shut them up. It was SO irritating.
I support the tasers.
Posts: 6415 | Registered: Jul 2000
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posted
I've gotten to where I prefer to watch movies at home.
I can snuggle on the couch with my husband, put my feet up, eat homemade popcorn with more flavor and a lot less fat, stop the movie if I need more popcorn or a potty break so I don't miss anything, and it's a heckuva lot less expensive.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
Chris, I did catch the sarcasm at the beginning. I know you weren't really foreseeing the doom of the industry. I asked the tangent question because I've seen articles other places that WERE and sounded serious about it.
I like both theaters and home viewing. I consider them very different experiences and both are good. For my new apartment I'm getting a widescreen ratio tv, because I watch more DVDs than I do regular tv shows.
For tickets: One of the theaters around here has little automated ticket machines in the lobby. They're like an ATM for movie tickets. The great part is almost nobody realizes they're there! You can bypass a huge line by just heading over to the corner and getting your ticket yourself. I didn't even know about them until ElJay pointed them out, but now I love 'em.
It's a chart of the dollars spent on movies since 1948 (be warned, it only lists figures for like 10 random years) and what percentage of this money went to the theater (as opposed to VHS/DVD sales).
I also love the kiosks. There's never a line, and with my ATM skills, I can order tickets for everyone in under a minute.
Posts: 5462 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
They don't have the kiosks in SC. so you still have to wait in line to pick up the tickets wheather you buy them ahead or not.
Posts: 555 | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
I'm a fan of the kiosks for ticket buying, and I'm pretty sure interactive movies (with the audience voting using buttons on the armrest) have actually been done, although I can't cite chapter and verse offhand.
As for season tickets, I know of one independent nonprofit movie house that does something like that, but I imagine the economics would be different for a more traditional theatre.
Posts: 884 | Registered: Mar 2005
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quote:watching someone else play Sims 2 for a couple hours would probably be better than any given Tim Allen movie.
Especially if it was one of my games. Filled with all manners of debauchery.
quote: How about Pop-Up Video-style footnotes that offer behind-the scenes tidbits during the movie? "This popular action star was shot at and later divorced by his wife because of this scene right ... here!"
Great article, especially the part about SNL movies. I hate SNL movies. 99% of the time they are lousy.
Posts: 9942 | Registered: Mar 2003
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posted
I just go to artsy theatres where there are four people in the audience and a great movie in front of you .
Posts: 8473 | Registered: Apr 2003
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BTW I've been to a theater that had a crying room with a giant plate glass window and piped in sound for parents whose child was temporarily too loud for the crowd.
Posts: 270 | Registered: Apr 2004
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posted
i still don't get why the movie industry thinks we should care about a slump. 2004 was a record year, you can't expect record years every year. If they were really concerned about fixing the slump ticket prices would be lowered. The truth is Hollywood is making more money then ever thanks to DVD's. Look at Fox, it has turned canceling shows in their primes into a lucrutive cash cow. Also internation sales often time 2 times larger then domestic Box office. Just look at Kingdom of Heaven. It "only" made 47 million here in the states, but over 162 million overseas.
Posts: 796 | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
Great article. I work at a movie theatre and I couldn't agree more. Between kids sneaking into R-rated movies, old film projectors that keep blowing up in my face, and verbal sexual abuse from our older customers...I don't get paid enough.
Ticket prices are too high but we don't get any money, the corporations force us to waste an 100-seat theatre on the movie "Rize" which sold ZERO tickets while I was working yesterday, and even when we sell-out a screen, we have to refund 30 seats later because some bratty kids got their butts kicked out.
I know from a financial perspective, the whole "slump summer" idea may seem bizarre, but its happening. Sure, War of the Worlds is making money but my theatres hasn't sold out a big screen (250 seats) since Star Wars 3. People aren't showing up for movies anymore. I can't blame them though. I get free passes to movies and I'll see probably 5 movies this entire summer, and three of those will probably be forced on me by friends.
I think the romance that audiences previously had with the film industry is gone. Movie theatres have become baby-sitting services for people who want to drop off their 8- and 10-year olds for the afternoon.
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2005
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quote:Rent out theaters to anyone with a video out hookup. I think people would pay to play Battlefield 2 on a 70-foot screen, and watching someone else play Sims 2 for a couple hours would probably be better than any given Tim Allen movie.
Haha I love that because aside from the fact that the people in my house have been swept up in the Sims 2 love, there are definately ppl in my house who also just sit there watching others play Mario or Diddy Kong Racing.
Posts: 2867 | Registered: May 2005
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posted
It is as I thought. The mojor studios are still making tons of money...in fact...
quote: The six major studios -- Paramount, Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, Disney, Universal, and Sony -- actually took in more money from their movies in the first half of 2005 ($3.2 billion) than they did in the same period in 2004 ($2.7 billion), the online Slate magazine observed today (Friday). Although the box office declined by 7 percent overall, the magazine observed, the loss came from lower revenue for independent releases. (The independently released The Passion of the Christ and Fahrenheit 911 alone accounted for $500 million of last year's box office.)
posted
Someone said that 'noise in the theater' contributes to the atmosphere.
That is one of the most retarded things I have ever read in my life.
I'm not at a ball game, people. I'm at a movie where I want to pay attention.
Austin has these great theaters called Alamo Draft Houses. No kids under 18 allowed, except on Tuesday, which is baby-day (just avoid the Draft House on Tuesdays), you can order dinner, anything from pasta to hamburgers to pizza, drink some beer while watching the movie (buckets of beer are 8 bucks) and they encourage people in the audience to report people that are loud, or talking on a mobile phone and the like. You just notify the waiter, and they are quieted immediately. If that doesn't work, they are escorted out of the building.
Alamo Draft House Theaters > everything.
Posts: 317 | Registered: Feb 2005
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