>>>>terrible reviews doesn't necessarily mean people won't go
>>>see
>>>>it.
>>>>
>>>>That being said, however, a $17 mil opening weekend for a
>>>film
>>>>that cost $65 mil to make (+ God only knows how much in
>>>>marketing since they've been running ads since March) is
>>not
>>>>good. That's not even "black movie" good (which is $20 mil
>>>>opening weekend and a sharp drop off afterwards).
>>>
>>>Actually, the film is now on pace to do $19 plus
>>mill...(i.e.
>>>$20 mil) the first weekend....
>>
>>$19 million does not round up to $20 mil in Hollywood
>>bean-counter numbers...trust me, it does not.
>
>
>
>That number is viewed as a success given that people were
>ready to bury Annie because of the low ratings it received on
>RT (as if that mattered) and that massive leak...If you read
>most of the stories about Annie this weekend people are saying
>that it is on pace to do much better than early
>expectations...

I suppose. Box Office Mojo certainly predicted it low, but BoxOffice.com predicted an $18 mil opening.


>
>
>>>It's a good number considering that other musicals that
>have
>>>cracked over $100 mill have tracked much in the same way...
>>
>>Where did you get this from? Of the five musicals that have
>>made more than $100 mil in the last 15 years - Chicago,
>>Dreamgirls, Hairspray, Mamma Mia!, and Les Mis - the ones
>that
>>had standard openings posted $27 mil the first weekend.
>>Chicago and Dreamgirls both opened limited and then opened
>>wider, never having big weekends but trying to ride the wave
>>of Oscar nods (which Annie is not likely to get, save for
>>maybe technicals).
>
>
>The tracking I was speaking of was critical tracking....And as
>far as the actual numbers it was being reported that Annie was
>going to do between $12 to $15 mil this weekend....
>
>Now it looks like it's going to do more...And the actual word
>of mouth for the film has been very positive beyond
>reviews...


This we can be in agreeance on - "Annie" apparently has an A- CinemaScore.
>
>
>>The outlier is "Enchanted", a summer Disney film that opened
>>to $34 million and made good money.
>
>>None of these opened in the teens.
>
>
>>And
>>>the fact that Annie has been leaked in a huge way
>>>matters...But in spite of that it's doing better than
>>>expected...
>>
>>It's doing better than expected considering the hack and the
>>bad reviews, but it's still not doing _well_.
>
>That's not what the trade magazines are saying...And they make
>it their business to point out a flop...
>
>
>>>If this was an October release u would have a point...But
>>what
>>>u fail to understand is Annie is the only kid's movie out
>>this
>>>holiday season....
>>
>>-Night at the Museum 3 (also opened this weekend)
>>-Penguins of Madagascar (still in wide release)
>>-Big Hero 6 (still in wide release)
>
>
>Night of the Museum 3 is the only movie battling with Annie as
>noted in the piece I posted (they are neck and neck in terms
>of box office returns...)...Those other films are still in the
>top 10 but are not being viewed as new releases....They have
>already done their numbers...This holiday run is icing on the
>cake for them....

They're still in theaters, however, still in the top ten, and neither film has really made all the money it could or should have (compared to previous Disney or DreamWorks holiday animated releases), so they should still be considered competition when families look at what to see at the movies on Christmas.
>
>I think the following point made in Variety capture my
>point...word of mouth will help Annie:
>
>"Meanwhile, Sony’s “Annie” debuted to $5.3 million on
>Friday at the U.S. box office. The musical is en route to an
>opening just between $18 million and $19 million, although the
>studio estimates a more modest $16 million to $17 million.This
>is a welcomed victory for Sony, which is still reeling from
>the fallout following its decision to pull “The Interview”
>from theaters. The film’s A- CinemaScore may also be a good
>sign of things to come."

Studios _always_ try to underestimate their opening weekends, so that they can go "OMG! We did so well!" on Sunday evening/Monday morning. This is a thing.
>
>>Also, this is not the time where movies look
>>>to clean up box office wise...It's during the weekend
>>gearing
>>>up to Christmas and the weekend after....
>>
>>This IS the weekend gearing up to Christmas. Christmas is on
>>Thursday. Did you mean the week _of_ Christmas or Christmas
>>Day in particular?
>>>
>>>Annie will end up clearing around $40 to $50 mil by the end
>>of
>>>next week...And will get even more during the Christmas
>>>weekend...
>>
>>That's an extremely generous estimate. It may hit $40 mil if
>>it's lucky. It'll need one fucking hell of a word of mouth
>>boost to fight the bad reviews tho.
>>>
>>>And yeah...Black self esteem means little when it comes to
>>>adults...When it comes to kids though? Any positive image
>of
>>a
>>>black child helps....
>>
>>Black self esteem means little when it comes to adults? Are
>>you trolling me?
>
>Let me explain...
>
>Black adults getting self esteem from movies...That's what I'm
>talking about...Seeing positive images on a movie screen
>doesn't really mean as much for adults than it does for
>kids...For kids it means the world...
>

But in 2014, with multimedia practically everywhere, couldn't parents and/or kids find as many positive images of black people as they want anyplace besides in one new movie?