"Valentine's Day" smashes President's Day weekend record

[JacksonArcher]

This President's Day had a variety of different choices for moviegoers and the clear winner was Gerry Marshall's Valentine's Day, which has earned an estimated $66.8 million this past weekend. The romantic comedy, staring every actor known to man, had a production budget of $52 million. The previous record holder for the President's Day weekend was Ghost Rider with $52 million. Rumors have been circulating over another version of the story -- called New Year's Day -- which Marshall has been wanting to direct. Well, looks like Marshall is going to get his wish.

In second place comes Chris Columbus' fantasy epic Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, staring Logan Lerman, Catherine Keener, Pierce Brosnan and Sean Bean, which earned an estimated $38 million. The film is a success and has earned significantly higher in its opening weekend than other failed fantasy pictures (The Spiderwick Chronicles and Bridge to Terabithia) but still earned only a fraction of what the Harry Potter films make in their opening weekend. The film cost $95 million.

In third place this holiday weekend is Joe Johnson's The Wolfman, starring Benecio del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt and Hugo Weaving. The film earned an estimated $36 million, which is not bad but not great either, especially after all of the problems that plagued the production, from director Mark Romanek leaving the production, to Jon Johnson coming onboard just three weeks prior to filming, to the change of composers at the last minute. The film has a budget of $150 million, and one must guess some of that had come from the last minute reshuffling and various edits the studio had to endure to properly shape the film.

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[tomalak301]

What I'd like to know is where are all hte movies up for awards playing. Last week a movie like Precious started appearing in theaters I could actually get to, and I was like, "hey, they're finally coming out because it's award season." Well, on Friday I noticed all the bigger theaters that were playing Precious took it out in favor of movies like Wolfman, Valentines Day, and Parcy Jackson. I know those were the new releases, but I think the reason why the Oscars no longer resonate with people is quite clear. You get a movie nominated for Best Picture despite the fact that other than independent theaters, they don't play anywhere. This year especially has been near the worst in terms of what comes out in limited release and what should be released.

 

[Daneel]

I'll be interested in seeing what sort of a drop-off Valentine's Day has next weekend now that it's namesake is over with. Not that it'll really matter much, as it's already a success, even if it takes a dive next weekend. Still, the only major new release for this Friday is Shutter Island, so the lack of rom-com competition might result in Valentine's Day scoring another decent haul thanks to the date-movie crowd. Well, we'll find out soon enough...

In second place comes Chris Columbus' fantasy epic Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, staring Logan Lerman, Catherine Keener, Pierce Brosnan and Sean Bean, which earned an estimated $38 million. The film is a success and has earned significantly higher in its opening weekend than other failed fantasy pictures (The Spiderwick Chronicles and Bridge to Terabithia)[...]

I wouldn't really say those films "failed". The Spiderwick Chronicles was a bit of a disappointment, yes, given its $90 million budget and $162.8 million worldwide haul (about $71.2 million of which came from North America), but it certainly wasn't a flop or anything. And Bridge to Terabithia made $137.6 million worldwide ($82.3 million domestically); on an estimated budget of only $20 million, that's actually pretty good. Percy Jackson looks to be moderately successful, depending on what kind of legs it has.

Given the budget for The Wolfman, though, I think it would be fairly safe to label it a dud.

 

[JacksonArcher]

I wouldn't really say those films "failed". The Spiderwick Chronicles was a bit of a disappointment, yes, given its $90 million budget and $162.8 million worldwide haul (about $71.2 million of which came from North America), but it certainly wasn't a flop or anything.

I say "failed" because obviously studios are trying to make franchises out of these pictures. Alas, no sequel ever spawned from either The Spiderwick Chronicles or...

And Bridge to Terabithia made $137.6 million worldwide ($82.3 million domestically); on an estimated budget of only $20 million, that's actually pretty good.

... Bridge to Terabithia. Despite the success, it didn't make a splash.

Percy Jackson looks to be moderately successful, depending on what kind of legs it has.

We'll have to wait and see. I think it has a good chance at spawning good legs and meriting sequel potential, probably more than either of the other aforementioned two.

Given the budget for The Wolfman, though, I think it would be fairly safe to label it a dud.

Not yet. We'll see what happens leg-wise. After all, Batman Begins opened around the same (with a similar budget) and earned over $200 million, so it is safe to say The Wolfman has a chance at earning back its budget.

 

[Thestral]

Alas, no sequel ever spawned from either The Spiderwick Chronicles or...

And Bridge to Terabithia made $137.6 million worldwide ($82.3 million domestically); on an estimated budget of only $20 million, that's actually pretty good.

... Bridge to Terabithia. Despite the success, it didn't make a splash.

The fact that you think Bridge to Terabithia was intended to have a sequel (let alone be some sort of fantasy franchise) is really quite bizarre. And somewhat troubling, considering the clear closure and finality it presented.

 

[CaptainCanada]

The Spiderwick Chronicles wasn't really supposed to be a franchise either; they adapted all five books into one movie (in condensed form).

 

[JacksonArcher]

I'm not familiar with either franchise, but going by the presumption that most studios would like to milk fantasy pictures for all their worth. Clearly, none of them were as successful as the Harry Potter and/or Lord of the Rings films, which are the mold. Do you think films like the aforementioned two were not made as a direct consequence of trying to replicate and capitalize on the successful formula of the Harry Potter films?

 

[shivkala]

I can't even imagine what a Bridge to Terabithia sequel would be about! The story is so self-contained and unique (not to mention there is only the book, no sequel was ever published). The closest thing (and really, not that similar) would be The Never Ending Story and look how its sequels did (though technically, the second movie is just the adaptation of the second half of the book, though it's the last movie based on anything by the author).

 

[Thestral]

I'm not familiar with either franchise, but going by the presumption that most studios would like to milk fantasy pictures for all their worth. Clearly, none of them were as successful as the Harry Potter and/or Lord of the Rings films, which are the mold. Do you think films like the aforementioned two were not made as a direct consequence of trying to replicate and capitalize on the successful formula of the Harry Potter films?

Ah, sorry, I didn't realize you were unfamiliar (and I don't know Spiderwick, so I can only speak to Terabithia.) I pretty much agree with shivkala's thoughts which I quoted below.

The marketing done for Bridge to Terabithia (and especially the trailers) was probably designed to "replicate and capitalize" on the Harry Potter craze. Well, Narnia actually, as it was made by the same production company as did the Narnia films.

The problem is, that was incredibly misleading marketing as the fantastical elements take up no more than 10-15 minutes of screentime max, and aren't at all what the film's about; the fantastical stuff is metaphorical/exaggeration. It was based on a novel, which has no sequel or any clear intent that there's more story to tell. Despite the misleading marketing, the film stays very close to the book in that regard, and ends with a good sense of closure and finality.

ETA: It's nowhere near as dark as this, but it would be akin to making a sequel or franchise of Pan's Labyrinth.

I can't even imagine what a Bridge to Terabithia sequel would be about! The story is so self-contained and unique (not to mention there is only the book, no sequel was ever published).

Part of what makes it kind of unique is that it was written as a sort of therapeutic work to help cope with a similar tragedy.

 

[cardinal biggles]

I'm not familiar with either franchise, but going by the presumption that most studios would like to milk fantasy pictures for all their worth. Clearly, none of them were as successful as the Harry Potter and/or Lord of the Rings films, which are the mold. Do you think films like the aforementioned two were not made as a direct consequence of trying to replicate and capitalize on the successful formula of the Harry Potter films?

Inasmuch as they're looking for other fantasy-themed juvenile and teen lit they can adapt, yes, Spiderwick and Terabithia were both begat from the success of Harry Potter. Neither property lends itself well to becoming a franchise, though. Terabithia is a single novel, and a Newbery Award winner at that, so you can imagine the negative reaction from parents and educators if a second film were to pop up without source material. As for Spiderwick, as CaptainCanada pointed out, they adapted all five novels into a single feature-length film. The Spiderwick novels are really short (~130 pages each), so to try and do a franchise, you'd have ended up with a lot of padding (something that tripped up Prince Caspian, IMO).

 

[JacksonArcher]

The marketing done for Bridge to Terabithia (and especially the trailers) was probably designed to "replicate and capitalize" on the Harry Potter craze. Well, Narnia actually, as it was made by the same production company as did the Narnia films.

The problem is, that was incredibly misleading marketing as the fantastical elements take up no more than 10-15 minutes of screentime max, and aren't at all what the film's about; the fantastical stuff is metaphorical/exaggeration. It was based on a novel, which has no sequel or any clear intent that there's more story to tell. Despite the misleading marketing, the film stays very close to the book in that regard, and ends with a good sense of closure and finality.

Ah, well, thank you for explaining that. I had no idea what Bridge to Terabithia was about! However, now that you mention it, I do seem to recall some complaints with people at the time of the film's release who were unfamiliar with the story over how overly marketed the fantasy elements were and how the story was relatively non-fantastical. So perhaps that is why some think it was a failure, because it didn't live up to the standards of Harry Potter when it was never meant to (also, additionally, I also read on Box Office Mojo about the "failure" of Bridge to Terabithia which was the source calling it and The Spiderwick Chronicles failures).

 

[Daneel]

Yeah, as others have said, The Spiderwick Chronicles and Bridge to Terabithia weren't really created with sequels in mind, largely due to the finite source material (although had they been huge successes, I'm sure some studio head would have pushed for sequels regardless ). And I agree with Kestrel that Bridge to Terabithia barely even qualifies as fantasy; I certainly wouldn't describe it as such. There are some fantastical elements (that take place in the imaginations of the young protagonists), but overall I would say it's more of a coming-of-age story -- and, IMO, a pretty good one too.

I think better examples of "failed" fantasy films that were intended to become franchises (and ride the Potter wave) would be The Golden Compass (although it fared much better overseas than it did in North America) and the more recent Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant, both of which were based on series of books.

 

[cardinal biggles]

^There was also that utterly shite attempt to adapt Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising sequence. What a perfectly good waste of Ian McShane.

eta: There was also Inkheart, with Brendan Fraser, and Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker. Neither one of them did terribly well.

 

[Thestral]

... you'd have ended up with a lot of padding (something that tripped up Prince Caspian, IMO).

Honestly I think a bigger problem there was lack of promotion and most importantly releasing it at the wrong time, because I think the movie itself was a better adaptation. Which is why I'm glad Voyage of the Dawn Treader has gone back to a holiday release instead of going up against comic-book blockbusters.

Ah, well, thank you for explaining that. I had no idea what Bridge to Terabithia was about! However, now that you mention it, I do seem to recall some complaints with people at the time of the film's release who were unfamiliar with the story over how overly marketed the fantasy elements were and how the story was relatively non-fantastical.

No problem! It's funny, because one of my biggest concerns and why I didn't see it until the DVD came out was because it looked like they'd completely butchered the lovely story to do a Potter/Narnia escapade movie. Now I think it's fantastic.

So perhaps that is why some think it was a failure, because it didn't live up to the standards of Harry Potter when it was never meant to (also, additionally, I also read on Box Office Mojo about the "failure" of Bridge to Terabithia which was the source calling it and The Spiderwick Chronicles failures).

le sigh... and thus we see how poorly-done marketing can make or break a film and influence perception of it for years to come. I've read complaints from parents who were absolutely horrified at plot twist and can't believe that Little Johnny had to be put through that. Which is darkly funny, since they were looking for a family-friendly combat epic.

And I agree with Kestrel that Bridge to Terabithia barely even qualifies as fantasy; I certainly wouldn't describe it as such. There are some fantastical elements (that take place in the imaginations of the young protagonists), but overall I would say it's more of a coming-of-age story -- and, IMO, a pretty good one too.

Tis a favorite of mine. Loved that book.

 

[23skidoo]

Percy Jackson looks to be moderately successful, depending on what kind of legs it has.

We'll have to wait and see. I think it has a good chance at spawning good legs and meriting sequel potential, probably more than either of the other aforementioned two.

Its main problem is it's come out too early. Once Deathly Hallows II is released next year there will be a huge demand for "the next Harry Potter" and the next Twilight, too, as that series only has another film or two left as well. Had Percy Jackson been released in the fall of 2011 or in 2012 it might have been in a better position to latch onto being "the next big thing". That said, if this first film is a huge hit, perhaps the idea is that Percy Jackson II will be the film that'll cash in on the post-Potter world.

I wouldn't be too surprised to see new go-arounds attempted with things like Lemony Snicket and Spiderwick, too. Only problem is the kids would have to be recast. Harry Potter's barely managed to get away with it, and in some of the paparazzi shots kicking around of the filming of Deathly Hallows, Daniel Radcliffe looks like he's almost 30, instead of 17.

Alex

 

[Aragorn]

What? No shout out for the cheap knockoff series Eragon?

 

[cardinal biggles]

Oh, yeah, I knew I was forgetting something.