January - February Mediocre Releases

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  • January - February Mediocre Releases

    So, this is the time of year studios release things that didn't quite turn out as good as they hoped. Some of these were moderately high budget disasters, but I have not seen any of these. If anyone wants to comment on the reasons for these misfires, or if someone here has actually viewed them, it is always good to learn lessons from box office bombs.


    Some of the disappointments (financially or critically or both):

    Title with box office (in millions) so far:

    Blackhat $7.8
    Mortdecai $7.5
    Exodus $65
    Top Five $25
    Strange Magic $10


    Some commonalities: Not 'franchises' or super heroes. Original screenplays? Hard to market (title, theme)??

  • #2
    Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

    Originally posted by RogerOThornhill View Post
    So, this is the time of year studios release things that didn't quite turn out as good as they hoped. Some of these were moderately high budget disasters, but I have not seen any of these. If anyone wants to comment on the reasons for these misfires, or if someone here has actually viewed them, it is always good to learn lessons from box office bombs.


    Some of the disappointments (financially or critically or both):

    Title with box office (in millions) so far:

    Blackhat $7.8
    Mortdecai $7.5
    Exodus $65
    Top Five $25
    Strange Magic $10


    Some commonalities: Not 'franchises' or super heroes. Original screenplays? Hard to market (title, theme)??
    Blackhat - As someone on Twitter said, it's really hard to make someone sitting at a computer thrilling, even if you add gunfights. With a $70mil budget, this movie was never going to be anything but a bomb.

    Mortdecai - Saw it, really enjoyed it. I know it was dumb fun, but I knew it would be before I bought my ticket. One thing about that movie is that every actor committed 100% - they went all out in their roles, and it was great. It bombed because it looked terrible (and by all accounts was), and because slapstick humor doesn't sell today, unless you're Adam Sandler.

    Exodus was a bomb, but it was hardly dumped in January. The movie was supposed to play better than it did, but controversies on both sides shut it down. Hardcore Christians didn't show up because of Bale/Scott's negative comments about the source material, and pretty much nobody else was interested in a white-washed retelling of a Bible story.

    I'm not sure why Top Five is on your list? That film is both a critical and financial success, and was released last year, like Exodus. Haha

    Strange Magic - I don't even know, man. Never heard of this film until the day it was released. My guess is Disney was contractually obligated to distrib?

    You can also certainly include Seventh Son and Jupiter Ascending on this list. Seventh Son got pushed back what, like a year or something?, because of the Legendary/WB breakup. High Fantasy doesn't play without strong source IP.

    I saw Jupiter last night, and it was okay. Performances were pretty good, but there was more than enough to laugh at. JA's best bet is overseas, where sci-fi has the potential to be massive, if sold right. It will probably make $60-75mil here in the states.
    Last edited by Eric Boellner; 02-08-2015, 03:00 PM.

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    • #3
      Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

      Exodus made something like $260 million worldwide. Not the huge hit they were hoping for, but certainly not a flop.

      Blackhat and Mortdecai were made by two of the hackiest filmmakers in Hollywood, so it's not surprising people avoided them. Haven't heard of the other two.

      I'd bet that most Hollywood movies don't make back their budgets.

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      • #4
        Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

        Originally posted by entlassen View Post
        Blackhat and Mortdecai were made by two of the hackiest filmmakers in Hollywood, so it's not surprising people avoided them.
        Michael Mann... is a hack?

        You have high standards.

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        • #5
          Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

          Yes, Heat, The Insider, and Collateral are complete hackwork.

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          • #6
            Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

            Originally posted by entlassen View Post
            I'd bet that most Hollywood movies don't make back their budgets.
            Wut.

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            • #7
              Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

              Originally posted by slupo View Post
              Michael Mann... is a hack?

              You have high standards.
              99% of the praise Mann gets comes from Heat, which was/is a great film. But even George Lucas made a non-dumb film at one point (THX-1138). Almost everything else Mann has done is terrible: Public Enemies, Miami Vice, Manhunter, and now apparently Blackhat. If it weren't for Heat, Mann wouldn't have half the fans he has.

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              • #8
                Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                Michael Mann a hack? Are you f*cking serious? The man who made Manhunter, Heat, Last of the Mohicans, The Insider, Ali, Collateral, and Miami Vice (I know I'm in the minority but the DVD version of Miami Vice is great. If it was called anything different -- people would've praised it more) How can you be a hack with those movies on your resume?

                There are plenty of hacks working in our business, Michael Mann is not one of them.

                Michael Mann is one of the greatest directors of our time. Even when he is off the mark his films have some value. We are in the time where studios don't take risk. In 20 years we will be wishing for a new Michael Mann type director who isn't formulaic with his storytelling.

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                • #9
                  Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                  Manhunter terrible? Wow. Just, wow.

                  I like Public Enemies, though it's not on the level of his other films.

                  But still, wow.

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                  • #10
                    Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                    Anyone who thinks Michael Mann is a hack probably has questionable judgment when it comes to others aspects of film. Just sayin'.
                    "I love being a writer. What I can't stand is the paperwork.-- Peter De Vries

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                    • #11
                      Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                      Michael Mann a hack. My troll radar is going off hysterically.
                      sigpic

                      It's ruff bein' me.

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                      • #12
                        Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                        Anyone who releases a $150 million dollar movie that looks like it was filmed on an iphone, quite frankly doesn't know what he's doing. I also don't like his heavy-handed use of music and tendency to miscast vital roles.

                        However, like I said, Heat is still a great movie.

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                        • #13
                          Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                          Coming out at the end of February is "Focus" with Margot Robbie and Will Smith. I like the look of the trailer, but perhaps my age is showing?

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                          • #14
                            Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                            Regarding Michael Mann...I looked at my imdb list where I have now seen and rated 1200+ titles and it turns out the only Michael Mann I have ever watched is Thief, which I gave a 5 rating out of 10. Being several of you like Heat, I'll try to catch that one someday.

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                            • #15
                              Re: January - February Mediocre Releases

                              Manhunter is great. That's a fact that has been set in stone for a long time.

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