This Just in: Flops Caused Box Office Slump

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Richard Forno <rforno () infowarrior org>
Date: October 1, 2005 11:49:57 AM EDT
To: Infowarrior List <infowarrior () g2-forward org>
Cc: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: This Just in: Flops Caused Box Office Slump


 Give it a week, the MPAA will blame file-sharing for this slump and  
say the
execs quoted in this article were quoted out of context....../ 
conspiracy.

-rick


This Just in: Flops Caused Box Office Slump
Studio execs who pinned problems on factors beyond their control now  
take
responsibility.
By Claudia Eller and John Horn
Times Staff Writers

October 1, 2005

One of Hollywood's basic tenets is that when things go wrong it's  
somebody
else's fault.

Which is why it's so startling, suddenly, to hear studio executives and
producers taking responsibility for the rows of empty seats in movie
theaters this year.

"It's really easy for all of us to blame the condition of the  
theaters, gas
prices, alternative media, the population changes and everything else  
I've
heard myself say," said Sony Pictures Vice Chairman Amy Pascal, whose  
summer
releases "Bewitched" and "Stealth" flopped. "I think it has to do  
with the
movies themselves."

After months of hand-wringing and doomsday forecasts about the permanent
erosion of moviegoing, the lunchtime chatter at Mr. Chow in Beverly  
Hills
and other industry haunts has turned decidedly inward. Now, four  
straight
weekends of crowded theaters have forced moguls and creative  
executives to
admit in public what they have spent months avoiding: They were clueless
about what audiences wanted.

"There's always a year when the pundits say the movie business is over,"
said producer Brian Grazer, whose May release "Cinderella Man" was a
disappointment despite strong reviews. "If there's a movie people  
want to
see, they go see it. I just think we all have to do our best to make  
better
movies."

< snip >

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-boxoffice1oct01,0,5042859.story




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