Avatar (Dec 18 2009)

[Naomi Lang]

Wow, I only payed 13 for my IMAX 3D ticket. The cost for a 'normal' movie here is about $10.

[Yog]

With the incredible WOM this movie is getting and being a brand new franchise taking everyone by surprise, I guess it goes without saying Avatar will have some incredible legs at the box office. We're already seeing some signs of that...

Frid: $26,752,099
Sat: $25,529,036 (-4.6%)
Sun: $24,744,346 (-3.1%)
Mon: $16,385,820 (-33.8%)

That monday number is only a 35% drop since saturday, and 38% since opening day. I hear 3D / IMAX theaters are sold out all over the place today as well. I think it could increase some for tuesday, and weekend #2 will likely be a very small drop.

I think 300M is a lock despite the modest opening weekend, and even Transformers 2 #1 number for 2009 at 402M may be in danger..

[Crusader]

hehe do you want to make a Xmas BO game?: How much money is Avatar going to make till the end of January?!

Any predictions?

[Mu Satach]

Saw it, IMAX in 3D.

Revised opinion - It's Dances with FernGully!

Horribly predictable plot.
Incredibly flat characters.
But pretty enough to look at I didn't mind the $13.50 tickets and the numb ass after sitting for 3 hours.

Essentially, felt like going on a date with the hot chick in high school, not a lot going on upstairs, but entertaining enough for a one night stand.

[Yog]

Tuesday: $16,086,461 (-1.8%)

hehe do you want to make a Xmas BO game?: How much money is Avatar going to make till the end of January?!
Any predictions?

I predict it will make about 380M by the end of january.

Essentially, felt like going on a date with the hot chick in high school, not a lot going on upstairs, but entertaining enough for a one night stand.

So, are one night stands a good or a bad thing, in your experience?

[Mu Satach]

Read it again Sherlock they're "entertaining enough" but won't be returning any phone calls. (i.e. I won't be "paying" to see it again.)

I'm moving on to the next hot flick that has caught my eye. "Hello there Mr. Holmes." *batt's eyelids*

I reserve all my hot love affairs for the sliver screen.

[Yog]

Upon closer inspection, Holmes appears to be a good choice.

[CMJ]

Really dug the movie. Probably one of the 10 best of 2009.

The 3D bugged me for at least an hour, and I left the movie with a headache. Next time i'll stick to my guns and see it in 2D.

[Yog]

Did you watch it in IMAX 3D or a regular 3D theater? Was it a RealD one? Have you had headaches before watching movies in 3D?

Edit: Also, what bugged you specifically? Did the 3D make stuff pop out of screen too much or too little? Too much ghosting, color / contrast issues?

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Some people just can't handle their 3D. Sort of like how Cloverfield made people throw up, sometimes 3D has the same effect on people.

[CMJ]

Too distracting. The depth of field was so different from what I like(?) instead of bringing me into the film I was annoyed and didn't focus on the film? It was at least an hour into it before the effect didn't bug me, and then it bugged me again the last 30 minutes or so. By it's very nature 3D calls attention to itself and ruins the film watching process for me.

Plus is was kinda dark.

I saw the film at the Arclight Cineramadome in Hollywood - which is one of the best theaters in the USA. And yes, they used the RealD glasses.

[Yog]

Some people just can't handle their 3D. Sort of like how Cloverfield made people throw up, sometimes 3D has the same effect on people.

Yeah, I know. But IMAX has a more dramatic effect in that regard, partly because of different 3D technology used, but more importantly because of the high resolution and field of vision. Even in 2D, some people get sick.

Too distracting. The depth of field was so different from what I like(?) instead of bringing me into the film I was annoyed and didn't focus on the film? It was at least an hour into it before the effect didn't bug me, and then it bugged me again the last 30 minutes or so. By it's very nature 3D calls attention to itself and ruins the film watching process for me.

Plus is was kinda dark.

I saw the film at the Arclight Cineramadome in Hollywood - which is one of the best theaters in the USA. And yes, they used the RealD glasses.

Sounds like 3D just ain't for you, no matter what.

[CMJ]

[Sounds like 3D just ain't for you, no matter what.

Is that not what i said originally?

I mean at times the effect was interesting, but more often than not I was like...taken out of the movie by it. Instead of going "wow this looks like I'm actually walking thru a room with computers and crap", I was like "this is too freaking weird".

And in the process of THINKING about the effect I had to remind myself to actually watch the damn movie.

I just don't get 3D. I hope to God not all films go this way.

[Yog]

I'd say I was distracted the first 15 minutes or so, but after that I stopped thinking about it and just felt it was awesome overall. Maybe part of the reason is, I seen so many features in 3D (all of them total gimmick movies, where the 3D effects really poked at me) the transition from 2D to 3D was more natural for me. I'm a big proponent of new technology in movie projection as well.

[CMJ]

Hey, whatever floats your boat man. I'm not trying to change anyone else's mind. I just don't think I'll ever find 3D to be anything more than unnneccessary.

As far as the film is concerned tho - I really enjoyed the hell out of it. Too long(I like long movies, but this felt too long nonetheless), but rip roaring entertainment.

[Yog]

Yeah, personally, I think it is a strong contender for BP. Especially now that there are 10 nominees, the big spectacular movie winning technical categories and doing great at BO will have an upper hand on the rest of the field.

Speaking of BO, Avatar continues to post really high daily numbers. I think the drop this weekend will be extremely low. I'm thinking 60M+ friday to sunday may be in range.

Wedn $16,445,291 +2.2%
Thurs $11,325,000 -31.1% (christmas eve drop)

[Yog]

Avatar is doing a lot more amazing than even I anticipated. It had an amazing Friday gross of 23.5M, which pretty much secured it a 70M+ weekend haul. But wait, it gets better. There are now reports we could see a ~300M overall weekend for all movies. That would be an all time record, and means Avatar got tough competition with movies such as Sherlock Holmes probably doing a surprising 60M+ weekend. Now there are reports Avatar is doing exceptionally well on Saturday with a 30M+ number being possible.

You know what this means? This means there is a chance Avatar could actually INCREASE from the first weekend.

Ladies and gentlemen, we're looking at a Box Office phenomenon. Forget 300M, this will cruise past 400M easily, which means it will be #1 movie of the year. It means it has and will have incredible legs. But it also means it's a big question when it will start losing steam. Because when you have a movie with 0% weekend drop or increase in the 70M range, at some point you may have to start doing comparisons. Comparisons with a certain other movie Cameron made involving a big boat..

I'm not going there yet. It's too early, and a lot can happen in January. Just letting you know how crazy the box office performance is for this movie. Right now, I like to compare it with ROTK performance adjusted for inflation, which would put it at 441M. It is holding well compared to ROTK.

[Droo]

The word-of-mouth on this film is exceptional. People are going to see it now because they feel they've got it in that it's something they shouldn't miss. Plus people like me and Peter are enjoying repeated viewings, in fact this Thursday we're going to have an Imax experience which should be something!

[Crusader]

Here in Germany you still need to reserve seats 2 days ahead of time in order to get seats in a 3D viewing that are not in the first line. The WOM is incredible.

[Maggie Wren]

I've just discovered we have an IMAX nearby, now I need to find someone to go see it with me.