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Features 
June 28, 2010
Lessons Learned from the First Half of 2010
At the cusp of the halfway point of 2010, we thought we’d look back at the trends of the first two quarters of this horrendous year at the movies. What lessons can the Hollywood machine learn from the first six months of 2010?
The most disturbingly narrow-minded journalistic trend of 2010 has been the countless articles this summer trying to figure out why box office gross is down (at least before The Karate Kid), most notably in May as Robin Hood, Prince of Persia, and Sex and the City 2 disappointed at the box office. Bad writers pointed at the recession, unusually nice weather in some major markets, and even strong playoffs in both hockey and basketball to try and find out why people weren’t going to the movies any more. A shockingly small number of people pointed out that the movies themselves sucked. Yes, people are often sheep during the summer, paying to see movies when they should know better, but when the industry puts in as little effort as they did in May and most of June, people will find something better to do. Yes, May and June are sometimes wastelands but last year we were treated to four films that scored a 70 or higher on Metacritic within the first six weekends of the season – The Hangover, Up, Drag Me to Hell, and Star Trek – and The Hurt Locker was right around the corner. The same period in the year before produced Kung Fu Panda and Iron Man and before that it was Knocked Up and 28 Weeks Later…. This year produced Marmaduke, Killers, Sex and the City 2, and MacGruber. People didn’t stop going to the movies during the typically lucrative early summer season because it was nice outside. They stopped because there was nothing to see. Things look like they’re turning around with Toy Story 3 and the imminent arrival of Inception, but this has been the worst summer in years and Hollywood is feeling the repercussions of a regular output of crap where it might actually do some good – in their wallets.
Much was appropriately made of the incredible year for animation that was 2009. Diverse films like Up, Coraline, The Princess and the Frog, The Secret of Kells, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Mary and Max, and Fantastic Mr. Fox proved that animation was in its golden age. Of course, it wasn’t just 2009 and one could easily go back to 2008 and note the incredible WALL-E and Waltz with Bashir and it clearly is a trend that’s continuing in 2010. The two most critically acclaimed films of the year? How to Train Your Dragon and Toy Story 3. The two films have a combined six negative reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and are being bandied about as Best Picture contenders. They would both easily be in right now. With Sylvain Chomet’s highly anticipated The Illusionist also slated before the end of the year and the likelihood that one of the major studio films will surprise like Meatballs or Frog, it’s clear that it’s never been better to be a kid. If only we could have all been raised in the era of Pixar.
It’s been true for some time now but it’s a lesson that seems to become more essential every year. Old-fashioned star power is dead (unless perhaps if your name is Johnny Depp). Several major household names fell completely flat in the first half of 2010. Matt Damon’s Green Zone made less during its entire run ($35 million) than the last Bourne film did in its first weekend ($69 million). Summit learned that Robert Pattinson is not a star with normal teeth (Remember Me made $19 million). J. Lo returned to romantic comedy hoping to replicate the box office of her last wide release with the $83 million for Monster-in-Law. She came up with less than half that for The Back-Up Plan ($37 million). Mel Gibson learned the same lesson – that time off is not good for box office draw – as Edge of Darkness ($43 million) made less than any of his wide releases since 1993’s The Man Without a Face. Jennifer Aniston and Katherine Heigl couldn’t carry The Bounty Hunter and Killers to box office success. Even Russell Crowe disappointed with Robin Hood, although that film is proving to be enough of a success internationally to offset the stink stateside. The point is that beloved source material (Alice in Wonderland, Clash of the Titans, The Karate Kid) has clearly outranked actual star wattage when it comes to what people want to see on a Friday night. Star power appears to only matter if you have two dozen of them as Valentine’s Day still stands in the top ten highest grossers of the year to date.
When Kathryn Bigelow broke through the glass ceiling of the Academy to become the first woman to win Best Director for The Hurt Locker, the common story in entertainment media was the doors that would be opened in her profession. Honestly, most of us had our doubts. The same stories were written after Jane Campion caused waves for The Piano and we all saw how long it took for a female director to rise again to critical prominence. But it’s worth noting that several of the most acclaimed films of the first half of the year were from female directors including Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone, Nicole Holofcener’s Please Give, and Ricki Stern & Anne Sundberg’s Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work. With Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids Are All Right about to make waves in a few weeks it feels like this time the equality between the genders behind the camera may not have just been a one-year story.
Above all else, Hollywood has learned this year that people are more likely to see things they already know something about. Only one of the top ten highest-grossing films in the first half of 2010 was NOT based on a book, legend, or sequel and even that film, Valentine’s Day, was so generic that it was something clearly familiar to viewers. Alice in Wonderland, Clash of the Titans, The Karate Kid, Robin Hood – ticket buyers were drawn to a remarkable number of stories with which they were already familiar. People always complain about the lack of originality and how they feel that they’ve already seen every story and then they go and turn sequels and remakes into box office gold. If you were a producer, would you take a risk on an untested commodity or give audiences what they so clearly want? What the marketplace could really use is an original smash. There’s a lot riding on Inception.
Do we need to say what’s so obvious? We have just suffered through the worst first half of a year in ages; possibly in your lifetime. The art houses produced a few masterpieces like A Prophet, Fish Tank, The Square, and Mother, but it was often remarkably difficult to find something worth seeing at the multiplex after audiences saw Shutter Island and How to Train Your Dragon. From March to Toy Story 3, most of America was stuck with generic, clichéd junk like The Back-Up Plan, Death at a Funeral, and Furry Vengeance. It felt like everything that was moderately entertaining was offset by a dozen horrible cinematic experiences. For every Date Night, we suffered through a The Last Song, Leap Year, and a When in Rome. There were a few entertaining bright spots like Kick-Ass but did you really see anything with a wide release that you’ll remember at the end of the year outside of Martin Scorsese’s underrated thriller and the two animated gems? Nope. And that’s sad. It’s hard to say that a lack of quality inflicted on the American public was a lesson learned but if things continue at this rate and they keep trying to feed us the same stale crap that they did for most of this year, a lesson will definitely be learned the hard way.
by Brian Tallerico
**********
Lesson No. 1
It’s Not the Weather, It’s the Movies, Stupid
It’s Not the Weather, It’s the Movies, Stupid
A MacGruber movie? Really? No, really?
The most disturbingly narrow-minded journalistic trend of 2010 has been the countless articles this summer trying to figure out why box office gross is down (at least before The Karate Kid), most notably in May as Robin Hood, Prince of Persia, and Sex and the City 2 disappointed at the box office. Bad writers pointed at the recession, unusually nice weather in some major markets, and even strong playoffs in both hockey and basketball to try and find out why people weren’t going to the movies any more. A shockingly small number of people pointed out that the movies themselves sucked. Yes, people are often sheep during the summer, paying to see movies when they should know better, but when the industry puts in as little effort as they did in May and most of June, people will find something better to do. Yes, May and June are sometimes wastelands but last year we were treated to four films that scored a 70 or higher on Metacritic within the first six weekends of the season – The Hangover, Up, Drag Me to Hell, and Star Trek – and The Hurt Locker was right around the corner. The same period in the year before produced Kung Fu Panda and Iron Man and before that it was Knocked Up and 28 Weeks Later…. This year produced Marmaduke, Killers, Sex and the City 2, and MacGruber. People didn’t stop going to the movies during the typically lucrative early summer season because it was nice outside. They stopped because there was nothing to see. Things look like they’re turning around with Toy Story 3 and the imminent arrival of Inception, but this has been the worst summer in years and Hollywood is feeling the repercussions of a regular output of crap where it might actually do some good – in their wallets.
**********
Lesson No. 2
The Golden Era of Animation is Longer Than a Year
The Golden Era of Animation is Longer Than a Year
Thank the film gods for Pixar.
Much was appropriately made of the incredible year for animation that was 2009. Diverse films like Up, Coraline, The Princess and the Frog, The Secret of Kells, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Mary and Max, and Fantastic Mr. Fox proved that animation was in its golden age. Of course, it wasn’t just 2009 and one could easily go back to 2008 and note the incredible WALL-E and Waltz with Bashir and it clearly is a trend that’s continuing in 2010. The two most critically acclaimed films of the year? How to Train Your Dragon and Toy Story 3. The two films have a combined six negative reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and are being bandied about as Best Picture contenders. They would both easily be in right now. With Sylvain Chomet’s highly anticipated The Illusionist also slated before the end of the year and the likelihood that one of the major studio films will surprise like Meatballs or Frog, it’s clear that it’s never been better to be a kid. If only we could have all been raised in the era of Pixar.
**********
Lesson No. 3
The Star Isn’t As Important As the Story
The Star Isn’t As Important As the Story
Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.
It’s been true for some time now but it’s a lesson that seems to become more essential every year. Old-fashioned star power is dead (unless perhaps if your name is Johnny Depp). Several major household names fell completely flat in the first half of 2010. Matt Damon’s Green Zone made less during its entire run ($35 million) than the last Bourne film did in its first weekend ($69 million). Summit learned that Robert Pattinson is not a star with normal teeth (Remember Me made $19 million). J. Lo returned to romantic comedy hoping to replicate the box office of her last wide release with the $83 million for Monster-in-Law. She came up with less than half that for The Back-Up Plan ($37 million). Mel Gibson learned the same lesson – that time off is not good for box office draw – as Edge of Darkness ($43 million) made less than any of his wide releases since 1993’s The Man Without a Face. Jennifer Aniston and Katherine Heigl couldn’t carry The Bounty Hunter and Killers to box office success. Even Russell Crowe disappointed with Robin Hood, although that film is proving to be enough of a success internationally to offset the stink stateside. The point is that beloved source material (Alice in Wonderland, Clash of the Titans, The Karate Kid) has clearly outranked actual star wattage when it comes to what people want to see on a Friday night. Star power appears to only matter if you have two dozen of them as Valentine’s Day still stands in the top ten highest grossers of the year to date.
**********
Lesson No. 4
Female Directors Continue to Shine
Female Directors Continue to Shine
(at Least in Art Theaters)
Director Lisa Cholodenko on the set of The Kids Are All Right.
Photo by Suzanne Tenner – © 2010 Focus Features.
When Kathryn Bigelow broke through the glass ceiling of the Academy to become the first woman to win Best Director for The Hurt Locker, the common story in entertainment media was the doors that would be opened in her profession. Honestly, most of us had our doubts. The same stories were written after Jane Campion caused waves for The Piano and we all saw how long it took for a female director to rise again to critical prominence. But it’s worth noting that several of the most acclaimed films of the first half of the year were from female directors including Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone, Nicole Holofcener’s Please Give, and Ricki Stern & Anne Sundberg’s Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work. With Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids Are All Right about to make waves in a few weeks it feels like this time the equality between the genders behind the camera may not have just been a one-year story.
**********
Lesson No. 5
Tell Me the Story Again, Daddy!
Tell Me the Story Again, Daddy!
Garry Marshall strikes again.
Above all else, Hollywood has learned this year that people are more likely to see things they already know something about. Only one of the top ten highest-grossing films in the first half of 2010 was NOT based on a book, legend, or sequel and even that film, Valentine’s Day, was so generic that it was something clearly familiar to viewers. Alice in Wonderland, Clash of the Titans, The Karate Kid, Robin Hood – ticket buyers were drawn to a remarkable number of stories with which they were already familiar. People always complain about the lack of originality and how they feel that they’ve already seen every story and then they go and turn sequels and remakes into box office gold. If you were a producer, would you take a risk on an untested commodity or give audiences what they so clearly want? What the marketplace could really use is an original smash. There’s a lot riding on Inception.
**********
Lesson No. 6
This Year Sucks
This Year Sucks
Bad Hollywood! Not funny!
Do we need to say what’s so obvious? We have just suffered through the worst first half of a year in ages; possibly in your lifetime. The art houses produced a few masterpieces like A Prophet, Fish Tank, The Square, and Mother, but it was often remarkably difficult to find something worth seeing at the multiplex after audiences saw Shutter Island and How to Train Your Dragon. From March to Toy Story 3, most of America was stuck with generic, clichéd junk like The Back-Up Plan, Death at a Funeral, and Furry Vengeance. It felt like everything that was moderately entertaining was offset by a dozen horrible cinematic experiences. For every Date Night, we suffered through a The Last Song, Leap Year, and a When in Rome. There were a few entertaining bright spots like Kick-Ass but did you really see anything with a wide release that you’ll remember at the end of the year outside of Martin Scorsese’s underrated thriller and the two animated gems? Nope. And that’s sad. It’s hard to say that a lack of quality inflicted on the American public was a lesson learned but if things continue at this rate and they keep trying to feed us the same stale crap that they did for most of this year, a lesson will definitely be learned the hard way.
**********
hi..........very nice.
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<a href="http://www.sapiencebpo.com/">sapincebpo</a>
This movie year has SUCKED. Iron Man 2 existed because it had too & it felt like it.
However GREEN ZONE & UNTHINKABLE are 2 that I'll remember for a long time.
Can't wait too see INCEPTION & the Swedish "Millenium Trilogy".
I agree with most of what has been said here already. Kick-#!@%*# was OK, but I didn't find Nick Cage half as outstanding as many give him credit for. Defendor was good, plus my good friend Paul is one of the two guys in the van who get blasted.
I think the Age of the Blockbuster may be dead - and if not dead, well, it needs a major overhaul. Perhaps a return to good old fashioned storytelling and less focus on CGI, SFX and CGI , etc. is in order.
Your article is spot-on for the most part, but Shutter Island is about rated where it should be. Hot Tube Time Machine will actually be more remembered at the end of the year I think than Shutter Island. Splice and The Crazies were worthwhile too, but fell through the cracks due to poor marketing. Bad year though for major tentpoles.
I did see and enjoyed defendor. I think that got a limited release earlier this year.
I agree with the writer. I haven't seen any of the smaller releases yet. I did want to see the runaways. As for wide releases it has been pretty sad especially when last year was such a rich year for animation and science fiction movie. I have enjoyed everything I have seen in theaters so far. However Toy story 3 is the only movie I would put on a best of the year list. It has been a dissapointing summer and I think the only movie that will end being remembered or stand out will be Toy Story 3, Inception and Iron man 2. I think everything else will be forgotten.
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