The Trouble with Oscar

Los Angeles Times ^ | January 31, 2006 | James Bates

[RayChuang88]

All you need to know about how hard it will be to get people to watch the Oscars is that a nominated documentary about penguins has been watched by more moviegoers than any of the five best picture contenders.

Or that four out of five people — and sometimes fewer — tuning into the broadcast will not have seen any of those movies in a theater.

Or that roughly only 200,000 people so far have seen Felicity Huffman's Oscar-nominated performance in "Transamerica." That's less than 1% of the weekly viewers who watch her on ABC's "Desperate Housewives."

[RayChuang88]

Based on this column, if AMPAS is trying to make a political statement, they sure did it alright. Mind you, when the movie industry finds out again in 2006 why Americans are shunning the movies en masse and the movie studios lose huge amounts of money, they may just have to start changing their attitude fairly quickly before the movie industry starts suffering HUGE job losses.

[kenth]

What's the percentage of ticket sales that goes back to the studios to recoup their costs?

[Constantine XIII]

He's also a grouch.

[Darkwolf377]

It's on a sliding scale. The rule of thumb is that the gate is split 80/20 the first two weeks with the studio getting the 80; then it gradually drops until it's about 50/50 within a few weeks.

But there are all kinds of variables--budget; prints; ads; tie-in income; advanced selling to DVD; foreign sales--that make it tough to figure out what is a profitable movie and what is not.

The way it's estimated: Double your budget and you are hitting profit.

[Darkwolf377]

They are making a political statement and it couldn't be more obvious. Even the libs I know HATED Crash and found Good Night... a snooze. (Couldn't resist.) Munich looks to be nominated out of some kind of guilt about it not making much money, and Capote is about the lead. Brokeback Mountain is going to win.

ANY of these winning would be seen as a victory for liberal politics in Hollywood. So they can't lose.

A very bad year in movies. I've seen fewer this year than in any other since I started going over 30 years ago.

[hsalaw]

Call it a triumph of art over commerce. In a year of small but quality films, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has followed to the letter its artistic mission. Or call it a massive disconnect with popular culture, a lineup of blue state movies playing in a red state multiplex.

Yeah, these guys can pat themselves on the back all they want for their wonderful "art over commerce," but I vote for number 2: a massive disconnect with popular culture. Pretty soon Hollyweird will find it's hard to buy groceries with "art."

[kenth]

Thanks for the info. I've been wondering.

[Anti-Bubba182]

The industry is headed more and more toward straight to DVD.

It gets harder and harder to fill theaters.

[martin_fierro]

[Darkwolf377]

It's down to 9.7% of the population or 27 million per week. That's a huge drop from the days when 80 million attended, but considering that a big hit TV show will draw a viewership of 20 million people who don't even have to leave their house, that's hardly disastrous. DVD and video games all have cut into movies but they're still standing.

I think the movies will survive, but release times for them to DVD will shrink, as will pay-per-view windows. When home theaters become even more economical I think they will lose almost all of their older audience. But teens still need a place to go on dates; theaters are still packed on weekends (Sunday's the biggest day--young kids, parents with kids).

[Blind Eye Jones]

Yeah, just wait till that movie becomes a video game! Action packed!

[YaYa123]

I love movies too, and I think the only one I've seen this year is Pride and Prejudice.

"Ick Factor" movies = not worth the price of admission

[msnimje]

Let them keep awarding each other for being different from most of America and we will keep spending our money on GOOD movies.

[AngelesCrestHighway]

Roll'in roll'in roll'in keep those faggots roll'in...RAWHIDE!

[mewzilla]

I see Paradise Now was nominated for best foreign film. Is that what it sounds like, an homage to homicide bombers?

[mewzilla]

I love Ramirez :)

[Heatseeker]

Precisely.

[mewzilla]

Figured when I heard that the PA produced it. Guess which foreign film will win...

[Heatseeker]

News from the Oscars: "Gay Palestinian sheep-herding freedom-fighter blows up desperate transexual housewife. Penguins are revealed to be anarchist Greenpeace activists. Film at 11"

[Semper Paratus]

Will they reprise the 'tent scene' from Porkbutt Mountain whenthey announce the nominees for best picture?