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Box office comparisons - Review: Justice League (C)
Craig Younkin
The Batman Franchise: A Recap
By Philip Friedman Published July 10, 2008
Unlike 2008, I was completely ignorant of any buzz, reviews or box office implications when I went in to the theater.
I was not even a fan of Batman Begins and yet with just over a week until release, I'm really excited for The Dark Knight. It's like a little kid expecting a big present in the run up to Christmas. I was going to hold off on writing anything on Batman until this upcoming weekend was over, but the anticipation seems to be overwhelming just about everything in the movie world. Before analyzing the upcoming feature, let's take a look at the franchise…
The first time I saw Batman on the big screen was the night of June 23, 1989. I'm not a comic book fanboy so my only experience with Batman had been watching episodes of it in TV syndication. Unlike 2008, I was completely ignorant of any buzz, reviews or box office implications when I went in to the theater. The movie left me unsettled and disturbed, thanks to Tim Burton's dark and twisted vision, but it built the base from which I judge all comic book movies. There was a great satisfaction in seeing how the Joker sowed the seeds of his destruction with a simple robbery - by ultimately creating Batman. That and Joker's final scene.
I didn't see Batman Returns in theaters and that might have affected my impression. I've heard some people rate it above the original, but it didn't resonate with me. The Penguin, penguins and Catwoman were just ridiculous (and that would become the recurring trend in the franchise). The original movie had a compelling story; a story that was resolved well and that make any sequel difficult. What's the point in continuing? Oh right, box office.
Speaking of compelling stories, when Joel Schumacher took over the franchise, he essentially tossed out any pretentious of using a compelling story in favor of bright costumes and huge stars. Marketing would be the new lifeblood for Batman. To be fair, I probably should have watched all the Batmans again because all I can remember is bad guys dancing around under black lights. That was good enough for around $184 million in domestic box office though. Tack on another $150 million international box office and Warner Bros. would be irresponsible to its shareholders not to produce and release another sequel.
Marketing on its own can drive a franchise only so far. Fool an audience once, shame on the studio, fool an audience twice, shame on moviegoers. However, Warner Bros. apparently didn't accept this and, at least according to urban legends, blamed its box office inadequacies on bad buzz from a web site called Ain't It Cool News. Not to ruin that site's mystique amongst some studios, but the movie opened with $43.9 million, which is the equivalent to $66.3 million in 2008 dollars. The box office fell off a cliff because it was a bad sequel in a tired franchise. The internet is not needed to spread bad word of mouth. Case in point, Alien 3 that came out on May 22, 1992 (2.4 total / open), and that was even more frontloaded than Batman and Robin (2.5) and grossed half as much.
In Hollywood, franchises don't die; they just get refreshed and rebooted. And so, three years ago, Christopher Nolan restarted with Batman Begins. As I mentioned, I wasn't a fan, but perhaps for seemingly minor reasons. Bruce Wayne's early childhood establishes the motivation that drives the entire story. Yet, instead of a ruthless and maniacal Joker killing Bruce's parents in cold blood, we get a confused and scared no-name thief driven to crime by society. I preferred the individual evil over the nuanced abstract villain. I also thought that Christian Bale's Batman voice was comical.
The audience burst into applause when Gary Oldman brought up the Joker in the closing moments of Batman Begins, but I feared that Nolan was merely redoing the best parts of the original. Sometime at the beginning of the year, my overall impression changed. I don't think I gave into peer pressure or the building buzz (can't say I'm immune to that though). I was convinced by an excellent series of trailers. The potential of Spider-Man 3's record going down in flames certainly helps the excitement. The premiere of the Terminator Salvation trailer is a good appetizer as well.
The first time I saw Batman on the big screen was the night of June 23, 1989. I'm not a comic book fanboy so my only experience with Batman had been watching episodes of it in TV syndication. Unlike 2008, I was completely ignorant of any buzz, reviews or box office implications when I went in to the theater. The movie left me unsettled and disturbed, thanks to Tim Burton's dark and twisted vision, but it built the base from which I judge all comic book movies. There was a great satisfaction in seeing how the Joker sowed the seeds of his destruction with a simple robbery - by ultimately creating Batman. That and Joker's final scene.
I didn't see Batman Returns in theaters and that might have affected my impression. I've heard some people rate it above the original, but it didn't resonate with me. The Penguin, penguins and Catwoman were just ridiculous (and that would become the recurring trend in the franchise). The original movie had a compelling story; a story that was resolved well and that make any sequel difficult. What's the point in continuing? Oh right, box office.
Speaking of compelling stories, when Joel Schumacher took over the franchise, he essentially tossed out any pretentious of using a compelling story in favor of bright costumes and huge stars. Marketing would be the new lifeblood for Batman. To be fair, I probably should have watched all the Batmans again because all I can remember is bad guys dancing around under black lights. That was good enough for around $184 million in domestic box office though. Tack on another $150 million international box office and Warner Bros. would be irresponsible to its shareholders not to produce and release another sequel.
Marketing on its own can drive a franchise only so far. Fool an audience once, shame on the studio, fool an audience twice, shame on moviegoers. However, Warner Bros. apparently didn't accept this and, at least according to urban legends, blamed its box office inadequacies on bad buzz from a web site called Ain't It Cool News. Not to ruin that site's mystique amongst some studios, but the movie opened with $43.9 million, which is the equivalent to $66.3 million in 2008 dollars. The box office fell off a cliff because it was a bad sequel in a tired franchise. The internet is not needed to spread bad word of mouth. Case in point, Alien 3 that came out on May 22, 1992 (2.4 total / open), and that was even more frontloaded than Batman and Robin (2.5) and grossed half as much.
In Hollywood, franchises don't die; they just get refreshed and rebooted. And so, three years ago, Christopher Nolan restarted with Batman Begins. As I mentioned, I wasn't a fan, but perhaps for seemingly minor reasons. Bruce Wayne's early childhood establishes the motivation that drives the entire story. Yet, instead of a ruthless and maniacal Joker killing Bruce's parents in cold blood, we get a confused and scared no-name thief driven to crime by society. I preferred the individual evil over the nuanced abstract villain. I also thought that Christian Bale's Batman voice was comical.
The audience burst into applause when Gary Oldman brought up the Joker in the closing moments of Batman Begins, but I feared that Nolan was merely redoing the best parts of the original. Sometime at the beginning of the year, my overall impression changed. I don't think I gave into peer pressure or the building buzz (can't say I'm immune to that though). I was convinced by an excellent series of trailers. The potential of Spider-Man 3's record going down in flames certainly helps the excitement. The premiere of the Terminator Salvation trailer is a good appetizer as well.
'The Dark Knight' Articles
- Dark Knight's Path to $500M
August 18, 2008 It looks like The Dark Knight will cross the $500 million mark during the first showings on Labor Day. -- Philip Friedman - Craig's The Dark Knight review A
July 19, 2008 Nothing short of a masterpiece. I feel it’s arguably one of the best and most riveting movies of the past decade. -- Craig Younkin - 'Dark Knight' Destroyer of Records
July 19, 2008 I had expected The Dark Knight to pick up the midnight and possibly the one-day record, but the $66.4 million is a bit of a surprise. -- Philip Friedman - Outlook: Which Records for 'Dark Knight'?
July 17, 2008 Midnights will be essential. By the time the normal weekend business begins at around 10am on Friday, The Dark Knight could already be one third of the way to a one-day record (Spider-Man 3's $59.842 million). -- Philip Friedman - Dark Knight: Live Coverage
July 11, 2008 In anticipation of what will likely be the biggest movie of 2008, we'll be hosting live coverage of The Dark Knight throughout its opening weekend. -- Staff of LMI
