Elf Crowd Report

The fact that I saw this over Matrix Revolutions was kind of funny to me, but to the point? Getting to the AMC Century 14 multiplex in LA at around 9:45 for the 10:05 pm show on opening night, I got a pretty good surprise when I walked into the packed 300-seat theater and was forced to scout the auditorium for ?any? open seat. Getting one about four rows to the screen, the auditorium became a madhouse with moviegoers running about, frustrated over the seat situation.

The audience demographic went from older teen (17) to middle-aged adults (35), with a few kids in the bunch and the male to female ratio being pretty split; and scanning the auditorium before the show began, the crowd seemed like they were ready to see this movie. When the trailers began, it was almost like being at the Village theater in Westwood with the enthusiasm level; when a rather short Return of the King ad loaded, many cheers went into the air, with a few claps afterwards but not many.

Second trailer was Chasing Liberty, which had a whole bunch of teenage girls cheering at Mandy Moore at the beginning, with some enthusiasm at the end.

Cheaper by the Dozen followed, which retrieved some laughs, but not an over-the-top reaction (am I the only one who thought that was Ashton Kutcher in the preview?).

The new Haunted Mansion ad followed, which didn?t get any obvious reactions.

Next up was Big Fish, which got a silent treatment for the most part, but interest seemed to be there for some people.

The new Cat in the Hat trailer was next, which got the audience alive again, but no claps or cheers were exerted.

Wrapping up the list was the teaser to Shrek 2, with interest definitely there in the beginning, followed by laughs near the finale; those around me seemed to be very excited.

The crowd was laughing pretty consistently during the first half of Elf (with Ferrell?s first appearance getting enthusiasm), but like at Bruce Almighty, the laughter sort of died out (to some extent) after the halfway mark. A light applause went up at the end, with most people coming out looking joyful.

As for an opening day prediction for Elf, it?s looking like at least $7 million, with $8 - 8.5 being the peak region of likelihood in my mind. The 7:30 show had also sold out here, along with a 7:45 show at another theater (where a sellout can sometimes cue to a $2000+ average). I did not catch a glimpse of the showtime board (in terms of sellouts), but Matrix Revolutions appeared to have a long line, with the theater overall being a madhouse; that was probably expected with Matrix, Elf, and Love Actually all playing.