[Infowarrior] - but yet....Hollywood celebrates end of 2012 with record box office

[Richard Forno]

Hollywood celebrates end of 2012 with record box office

L.A. Biz by Gina Hall

Date: Monday, December 31, 2012, 11:19am PST

http://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2012/12/31/hollywood-celebrates-end-of-2012-with.html

Hollywood bounced back in 2012 to beat last year’s slump that had attendance at a 16-year low. While not nearly the biggest  attendance the business has seen, movie ticket sales will hit an all-time high of $10.8 billion, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Several big franchises and rising ticket prices helped boost the box office 6 percent over last year and saw attendance it 1.36 billion, according to Hollywood.com. “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Hunger Games,” “Twilight,” “Skyfall,” and “The Avengers” were the top five money makers that helped the box office recover both domestically and abroad. Fifteen of the top 20 films grossed more overseas than in the U.S. and Canada, according to the report.

The quality of the top grossers was up as well. Four of the top five-grossing films received above an 85 percent approval score from the nation's critics, according to Rotten Tomatoes, with Twilight being the one left off the list. Apparently the adults didn’t care for the vampire saga as much as the teens did.

"The old-school thought was that tent poles … didn't need good reviews, but I don't think that's the case anymore," said Richie Fay, president of domestic distribution for Lionsgate, which released both "The Hunger Games" and the final "Twilight" picture, told the Los Angeles Times. "If moviegoers see a title get good reviews, they're going to come out once — and may come out a second or third time."

Mid-budget, adult films also made a comeback this year. "Argo,” "Lincoln" and "Magic Mike" all made over $100 million at the domestic box office. Theaters have also shared the wealth. The two largest chains, Regal and Cinemark, saw an 18 percent and 36 percent spike in their respective share prices, per the Times.

"Just looking at the fourth quarter tells you what works for us — a lot of diverse products, well-made movies and something for everybody," said Patrick Corcoran, spokesman for the National Association of Theater Owners told the Times. "The only thing missing this holiday season was a strong family title."
---
Just because i'm near the punchbowl doesn't mean I'm also drinking from it.