Depp/Burton DARK SHADOWS Is In Release!!

[jimbo]

MB everything you said is all true of course. It all depends on how the studio views its expectations and we don't really know what they are. Perhaps its threshold for a sequel is if the movie and DVD brings in $250 million for example. Or maybe it wants a higher threshold. It also of course depends on JD and his company if they want to do a sequel. I guess if they do and WB doesn't I assume the producers can bring the movie sequel project to another studio? As you said it is a bit premature to be thinking of a sequel. At this point I am just hoping the NODS is released fully restored.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Sequel-wise I suspect a lot depends on how much Warner Brothers wants to create a franchise with DS, what type of potential offer they might be willing to put out when all is said and done between box office intake and DVD/Blu-ray sales/rentals, and how much whoever may be involved with a possible sequel is willing to accept any potential offer. We were told several times, including from Warner Brothers itself, that DS is something that they've looked upon as a potential franchise - but when it comes to the latter two, things are still very much up in the air.

19 days 12 hours 24 minutes 40 seconds since the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows has been in release(ET)!!

[jimbo]

It will be certainly interesting to watch out for. The comingsoon website predicts the movie will earn just $4 million this week. http://www.comingsoon.net/news/weekendwarriornews.php?id=90778

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If one looks at how the box office trajectory tends to play out for most films, that could be about right. If anything, given what the percentage of drop off tends to be, DS made more this past Friday, Saturday, and Sunday than what tends to be the case (and Monday being a holiday helped it even more). So, if it does bring in $4 million, that would still be a bit higher than might otherwise be expected.

19 days 12 hours 40 minutes 4 seconds since the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows has been in release(ET)!!

[Gothick]

My two drachmae for what it's worth--don't expect rationality from studio decision-makers.  They may or may not decide to do a Shadows sequel upon any variety of pretexts--and the project could spend years in development and wind up being squelched by some other studio suit's whim.  A lot of what they say is just dust blowin' in the wind (as the saying used to go).

BTW I am loving the OS theme this month.  It looks as if 1897 Laura's wig is eating her brain at the moment.  lol!

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

For some strange reason Box Office Mojo has posted Monday's figures instead of Tuesday's even though Monday's figures were already available yesterday as part of the 4 Day Weekend Actuals chart. But maybe they'll post Tuesday later today.

However, from what I've been able to piece together from boxoffice.com, which has Tuesday's numbers for only 5 of the top films, it looks like DS came in 8th with $761,174, bringing its current domestic gross to $65,683,316.

And before anyone gets upset that Tuesday's gross came in below $1 million, at this point in DS' run that was actually to be expected (see the 18th Day chart I attached yesterday). But what is interesting is that even though they brought in more than DS, What to Expect When You're Expecting, Chernobyl Diaries, and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel also each came in below $1 million - and they haven't been in wide release as long as DS has. And though the other 4 films above DS weren't listed, I'm certainly presuming that MIB III, The Avengers, Battleship, and The Dictator each brought in more than DS.

19 days 14 hours 43 minutes 34 seconds since the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows has been in release(ET)!!

[Cousin_Barnabas]

Actually, there are two scenes: the first where Julia brings up the subject of treating Barnabas, and then a later scene in which she's seen supposedly giving Barnabas a "treatment" and he remarks that he doesn't feel himself becoming human.

And speaking of remarks, I absolutely love when he muses that if it's possible for a man to become a monster maybe it's possible for a monster to become a man.

Interesting, MB.  Thanks for the insight.  I loved the "monster becoming a man" line.  That was great.  But, again, I felt like there wasn't enough to support this whole subplot.  It didn't even allow Barnabas to walk around in the day.  At least in HoDS, Julia's cure drove the plot forward.  Barnabas was able to court Maggie because of Julia.  Julia gets jealous, and we know the rest.  There was a reason for it.  Here, it just seemed to be thrown in.  And, objectively, it was of little importance to me or the story.  It was a cute twist, but nothing new members of the audience really gained anything from.  Again, the more I think of it, the more disappointed I become with the story.  Really wish that A) there would have been less or BETTER cuts or B) we would have had a more streamlined story from a more proficient writer.  As it is, the script is lacking.  There are some great moments and lines...  But they are few and far between.  I think all of the focus on script rewrites for the purpose of adding humor didn't do any favors to the final product.  Because, rather than focusing on building a cohesive, sensical plot-line (which HoDS and 1991 definitely had), the focus was on making the script "better."  Who really cares about the script's lines when a huge chunk of the story makes such little sense in the final cut?  (Don't get me wrong.  They had me up until the last 10 minutes.  And, at that point, I really just gave up.)  Because the plot so heavily relied on David (and he was cut) and because there were a great many scenes involving unnecessary characters (to the plot), I really question the whole thing.  But too many loose ends in the end kill this movie for me more than anything else.  But I want to see it again, because I enjoyed a good deal of it.  It's just that the decisions made story-wise undermine the first hour worth of relevant plot.         

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Like I said the other day, without having read the script, I wouldn't necessarily blame the writing. What I might blame is unfortunate editing. 

And as for Julia's interest in Barnabas and where the whole notion of having her involved with him comes from, well, I suppose it can be traced back to the exchange between Julia and Liz after Julia has just discovered Barnabas is a vampire and Liz says she's surprised because she would have thought Julia would find him fascinating, to which Julia replies that from medical, psychological and physical standpoints he is fascinating, and Liz tells her to be fascinated. 

19 days 15 hours 45 minutes 32 seconds since the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows has been in release(ET)!!

[Cousin_Barnabas]

Yes, it's either the writing or the editing.  It could be both, but my inkling would be editing as well...  Like you said, we have to get our hands on the script to find out. 

Haha, another one of the best exchanges in the whole film.  And, yet, I can't keep justifying these terrific scenes leading into less than stellar story-points.  I can't.  I just can't!   

[Midnite]

The fact that Laura just appears out of nowhere and saves the day is the most jarring and upsetting plot point.  (As an aside, has anyone really taken a look at her clothing?  Does it look like something from the 1960s?  Because it looks to be from a much earlier period imo.

It looks like a '60s empire waist floor-length
dress, no?

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I tend to blame the editing more only because we learned that the studio wanted the film to run under two hours. Personally I think it would have hardly been a terrible thing if the film had run something like 140 minutes instead of 113. 27 more minutes certainly wouldn't have forced theaters to run any fewer showings. But then a lot of times when things get cut they necessitate that other related things also get cut because they're no longer going to make sense, so you end up with a film that's 113 minutes rather than closer to 120.

The thing I think is really going to be fascinating is to see what people have to say on the DVD/Blu-ray release - and particularly what they hopefully have to say when it comes to what was cut and why...

19 days 16 hours 6 minutes 44 seconds since the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows has been in release(ET)!!

[Cousin_Barnabas]

It could be, Midnite.  It probably is.  The sleeves and the waist bother me, though.  But the shot of her and David together really reminded me of clothing from an earlier period.  Again, I can't remember it all that well at this point, but she didn't look modern.  Again, probably just the fact that we didn't see enough of her to get an accurate picture.      

And, yes, MB.  I can't wait for the DVD features.  Because I really want to know!

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Tuesday's chart at last - and DS did indeed place 8th:

Tuesday's Box Office

And it's interesting because unlike a typical Tuesday, everything was way down. But I suppose that's what happens whenever there's a Monday holiday.

19 days 16 hours 19 minutes 7 seconds since the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows has been in release(ET)!!

[The Doctor and K9]

DS is leaving our theater tomorrow.  It'll still be in a larger town 16 miles away.  We have 10 screens; McAllen has 17.

[KMR]

It could be, Midnite.  It probably is.  The sleeves and the waist bother me, though.  But the shot of her and David together really reminded me of clothing from an earlier period.  Again, I can't remember it all that well at this point, but she didn't look modern.  Again, probably just the fact that we didn't see enough of her to get an accurate picture.

I agree, CB, that the way she appears so briefly in the film does seem to give the impression of someone from an earlier time. But looking closely at the still shot, I agree with Midnite that it is very 1960s.