Batman Begins box office

[cletus510]

I know that it is the #1 movie right now and WB is claiming to be very excited, but I'm somewhat disappointed by the box office. I was expecting this to be a mega-blockbuster. What do you think?

Opening night: $15M
3-day weekend estimate: $47M
5-day gross estimate: $71M

For comparison:
Revenge of the Sith opening night: $50M
Revenge of the Sith 3-day weekend: $108M
Revenge of the Sith 4-day gross (it opened Thursday): $158M
...or...
Spider-Man 2 opening night (also a Wednesday): $40M
Spider-Man 2 3-day weekend: $88M
Spider-Man 2 5-day gross: $152M
[By the way, Spider-Man 1 had an impressive 3-day weekend of $114M, but that is slightly misleading. It opened on a Friday, so the usual huge opening night B.O. counted toward the weekend total.]

I understand why Sith was big (Star Wars is a national obsession), but why did Spider-Man do so much better than Batman Begins? Batman Begins has been getting as good or better reviews, both from critics and the public (it is #64 all-time on imdb.com). While it may be true that Spider-Man is slightly more popular in American culture nowadays, I don't see how that accounts for the 2:1 ratio of ticket sales.

Is Batman Begins less "kid friendly" (darker tone) or less "girl friendly" (no cutesy love story)? Or is WB dropping the ball with their promo campaign, or lack thereof?

[Gaz]

Combination of more mature tone which put not only families off, but fans of the Burton pictures, and the more fun, colourful Spidey franchise, the lousy mid-week opening, the less ideal date, the less emphasised romance and slower pace/less action approach.

[shaderhacker]

I am very disappointed at the Box office results. Batman was clearly better than any comic movie out. Blame WB. They don't know when they have a gem and they overhype their crappy films..

-M

[We R. Venom]

if you compare it to spidey, yeah it did bad. otherwise, its not bad at all

[pureclint]

To be fair shouldn't you compare it to Spider-Man 1?

[kmeyers]

you can't really even compare it to Spider-Man 1. because it may be a starting over of the Bat franchise, but it's not the first Bat movie people have seen. It's not as new or exciting as the launch of Spider-Man. Movie goers have seen some pretty bad Batman movies already.

Spider-Man was a brand new hero...and much more kid friendly.

but it's not doing bad. I bet it will end up making over $100 million.

[EDmanwalking]

Disappoint numbers. I blame Joel Schumacher for turning so many people off the franchise. Now that I look back on it, compared to BB, Revenge of the Sith was a terrible film...

[Yellow_Bastard]

well it's hard to compare Batman to friggin star wars as it's star wars, the hype for this chapter has been building for years, plus it's got an unbeleivable fan base. While in batman's case many people still have that sour taste in their mouths from batman and robin, which couldn't have helped in the box office. Now when comparing it to spider-man, it is disappointing but Spiderman is a more marketable character, and he is prolly more well known then batman, plus it had a half decent launching movie to help build hype.

[1HELLBOY]

Yeah, there have been 4 Batman movies before Batman Begins, and 1 1/2 of them were horrible. Spider-Man didn't have any unbearable movies before it to turn people off to a new one. Star Wars is almost a religion.

[tjarvis]

To put it into perspective though, The Hulk did better opening weekend numbers.

I admit to being kind of stymied why Batman didn't perform as well as I would have thought. I didn't think it was going to do Spidey numbers, but I figured it would do much better than it had.

I wonder if FF will do better opening weekend numbers. I'd have laughed at that before, but now . . . I don't know.

[kmeyers]

Now that I look back on it, compared to BB, Revenge of the Sith was a terrible film...
whoah, whoah...let's not get crazy, now!

just kidding with you. I love both movies, but I like Sith better.

and you can't compare Batman to Star Wars, because like 1HELLBOY said, Star Wars is almost a religion.

[kmeyers]

To put it into perspective though, The Hulk did better opening weekend numbers.

I admit to being kind of stymied why Batman didn't perform as well as I would have thought. I didn't think it was going to do Spidey numbers, but I figured it would do much better than it had.

I wonder if FF will do better opening weekend numbers. I'd have laughed at that before, but now . . . I don't know.
Hulk is still like Spider-Man, though. It didn't have all the bad movies to hold it back like Batman did. I think when a lot of people heard about Batman Begins, it was a lot of...oh yeah...Batman...been there, done that...it sucks.

in fact, the Hulk had a pretty popular tv show, so I think that helped it too.

[TitoJones]

Hopefully word of mouth of how good a movie this is might give Batman Begins some legs thoughout the summer.

[HypnoHustler]

Batman as a character has probably been the most schizophrenic comic book character ever translated to the screen. There have been movies, TV shows and cartoons, and they are all wildly different in tone... everything from the kiddie schlock of the 60s series to the dark, gothic early movies and cartoons to the Schumacher cheese-fests. So when a brand new version comes out, no one quite knows what to make of it.

This movie had a lot to prove.... and it did, which I think will mean that over the long haul (final gross, DVD sales, etc.) it will do very, very well. And if they make a sequel with a lot of the same team (director, stars, etc.) I think it will have a huge opening now that they have set expectations.

[1HELLBOY]

Batman as a character has probably been the most schizophrenic comic book character ever translated to the screen. There have been movies, TV shows and cartoons, and they are all wildly different in tone... everything from the kiddie schlock of the 60s series to the dark, gothic early movies and cartoons to the Schumacher cheese-fests. So when a brand new version comes out, no one quite knows what to make of it.

This movie had a lot to prove.... and it did, which I think will mean that over the long haul (final gross, DVD sales, etc.) it will do very, very well. And if they make a sequel with a lot of the same team (director, stars, etc.) I think it will have a huge opening now that they have set expectations.


Exactly. Hulk didn't have anything before it that made people think that it would suck. Neither did Spidey or X-Men. Batman did, and THAT'S why it hasn't completely taken off the ground yet. Come to think of it, neither did Superman. Just tell everybody you know and some random people on the street that this movie kicks ass and to go see it. It'll soar.

[kash]

blame has to go the schumacher for the previous bat films.
im 21 and those two films came out while i was in my teens.

thats a huge demagraphic that can be turned off by wanting to watch a movie that hated the previous two.

hopefully the film will pick up by word of mouth

[cactusmaac]

1) There's a lot of competition out there: Sith, Madagascar, Longest Yard.

2) Unlike Spidey, Hulk, X-Men this isn't the first Batman movie for decades. The curiosity factor is much lower.

3) It's likely to have strong legs and end up doing a Polar Express whereby a lower than expected opening weekend is compensated for by strong results week on week.

[soda]

as a fan, I can honestly say that I DON'T CARE how much this movie makes, as long as it makes enough to convince everyone involved that a sequel should be made with everyone back EXACTLY how they were in the first one (sans Katie Holmes, of course, my advice, have the Joker kill her off in the opening moments of the sequel, he's good that way. Make sure it's a sufficiently brutal, joker-ish death, complete with the acceptable irony to make it funny. My suggestion: the Joker and Harle throw Holmes off of a very high cliff, with an anvil strapped to her back, justifing it by saying that it's "what bugs bunny would have done"). I don't care that a company like WB makes any money, but I care that Nolan's film makes enough money to allow him total control over how to make it. I want the guys who played Batman, Gordon, Alfred and Lucius Fox to all come back.

The good news is that Batman begins has a better chance than I originally thought. Next week has nothing new really coming out, and no, I don't think that "bewitched" will knock Batman Begins out of the #1 spot. So, Begins should have a pretty strong second week, and remain the #1 movie, that should really help it's legs. I think Batman Begins will not lose 40% off of its take next week, probably something smaller than that (although it will still drop). I also, and this is just personal, believe that Batman Begins is a better film than "war of the worlds". War of the worlds looks "okay" in my book, but here's the problem: based on the trailer, Dakota Fanning is a MUCH better actor than Tom Cruise. That's a problem. I think Batman Begns has a good shot to still be in theatres around the time Fantastic Four comes out, but I think War of the worlds will come and go quickly. I think that 240 million is the bar for Batman Begins, based on the first weekend, Batman Begins should have LITTLE trouble making back it's 150 million dollar budget right here in the USA, I think it's on track for at least 180 million dollar domestic take, if you extrapolate the numbers. I think 240 million could be a stretch, but I think that's the number to shoot for, because it's double what the production budget was. Any movie that takes in, at the domestic box office, double what it cost to produce gives the director a huge amount of leverage with the sequels. Dispite the disappointing opening weekend box office, I think it's impossible that Batman Begins won't be VERY profitable in the end, I'd say right now, if will finish in the 180 to 240 million dollar range, in the domestic box office. If it hits the higher of those two numbers, Nolan should have complete control with the sequels, so fingers crossed. Anyone want to dispute my numbers? (I'm really a novice at this sort of projection, if anyone with more experience wants to help me out, it would be appreciated.)

[gator_ash]

I think it might be that the average movie goer's idea of an entertaining movie may not be the same as a comic fan's nor a film critic's. The #1 thing a movie has to be is entertaining (different from being good) and the #2 thing a movie has to do is fulfill the movie goer's expectations of what to see in a genre picture. For example, if people go to see a western/cowboy movie, they expect to see lots of gunfights, cool lines spoken by the characters, and chases on horse back. They don't want to see "Open Range" with Kevin Costner, with lots of philosophical musing. I also don't think a serious, mature take on Batman is what the average movie goer wants to see either. People expect to see great action sequences, cool hand to hand combat, and memorable, over the top villains.

Batman movies definitely need the over the top villains to make the idea of man dressing up a bat seem more fitting. It sets the context of the film better. The more realistic you make Batman, the more the absurdity of the concept becomes apparent. That's why if they try to make a realistic Captain America movie similar in tone to "Saving Private Ryan", it's guaranteed to fail because again, the more realistic you make a superhero movie, the sillier the conventions of the super hero genre appear.

That's why I think the Fantastic Four movie wil actually do more box office than Batmans Begins, though the quality of the movie will probably not even to begin to compare. From the trailers, it looks like the movie will fulfill the movier goer's expectations. They'll see superheroes with amazing abilities doing cool stuff that will be loud and exciting on the big screen.

[Corrina]

3) It's likely to have strong legs and end up doing a Polar Express whereby a lower than expected opening weekend is compensated for by strong results week on week.

I agree. Revenge of the Sith is about done now. Batman Begins is likely to pick up steam as word of mouth spreads that this is a very good movie.

[kmeyers]

I'm not really worried about it. it's made enough already that there is going to be a sequel.

I do hope it makes a ton more, so they'll want to give it more money. But I think the sequel will happen now. It's just when will it happen, and how much will they give the budget for it?

[EmmaFrostSlavingFanBoy]

I thought the numbers would be higher, but there's been four previous batman films, the 60s tv series, superfriends, and other animated shows.

You can blame Schumacher a lot, but I also blame George Clooney. He ruined the batman franchise as much as Schumacher.

I was very happy that batman begins was NOT kid/family friendly. I hope those idiot parents who brought toddlers and young kids were kept up all weekend night by kids having nightmares about scarecrows and bats.

The movie was rated PG-13. Hello, this movie was not appropriate for 5 year olds and 8 year olds.

Give us an adult batman that's serious and we will support it. Heck, I'd love a rated R batman.

[kmeyers]

The movie was rated PG-13. Hello, this movie was not appropriate for 5 year olds and 8 year olds.

Give us an adult batman that's serious and we will support it. Heck, I'd love a rated R batman.
I just don't understand that. Batman is scary, sure. I like him as a dark character. but things are usually R rated for nudity, or extreme blood and violence. Do you want Batman to go around ripping people's heads off? I don't.

[EmmaFrostSlavingFanBoy]

I just don't understand that. Batman is scary, sure. I like him as a dark character. but things are usually R rated for nudity, or extreme blood and violence. Do you want Batman to go around ripping people's heads off? I don't.

No, what's great about Batman is that he doesn't kill and he doesn't use guns. Now what would really make batman an even more complex and heroic character would be showing the Joker doing those nasty things and Batman not killing him.

Heck if War Games was faithfully translated to a movie it could be rated R. A lot of violence and blood in that.

[kmeyers]

No, what's great about Batman is that he doesn't kill and he doesn't use guns. Now what would really make batman an even more complex and heroic character would be showing the Joker doing those nasty things and Batman not killing him.

Heck if War Games was faithfully translated to a movie it could be rated R. A lot of violence and blood in that.

you can know that Joker does "nasty things" and not be too graphic about it. after all, I've never really read a Batman comic that should be rated R, but I still know Joker is a bad guy.

[PanzerMega]

While I'm a bit surprised at the relatively low box office performance, the word of mouth on Batman Begins, is incredibly positive. BB will stick it out in theaters doing good business for weeks, DVD sales will be huge, and the franchise will be saved, bringing monster box office to the inevitable sequel.

I'm sure the studio was hoping for a repeat of the first Tim Burton Batman, and will no doubt be disapointed, but I really believe that this less marketable / more substanced approach will pay off long-term.

I really think the only thing holding the box office back is that the lack of flashy characters, and the realistic action, probably kept the parents and children away. Big money, there.

[Grant]

I was very happy that batman begins was NOT kid/family friendly. I hope those idiot parents who brought toddlers and young kids were kept up all weekend night by kids having nightmares about scarecrows and bats.

The movie was rated PG-13. Hello, this movie was not appropriate for 5 year olds and 8 year olds.

Give us an adult batman that's serious and we will support it. Heck, I'd love a rated R batman.

It kind of depresses me that too many comic fans feel this way. I mean I grew up on Batman since I was three, if I ever had kids I would like to take them to see a Batman movie without worrying about content. Batman should for be everyone. I think the new one kind of excludes kids. Might be why the box office isn't that exceptional compared to the last four.

[jewdaddy]

The fact is alot of people were scared off from the last batman films. Once all is said in done in terms of movie sales and dvd sales the movie will make bank. The second one will proably gross a shitload more then this movie.

[handOFfate]

Yeah, I was very disappointed at the low box-office take, as i'm sure Warner Brothers was. I remember the day I watched it (Friday) asking some friends if they were gonna go watch it. Some said yes, but the others didn't want to because of the crappy last film. Now, that being said, everybody who saw it agreed that it was a kick-ass movie, and now the people who weren't gonna go watch it have decided to go. Batman Begins will stay atop the box office until War of the Worlds comes out, and have some staying power (far more than Hulk). The DVD sales, as well as merchandising, will be huge. And the sequel will gross far more.
And fortunately, Warner Brothers will never let Schumacher near the Bat-franchise again.

[xowainx]

It still did significantly better than the other Batman films at the Box Office.. I hope Warner Bros will realise they are onto a winner with this format and after all the positive press and word of mouth will continue with a sequel in the same style/format.

[cactusmaac]

I thought the numbers would be higher, but there's been four previous batman films, the 60s tv series, superfriends, and other animated shows.

You can blame Schumacher a lot, but I also blame George Clooney. He ruined the batman franchise as much as Schumacher.

I was very happy that batman begins was NOT kid/family friendly. I hope those idiot parents who brought toddlers and young kids were kept up all weekend night by kids having nightmares about scarecrows and bats.

The movie was rated PG-13. Hello, this movie was not appropriate for 5 year olds and 8 year olds.

Give us an adult batman that's serious and we will support it. Heck, I'd love a rated R batman.


Batman isn't Spawn or Blade.

[Mia]

Combination of more mature tone which put not only families off, but fans of the Burton pictures, and the more fun, colourful Spidey franchise, the lousy mid-week opening, the less ideal date, the less emphasised romance and slower pace/less action approach.


What Gaz said. Too adult and too serious. Which seems to be something American audiences don't like. After all look at the success of Mr. and Mrs. Smith (something I thought was awful) that seems to be what Americans want.

I'm sure we'll get a sequel. It's what kind of sequel we're getting I'm worried about. I hope they don't lighten it up.

[hugh45]

Maybe the reason why the numbers isn't higher,because it could be
people like me wondering if one should wait for the next one,because
knowing this one is an origin story.I read some Batman comics,but I'm
not a HUGH Batman fan and I knew about Frank Miller's Batman:Year One.
From what I read from the boards so far,people say it's the best Batman movie,but maybe people like myself are probably thinking not seeing another origin story and just waiting for the next installment.

[xowainx]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/4625571.stm

Stayed top at the US Box Office over the weekend, not bad at all.

[handOFfate]

It looks like Batman Begins will have some staying power. The positive reviews surely helped.

[IamtheRock3]

this one also wasnt that hype up as the others. Think they letting word of mouth save the day

[someone777]

Look the only reson that Batman Begins where so disappointing is the bad economy. Not on how the movie is.

[Jaye]

Look the only reson that Batman Begins where so disappointing is the bad ecomunty. Not on how the movie is.


ecomunty?
I'm not sure what that word is supposed to be ... maybe economy?

Thanks.

[Chewbaccacabra]

I think the movie is doing well at the BO. It could end up being a real sleeper. No matter what the final numbers are, the DVD release will be the big money.

[The Xenos]

Well, Batman is only the third movie to hold the number 1 slot two weeks in a row. Star Wars and the Feburary date movie Hitch were the orher two. While that's great for Batman, that's quite damn sad news for the box office. Do we have that much crap out there cramming into thearters and are our attention spans that low that we can't stay with one good movie for more than a week?

-Xenos

[cletus510]

As you might have read, Batman has impressed with its staying power, beating out newcomers like Herbie and Bewitched (what's with studios always trying to recycle old 60's and 70's shows?). It had a smaller 2nd week dropoff than most blockbusters. I hope that it still makes good money this coming weekend (although I'm sure it will get trounced by WotW).

The bad news: USA Today said it underperformed, making $10M less than the most conservative expectations (link) (http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/usatoday/20050620/en_usatoday/batmandoesntbegintoendslump).

The second thing I wanted to point out: Even though it took in more money than the previous Batman films, keep in mind how much more expensive ticket prices are today. In terms of actual ticket sales, 25% fewer people saw Batman Begins on its opening weekend compared to Batman Forever (link) (http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=1837&p=.htm).

I don't want to be Mr. Negativity. I was just disappointed in the lackluster sales. But I agree with the comments above. The movie is a little too heavy to be the "feel good movie of the summer" that everyone and their grandmother will see. I'm happy to have lower ticket sales if that means we get a more mature, less farcical product. So with the news that a sequel is in the works, I'm quite satisfied. I just wish other people would wise up and see it. (Mia, I am also puzzled by the success of Mr. and Mrs. Smith: I saw it in a multiplex right after BB--for, ahem, "free"--and thought it was dreck.)

Here's another two questions to ponder:
1) Supposedly, BB cost $150M to produce. Where the heck did all that money go? Is it profitable for WB? I once heard that a movie has to make 2 or 3 times its budget to turn a profit. Movies are out of control! (What happened to movies that cost $30M to produce, then make $200M at the box office?)
2) How much do you guess WotW will make this weekend?

[someone777]

Well, Batman is only the third movie to hold the number 1 slot two weeks in a row. Star Wars and the Feburary date movie Hitch were the orher two. While that's great for Batman, that's quite damn sad news for the box office. Do we have that much crap out there cramming into thearters and are our attention spans that low that we can't stay with one good movie for more than a week?

-Xenos
NO!!! Like I said bad economy.

[cactusmaac]

You know even if this had mimicked Batman Forever's style it would not have made more money.

People who aren't teens just much prefer to stay at home and watch DVDs than make an expensive trip to the theatre.

Especially since this is essentially Batman 5, with the audience having already been burned by B&R.

[Ruthless_Pryde]

They really didn't hype it as much as other movies. Think about it, where are the McDonalds toys? Where is the big toy stands in Toy R us for it. Outside of WB commercials, how many did you see on NBC, ABC, etc? There was no big media blitz behind this one. Where was the Superbowl Commercial? Commercials durning the NBA Playoffs? The list goes on and on. I rember when the first on came out (1989) I couldn't walk 2 feet with out seeing Batman stuff. Where were the interviews on the Letterman and Leno for the cast of Bataman? Where were the Access hollywood/ET specials leading up to the week of Batman Begins?

YOu know what I remeber seeing of the entertanment shows around Batman Begins premire time? Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise. Why does Tom Cruise Get more press at the Batman premire than Christan Bale. OK maybe that is not as valid of a point, but you know what I mean.

Where is the cool song by some really popular group that when you hear it makes you think of the movie, I.E. Hero, by Chad kroeger. Heck even you've got the touch from tranformers the movie. I can't hear that song and not think of being in middle school and going see Transformers the movie.

You get the idea. A multi media conglomerate like Aol Time Warner has the media muscle to make things happen for this movie and they didn't.

I just hope that they do a better job with Superman.

[Chewbaccacabra]

Those pop songs from the other films really grated my nerves. I'm happy to have a pop song free Batman.

Anyone here interested in box office numbers should check out boxofficemojo.com.

And yes typically movies need to turn a profit 2x the production budget to begin to get out of the red. But don't forget Hollywood accountants are known for their creative bookkeeping.

I've also heard that Hollywood studios would rather make a 150 million dollar film than a 30 million dollar film because they can get outside investors easier for the big films and share the risk.

[mgs]

Here's another two questions to ponder:
1) Supposedly, BB cost $150M to produce. Where the heck did all that money go?

-When I read about that, I was shocked too, but I heard that they had completely built (design and all) the car from scratch. Basically, that's where I'd put my money into where a lot of it went.

I once heard that a movie has to make 2 or 3 times its budget to turn a profit.
I doubt that, if that was the case, many, many movies would not turn a profit. I think once marketing costs are figured in, that's basically all they have to clear before profits. Tho I have to say, this movie has a long way to go before that happens.

[jadrax]

As i understand it, this year has been really bad for film numbers. People waiting for the DVD is starting to really kick in as a major factor.

[someone777]

As i understand it, this year has been really bad for film numbers. People waiting for the DVD is starting to really kick in as a major factor.

I know. This happen the last time the economy went bad.

[Colossus]

I am very disheartened by the low Box office. It has just now made its money back domestically. (That is not a good thing, no matter how apologists spin it).

Add to the fact that FF will probablly open with huge numbers, and I forsee WB executives getting heavy handed with the next film.

[LukeRed5]

I am very disheartened by the low Box office. It has just now made its money back domestically. (That is not a good thing, no matter how apologists spin it).

Add to the fact that FF will probablly open with huge numbers, and I forsee WB executives getting heavy handed with the next film.

If I'm not mistaken, the first X-Men movie didn't make 200 mil, but the second did. So, maybe the samething will happen. I know Bats has more of a mainstream histroy than the X-Men, but maybe people are hesitant because of the last one. Also, its been less than 10 years since the last one and the public demand might not be as high as for fanboys.

[LukeRed5]

I am very disheartened by the low Box office. It has just now made its money back domestically. (That is not a good thing, no matter how apologists spin it).

Add to the fact that FF will probablly open with huge numbers, and I forsee WB executives getting heavy handed with the next film.

If I'm not mistaken, the first X-Men movie didn't make 200 mil, but the second did. So, maybe the samething will happen. I know Bats has more of a mainstream histroy than the X-Men, but maybe people are hesitant because of the last one. Also, its been less than 10 years since the last one and the public demand might not be as high as for fanboys.

[Chewbaccacabra]

I promise this movie will clean up on DVD. And as of late winter it was listed as one of the first High Def DVDs to be released from WB this Xmas.

[Super-Skrull]

Overall the US box office has been down all year, so take that into account.

The movie's budget was $135-150 million and as of 6-27 it had made $124 million and was #1 at the box office for 2 weeks in a row. In Hollywood in this day and age it's all about the opening weekend, and BB did a very good opening weekend, pulling in $48 million. These are all encouraging numbers.

Now consider War of the Worlds will undoubtably open number 1 (with good reviews and Tommy C being insane and all), the question will be Batman's staying power. The movie has great word of mouth and even better rewatchability, so, much like Revenge of the Sith, it should stay strong for a couple more weeks. Batman will pull in $200 million domestically, mark my words, and probably hit another $100 million in the foreign markets. And DVD sales will be off the chains.

As far as movies go, if they hit their budgets then they break even. If they double thier budgets they are a hit and if they triple their budgets they are considered blockbusters. Batman Begins will be considered a hit; it's sequels will be blockbusters.

[mgs]

I promise this movie will clean up on DVD. And as of late winter it was listed as one of the first High Def DVDs to be released from WB this Xmas.
I think it will too, but of course, to even produce and make the DVD, they've probably got to add something like 30mil more (at least if it's going to be a good dvd) to the bottom line before profits.

[someone777]

How meny times do I have to say the economy is down and so is a lot of box office movie at this pont.

[Indefatigable]

Economy isn't down. GDP is up and the Fed raised interest rates. People just don't like going to theaters anymore, they feel it's too expensive, which it is. I'm just a sucker for the big screen.

[someone777]

Economy isn't down. GDP is up and the Fed raised interest rates. People just don't like going to theaters anymore, they feel it's too expensive, which it is. I'm just a sucker for the big screen.

Look what you just Quoted dues mean the Economy is down.