‘Meatballs’ Destroys ‘Informant!’ — Audiences Want Optimism, Positivity
by S.T. KarnickGiven the huge advertising and publicity push, plus the presence of star actor Matt Damon (Bourne spy film series) and star director Steven Soderbergh (Ocean’s series of heist films), I thought The Informant! had a good chance to win the box office sweepstakes during its opening days this past weekend.
I considered that a potentially baleful eventuality, considering that the new comedy seemed likely to be very anti-business, given the scenes shown in the trailers and the presence of politically active Damon and Soderbergh (director of Che, which lionized the Cuban Marxist revolutionary). I haven’t seen it yet, and so will reserve judgment on that score, but perhaps it makes sense that although The Contender did better than expected, it was clobbered by the animated comedy Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
Meatballs brought in a very healthy $30.1 million in North American ticket sales in its first weekend during the past three days (50 percent more than industry analysts had expected), far outpacing The Contender’s take of $10.5 million. The Damon-Soderbergh comedy finished just ahead of Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All by Myself, which brought in $10.1 million in its second weekend. Another comedy, Love Happens, finished fourth.
With three comedies leading the pack and two highly promoted horror-suspense films with attractive female stars in the lead roles tanking with unexpectedly low ticket sales (Jennifer’s Body, Whiteout), it’s apparent that U.S. audiences are tired of downbeat material and want a more positive, optimistic type of entertainment,
That’s especially important with the economy remaining in bad condition long after recovery typically begins (average of ten months after onset) and Congress and the President considering a multitude of expensive new initiatives guaranteed to make the situation even worse.
With so many comedies to choose from, the weekend’s total U.S. box office was up 14 percent over the same weekend of last year and 17 percent over the previous weekend. Clearly, the Hollywood studios would be smart to press their filmmakers to move toward a more optimistic, positive, pro-American, classical liberal approach to the stories they tell.
If not, they may find themselves in a recession of their own.
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49 Comments
Correlation <> Causality
I'm assuming that where you wrote "The Contender" you meant "The Informant."
I think what also may be at play is that some people see 'celebrities' as nothing more than hypocrytical loons being vocal about political issues they know nothing about. I know that that's one of the reasons I stopped watching some shows and movies.
Dude. "The Informant" is a book about a corrupt business practice. The whole topic is PRICE FIXING global markets.
Kurt Eichenwald may have written a pretty good book about this story, but attaching himself as a producer has turned this incredible story of price fixing into a slapstick comedy.
The story is about Archer Daniels Midland and their role in price fixing. This story of corruption of global proportion is going to be turned into comedy showcase.
I just thought it was boring – not particularly funny or ironic. Didn't find it anti-corporate, and I thought the feds were shown in a positive manner. Just a lousy movie.
I work hard and with young children have little chance to go to the movies. When my wife and I go we look for upbeat positive films, or comedies or animated films for our kids. I have seen enough preachy politically correct dribble to last a life time. Great movies tell a great story and have characters that you can cheer to succeed. Movies based on this can be great films that last forever- starwars, The wizard of OZ, Raiders of the lost ark. Movies with those features continue to make money for years, I hope someone will take note of that.
I am not going to give my scant money to Hollywood left loonies who speak afrom the knee, not from the brain!
This guy sucks. In 10 years people won't remember the Bourne movies. The Christian Slater super secret agent TV show was better than Damon's trilogy. And that show was awful.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Michael Chavez. Michael Chavez said: ‘Meatballs’ Destroys ‘Informant!’ — Audiences Want Optimism, Positivity http://bit.ly/t4sJt [...]
It almost seems as if we may reached the tipping point in that Hollywood liberals or so wealthy and are now so addicted to political advocacy that whether a film makes money is no longer important to them. This would, in a way, be similar to the theory of Obama as willing to sacrafice a second term if it means ramming the liberal agenda through.
I find it funny that this anti-capitalist, left-wing propaganda piece is advertising on the Fox News channel. Smart move on Fox's part to take their money, knowing that most viewers understand this for what it is. It's also interesting to see GE advertising on Fox News, given they own NBC (presumably an attempt to convince us they aren't as awful as we know they are, but I digress). And there is word that he and friend George Clooney are planning on doing a movie on Gitmo. (READ: Another box office bomb)
I for one am really growing tired of the Matt Damon-types who believe they are much better that the rest of us. They promote socialism and bash capitalism, yet it's capitalism that allows them to live their outlandish lifestyles, making $10-$20 million per movie while criticizing CEO pay. Perhaps we should get the "actuary tables" out on him like those he wanted to get out for Sarah Palin and see how long his career will last.
BTW: check out who all Damon supports – http://www.newsmeat.com/celebrity_political_donat... – $25K to MoveOn.org.
[...] ‘Meatballs’ Destroys ‘Informant!’ — Audiences Want Optimism, Positivity [...]
While my boycott of one probably doesn't affect Damon's bottom line, or the Che loving Soderbergh, it does give me great pleasure knowing I do not contribute one penny to their activism.
It's not about the pessimism or optimism about the economy.
I have boycotted all Hollywood "product" for as long as fascists control our government. My friends have joined me in this.
We're not going to allow our money to help keep the criminal enterprise that is the Hollywood propaganda machine alive.
I wish the worst for all politically-overbearing left-wing "celebrities" like Damon.
Kyle Smith said Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was pro-communist (global warming) propaganda
Talk about irony. The basic plot of the Informant is that his company is fixing prices in collusion with other companies.
Isn't that what Leftists advocate? Isn't that what Hugo Chavez does in the name of the people with disastrous results? Isn't that what FDR did? (though rightfully ruled unconstitutional)
That's also what the government did in Atlas Shrugged and it goes by the proper name, Fascism. They bundling of industries to set prices, wages, profits, supply etc. And the Left loves it.
Talk about irony. The basic plot of the Informant is that his company is fixing prices in collusion with other companies.
Isn't that what Leftists advocate? Isn't that what Hugo Chavez does in the name of the people with disastrous results? Isn't that what FDR did? (though rightfully ruled unconstitutional)
That's also what the government did in Atlas Shrugged and it goes by the proper name, Fascism. The bundling (fascio) of industries to set prices, wages, profits, supply etc. And the Left loves it.
I didn't go see "The Informant!" because it's an unctuous, smug, 'wacky' left-wing mess. The exclamation mark in the name pretty much sets that up – that fake enthusiasm, like how the NBC announcer used to announce the hilarious events of the next episode of "Joey!".
But the most anti-American film I've seen recently was "Quantum of Solace". Besides simply being an incompetent Bond film, and Daniel Craig being the worst Bond of all time (Timothy Dalton can finally rest), their portrayal of our evil greedy evil oil-hungry evil CIA helping a terrorist, along with the terrorist's tiresome left-wing rants, made that movie strictly unwatchable. It's amazing how much the lefty Brits hate us for acting on their intelligence reports, isn't it?
Not for me. I did the same treatment with his DVD's (including the wonderful Good Will Hunting), that I did to the Dixie Chicks CD (which was awesome) when I had to take a stand for my beliefs. I ran over them multiple times with my SUV.
I CONCUR!
I don't want to support these commies with one red cent of my money!
Actually, it's not left-wing or anti-American at all. It's not really anti-big business or full of liberal talking points. As was mentioned earlier, it even makes the Feds look good. It really focuses on Matt Damon's character. The problem with the movie is that the previews and commercials make it seem like it's a laugh out loud comedy, when it's not like that at all. All the funny parts were in the previews.
Meatballs is a heavily marketed, 3D glasses family affair. The Informant is a smart R rated comedy. Unless Meatballs turned out to be unforgivably awful, it was a foregone conclusion that it would rake in loads more money–it targets a much wider audience (children) and 3D admission prices have consistently boosted weekend gross. Both performed pretty well. The conclusions you attempt to draw neglect these industry basics.
They don´t care what you do with their stuff once you paid for it! You should have sold them on ebay. That way you might have kept a new DVD from being sold.
Yes, big corporations have their role to play, but like certain politicians they have no reason to love free markets. The people do.
I don´t think that´s what Soderberg means. Like most liberals today he probably believes that free markets are just a smokescreen and sees rampant government power as the solution to rampant corporate power.
I hope this movie and all movies by the Ocean 11 team fail. I'm committed to boycott any movie with proactive Obama supporters that want to push socialistic values on America while not committing to doing the same with their own wealth.
When they give away their millions to those needing health care, better living conditions, etc., they may have some credibility. They only like Obama and his principles when it's other people's money – not their own.
To all in Hollywood – keep pushing the Obama agenda, I'm more than happy to boycott you too.
Wondering the same thing………………
Wondering the same thing………………
Apparently Damon's movie truly was forgettable.
Is it too much to ask that a post about a movie at least get its title correct?
Is this post about a movie called The Informant or a movie called The Contender?
Next to Star Trek, The Informant is the best film I have seen this year. It is exceptionally well-paced, funny, and entertaining. It strikes a particular chord with people who work with witnesses for a living. Damon is great.
It is not a particularly political film.
And I voted for Reagan 2 times, and would have voted for him in 2008 if possible.
I think I typed 'lefty' by reflex. You're right. My main objection to the film is that it just doesn't look funny. The idea seems to have been to replace actual humor with goofiness and over-the-top acting & events.
These are both excellent films, one for children and families and one for adults and maybe especially intelligent older children.
In almost ANY boxoffice "showdown" (it is, of course, the worst thing about modern film "journalism" to pretend that ticket sales are like football stats i.e. which film is "winning" but, fine, thats the world I guess) a family film is going to out-earn a workplace comedy skewed at adults. This proves only math and demography, and trying to read some kind of socio-political "point" into that is, at best, shoddy thinking.
I look at this way, they are abetting in tearing this country apart. Why would I help them do that.
Enough good people see their work and the results are they get more work in turn more
media time and the opportunity to tell us what a great person Chavez. or Castro is. You may know how it all works better than I but are they the only ones making movies.
I rather buy an Acorn member lunch at least he can only do a limited amount of political damage.
Its a free country and your entitled to see whomever you like, I respect that but how bad do you want to see that movie. Wait for TCM and enjoy there, if they make it that far.
One day a Hollywood type with a brain will make a movie of a book I read fifteen years ago called A Distant Crossing. The storyline is happening today. It just might scare enough people to get up off their collective asses and put an end to the destruction the "smart guys" are perpetrating each day in this country. PS I doubt Matt Damon would star in it. It goes against everything he believes in.
Go see the movie. Reveals a lot of corruption that ACTUALLY went on at ADM in Decatur, IL with your food products. Ignore this review, seems the reviewer didn't understand it and is trying to save people from wasting their time since he mis-names the movie (people reading fast might not even catch the real name) and he tells you WHAT YOU WANT TO SEE… that we want funny stuff, not movies based on facts that one of the biggest food corporations in the USA monkeyed around with some products and fixed food prices and ACTUALLY the chief guys were sent to JAIL. Now, maybe the writer thinks that isn't funny enough for us. I think it is really funny… AND even "funnier" that a reviewer so blatently guides possible viewers away from seeing the movie. GO SEE IT, MAKE IT A HIT, LET OTHER CORRUPT CORP PEOPLE KNOW THAT THEY TOOOO CAN BE MADE FAMOUS AND BE ADVERTISED IN VERY HIGH GROSSING MOVIES. Pick it up like a Protest sign and go for it.
Watch the movie, Karnick. By the way, it's called 'The Informant!', not 'The Contender'. And it is not anti-business, it's anti-corruption. The big surprise is that Damon's character Whitacre is the biggest fraud of them all. It's quite fascinating and the Marvin Hamlisch music was phenomenal.
Remember Donald Rumsfeld with "Old Europe" and "New Europe"?
I see Hollywood that way. I invest in New Hollywood and boycott Old Hollywood. The second a director insults me or my country, the second an actor does, they get lumped into Old Hollywood, and they are dead to me. New Hollywood is Christopher Nolan or JJ Abrams. They entertain and they don't lecture or invert morality. If they ever did, even once, I'd abandon them. I'm sure they won't, they're too smart.
I think people writing off jerk entertainers plays a far bigger role in movie choice among the older set than anyone realizes.
To quote Lincoln, people who like this sort of thing, will find this the sort of thing they like. I liked it a lot. Not every movie has to have a mass audience. I love sushi, but I get that there are far more burger joints around. I believe "The Informant!" was finished several years ago and just got around to theaters. I'm not sure what market/timing would have served it best–I think its success was always shaky, hence the long wait. I don't think the author saw the movie. It's not anti government or lefty/wacko. It is, however, an offbeat film that was never going to reach a mass audience. I loved the funky 70's look as well as the retro Marvin Hamlisch music. There's room for all kinds of film; some days I really want that burger, others, only a spicy yellowtail roll will do. I hope I always have a choice.
Also, Hollywood is already in a recession, just like everyone else. Overall production has fallen, and work has never rebounded since the writer's strike. Personally the best news I've seen lately is that a scripted drama (Flash Forward) beat a reality show (Survivor) in the overnight ratings.
Some celebrities, their work I like very much. Such as that by Matt Damon. And who I'd far prefer I never knew of their political views. Such as those by Damon and Director Soderbergh (whose films otherwise, with the exception of CHE, I enjoy moreso than many).
I can write the same about Brad Pitt, Alec Baldwin, and even most of the time about George Clooney. But I really am repulsed by each and all of their politics and most of their socio-political views. It poses a dilemma for me as a film viewer, whether to patronize work I enjoy but which contributes to politics I quite reject and avoid.
Damon, I watch. I do like his work (there've been a few exceptions — Bourne, Parts 2 and 3 were not his best, though that seems to be largely the fault of a poor script and in 3, exceptionally confusing camera work and weak performances in both by other actors — Bourne 1 was by far the better of the 3 parts). So I plan on seeing THE INFORMANT!
Like I wrote, it's a dilemma.
Remeber when Newt Girngrich in1994 went after farm subsidies and the left killed the bill tostick up for the poor farmer in America.
Remeber when they six years later complained about Republicans support for Corporate Welfare.
I saw this movie and it involved high scale fraud by corporate execs and price fixing. Yet Damon missed his Steven Segal "On Deadly Ground' moment to lecture us all on the corporate welfare of the Big Sugar (the subsidies, the fascist regulatory control that is itself government price fixing.) Hmmm…… is ADM a big contributor to the WON! Enquiring minds want to know……
http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-241.html
That's certainly true for me and my family–especially now.
Times are tough and money is tight and it isn't in my best interest to lend financial support to celebrities whose beliefs and activism will only make times tougher and money tighter for us.
I won't even buy products that I know are being pimped by them.
Matt Damon can suck meatballs. End of story.
The remarkable fact which escapes these "celebretards" on the left, is that the first bunch in society to be exterminated during a 'Che" marxist revolution are artists and intellectuals.
Soderbergh, Damon, Penn, etc and the myriad "celebretards" would want to give Che a big wet kiss……Che would put a bullet between their eyes in return.
Celebretards. Amazing.
I chuckle every time I see a GE commercial on an NBC network… that's time they couldn't sell to a paying customer.
Why go to movies? I dropped some dough on "Media Malpractie" by John Zielgler and picked up Culture of Corruption by Michelle Malkin. A whole lot better than paying 12 bucks to stars who hate my beliefs and movies that try and indoctrinate my kids. Try it some time, you will feel better for it.
How about this for a cause… Matt Damon's blind political support for a piss poor unqualified democrat president has turned moviegoers sour to this once popular box office draw.
Obama is willing to sacrifice the careers of the blue dogs for his agenda but he has mentioned far too many times that his dream number was 8.
Where is ben or I bet barack would have a shot.
Where is ben or I bet barry would have a shot.
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