What do people want at the movies? You’d think Brad Pitt and race cars would be just the thing. Think of “Ford vs. Ferrari,” a great film that tantalized audiences not that long ago.
But so far ticket sales for Apple’s “F1,” directed by Joseph Kosinski, are slow. Looking at seat maps for Thursday — preview night — there’s concerning news. The film has a $200 million budget, maybe more for marketing and promotion. (That Times Square premiere cost a bundle.)
Of course, IMAX theaters are selling out. That’s to be expected. This is the perfect IMAX movie, shot just for that purpose.
But movies can’t live by IMAX alone. Most theater complexes don’t have IMAX. And that’s where trouble is looming. There are lots of totally empty theaters still for Standard or laser screenings. For example the laser show at 7pm on Friday at AMC Empire 25 is empty so far. And that’s a great place to see this movie!
It’s not like “F1” doesn’t have great reviews. It’s at 88% on Rotten Tomatoes. There’s no doubt the exit cards will be positive. But Apple has never had a movie this big. Even though Warner Bros. is distributing “F1,” it’s Apple’s movie to market. Maybe Apple TV subscribers think they can wait to see it at home? I hope not. To quote press releases, the movie utilizes a custom-built race car and a new camera system to capture the speed and intensity of Formula 1 racing.
So we’ll wait and see what develops tomorrow night.
