The relaunch of “Spider Man” — you can’t say it’s a flop. “The Amazing Spider Man” has put $200 million into the bank domestically in 13 days. That’s not chopped liver. But it’s $40 million off the pace of “Spider Man 3” from 2007, directed by Sam Raimi. So you decide, dear reader. “Amazing” also has had much higher ticket prices thanks to IMAX and 3D pricing. Fewer people have seen it. Number 1 this week was “Ice Age: Continental Drift.” But that will be a short lived run at number 1. Come Friday, “The Dark Knight Rises” will break records, swamp the box office, and turn over everything–especially since David Letterman let the ending slip out. Was that really an error? Or was it planned? Letterman isn’t stupid or senile. I wonder if the plan was to leak it that Batman takes a powder. Knowing that will make people want to see the movie even more. Expect a blockbuster here.
Meanwhile, three indie films doing great– Woody Allen’s “To Rome with Love,” Wes Anderson’s “Moonrise Kingdom,” and John Madden’s “Exotic Marigold Hotel.” There’s still a counter programming audience who want to see intelligent films without comic book characters. “The Intouchables” is doing very well, too. See, there are reasons to go on after all…
