Don't forget Star Wars had a theatrical re-release in the 90s. I think, adjusted for inflation, the runaway box office champion is Gone With the Wind.
I've seen several people say that this was their first 3D movie (not just here) even though the studios have been putting out this new 3D tech for a few years now - so why had some of you guys stayed away from the 3D stuff? Were you expecting it to be bad? Just not interested? Just curious, I think most people were still expecting something like the old red and blue glasses. Avatar is going to make it much more popular with the mainstream, it seems.
i think it would end up being way higher the 84th when its all said and done even if you would just look at tickets sold.
Here ya go, the all time adjusted for inflation list (with a tool on the upper right to adjust $$ into rates for whatever year you choose).: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm Honestly, some of you guys are talking like no one realizes that impact inflation has on box office figures. It just isn't brought up because a lot of those old movies that came out before cassettes and dvds allowed them to be rewatched at home are never ever being caught (ET and Titanic excluded, of course)...and that's just no fun. No one that follows box office numbers really thinks Avatar will be the true #1 all-time.
Meh with this inflation crap. People are forgetting that the price was cheap back then. There was no internet or piracy and hardly any other movies to compete with. Star Wars 4,5,6 cheated. It's been re-release 3 times.
Its interesting that 6 out of the top 10 all time grossing movies came out during a time of economic downturn and now we have Avatar out during another recession. I'm wondering if there is a correlation between economic trouble and movie going. I also noticed two of the top 10 movies came out in 1965.
There's a couple of things. First of all, Avatar really hasn't made that much of an impact DOMESTICALLY considering other movies on the true (inflation adjusted) popularity lists. Much of its popularity is elsewhere in the world. Avatar never is going to make as much unadjusted in the US as Gone with the Wind or Star Wars. However, there's never been a movie with as large a worldwide footprint than Avatar, it's breaking records in China, Russia, and other places where they never even screened GWTW... and considering how much of GWTW's "juice" at the domestic box office was political in the era of Jim Crow etc... those other countries really wouldn't give a **** about that movie. Compare that to Avatar, which right now is being politicized for native markets... there's a million newstories on the wire about how Chinese see a class struggle message in Avatar, the South Americans an anti capitalist tract and Indians see an extension of Hindu parable. Of course, Americans being lowest common denominator are more up in arms about "Fern Gully" and Smurfs than any substantive political message (somehow we don't really seem to get as much out of things as other ppl...). It's pretty funny I was reading an AP wirestory about how some activist was giving out Avatar tickets to Chinese farmers displaced off their land by land developers, in order to rile them up. Finally, when comparing box office for movies 50 and 30 years, you have to figure in the impact of technology on viewing habits. When Star Wars came out, you couldn't get it on VHS, you HAD to see it in the theaters. When GWTW came out you couldn't even see it on TV... it was basically like a sand painting... people thought if you missed it in the theaters you'd never be able to see it again... in your entire life.
My biggest complaint with 3D is that it has always either felt too gimmicky or it just didn't leave me with much of an impression. Avatar was the first time I felt like I was truly in that world...it wasn't about objects being thrown toward you, it was about being engulfed by a whole new world....if more movies tackle 3D like that I'd be stoked...but too many movies are like Journey to the Center of the Earth or Bloody Valentine or even A Christmas Carol....going for the cheap gags..
Another thing which cannot be ignored is the fact that now, in 2009, 2010, and onward, you cannot any longer just compare 'movies to movies' - in other words, you really need to compare 'leisure time activities to leisure time activities'. When Star Wars, GWTW, the really huge big-time movies from the middle of the last century, came along, the entertainment options were not anywhere near as voluminous as they are now. What this means is, Avatar is not only competing against the movies of the last 50 years, but also against video games, the internet, home theaters, social networking, etc etc etc. No matter how many more options come along, a human being still only has a maximum of 24 hours in a day. The fact that Avatar has done so well speaks not only to the rarefied achievements of the movies of the 20th century, but also to the fact that it has competed and won against WoW, Satellite TV, 500 Sports channels, 100,000-song music libraries, and on and on. Put in its proper perspective, it could very well be that Avatar has done BETTER than any other movie already.
I agree. I had been debating between 3d imax and 2d with this movie because i typically didnt like the 3d stuff. So glad i saw it in 3dimax, it was insane. i had a hard time paying attention for the first 10 minutes because it felt so real.
Wow, I think Avatar is going to sink Titanic worldwide BO. I think it might even do it before the end of February.
I think it's going to cross over to 2billion WW. I think it will matches Titanic domestic number but it's the overseas that will propel it over 2billion at the rate that it's going.
I think for IMAX it will end around the mid of March because Hubble 3D will be taking over. It might continued right pass March with less screening on regular theatres if it still going strong.
I could be wrong about Hubble 3D is taking over in March. From what I've heard Avatar got the least from IMAX for 3 months. But since Hubble 3D is IMAX produced film it might get pushed back even further down to May because Avatar is making so much money for IMAX at the moment.
