Saturday, June 28, 2008

Why Wanted Will Tank Next Week

"Wanted," based on a graphic novel has surpassed expectations. Originally thought to be doing about $35 million in box office this weekend, Nikki Finke at Deadline Hollywood Daily thinks the movie will do about $52 million this weekend. One thing stands out, women are going to see this movie, and young men are not.

This is precisely WHY "Wanted" will tank next week. As a movie, it's no more formulaic or mechanical or nihilistic than much of anything Hollywood puts out, from "the Fast and the Furious" to "Hostel II." The problem is that men and women are different, want different things from entertainment, and are supplied by entertainment companies in different ways.

This is why "Wanted" will tank like Ang Lee's "Hulk" did about five years ago, with around 75% drop-off after the first week.

Commenters at Nikki Finke's site, many of them Hollywood insiders, completely miss the point. Men and young men in particular are under served in entertainment. About the only entertainment that caters to their preferences are big summer blockbusters. TV is a female and gay ghetto. There are a few places where men find things of interest: ESPN, History and Discovery Channel, and so on. "Ice Road Truckers" and "Deadliest Catch," but these places skew older, as does CBS's lineup of "Crime Time" men in their forties and fifties leading teams to fight crime and such. No one would confuse William Peterson or Mark Harmon with a young man's hero.

Moreover, most Hollywood insiders lack one crucial appreciation of how average boys and young men differ from themselves. Which is how they relate to women. The average young man did not, as a general rule, look like Ashton Kutcher nor have the power and influence of Michael Bay. Getting women and girls to simply consider going out with them, in the face of repeated rejection, was a major triumph. No wonder then, that the types of movies that young men like, and will see, again and again and yes, again, have in some form the guy (often like them) demonstrating courage, endurance, and worthiness that lands them the girl. Who must indeed be worth having.

Movies that don't deliver that set of story elements, and suggest, ever so slightly, that the young man sitting next to his date just might, maybe be somewhat akin to the hero onscreen, won't do well. Certainly movies that feature lots of action, but women in the lead, with the man a disposable or forgettable figure, don't do well. Why? Because the guys pay for and suggest the movie. They're not taking their dates to a movie that suggests, well they need not be with the guy who brought them there in the first place. Quite the reverse, they'll avoid it like the plague.

The Summer Blockbusters that do well do so by delivering that element, with an approachable and likable female character who is no one's cardboard cutout. This would include movies like "Spider-Man," where Kirsten Dunst was strong and independent, but well, needed the hero. Or perhaps even "Iron Man," where the main character is flustered and unsure around his love interest, who is presented as his equal in intelligence and bravery if not super-hero-dom, needs saving, and is grateful for it. Note as well, "Iron Man's" Tony Stark is happiest just building things on his own, a super-hero version of the garage tinkerer.

Angeline Jolie has a problem, in that guys don't find her an appealing romantic fantasy. She's too old for the teens and mid twenties set, has a tabloid image that is not flattering. She's of course an attractive woman, but not one most young men would imagine as their fantasy girlfriend. Worse, in "Wanted" she's the one who is often the lead, not James MacAvoy's character. Who in turn lacks any appeal to young men. That Jolie is older, heavily (for the movie) tattooed, and the leader of MacAvoy not the follower is a huge problem when it comes to next Saturday Night. Will young men plunk down $24 for themselves and their date that practically suggests, well the young ladies could do better? I think not. Particularly with word of mouth likely to be negative.

Summer Blockbusters of course take advantage that young men, unlike young women, have little substitutes for entertainment. No TV series, for free, oriented towards them. Little in the Emo crowd, pop tartlets, and American Idol rejects to draw them to pop music. They need some activity to take their dates to, that will put them in a good light. Traditionally, Hollywood has filled that need and it's been profitable.

Can Angelina Jolie use the success of "Wanted" to break out into lead roles that women will pay to see? It's quite possible, but, the field there is crowded. Entertainment, from "serious" Hollywood movies to free TV, is awash with stories aimed squarely at women. There are too many alternatives to allow actresses and female-oriented projects to break out to the level of profitability equaled by the original "Star Wars" or "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Even reaching the levels of their successor movies, "Spider-Man" or "National Treasure" or "Lord of the Rings" is going to be very tough. It's all due to the competition. Every movie oriented towards women is in competition with free night time soap operas, Lifetime movies, and so on.

To be a lead actress who can consistently pack female audiences in, for movies with little to no appeal to men, is possibly Hollywood's toughest job. There's no evidence that Jolie is up to the task, despite her tabloid celebrity.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

interesting take.
completely wrong though.
i think wanted will do surprising well next week. most of my friends who've seen it loved it.

Anonymous said...

I reckon you must be gay that you find Angelina not appealing to men and worst assume that all men feels the same way, too. Your take is absolutely rubbish!

Whiskey said...

Anon -- there is a difference between a sex object and a fantasy girlfriend. Jolie is the former not the latter. In the age of online pr0n, there's not much demand for the sex object. There is for the fantasy girlfriend.

Rachel McAdams or Amy Adams will probably do better than Jolie given the relative demand for fantasy girlfriends.

Anonymous said...

Exit polling showed the audience breakdown was 52%/48% male to female, 51%/49% under age 30 to over age 30.

Young men aren't seeing this movie?

Whiskey said...

They aren't. Preliminary Boxofficemojo.com results have Wanted down 60% from last week end.

Anonymous said...

Response to anon:

No, given your nearly 50/50 stats, the target demographic for summer action thrillers (men 18-30) are not going to this movie any more than the target demographic for say, Sex in the City (women 30-50)
It's 50/50 on age and gender.

Anonymous said...

You're right. Jolie is not a fantasy girlfriend. I can see where some would wanna fuck her, but just because a girl is a good lay doesn't mean she is a good girlfriend.

There are plenty girls out there who are both. Jolie doesn't strike me as one.

And there are alot of female lead characters who are exactly like "Wanted"'s protagonist.

Just about all of them are the same. Tough-as-nails, disdainful or disrespectful of men, and utterly incapable of showing any form of affection to anyone except women and children. And they always treat the men as unimportant props.

Even Kim Possible does this, which is why I stopped watching that stupid cartoon. Ron Stoppable has always emerged as a useless piece of shit in need of rescuing, thus endangering Kim's missions.

But even if the the male sidekick isn't entirely worthless like Ron Stoppable, they always make him less moral or less intelligent or less noble than the heroine. Or in many cases, more FEMININE than the heroine, which is even worse.

One thing is certain, the female lead almost NEVER truly respects, let alone admires, men. She might make an exception for her male mentor, but all other men are non entities unworthy of her admiration.

Oh sure, she may fall in love with a male from time to time, but she will never ever truly revere anything about him for any reason.

Come to think of it, that's just like all of today's Western women.

It's all bullshit.

Anonymous said...

My bad, "Wanted"'s protagonist was a male. Jolie was the girlfriend.

It's just that Jolie was so hyped up far more than the hero, I forgot the spotlight wasn't on her.

Plus, her character was a bitch.