I thought, for sure, that "Saw 3D" was going to disappoint. With "Paranormal Activity 2" storming into the theaters last week, I was positive that it would win the week again and the entire "Saw" franchise would go out with a pathetic wimper... well, it didn't. It didn't put up Paranormal 2 numbers, but it did yank in around $22.5Million and win the weekend. "Paranormal Activity 2" dropped almost 60%, to $16.5Million and "Red" was third. "Jackass 3D" held fairly strong at almost $8.5Million and came in 4th. Sure, it's Halloween and everyone's looking to check out scary films, but it's great to see horror take the number one and two spots. Funny that they're both sequels, though. I guess that doesn't bode well for us aspiring screenwriters, huh? Once again, the only successful horror films are sequels, franchises and stories with built in audiences. Sweet. Anyhow, let's take a closer look at "Saw 3D".There are definitely a few things to note about this release. It is, supposedly, the last installment in the series, it's in 3D and the marketing of the film didn't even mention the story or plot of the rest of the "Saw" franchise. Did you notice that? Basically, it just showed the "Saw" logo, mentioned that it was the "final chapter" and then promoted the crap out of the fact that it's in 3D. Generally speaking, one could assume that that means that they weren't looking to attract a new audience... they just wanted people who've seen the other "Saw" films. Juxtapose that with "Paranormal Activity 2", where they mentioned the previous film and discussed the plot. Truth be told, "Paranormal 2" had the leg up going into this little battle. They were the surprise hit of last year and everyone and their dog knew about the film and, on the other side, "Saw" was on its 6th film last year and that film sucked ass... tough mountain for "Saw" to climb going in to this year, but it did overcome. It won the weekend and did it respectfully. Way to save the franchise, 3D technology.
So, horror's one and two this week. Great. However, we all know that horror's domination won't last for long. There are three films set for wide release on Friday, none of which will interest the horror hounds. You have "Due Date", "For Colored Girls" and "Megamind". Really, the next film that may be of interest comes out on November 12th, which is the alien invasion film, "Skyline". Even though it may be of interest to genre fans, it may get slaughtered at the box office... I don't know, we'll have to wait and see. I hope it doesn't because I've been calling for a resurgence in alien films for a while... and I'm currently starting up on a sci-fi related script. "Skyline" is a huge underdog, but I'll be rooting for it.
So, no surprise, tomorrow brings a thin week for horror on DVD, but there are some good looking indie's coming out. So, stay tuned...
3 comments:
I think Saw 6 got a bum wrap. I thought it was one of the more intriguing stories of the whole series. Part 7 was great, great close to the series, tied everything up, and surprisingly the 3D was tolerable (I HATE 3D). and there were some definite cringe worthy kills in the finale. great stuff
Paranormal Activity is a hyped up piece of shit. People shouting refund, a whole bunch of nothing happening for an hour made the last fifteen minutes seem more exciting than they actually were. Beyond lame
I'll agree with you, sort of, on Paranormal Activity. However, it deserves credit where credit is due - they did a great job of building tension and doing something with next to no budget. But, yeah, take away the ending and there isn't much to it.
I have to disagree with you on Saw 6, though. I really thought it sucked... and that's tough for me to say because I really love the Saw franchise. I haven't seen this latest one, but I do hear that it's good.
another cliche horror movie, I simply don't like it
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