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| Lining-up for the cinema |
For the last 3+ months; however, the 'kill it at the B.O. syndrome' has been negated. For avid moviegoers it was going cold turkey from the 'fix' of the B.O. race. Yet, with all of its scars, the B.O., as an unbiased tabulation, performs a service in informing what folks are paying to view.
Movies are still being released on streaming platforms but we have no idea of how they would have 'performed' at the cinema - this scenario is alien to everyone and one could even say, an evil happenstance.
Netflix, and the other streamers, have mostly made it a policy to never reveal the performance of their content. Now, that we are in what some (mostly uninformed nitwits) are calling the post-theatrical era due to the virus some producers are touting their "streaming numbers". For example, Universal boasted that its VOD revenue for 'Trolls World Tour' bettered $100 million. But had it garnered say only $20 million Universal would have been mute. In contrast, a theatrical tally would have been revealed. In the streaming world when a movie or other content bombs there is no sound.
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| One would never see the B.O. numbers on any of these films if they were streamed |
As cinemas begin their slow move to reopen, the weekend B.O. will return and so much the better for the industry. And, as the cinema rebounds (it will and be even stronger) the B.O. will return as the conscience of both moviegoers and non-goers alike. To know how many people are viewing a film has value. To be in a world without knowing a movie's tally is to live in a world of controlled (yes, fake) information.
Jim Lavorato
Movie Analyst & Goer
