Box office
Related: audience - blockbuster - business - art patrons, funding and sponsors - venue
The Streamline Moderne exterior of the Academy Theater, designed by S. Charles Lee in 1939.
photographic credit unidentifiedThe impact of reviewer on a film's box office performance is a matter of debate. Some claim that movie marketing is now so intense and well financed that reviewers cannot make an impact against it. Others note that positive film reviews have been shown to spark interest in little-known films. Major box office analysis websites like Box Office Prophets and Box Office Guru regularly factor in general film review opinions in their projections of a film's earnings. Conversely, there have been several films in which film companies have so little confidence that they refuse to give reviewers an advanced viewing to avoid widespread panning of the film. However, this usually backfires as reviewers are wise to the tactic and warn the public that the film may not be worth seeing and the films often do poorly as a result. [Oct 2004]
Definition
The term box office can refer to either:
- A place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to a venue
- The amount of business a particular production, such as a movie or theatre show, does. This can be measured in terms of the number of people who see it or the amount of money raised by ticket sales. The projection and analysis of these earnings has become a popular pursuit with filmgoers. Some complain that this focus of money hurts the attention paid to films as a art form. Others counter that paying attention to the economic element of film is no different than tracking popular success in popular music and since film industry is heavily influenced by financial success, seeing what films are successful is important to predict what future films will be made. There are numerous that websites that pursuit this interest such as Box Office Guru and Box Office Prophets.
For a list of films which are major box-office hits, see List of highest-grossing films. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxoffice [Oct 2004]
your Amazon recommendations