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Doctor Parnassus Forgotten At The Box Office

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While Sherlock Holmes and Avatar were box office hits over the weekend, Heath Ledger's last film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus had a poor showing in the US.

It barely made $130,000 in sales from the four theaters that were featuring the film.

We blame marketing, a limited release AND bad timing!

So sad considering this film had a huge opportunity to make $$$.

    Posted: Dec 28, 2009 at 2:30 pm / Email this  »
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    68 comments to “Doctor Parnassus Forgotten At The Box Office”



    1. 1

      i was actually looking to see where this was playing and it was playing at maybe 1 theatre far away from me and I saw one commercial for it about a month ago, sad….



    2. 2

      Ya…I thought the same thing….It wasnt even promoted. It was in Limited release, I think the second week in January is when it opens in full release…but I still havent seen anything on it, and I am very suprised, as there is alot of star power in it.



    3. 3

      it was hardly a flop, it opened at #3 in the uk and grossed well in the rest of europe



    4. 4

      I would've gone and seen it - I LOVE Terry Gilliam's movies! -Had NO idea it was out!



    5. 5

      WOW I didn't even know they had released this movie yet…bad marketing. ANYWAYS how can it be a flop, it's only been shown in 4 theaters in the entire US…..



    6. 6

      Maybe you should also blame the fact that it looks horrible.



    7. 7

      I ACTUALLY AGREE WITH YOU ON THIS ONE FAT SHIT



    8. 8

      It really annoys me that this is not even showing in my area. No wonder it made crap sales. What the flippidy doo? I went and saw Sherlock Holmes for lack of anything better to watch. Seriously, AVATAR? I've been seeing more product placement on television shows for that american propaganda crap…got to love mainstream media.



    9. 9

      aww….we had no idea!!!



    10. 10

      It hasn't been really advertised yet in the States.
      They should hold out opening until mid-late January.
      Perez, you are not good at predicting hits or bombs. Look at what you said about Avatar and look at it this weekend. Like Titanic, Avatar will keep growing and make HUGE money.
      Stay will Lady GaGa and Paris Hilton stories, Perez. You are better at those.



    11. 11

      Perez, this post is beyond misleading. It's flat-out inaccurate. DOCTOR PARNASSUS average $32,500 per screen this weekend, which was - by far - the highest per-screen average of any reported film. These were very good limited-release numbers, and highly qualify as a "poor showing."

      To put it another way, if PARNASSUS was playing on the number of screens that AVATAR is, it would've grossed over 112 million dollars this weekend alone.



    12. 12

      literally 4 theaters, or 4 theater chains?? I live in NY and haven't seen a single preview for this movie!!



    13. 13

      Now what you don't realize because im sure you cant fit it through your thick head is that the film made $32,495 per frame. It was the top per screen average of the weekend.



    14. 14

      Hey retard, it hasn't been widely released yet. It made 130K in FOUR theaters. Check your facts!



    15. 15

      Oh, NOW you're calling Avatar a hit?! I thought it was suppose to be a flop you moron.



    16. 16

      You can certainly blame bad distribution. It's not playing anywhere near me. When it is, I want 2C it.

    17. ap076 says – reply to this


      17

      I am sorry but Perez and his team's knowledge of the film industry is lacking. The cited article does not anywhere use the word POOR. As you correctly mentioned it opened in four theaters in New York and LA, probably to be eligible for Oscar consideration ( a second posthumous Oscar nom. for Ledger, unlikely).
      The film had the BEST per screen average at 32,000 out of the top 20 films. The film is an independent release and cost reportedly 30 million. It has already made between 12-24 million internationally depending on which source you choose to believe.
      Gilliams' films tend to have only a cult following and the critics have been 50/50 on the film. I am sure there is still some sort of roll out campaign and some marketing strategy for the film. I don't expect a huge success but again it is disturbing to see you not even understand the concept of per screen average.



    18. 18

      actually the movie did really well for only being show in four theatres. why don't you read the rest of the article you have linked. dumb fuck.



    19. 19

      I was so excited to see it but it wasn't in a theater near me. Still cant wait!



    20. 20

      that is sad



    21. 21

      That is actually a good showing for a 4 theater limited release.



    22. 22

      once again you fail 36,000 per theater is a good average and it expands to 500 theaters on january 8th



    23. 23

      I'm sure once it's in wide-release it will make more money. It even says in the linked article that it had the highest per-location average.



    24. 24

      What the hell? I didn't even see ONE trailer for that movie. Had no idea it had even come out. Lame.

    25. missB says – reply to this


      25

      i never even heard of that movie… more advertising??



    26. 26

      According to the Variety article that you've linked to, Dr. Parnassus was actually the most successful limited release, by theater/location, of the weekend.

      "Among limited releases, Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus," Heath Ledger's final film, scored the top per-location average of the frame at $32,495. The Sony Pictures Classics release opened to an estimated $129,980 from four locations in New York and Los Angeles.

      Fox Searchlight's Jeff Bridges topliner "Crazy Heart" grossed an estimated $156,000 from 12 theaters in its second frame for a location average of $13,000 and cume of $320,578…."



    27. 27

      I really want to see this but if I gotta travel 3hrs it's not happening. And I haven't seen one trailer for this any where! (Finland or a while ago in the US) What a shame! Seems like a really good movie.



    28. 28

      Yeah I was excited to see it. I was going to drag a friend of mine to see it. But its only in one theatre in all of Alberta. Why can't they just be smart and NOT give something that could be this huge a full release?



    29. 29

      R.I.P HEATH…. BUT THIS MOVIE, LOOKED
      .
      .
      LIKE IT WAS GONNA SUCK… NOT EVEN
      .
      .
      JOHNY DEPP WAS ABLE TO SAV THIS SINKING
      .
      .
      SHIP FROM DROWNING… PLUS MINI ME IS IN
      .
      .
      IT…. NEED I SAY MORE!!!



    30. 30

      Would have gone had I seen one commercial to tell me it was out



    31. 31

      I am going to see it tonight at Lincoln Center… I never would have even knew it was playing if I hadn't looked at the movie times for tonight… I saw a commercial a month or so ago, but no other marketing so to speak… Too sad…



    32. 32

      your a fucking idiot mate. A film that earns $30000 per screen average opn 4 screens is a flop that comparess to Avatars $21000 on over 3500 screens? get yer facts right ya fat bastard.



    33. 33

      I think it had a better showing in a lot of other countries, especially considering its limited release, lack of marketing and niche market appeal (fans of Gilliam and Ledger). There were only a select few mainstream theatres here in Canada under Cineplex Entertainment LP playing it as of Dec. 25th. What a lot of people probably didn't realize though, is that it did get release through a lot of smaller independent theatres. I definitely went to see it to support Gilliam and to pay my final respects to Heath and his final piece of work. I think maybe the wide release Jan. 8th will give it more support. It was a terrific film, Heath was beautiful in it and I think it came together wonderfully considering his death. Terry Gilliam is highly under-rated by mainstream critics. He deserves a lot more recognition.

    34. BOKO says – reply to this


      34

      Considering this is actually Heath Ledger's last film–and not the rather limp "Dark Knight"–that's a shame. I'll see it. It's Gilliam after all and he's always a great freaking show!



    35. 35

      This is erroneous. The film is opening nationwide on January 8. It is being marketed as an arthouse film but will play nationwide. It made $130,000 in only 4 theaters for the weekend which gave it the highest PER SCREEN box office gross. The film is spectacular and I've seen it 4 times. It is a platform release thus will open in more and more theaters over the next weeks by Sony Picture Classics. The theaters were jam packed read the articles on indiewire and the industry publications and get the truth about this. Don't believe this stuff, it's uninformed.



    36. 36

      THE MOVIE OPENS NATION WIDE JAN 8TH YOU STUPID SHIT… IT OPENED IN SELECT THEATERS IN LA AND NY ONLY… BUT YOUR TO STUPID TO KNOW THAT AREN'T YOU.



    37. 37

      STICK TO WHAT YOU KNOW MARIO DRAWING COCKS AND GAGA.



    38. 38

      if its playing in 4 theaters all toghther wouldnt $130,000 be a lot…?



    39. 39

      i didnt even know when this movie was coming out….it did have potential but who wants to see a movie thats barely promoted



    40. 40

      oh only 4 theaters…well what do you expect?



    41. 41

      A victim of Terrible marketing. I hope this does better when it comes out in full swing.



    42. 42

      Do you even know ANYTHING about box office? It was the top money maker per location. That is a success!
      Quoted from Variety (which you referenced)
      Among limited releases, Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus," Heath Ledger's final film, scored the top per-location average of the frame at $32,495. The Sony Pictures Classics release opened to an estimated $129,980 from four locations in New York and Los Angeles.



    43. 43

      Agreed… I've seen a million ads for sherlock holmes but not this



    44. 44

      i didnt know $130,000 from only 4 theaters was a flop. especially because it wasnt even promoted.



    45. 45

      I heard that the film will be retitled ”Worms Are Chewing On Heath Ledgers Corpse”.

    46. pomme says – reply to this


      46

      I saw it in France in november.
      It's not a really good movie: too confused(story,edit).
      Lily Cole and Colin Farell are good but the other actors are just correct.
      The decor is great also!



    47. 47

      i thought it was rubbish to be honest. i live in the uk so i saw it ages ago but i wish i hadnt now. waste of time and money. i only went to see it cos johnny depp is in it and because of heath ledger.



    48. 48

      4 theatres and it made £130,000 that's good fatty

      Plus i thought avatar was a flop yesterday?

      Fat fuck you think your roger ebert



    49. 49

      I have been waiting to see this movie for well over a yr! They REALLY ffffcked up Perez I agree! i like many of you will be stuck seeing it on dvd,haven't seen sherlock holmes yet, but avatar i highly recommend!!!!!



    50. 50

      $124,743 in just 4 theatre's is actually really good. Perez it makes me laugh every time you try and act like you know what your talking about when it comes to box office amounts. That is actually really good for 4 theatre's. Hopefully they will open it wider and keep advertising it. It's average that it made in each theatre was $32,500. That's a lot of money for 1 theatre! Get with it perez!



    51. 51

      I thought it was pretty good.



    52. 52

      It disappoints me when you post misleading, inaccurate things like this. So stupid, Perez.



    53. 53

      I only saw one commerical for this and I didn't realize it was out already. Horrible marketing!



    54. 54

      It was playing in 4 theaters you fuggin idiot. That is actually pretty great. I wish you had better fact checkers. Let me know if you're hiring.



    55. 55

      yup. I tried to see this movie the day after Xmas only to find out it wasn't playing in my area. Was totally bummed out. As a plan B, we went and saw Avatar in 3D. Wasn't expecting to ever really see Avatar, but was totally blown away by the 3D experience like never before. Can't wait till "Dr. Parnassus" is playing in our area, but I also plan on seeing Avatar a couple more times in Imax 3D!



    56. 56

      Wow…a friend and I were talking about wanting to see this film, but didn't know when it was coming out. What crap! They have not promoted this movie at all. Horrible!



    57. 57

      Um. . .It opens Nationwide on Jan 8th. . .this was a promo release in limited cities



    58. 58

      You obviously know nothing about movies. It was the highest per theater grossing movie of the weekend. It's called limited release. Doctor Parnassus made 31,000 per theater while Avatar made 21,000 per theater. Impressive for both movies.

      Perez. You need to learn to shut up sometimes.



    59. 59

      i had a lot of friends/co workers who wanted to see this BUT i cant find it playing anywhere in AZ



    60. 60

      I heard this is a pretty decent movie. I'm going to see it.



    61. 61

      I haven't seen a single advertisement for it.



    62. 62

      awe thats too bad, i wanted to see this movie….i didnt even know it was out :(



    63. 63

      I saw it a couple of months ago in London and really enjoyed it..



    64. 64

      Do your math, moron.



    65. 65

      ummm maybe because they are not promoting it very well…it lookks amazing but they really need to step the promotion up before it is released to the masses!!!

    66. Sezzy says – reply to this


      66

      YA i didnt even know this was out. fuckin idiot marketing



    67. 67

      I never saw one commercial for this and I watch a good amount of tv… Whoever decided to release this now and whoever was in charge of advertising are fucking idiots.



    68. 68

      I haven't seen any advertising for this movie at all! No wonder it didn't make much money. Not many people knew it was coming out!