2019: Worst summer movie season ever???

[Theleviathan]

Then mind going into detail what specifically they're doing right, what other studios are doing wrong, and what could be changed here? Just saying Disney rules and other studios suck right now doesn't tell anyone much.

It was just an observation. They are making heartfelt, fun, entertaining as hell movies. People go to the theater now for a spectacle. Something ridiculously fun and joyous. People aren't going to pay their money for any old thing, they have to be earned.

Disney is earning it with movies that meet what I listed above. We're past the days of Citizen Kane or Gone with the Wind. That was in an era of three TV channels that largely gave you nothing entertaining. TV is where the best and most profound stories are being told. What makes a good movie today is does it resonate with your feelings, do you have fun watching it, do you feel it's money well spent, and did the story grip you. Well, Disney is doing all of that. Most of the others aren't.

When the numbers come in from Pixar and Toy Story 4 it will reinforce all of those things. As the reviews are indicating. Hopefully we can put to bed the absurd notion that releasing films in June is a death nail. No, releasing movies people don't want and have lost connection with is a death nail. (See: Phoenix and MIB)

Disney has earned the trust of the audience. Simple as that.

[Flash Gordon]

Literally nothing appeals to me from any of the major studios. All these big, loud studio flicks have no soul to them. Crazy how the first MiB has so much character and place to it, but this new one looks like it was made on an assembly line.

Netflix is where it is at for creative filmmaking it seems.

[AJBopp]

We're past the days of Citizen Kane or Gone with the Wind. That was in an era of three TV channels that largely gave you nothing entertaining. T

TV is where the best and most profound stories are being told.

Wow. Just wow. I weep for the future. This is...Wow.

[jetengine]

Wow. Just wow. I weep for the future. This is...Wow.

He's not talking your gameshow esq **** he means your million dollar an episode stuff where they get talenred actors who now have time to actually act insteaf of being forced to run with the plot because theyve got 120 mins to work in.

[Theleviathan]

Wow. Just wow. I weep for the future. This is...Wow.

It's the truth at this moment. The two mediums have reversed roles. TV is where the more artistic and deep work is shifting and movies are more blockbuster oriented.

It makes more sense that way in many ways. TV offers more flexibility for artistic vision and all the same resources.

[Flash Gordon]

Wow. Just wow. I weep for the future. This is...Wow.

This is great.

TV is where it's at. HBO, Netflix, Prime, Hulu, FXX, AMC (when it wants to)- all ripe with amazing content. Boundry pushing content.

In the theatres we get junk like Spiderman: Far From Home and Fast and the Furious 12. Just lots and lots of stuff akin.

[Jon-El]

I’m a big old movie buff. I love that special effects have advanced to the point where we can see just about anything. The visuals are spectacular. However, my taste in movies covers stuff like “The Godfather”, “Dog Day Afternoon”, “French Connection”, “On the Waterfront”, “Maltese Falcon” , the original “Scarface”. It’s weird that type of entertainment doesn’t have much place in theaters today. I know television offers a certain quality but I’d kind of prefer watching a movie to an entire series.

[Frobisher]

Thread justified by the “death nail” malapropism.

[Totoro Man]

Thread justified by the “death nail” malapropism.

"Deathnail and I" starring Richard E Grant as a not so malevolent ghost who haunts a male strip club. he constantly invites the dancers and guests to drink lighter fluid and gives them advice on the best way to cheat drug tests.

guaranteed blockbuster material right there! ;-)

[Vakanai]

I know television offers a certain quality but I’d kind of prefer watching a movie to an entire series.

This. People are always going on and on about tv being better than movies these days, but sometimes I just really don't want to invest in some long, big, entire season story.

[Theleviathan]

This. People are always going on and on about tv being better than movies these days, but sometimes I just really don't want to invest in some long, big, entire season story.

If it's good, why do you care if it's 2 hours or 10?

Some stories aren't meant to be told in two hours.

[Vakanai]

If it's good, why do you care if it's 2 hours or 10?

Some stories aren't meant to be told in two hours.

Because sometimes I want to be doing something else in 2 hours?

And I'm really not bashing tv here, I'm just pointing out that movies have their purpose beyond just being flashy spectacle and not every story needs ten hours to tell. What's wrong with wanting a great story wrapped up in a shorter time commitment?

[Theleviathan]

Because sometimes I want to be doing something else in 2 hours?

And I'm really not bashing tv here, I'm just pointing out that movies have their purpose beyond just being flashy spectacle and not every story needs ten hours to tell. What's wrong with wanting a great story wrapped up in a shorter time commitment?

There isn't, but given the fact you can now watch movie length TV as well, I'm not sure there is much of a complaint there? Netflix has a pretty wide variety of quality content of all different lengths.

I think technology has changed the role these formats play for entertainment.

[GOLGO 13]

It's the truth at this moment. The two mediums have reversed roles. TV is where the more artistic and deep work is shifting and movies are more blockbuster oriented.

It makes more sense that way in many ways. TV offers more flexibility for artistic vision and all the same resources.

MOVIES: Big, loud spectacles of detailed awesome special affects should be seen on a big screen. "Acting" appreciated but...look at that fucking monster!

TV: Slower more detailed exposition of the character's motivations is appropriate on the small screen. Awesome acting just shines brighter here.

[Comic-Reader Lad]

OK, now that Labor Day has come and gone and the Summer 2019 season is officially over, we can look at the results.

According to Deadline and others, Summer 2019 was actually up 1% over last Summer. This is pretty much due to Disney. As things stand right now in Hollywood, how Disney goes so goes the whole industry.

Here are the Domestic (US + Canada) box office numbers by Studio:

DOMESTIC SUMMER 2019 BOX OFFICE - April 26 through September 2:

studio b.o. % chg. vs. summer 2018

Disney $2.2B +21%
Sony $705.4M +76%
Universal $536.2M -36%
Warner Bros. $410.3M -28%
Lionsgate $316.8M +123%
Paramount $189.3M -43%
Fox $164.5M -54%
Other $352M
Summer 2019 B.O. Est. $4.87B Est +1%


As can be seen, Disney, Sony, and Lionsgate were the big winners as compared to last Summer.
Universal, Warner Bros (who basically sat out the core summer months of June through August), Paramount, and Fox were all way down from last year.

Disney's $2.2 billion box was 45% of the entire Summer. Here are the top 10 Summer 2019 films.

TOP FILMS SUMMER 2019

rank film distributor release gross

1 Avengers: Endgame Disney April 26 $858.2M
2 The Lion King Disney July 19 $522.4M
3 Toy Story 4 Disney June 21 $429.7M
4 Spider-Man: Far From Home Sony July 2 $387M
5 Aladdin Dis May 24 $354.2M
6 John Wick Chapter 3 LG May 17 $170.8M
7 Hobbs & Shaw Uni Aug. 2 $158.5M
8 Secret Life of Pets 2 Illumination/Universal June 7 $157.9M
9 Pokemon Detective Pikachu WB/Leg May 10 $144.1M
10 Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Sony July 26 $130.9M



For me, the only movie I saw this summer (defined as April 26 through September 2) was Avengers: Endgame. I'm sure I'll see many of the others on Blu-Ray or streaming eventually, but was not motivated to go trek out to the theaters for them.

So, what did YOU think of Summer 2019? Was it a great summer for you in terms of moviegoing? Which Summer films did you end up seeing?