Times when you felt poor marketing hindered a film's business

[Fancyarcher]

Agreed. I'm just implying that I think the ... EDIT: *hits keyboard* ...sleeper status of OHF (rather than being an expected springtime tentpole months in advance, of sorts) lessened the demand for something just like it only a few months later.

 

Star power or not, WHD didn't just fail to break out--it really missed at the box office for its credentials (two very hot stars, mid-summer release date). The Heat was a big factor--just not the only one, in my humble opinion.

 

Generally when a movie fails at the box office, there's more than one reason as to why. 

So, no, you're not incorrect at all.

[RobinHood26]

Gotta go with Batman Begins. 

[Chewy]

another movie I feel could have gotten a bigger opening weekend is Men in Black 3. The second trailer released for that movie was horrible. Featuring absolutely no funny jokes or cool money shots

 

The movie didn't really have any funny jokes or cool money shots

[Shawn Robbins]

Gotta go with Batman Begins. 

 

YEEEEESSSSS.

 

It had a disadvantage with the stigma of Batman & Robin going in, but recent franchise reboots have proven that doesn't have to always be the excuse for a "modest" blockbuster performance. Stronger trailers (better music, better cutting), ads, emphasis on Bruce's journey, and a ban on the use of Nickelback songs or any other vocal pop music. That would have made for a possible $250-275 million grosser that summer, I feel.

 

Of course, strictly hypothetical and something that can't be proven.

[John Marston]

Jack Reacher. The trailers were dullsville and the title isn't much better. Movie was fun

 

First Class. Marketing played purely on franchise nostalgia after The Last Stand and Origins had already zapped all goodwill away from the franchise. Should have focused on the McFass romance

 

 

actually I feel the trailers for First Class were pretty damn good. I remember watching this trailer

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8ccSiH4olo

 

 

and my interest went from zero almost to very high. Other factors I feel were involved in FC doing average numbers

[John Marston]

The movie didn't really have any funny jokes or cool money shots

 

 

I guess but since the movie was overall well received I am sure they could make a better trailer than that one

[Moviedweeb]

Interesting, can you elaborate if you don't mind.

 

I don't think it's a great film, but I felt that the advertising was terrible. Even ignoring the horrendous Super Bowl trailer which was mind-boggling bad, the trailer was bland and unexciting while the marketing in general relied way too much on the white apes which weren't even that impressive. I don't think the film would have ever been a hit relative to its budget, even with the best marketing, but this had the potential to make much more domestically and the constant headlines labeling the film as a bomb before it was released hurt the international prospects as well, IMO. 

[RobinHood26]

YEEEEESSSSS.

 

It had a disadvantage with the stigma of Batman & Robin going in, but recent franchise reboots have proven that doesn't have to always be the excuse for a "modest" blockbuster performance. Stronger trailers (better music, better cutting), ads, emphasis on Bruce's journey, and a ban on the use of Nickelback songs or any other vocal pop music. That would have made for a possible $250-275 million grosser that summer, I feel.

 

Of course, strictly hypothetical and something that can't be proven.

 

WB really figured it out with TDK and TDKR, If Begins was marketed the same why I think your numbers are fairly spot on. 

[RobinHood26]

Thinking about it Batman Begins was kind of the last year of that "hip", "cool", "Youthful" Spider-Man 1.0 marketing.

 

Spider-Man 3 was marketed WAY differently than 1 & 2. Everything since goes for serious epic approach.

[Michael Gary Scott]

What are you guys talking about this was great marketing

[tommycruise]

What are you guys talking about this was great marketing

Ok I gotta admit adding the Nickleback music was a horrible idea that does not relate in any way to the movie's tone but at least it still made enough money to give us the amazing Dark Knight

[John Marston]

early trailers for BB I thought were pretty good actually

[Cairo]

2013

 

STiD

 

I don't think STiD's marketing was bad but it wasn't that good either. The 2009 one had an amazing marketing and I loved the movie so the failure of STiD's marketing campaign to muster much enthusiasm in me was a bad sign. The trailers were pretty generic and focused too much on John Harrison played by BC  most of GA isn't familiar with.

 

Jack the Giant Slayer

I can't remember such a horrible marketing campaign for a massively expensive movie. Absolutely nothing I saw or read made me want to see it. Nothing. It got mixed reviews (51 in metacritic) but still better than Now You See Me (50) which had a much better marketing campaign. Part of the problem was that the movie needed some bigger names to help the marketing and the cgi and production values looked massively cheap in trailers so I'm not sure how fair it's to blame WB dumping this without much fanfare and focus their efforts on MoS and Gatsby.

 

Pacific Rim

 

Long before the release I was saying the marketing sucked. While PR didn't bomb, it never fulfilled its potential as a major bloackbuster. With better marketing there's no reason it wouldn't have made at least $150 million in the US alone. The marketing focused too much on Geeks and GDT fanboys and forgot to appeal to GA. Only very late in the game was there focus on characters, too many action spots/money shots in trailers took place in rain and looked quite muddy/unclear when seen in computer screen (were lots of people watch trailers these days) etc.I understand that WB didn't want to compete with other releases for attention earlier in the summer focusing on the two weeks before the release but they really should have started building awareness at the beginning for the year, making people anticipate PR like they did MoS with those kick ass trailers (that were imo better than the actual movie  ). 

 

WB has what is generally thought to be the best marketing marketing department in the business and I can't help but wonder if the friction between WB and Legendary and the latter's possible exit played part in PR's and Jack's marketing woes in WB not wanting to invest in these properties as much as they would have otherwise done. I know Legendary co-financed MoS, but that's DC property so it doesn't really work as a counter argument. 

[The Futurist]

Avatar : Worst marketing campaign I have ever seen.

And I am dead serious.

Trust me, I followed this closely, and it was abysmal.

Fox didn't like the movie its theme and the blue people in it.

[ChD]

From this year, I'd say Pacific Rim, 2 Guns, Elysium (even though, personally, I'm not a fan of the movie, I can't help but feel that the marketing was very weak), Oblivion (it deserved way more than It got).

 

Anyways, for me at least, the biggest disappointment when it comes to marketing is Cloud Atlas. That movie was totally ditched by Warner Bros.

[Cairo]

Scott Mendelson gives his opinion on best and worst marketing campaign of this summer's movies:

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2013/08/27/the-best-and-worst-marketed-movies-of-summer-2013-were/

[BoxOfficeZ]

Pacific Rim and John Carter come to mind. But, the problem is, I'm not really sure what I would have done if I was in charge of marketing these two. 

[The Futurist]

Come on, like a different makreting campaign would have changed anything for ClouD Atlas.

 

The movie is difficult, it is too different, it is too out there, it was always destined to become a cult favourite, nothing more.

[cookie]

I said half-seriously in the IM3 thread a few months ago that nobody in the GA would know who Cumberbatch was supposed to play in Star Trek in response to people going "ooh nobody knows who the Mandarin is so his presence won't make a difference". I had that gut feeling that Abrams was doing something wrong by marketing Cumberbatch as nothing more than "british bad guy who blows stuff up" while playing that lame "mystery box" card.

 

But I still thought it would massively increase from the first.

[Charism]

What are you guys talking about this was great marketing

 

Noooo, not again.On topic:Recent? John Carter. Trailers was really bland, and that superbowl spot...About Cloud Atlas - IMHO marketing was pretty good. How they could have done it better? I don't see any solution.

Edited August 28, 2013 by Charism