Star Wars: The Force Awakens (JJ Abrams, December 17, 2015) Movie

I really want to pick up the art book (and those J.W. Rinzler making of books), but haven't been able to convince myself to drop the money yet. Soon, soon they will be on my coffee table.

 

I NEED to go see this again so I can try to pick up on less nods to Episode IV and more of that flashback sequence haha. Gah.

 

...I have seen this five times

 

Hahahahaha

 

Remember that guy who didn't think this movie was going to make more than Jurassic World?

 

Whoever that guy, he was WAY off. :P

 

He said Star Wars didn't have as much universal appeal as Jurassic World. He was not correct.

 

That's probably one of the most inane comments I have ever heard.

 

Hahah. I tried to be nice about wording it back then too. His argument about SW not being as big of a franchise just didn't hold water even back then -- the merch/licensing money that it was bringing in was already more than Jurassic stuff if memory serves.

I really need to go see this again. I've been burning through Rebels each night and it helps with my Star Wars fix, but I really want to see this on the big screen at least two more times before it goes out.

 

That's such a bizarre thing to think, haha

 

I did enjoy bumping that thread after it destroyed record with a not so subtle "you were wrong" post. That interaction had stuck in my mind. The movie seems to still be doing well too:

From BoxOfficeMojo:

Falling from the weekend top spot for the first time since its December 18 release, Star Wars: The Force Awakens brought in an estimated $25.1 million for the three-day weekend and is looking at $31 million for the four-day as its domestic cume has now grown to $856.9 million. Meanwhile, it has become the fifth highest grossing release internationally and only the fifth film to bring in over $1 billion from overseas territories. It's international cume has now grown to $1.012 billion, resulting in over $1.8 billion worldwide. It currently sits only $4.1 million shy of Jurassic World's overseas gross and will soon top Furious 7's $1.16 billion for third place on the list.

 

He wasn't even trolling either. He like, genuinely believed that.

After what I've read about movies not staying in theaters overseas for as long anymore, I wonder if anything will ever dethrone Avatar from the top of the worldwide list. Star Wars still has, what, a billion to go to get that record?

 

Looks like Avatar worldwide is: $2,787,965,087.

Those overseas numbers are crazy.

 

Yeah, that's just nuts. I still can hardly comprehend how it made so much money.

 

Haha. I know. I wonder if the sequel will do well? It has to right? It's strange that the lead actor basically went on to do nothing as well.

 

It's honestly the most bizarre movie success story, maybe ever. It did so well commercially, it got good to great reviews, and it was considered the frontrunner to win Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars heading into 2010. But it seems like no one cares about it anymore. Titanic seems to come up all the time in conversation, but Avatar never does. There are no memorable quotes, characters, or scenes. It's not a cable TV staple. It didn't launch any superstar careers. It honestly feels like a footnote, other than the fact that it's the highest grossing movie of all time.

This article is a great look at how that movie has been forgotten.

 

As for whether or not the sequel does well, I am really intrigued to see what happens there. I don't think anyone's clamoring for the next chapter, and it won't have the "must-see" technical factor going for it either. Could be a major flop or it could still make money just because it's James Cameron. Either way, it will make a lot less than the first one.

 

The James Cameron factor is something I feel I can never go against. I mean, we saw what Aquaman did. Made Vinnie Chase the biggest movie star in the world.

 

I haven't seen Avatar believe it or not. I can't ever talk myself into sitting down to watch 3 hours of James Cameron.

 

Honestly, if you didn't see it in theaters, I don't think it's worth it. I haven't even thought about rewatching it since the time I went to see it and that was more than six years ago.

 

I haven't seen it yet either... I feel like I'll watch it once at some point, just never interested me at the time.

 

@Jason Tate Not sure if you've seen this or not...

 

Haha. That's awesome.

 

Ha, I really want it... Just don't know about paying $50.