That’s a wrap - WGA votes to end strike
by Patrick Corcoran
February 13th, 2008 @ 9:48 am
It only took 100 days, but the Writer's Guild has voted to accept the tentative contract worked out with the AMPTP.
Celebrate by going to see a movie...
Front-paging NC-17
by Patrick Corcoran
September 28th, 2007 @ 10:44 am
The L.A Times takes a front-page look into Lust, Caution's attempt to remove the perceived stigma and misconceptions of the NC-17 rating. Reporter Lorenza Muñoz goes deep into the weeds with studio executives and uncovers some new misconceptions perpetuated by the executives themselves.
In addition, the lingering association between NC-17 and X-rated fare can take a toll at the box office. Films labeled as NC-17 sell as many as 25% fewer tickets, studio executives said. The highest-grossing NC-17 film was "Showgirls," a 1995 film that brought in $20.4 million.
It is difficult to conceive on what basis anyone can make such a comparison. There will need to be more than a dozen or so NC-17 rated films before there is enough data to make a such an assertion. If one can make an assertion, the available evidence points in the opposite direction:
NC-17 rated films take in, on average, $2.1 million more than unrated films - the preferred form for releasing films that might otherwise be rated NC-17. In other words, one might make the reckless assertion that the stigmatic NC-17 increases box office take by more than 100 percent.
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