Boxoffice-November.2001

write
These are days that the sky when cloudless
seems a bit empty, and when cloud covered a
little more louring. Colors seem just a bit out of
gamut, somehow not quite the right hue. The
air feels the slightest bit rough; even the sunlight
seems a tinge too bright. And at night, at
least on the country's coasts, there's the memory
of no sound outside the window except the
distant drone of jet fighters patrolling the coasts
far off above the ocean.
And these are days when, as most realized
soon after the eastern tragedies, we share the
unsettling expectation that there will be more
troubles. As I this, at least two theatres in
the nation have had to be checked for anthrax
and, as reported elsewhere in this issue, even
those exhibitors who have always taken the
most methodic approach to maintaining and
improving site security are wondering if those
best practices will prove to be enough.
Yet, although it's important not to understate
the case, it's also important not to overstate it.
These are surely troubled times but, then
again, there are no Redcoat armies marching
throughout our lands; there are no Nazi submarines
surfacing in sight of our shores, sinking
ship after ship. On balance, it's not that we're
not safe; it's that we're unsettled, and the situation
seems worse because we are accustomed
to calm and comfort.
And it's a fine fact, displaying the nature of
the film exhibition industry, that from the first
moments of the September 11 events right
through now movie theatre operators have been
toiling to provide some of that calm and comfort.
In New York, in a section near the disaster
area, United Artists' Union Square plex in those
early hours opened its doors to all needing a
place to rest, something cool to drink or even
an abode for the night, and in those initial days
the theatre provided comfort to more than
16,000 people. It was just a sign of things to
come from the motion picture business as a
whole: On the seventh day after the tragedies,
almost 500 of the nation's theatre operators,
along with the National Association of Theatre
Owners, the Hollywood studios and the MPAA,
donated all proceeds to two key relief agencies,
with a final tally of aid upward of $5 million.
Despite the continuing troubles, that may be
the way to think of these days: In the darkness,
the chance to give light.—Kim Williamson
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NOVEMBER, 2001 VOL. 137, NO. 11 HOLIDAY PREVIEW / S
DEPARTMENTS
6 MAILROOM
COVER Quote: "Lord of the Rings" became my life.
If became everyone's life.—ELIJAH WOOD
D-bate: digital cinema; ozone affection.
Compiled by Christine James
8 REEL DEALS / STUDIO NEWS
New Line goes Urban; one Lion up, one down. By Annlee Ellingson
10 HOT SET
Madonna "Swept"; Crowe "Green"; Arnold "Umps." By Christine James
1 2 STUDIO FILM RELEASE CHART
Major releases slated through February. Compiled by Wade Major
1 4 INDEPENDENT FILM RELEASE CHART
Specialized tare monthly to August 2002. Compiled by Wade Major
1 6 TRAILERS: OUR ANNUAL "HOLIBA Y HIGHLIGHTS"
Coming toward Christmas: "Monsters Inc.," "Harry Potter," "Jimmy
Neutron" ready for families, for older auds "Spy Game," "AH," "Ocean's
Eleven," "Vanilla Sky" and "The Majestic." By Annlee Ellingson
110 EXHIBITION BRIEFINGS
NATO, theatre circuits combine for relief effort; General interest; Re<
files; AMC extends pass trial. PLUS. Regional and Local News; Ticker
Time; Exhib Quips; Showminder Calendar. By Francesca Dinglasan
118 HILL NEWS
Kerasotes targets tax; Michigan project held. By Francesca Dinglasan
119 TECH TALK
Supply Side: AMC exec joins NAC board. Digital Cinema: Barco adds
DC dealers. Large Format: Edwards rebrands, reopens its
giant screens;
Iwerks, SimEx merge. Wired World: Warner Village clix 1 mil. tix; Fandango
record. PLUS: 9 on the Net: Great States. By Annlee Ellingson
122 NORTHERN EXPOSURE
ThinkFilm targets midrange of specialized. By Shlomo Schwartzberg
123 EUROVIEWS
Cinemark, UCI pact in U.K.; Moscow Paradise. By Francesca Dinglasan
124 PACIFIC OVERTURES
Force, Village, Reading fiscal results down. By Francesca Dinglasan
126 MOVIEGOER POLL AND ACTIVITY REPORT
Early book on Hollywood's holiday hopefuls. Compiled by MovieFone
127 HOME RELEASE CHART: November
"Shrek," "Grinch," "Apes," "Lara" lead month. Compiled by Wade Major
128 FILM REVIEWS
The 3 1/2-star "In the Bedroom" heads our analyses of 79 current and
future releases (see list on p. 128), including our extensive coverage
of the Toronto and Edinburgh fests. Compiled by Christine James
157 AD INDEX / AD FAXBACK FORM / CLASSIFIEDS
How to contact anyone (easily) among this month's long, long list:
direct mail, phone, fax, email contacts, plus our one-stop Faxback.
159 ANNUAL PUBLISHERS STATEMENT
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