Boxoffice-November.2001

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Magic Cinemas and its 95 screens. Such deals, though not quite commonplace, have been a consistent part of overall growth patterns for more than a decade. But next came what appeared to be the big one: Regal's purchase of the massive 643-screen Cobb Theatres circuit, taking Regal's total screen count past the 2.000 mark. In any normal year the Regal/Cobb combine would have been exhibition's biggest merger story. But, even as that deal was announced, a rumor began to circulate: Sony-owned Loews was negotiating to merge with Cineplex Odeon in a unique arrangement that would insulate the parent company from Cineplex's crippling debt load, while at the same time creating the largest exhibition chain in history: As 1997 came to a close, that rumor became fact. There is something in the American character that blanches at deals of such unimaginable size. Look at "Star Wars": The most popular movie myth of all times pits a ragtag assemblage of renegade roughnecks against an evil empire defined almost completely in terms of overwhelming scale. With size comes power and it is undeniable that an increasingly smaller number of megacircuits either are now or soon will be exercising an unprecedented amount of clout over what American audiences go to see—a clout that will be theirs even if they don't wish to have it, simply by dint of sheer numbers. There is as yet no reason to view this development as anything other than virtue rewarded, the inevitable outcome of the labors of a handful of ambitious businesspeople who are recreating the exhibition industry in our time. But big companies can also represent big targets, as Microsoft's ongoing antitrust difficulties clearly demonstrate; while my producer acquaintance's biases as a man who owes his career to the original consent decree must be taken into account, his murmuring of the word "antitrust" can also be taken as a word to the wise in a time where megacircuits for which there is no precedent start to define themselves and take shape. In a noteworthy sidebar to the Loews-Cineplex merger, visionary Sony-Loews executives Barrie and Jim Loeks chose to return to their roots at the tiny Loeks-Star circuit rather than run the newly formed Sony megacircuit—a task which, it's easy to speculate, might seem less than appealing to executives with a direct, hands-on management style. What the next decade of exhibition history may tell us is which was the more historically significant gesture: the deal that created the largest megacircuit the world has ever known, or the decision by the two people who could have reasonably expected to run ii that, sometimes, less is more. — December 1 997 mm nudie cuties, among others. All were strange but vital to the future of movies. Mostly all were profitable. parody of "Prometheus Bound," satirizing Arnold Schwazenegger. "The book is 336 pages long, and if "One of the important messages of the documentary is that whether or not you like the fact that American movies are more violent and sexual than they were in the 1940s, this era was ground zero for films," Greene that represents a quarter of my film writing I would be surprised." Greene confesses while still canvassing the patio for a second light. "I am a very fast writer, and BOXOFFICE had a lot of need, as did the Village View, so says. "Also, this is where the teenage you just get into the habit of being preoccupation that still exists in able to bang things out." American movies began. Low-budget After receiving an undergraduate movies like American Pie' and degree in English, Greene worked as a 'Legally Blonde,' which will be some and pop music journalist for political of the most profitable movies in several years before being accepted into recent times, really originated with USC's graduate film program. In the Roger Corman, Sam Arkoff and those people. Hollywood learned it from them." "Schlock!", after showings at various film festivals around the country, was recently picked-up for video distribution and is being sold to European television. The film has been a labor of love for Greene for years. He wrote, directed, narrated, edited, produced and wrote a song for the film—all the while writing hundreds of articles and reviews for various media outlets around the country. Many of these articles, written for BOXOFFICE, LA. Village View, Medio and ABC- NEWS.com, as well as several brand-new essays appear in Greene's book "Hollywood Migraine." The title refers to a literal headache Greene experienced after an excruciating loud screening of intervening years. Greene dabbled in "Last Action Hero" in an experimental acting and technical post-production digital sound process. "It was, I thought, a symbolic moment for a lot of what went wrong in the '90s," Greene says with a smirk. "The book and 'Schlock!' are both attacks on our current film culture," he says, with a second cigarette already in hand. "What the movie says is that these guys who you want to revile and sweep under the rug are everything thing that you are. One of the things that the book is about ultimately is that these gigantic multi-national corporations run by MBAs— judging by what they put out—are either hypocrites who put out movies that they themselves would never want to see or have no affection for the form." The book is a collection of A-list director and celebrity interviews culled from many years at BOXOFFICE, combined with various musings on the power and culture of celebrity, a long multi-part meditation on the destructive potential of the Walt Disney Company, a minute-by-minute account of the rise of independent cinema in the '90s as well as an obligatory for a time, before reconnecting to his journalistic roots and serving as editor of BOXOFFICE from 1993 to 1997. As a longtime writer and social crit- Greene was seemingly well-suited ic, for life in the realm of documentaries, a medium not too dissimilar from journalism in that a keen focus is on uncovering fact and exposing, rather than celebrating, fiction. "In journalism, if you are lucky, you get paid to tell the truth." Greene says. "Certainly there is a level of politics involved with journalism, but when you are actually there in front of the keyboard, you get to really reach into your head and say what you think. That's the beautiful thing about it." The interview with BOXOFFICE over, Greene is off to work on his next film project and to continue in his role as programming advisor to the Silver Lake Film festival. which was held last September but not before bumming a ride to a convenient store for more cigarettes. "They keep me going." he says. mm 52 BOXOFFICE
oneer and developer f the most creative [ sophisticated screen ertising in the world." never looked si CIRCUITS and INDEPENDENT theatre owners welcome. MILLIONS of dollars paid to theatre clients annually through PERCENTAGES, GUARANTEES and creative PARTNERSHIPS. Equipment and installation cost nothing. Ads sold and produced at NO COST to theatres. Theatre EMPLOYEES love it. Virtually 100% automated. Very little work. Movie goers expect nothing less. 800.358.1811 Unique Screen Ad Production
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Page 86 and 87: SHOWEAST 2001 Orlando, Florida •
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Boxoffice-November.2001

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