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Movies Like Furiosa Were Never Meant to Save Hollywood

Everyone is freaking out about the box office. But we’re still expecting tentpole results from non-tentpole movies.

So did Fight Club, and Speed Racer, and The Adventures of Baron Munchhausen, and It’s a Wonderful Life — movies that didn’t make anybody any real moneyat firstbut that made the world of cinema a richer place. With each new disappointment, voices emerge out of the woodwork claiming to know why the movies are failing: Some are convinced that the films aren’t good enough, others that the marketers screwed it all up, or the original properties weren’t that popular in the first place, or tickets are too expensive, or everybody’s still afraid of getting sick. Ironically, it’s a transition that many of us have wanted for some time: Fewer gigantic productions that need massive opening weekends to justify their humongous costs; more solid films that can turn a profit over a few weeks and months thanks to good word of mouth.

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