Once Again, Family-Friendly Movies Make Big Bucks

Perhaps Hollywood's slump is due to not cranking out enough family-friendly fare:

Last weekend’s release of The Fantastic Four, yet another summer film based on a famous comic book, helped propel the Hollywood box office out of a long-lasting slide but only barely. The weekend’s tally of 148.9 million just eclipsed the 148.2 million take of a year ago; and the year-to-date numbers remain far behind the totals for this time a year ago. With a slender plot, even by comic-book standards, F4 is a mediocre film, quickly forgotten. It is, nonetheless, a good bit of fun, with a couple of entertaining characters, and sufficient energy and humor to captivate audiences.

As is often the case, popular taste runs athwart critical appraisal. While film critics panned the film, audiences seem to enjoy the action sequences and the good-natured camaraderie of these comic-book heroes. The film is more Ghostbusters than Batman Begins or even Spider-Man. Although it is rated PG-13, it provides the sort of action and humor that can be honestly enjoyed by an entire family, except perhaps the youngest of children.

If you have contempt for your customers, soon you will have no customers.

That's where Hollywood is at.

Don't listen to the critics. Listen to the people who buy the tickets.