Open Wide: How Hollywood Box Office Became a National Obsession [Paperback]

Dade Hayes (Author), Jonathan Bing (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 17, 2006

Opening weekend is a battle for the hearts and minds (and wallets) of American moviegoers. In Open Wide, Dade Hayes and Jonathan Bing expose the blockbuster factory that lies just beyond Hollywood’s red carpet. They reveal how movies have become products of instantaneous mass consumption no more enduring than popcorn and soda. They shadow the actors, directors, producers, and studio executives, tracing the trail of blood, sweat, tears, and hundreds of millions at stake in a weekend at the multiplex.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Two Variety editors open readers' eyes wide to the inside story of Hollywood's relentless pursuit of fast maximum bucks in this engaging, informed look at the major films of the 2003 July Fourth weekend. Three big movies clashed at the box office from Wednesday, July 2, to Sunday, July 6: Terminator 3, Legally Blonde 2 and Sinbad. Hayes and Bing, writing smoothly together, consider each film primarily as a business product, bringing unprecedented attention to the massive marketing campaigns engineered by the respective studios (T3: Warner; LB2: MGM; Sinbad: DreamWorks). They follow Schwarzenegger through the publicity grind; sit with Mission Valley girls for a test screening of an early trailer for LB2; scrutinize the performance of DreamWorks marketing chief Terry Press at ShowWest in Las Vegas as she defends the hand-drawn Sinbad in the era of Shrek. Visits to myriad locations brighten the narrative (Technicolor's film processing plant; Schwarzenegger's vast office), while a smart history of blockbuster cinema, which the authors trace back past Jaws to Joseph E. Levine's Hercules and 1953's The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, deepens it. In this excellent book that's a must read for anyone passionate about the film business or cultural trends, the authors have created an intricate, suspenseful and learned chronicle of the confluence of money and art.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

". . . a must read for anyone passionate about the film business or cultural trends." -- Publishers Weekly

"A colorful colonoscope ride throught the bowels of Hollywood commerce." -- San Francisco Chronicle

"An excellent book that's a must-read for anyone passionate about the film business or cultural trends . . ." -- Publishers Weekly

"It gives a fairly clear picture of how the realities of the marketplace affect what movies get made . . ." -- The New York Times

"With wit and insight, the authors have used their access to take a trenchant look at behind-the-scenes Hollywood." -- Library Journal

"[A] classic look at Hollywood in the age of box-office megabucks . . ." -- The Atlantic

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Miramax (May 17, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 140135985X
• ISBN-13: 978-1401359850
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,660,865 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Most Agreeable, October 17, 2004

By 

B. A Varkentine (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Open Wide: How Hollywood Box Office Became a National Obsession (Hardcover)

I wouldn't want to bet that this will tell anyone who works in Hollywood anything they don't already know. But to the rest of us it's a eye-opening look at the popcorn-driven big-box office system that keeps one "big" picture after another coming towards us on a treadmill. It's a treadmill heading towards disposibility, but nobody seems to care in mellow L.A. The authors are more succesful at revealing the state of Hollywood today than at how it connects to yesterday, and maybe that's why.

Still it's a compelling read, most well-judged when it looks at how studio executive can $&#* up their own films. And especially when taking a look at the role of fans in the marketing machine, when it comes to films like Terminator 3.

The authors see the cynical exploitation on the one hand, but rightly point out studios can't assume they can control or predict fan reaction either.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Read, October 13, 2004

By 

Tussman "Tussman" (NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Open Wide: How Hollywood Box Office Became a National Obsession (Hardcover)

I'm a movie buff, but not a Hollywood guy and devour a lot of the big books that come out of Hollywood. This books is great because it gets all the dirt, gets the big picture and small picture and captures it in a way that is enjoyable to the lay reader. I bet that this book will be on every night table in L.A.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great for Film Buffs, February 22, 2005

By 

Sebastien Pharand (Orléans, Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Open Wide: How Hollywood Box Office Became a National Obsession (Hardcover)

Open Wide is much more than a mere analysis of the state of today's Hollywood. It also give its readers a very generous lesson on the history of the box office take, going from the very early days up until today. What the authors have done is to give the readers an inside-look into the Hollywood machine so that we can all understand better what constitutes a hit.

The authors have decided to study the three films that opened on the 4th of July weekend in 2003; Terminator 3, Legally Blonde 2 and Sinbad. From their moment of conception up to their release, the authors study the various stages the films went through before finally arriving to the Silver Screen. Through this, they also give us history lesson on firms like EDI Nelson, Technicolor, some studio anecdotes and a great, detailed history of the movie theatre itself.

The book never sides with one studio or one person. The authors remain impartial throughout, something that seems fresh, especially since this book is discussing Hollywood. Although the authors give a bit more attention to Terminator 3 (the biggest film of the three) and very little to Sinbad, what they do give us is very detailed and informative.

This is a great book about the Hollywood machine. Ever wondered why some movies flop, while others are a success? Ever wondered how a film is created, how various test screenings can help change a film and the marketing behind it, how word of mouth can make or kill a film? Then this one will probably answer most of your questions.