With its latest crop of summer movies, Hollywood is betting big. After a disappointing 2011 box office, the studios are trying for a big winner to pull people back into the theater. As a result, studios poured huge budgets into films they hope will spark audience interest.
The results so far are mixed. The Hunger Games, which cost $78 million, has already been extremely successful, while John Carter has failed, costing Disney $200 million in losses. Others, like the recently released The Avengers, are just beginning their run. Here is a look at some of the rest of the movies that spent big to gain viewers’ attention and dollars this summer.
» Battleship
May 18 saw the release of one of the biggest gambles, the $200 million Battleship. Battleship is based on the board game, where players call out coordinates and try to hit each other’s ships. The film built a narrative on top of this, adding alien invaders for the battleships to fight.
The film stars Taylor Kitsch of Friday Night Lights and the summer’s first expensive flop, John Carter. Peter Berg, director, is also the creator of Friday Night Lights. Rihanna and Liam Neeson also star.
François-Paul Truc, senior, plans to see Battleship.
“It looks like a pretty good movie to begin with, and I really like Liam Neeson,” Truc said.
» Men in Black 3
Men in Black 3 has been in development for ten years, since Will Smith suggested his idea for it during the filming of Men in Black 2 in 2002. The movie has a time travel based plot, as Agent J (Smith) goes back in time to rescue Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones).
The film was rewritten a number of times – many times during production on the film – to make sure the time travel worked out logically. Despite all the issues, Sony let the budget rise above $215 million.
The name recognition is still enough to sell Charlie Filipiak, junior.
“I know those movies are funny,” Filipiak said. “I’ve seen the first two, so I know [Men in Black 3] is going to be good.”
» Snow White and the Huntsman
The year’s second Snow White movie arrives with the backing of a $100 million budget. This is far different from the elaborately-costumed Julia Roberts comedy from earlier this year. Snow White and the Huntsman is violent and gothic, featuring Snow White as a warrior in large, medieval battles.
The film stars Kristen Stewart as Snow White, Chris Hemsworth as the alcoholic Huntsman, and Charlize Theron as the evil queen who wants to eat Snow White’s still beating heart.
» Prometheus
For a $100 million movie, very few details about Prometheus have been released. Directed by Ridley Scott, it began as a prequel to Scott’s Alien, but those involved with the film have backed away from that label. Now it is simply a science fiction movie with a few Alien elements.
Noomi Rapace, of Sweden’s version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, stars as an archaeologist searching space for the origins of humanity. Charlize Theron plays a corporate executive and Michael Fassbender plays a robot.
“I really forgot how fun the world of science fiction is,” Scott said to Entertainment Weekly. “It’s where anything goes. I’m already thinking about what I’m going to do for Prometheus 2.”
» The Dark Knight Rises
The Dark Knight Rises took a $250 million budget with the goal of building on the success of its predecessor, The Dark Knight. Those involved with the film have also been very reluctant to give out details of the plot.
Christian Bale returns as Bruce Wayne, who has largely abandoned his Batman persona. Tom Hardy, of director Christopher Nolan’s Inception, plays the villain, Bane. Bane has been criticized for sounding unintelligible in extended previews.
» The Bourne Legacy
With Matt Damon out of the franchise, Jeremy Renner is taking over, playing a different character (although it remains the Bourne series). Renner’s character was involved with the same government program as Jason Bourne.
“Bourne has not been that bad of a series, and they’ve done action sequences well, but I don’t know if I want to see this one yet,” Truc said. “I haven’t seen a trailer.”
The studio has not released a budget, but the previous two Bourne movies were $75 million and $110 million.
» Total Recall
This is a $200 million remake of an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie from 1990. Colin Farrell plays the main role, a factory worker in the year 2084 who finds out he may be a spy with suppressed memories.
Instead of visiting Mars, as Schwarzenegger did in the original Total Recall, Farrell’s character gets involved in a potential war between America, Europe, and Asia. Bryan Cranston, Jessica Biel, and Kate Beckinsdale also star.
“I had no interest in just remaking [the previous film] with updated effects,” Len Wiseman, director, told Entertainment Weekly. “This script goes further into the head space of [the main character]. What would that really be like, being told you’re somebody you don’t believe you are?”