Kick-Ass Report Card: A+ From Younger Audiences (Oh, and Wins Box Office Too)

There’s been a lot of public debate about the box office performance of Kick-Ass last weekend. In the end, the movie barely squeaked out a weekend victory over How to Train Your Dragon, when all the receipts were finally tallied Monday. But still, the buzz around the entertainment world has been that the film underperformed. I’m not sure how a $19.8 million opening for a satirical R-rated bloodbath is considered a poor opening (that’s almost the same exact amount that Paranormal Activity made during its first week in wide release), but then again I’m not really the most objective observer here. I’ve already given it a rave review, and broken out my five favorite moments. So, well, yeah, I’m a little biased.

What intrigues me even more than the box office receipts, however, are the CinemaScore grades. People under the age of 25 gave the movie an A on their way out of the theater. But older patrons – particularly women – graded on a lower curve, lowering the overall average to a B. Clearly most women don’t like this sort of absurd bloodfest.

All this being said, though, I’m pretty convinced that once the word of mouth publicity starts percolating this week – about just how bold, lewd, and creative this whole thing is – that plenty more 18-30 year-olds are going to show up. And that initial $20 million opening weekend won’t plunge 50 percent next weekend, but will instead stay constant, as the film reaches $32 or $34 million, and then $45 million. I already know that I like this movie more than most, but I’ve heard from plenty of others who plan to see it again – and who plan on giving it a big thumbs up to friends as well.

So Kick-Ass, for all its unusual quirks, could still upend Hollywood expectations yet one more time: In an era of opening weekend superhero blockbusters that sprint out of the gate, here’s the little subversive anti-superhero comedy that could win the day with a marathoner’s approach. Let’s talk again May 3, and see where Kick-Ass is after its third week in the fray.

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doubleang

Im totally with you on this one. I have been spreading the word on this one big time as a “must see”, and fully expect 2nd week to outperform the first.

Time.com’s commentary on the movie stated that it was due to men and no women attending. I can see that (the showing I saw, there were a couple lonely older dudes all by themselves on a Friday night), but the girl I took liked the movie nearly as much as me, and actually plans on seeing it again; with her mom of all people.
grape_crush

All that being said…The movie seems to be doing well, considering:

- The smaller budget (I heard it was somewhere around $30 million),

- Offline advertising was slim-to-nonexistent,

- No marqee names attached to the project (I’ve given up on Cage),

- And, frankly, the coarseness and focus of the subject matter limits how widespread the audience appeal actually is.

When all is said and done, the movie’s profits (including DVD sales) will double its costs with room to spare…but if it goes much north of $100 million, I’d be suprised.