"Dreamgirls" revision

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Where's the data supporting Nikki Finke's reported assertion that the Dreamgirls audience is significantly expanding beyond the black/gays/hip urban demo? David Poland reported last night that Dreamgirls' opening-day gross (on 852 mostly urban-ish screens) was not $6 million (as Finke reported) but significantly over $8 million, second only to Night At The Museum, which was playing on nearly four times the number of screens -- 3685.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on December 26, 2006 at 8:59 AM

comment #1

Mike Ock says ...

I heard The Blings are calling Dream Girls "Smart" and "Aight".

Posted by Mike Ock at December 26, 2006 9:24 AM

comment #2

kmoore says ...

When you say "The Blings" are you referring to Black people?

Posted by kmoore at December 26, 2006 9:32 AM

comment #3

Hejla says ...

Finke's report was based on matinees, not the entire day.

Posted by Hejla at December 26, 2006 9:49 AM

comment #4

jeffmcm says ...

How long before people realize that hip people didn't see/didn't like the movie?

Posted by jeffmcm at December 26, 2006 10:20 AM

comment #5

kmoore says ...

Who/What do u consider "hip" people?

Posted by kmoore at December 26, 2006 10:24 AM

comment #6

Ian Sinclair says ...

I think in this context "hip" means straight white males. Certainly of those of my pals I've spoken to, the only pictures they are really interested in seeing right now are Rocky Balboa, Apocalypto and Casino Royale (the latter which a lot of them have seen at least twice). Having seen Dreamgirls (I owed my wife a movie of her choice) I can't say I blame them. For me it was torture to sit through.

Posted by Ian Sinclair at December 26, 2006 10:31 AM

comment #7

kmoore says ...

Okay. Maybe you are right. A sat next to a white guy yesterday while watching "Dreamgirls" and he was acting like he was gonna die. But I am a straight black male and I thought the movie was great.

Also since when was being a "straight white male" hip. Last time I checked hip-hop culture had taken over this country.

"Rocky Balboa" kinda boring but nostalgic. Casino Royale, the BEST bond I've ever seen. And I have no desire to see "Apocalypto", but "The Departed" was really good.

Posted by kmoore at December 26, 2006 10:48 AM

comment #8

PanTheFaun says ...

I suppose since "Dreamgirls" doesn't feature eight-minute-long unedited shots in a futuristic dystopia, nor does it have Jack Nicholson brandishing a massive black strap-on, it won't be considered "hip," but then, musicals have never really played to that crowd.
Unlike "Phantom of the Opera," "Rent" and "The Producers," this seems to be playing to all sorts of demographics. Yesterday at a sold-out showing on Long Island (filled mostly with fellow Jews; black people made up only about 25% of the audience), the film received the virtually identical reaction it did from a nearly all-black crowd at a screening I caught in Baltimore a few weeks ago.
Elderly white couples, as well as younger males dragged by their girlfriends, were seen/heard applauding multiple times (three times during "And I'm Telling You," once at the end, and once at "Introducing Jennifer Hudson").
I'm not saying "Dreamgirls" is a great film, but those who are susceptible to movies of this sort seem to really be digging it. And while yes, the "hip" will never see it or admit to enjoying it, a lot more straight white males seem to be seeing it and liking it than you may think-- which certainly was not the case with "Phantom" or "Rent."

Posted by PanTheFaun at December 26, 2006 10:49 AM

comment #9

Ian Sinclair says ...

I hate to break it to you, but a lot of those straight white males you saw the picture with...probably were't. If they were clapping, they DEFINITELY weren't.

Posted by Ian Sinclair at December 26, 2006 10:53 AM

comment #10

bipedalist says ...

Why wouldn't straight white males love it with all of that female eye candy? Dreamgirls is much more a concert film than it is a traditional musical. IMO.

Posted by bipedalist at December 26, 2006 10:54 AM

comment #11

kmoore says ...

I agree with bipeladiat...it's more like a movie set to music. It makes the movie more accesible to a wider audience that way.

Anyway I enjoyed and I am tired of people crying about all the hype and praise it's getting. Get use to it because this movie might have some great legs and be around for a while.

Posted by kmoore at December 26, 2006 11:03 AM

comment #12

Ian Sinclair says ...

Bipedalsit, I can't see a lot of straight white males going to a Supremes concert any time soon. Straight White Males + Musicals = Cruel and Unusual Punishment.

Posted by Ian Sinclair at December 26, 2006 11:09 AM

comment #13

Devin Faraci says ...

I am so sick of the idea that straight white males can't like musicals. Martin Scorsese, you Negro homo.

Posted by Devin Faraci at December 26, 2006 11:17 AM

comment #14

Walter Sobchak says ...

I think the use of the word "hip" was NOT meant to denote all straight white males. It was, I believe, meant to denote a portion of the straight white male audience that is more urban, movie-savvy and trend-conscious. In other words, straight white males who are hep and open-minded enough to sit through a two hour musical gayathon like "Dreamgirls" without having been dragged there by a girlfriend/wife.

As for Hip Hop culture taking over the country....god help us.

Posted by Walter Sobchak at December 26, 2006 11:19 AM

comment #15

Craig Kennedy says ...

Straight white male here and I'm profoundly unhip. Two of my favorite movies are Singin' in the Rain and Cabaret (sounds kind of like the racist who swears some of his best friends are black I suppose). I'll probably see Dreamgirls but I'm having a bad reaction to having it crammed down my throat for the last 6 months and I'll wait until some of the hype dies down. Beyonce may have no acting talent, but she's lovely to look at and Jennifer Hudson is a voluptuous beauty. It looks like Eddie Murphy has some fun with his part as well.

Posted by Craig Kennedy at December 26, 2006 11:27 AM

comment #16

Mike Ock says ...

The Blings is a reference to a piece Jeff wrote about Dream Girls approximately 4 weeks ago, when he was trying to tell us about the only people who would be willing to pay $25 a head for tix to see Dream Girls during it's exclusive two week run.

Look it up and then you'll get my little inside joke.

Posted by Mike Ock at December 26, 2006 11:56 AM

comment #17

bipedalist says ...

Yeah, well, back in the day musicals were the hot sex movies had to offer - they danced the way people shoot each other or have sex now. Astaire/Rogers, Rita Hayworth - god, that Cyd Charisse/Gene Kelly dance number in Singin' in the Rain is HOT. I don't know when they turned into something only gay men are supposed to like - moreover, when they all stopped being really sexy.

Posted by bipedalist at December 26, 2006 11:58 AM

comment #18

christian says ...

as a straight white guy i fucking love me a good musical and there's nothing like bursting into applause in a theater after a great song and dance. and trust me, "hip" chicks love a straight guy who loves musicals. i'm hip wit it.

Posted by christian at December 26, 2006 12:05 PM

comment #19

Craig Kennedy says ...

(in Homer Simpson voice) mmmmm...Cyd Charisse.

Posted by Craig Kennedy at December 26, 2006 12:16 PM

comment #20

Arran says ...

I do worry when a middle-aged white guy is trying to tell me what's hip. Little Miss Sunshine - a fantastic flick to be sure, but hip? You, sir, have got to be joking.

Posted by Arran at December 26, 2006 12:37 PM

comment #21

Mr. Peel says ...

I'm a straight white guy who likes plenty of musicals, especially ones from MGM. I also think that The Young Girls of Rochefort is one of the most purely beautiful films ever made.

That said, I thought Dreamgirls was good, not great. Some of the direction was, to me, uninspired, especially the dialogue scenes. Plenty of interesting sets that were shot in ways that weren't very interesting. Some of the songs I liked, some I didn't. Plus, most of the characters never really became three-dimensional to me--what (I imagine) worked just fine on stage when everything is stylized anyway didn't seem to have the same effect on film when much of the time it's presented in a realistic manner. For me the characters never became more than archetypes, so I didn't really care very much about them. I was more interested in Diana Ross and Florence Ballard before I saw it and remained that way after it.

That said, the best film I've seen all year is Children of Men. I'm not saying that to be hip--I'm saying that because it's my opinion.

Posted by Mr. Peel at December 26, 2006 1:10 PM

comment #22

Mr. Peel says ...

Just to add, if people are genuinely loving this film I think that's great. Hopefully it'll get more musicals made.

I also don't know why I began two paragraphs with the phrase "That said..."

Posted by Mr. Peel at December 26, 2006 1:14 PM

comment #23

Chris Molanphy says ...

Anybody else think this opening is underwhelming when 'Borat' opened on virtually the same number of screens (850ish) and did $25 mil or so?

Posted by Chris Molanphy at December 26, 2006 6:52 PM

comment #24

Rod32303 says ...

Did "Borat" do 8 million it's first day? Find out for me.

Saw sold out screening in Atlanta...CONYERS, Georgia, to be exact...which has a black population of about...four, and a gay population of...zero (at least none shouting "WE'RE HERE, WE'RE QUEER, GET USED TO IT!"Kidding, but close. People APPLAUDED after Hudson's mid-film brilliance, and applauded after the whole thing. So there.

Fuck the haters. Some people will always try to label folk or fit them into categories (anything thought of as "hip" becomes UNHIP at that instant). You like what you like, and you shouldn't apologize for that. You dislike what you dislike, too, and more power to you for that.

AND, fyi, Martin Scorses directed one of the greatest "musicals" ever...not "New York, New York," which is an astonishing mess (but totally watchable) but "The Last Waltz," one of the best concert films EVER, which TOTALLY plays like a musical.

Posted by Rod32303 at December 26, 2006 7:58 PM

comment #25