You also need to consider the cost of an entry ticket. It might cost you $10 or £5 to gain entry now but in the 60’s it was just £0.36 in the UK or $0.50 in the US.

Sadly it was really hard finding out the number of cinemas and outlets at the time of the film, or the number of tickets sold, so we were pretty damned before we started. It would be fair to estimate that the amount of cinemas now compared to 1960 are at least 100 fold at the very least.

With the help of certain online sources, a calculator and plenty of coffee, here is our top five grossing films adjusted for inflation starting last to first!

5) Avengers: Endgame

Well there had to be one Marvel film in the list didn’t there! Endgame was hugely popular in 2019 following its build up from Infinity Wars but the total gross has been calculated to match that of 2020 so it could be debated.

$2,811,000,000

If Avengers: Endgame had been released, say, the same time as James Bond’s From Russia With Love in 1963 – a rough gross would have been $306,947,426.10 – but bear in mind, in 1963 there were less places to watch films, less places to see an advertisement and less ways of getting to the cinema to watch in the first place.

4) Star Wars: A New Hope

The most popular of all the Star Wars films, this was a big one back in 1977, I even recall my uncle saying he remembers watching it whilst smoking! Anyway, Star Wars was very popular, and its worldwide gross was appx $200m better than Avengers above

$3,059,000,000

3) Titanic (1997)

Who would have thought that so many people would spend so much money watching a ship hit and ice berg and sink? James Cameron obviously did, or at least he thought Di Caprio’s good looks would bring in some extra millions. At number three it’s adjusted figure is:

$3,096,000,000

Only a smidgen above Star Wars but with 20 years difference you can see why it would have pipped the George Luca sci-fi.

2) Avatar (2009)

I recall Avatar vividly. There was a HUGE advertising campaign. You couldn’t get away from it. It’s gross is astonishing nonetheless but you take away it’s budget and advertising costs of $246m and you end up with the second figure.

$3,273,000,000
$3,027,000,000 (net) includes marketing/advertising.

I’m aware this is based on adjusted figures but it does give a flavour of where films could be when you take out costs. A little more on that as we reach number one…

1) Gone With The Wind (1939)

Gone With The Wind was simply a beast at the time and still is. You recall we mentioned the budget for Avatar at appx $246m – well, the Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh classic, when adjusted for inflation comes in at $81,475,900 for costs, $3.85m if you ignore inflation.

Given Gone With The Wind was released on the start of World War 2, and with so little cinemas compared to now, it’s actual box office gross even back then of $390m+ is something very special.

$3,724,000,000

It’s impossible to calculate the exact figures. Some of the films in this list would likely not even make the top five if it could be worked out 100% correctly by a super computer. The next time you hear of a film breaking box office records, bear a thought for the films of the past which quite rightly would have smashed the current box office hit be it not for some lazy maths.

Some other honourable mentioned that we found on wikipedia are The Sound of Music, E.T., Doctoer Zhivago and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

The post Which Film Is The Highest Grossing Of All Time? (Adjusted For Inflation) first appeared on WhichFilm | Film Reviews | Audience Film Reviews.

A few series later, like WandaVision, Hawkeye and Ms Marvel, plus films like Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and Thor: Love and Thunder it seems to be starting all over again.

However, with Marvel director Feige having already announced what, and when the next two Avenger films will be about, there is reason to be concerned. Not least because there appears to be a build up of such fantasy that Earths heroes won’t just be fighting a super villain but also fighting villains with both time and reality as a weapon.

Yes, Thanos didn’t really use his time and reality stones much, but will some of these villains simply be able to turn back time and cause different realities and universes? If they don’t use that power, as we expect Kang to do, why not? Because they could really kill off all characters very quickly if they use the power they have to hand properly.

With Doctor Strange, could he not simply use dead bodies again to solve issues, go to another universe, go back in time (as they did in Endgame) to resolve any problems?

It might be over analysing, but for good reason. Marvel need to keep the next two phases water tight, as too much craziness will confuse the younger viewers, perhaps even the more hardcore Marvel fans amongst us.

Those familiar with the comics will say, “nothing to worry about”, but we shall have to see. The ratings of the latest Doctor Strange, and Thor have already hit lower star ratings than all before it, and Marvel should deem that as a warning.

The post Is Marvel In Danger of Getting Too Crazy? first appeared on WhichFilm | Film Reviews | Audience Film Reviews.

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Lady Gaga has confirmed that she will co star along side Joaquin Phoenix, who will reprise his role as the Joker, and whilst Gaga has not revealed the character she’ll be playing in the up coming sequel, it is rumoured that she will star as a version of Harley Quinn in the Joker’s universe, a prison psychiatrist who, after treating the Joker, joins him in chaotic crime sprees.

The full title ‘Joker: Folie a Deux’ is a French phrase, referring to mental disorder that impacts two or more people. Hence the introduction of Lady Gaga to the Todd Phillips directed sequel.

News of the release date has come direct from Comscore and is said to have softened the blow relating to the much anticipated Batgirl, staring Leslie Grace, which has reportedly been pulled despite being in post production.

The post Lady Gaga May Play Version of Harley Quinn first appeared on WhichFilm | Film Reviews | Audience Film Reviews.

The moment news broke that actress Scarlett Johansson was filing a lawsuit against Walt Disney for lost earnings it became apparent that they has messed up royally with regards to the release of Marvel’s Black Widow.

The film generated almost $320 million at the ox office alone, on a budget of appx. £200 million this leaves just $120 million in profits, a small percentage of which was to go to the actress who plays Agent Natasha Romanov.

Had Disney decided against releasing Black Widow on their Disney + Premier Access, the earnings taken at the cinema would have been significantly more. The issue is Piracy. The moment a film “goes digital” you can bet your cinema ticket that will have been copied with millions therefore watching it for free. The decision was made to add it to Disney+ too early and when really they should have perhaps waited until mid August or even early September.

There are arguments against of course. Some suggest that the new Marvel series Hawkeye would have contained spoilers for Black Widow however those that wished to watch Black Widow first could simply have waited or gone to the cinema to watch it.

There are simply no excuses for Disney, they rushed it out in the hope that more would join the Disney+ channel. Whilst we don’t have the data we’re pretty certain the increase based on Black Widow alone would not have outweighed those able to stream it via Piracy websites. One could argue that even cinema can be “cam’d” but even casual watchers try to avoid cam versions if they can, instead waiting for a digital copy to be made.

The case against Disney will likely drag on. The full details of which are with Los Angeles County Superior Court. Johansson was responded to with comments that the lawsuit was “sad and distressing” and that there was “no merit” in the accusations but deep down, Disney will know they messed Black Widow up even despite the current epidemic.

The post Disney messed up on Black Widow, and they know it first appeared on WhichFilm | Film Reviews | Audience Film Reviews.

If you’ve been bitten by a shark, and known others who have been attacked by sharks it would be reasonable to expect you to never want to see one again. This isn’t the thought, nor has it ever been, of famous shark diver and activist Valerie Taylor.

The 85 year old starting diving in 1956 and was spearfishing by 1960 to put food on the table, becoming Australian scuba champion and being asked to start recording life in the Great Barrier Reef.

At first she dived with sharks wearing the famous metal mesh scuba diving gear and was bitten just under the chin, a bite she claimed was very painful. Her colleague Rodney Fox was slightly unluckier, a few bites meaning he required over 450 stitches.

But despite this, Valerie rightly claims that sharks aren’t monsters of the sea but an integral part of the oceanic eco system and Playing With Sharks puts this message across. The sad thing is that many who watch the documentary won’t actually listen to the message and will still see them as a risk to swimmers, regardless of the fact that we’re in their waters, not the other way around.

With thousands of sharks being killed daily for their fins (not nutritional by the way) and other body parts it seems an uphill task and one that Valerie Taylor is all too familiar with.

Part of the documentary shows when she was advisor to the Spielberg film Jaws (1975). Rather than bringing attention to sharks about to be endangered it sent shark hunters in their thousands around the World looking to kill them. Florida alone was almost wiped out of them entirely. One could question Taylor’s efforts after seeing the effects of Jaws and noting she also shot shark sequences for the sequel Jaws 2 (1978) which likely increased death rates, however her expertise and knowledge has always suggested that they mean no harm to us.

These sharks will sadly continue to be hunted regardless of how many watch the documentary. The message will be seen, but once again, not listened to.

The post Valerie Taylor’s Playing With Sharks: Message will be seen but not heard first appeared on WhichFilm | Film Reviews | Audience Film Reviews.

Here’s our favourite five films of May 2018 to look forward to!

5) Mary Shelley

Biography’s don’t have too much limelight these days but that’s not to say they’re not worth watching, especially not one with arguably the best ever creator of a horror character. Mary Shelley’s biopic, directed by Haifaa al-Mansour, explores her creation of Frankenstein and her struggle to get the novel published.

4) Deadpool 2

The foul mouthed super hero returns in what has been anticipated to be a commercial cash grab but let’s take that with a pinch of salt as Ryan Reynolds battles Josh Brolin in what should be a highly entertaining encounter.

3) Overboard

It might be a remake but they can be fun, especially if they have been written with the current aspects of life included. There were no mobile phones when the original was made back in 1987. This version of Overboard, starring Eugenio Derbez and Anna Faris should be a giggle.

2) Life Of The Party

Another Melissa McCarthy comedy that fans are hoping will be just as good as her last success in “Spy”. It may not hit those heights but it’s certainly one to look forward to.

1) Solo: A Star Wars Story

Everybody loves Han Solo no matter the age of the viewer and to see what Disney have knocked together to see what he was up to as a younger version of the smuggler is exciting. We also have the chance to see how he and Chewbacca met for the first time and that is worth the cinema ticket alone!

The post Five Films To Look Forward To In May 2018 first appeared on WhichFilm | Film Reviews | Audience Film Reviews.