It’s shaping up to be one of the marketing success stories of this young year, and oh boy, color me surprised. The Lovely Bones, the Peter Jackson-directed drama based on the best-selling novel, pulled in $20.5 million on its first broad-release weekend, coming in third place after a grassroots campaign that gunned hard for the Twilight crowd. Despite a story that revolves around the rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl, 72 percent of the weekend’s audience was female, and 40 percent were under 20. (The rape was written in the book but dropped from the movie.) A tidbit of background: The movie was supposed to be a prestige, art-house flick and Oscar contender. (It’s had to settle so far for a single Golden Globe nom for co-star Stanley Tucci.) But when it rolled out in limited release last month, reviews were lukewarm and box office was pitiful. Strategy changed. Paramount began focusing on college women and teen girls after research said they liked the movie better than any other demos. Some scoffed. (Yeah, that was me.) It’s still to be determined if its fans will spread the word to more Team Jacob/Team Edward devotees. Seems clear, though, that the marketing is leading the way, rather than, as a friend suggested, that Tiger Beat cover for Tucci. She was kidding.
—Posted by T.L. Stanley