King Kong should be through the roof, but the tracking says that it is not doing nearly as well with females with males.
So Universal send their spot masters back to the drawing board and came up with two “girl friendly” spots. 1 | 2
How do they work?
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It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” ā some novel, you know?
So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.
And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it ā I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.
There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.
I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury ā he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” ā and I’d forgot who he was.
So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging ā I was with her at that moment ā she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.
But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy namedā” “Yeah, sure ā you want his phone number?”
My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher
“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that Iām on the phone with you now, after all thatās been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didnāt seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. Thereās not a case of that. He wasnāt using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had ā if that were what the accusation involved ā the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. Iām not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, āYou know, itās not this, itās thatā? Because ā let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. TimesĀ piece, thatās what it lacked. Thatās what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.
~ David Simon
very nice little spots, makes me wonder/wish the movie has as much emotion though. Compared to the other trailers, almost looks like a different film.
How does one learn what ‘tracking’ says? Do you subscribe to some inner-industry news report?
Coldplay? Really?
Nope. That ain’t working.
Ya know, ads like this are an insult to women (and humans in general). In fact, more often than not, ads like this, blatent pitches to a certain group that plays to their worst stereotypes, make me less likely to want to see a film.
The best example was The Majestic, which I was eager to see until they started doing those talking head cast and crew ads talking about just how wonderful this film was in the wake of 9/11. Ads like this, or the Kong ads, or the ‘rock n’ roll’ Kingdom Of Heaven ads, are surely a sign of condscending attitudes and in most cases are a sign of desperation.
In King Kong’s case, the word of mouth would have spread about the more emotional content within the first week (it’s not like plenty of females wouldn’t have been dragged by their boyfriends), so there was no reason for this sillyness.
Sorry, this kind of condescending garbage gets me worked up. Especially when there is evidence that it actually works in some cases (the female-friendly Armageddon ads, which tried to sell it as a love story, with a minor subplot about a planet-killing meteor).
Scott Mendelson
I saw the first trailer on tv a couple days ago and thought it was a joke ad like “Shining”. Then it occurred to me that I was actually watching this on tv as a commercial. I started giggling maniacally. I’m not sure that was the response they wanted, especially since I’m the target audience.
Is Lindenen female?
Holy crap. Another one.
Ah…that must explain why they didn’t use my quote “Naomi Watts has a bod that I’d eat sushi off of any day of the week!” š
All they have to do is play up the hour long tribute to “Titanic” that opens the movie if they want to get women.
the spots don’t do it for me.
Edouglas I f*cking HATED Titanic. If they want to bring the 20-40-yr-old ladies in, it would have been nice to promise some handsome animal-man flesh, not corny lukewarm fuzzy romance.
I think it’s just an example of them trying too hard and not really understnding the way women choose what they want to go to the movies. It felt ridiculous.
Coldplay? If I were female, I’d be insulted. Hell, I’m insulted anyway.
What Coldplay song is it? I’d watch them if I could be bothered. Alas, i cannot.
It’s “Fix You,” which is actually a decent song the first couple of minutes, then goes all bombastic. Naturally, it’s music from the bombastic part that’s in the commercial. I don’t think the dumbest blonde is as dumb as the people who made this commercial think women are.
“Fix You” is a great song and Kong will have no problems drawing females.
It’s a very strange marketing choice BEFORE the film opens. I think 2 weeks after release it would have been savvy to remind us of that aspect of the film (I still have the T2 “girl-ad” in my head 14 years later). But to jump right into it site comes off as a tip of the hat to Return of The King.
Hey, why not intercut a few shots of Sam and Frodo embracing while you’re at it?
Oh right… not Universal property.
(But them chicks be lovin’ Coldplay yo.)
Women be shoppin’!
I’ve seen the movie, and it isn’t really a movie for girls. The human-human love story is handled kinda poorly; it’s the human-ape love story that the movie nails, in between some of the greatest action scenes ever filmed (digitally composited?).
J Ott, that’s a sort of stupid thing to say. What exactly is a movie for girls?
Women be shoppin’!–Crow
Hilarious.
I just saw that ad on and I almost started laughing when it looked liked the ape and the lady were dancing. Holy Crap that’s funny.
Was it done by the person responsible for “The Shining” trailer? It’s that well done.
The second spot is better than the first, at least they’re trying to get across that it is a story. But overall, no. Cheapens the idea.
I think Universal is trying to fix a problem that doesn’t exist in the first place. It’s not a ‘women’s movie’ but then again thank God. Most of the films aimed to target women are godawful. We’re not a different species, folks.
Of course, they could take a leaf out of Brokeback’s book and ramp up the simmering sexual tension between Black and Brody . . .
When the tears come streaming down your face/
‘Cause your King Kong ad’s in an “action pla-ace”/
And that distaff cash, it’ll go to waste/
Could it be worse?
Well, love will guide them in/
Though Watts-on-ape’s a sin/
And tracking, I have/
Fixed you.
not a movie for girls? its one of the classic romances out there. dont underestimate the appeal to females.
I just heard a radio version of this ad. It’s even stupider listening to an announcer read all the pull quotes. Unless I’d known about the tv commercials, I’d have been hard pressed to figure out what it was an advert for, since you only find out at the end, when the announcer tells you.
Maybe they knew what they were doing, given the apparently “soft” $10 million opening. I knew it wasn’t going to do LOTR numbers, but I did expect it to come within 50% of Two Towers. It’s not even close. It’s barely at 50% of FOTR. Egad.