By Ray Pride Pride@moviecitynews.com
Record-breaking Opening Weekend of ONCE UPON A TIME… IN HOLLYWOOD on 70mm at the Music Box Theatre
ONCE UPON A TIME… IN HOLLYWOOD significantly exceeded the Music Box Theatre’s opening-weekends for 70mm engagements of THE HATEFUL EIGHT ($105,791), DUNKIRK ($86,364), PHANTOM THREAD ($55,569) and READY PLAYER ONE ($15,228).
“The Music Box Theatre has become known as the place in the Midwest to see new and rare releases on 70mm,” says Technical Director and Assistant Programmer Julian Antos. “This is a combined effort between filmmakers, film lab technicians and the theater’s skilled projection, publicity, and administrative staff, ensuring this beloved and incredible format thrives well into the twenty-first century. Most importantly, none of this is possible without our enthusiastic audiences, all of whom remain invested in the indescribable joy that comes from seeing film projected in a giant room with a full house of fellow movie lovers.”
To honor this 70mm film presentation of ONCE UPON A TIME… IN HOLLYWOOD, the Music Box Theatre once again erected its forty-foot screen, which nearly doubles the image size of normal 70mm presentations. The theater’s state-of-the-art 7.1 channel sound system was installed in advance of Tarantino’s previous 70mm release, THE HATEFUL EIGHT, which opened on Christmas Day 2015.
The Music Box Theatre is independently owned and operated by the Southport Music Box Corporation (SMBC). SMBC, through its Music Box Films division, also distributes foreign and independent films in the theatrical, DVD, VOD and television markets throughout the United States, including the 2015 winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, IDA. The theater and distribution company work closely to offer audiences in Chicago and throughout the US the very best in film.
Quentin Tarantino’s ONCE UPON A TIME… IN HOLLYWOOD visits 1969 Los Angeles, where everything is changing, as TV star Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) make their way around an industry they hardly recognize anymore. The ninth film from the writer-director features a large ensemble cast and multiple storylines in a tribute to the final moments of Hollywood’s golden age.
Written and Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Produced by David Heyman, Shannon McIntosh and Quentin Tarantino. Georgia Kacandes, YU Dong and Jeffrey Chan serve as executive producers. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and Al Pacino.