United 93

Fault lines and tremblers

Galley Slaves is much taken with this analysis of "United 93's" box office performance.

'United 93' Bow Doesn't Match Press Frenzy
by Brandon Gray
May 1, 2006

Media hype did not convince droves to board United 93—Robin Williams' return to his strongest genre did not get RV rolling—Starbucks and positive buzz did not keep Akeelah and the Bee from flunking. It was the least heralded picture, Stick It, that beamed the most over the weekend.

The first major motion picture about the Sept. 11, 2001, Islamic terrorist attack on America, Universal Pictures' United 93, opened to a solid $11.5 million at 1,795 sites, comparable to Syriana's first wide weekend. Writer-director Paul Greengrass' $15 million drama was not rejected by moviegoers as had been feared, but its number was low in relation to the raft of press coverage.

While it is true that "United 93" drew plenty of press attention, it really is not fair to call it "hype". Much of the discussion was devoted to the question "is it too soon?" In addition, there was plenty of ink devoted to the intense emotions that came while watching the film. A lot of the buzz seemed to discourage rather than promote ticket sales.