Thats alright then isnt it? Can anyone find any actual figures?

Jona | May 02, 21:05 CET

The UK box office figures are quite slow in being published and Top 10 probably won't be available until next week. '16 Blocks', which was number two at the weekend, took £780,000 ($1.4 million). It seems likely that 'Slither' in sixth place would have taken something in the region of $400,000 ($735,000), maybe a little less.

Edited to adjust my suggested figure because I think I probably quoted too high.

[ edited by dashboardprophet on 2006-05-02 19:46 ]

alien lanes | May 02, 21:21 CET

I'm surprised it's done that well, not because it doesn't deserve to. It opened this weekend here in the UK after quite impressive publicity -- lots of TV adverts, billboards, ads on the side of lots and lots of buses and in tube stations -- but when I went to see it on Sunday evening at 8:45pm in one of the largest screens in the centre of Edinburgh (Odeon 1, Lothian Road) there were eight, maybe nine, people there in total. I mentioned this to someone who saw it on Saturday night at 9pm (in the same screen Serenity had its World premiere) and they said the same thing. There was no more than a handful of people there. The guy at the box office burst out laughing when I asked if there was still tickets for Slither. :-(

It's a real shame, because it was a really fun film.

dzr | May 02, 21:33 CET

I went here in Dublin yesterday evening. It was showing in the biggest screen, and despite it being the early 5.45 showing there was a sizeable crowd there.

Fence | May 02, 21:47 CET

I went to a showing at Odeon on Friday. They had it on their biggest screen. Glasgow UGC also has it on their biggest screen. The expectation/hope was that it'd do really well in the UK, clearly, despite the US performance.

I have to be honest, I'm not that bothered by Slither's actual performance as it's not my money, but one thing that bugs me is this: when "Big Mommas House" comes out, everybody goes out and sees it. When a fun, well made horror comedy comes out, nobody goes and sees it. Everybody rants about no original horror movies, all the remakes flooding Hollywood, video game movies... That's a reason for that.

One thing is for sure - Serenity did really well, compared. Although it had a high budget ($40m, compared to Slithers $25m), it also took a lot more per screen than Slither. Considering the cast was equally unknown, the concepts where all over the place in Serenity (in terms of sci-fi western comedy drama horror) etc...

gossi | May 02, 22:09 CET

Likewise. Saw it at a UGC on the biggest screen (or close to it). Maybe 20 or 30 people, 10 of whom seemed to 'get it'. Pity since it was a good laugh and would have been even better with a bit of an atmosphere. As others have said it's a great old-fashioned B-movie which knows exactly what it's doing and does it without shame.

(the publicity compares it to Shaun of the Dead, well, got to say it wasn't anywhere near that standard, IMO, but still good fun)

Personally I thought the trailer for Serenity was better than Slither's though. Funnier and more action packed so more likely to attract the casual punter. Plus, ninja space-babes sell, never underestimate their power.

Saje | May 02, 23:48 CET

gossi: I didn't realise you were in Glasgow. Well, if you're ever over in Edinburgh and fancy a beer ...

dzr | May 03, 00:06 CET

dzr, live in Liverpool, but girlfriend in Glasgow. There occasional weekends. One day there shall be a big Whedonesque meetup..

gossi | May 03, 01:23 CET

I'm in Glasgow too! It's like a meeting of Weegies. Kinda.

I went to see it earlier this week, and the cinema was half full. My mates were getting about three times as many laughs as anyone in the cinema except a few guys at the front.

Silv | May 03, 02:37 CET

I saw it Friday in London, and that was a fairly empty screen, too. Shame, because it was fun. I also despair of the fact that people will go in droves to see some trash with someone well known in, or the latest in a franchise (though I do wonder what it is that makes the first in such a franchise catch on enough to become a franchise, when they also often have no big names), but miss out on something like this, which was smart, funny, well acted, and just generally well done.

Still, nice to see Nathan, and we enjoyed it. Again, maybe it will do well in the video market, after.

Kiddo | May 03, 03:13 CET

Silv: well I'm in Edinburgh, but hey no one's perfect. Speaking of which I'm also *cough*English*cough*. But if you want to make me an honorary Weegie then that's fine by me!

dzr | May 03, 04:21 CET

Sorry to hear it didn't crush at the box office, but I guess 6th is still something. I definitely agree with the frustration that pieces of poop get big attendance just because their premise is familiar or the star is well known. I guess it's always been that way, which is why things become "cult favorites" -- the masses miss the really good stuff! Well, the DVD sounds like it will *rock* anyway, so that'll be a good way to see Slither for those who missed the theatrey goodness. ;-)

billz | May 03, 09:53 CET

the publicity compares it to Shaun of the Dead, well, got to say it wasn't anywhere near that standard, IMO, but still good fun

Comparing it to ‘Shaun of the Dead’ in the marketing here was a big mistake IMHO and actually quite a turn-off. It’s like saying ‘Confetti’ is the funniest comedy since ‘Four Weddings’ when one look at the trailer will tell you quite clearly that this is a great big fat lie.

I am not being negative about Slither, just saying that obviously exaggerated and misleading marketing is a big mistake.

miranda | May 03, 13:00 CET

I saw it last night and was pretty disappointed, especially throughout the first 20-30 minutes. To be fair there were a few funny lines here and there, though that was definitely more down to the delivery than the actual writing.

Overall though, if the scene didnt involve Nathan or Gregg then it was neither funny nor scary, which isnt good for the best comedy horror since Shaun Of The Dead (Worth noting: I dont think theres actually been a comedy horror since Shaun Of The Dead).

The people I went with shared similar views, and Nathan did get the most laughs out of the (rather small) audience ("Shiiite"). Good for Nathans career? Probably. Will it appear in my DVD collection? Probably not.

Murray | May 03, 13:35 CET

Hey dzr, that's OK, i'm a Weegie living in England so we cancel each other out. Might be an idea to coordinate travel arrangements though so that the cosmic balance is maintained ;).

I'd agree that Nathan's delivery turned a lot of the lines from mediocre to good or good to great but i'll probably still get the DVD (once it's come down a bit in price) more for the commentary than the actual film since James Gunn comes across as funny in interviews and we already know Nathan's hilarious so I think it'll be highly entertaining.

Saje | May 03, 13:57 CET

Aw, go on then dzr. You can be an honorary weegie. You just have to learn to say "pure mental" appropriately.

I quite liked the film, and a couple of my guy friends really loved it. But then, they love anything with gore. I thought Nathan was brilliant but I agree that it's not nearly as good as Shaun of the Dead.

Silv | May 03, 14:28 CET

Um, guys? What's a 'weegie'?

Willowy | May 03, 17:49 CET

It's slang or a nickname for Glaswegians, that is people from Glasgow.

Paul_Rocks | May 03, 17:53 CET

Glaswegian, Willowy ;).

(though technically i'm from a little town a few miles south west of the city)

Saje | May 03, 17:53 CET

So, Saje, you're Weegie-adjacent? ;-)

billz | May 03, 23:13 CET

Heh, indeed billz. Which is pretty synonymous with being 'fray-adjacent' only not in the good 'being away from the fray' sense but more along the lines of the potentially dangerous 'being right next to the damn thing' ;).

Saje | May 04, 00:10 CET