I have received so many letters this weekend thanking me for convincing folks to go see this movie, not from Warner Brothers, not from the animators, but from parents, film fans and regular folks that were not going to go see this movie cause they thought it looked bad. This film has been a secret. Well, if you saw the film and loved it as I do. Call in to your local morning Talk Radio. Talk about it at the water cooler. Send emails to siblings, relatives, friends and strangers telling them how you feel because... As of right now THE IRON GIANT is dying at the box office. There's plenty of reasons why. The vocal talent hasn't been making the talk show circuit. Hell, Harry Connick Jr, who was on CONAN O'BRIEN the other night, didn't so much as mention the film on air. Below is an artist that worked on THE IRON GIANT. He/she is tired, frustrated and heart-broken. Warner Brothers offered up the hype surrounding WILD WILD WEST and DEEP BLUE SEA... but only a casual mention about the best film of the summer.
I'm told that at the Mann's Chinese, that the evening late show for IRON GIANT was canceled to place in EYES WIDE SHUT. I don't know if this policy is being echoed around the country, but if so... It's a travesty. Critics are loving the film, but more important People are loving it. If you loved it.... tell everyone, take them to see it. Perhaps this can be a real honest to goodness sleeper that awakens over the coming weeks despite Warner's attempts to bury the film. And if you want to see why I've been ragging on them for months, read The Artist below. He/She details the problem pretty darn accurately!
Those folks at WB marketing need to be SHOT!!! I saw the box office results for Friday and I just sat down on my crickety-ol’ computer swivel chair and cried a while. My head was down, my spirit low, and my enthusiasm for this film is deteriorating fast.
I just can’t believe those b*stards at WB marketing! What are they doing to this gem of a film?!
What sucks is that the Iron Giant crew worked long-ass hours the entire year, they put in tons of extra time and energy, a lot of it FOR FREE, and made this film with A THIRD of the budget, HALF the STAFF, and in HALF the time it took the other studios---and STILL made a damn good film! In fact, most of us were falling apart by the end, both mentally and physically, all for “The Iron Giant” and our belief in Brad’s genius---and THIS is how we’re appreciated?!
First, by not letting the director cut his own trailer. The DIRECTOR, people, come on! The guy’s trusted to make an entire movie, but he’s not capable of cutting a measly trailer?! I mean, who better than Brad to make a trailer, right?! And he had such a great trailer all ready to go, too!
Second, WB continues to show its gratitude with poor promotion on TV, and NO voice actors or Iron Giant crew members on the talk show circuit. NO magazine ads, especially the ones that had their “Summer Release” issues---some of them even OWNED BY WARNERS! How bad is THAT?! I know, ‘cause I looked!
And speaking of bad, what about those trailers they opted for? They’re badly cut and give away “key points” of the film---something you would NEVER see in live-action, yet they think it’s okay with The Iron Giant. They also target a purely kiddie audience, with few to no trailer air times within an “adult time slot.” And what about that totally off-the-wall idea for music selection, like The Scorpions’ “Rock You Like a Hurricane” echoing in the background of the trailer?! I mean, come on, “Rock You Like a Hurricane?!” What the F*ck?! What the hell are the marketing “geniuses” on?! Who thought of this sh*t? And how can we get a hold of them to find out what particular hallucigen they’re on and to “slap them around” a bit?
And then, wait! There’s more! They wait till a WEEK before The Iron Giant debuts in theaters to make “The Making Of The Iron Giant?!” ONE WEEK, folks! They put that entire thing together in a couple of days, perhaps even a few HOURS, and then they air it expecting it to be any good? And if you missed it, GOOD. ‘Cause I’m sure the TWO people that actually saw it would agree it was a “Giant” pile of crap! No justice, man, no respect for the efforts of the crew, and as far as I’m concerned, they could all die choking on their own vomit! Waiting till the last minute to do anything just goes to show what little to NO faith those bastards had on us artists and filmmakers!
And then, to top it off, this weekend they stick Iron Giant in fewer theaters around the country than Wild Wild West and [GULP!] Deep Blue Sea?! I saw BOTH of those films and both were pieces of crap---and they’re still ignoring Iron Giant to promote THOSE films?
What’s sad is that they STILL don’t realize what they have at their fingertips: the potential mega-hit at their disposal and the ONE film that’s likely to be their BEST film this year! This is the ONE film that deserves to make a ton of money, over “Tarzan” and “Prince of Egypt,” and most of the other recent animated (or live-action) films. It was made with a handful of talented people, lots of hard work and dedication, and most importantly, tons of heart! And what’s more, it’s a great film, too, and for Iron Giant to be f*cked up like this is just killing me. They have a winner in their hands, a gem that’s been made almost by accident on the part of the studio, and to see the effort of the crew “go to waste” is just a SIN.
I’ll tell you, though. I think the ONLY thing going for this film is the film itself. And as long as the word of mouth continues to be good, I think the next few week’s box office tickets will show in increasing numbers. Furthermore, I think it’ll start off slow and perhaps soon, with no help by WB and the marketing department, The Iron Giant might just stomp the competition.
But, one thing’s for sure: we cannot count on those marketing people to do sh*t for Iron Giant. And remember, regardless if the box office earnings, it’s STILL a classic with most of us that have seen it...
Pissed Off and Ready to Pull the Trigger,
An Artist
