People have been asking me all week about the Sony hacking scandal because I own movie theatres. I agree with those that say that we should not have backed down because of an unspecified threat. This is a dangerous precedent. Lets be clear. The Interview is not a serious movie. I have not seen it, but I assume its a Seth Rogen/James Franco stoner comedy. Not important social criticism (still funny). But we have seen American film serve as important social criticism. When Charlie Chaplin made The Great Dictator in 1940, it sent a powerful message about the rise of Adolph Hitler and the dangers of his tyrannical anti-semitism. This was *before* the US entered World War II. (Check out this brilliant scene from the film.) Kim Jong Un is a brutal dictator. North Korea launched a cyber attack, and he was able to prevent the release of a film that mocks him. Imagine if Hitler had the same capability. Everyone wants to blame Sony for pulling the release of the film. Although they were the ones who have suffered the embarrassing, destructive cyber-attack, they are not really the ones who backed down. Three companies have found a way to monopolize the exhibition business - Cinemark, Regal & AMC. They control 50% of all movie screens in the United States. It seemed as though Sony was proceeding with the release until those 3 companies announced that they were refusing to show The Interview. Cinemark, Regal & AMC possess circuit power. They have the *real* power in the film business. If they choose to not play a movie, it will not be released. In 2011, Universal attempted to release the Eddie Murphy movie Tower Heist to 500,000 homes in 2 markets at a premium price of $59.99 as a VOD experiment. How many people would seriously buy that movie for $59.99? But, Cinemark, Regal & AMC announced that if Universal proceeded, they would boycott the film. No movie can survive without 50% of all American movie screens. And so the real cowards here are the 3 companies that form this exhibition monopoly. They backed down. Many, or even most, independent theaters and smaller chains would have played The Interview. I told Sony that I would happily play it at my theatres. Independent theaters are the lifeblood of the movie industry. We are a scrappy bunch. And, it would take more than some faraway despot and some vague unspecified threat to convince us to back down.
Posted on: Sun, 21 Dec 2014 20:54:14 +0000
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