Pushing Tin

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So far, audiences seem to be leaving that new sensitivity at the door of their local cineplex. Though studios rushed to trim scenes and reschedule films that might remind audiences of the Sept. 11 attacks, ticketbuyers haven't shied away from violent or sensitive themes. ''We've been a bit surprised at how well tougher movies have done,'' Higgins admits. ''Just look at the two biggest films of the fall,'' adds ReelSource box office analyst Adam Farasati. ''One's about corrupt cops [''Training Day'']; the other's about a kidnapping [''Don't Say A Word'']. This has been a bigger deal to the press and the studios than it's been to the average ticketbuyer.''

The ultimate test of whether or not audiences have completely recovered from Sept. 11 will come this spring. In addition to ''A View from the Top,'' other movies will hit theaters after being bumped from the fall schedule because of their subject matter. Arnold Schwarzenegger's ''Collateral Damage,'' about a man hunting for the terrorists who killed his family, and Tim Allen's ''Big Trouble,'' a comedy with an airplane bomb subplot, seem like tough sells.

But their success, according to ReelSource's Farasati, will depend on overall quality, not on the sensitivity of the subject matter. ''Even if they don't perform well, to blame it on the attacks is just an excuse,'' he says. ''These days, if my shoelaces become untied, a studio executive would try to blame it on anthrax.''

Originally posted Nov 19, 2001

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