No, I haven’t seen the movie. But that’s more because I’m not much of a moviegoer. Others have seen it:
Let’s look at the numbers first. According to BoxOfficeMojo.com, Atlas Shrugged: Part 1, which was filmed with a meager $5 million budget, brought in $683,000 on Friday, the film’s opening night. It placed 13th overall in total box office receipts for the day. Not too shabby.
There is another interesting metric that BoxOfficeMojo.com provides. It breaks down a film’s estimated gross on a per theater basis. This is a fair thing to do considering Atlas Shrugged was only shown in 300 theaters and, say, Rio, the number one grossing film for the day, was shown in 3,826.
Atlas Shrugged’s per theater gross was $2,277, ranking third for the day. Rio’s per theater gross, on the other hand, was $2,666. One has to wonder, then, if Atlas Shrugged’s opening day would have grossed more if it would have received a wider release. After all, it’s per theater take was very near the number one grossing film for the day.
The critics have generally panned the movie, but the RottenTomatoes.com users have given it a 3.8 out of 5, which is quite positive.
It is not because you are not much of a movie goer, but because it is not playing in Canada at all, according to Google searches. My inquiry to Cineplex(Canada) received the following response:
Thank you for contacting Cineplex Entertainment. Unfortunately, the film Atlas Shrugged Part 1, will not be available in any Cineplex theatre location.
Comment by Da Wife — April 18, 2011 @ 12:16
Ah, yes, I suppose that would also be a good reason . . .
Comment by Nicholas — April 18, 2011 @ 15:06