Let’s start by discussing the film ‘Tomorrowland‘ itself, which is full of the spectacle and wonder promised in the trailer, as well as the vision of a bright and hopeful future that is all too often lacking in films depicting the future nowadays. It has its merits, including great casting, the best of which is Raffey Cassidy as Athena, as well as some truly fun and memorable action sequences. The problem with the film, if anything, is that it feels a bit too bogged down by its big ideas, and personally, I felt after all the build up, we never truly got explore the titular city of Tomorrowland, and we got even fewer examples of what truly made it special.
Despite that, I think the film is getting a bad rep, which is sad as it is refreshing to see an original IP hit theaters during the blockbuster season, which is a big reason why I went to see it in the first place. And now rumors are spreading that the film was a flop, the worst since Disney released ‘The Lone Ranger’ back in 2013, which itself was compared to Disney’s flop of the previous year, ‘John Carter.’ True, there’s a chance that these films, because they were not sequels or IP’s with a huge fanbase, might have had more studio notes than others, which might have hurt them creatively, but we should be thankful that there are still filmmakers and studios out there willing to take a chance on new stories and try to put something out there that has not been done before. The execution might be flawed, but I am grateful as an audience member for the risk-taking by both the company, and director Brad Bird.
So at the end of the day, they say ‘Tomorrowland’ will end up losing Disney around $120-$140 million, a definite blow, but for a studio that will also release Pixar’s ‘Inside Out,’ Marvel’s ‘Ant-Man,’ and Lucasfilm’s ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens‘ this year (not to mention to the $1.3 billion ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron‘ has already raked in for the Mouse), Disney does not seem that concerned with taking a hit on ‘Tomorrowland.’ I pray Disney and other studios will continue to give chances to guys like Bird and let them continue to test new ideas and franchises, because the alternative, endless sequels and reboots, is more depressing than any future depicted in Hollywood today.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
