How the Greatest Sci-Fi Horror Movie of the 90s Was Ruined by James Cameron and Titanic
By Drew Dietsch | Published
Before blockbusters were allowed to become superhero movies or treasured sequels, the '90s offered a plethora of big-budget genre originals for audiences willing to take a risk. I'd give anything to go back a decade when movies like Trembling, The pythonagain The Deep Blue Sea they were given a big budget and a chance to shine at the box office.
Another such film that did not work well at that time Event Horizon (1997). Directed by a guy who does good Mortal Kombat movie (fight me, i know death), Event Horizon tells the story of an experimental spacecraft that mysteriously blacks out on its maiden voyage and the crew sent to find out what happened.
The scientist behind the spacecraft's new test engine, Dr. Weir (Sam Neill), hides from the team's captain, Miller (Laurence Fishburne), and his crew. Once they get to the ship and find out everything that has happened, all hell breaks loose, literally.
Event Horizon Bombs at the Box Office, But why?
Enough ghost story (that's even better than Ghost Ship), Event Horizon decided it wanted to up the ante by being one of the scariest sci-fi films seen in a long time. That's when things started to get shaky.
With a reported budget of $60 million (that's about $120 million today), Event Horizon it's an expensive product with tons of detailed sets and effects. You need time to soak it all in. Wouldn't you know it, Paramount, which greenlit such a huge financial undertaking, ended up speeding up the shooting and editing of the movie.
The Event Horizon Failure Is James Cameron And The Titanic Mistake
Why was it rushed? He blamed James Cameron and his big boat movie for not making the planned release, forcing it Event Horizon squeezing more of what it wanted to do in less time. Allegedly, this led to the film being heavily edited from director Paul WS Anderson's original vision. Rushed production doesn't always lead to a failed final movie, but it certainly doesn't help matters and it didn't help here.
It probably didn't help either Event Horizon that it lacked the star power to sell itself to as large an audience as possible. Even just four years removed Jurassic Parkhe was not an actor for the audience to follow in dangerous movies. And Laurence Fishburne, although he was established and respected at that time in his career, was not yet well known and loved for his gratitude. The Matrix. Cowboy Curtis wasn't selling tickets, sorry. While some of the actors are solid and interesting actors, none of them would make people want to go see a movie where this happens:
That is probably the main reason why Event Horizon failed in the box. While sickos like me will stay low Hellraiser in space, Event Horizon's The main concept is a hard sell to the average moviegoer. See, the Event Horizon is a ship that can warp space to travel incredible distances in an instant. The problem is that this requires opening a portal to the Hell dimension (oops!), and eventually, everyone ends up being attacked or possessed by an unknown evil force.
Controversies and Critics Were Stacked Against the Success of a Sci-Fi Horror Film
There's plenty of haunted house horror fun to be mined in that setting, too Event Horizon it controls the official ghost times and all the extreme effects. But the audience is rarely raised for this kind of genre combination. They were too busy that weekend in 1997 to see Policeman Land which, of course, I don't blame them. Policeman Land rules.
However, Event Horizon is it a real sci-fi horror with a less than superstar cast that was trying to do something a bit out there after being stymied by the studio? The odds were stacked against it, too Event Horizon he climbed into the box office, is opened at No. 4 just before the third week showing of the Spawn. SPAWN.
Maybe the '90s weren't as good as I remembered. Event Horizon it tanked in theaters and was pulled after making $26 million domestically, less than half of its reported budget. Wow. As far as bean counters go, this was a failure.
What about the audience that came? What were they thinking? They were not kind to them Event Horizon at all. CinemaScore is a polling company that asks opening night paying audiences to give a movie they just saw a letter grade (because I think movies are like math homework), and the average grade the respondents gave was a D+, which is pretty bad. to them. Just to provide a comparison, CinemaScore for Spawn it was a C+!
Prominent film critics did not help the reputation of the movie. Roger Ebert offered Event Horizon only two out of four stars, noting that it takes inspiration from Stanislaw Lem's iconic sci-fi novel Solarisand it doesn't do much for a horror film that fits the concept. That may be a fair criticism, Roger, but that two-star rating really hurt the perceived value of the movie among a certain number of educated movie fans. At the time, he gave Spawn three and a half stars. For four!
Event Horizon Finally Found An Audience
Thankfully, the story of Event Horizon he didn't stop there. The film did surprisingly well on home video, and Paramount even tried to get Anderson to return the footage that had been distributed due to the rush of the production. Sadly, those elements were either destroyed or never found. This version of the legends of Event Horizon which unfortunately we won't see help us get fans more interested and supportive of the movie.
Today, Event Horizon received more love than its theatrical debut. There is a Collector's Edition Blu-ray uploaded, a high definition 4K release, you can find many videos online where fans dig deeper into the movie and its production, and Christopher Nolan may be a fan as the memorable scene of the “wormhole show” by Sam Neill gets a little nod from Nolan A star.
From this recording, i Event Horizon The television show is still being developed to give the story more space to explore its twisted ideas. Obviously, the film carved a corner that sci-fi horror fans still want to visit.
Suffice it to say, Event Horizon it was a failure that proves that the box office isn't what makes or breaks a film's legacy. Although it took time, Event Horizon it emerged from the chaos of its theatrical run and became a cult favorite that young fans still enjoy today. Important movies and stories will find their way to the audience they want.
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