You are actually arguing that the likes of Transformers could have made significantly more than a billion if the reviews were great?
Considering i know a good amount of people who straight up tell me they only hear bad things about the movies and that's why they wouldn't pay for it, yeah, i do. I do think with good critical reception this movie would have made more money.
Its a wonder Pixar's movies don't make 2 billion a go if all you need is something cool, colorful, and easy for the younger audience to accept.
Your argument is completely unsubstantiated.
Transformers appeals to a much wider group of people than animated movies. You have people who watch it just because they had the toys and watched the series growing up. You have people who watch it just because they love cars. You have people who watch it just because they love Megan Fox's ass. It's on a different level of popularity.
Go on Google Trends. In 2004, even before the first movie, Transformers were more popular than the great Toy Story. It's really not difficult to understand why Transformers can make the money they make without being good.
Plus, they are so mindless, heartless and action packed, that they will always find its specific audience. Which is large. People who just wanna watch good action.
How much of an impact could it have had if it doesn't stop even lesser quality movies raking in the billions, and they have competition in the theaters at the time, too.
You can't seem to understand that when really bad movies can make a billion, or close to it, with a critical hammering under their belt, the argument that they could do better if the reviews were better looks ridiculous. Especially when plenty of critically acclaimed anticipated movies don't get close to that.
Movies that deal with extremely popular characters and are very well marketed will easily draw a lot of people to the theater. There's enough people who wanna watch a Batman/Superman movie just because it's a Batman/Superman movie, regardless of the reviews. But the reality is that those aren't the only people who go to the movies. Some people might be curious about it but not to the point where they will still see it if all they hear is bad things.
If you're willing to accept the influence of WOM, you should accept the influence of media. Opinions are opinions. And like i said, the influence of media on people's decisions is well documentated. You can search it for yourself. It seems naive to try to deny it.
I can't really answer you "how much of an impact", because that's something neither of us know. But as long as people give a crap about opinions, there will always be some of them who will act according to it. There will always be people who will hear what a friend says. There will always be people who will hear what the media says. It's the way the world works.
I understood what you were saying the first time, and the contradiction is still there. If you're interested in reading these reviews they you clearly care about what the critics are saying, otherwise why would you waste your time reading something you say is rarely ever unbiased or well written. Unless you're a glutton for punishment and enjoy wasting your time reading stuff you know you won't like.
I explained you what i meant by "i don't care". You're still ignoring it, just because you feel like it. If i didn't express myself well enough, than i apoligize. But since the last two posts i feel i did it, so i don't understand why you're still so hung up on your personal interpretation of what i said.
Maybe you should learn things aren't black or white. I like to stay informed and i enjoy the movie world, so i would read a couple of reviews from time to time just so i can at least talk about what i actually know. Doesn't mean i will follow their recommendations.
t:
