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We're not sure what would be better for us to open at our single screen. We seem to do really well with the kids movies, especially Pixar movies. But for some reason, I'm not getting a very good vibe on Ratatoullie. Maybe it's because it's hard to pronounce. Also considering how Spiderman 3 was a bit of a disappointment for us, not sure if we want to miss out on an animated movie for another action super hero type of movie. Between the two, what do you think will perform the best at the box office?

Ratatoullie looks great...........

Ratatouille is what we choose to go with. Got lots of great feedback from the Shrek crowds for it.

going to the Ratatouille screening Wednesday. I'll report here what its' like.

Pixar's track record is excellent.

Disney has educated the public on how to pronounce the title.

Brad Bird was fabulous with the Incredibles and Iron Giant.

Transformers will do well but not as good as Ratatouille.

Plus you said you do better with animated/kid movies than the pg-13 action stuff.

Ratatouille it would be if I was in your shoes.

Ratatouille

My guy at Paramount says Transformer will be the killer hit of the summer. I'm not sure it will be "the" killer hit. We have to wait until the dust clears. But I do believe Transformer will be a surprise hit, though it will not be a "surprise" by the day it opens. It will be PG last I heard. Ratty will be a pure kid play. Trans appeals wider. How many weeks will you be holding Ratty clean?

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Michael Hurley
Impresario

Transformers is about 20 years too late.

And looks like an Independence Day retread.

I think this one will be a dissappointment.

Personally, I do not think either movie would be a bad choice. Ratatouille will gear more toward families, and Transformers will gear more toward action and special effects moviegoers. Both will be smash hits and sell lots of popcorn. Ratatouille will sell more in the afternoon shows, while Transformers will do better after 6 PM, especially in the second week. Transformers has the potential to be this summer's ID4. Either picture will make your customers (and your bottom line) very happy.

Rick

I completely agree with Transit- either will be a safe bet. You can never go wrong with a Pixar flick, but after seeing 10 minutes of Transformers at ShoWest, I literally lost my breath it was so amazing, and it has a good story line. There is a huge Transformers fan base that has made a comeback in the past two years and the same fans are into Bionicles, which is the #1 lego franchise. That's a tough choice, but I would put my money on Transformers if I had to, especially if it gets a PG rating.

Anybody being allowed by BV to only play Ratatouille for 12 days in order to bring in Harry Potter?

What if Transformers comes in at a PG-13 rating? Violence is usually the first thing to put a movie above a PG rating. Do not recall any sex, or bad language in Spider-Man(s) or the Pirates movies but those were still PG-13. Plus most parents find pg-13 acceptable for most of their kids.

For us the PG-13 movies die much faster than the G/PG movies do.

I just saw a screening of Ratatouille today and while it is a fine film, I did not find it nearly as funny as Cars or the Incredibles. I think grown-ups, actually, will find it amusing, but the kids might get bored with it. The animation was flawless and it had a nice message.

All of this is telling me not to open it, but to get it after the break. I have two real options now, as I see it. Open "Evan Almighty" on the 22nd and then play either F4 or Nancy Drew into HP5. Or, play Surf's up on the 22nd followed by F4 and then Ratatouille into HP5.

This is nerve-racking, but fun!

Leeler,

What did your kids think? What ages are they?

sorry for the confusion rufusjack. We don't have kids. I was just saying what I thought the kids that come to my theater wold like, and I think they'd get bored with Ratatouille. The grown-ups or the kids at heart will like it.

Nikki Finke, at deadlinehollywooddaily.com, says her box office guru trackers tell her that:

Fox's Rise Of The Silver Surfer, and Universal's Evan Almighty, "look good"

Disney/Pixar's Ratatouille "strong"

Fox's Live Free Or Die Hard "not super but good"

And DreamWorks/Paramount's Tranformers came on and "that looks huge"