Battleship Submerges As The Most Disappointing Movie Of The Year

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Battleship Submerges As The Most Disappointing Movie Of The Year

Date: Jun 11, 2012 | Author: Rudie Obias | Category: Sci-Fi

Move over John Carter, Battleship has surpassed you as the most disappointing movie of the year. With such high hopes in launching a new possible franchise and a new trend in adapting board games into movies, Battleship has only grossed $59.8 million in North America after four weeks in release. This figure is $7 million fewer than John Carter’s forth week box office.

The director of Battleship, Peter Berg said at the Produced By conference, an event with some of the biggest directors and producers in Hollywood coming together to address the issues of the industry…

I have a movie in theaters right now which has obviously underperformed in many ways… When [a movie] doesn’t work, it’s an … interesting opportunity to look at what went wrong and how it went wrong.

So what went wrong with Battleship? Was it the generic alien invasion premise? Was it the lousy script? Was it the lack of charisma from stars Taylor Kitsch and Brooklyn Decker? Or was it the fact that this movie was based on a child’s board game? I say all of the above. Battleship had many problems and it’s good to see general audiences respond to this film by not ultimately seeing it.

Peter Berg has his own theories. He says…

It was a movie that I tried as hard as I could to get inside of… But the concept is so big and powerful, and the money is so big and so powerful, that the movie is going to run away with itself.

Battleship is closing in on a $295 million worldwide box office, jarring proof that in this day and age that a movie can gross over $295 million and still be considered a bomb, thanks to less discerning international audiences. Honestly, John Carter is a better movie. It’s a good piece of science fiction. It’s full of imagination, energy and it has a great sense of world building. Poor Taylor Kitsch. He starred in them both.

Comments

rafael607

my friends and i enjoyed both movies immensely. they may have bombed domestically but neither disappointed us.
http://shortstormtrooper.com/ Lee

It’s really a shame that John Carter didn’t do better at the box office as the film was a fun and accessible scifi/fantasy popcorn film for the whole family. It’s such a shame that we won’t get to see a sequel unless Disney reevaluates their business model (which is understandably risk averse).

As to what went wrong with Battleship, surely the board game basis of the concept couldn’t have helped credibility??
- http://www.facebook.com/mmshelle Max Shelley
  
  oh well Disney sequels are usually a load of tripe anyways…
http://www.facebook.com/nathan.p.kennedy Nathan Paul Kennedy

Not having seen either movie (and no intention of seeing them) I can tell you why I chose not to go: John Carter’s trailer was a mess, didn’t tell me anything and certainly didn’t make me interested enough to find out more (a better title would have helped too) and Battleship? Well, really, who cares? “You sunk my battleship!” Game over.
- http://pulse.yahoo.com/_KU5NYW2GUGXLEYFIX2MZLHZN7U Captain Commander
  
  The problem was that after the monumental failure of “Mars Needs Moms”, one of those idiot marketers at Disney said “Hey…people apparently don’t like MARS!”
  They should have called it “John Carter of Mars” or “A Princess of Mars”.
  - James Campbell
    
    Yes, they should of named it The Princess of Mars since that’s the book it’s based on. Disney had already said they weren’t going to call it John Carter of Mars as he doesn’t really become “of Mars” until the end of the movie.
    - http://twitter.com/Matthew665 Matthew Murphy
      
      They should have called it John Carter and the Princess of Mars
- ceallaig
  
  Re the John Carter trailer — I agree the official one totally blew chunks. If you want to see what it SHOULD have been, google John Carter Heritage — you will find a fanmade trailer that truly shows what the film promised. Check that out, then go rent John Carter, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Diesel-ds

I swear to god the critics love demolishing good movies like battleship, (not seen JC to comment on that) I loved battleship. If anything the critics are to blame for destroying the reputation of sci-fi and yet they let visual filth like twilight be even conceived let alone applied to the silver screen. It just seems that the world is full of yes men when it comes to a well known critic. They’re the people that shape the public opinion. It should be they who listen to the public!

Plus then there’s the point that u never hear from the people that enjoyed the film. Nobody ever writes in to say how good a film was and if they do then its very rare, they just leave the cinema feeling satisfied. The only real response they see is negative… I can only say this. If u paid good money to see a film about aliens, battleships, explosions and a hell of a lot of woop ass. Then u should enjoy aliens, battleships, explosions and a hell of a lot of woop ass! Otherwise you’re retarded and u deserve your money taking off you!
jamie

i blame the critics for both battleship and john carter bombing in N.A.

first off john carter… fantastic movie!!!! the story, yes slightly different than book but still very enjoyable..i would see it again, and bought the blu ray when it was release last week..

battleship well the story was a little weak, but at the same time i think they knew this and never really took them selves to serious, i say this but i was entertain start to finish!!… i went to see battleship and that is what i got… i didn’t go into battleship and expect to see the Shakespeare.

so i highly recommend both.. but understand what you are going to see.
John carter is a sci fy adventure…great story great action…
battleship is based on board game… great action with comic relief…

i think the movie critics get off when they pan a great movie..and cause it to flop..hec even ebert like both movies..
- http://www.facebook.com/james.plank1 James Waitforit Plank
  
  Dude i totally agree. John carter rocked! and battle ship was destroyed before it aired in the US. It did great overseas! U wanna know y? They dont have the harsh critics we have in the US to down grade the video. If we all listen to everything critics said… We would only watch one movie a summer
- cage1
  
  Books are never the same as the movie. Especailly with the ones making it scared to get a R rating for it. Look at Ghost rider. They dumbed it down for a better rating. Back to books. Hunger Games movie was really different for the book. I know this because my kid is a book worm and now my brother is too and the both didn’t care for the movie but love the books. They said the kills were different and not as cruesome. Duh of course not since they would get a different rating if they did what they did in the book and would not be able to get teens into it.
Stacy

I think both Movies were great summer flicks. I have seen both in theaters twice and still love them. People just have preconceived notions and bad mouth without seeing them.
http://twitter.com/KHWADI KHWADI

I like it,it wasn’t boring at all,maybe a little bit corny,lol.
- ced
  
  i agree. i liked it
thestapler

How is it disappointing when everyone knew it would be terrible?
- marvin3O
  
  truth is, it wasn’t that terrible. I hate how many people who HAVE NOT seen the movie, claim it was terrible. I saw it and I liked it! it’s no Godfather, but it was a MILLION times better than any of the transformers movies.
  - Ryan Kittredge
    
    It had Rhianna co-staring. Nuff said
    - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=601725305 Jeff Rittenour
      
      this is an inane comment. Rihanna was good for the SMALL role she played…or as good as needed. Why even type something so stupid – were you trying to be funny?
      - GordoftheNorth
        
        Maybe he liked her in it.
  - Truth juice
    
    Truth is it WAS that terrible! I wanted a bandwidth refund
    - cage1
      
      Well I doubt that. But the worst movie for 2012 has not yet be released. It would be the fourth and final instalment of Twilight.
  - MovieFanatic
    
    I agree, i actually enjoyed it, it was exactly what i expected, a good popcorn flick!
  - jobe
    
    better than godfather by a long shot
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/David-Lawson/100002301213849 David Lawson
    
    Thats like saying I only have herpes…
  - http://www.facebook.com/Stepa1007 Stephen Taylor
    
    I also enjoyed at the movies and have seen it a dozen times on small screen since and still find it watchable. There are a number of so called blockbusters out there that I would not want to watch twice…
http://picasaweb.google.com/JTHolroyd/TileStoneWork JessSayin

John Carter rocked. I loved it!
- BlackGoo
  
  Kids liked it, but anyone hovering over 16 quite rightly found it to be as fun as Ebola.
  - halfyellowman
    
    It was an okay movie. Cool special effects, but not as amazing as avatar was because truth be told, Avatar was ground breaking in that arena. The story was okay. It’s a book my grandfather read as a child. I head heard that the movie wasn’t great so when I saw John carter I thought it was decent because I wasn’t expecting anything. I’ll tell you one thing though BY GOD THAT LEAD WOMAN HAS STRONG LEGS.
  - cage1
    
    Have you had ebola.
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=601725305 Jeff Rittenour
  
  John Carter WAS great…Loved that flic! But that’s what happens when you have Avengers and TDR…fanboys freak out and think everything else was crap. Spider-Man kicked every superhero movie this year RIGHT IN THE NUTS. Deal with it.
- http://www.facebook.com/manderscheid.aaron Aaron Manderscheid
  
  Damn straight bad promotion by the studio and changing the title from the actual book title probably cause some confusion but the movie was Great !!
Sula

The lead male didn’t have the experience or charm to carry off a lead role. His character was unattractive, unappealling, emotionally limited, childish and irresponsible: generally juvenile. So there was nothing there to really attract you to the character.
Yet he had a stunning girlfriend who just happened to lurv him. A predictable fantasy of prepubescent little boys but not grown men. Most of the characters were superficial stereotypes but then it’s an action movie. The fx were too similar to Transformer movies for my liking but still I felt they were well done.

A clever decision to use real veterans. The aliens were the best part of the movie. I found them fascinating. They were clearly intelligent, had strong bonds between them – they came back for their own, leaving no one behind. It was a pity we didn’t get to see more of their behaviour and reasoning. While it might sound like I’ve criticized the film, I did enjoy it over all. I felt it was more entertaining than most films I’ve seen this year. It left me with that feel good factor coming out of the movie, and the likes of Dark Shadows did not.
The Great and Powerful Turtle

Sorry haters but i enjoyed both of them
http://www.facebook.com/sharonolligesgillman Sharon Gillman

I haven’t seen John Carter yet but did get out to see Battleship which I found very entertaining. Even though the board game was mentioned in articles leading up to the film I wasn’t expecting a movie about a board game. What I got was a very entertaining movie.

Bottom line is I go for entertainment and not what critics believe I should go see.
http://www.facebook.com/MissMaritime Sarah Thompson

I was surprised by how good “Battleship” actually was. They utilized the game elements well without overdoing it. If it was a completely standalone concept without a game tie-in I think it would have done very well. It’s an exciting action film with lots of excellent combat scenes. Big ships with big guns is a great thing. Yes, there were some real problems (no small part of which came from Taylor’s subpar performance and lack of chemistry with his love interest), but all in all it was a really entertaining film.
- http://www.facebook.com/HandspringGuyCeri Ceri Williams
  
  I am looking forward to next year’s blockbusters: Kerplunk and Connect 4 the movie
craig

I loved both of these movies. Hoping for sequels.
http://www.facebook.com/bryant.rydberg Bryant Rydberg

First issue is the fact that Battleships have not existed in the US Navy for many years! hehe
lukke

i enjoyed the hell out of battleship and john carter
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1070000860 James Walker

Why do these critics keep ragging on John carter,it was a good movie,I loved the books but did not find the liberties they took with them overpowered all that they got right,.In my opinion these critics go into the theater and play with their navels. Rather than actually watch the movie. I suspect watching every movie that comes out might lead them to the douche side,so I never go by what reviewers say.
http://www.facebook.com/awhitesmart Andrew White

battleship will always suck no mather how it looks
BattleshipFan

I enjoyed it. Corny at times, but fun. It’s obvious, like with John Carter, that a lot of commenters never actually watched it, or they would know why it’s called Battleship.
insomniMACK

how on earth did this come as a surprise?
http://www.facebook.com/superbenlantz Benjamin Lantz

As soon as I saw a sheboon (Rhianna) firing a machine gun, I knew this battleship would be lost. When will Hollywood realize that trying to force black female leads upon us will simply make us all go watch something else?
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=22702359 Che Broadnax
  
  Um, who is “us?”
- Walter
  
  ” Forcing black female leads upon us” wow dude it sounds like you have deeper issues than disliking battleship. Need I say more? you’re statement kind of speaks for itself. One word…uh Avatar ( highest grossing film) think about that and don’t hurt yourself.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_KU5NYW2GUGXLEYFIX2MZLHZN7U Captain Commander

John Carter was disappointing….because everyone was expecting it to be a great movie. It only turned out to be a decent movie….worth a rental, but not something that anyone was in a rush to buy on Blu Ray.

Battleship….that’s not disappointing. EVERYONE knew it was going to suck!
Jade Star

Both movies are OK. Just bad timing. The Avengers and Hunger Games sank both movies. Also these studios must learn how to save money. Stupid stupid.
- http://www.facebook.com/freddie.beasley.77 Freddie Beasley
  
  I agree, guess where most of that money is going, the actors, people say CGI is where the money goes, but production companies do nothing but bid lower and lower every year for CGI, and expect more work for lower prices. But I agree most movies are bloated on money.
Jason Clark

I should be a writer. Most articles I read about movies, news, are complete BS. Jhn Carter rocked!
NZ Mike

what does ‘less discerning international audiences’ mean…? like those in the USA (who greenlit and made this crapola) are more discerning…? bizarre comment.
moviemayhem

It’s Funny that the actor Taylor Kitsch has been involved in 2 of the biggest bombs of not just this year but the decade. What does Disney see in him???
rickysgreyes

It was ok, not great but fast paced enough. Same with John Carter.
http://www.facebook.com/james.plank1 James Waitforit Plank

This is so off beat! IT was good for what it was and it was better than i had anticipated it to be. And John carter rocked. Read the book and ull understand it Prometheus is the most disappointing movie so far this summer. I expected it to be mind blowing. The only thing good about it was it had good graphics!
Me

Haven’t seen Battleship, it is hard to conclude, but I difficult it could be worse than John Carter
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000096018904 Richard Sensale

I liked it just for the effects alone. And John Carter was a really good movie…
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000091341576 David Allen

come on. for a movie based on a dumb kids game it was pretty good, really did not expect it be be much in the first place so it was a surprise to enjoy it.
http://www.facebook.com/vincent.milkie Vincent Milkie

i enjoyed battleship was nothing wrong with it
MyHaney

Battleship was awesome. The aliens were a little lame, but the movie was good. It was about kicking some aliens butts and how good the navy can do it. Even the old guys kicked ass. The battleship grid part of the movie was great. I saw it twice actually. Walked out of the Snow White and Huntsman and saw it a second time. The battleship fight was even better the second time. Now time to go get a burrito….
Username159

The web comic Full Frontal Nerdity said it best.
http://ffn.malletspace.net/?p=1073
Calinutz

Interesting how a movie done perfectly , with an original subject and strong visual effects can get so many bad reviews. I hardly think it was a failure either of them. Especially John Carter, which I consider was a masterpiece of science fiction with an awesome story, and great acting. A collectable movie. I also hope there will be at least one John Carter sequel.
As for Battleship, the idea was awesome, the realization of the movie was exquisite, Transformers SFX are and will remain awesome, and the fact that the name of the movie is similar with the board game , and 5 minutes in the movie, the battle is carried using the board game methods… does not mean it was a bad movie. It is far from that.
I would love to see a sequel to this one as well, with some more story for the aliens, maybe something in the lines of Space Battleship Yamato.
So stop hating for just the love of hating.
BlackGoo

Who is this Taylor Kitsch douchebag? And why have we not beat him like a pinyada in public yet? These are the real burning issues.
Jonathon Besanko

I honestly don’t see how Battleship was any worse than the Transformers films. I enjoyed Battleship and considering the extremely limited source material it had to work with, I think they actually did a damn fine job of adapting it into a feature film. It actually managed to effectively and subtly blend in elements of the board game without feeling forced either. Hats off to the creators of the film in my opinion.
:)

Battleship was an abomination and John Carter was awesome. ‘Nuff said.
Francis

Battleship didn’t do well at the box office because the movie sucked.
- HATCHET II
  
  BATTLESHIP IS A GOOD MOVIE DUH
- cage1
  
  I wouldn’t say it sucked. The problem is too many people slam the movie like the critics do and people don’t go see it. People like different movies then others do. I know some that say Transformers sucked. Sorry one that did but I loved it. People told me Twilight was fantastic. Fantastic shit maybe. They movies suck. Lost slammed the Green Lantern and love it. The way I look at it don’t listen to the haters and critics out there and go see it for yourself because some will and will not like it.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_MTEO7RKG3IO7LOJZ3GJJ5NSOOI john s

lol at these so called big hollywood producers. Maybe if they were taken out of the picture and we had more emerging “non hollywood types” we’d get better quality movies. I mean seriously a movie based on the game battleship? Who’s nut brain idea is that? They are so clueless. The movie concept was being laughed at months before it even hit the theaters.
Chance

WRONG good movie
want to see it again
Kelly

Some of the greatest movies were box office bombs. Taylor & Burton’s Cleopatra was one of the biggest bombs ever!
xenophobe

Did you actually watch both movies before writing this review? There was a lot wrong with Battleship, but overall it was actually quite entertaining… John Carter was just horrible and could have been directed by George Lucas because it employed so many things that have failed for him. It was a lot like Star Wars on Mars, over hyped and overproduced. If you liked the 3 newest Star Wars movies, you’ll probably still hate John Carter. If you liked Independence Day, you’d probably like Battleship. And it’s funny seeing Avengers get so high ratings, that admittedly it mostly deserves, except all the Michael Bay-type actiivity in Avengers is overlooked… Hilarious.
http://www.facebook.com/rocksors Matthew Rocksors

It was on par with Starship Troopers. Overacted cinema with a plot that seemed to write itself in the sense that planes fall out fo the sky whent they don’t have a pilot…. In other words it was awesome. It’s popularity will go up over the next few years once the initial backlash dies down and peoples pop-culture inner-hipster kicks in.
Wolf321

The film did well in the rest of the world grossing over 209 million dollars outside the US market and it was released weeks before its US release date, meaning it did not have to go up against the Avengers.
guernsey man

i thought both films were good fun….end of.
i go to watch films for fun. if i want to learn anything i watch the history channel.
AC Jok

Battleshit…
audrey

the worst movie so far of 2012 is PROMETHEUS. That movie sucked toilet water.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003691960353 Chris Farley

John Carter has one of the best endings ever in Film…think Ghost or even Gone with the Wind. It was massively undersold by Disney for a new franchise for people that had not read the Edgar Rice Burroughs Barsoom books. It is a lesson in what not to do in movie marketing. Join the fight for a sequel on Facebook. .
http://www.facebook.com/alexis.stjohn.5 Alexis St John

I love that one of the excuses was there was too much money and too big a concept. “But the concept is so big and power, and the money is so big and so powerful, that the movie is going to run away with itself.” Funny how none of the Nolan Batman films, each increasing in budget, seemed to “run away” with themselves. Or the newest Marvel film, “The Avengers”. I even think the “Transformers” films deserved the success they got.

I think it they were also betting on Taylor Kitsch’s John Carter being more of a success. I also think they were planning on people being attracted to Rihanna playing a part as well. However, with Taylor’s voice taking on comical Christian Bale-Batman-esque tones and his eyebrows doing the acting for him along with Rihanna’s canned “acting”, things did not go according to plan.

And here’s my piece on John Carter: I saw it. I have even read the Edgar Burroughs book they adapted. I didn’t enjoy the book, nor did I enjoy the movie.

Giant Freakin Robot