From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Anson-Wood, a chosen one born to break historical records.

Who could have imagined that "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" would break records again and again, especially in the commercial box office market, leaving everyone in disbelief.

In this wave of momentum, there's no reason not to continue striking while the iron is hot.

However, Focus Features said "No"—

They weren't refusing to continue reaping box office success, but rather refusing to be blinded by the overwhelming hype.

Currently, all the media are stirring things up, all industry insiders are fueling the fire, and voices from all sides seem to be saying that "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" might be the next "When Harry Met Sally," or even the next "Forrest Gump," with expectations completely exceeding limits.

But, is that really the case?

Indeed, the opening week performance of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" was simply unbelievable, overturning all Hollywood's imaginations in an incredible manner; however, precisely because of this, it's even more important to remain clear-headed and calm.

Now, the various voices of hype have completely changed the market's expectations for "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." Audiences are expecting a "Ghost" or a "Sleepless in Seattle," but what they see in the cinema is "Amélie" or "Before Sunrise"—

Don't get me wrong, "Amélie" and "Before Sunrise" are both excellent works, and have become classics praised by veteran movie fans; the point here is that the mismatch of expectations can bring huge psychological disappointment and completely change the audience's perception of the work.

Moreover, the box office performance of "Amélie" and "Before Sunrise" was generally average. The promotion and dissemination of the films relied on DVD rentals and sales, and only a small group of people truly liked them.

Currently, various voices are convincing people that "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" is "Ghost," but this still cannot change the fact that it is actually "Amélie"—

Focus Features needs to remain calm.

This is not easy.

In fact, Focus Features was also tempted. In the overwhelming tide of rave reviews, from the test screenings to the media reviews to the weekend box office, everything proved that "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" had unlimited potential. They should have opened the floodgates and promoted it with all their might, creating a box office myth.

However, at the critical moment, Focus Features still clung to its remaining rationality.

In North American film history, there are countless works that received rave reviews during limited release, repeatedly achieved excellent results, and even broke records, only to be ruined by erroneous wide release plans.

The most classic example is "Edward Scissorhands."

In 1990, "Edward Scissorhands," directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder, set a new record for single-screen box office revenue with $79,800 in two theaters during its limited release, and the media reviews broke through 75 points in one fell swoop, with rave reviews.

The media was in a frenzy, not only praising the film for its unlimited potential and possibilities, but also believing that it could win a place in the awards season.

20th Century Fox, which originally had no hope for the film, was overjoyed and beside itself. Amidst the wave of praise, it decided to strike while the iron was hot—

In the second week of release, it directly entered more than 1,000 theaters for wide release.

In 1990, films released in 2,000 theaters were ultimately in the minority, with 1,000 being the mainstream. "Edward Scissorhands" can be said to have entered the mainstream view in one fell swoop.

However, the film hit a wall. The gothic-style story of a strange love affair failed to win widespread resonance from the audience, and criticism and complaints poured in.

Although the film eventually evolved into a classic after a period of time, at the time, such a shocking work stood at the center of controversy.

The box office dwindled, completely failing to unleash the corresponding power.

In the end, the North American box office was only $56 million. In a situation where top box office hits generally grossed $100 million at the time, the performance was still decent, and Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder also became popular idols.

However, the film ultimately failed to make a splash during the awards season; 20th Century Fox invested $25 million to produce this work, and ultimately failed to make money, even losing some—

Of course, later, relying on videotape and DVD rentals, 20th Century Fox still made a killing.

But at the time, the wrong wide release strategy still caused 20th Century Fox to suffer a heavy setback.

With a little carelessness, "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" could become the second "Edward Scissorhands," praised but not popular, burying its bright prospects.

Amidst the bustling frenzy, Focus Features barely reined in the horse with its remaining rationality, and did not choose a one-step wide release strategy, but they still slightly adjusted it based on the original wide release strategy.

"Too cautious, they're probably going to miss the opportunity."

"Wait, could it be that Universal Pictures has stifled Focus Features' rhythm?"

The noisy complaints and speculations were flying everywhere, and you could clearly feel the turbulence and clamor of the situation, but what real intentions and thoughts were hidden behind this, it was impossible to know, the whole world was in chaos.

Noisy and incessant.

However, Focus Features still stood firm and quietly stabilized the situation.

Facts have proved that Focus Features was wise—

On the surface, the reputation and box office of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" seemed unstoppable; but everything was just an illusion. The audience was mainly concentrated in big cities, and the central regions and those small cities had no interest in art films that only veteran movie fans would like.

No matter how outstanding the reputation, it's useless if they don't care.

Moreover, the media was celebrating there with great fanfare, but the opening weekend box office of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" was only just over $20 million.

That's it?

Isn't an opening box office of just $20 million a normal thing in the spring season? The media was chirping there, saying that they finally saw the dawn in this year's spring season, but the box office numbers were not significantly different from previous years.

Sure enough, the media knows how to talk nonsense!

Heh heh.

Therefore, Focus Features still focused its wide release efforts on the big cities on the two coastlines, and sporadically increased the number of theaters showing the film in the big cities of the central region, steadfastly locking in on its target audience. This strategy quickly yielded rich returns.

In the fourth week of March 2004, "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" continued its hot streak, continuing its journey of creating history with an astonishing single-screen box office performance of $34,000, writing a new record for single-screen box office revenue for a wide release for the second consecutive week, and ultimately grossing $23 million.

Boom! Boom boom boom!

The entire Hollywood was collectively stunned, thrown into shock as if suffering a heart attack.