r/boxoffice • u/SanderSo47 A24 • Sep 11 '22
Original Analysis CinemaScore Analysis – 1989 Edition
Link to the other editions:
1980s: 1982 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989
1990s: 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999
2000s: 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009
2010s: 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019
2020s: 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023
In this post, I kept track of every 1989 movie's CinemaScore (at least, the ones that got it). I plan to post for each subsequent year until 2022, all posted during the weekends. My intention is to see the evolution of each year and how the grades can either help or damage a movie's legs.
I plan to delve into each year and each movie that got a grade. While CinemaScore was founded in 1979, we didn't get a grade until 1982 and we didn't get full information until 1986.
Before starting, some notes:
This list is based on multipliers/legs. In this case, domestic total/domestic opening weekend = multiplier/legs.
The opening weekend is based on its first wide release (600+ theaters).
If a movie never makes it past 600 theaters, then its biggest weekend number will be used.
The figures are all taken from The Numbers and Box Office Mojo.
Despite that, there's some missing data on the number of weeks a movie spent in theaters. Some movies here stopped reporting weekend totals after just 2 weeks or even just one. Thankfully, their domestic totals are still intact so we still have their final domestic number. Just note that the amount of weeks do not fully represent the movie's run.
In 1989, 94 movies received CinemaScores (1988 had 102). How did it go?
A+
6 movies (6.38%) managed to get the rare A+. Generally, this indicates exceptional word of mouth and guarantees a long and healthy run. Of course, the bigger a movie opens, the weaker legs will turn out to be. These movies averaged a 12.33x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had one movie with a 11.49x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Driving Miss Daisy | Dec/15 | Warner Bros. | $5,705,721 | $106,593,296 | $7.5M | 27 | 18.68x |
| 2 | A Dry White Season | Sep/22 | MGM | $202,507 | $3,766,879 | $9M | 14 | 18.60x |
| 3 | Dead Poets Society | Jun/2 | Disney | $7,540,464 | $95,860,116 | $16.4M | 30 | 12.71x |
| 4 | When Harry Met Sally... | Jul/14 | Columbia | $8,846,522 | $92,823,546 | $16M | 26 | 10.49x |
| 5 | Lethal Weapon 2 | Jul/7 | Warner Bros. | $20,388,800 | $147,253,986 | $30M | 13 | 7.22x |
| 6 | Lean on Me | Mar/3 | Warner Bros. | $5,032,605 | $31,906,454 | $10M | 7 | 6.33x |
A
11 movies (11.70%) managed to get the grade. A step down from the rare A+, but it still indicates strong word of mouth. These movies averaged a 8.15x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 13 movies with a 10.37x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Field of Dreams | Apr/21 | Universal | $5,424,810 | $64,431,625 | $15M | 20 | 11.87x |
| 2 | Steel Magnolias | Nov/15 | TriStar Pictures | $7,053,867 | $83,759,091 | $15M | 19 | 11.87x |
| 3 | Look Who's Talking | Oct/13 | TriStar Pictures | $12,107,784 | $140,088,813 | $7.5M | 24 | 11.57x |
| 4 | Glory | Dec/15 | TriStar Pictures | $2,683,350 | $26,828,365 | $18M | 22 | 9.99x |
| 5 | Parenthood | Aug/2 | Universal | $10,506,450 | $100,047,830 | $20M | 21 | 9.52x |
| 6 | Honey, I Shrunk the Kids | Jun/23 | Disney | $14,262,961 | $130,724,172 | $18M | 27 | 9.17x |
| 7 | Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade | May/24 | Paramount | $29,355,021 | $197,171,806 | $48M | 31 | 6.71x |
| 8 | Batman | Jun/23 | Warner Bros. | $40,489,746 | $251,188,924 | $48M | 25 | 6.20x |
| 9 | Dad | Oct/27 | Universal | $4,504,020 | $22,103,037 | $19M | 7 | 4.90x |
| 10 | Tap | Feb/10 | TriStar Pictures | $2,217,150 | $9,114,702 | N/A | 3 | 4.11x |
| 11 | Harlem Nights | Nov/17 | Paramount | $16,096,808 | $60,857,262 | $30M | 19 | 3.78x |
A–
19 movies (20.21%) managed to get the grade. Generally, word of mouth will be good and indicates audiences like the movie, their expectations were met and nothing more. These movies averaged a 6.74x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 17 movies with a 12.00x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shirley Valentine | Sep/1 | Paramount | $245,422 | $6,056,912 | N/A | 2 | 24.67x |
| 2 | Always | Dec/22 | Universal | $3,713,480 | $41,843,630 | N/A | 6 | 11.26x |
| 3 | The Adventures of Baron Munchausen | Mar/10 | Columbia | $820,286 | $8,083,123 | $46M | 13 | 9.85x |
| 4 | The Bear | Oct/27 | TriStar Pictures | $3,676,530 | $29,564,471 | $20M | 9 | 8.04x |
| 5 | Cousins | Feb/10 | Paramount | $3,039,805 | $21,707,236 | N/A | 5 | 7.14x |
| 6 | Crimes and Misdemeanors | Oct/13 | Orion Pictures | $2,644,424 | $18,254,702 | N/A | 11 | 6.90x |
| 7 | Born on the Fourth of July | Dec/20 | Universal | $11,023,650 | $70,001,698 | $17.8M | 14 | 6.35x |
| 8 | Sea of Love | Sep/15 | Universal | $10,017,840 | $58,571,513 | $19M | 15 | 5.85x |
| 9 | Turner & Hooch | Jul/28 | Disney | $12,211,042 | $71,079,915 | $13M | 22 | 5.82x |
| 10 | The Abyss | Aug/9 | Fox | $9,319,797 | $54,243,125 | $47M | 7 | 5.82x |
| 11 | K-9 | Apr/28 | Universal | $7,471,035 | $43,247,647 | N/A | 9 | 5.78x |
| 12 | Major League | Apr/7 | Paramount | $8,836,265 | $49,793,054 | $11M | 9 | 5.16x |
| 13 | Chances Are | Mar/10 | TriStar Pictures | $3,664,386 | $15,939,663 | $16M | 5 | 4.35x |
| 14 | Back to the Future Part II | Nov/22 | Universal | $27,835,125 | $118,450,002 | $40M | 10 | 4.26x |
| 15 | Ghostbusters II | Jun/16 | Columbia | $29,472,894 | $112,494,738 | $40M | 12 | 3.82x |
| 16 | Gleaming the Cube | Jan/13 | Fox | $740,780 | $2,777,280 | $10M | 3 | 3.74x |
| 17 | Immediate Family | Oct/27 | Columbia | $1,675,344 | $5,841,286 | $14M | 2 | 3.49x |
| 18 | Star Trek V: The Final Frontier | Jun/9 | Paramount | $17,375,648 | $52,210,049 | $33M | 13 | 3.00x |
| 19 | True Believer | Feb/17 | Columbia | $3,009,692 | $8,742,000 | N/A | 2 | 2.90x |
B+
21 movies (22.34%) managed to get the grade. This is where things get interesting. Generally, it indicates average word of mouth. The audience didn't love it, but didn't hate it. For some niche movies, this should be a fine score. But for IP-driven movies, this should be concerning as fans are more biased to the movie itself. These movies averaged a 5.36x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 23 movies with a 5.21x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Enemies, a Love Story | Dec/13 | Fox | $619,924 | $7,754,571 | $9.5M | 15 | 12.50x |
| 2 | Blaze | Dec/13 | Disney | $1,739,701 | $19,049,727 | $22M | 4 | 10.95x |
| 3 | Tango & Cash | Dec/22 | Warner Bros. | $6,628,918 | $63,408,614 | $54M | 14 | 9.56x |
| 4 | Uncle Buck | Aug/16 | Universal | $8,794,501 | $66,758,538 | $15M | 20 | 7.59x |
| 5 | See No Evil, Hear No Evil | May/12 | TriStar Pictures | $7,098,741 | $46,908,987 | $18M | 7 | 6.61x |
| 6 | National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation | Dec/1 | Warner Bros. | $11,750,203 | $71,815,546 | $25M | 9 | 6.11x |
| 7 | The Package | Aug/25 | Orion Pictures | $1,851,673 | $10,647,219 | $16M | 2 | 5.75x |
| 8 | The Fabulous Baker Boys | Oct/13 | Fox | $3,313,815 | $18,121,297 | $11.5M | 11 | 5.47x |
| 9 | The Dream Team | Apr/7 | Universal | $5,704,860 | $28,890,240 | $14M | 7 | 5.06x |
| 10 | Say Anything... | Apr/14 | Fox | $4,058,496 | $20,036,737 | $16M | 6 | 4.94x |
| 11 | Black Rain | Sep/22 | Paramount | $9,677,102 | $45,892,212 | $30M | 8 | 4.74x |
| 12 | Music Box | Dec/22 | TriStar Pictures | $1,446,900 | $6,263,883 | N/A | 6 | 4.32x |
| 13 | Licence to Kill | Jul/14 | MGM | $8,774,776 | $34,667,015 | $32M | 8 | 3.95x |
| 14 | Lock Up | Aug/4 | TriStar Pictures | $6,025,520 | $22,099,847 | $24M | 5 | 3.67x |
| 15 | Great Balls of Fire! | Jun/30 | Orion Pictures | $3,807,986 | $13,691,550 | $16M | 2 | 3.60x |
| 16 | Casualties of War | Aug/18 | Columbia | $5,201,261 | $18,468,714 | $22.5M | 3 | 3.55x |
| 17 | Her Alibi | Feb/3 | Warner Bros. | $5,037,047 | $17,195,050 | $15M | 16 | 3.41x |
| 18 | An Innocent Man | Oct/6 | Disney | $6,386,349 | $19,397,847 | N/A | 3 | 3.04x |
| 19 | The Fly II | Feb/10 | Fox | $6,751,371 | $19,441,528 | N/A | 3 | 2.88x |
| 20 | See You in the Morning | Apr/14 | Warner Bros. | $1,832,536 | $4,795,009 | N/A | 4 | 2.62x |
| 21 | Listen to Me | May/15 | Columbia | $1,789,759 | $4,177,448 | N/A | 2 | 2.33x |
B
15 movies (15.95%) managed to get the grade. Another step down, which indicates word of mouth to be below average or middling. It could still hold on pretty well, but it's not guaranteed. These movies averaged a 4.27x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 24 movies with a 4.09x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The War of the Roses | Dec/8 | Fox | $9,688,794 | $83,699,711 | $26M | 16 | 8.63x |
| 2 | Weekend at Bernie's | Jul/5 | Fox | $4,506,086 | $30,218,387 | $15M | 9 | 6.71x |
| 3 | Three Fugitives | Jan/27 | Disney | $6,434,717 | $40,590,000 | $15M | 16 | 6.31x |
| 4 | Road House | May/19 | United Artists | $5,957,656 | $30,050,028 | $15M | 6 | 5.04x |
| 5 | Pet Sematary | Apr/21 | Paramount | $12,046,179 | $57,469,179 | $11.5M | 9 | 4.77x |
| 6 | New York Stories | Mar/10 | Disney | $2,410,107 | $10,763,469 | $15M | 4 | 4.47x |
| 7 | Fletch Lives | Mar/17 | Universal | $8,045,760 | $33,266,859 | $8M | 9 | 4.13x |
| 8 | Gross Anatomy | Oct/20 | Disney | $2,830,387 | $11,346,186 | $8.5M | 3 | 4.01x |
| 9 | Troop Beverly Hills | Mar/24 | Columbia | $2,283,443 | $8,508,843 | $18M | 3 | 3.72x |
| 10 | Old Gringo | Oct/6 | Columbia | $1,151,749 | $3,574,256 | $27M | 3 | 3.10x |
| 11 | Renegades | Jun/2 | Universal | $3,075,030 | $9,015,164 | $16M | 2 | 2.93x |
| 12 | Dead Calm | Apr/7 | Warner Bros. | $2,463,551 | $7,032,915 | $10M | 3 | 2.85x |
| 13 | In Country | Sep/29 | Warner Bros. | $1,369,762 | $3,531,971 | $18M | 4 | 2.57x |
| 14 | Worth Winning | Oct/27 | Fox | $1,492,610 | $3,690,328 | N/A | 2 | 2.47x |
| 15 | Fat Man and Little Boy | Oct/20 | Paramount | $1,476,994 | $3,560,942 | $30M | 2 | 2.41x |
B–
12 movies (12.76%) managed to get the grade. Word of mouth is now extremely below average and indicates audiences are more disliking it. These movies averaged a 3.41x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 13 movies with a 4.05x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Family Business | Dec/15 | TriStar Pictures | $2,130,024 | $12,195,695 | N/A | 3 | 5.72x |
| 2 | We're No Angels | Dec/15 | Paramount | $2,047,630 | $10,555,348 | $20M | 3 | 5.15x |
| 3 | Skin Deep | Mar/3 | Fox | $3,916,696 | $19,674,852 | $8.5M | 5 | 5.02x |
| 4 | The Karate Kid Part III | Jun/30 | Columbia | $10,364,544 | $38,793,278 | $12.5M | 10 | 3.74x |
| 5 | Next of Kin | Oct/20 | Warner Bros. | $4,805,516 | $15,942,628 | $12M | 4 | 3.32x |
| 6 | Police Academy 6: City Under Siege | Mar/10 | Warner Bros. | $4,032,480 | $11,567,217 | $15M | 3 | 2.86x |
| 7 | Dead Bang | Mar/24 | Warner Bros. | $2,847,690 | $8,125,592 | $15M | 2 | 2.85x |
| 8 | The January Man | Jan/13 | MGM | $1,716,442 | $4,611,062 | N/A | 3 | 2.69x |
| 9 | Let It Ride | Aug/18 | Paramount | $1,925,049 | $4,973,285 | $18M | 2 | 2.58x |
| 10 | Disorganized Crime | Apr/14 | Disney | $2,840,166 | $7,210,149 | $5M | 2 | 2.54x |
| 11 | Loverboy | Apr/28 | TriStar Pictures | $1,653,102 | $3,887,852 | $8.5M | 3 | 2.35x |
| 12 | Farewell to the King | Mar/3 | Orion Pictures | $1,150,531 | $2,420,917 | $16M | 2 | 2.10x |
C+
4 movies (4.25%) managed to get the grade. This is where generally horror movies get their ratings. For non-horror movies tho, you better hope it has a compelling premise or it will heavily drop. These movies averaged a 3.14x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 5 movies with a 2.84x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | She-Devil | Dec/8 | Orion Pictures | $3,509,647 | $15,351,421 | $20M | 4 | 4.37x |
| 2 | Leviathan | Mar/17 | MGM | $5,029,164 | $15,363,560 | N/A | 4 | 3.19x |
| 3 | Johnny Handsome | Sep/29 | TriStar Pictures | $2,437,642 | $6,622,465 | $20M | 4 | 2.72x |
| 4 | Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan | Jul/28 | Paramount | $6,251,310 | $14,343,976 | $5M | 3 | 2.29x |
C
4 movies (4.25%) managed to get the grade. Even worse word of mouth, but these movies had some middling to outright terrible response. These movies averaged a 2.69x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had 4 movies with a 3.04x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The 'Burbs | Feb/17 | Universal | $11,101,197 | $35,382,246 | $18M | 4 | 3.19x |
| 2 | Who's Harry Crumb? | Feb/3 | TriStar Pictures | $3,862,719 | $10,982,364 | N/A | 3 | 2.84x |
| 3 | Pink Cadillac | May/26 | Warner Bros. | $4,408,593 | $12,143,484 | $19M | 4 | 2.75x |
| 4 | Physical Evidence | Jan/27 | Columbia | $1,777,358 | $3,560,932 | $17M | 2 | 2.00x |
C–
Only one movie (1.06%) managed to get the grade. The future is not bright here. This movie averaged a 3.57x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had one movie with a 3.03x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Millennium | Aug/25 | Fox | $1,614,692 | $5,777,099 | N/A | 2 | 3.57x |
D+
Only one movie (1.06%) managed to get the grade. Even for horror movie standards, this is outright toxic word of mouth. This movie averaged a 2.08x multiplier. In comparison, 1988 had one movie with a 2.16x average multiplier.
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Weeks in theaters | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Speed Zone | Apr/21 | Orion Pictures | $1,475,494 | $3,077,361 | $18M | 2 | 2.08x |
1989 DOMESTIC TOP TEN
| No. | Movie | Date | Studio | Domestic Opening | Domestic Total | Budget | Grade | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Batman | Jun/23 | Warner Bros. | $40,489,746 | $251,188,924 | $48M | A | 6.20x |
| 2 | Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade | May/24 | Paramount | $29,355,021 | $197,171,806 | $48M | A | 6.71x |
| 3 | Lethal Weapon 2 | Jul/7 | Warner Bros. | $20,388,800 | $147,253,986 | $30M | A+ | 7.22x |
| 4 | Look Who's Talking | Oct/13 | TriStar Pictures | $12,107,784 | $140,088,813 | $7.5M | A | 11.57x |
| 5 | Honey, I Shrunk the Kids | Jun/23 | Disney | $14,262,961 | $130,724,172 | $18M | A | 9.17x |
| 6 | Back to the Future Part II | Nov/22 | Universal | $27,835,125 | $118,450,002 | $40M | A– | 4.26x |
| 7 | Ghostbusters II | Jun/16 | Columbia | $29,472,894 | $112,494,738 | $40M | A– | 3.82x |
| 8 | Driving Miss Daisy | Dec/15 | Warner Bros. | $5,705,721 | $106,593,296 | $7.5M | A+ | 18.68x |
| 9 | Parenthood | Aug/2 | Universal | $10,506,450 | $100,047,830 | $20M | A | 9.52x |
| 10 | Dead Poets Society | Jun/2 | Disney | $7,540,464 | $95,860,116 | $16.4M | A+ | 12.71x |
See you next weekend for the 1990 Edition.
2
u/StatpadderYT Sep 12 '22
These are really interesting, and honestly have been giving me more movies to add to my list lol.
Keep up the good work
3
u/JediJones77 Amblin Sep 12 '22
The only real surprise here is that War of the Roses only got a B. It was 12th biggest of the year, and was hugely talked about at the time. Of course, easily explained by it being a violent black comedy, way different from the Romancing the Stone movies.
Also strange that Little Mermaid did not get a Cinemascore despite opening in almost 1,000 theaters. I'm guessing Cinemascore ignored animation at this time, because it was perceived as being throwaway stuff just for kids that parents would only watch out of obligation.
The word in the intro here says "funded," which should be "founded."
From this year, in theaters, I saw Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Batman, Back to the Future Part II, Ghostbusters II and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Fairly early in the home video run, I saw Dead Poets Society, When Harry Met Sally..., Lethal Weapon 2, Look Who's Talking, Parenthood, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Abyss, Black Rain, The War of the Roses and Dead Calm.
1
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