Jan 7, 2013 No Comments ›› Infidel
Excerpted from The Los Angeles Times: Also this weekend, the Matt Damon-John Krasinski collaboration “Promised Land” got off to a bad start. The environmental picture, which was co-written by and stars the actors, expanded from 25 theaters to 1,676 locations but brought in a lackluster $4.3 million.
The Focus Features production about a town with natural gas reserves only cost the studio and co-financier Participant Media about $15 million to produce. But with middling reviews and a B CinemaScore, it’s a long shot that the film will end up being a hit even given its modest budget.
Excerpted from E2 Wire: Fracking gets natural gas out of the ground, but it isn’t bringing people into movie theaters.
Big stars and political controversy didn’t translate into a significant box-office haul as “Promised Land,” a new movie exploring environmental concerns about the gas-production method known more formally as “hydraulic fracturing,” fared poorly in its nationwide opening.
The film, which Matt Damon co-wrote and stars in, took just 10th place at the weekend box office, with $4.3 million in ticket sales, according to The Los Angeles Times.
The top weekend spot, with $23 million, went to the slasher flick “Texas Chainsaw 3D.”
“Promised Land,” which cost $15 million to make and was directed by indie pioneer Gus Van Sant, delves into fears about water pollution from fracking.
Fracking is the increasingly common gas development method that’s fueling a U.S. production boom. It involves high-pressure underground injection of water, sand and chemicals to liberate oil and gas trapped in shale rock formations.
The movie stars Damon as an energy-company representative dispatched to a struggling farm town to convince residents to sell drilling rights on their land — an exchange in which they’ll be paid handsomely.
But he runs into moral dilemmas and an environmental activist played by John Krasinski, who co-wrote the movie with Damon.
Environmental groups are using “Promised Land” as a platform for criticism of fracking, while some conservatives are attacking the film.
