You Got Questions? They Got Answers!

By Scott Smith in Miscellaneous on Mar 21, 2005 3:30PM

Movie accounting practices are clear as mud in the best of circumstances but mix in the mob and thinks get decidedly murkier. Yesterday’s Movie Answer Man column tackled the nerdiest aspect of the movie Deep Throat: the math. Specifically, did the movie really make $600 million? Ebert says signs point to no (plus, it gives us another chance to mention that The Chicagoist Inside Deep Throat Contest ends tonight at midnight. Click the link for more details).

The Movie Answer Man is one of our favorite columns and it seems likethe Tribune might be taking that good idea and running with it in what we hope is a regular feature: “Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About The Arts.” Each of the Trib’s critics takes on questions of art appreciation as well as the sorts of ponderances you’d hash out in your neighborhood tavern. There’s great potential here but we’d quibble a bit with some of their questions. We’d rather hear Greg Kot’s thoughts on the best sightlines at various Chicago venues than his basic tips on how to score good tickets to shows. And “how do the actors memorize their lines” seems like a question you’d ask someone from a high school production of My Fair Lady, not a professional working actor.

We’re also taking major issue with Chris Jones’s answer to the question of whether one needs to dress up for the theatre...

Jones and others in Chicago’s theater community say no but any researcher worth his or her z-score will tell you that how you ask the question makes all the difference. Asking “Does your theater have a dress code?” is way different than “Should I dress up?” Jones even goes so far as to counsel “Break out the sweats, the jeans, the ripped T's.”

No, no, no! Look, the weekly Chicagoist Office Belching Contest knocks us out of the running for Most Sophisticated Website 2005, so maybe we shouldn't talk. But unless you’re at the gym or making a quick run to McDonald’s to combat a hangover, leave your sweats at home! We know the Juicy couture track suits are confusing the issue but come on. While you're at it, save the ripped T's for the joints that let you bring beer in with you. (And on a side note: zubaz are only appropriate at sporting events, OK?)

But Mark Caro’s question on why scenes and music cues you see in trailers aren’t in the movies they're advertising is great. To many, it’s an irritating practice but it’s an unavoidable consequence due to the "outsourcing" of most movie marketing. Although we’re still not sure why a version of Treat Her Right by the Commitments (the song that has everyone yelling “Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!”) shows up in a trailer every time ensuing wackiness needs to be conveyed.

What questions would YOU have asked?