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David Mumpower: I want to explore a couple of the thoughts here. Marley & Me is a great example of how a film with this sort of subject matter can attain tremendous popularity. The key element is that the viewer must be sold on falling in love with the pet, even if the movie proves to be a snuff film. Frankenweenie never had that opportunity. The movie premise dictates that people know the puppy dies. That's a troublesome scenario for the marketing team. There is a reason why Michael Vick was so reviled when his secret life was revealed. People adore the blind devotion dogs give humans. I always crack up when I see the bumper stickers that say, "Please let me be the person my dog thinks I am." There is wisdom and truth in that. Any film that sells itself as one where the puppy dies has the deck stacked against it prior to release.

The other consideration mentioned here is that this is the third gothic animated movie released in three months. This is a smaller audience than mainstream animation. Once we factor in saturation, being third out of three is problematic, independent of the Tim Burton discussion. So Frankenweenie possesses a depressing theme and enters a jaded marketplace. Given these issues, its bombing is not surprising.

Kim Hollis: Look, I'm someone who is always willing to give Burton's films a chance. I like his visual style and can usually find something to appreciate even when I'm not completely enthusiastic about the end result. With that said, while i think Frankenweenie might be fantastic (and the reviews give me reason for hope), there's no way in heck I'd see this in the theater. When I saw How to Train Your Dragon, a movie that is effectively about falling in love with a pet, I was sobbing at the end because Toothless reminded me so much of a cat who had passed away only months before. My nearly 17-year-old pooch died a year ago, and the dog in Frankenweenie bears somewhat of a resemblance to him. So...there was just no way. Based on comments I've seen from people who have seen it ("my wife was trying not to break down in utter tears," etc.), I made the right call. The subject matter is just too painful, even when done in an overall comedic fashion.

Glee: The Movie! Oh, wait. We already had that, didn't we?

Kim Hollis: Pitch Perfect expanded to 2,770 locations and earned $14.8 million. Based on last weekend's results, is this more, less or about what you expected?

Felix Quinonez: Although it's a totally respectable result, especially when you consider its budget, I was still expecting a little more. I really thought its great performance in limited release would have lead to a lot more buzz and help it really break out. Now I kind of wonder how much it helped or if it actually burned off demand, making this weekend's number less impressive. I thought it was a forgone conclusion that it would beat the opening of the Footlose remake but it made less. But maybe I just got carried away and had unrealistic expectations. Either way, this movie is already a hit.

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