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Is it bear season yet?

Kim Hollis: Yogi Bear opened to $16.4 million. Is this more, less or about what you expected?

Edwin Davies: Two or three months ago, if you had told me that Yogi Bear was going to open to under $20 million, I'd have been surprised since it seemed to be just the sort of terrible talking animal movie that does spectacularly well at this time of year. (Those Chipmunks have a lot to answer for.) As the release date neared, and as it became apparent that next to no one was interested in seeing this abomination, I readjusted my expectations and $16.4 million is perhaps a little bit higher than I thought it would make. Every once in a while, the public seem to decide en masse that a film that looks terrible probably is terrible, and it warms my tiny, Scrooge-like heart to see it open to such "meh" numbers.

Of course, the best thing about this release is that it has given rise to that "alternate ending" video in which Boo-Boo plays Robert Ford to Yogi's Jesse James.

Bruce Hall: Somehow, I had no idea this movie even existed until I ordered tickets online for something else this weekend and saw it. When I watched the trailer I almost became physically ill thinking about all the weary, dead-eyed parents who were going to be forced to sit through this unholy creation and buy $40 worth of snacks. With an $80 million price tag to cover, this qualifies as a very soft opening. But if there's one time of year a movie like this is going to have legs, this is it. With the added holiday business here and abroad, and the fact that there doesn't seem to be a marketing budget to recover, maybe Warner Bros can break even on this one. Someday.

And just maybe by the first of the year I'll have forgotten the terrifying thought of Elwood Blues wearing bifocals and voicing a hideous cartoon bear.





Brett Beach: Not knowing the exact currency exchange rate, but is Yogi's $16 million with 3D assist perhaps equal to Marmaduke's $12 million? Anyway, I think this is about what I expected. We may still be shocked at the $200 million plus of both Chipmunks epics, but there simply is not the love for Yogi Bear that would have given this the chance at pulling off even half of those opening weekends. The holidays will help lessen the stench, but probably not shield us from the pic-a-nic basket puns that will endure for the next month or so.

Michael Lynderey: I predicted just a little under kajillion dollars in my forecast, so, um, yes, it's definitely a lot less than I was expecting. What went wrong here is a terrific question, and I really have a hard time understanding what Alvin and co. possess that Mr. Bear does not. Is it the melodious singing voice? If so, was that really worth the roughly $150 million in box office difference that's going to end up separating these two? And does this mean no Yogi Bear: The Squeakuel?

Reagen Sulewski: It's significantly less and I couldn't be more pleased. I've cynically expected most of these talking CGI animal films to do well because I, well, because I hate people, really, and their tastes typically disappoint me. If they're learning to avoid the crappiest of pandering children's films? Well then I may have to reevaluate my world view. It's a Christmas miracle!

David Mumpower: Warner Bros. avoided their presumed Marmaduke-ian fate, so I'm calling this a win. With regards to Brett's comment about 3D, the thought process is valid in the short term. The difference is that Marmaduke had a woeful final box office multiplier (final domestic box office divided by opening weekend total) for a family film. That is a tribute to how poorly considered that product was. Even if people are disappointed by Yogi Bear, it will still have a killer final box office multiplier due to holiday box office inflation. While $16 million boosted by 3D looks equivalent to $12 million in June without the 3D ticket price inflation right now, it won't in three weeks. Yogi Bear should at least double it domestically if not more.

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