Global Courant
Crisis, what crisis?, it could be said just by looking at the figures of spectators to the cinemas in Argentina in the month of May. It is that the 4,898,450 tickets sold from May 2 (there were no functions on the 1st) to Wednesday the 31st placed it as the best May since reliable records have been available, that is, since 1997. And a lot had to do with Fast and Furious X and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
In other words, in May of this year there was much more public in the theaters than in the pre-pandemic period.
It was the coincidence of several Hollywood tanks, clearly, but this is something that, we’ll see, has been going on for several years. So we will have to look for another explanation to understand the furor that awakened the public, because compared to previous Mays, the difference is abysmal, as we will analyze.
Vin Diesel in the most viewed this May for the story, “Fast and Furious X”. And that was only two weeks in the month. UIP photo
It is that as it has been happening for a few years, it is the Hollywood sagas that bring the largest number of viewers to the theaters. Delayed by the pandemic, the aforementioned new films with Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and with Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) added together, sold 3,029,452 tickets, 61.84% of the total.
And that Fast and Furious X (1,737,837 viewers) was not on the bill for the entire month of May, but only for the last two weeks. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (1,291,615) was on the bill for longer, as it premiered on the first Thursday of the month.
Chris Pratt in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3,” another one that added more than a million viewers in May. Disney photo
The third, the one that closed the podium of the three most viewed last month, was Super Mario Bros., the movie, with its 681,105 tickets. The cartoon was not a saga, but it will be, due to its impressive success here and around the world. Released on April 6, it has had 2,758,215 viewers until yesterday, Sunday June 4, and is the highest grossing film of 2023.
Fourth, and with only one week on the bill, was the version with actors of Disney’s The Little Mermaid. In its first 7 days on the bill, including the extra-large weekend for the May 25 holiday, it was seen by 574,290 viewers.
Chris Pratt lent his voice to “Super Mario Bros.”, which closed out the podium for May. UIP photo
So far this year, Super Mario Bros. has been followed by another animated production, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Third march Avatar: El camino del agua -premiered on December 15, 2022, the figures recorded are those of this year-, which will surely soon be surpassed by Fast and Furious X.
And this weekend the film that led the preference of the Argentine public was another animated film, Spider-Man through the Spider-Verse, with 145,343 viewers.
How did Argentine cinema do in May? Seventh was La extorción, with Guillermo Francella and Pablo Rago, with its 98,580 tickets sold, but it had premiered on April 6, the same date as Super Mario Bros..
The mayos of history
“Doctor Strange in the multiverse of madness” had been the most viewed in May of last year. Disney photo
As of May 2022, 2,932,893 tickets have been sold. The most watched movie had been Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (1,848,303 entries), followed by Sonic 2 and Top Gun: Maverick.
In May 2021, when the theaters had barely reopened, only 121,351 spectators went to the cinemas. Mortal Kombat (23,296), Godzilla vs. Kong and Demon Slayer: The infinite train were the most viewed.
In May 2020, theaters were closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Avengers: Endgame”, a hit from the last pre-pandemic May. Disney photo
And already in pre-pandemic times, in May 2019 4,001,980 tickets were sold, with Avengers: Endgame (2,102,171) in front, followed by Aladdin and Pokémon: detective Pikachu.
To show that this May 2023 has nothing to envy to the previous ones, in 2018 there were 3,777,967 viewers, and the three most watched productions were Avengers: Infinity War (1,584,312), Deadpool 2 and Nothing to lose.
In May 2017 there were 3,351,162: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (657,838), Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge and Fast and Furious 8 made up the podium.
“Captain America: Civil War”, the most viewed in May 2016, which was, so far, the best May in history. Disney photo
The month of May 2016 was, until this year, the best since 1997, with its 4,512,125 tickets sold. Captain America: Civil War (1,461,578) was the most viewed, followed by Angry Birds and the national The Red Thread.
