"Godzilla" Cut Down to Size

Mon., May. 25, 1998 2:40 PM PDT by Bridget Byrne

In Hollywood, size matters. A lot. As the makers of Godzilla are learning.

The heavily hyped monster mash earned a mammoth $55.5 million during the long Memorial Day weekend--and got dissed for not earning more.

"In a word, Godzilla was a disappointment," film-industry analyst Arthur Rockwell of Drake Capital Securities told Associated Press. "We're not looking at a flop. It's just not the kind of blockbuster they were hoping for."

Overall, Godzilla has scared up $74 million since opening last Tuesday night.

But when its $55.5 million, four-day weekend take (Friday-Monday) is compared to those of The Lost World: Jurassic Park ($90.2 million) or Mission: Impossible ($57 million), the movie comes up short.

Bad reviews, resistance to the new-look monster by loyal Big G fans and surprisingly strong performances by Deep Impact and The Horse Whisperer all teamed to cut the giant-sized flick down to size.

Godzilla cost $120 million to produce and another estimated $50 million to promote.

Given those numbers, its studio was doing its best to put a positive spin on the film's performance. One Sony spokesman called the first week grosses "super."

And to be sure, Godzilla accounted for more than half of all box-office business during the long holiday weekend--considered the start of the summer movie season.

In its third week of release, asteroid drama Deep Impact hit for another $19 million, bringing its overall earnings to nearly $100 million.

The western romance The Horse Whisperer held audience interest for a second week with another $13.3 million.

And controversial political satire Bulworth from writer/director/star Warren Beatty opened wide in theaters, taking in $10.6 million--good for fourth place.

Here's the weekend's top 10, according to estimates released by Exhibitor Relations Co.:

1.Godzilla, $55.5 million
2.Deep Impact, $19 million
3.The Horse Whisperer, $13.3 million
4.Bulworth, $10.6 million
5.The Quest for Camelot, $5.7 million
6.Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, $4.2 million
7.Titanic, $3.7 million
8.City of Angels, $3.1 million
9.He Got Game, $1.6 million
10.Sliding Doors and Woo, $1.3 million