MovieChat Forums > The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) Discussion > Why was this movie deliberately killed b...

Why was this movie deliberately killed by the studio?

posted 14 years ago by x1nd0lent
12 replies | jump to latest

It was! In 1984 I remember seeing TV ads for it - maybe twice - and shown in dead late-night time slots. Being a fan of sci-fi and cult films I thought it looked completely brilliant! I wrote down the opening date from an ad, and told my friends about it. Nobody believed me that it even existed, because they hardly advertised it at all. Eventually I met one - ONE person who had also seen an ad for it.

I was all pumped to see it when it came out and started calling theaters when it was supposed to be coming out. None. Despite the few ads, not a single one of the dozen or so cinemas near my house were showing it. This was in Massachusetts. I am guessing it probably had a few showings in Boston but I was just a little too young to organize a trip there for this. Eventually I remember by 1985-1986 it was out on tape and had a decent showing on cable (where they like to play anything to death anyway). Many of my friends and other people I knew had seen it by then and it was appreciated by them as one of the better sci-fi movies of the time.

I have seen this type of thing happen numerous times since. This means that the studio paid to have it made, but decided it was easier to write it off than spend any effort or money promoting it. They paid for it, and let it die. Usually it seems they do this with films which are either a real trainwreck (like Southland Tales), or was politically incorrect enough to annoy many (like Idiocracy). But IMO Buckaroo Banzai was a fairly charismatic movie, many people who said they probably didn't understand it enjoyed it anyway because it was a fun ride. It had an interesting story, impressive cast, good effects... Maybe not the greatest thing ever but not off-putting. Perhaps it would not have been the next big blockbuster but if they actually put it out there and gave it the push of even an average movie I think it had enough appeal to do reasonably well, and maybe make its money back. So what happened? Anybody have any inside info on why the film was buried like this? I have always wondered and would be interested to hear what the problem was.

[–] TheMgnt 14 years ago

I most certainly saw it in the theater. FOX even had a sort of fan club going. There were a series of newsletters, some badges, and, I think, a cheap head band/scarf. I tried looking for this packet amongst my teenage stuff a while back and couldn't find it.

There was also a text based adventure game for home computers. I still have the instruction manual and my notes on playing the game, tho the game itself is long gone.

[–] MystMoonstruck 11 years ago

Very sadly, the studio was NOT behind the fan club anymore than it had been supportive of the movie.

Silver Fox, head of the fan club and employed by 20th Century Fox, attended a Space Trek convention in St. Louis (Star Trek-focused event), where he officially was promoting "The Fly", "Aliens", and "Big Trouble in Little China". He met with fan club members to visit with us and tell us that those at the studio who loved the movie were "borrowing" to promote the fan movement; they weren't official actually, but they were allowed to photocopy the newsletters. I still have the only newsletter I received. They had such hopes for the sequel but had a sinking feeling that it wouldn't happen.

One thing that was so funny is that I had a huge yellow-and-red Banzai Institute button, hoping I'd find other fans among the Trekkies/Trekkers. All I succeeded in doing was getting dozens of people hurrying up to me and asking, "Are you Silver Fox?!" Well, I guess I WAS meeting fans that way. BTW: Silver Fox was deserving of his name=} After all, he was from the studio, had beautiful silver hair, and really was "a fox", a very attractive man who also was very sweet.

We never did get to have a fan gathering though someone arranged to show the movie about midnight. The place was nearly emptied after a lesser-known SF film ended, so I took the opportunity to move to the front row. Just about time for the movie to start, they began pouring in. At the end of the film, this very enthusiastic crowd became irate when they cut off the end credits! ARRRRGH! We really protested LOUDLY, but they never relented. So, someone started whistling the tune, with more and more joining in. Those of us who were whistle-challenged (me included, much to my regret) hummed=} It just wasn't the same though. *sigh*

Why is it considered a goof that Perfect Tommy changes clothes?! STUPID! That's just the spirit of the movie, such as having a fallen member back among them.

*** The trouble with reality is there is no background music. ***

[–] N0TY 14 years ago

I have it! It was killed because it actually happened, and the government doesn't want to to know!! It's actually a cover-up!!! ;-)

It was a BRILLIANT script and production. As a Techie-Nerd, I loved it. I wish they had made a sequel :-( I wonder if it made back its production costs? Perhaps the test cards were bad? Maybe the reviews panned it? I don't remember

"Why is that Watermelon there?"

"I'll tell ya later..."

I rate it right up there with Ghostbusters, My Science Project, Real Genius and Weird Science on my Techie Meter ;-)

[–] thedeadlyspawn79 12 years ago

Maybe, like the War of the Worlds broadcast, the movie depicted real events and aliens hypnotised the studio heads and made them try and kill the movie.

[–] ttaskmaster 12 years ago

Contemporary interviews say they didn't exactly know *how* to market it...
"We have this great new film coming out"
"Cool, what's it about"
"Errr... It's kinda hard to explain, really"

As you say, although many people loved it (and still do), you just can't decide what the film is. There really is NO box it fits into at all.
Sci-fi, adventure, fantasy, romance, what...?

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[–] Theoden_of_ODU 11 years ago

Nowadays it seems that "hard to explain" films will get multiple marketing campaigns. Some commercials - more funny. Some - more serious. Some - more romantic. Most films don't get that, but when I notice it, it's usually for one of those films you can't really pin down.

If I had been the studio, I would have simply pushed it as a Sci-fi or adventure fantasy and be done with it. It might not have represented the entire film, but that might have gotten more people in the seats. Instead they just pushed it to a real narrow market. Maybe with modern social media it would have done better, but who knows.

"No, not the mind probe!"

[–] MuggySphere 10 years ago

Haha so true. I mean look at Prometheus....... "snort"

[–] ItsEddieHaskellBeyotch 12 years ago

I remember seeing this on HBO alot back in the day.

"No my brotha, you got ta buy yo OWN!"

[–] John-367 11 years ago

I don't know the particular circumstances of this film but the reasons for a minimal release of a film are usually mundane.

Commonly the person or people who were enthusiastic about the film at the studio are no longer there and the people now in charge are either not impressed by the prospects of the film or would rather dump the film because if it was successful it would make the management they replaced look good - possibly to the detriment of the new people.

It could easily be that the film didn't meet the expectations of the studio so they don't spend too much on promoting the film to a wide, and probably not very interested, audience (which can cost more than the budget of the film). Instead they just book screenings in those places where they think they will get to any likely audience for the film more cheaply - eg in student districts or arthouse cinemas.

The marketing department might be unenthusiastic about a film or not understand how to sell it (assuming it can be sold). This is a particular problem when a major studio makes the sort of film which would normally be made by a small independent outfit. The major studio's contacts, contracts and whole operation will be geared towards handling straightforwardly commercial product and faced with anything else may just shrug and blame production for not giving them the sort of film they can sell.

[–] LalocheziaAddict 10 years ago

As I understand it the studio was between regime changes at the time. And as the film is nearly impossible to briefly sum up, it did not go over well with the new bosses.
It does amuse me to imagine how this film would have been promoted.

---
You mustn't judge yourself. That's what the internet is for.

[–] bimsie99 10 years ago

I lived in Burbank when this came out,not far from Hollywood.I saw it in a big theater on Hollywood Blvd,on opening weekend with a much less than packed house.I thought it was terrific,but even then I wondered how the hell could they market it?The reviews in L.A. were really positive,espescially noting the clever script.But was it a comedy,or sci fi,or action adventure?And though it had a really good cast,there were no real stars in it at the time.And the poster for the movie made it look like a B flick,not a major release.
All in all,it just fell through the cracks.
"1)There is a God,and 2)Im not him."