Sunday Spectacle LXXXVI

Toronto Film Festival is upon us—or at least anyone that cares around here—so I thought I would do a movie-related post. Here are some tables listing the movies with the top all-time gross after adjusting for inflation (US market only), top movies that never opened wide (not adjusted for inflation), and the top grossing genres since 1995 (not adjusted for inflation). Click on the images for a larger, more legible, one.


Top Movie Gross - Inflation Adjusted (USA only)


The industry has changed over time—importance of movies has declined over time due to competition from other entertainment—so many of the top grossing films of all time are from several decades ago. The top 5 in order are:
Gone with the Wind (1939) [$1.6 Billion 2010 US$]
Star Wars (1977) [$1.4B]
The Sound of Music (1965) [$1.1B]
E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) [$1.1B]
The Ten Commandments (1956) [$1.0B]


Note that these numbers are for the US market only and it is highly unlikely that any other movie will break the record set by Gone with the Wind unless a movie is re-released in the future and it becomes a hit. But do note that in terms of worldwide gross, modern films likely hold all the records.



Top Movies that Never Opened Wide
(Approximately Less Than 1000 Theatres)

source: The Numbers

These are the indie or artistic films that became hits or cult films. If you want a non-mainstream film that isn't too experimental or too foreign, check out these films. Many on this list are really good. For example, a movie such as The Shawshank Redemption apparently never opened wide but is a cult film that is rated #1 by readers at imdb. If you haven't seen them, I would recommend Fargo, Memento, and Boyz n the Hood.



Top Grossing Genres since 1995

source: The Numbers

This list depends on the definition used for each genre but it appears comedy has been the most popular in the last decade and a half. But, not surprisingly, action and adventure have the highest average gross. The piece that's missing here is the cost of production. If we factor in costs, my wild guess would be that something like horror or documentary will produce the highest return on investment, even though their average gross is lower.


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