- The internet and e-mail box is all abuzz this morning, as last night,the first test screening of Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back was held in LA.The flick ran around 2 hours, which means about 20 minutes or so is still due to hit the cutting room floor, so attendees got a look at a cut of the film that likely no one else will get to see ever again! Test screenings are done for a variety of reasons, whether it be audience reaction,walk-outs, and the like, but the most important aspect are the actual scorecards that each viewer fills in after seeing the flick. The great news is that the film not only wowed the audience, but had incredibly HIGH test scores! This not only gives Dimension and Miramax the confidence to release the film wide, but also bodes well for a huge opening weekend and steady grosses in the weeks to follow through word of mouth. Great stuff here. Here’s Kevin’s post regarding the event:
I’m sure most of you are familiar with the testing process. Cards are given out at the end of the screening, and data is compiled from a series of boxes (Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor) in regards to a variety of topics (Characters, Pace, Music, Overall, etc). But when all’s said and done, there are only two categories that mean anything.
One is the “Top Two Boxes†– the combined score of which is the quoted figure that’s constantly referred back to (â€We have to bring the scores up. It only scored a thirty in the top two boxes.â€).
The other is the “Definitely Recommendâ€. This is in the recommend category in which the viewer is asked would they Definitely, Probably, Probably Not, or Definitely Not recommend the movie to others.
In the Top Two Boxes, in which the average (or normal) acceptable score is 55%, ‘Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back’ scored 86%. 86% of the audience said the film was Excellent or Very Good.
In the Definite Recommend category, in which the average (or normal) acceptable score is 45%, ‘Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back’ received a 79%.
We have never… NEVER received scores like that. To wit, the highest ‘Dogma’ ever scored was a 60% or 65% in the Top Two Boxes, with a 35% to 40% definite recommend. ‘Amy’ was somewhere in that range as well.
The Dimension folks informed me that these were some of the highest numbers not only in their history, but also Miramax’s.
And in terms of who made up the audience, only 14% of the group had seen all four of the prior flicks. So it wasn’t like we screened to a group of total fans; we were screening to fresh faces.
But let’s put aside the numbers and just talk about the screening in general.
It went like gangbusters. The audience was with the movie every step of the way. I’ve never heard an audience laugh so much in any of our prior flicks’ screenings.
It was… amazing.
Many thanks to all in attendance. 341 of you came, and none of you walked out (also a first for us; there’s always been at least a 2% walk-out rate). But most importantly, according to the numbers, virtually all of you enjoyed yourselves (indeed, the “Fair†and “Poor†ratings were 3% and 1% respectively).
I am a happy, happy man.
By the way, if you were one of those fans in attendance who does read the website, and would like to submit a review, feel free to do so. We’ll post it up over at Scooping The Monkey.
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