– I think it’s a bit expensive. Going to the cinema is something I do less often. So I wish the price went down a bit. That’s what Gabriel Ebbesen says, one of the people news met at the University of Oslo on Wednesday. New figures show that cinema visits in the country have fallen in the last month. “Unfortunately, in October there was a 20 per cent drop in visitor numbers at Norwegian cinemas compared to the same period last year,” says managing director Espen Pedersen of the industry organization Film & Kino to news. Thelma Tilley Sandaker and Kristine Refstie single out one of this summer’s blockbusters, “Barbie”, as the last good film they saw at the cinema. – It was a film I wanted to see. Certain films are also much more fun to watch in the cinema, says Sandaker. Thelma Tilley Sandaker (tv) and Kristine Refstie (th) both went to see the blockbuster “Barbie” this summer. Photo: Ksenia Novikova / news She says that going to the cinema is something she tries to do as often as possible. At the same time, she thinks that the price level may have played a role in the October decline in Norwegian cinemas. – Going to the cinema costs a lot of money, says Sandaker. – People can also watch films online instead, Refstie interjects. Higher threshold On 20 October, Martin Scorsese’s new blockbuster “Killers of the Flower Moon” premiered in Norwegian cinemas. The film has garnered good reviews, and the cast includes film stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro. Since the premiere a week and a half ago, however, only 40,000 Norwegians have bought tickets to see the film. At Blindern, Beate Hop tells Håvarstein that it has been a long time since she has been to the cinema. She thinks that it may have become too easy to stay at home on the sofa. – The threshold for going to the cinema is perhaps higher. There should perhaps be more information about what is coming to the cinema, she says. Martin Scorsese’s blockbuster “Killers of the Flower Moon” premiered on October 20. Photo: Apple Studios / Courtesy of Apple Lack of big Norwegian titles Pedersen in Film & Kino believes the decrease in the number of cinema visitors is due to the lack of big Norwegian titles on screens in Norwegian cinemas recently. – Last year we had Krigsseileren, among other things. We have been missing the big Norwegian titles this autumn, he says. Pedersen also believes that the public is more aware of what they see at the cinema. – It is the big titles that draw people to the cinema. In recent months, we haven’t had the very biggest titles to show in Norwegian cinemas, he says. Fantastic summer This year’s cinema summer has also been fantastic, according to Pedersen. Major films such as “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” ensured full cinema halls and Norwegian cinemas sold over 1 million tickets during the month of July. There was a long queue outside the Colosseum cinema in Oslo before an advance screening of “Barbie” this summer. Photo: Tom Balgaard / news In addition, films such as “Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One” and “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” premiered during the summer that was. – The hope has been that cinema numbers would continue to rise, but unfortunately they have not done so so far this autumn, but we have great faith in the rest of the year, says Pedersen. Postponed blockbusters Due to the strike in Hollywood, which is still partly ongoing, many blockbusters have been postponed. Among other things, the strike has led to the postponement of the cinema film “Dune 2”, which was originally supposed to premiere these days. The film has now had its Norwegian premiere on 15 March. Furthermore, films such as “Napoleon”, “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” and “Convoy” premiere before the calendar shows 2024. – Some blockbusters have been postponed due to the strike. Still, the vast majority of them will come in the future. So we believe that cinema visits in November and December will be at the same level as last year, says Pedersen and adds: – We believe that the films that are coming are films that the public wants to see. Espen Lundberg Pedersen in Film & Kino says there has been a lack of major Norwegian film titles this autumn. Photo: Kristoffer Sandven
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Attendance figures for Norwegian cinemas October – news Culture and entertainment
