| If the Great Depression of the 1930s taught us anything (apart from "Never trust a stockbroker") it's that cinema tends to do well when people have very little money. And sure enough that's the case this summer, with the credit crunch sending people running to the safety of their nearest multiplex, leading experts to now confidently predict that this summer's US box office figures are going to at least match last year's record $4.16 bn dollar take. Why should you care? Well, because this means that the studios are feeling reasonably good about making films right now, meaning that they'll probably keep investing money in them instead of throwing it all in and making, I dunno, cheese instead. That said, admissions are still down by 3.8% on last year, something compensated for by higher ticket prices. And a big, big slice of that total is entirely down to The Dark Knight, which could hit $500 million by the end of this weekend. But anything that keeps the executives happy tends to be good news for getting new, adventurous films made (the success of Dark Knight and Iron Man bodes well for that sort of grown-up blockbuster, f'r instance) and us seeing more good stuff. So rejoice and be glad! And tell the 3.8% of your friends who didn't go to the cinema this summer to get off their butts next year.* *We realise that this is not how that statistic works. | 
