Passion is lacking for this 'Nativity'

Laurie Foos, a student at Pasadena's Fuller Theological Seminary, figured that she didn't need to rush out to see New Line Cinema's "The Nativity Story" in its first week. She waited until her kids came home from college, venturing to the theater on Christmas Day, nearly a month after the movie opened. But by then, "Nativity" was out of her local multiplex in Ventura.

"It was the perfect day to see it but they had pulled it from the theater," said Foos, adding that if she had heard more about the film from within the Christian community, she would have seen it opening day, Dec. 1. "I wish there had been more awareness. It was lacking that kind of 'Oh my gosh, you have to go see that movie' factor."

In the movie business, the first weekend is a crucial gauge in determining whether a movie lives or dies. The soft $8-million opening for "The Nativity Story" wounded its chances of becoming a big holiday hit and could damp Hollywood's enthusiasm for big-budget faith-based movies.

Competition later in the month forced many exhibitors to push "Nativity" off the marquee to make room for such family films as "Night at the Museum," "The Pursuit of Happyness" and "Charlotte's Web."

Even so, "Nativity" held on strong for several weeks, performing particularly well the week before Christmas. Ticket sales for the film, which tells the story of Mary and Joseph on their journey before the birth of Jesus, went up 52% the Wednesday before Christmas and 96% the Thursday before the holiday. The movie has grossed about $37 million through Sunday -- a solid showing, considering its weak opening.

"Sampling with this audience takes time," said Russell Schwartz, head of marketing for New Line. "This was never about a huge opening weekend."

"The Nativity Story" comes after the huge success of Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ," which opened to $84 million in February 2004 and went on to gross more than $612 million worldwide, with $241 million coming from abroad.

"The Nativity Story" did not perform well in predominately Christian countries such as Italy or Spain or in Latin America. Domestically, however, "Nativity" is now among the top 10 highest-grossing faith-based or religious-themed films in recent times, according to Media by Numbers, a box-office tracking firm.

"It's one of those movies that people put unrealistic expectations on because of 'The Passion of the Christ,' but it's a solid performer," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media by Numbers.