Associated Press
Associated Press
Brittany Brown wouldn't miss the opening of the "Fifty Shades of Grey" movie for anything. She has read and re-read all three books, uses the app, follows FSOG role play on Twitter and set her DVR to record trailers for the highly anticipated Valentine's weekend release.
But ditching her boyfriend for her gal gang of superfans was problematic.
Three years in the waiting, the opening of the erotic romance on sweethearts' weekend will be a breathless affair for "Fifty" die-hards everywhere.
Some will have husbands in tow. Some already have tickets. And those book groups of mommies that helped propel the bondage story to more than 100 million copies sold? They'll be crowding theaters, too.
It's a 'Sex and the City' kind of excitement. We know it's not going to win an Oscar, but we also know it's going to be fun."
In North Hampton, New Hampshire, you can count Lou Altman wholeheartedly, completely voluntarily, in.
"My wife and I have been planning this date since the movie was announced," said the 50-year-old head of a satellite communications company. "Any half-smart husband will go see this movie with his wife. There WILL be a payoff."
Jenna Mulford, manager of a two-screen independent cinema in Iowa Falls, Iowa, will have quite a weekend on her hands. At her Metropolitan Opera House, which it once was, she'll offer the faith-based "Old Fashioned," a sweet look at abstinence outside of marriage, along with "Fifty Shades."
She's sure there will be crossover, and a lively lobby conversation or two. Mulford reached out to churches in her area to make sure they knew "Old Fashioned" was coming while fielding numerous queries for "Fifty."
"The curiosity is going to pull them toward one and their faith is going to pull them toward the other," Mulford predicted.
Outscreened and outfinanced, the creators of "Old Fashioned" held its release to open against "Fifty Shades," poking fun along the way in trailers that flash cheeky taglines. "Love is ... anything but grey," reads one.
As Mulford juggles her church guests and "Fifty" fans, Universal Pictures has offered "Fifty" blockbuster treatment with wide release around the world for the holiday. So, in real life, exactly how large a shadow has been cast by the books?
Number crunching aside, Kendra Davis and her husband are among those who nabbed "Fifty" tickets in advance.
"My husband is not into 'Fifty Shades.' In fact, I'm sure he'll be surprised by the intensity and high level of intimacy in the film," said the 28-year-old Davis, who works for a nonprofit in the Cleveland area. "Since it's Valentine's Day, I'm sure a lot of women are using this opportunity for date night and turning up the heat in the bedroom."
Maybe not everybody.
Mandy Menaker, 26, and her 32-year-old sister, Jamie Menaker, are both in relationships, but they'll be leaving the menfolk at home. Valentine's Day is reserved for their partners but they're carrying on a sisterly tradition by heading together to "Fifty Shades" opening weekend.