'Nemo' seems to be everyone's must-sea movie

By Andy Seiler
USA Today

Talk about big splash. "Finding Nemo" is going where G-rated animated films rarely get: into the hearts of child-free adults, durable dads and picky pubescents.

" 'Finding Nemo' is very different from, say, 'The Matrix Reloaded,' " says Brad Peppard, president of CinemaScore.com, which polls opening-night moviegoers. "That movie did really well with the people who loved 'The Matrix' and loved Keanu. But people who weren't 'Matrix' fans didn't care. However, everyone who went to 'Nemo' says, 'Wow, I really liked it.' "

"Nemo," the Disney/Pixar computer-animated odyssey of a father clown fish's epic search for his captured son, brought in $70.3 million on its opening weekend, the biggest in the history of animated movies. The movie did it by reaching unexpected audiences:

• Males younger than 21 and older than 35 gave "Nemo" an A, Peppard says. Women of all ages and other men gave it an A-plus.
• The Internet Movie Database (imdb.com), which conducts ongoing votes on films, is seeing similar results. "To get those reactions across all segments is pretty unusual," says managing editor Keith Simanton.
• "Nemo" is broiling even at late shows and during school days. "We did a little over $6.9 million Monday," says Disney distribution chief Chuck Viane. "That's a very strong Monday. Only 39 percent of the kids are out of school."

Sarah Weichel, 13, of Valencia, Calif., resisted when her family dragged her along to "Nemo." "I figured, well, OK, Disney movie, animated, how great can it be?"

Pretty great. "I loved it," Weichel says. "It was so hilarious. I related to Nemo in some ways. I'm taking my friends back to see it on Thursday."

Bob Sommer, 40, a San Francisco-based technology executive for Bank of America, doesn't have kids, but he's an avid scuba diver. "It was a great film," Sommer says. "I'll very probably see the film a few more times and will buy several copies of the DVD when it comes out."