Post-auction analysis - OMGs!, LOLs!, WTFs!, whatev....

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

Yes, but it's not in hand and there's more to say later on when it shows up....

And by the way the Canadian LA Confidential is small time compared to something else floating around.....stay tuned....

[Zorba]

Yes, but it's not in hand and there's more to say later on when it shows up....

And by the way the Canadian LA Confidential is small time compared to something else floating around.....stay tuned....

I love cliff hangers. 

Grats by the way as it is very cool you got it.

[CSM]

Big price for something that's obviously big in your heart - congrats.  Looks to be in ok shape too?

[archie leach]

$500 for a Canadian L.A. Confidential yesterday...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/270805113414?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_11269wt_1396

From the auction pictures and fact that the seller is in LA...
I would not be surprised...
at all...
if that seller wasn't MPT's long lost..
 and much remembered.... (at least by me)
....
BR Girl!

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

From the auction pictures and fact that the seller is in LA...
I would not be surprised...
at all...
if that seller wasn't MPT's long lost..
 and much remembered.... (at least by me)
....
BR Girl!

You're probably correct.  She was an active collector from 2003-2006.  She claims she bought the LA Confidential at the "Book Castle" in LA in 2004, which makes me wonder if it really is a "Canadian" poster.  She's getting ready to sell her collection.

[archie leach]

You're probably correct.  She was an active collector from 2003-2006.  She claims she bought the LA Confidential at the "Book Castle" in LA in 2004, which makes me wonder if it really is a "Canadian" poster.  She's getting ready to sell her collection.

Yep, that's her.  I am sure the Book Castle got it from some studio connection, being LA and all, and their is no evidence that it was ever sent anywhere other than Canada.  She picked up the rare version of the Matrix w/credits at the same place.  Both were some crazy low price, low even for then, of $5-20...

[110x75]

I guess this question was answered before, but being a collector not specialized -or very interested- in modern posters (and a cheap bastard too  ) The design is nothing special -for me at least-, and I think $500 is a lot of money for it. Is it right to presume that the value comes solely from the poster`s scarcity??

[Harry Caul]

Its arguably the best design for a great movie, but yes... I would imagine that the high price mainly boils down to scarcity.

[110x75]

Its arguably the best design for a great movie, but yes... I would imagine that the high price mainly boils down to scarcity.

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

Yes, that price 95% reflects scarcity.  It's a cool poster but certainly the design would not merit that price.  

The real question is "can I resell it without taking a loss?"  I'm pretty sure I could consign it and get $1000+, so I would break even assuming a 25% commission. So I'm not worried about it.  

As far as I know, this poster has not been publicly auctioned in 5 years (since Dan R. sold his for $400), so it's impossible to say what the "right price" is for this poster.

[eatbrie]

I think you can only evaluate the value of a poster if a lot of bidders are ready to spend an equal amount of money on it.  In this case, Mel was alone.  He paid a high price for a poster that may not pop up again for a long time.  So it's all a matter of how much you want it.  Mel might be the only one in the world who would have spent that much.  But he might also be the only one in the world to own this poster.  I don't know much about it, since I'm not a huge fan of the movie and don't care more than that.  I would have probably bought it at $200, just to own it, but I would have not gone beyond that.  This said, there are plenty of posters I need to complete a collection that I would spend a lot of money on, and I could very well be the only one.  Which does not mean the posters are worth that much, they are just worth that much to me.

T

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

Consider that the seller listed it in the internationals sections on a weekday and did not promote it.  I happened to catch it.  I imagine that most interested buyers missed it.

I can't emphasize enough how scarce this poster is.  In three years of collecting I have never seen it for sale.

Put that poster in a high profile auction and properly promote it and the sky's the limit!  The Ferris Bueller auction at MoviePosterBid a few months back is a better comparator.

[MoviePosterBid.com]

The Ferris Bueller auction at MoviePosterBid a few months back is a better comparator.

except the Ferris poster actually looks cool

 

[eatbrie]

Maybe, maybe not.  You don't know that for sure, Mel.  I saw it and passed on it because it was too expensive for me.  Sure, it is possible some people did not see it.  Everything is possible.  But what I see today is one person bidding on a poster, and that does not set a trend.  Now, if tomorrow, there is an auction, like you said, and it sells for 1.5k with 20 bidders on it, then you have a trend.  But not today.  

This is why, at the end of the day, collectibles are only worth what you want to pay for them.

T

[Cj]

Its a rare piece of paper for sure. I like it and I would pay that price. Congrats on the new addition.

Cj

[eatbrie]

except the Ferris poster actually looks cool

 

It does, and I finally got one a few weeks ago at a "Thierry" price (like Bruce would say).

[Cj]

and congrats to you too T. I would pay a Thierry price in a heartbeat for any piece of paper i want to add to my collection.

[eatbrie]

and congrats to you too T. I would pay a Thierry price in a heartbeat for any piece of paper i want to add to my collection.

 

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

Hey don't be cagey, Thierry.  We all know Ves offered a folded version for US $550, which was $150 more than it sold on UK Ebay last year. If you paid $550, you did not get a stellar deal....

[Cj]

if thats the case, i bet T. got it for $400.00

[eatbrie]

Hey don't be cagey, Thierry.  We all know Ves offered a folded version for US $550, which was $150 more than it sold on UK Ebay last year. If you paid $550, you did not get a stellar deal....

I still don't understand why numbers matter so much to you, Mel.  What Ferris Bueller sold last year for doesn't mean anything.  What it sells for tomorrow doesn't mean anything.  Prices vary constantly.  I had a long talk with Ron Borst today, who told me that his collection has lost a lot of value in the last 3 years.  What is it worth exactly?  He doesn't know.  Hopefully more than yesterday, but probably not if no one wants to buy.  A poster sells for $100 on a Monday, then for $100 again on a Tuesday, and then for $20 on a Wednesday.  Why?  Because the people who really wanted it now own it and there is no one left on the market.  I know I've had this discussion with you before, Mel, and I still don't get why those numbers matter to you so much.  They are irrelevant.  You should know that by now.

And BTW, you don't know who I bought my Ferris Bueller from?  Ves sold hers to Marklawd, didn't she?  So maybe I spent $200 for it.  Maybe not.  Who cares?

T

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

What it sold last year for doesn't mean anything.  What it sells for tomorrow doesn't mean anything.  Prices vary constantly.

Well of course price history matters.  Why else would Heritage and Emovie maintain price archives?  Generally prices vary somewhat but usually not radically.  And try telling your banker that "price history doesn't matter."  You can't get a loan without an extensive analysis of comparable home price sales in your neighborhood.  Poster sales are the same.

[holiday]

Yeah, considering its the upcoming generation that loves HP, these will be worth a small fortune 20 years from now.

But, I buy them because I love the movie and that my kids love the movie, not for value.

I've been wanting to talk about this for a while, actually.

In ten years, I wouldn't be shocked if Harry Potter posters are some of the most valuable on the market. Whether you like Harry Potter or not, it's a worldwide record-crushing phenomenon delivered to its enormous fanbase ingeniously. The staggered release of books and films meant every chapter of the franchise was a multimedia experience that spanned a decade, so the bulk of its fans literally grew up with HP as an annual event.

1st Edition sets of the books are already worth a thousand dollars, several thousand in the case of the UK prints. The sensation of today is the memorabilia of tomorrow, and the way this series has reached and affected people is unlike anything I've ever seen. The sheer immensity and quality of the entire Harry Potter project has guaranteed it a place in the history of both film and literature and studios and publishers have been attempting to replicate its success for as long as it's existed.

I don't like HP much either. I only read one book and, while I enjoyed the films,I  prefer to pick them apart as generally poor adaptations (the third of which is  superb and the rest of which are weak). But pretending its impact on people, pop-culture, literature and film has been anything short of incredible is, like you said, naive.

Granted they were both to the same user, but I think it's worth noticing that two posters from 2001 both sold for $300. People collect what they grew up with, and the digital children are growing up. I mean, just look at me! I'm no expert, but I say stock up.

[eatbrie]

No, price history does not matter.  Every single time I look at a poster price, it varies so drastically from one week to another, I can't figure it out.  It does not matter.  Up one day, down by half the next.  We're not talking about houses, or banks, or fine art here.  We're talking about mass reproduced paper that should essentially be free.  It is made to advertize, not to sell.  It doesn't have a price.  The only price it has comes from who wants it at a given time.

Do you keep a database of prices?  How do you know Ferris Bueller sold for $400 a year ago on Ebay UK?  You always tell us what a poster is worth compared to what it sold yesterday at Heritage or Emovie, and I honestly don't get it.  I can't say it clearer...  What it's worth is what it's worth to you.  In this case, L.A. Confidential is worth $500 to you and CJ, but not to me.

T

[Dread_Pirate_Mel]

The contrast between the international and Canadian is very dramatic. I didn't realize until now the international is at dusk and the Canadian is at night.  And of course Basinger's outfit is very different. The Canadian emphasizes beauty while the international exudes sex appeal.

Also, the quality of the movie itself enhances its value. In retrospect, LA Confidential probably should have won the Oscar in 1997, just like Hurt Locker beat Avatar.  LA Confidential has retained its reputation while "Titanic fever" has faded.