The Soloist Notes

Cinema Verdict

On this page, they point out several things to do with the film that may have affected the draw to the film. For example, it points out the use of a high-profile cast, mainly Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx, and that the film is based on a true story. While, more often than not, the "truth" aspect of a story can draw people in, it doesn't seem to have done that in this case - probably due to the recession going on at the time, and the preference of people to go see films for escapism rather than empathy.

It also points out that the story being told by the trailers wasn't representative of the actual story, which could have potentially detracted from the overall attraction that the film had, having not had it's interest plot being correctly pitched to the audience.

Another point that may have detracted from it's attraction was the fact that Jamie Foxx could be seen to blatantly overacting for an award nomination, at least according to this source. In others they speak of how the cast seem to be emotionally connected in a realistic way, so I don't know if this is true (having not seen it myself).

Wikipedia (because everyone loves Wikipedia)

The film was written by Susannah Grant, who based the script on a true story, and she's written a couple of successful in the past - such as Charlotte's Web and Erin Brockovich - but isn't particularly well-known, especially for this type of film, which could have had the opposite effect than what they wanted. Rather than a good director attracting an audience, it seems to have had no effect on the type of person that came to see it - or it may have done, and fans of Charlotte's Web may not have liked this kind of film at all.

The film also had a director in the same vein as the writer - having a couple of well-known projects done previously, but their name not being terribly famous. At least to my mind, Pride and Prejudice  and Atonement are the only ones that seem to be very memorable.

Rolling Stones

In this review, it says that the movie got sidetracked by social activism, which may have damaged the immersion of the audience, and that the film isn't about big moments, but rather smaller moments - despite the seemingly calming effect this may have, not many people like films with no crescendos, so this may have detracted somewhat from the film's reviews.

Summary

• High profile cast may have helped attract an audience, though probably not the one they wanted, because these actors aren't really known for this kind of genre
• The film is based on a true story, which, in a time of recession, may have detracted from it's attraction
• The trailers were misleading, so it may have attracted the wrong audience, rather than the one it had wanted to get.
• Jamie Foxx in particular overacted, which again may have damaged the thoughts people had about the films direction
• The script was written by someone not particularly well-known or amazing, which may have detracted from the quality / attraction of the film
• The film was directed by Joe Wright, again, not too well-known, and with not many great past projects, so that may have detracted somewhat from the quality of the film.
• The script gets sidetracked with social activism, which may break immersion at some point or another, forcing the audience to realize they're watching a film
• The film doesn't have great moments, but little ones - this may detract from how interesting the overall experience is for the audience, rather than having the effect they intended.