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Tuesday, November 24, 2009
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2009-01-20
A terrible week for first run releases. There are five such releases on this week's list, but they has a combined haul of around $130 million, and nearly $100 million of that came from two films. With no big releases, we had to look other places for the DVD Pick of the Week. Repo! The Genetic Opera on Blu-ray is a clear contender for that title, but its lack of mass appeal is troublesome. This American Life - Season Two is a safer pick, but it is a Borders Exclusive release. Regardless of these issues, both releases are worthy of the DVD Pick of the Week. Despite the weakness at the top, there are still more than enough total releases to cause this column to stretch into two parts. The second part can be found here.
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2006-06-19
It may seem like a really slow week for DVD releases, but this is because several releases were grouped together. I have one section for the five Alfred Hitchcock releases instead of spreading them out and padding the word count. Taking that into account, the week is about average in terms of quantity, and quality. There were a handful of contenders this week, and a few that looked good in advance but the special feature were a let down. In the end I went with NewsRadio - The Complete Fourth Season as the best of the best while Married With Children - The Complete Fifth Season earns and honorable mention. ... "Go with him." (If you get that reference, you probably already have the latter release pre-ordered.)
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2004-06-14
Every week films get a second chance at success from the home market; or, in some cases, a first chance at success. This is the worst week for DVDs since the beginning of February. There's not one, not two, but FIVE DVDs that were in contention for the DVD Pick of the week. And with all but one from the TV on DVD section, this is going to be a very expensive week for me. Even if I don't buy groceries for the week I'll still need to trim the list by a couple. Go with Dead Like Me - The Complete First Season - Buy from Amazon, Monk - The Complete First Season - Buy from Amazon and The Thin Blue Line - The Complete Line-Up - Buy from Amazon. Maybe I can sell some blood to pick up The Simpsons - The Complete Fourth Season - Buy from Amazon and The Station Agent - Buy from Amazon. Maybe if I sell a kidney I can get a whole new home theatre system as well. [Editor's Note: He's joking ... we think.]
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2004-05-18
In addition to the $46.9 million Troy earned at the domestic box office, the ancient history movie made $54.7 million on 6,722 screens in 47 markets internationally. Some highlights were the $8.5 million in Germany, $6.3 million in Spain, $5.1 million in France and $4.7 million in Australia. And while a $107 million opening weekend seems spectacular, this is a very expensive film to get to theatres. Combine the production budget, domestic P&A budgets, translations / dubbing / subtitles, etc. and the final cost is nearing $250 million. On the plus side, Troy should have better legs and more international appeal than Van Helsing so Warner Bros. should see a profit before the home market. P.S. If this story sounds familiar, you must have a long memory.
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2004-05-11
In addition to the $51.7 million Van Helsing earned at the domestic box office, the monster movie made $55.3 million on 5,254 screens in 41 markets internationally. Not only was that easily the largest box office this weekend, but it was the best we've seen this year. Some highlights were the $9.9 million in the U.K. and $7 million in Germany. And while a $107 million opening weekend seems spectacular, this is a very expensive film to get to theatres. Combine the production budget, domestic P&A budgets, translations / dubbing / subtitles, etc. and the final cost is nearing $250 million. A strong home market will be needed before Universal sees a profit.
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2004-05-04
After a huge start in the international market, there was a series a steep drops for Kill Bill: Volume 2 that all but guarantees it won't earn as much as the original. Drops like 51% in Germany, 46% in Italy helped push the weekend total down to just $10 million in 27 markets.
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2004-04-27
Kill Bill: Volume 2's first foray into the foreign markets proved very profitable. The film earned $18.5 million in 21 markets and increases compared to the debut of the original in all but one market. Many of those increases were in the double-digit range so it's an impressive start. Unfortunately, one of the largest markets for the first film, Japan, saw a huge 47% drop for Volume 2. This can easily be explained by the fact that half of Volume 1 took place in Japan.
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2004-04-20
The Passion of the Christ saw large drop-offs in many international markets but openings in nine others helped stabilize its overall box office. Maybe. I'm getting some conflicting reports on the box office figures. $14.6 or $25 is the two prevailing estimates I've found. I do believe the $25 million is for the whole week while the $14.6 million is for the weekend.
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2004-04-13
It was hardly a surprise that The Passion of the Christ was able to take top spot over Easter weekend. What is a surprise is the amount; just $26 million is barely an increase from last weekend. There was only one new opening, but it was in Italy, one of the most staunchly Catholic nations. The film did cross $100 million internationally some time during the mid-week, but a serious post-Easter drop-off is expected.
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2004-03-08
Another good news bad new weekend. Bad news, the total box office was down 8% from last weekend. Good new, it was up 31% from last year. Good news, 2004 has finally surpassed 2003 year-to-date. Bad news, that's due to inflation as admissions are still lower. Really bad news, the jump is thanks entirely to one movie, or the controversy surrounding one movie.
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2004-03-05
We haven't seen two film open with strong prospects since the beginning of February. And with last week's winner still going strong, 2004 should pass 2003 at the box office.
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2004-03-01
There was some good news and some bad news this past weekend. First the good news, we saw huge increases at the box office this weekend, both from the previous weekend, (66%) and from last year (48%). Now the bad news; it was all thanks to one movie, which doesn't bode well for the overall strength of the box office. In fact, even after last weekend 2004 is still 3% back of 2003's pace.
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2004-02-27
Thanks to the controversy surrounding The Passions of the Christ, 2004 should finally start making up some ground on 2003. Even with the Oscars on Sunday 2003, Passions alone will boost the box office. But the other three movies probably wouldn't even register on the radar during a normal weekend.
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2004-02-23
2004 is turning into a disaster. Over the weekend four movies opened to a combined 21% positive and $10 million below expectations. Post holiday weekends are usually a bit of a slump, but this weekend dropped by nearly 25% and below the $100 million mark. Compared to last year the weekend is down an astounding 17.5% and 10% year to date. And the news doesn't get any better; next weekend the box office has to go head-to-head with the Oscars.
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2004-02-20
Well, it had to happen, after a great start to February first critically and then financially, it all comes crashing down this weekend. Four movies open wide this weekend and none of them impressing critics and neither do they have much of a shot at a stellar box office. On the plus side, this weekend last year was weak, so we should see 2004 gain some ground on 2003. Or at least do better than the nearly 9% year to date decline.
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2004-02-19
The rerelease of the French musical Umbrellas of Cherbourg topped this week's per theatre average chart with $14,760 in its lone theatre. Three other films very close to each other battling for second place. The overall champ, 50 First Dates finished a strong second with $11,098 in almost 3600 theatres. While Osama spent its second weekend on the list with $10,151. The final film to top $10,000 was the self-distributed Robot Stories. Despite having a tiny distribution budget, the Science Fiction anthology sold out four showings on its way to earning $10,026 in it only theatre.
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2004-02-18
Mixed would be the best way to describe the weekend results. With the exception of the number one film, all movies beat Friday's predictions. However, the overall box office was again failed to match last year's pace. Valentine's Day and President's Day helped the 3-day total increase by more than 10% from last weekend, but it was down 14% from last year. The four-day total fared better, but by a barely noticeable margin dropping 13%.
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2004-02-13
With both Valentine's Day and President's Day occurring this weekend, there are twice as many reasons to see a movie. And with only one movie opening wide, it should open huge. Holdovers should also perform well given the extra day, but they will have a hard time living up to last year.
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2004-02-12
During the past week promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here the list of this week's releases, a couple of new sites and few updates including the winner for the week, Eternal. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
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2004-02-09
February started out strong, at least compared to January, with two of the three wide releases performing strongly. And even though we saw a sharp 17% increase from last weekend, 2004 continues losing ground to 2003. It fell 8% from last same weekend last year and maintaining its year to date decline of 8%. And next week 50 First Dates will need a near record performance lest 2004 drop even further back.
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2004-01-08
During the past week promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. This week we have a larger list to make up for the holidays, but a winter storm took out my internet access on Tuesday / Wednesday so the column is a little late today. Here the list of new releases, updated sites, and some upcoming releases that slipped through the cracks, including the winner for the week Along Came Polly - Official Site . If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
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2003-11-06
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
50 First Dates
Current Content: The trailer was added.
Against the Ropes
Current Content: This first thing I noticed about this site was how idealistic it was. 'A boxer's manager has his best interests at heart.' Obviously they've never heard of boxing manager who shall remain nameless. This site has a more information on boxing than on the movie itself. Different punches, training methods, the role of coaches and managers, etc. The usual movie related features are all there, synopsis, trailer, cast and crew bios. But read carefully, there is a quiz. One problem with the site, while there is background music, the looping is a little jarring and is not as smooth as it should be.
Alien vs. Predator
Current Content: The redirect was replaced by a placeholder site, which has not only the teaser trailer but some behind the scenes with writer-director Paul W.S. Anderson. It was great to see Paul W.S. Anderson was a fan of the films before he started work on the project. While a fresh face with new ideas can sometimes help more often than not being a fan of the source material is an invaluable aid. There are also three posters you can download, one teaser, one alien and one predator.
Calendar Girls
Current Content: After having the same site up for months, the site was completely redesigned this week. And while the design is new, most of the content is the same. However, the background music now loops which is an improvement.
Cat in the Hat
Current Content: The flash site went live this week and while it certainly has energy, it doesn't feel enough like Dr. Seuss to me. The site does have all the usual features, plus some fun extras like the time-lapse photography of the set being built. There's also lots of games for the kids to play, including a couple marked coming soon. Not a bad site per say, but it doesn't have the right feel.
The Day After Tomorrow
Current Content: So far only the trailer is on the flash site, but the film doesn't open till memorial day so that's not surprising.
Elf
Current Content: Two more features were added just in time for its release tomorrow, two video clips and an Etch-a-Sketch.
Girl With a Pearl Earring
Current Content: The flash site launched this week, and the site has the usual features (synopsis, trailer, cause and crew bios, production notes, image gallery) and its well done. There is a lot of information about the artist Johannes Vermeer, however, most of that information is off site. There are nice animated transitions and good background music, but nothing that makes the site stand out.
Gothika
Current Content: Most of what was previously marked coming soon, (production note and bios) were added this week. That just leaves the two film clips, but there's a good chance they won't be added till after the movie premieres in two weeks. This sit is still one of the creepiest I've reviewed and deservedly won the weekly website award when it launched not too long ago.
The Haunted Mansion
Current Content: More was to the site, mostly in the Visit the Mansion Tour section. I was a bit disappointed with this section; it was less interactive than I had hoped. There's still a lot marked coming soon, (production notes, behind the scenes, screen savers, winamp skins, and clips.)
Hellboy
Current Content: Hellboy is a comic book that most people have probably never heard of. So it makes sense that the site has character bios, background stories, etc. Like A.v.P., it was nice too see the videos that show how much the main people involved wanted to do the movie. There quite a few animation heavy sections like the B.P.R.D. Here you can check out Hellboy's home with a couple more areas marked coming soon, well 'Access Denied', but I think that means the same thing.
The Last Samurai
Current Content: A new flash site replaced the old, and while this one has more content even more is marked coming soon. It has the usual features plus what appears to be a lot of behind the scenes information marked coming soon. This includes interviews, script to screen, etc.
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Current Content: The latest poster was added, which can also be sent as an e-card. Also, a great deal of information on Minas Tirith was added, some of it text, but also in video form.
Love Actually
Current Content: Just in time for its premiere tomorrow, the last TV Spots was added. This site has already won the Weekly Website Award and still richly deserves it.
The Matrix Revolutions
Current Content: Huge update this week to celebrate the film's opening yesterday. Warning, a lot of this stuff was held back till after the release cause it contains many, many spoilers. There's just too much added to go into great detail, but the site itself has a breakdown of what's new. So check it out right away.
Mona Lisa Smile
Current Content: The flash site launched but the bast majority of the content is still marked coming soon. The site does have synopsis, trailer, image gallery and character bios. But production notes, cast and crew bios and four additional sections (challenge, living, legacy, your story) are all marked coming soon. Launching a site this way can be a good way to keep people coming back for more, week after week.
The Perfect Score
Current Content: The redirect was replaced with a placeholder site. So far just the trailer is there, but that should change soon.
Peter Pan
Current Content: New trailer was added.
The Punisher
Current Content: This is a site you have to keep coming back to. Things change and sometimes in subtle ways. For instance, all the items on the desk have been changed. Right now there's just a few images of briefing documents and a video camera. When you click the video camera it just says, 'Access Denied.' But by next week, when Apple.com has had a few more days of exclusive internet distribution of the new trailer it will be added to the site. This is an excellent site because when I first started hearing details about the movie I wasn't that impressed. But the more I see of the site, the more interested in the movie I become.
Shrek 2
Current Content: The placeholder site was replaced by another placeholder site. This one with realistic belching. Oh yeah, and the trailer.
Teacher's Pet
Current Content: Placeholder site with just the trailer.
Timeline
Current Content: Major update and most of the 1357 features were added. The 1357 features are broken down into three section, each of which has two or three subsections, each of which has one or more choices. That's a lot of content to get through. So fortunately much of it is still marked coming soon. The first feature is The Battlefield; it talks about battle tactics, (a Q&A session with the film's sword master) weapon details (marked coming soon) and concept art and interviews (also marked coming soon.) Second is The Castle with a Donnor Interview (marked coming soon) and more concept art (also marked coming soon.) The last section is La Dordogne and it deals with behind the scenes with production notes and feturettes, (two of which are marked coming soon, as is the IPix.) La Dordogne also has a Challenge the enemy game, which you have to explore the site before you can play. Each of these sub-subsections also has some images in the form of photos, wallpapers, ipix, AIM icons, etc. Obviously one of the biggest sites reviewed this week. If you are into medieval times, this site is a must. Even if you are not, it is still worthy of the venerated Weekly Website Award.
Tupac: Resurrection
Current Content: Another flash site that launched this week and it's quite bare. Synopsis, trailer, crew bios are there. But there's not enough on the music, which should be a main focus of the site.
Troy
Current Content: Another redirect that was replaced by a placeholder site. This one has the synopsis, poster and an image gallery and promises to have the trailer tomorrow.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-10-30
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
50 First Dates
Current Content: Placeholder site with no content.
The Alamo
Current Content: The flash site was launched just in time for the movie's release to be delayed, so don't expect many updates till we're closer to April of next year. So far the site has the regular features, synopsis, trailer, cast and crew bios, image gallery. And a few extras like a Educator's Guide, (in Adobe Acrobat format) and others marked coming soon like Behind the Scenes and Screen Savers. There's also animated segues and sound effects, but no background music.
Alien: The Director's Cut
Current Content: The movie opened in a few hundred theatres yesterday, but the modern reviews have not been added yet..
Alien vs. Predator
Current Content: Redirects you to the Fox movie page. But the teaser trailer is available at Apple.com.
The Barbarian Invasions
Current Content: Typical Miramax site with the trailer marked coming soon.
Dirt
Current Content: Simple site with just the synopsis, trailer, cast bios and a few reviews. Outside the intro and the trailer there is no sound or animation, which is too bad since the quirky nature of the film would lend itself perfectly to a flashier site.
The Human Stain
Current Content: Typical Miramax site.
Looney Tunes: Back in Action
Current Content: Flash site launched and it definitely the most fun site this week. Most of the content is there to entertain, not inform you about the movie. In fact, they don't even have a synopsis yet. They do have the trailer, along with two cartoons, plenty of images, sound clips, descriptions of all the major characters, acme gadget, spy car, etc. There are also seven small games to play. Information on the soundtrack is marked coming soon; and when that section is added hopefully so will some background music. There is also a decided lack of subtly with product placements that is a problem. Even so, this site wins this week's whimsical Weekly Website Awards.
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Current Content: Just in time for Halloween, monster wallpaper and e-cards were added.
Love Actually
Current Content: The first of two TV Spots was added this week.
Love Don't Cost a Thing
Current Content: A new placeholder site was launched with less content as the last placeholder site. But the flash site is marked coming soon.
The Matrix Revolutions
Current Content: The cast and crew bios were added.
Paycheck
Current Content: Placeholder site with just the synopsis, trailer and image gallery.
The Perfect Score
Current Content: Just a redirect to Paramount's movie page.
Shattered Glass
Current Content: The movie opens in limited release this weekend and the new website was also launched. The site has the usual features including synopsis, trailer, cast bios and crew list (no bios.) There's also a learning guide (in Adobe Acrobat format) and a message board. There's also background music for the opening, but as soon as you enter the main site it stops.
Spider-Man 2
Current Content: A new poster was added to the site this week.
Troy
Current Content: Another redirect.
Submitted by:
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