September 19th, 2013
New releases were even worse on the July 7th, 2013 edition of the Blu-ray sales chart than they were on the DVD sales chart. Leading the way was Despicable Me with 88,000 units / $1.23 million for the week and 2.35 million units / $58.37 million after more than two-and-a-half years of release. This puts it just outside of the top 20 on the All-Time Blu-ray Chart, and it has already made it there as of the writing of this column.
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August 21st, 2013
There were five new releases to reach the chart on the June 23rd, 2013 edition of the Blu-ray sales chart, but most of them missed the top five. Jack the Giant Slayer earned first place with 234,000 units / $5.42 million, giving it an opening week Blu-ray share of 42%. This is acceptable, but not great.
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July 29th, 2013
There were a lot of new releases on the Blu-ray sales chart this week. This includes Oz the Great and Powerful, which led the way with 472,000 units / $13.21 million during its first week of release. Its opening week Blu-ray share was 46%, which is a good start for a visually impressive adventure film.
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July 29th, 2013
New releases earned the top three spots on the DVD sales chart, but there was only one other to earn a spot in the top 30. Oz the Great and Powerful earned first place with 549,000 units / $9.97 million, which is a good result, given the time of year.
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July 3rd, 2013
While there were a lot of new releases this week, none of them were monster hits and this hurt the overall market. Sadly, overall Blu-ray sales were better than last week at 1.03 million / $23.85 million. This is 33% higher in terms of units and 30% higher in terms of revenue. On the other hand, compared to last year, this is 20% lower in terms of units and 23% in terms of revenue. DVD sales did much, much worse, leading to an overall Blu-ray share of 46% in terms of units and 53% in terms of revenue.
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July 3rd, 2013
The top five of the Blu-ray sales chart this week were nearly all new releases, including the first place Blu-ray, A Good Day Die Hard. This film sold 316,000 units and generated $5.86 million for an opening week Blu-ray share of 58%. That's an excellent Blu-ray share, but the film missed expectations pretty much everywhere else. Meanwhile, the Legacy Box Set placed eighth with 17,000 units / $667,000.
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July 3rd, 2013
New releases grabbed the top six spots on the DVD sales chart this week, but mainly due to a lack of competition, as there were no monster hits. These new releases were led by Identity Thief with 362,000 units / $6.25 million. It performed surprisingly well in theaters, so this result is pure gravy.
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June 23rd, 2013
We are in the heart of summer, which means terrible news on the home market. There were nearly no new releases to make an impact on the Blu-ray sales chart, so it should come as no surprise that the overall Blu-ray sales were weak. In total, there were 779,000 units sold and $18.33 million in revenue generated. This was higher than last week, albeit by miniscule margins of 4% in terms of units and 11% in terms of revenue. It was also higher than the same weekend last year, and by healthier margins of 42% in terms of units and 15% in terms of revenue. DVD sales were a little stronger compared to last week, which resulted in a small decline in the overall Blu-ray share to 28% in terms of units and 37% in terms of revenue.
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June 20th, 2013
The winners of our Like Father Like Son contest were determined and they are...
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June 18th, 2013
It's another typical summer week on the home market. That is to say, it's a bad week on the home market. There are several first-run releases, the biggest of which was Jack the Giant Killer, which bombed at the box office. There are some limited releases that help the overall quality, but it is still a bad week. As far as Pick of the Week candidates go, Quartet on DVD or Blu-ray is the best choice. One could argue it is the only choice, but there are three Criterion Collection releases that are worth checking out, as well as some horror films, both old and new, that should please genre fans. On a side note, there are six Disney Channel releases on this week's list. That's a little strange.
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June 16th, 2013
The Die Hard franchise has been around for 25 years. The first Die Hard film cost less than $30 million to make, but earned $80 million. This is $150 million, if you take into inflation. The most recent installment was Live Free or Die Hard, which didn't quite live up to expectations. A lot of people thought that perhaps the franchise was running out of steam, or perhaps it was just a product of its times and it was no longer relevant today. Was A Good Day to Die Hard able to revitalize the franchise? Or is there something seriously wrong here?
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June 7th, 2013
Next weekend is Father's Day and as such we have a Father's Day related prizes: Really ugly ties! No, it's A Good Day to Die Hard, which is a father and son action film. But first we have to come up with a target film. Fortunately there's a really easy choice there. This is the End is the counter-programming and will be playing in less than 3,000 theaters, while Man of Steel is debuting in more than 4,000 theaters. As I said, it's an easy choice to make. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Man of Steel.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a copy of A Good Day to Die Hard on Blu-ray Combo Pack.
Meanwhile, whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will also win a copy of A Good Day to Die Hard on Blu-ray Combo Pack.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
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June 5th, 2013
The winners of our Scarred for Life contest were determined and they are...
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June 4th, 2013
It's a typical summer week on the home market with a good mix of first run releases and some summer TV shows coming out on DVD and Blu-ray. There are certainly some releases that are worth picking up, but nothing that will set sell records. Overall, it is solid, but unspectacular. There were a few contenders for Pick of the Week. Breaking Bad: Season Five on DVD or Blu-ray, but it is a split-season release and I'm not happy with the price-per-minute. By comparons, The Newsroom: Season One, which comes out next week, is nearly twice as long but only 25% more money. Brooklyn Castle is another contender; however, while its DVD is certainly worth picking up, I'm not sure it will have wide enough appeal. In the end, I went with Warm Bodies. It may seem like a strange choice, but it is still one of the best wide releases of the year and the DVD and the Blu-ray are loaded with extras.
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May 13th, 2013
There are not a lot of new releases on the home market this week, and there are very few that are prime releases. The best-selling release is Dexter: Season Seven on Blu-ray, which is worth picking up, but the lack of extras prevents it from being the Pick of the Week. For that I'm going with a lesser known title, The Unbelievable Truth, which is coming out on DVD and Blu-ray this week.
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March 28th, 2013
The Croods debuted in first place on the international chart with $63.09 million on 11,709 screens in 46 markets, while its global opening was $106.73 million. The film led the way in Russia with $7.82 million on 2,166 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $12.65 million, including previews. It made $8.18 million on 521 screens in the U.K., also including previews, which was enough for an easy first place finish. Another first place victory came in Mexico, where it made $4.51 million on 1,990 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $8.80 million. It also debuted on top of the chart in Germany with $3.63 million on 728 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $4.21 million, while it had nearly identical results in Brazil with $3.35 million on 728 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $4.13 million. The film earned more number one debuts in Italy ($3.90 million on 711) and in Spain ($3.33 million on 763).
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March 21st, 2013
Oz the Great and Powerful remained in first place with $48.2 million on 10,433 screens in 55 markets for totals of $138.6 million internationally and $282.7 million worldwide. The film took top spot in France with a hair under $5.00 million on 620 screens. During its second weekend in Russia, the film added $4.93 million on 1,137 screens for a total of $21.63 million so far. At this pace, it should have no trouble earning a profit. The only question is whether or not it will get there before it reaches the home market.
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March 15th, 2013
Oz the Great and Powerful began its international run in first place with $69.2 million on 11,250 screens in 46 markets. It crushed the competition is Russia with $14.65 million on 1,137 screens, but this particular market tends to reward fantasy films. It wasn't quite as strong in the U.K., but still earned first place with $5.53 million on 530 screens. It also topped the charts in Mexico ($5.26 million on 207 screens); in Australia ($4.88 million on 268); in Brazil ($4.39 million 732); Italy ($3.76 million 588); Germany ($3.74 million on 548); and in Spain ($2.62 million on 649). On the other hand, it had to settle for second place in Japan with $2.81 million on 584 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $3.50 million. It could do no better than fourth in South Korea with $1.58 million on 425 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $1.73 million. It is too soon to tell where it will end up, but this is a good start.
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March 6th, 2013
Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons earned first place for the third weekend in a row earning $23.37 million in 8 markets for a running tally of $193.09 million. A few years ago, a Chinese film earning nearly $200 million would have been the biggest news of the year, but this is becoming almost common.
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February 28th, 2013
A Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons remained in first place with $54.93 million in 6 markets for a total of $168.02 million after three weeks of release. It is the biggest Chinese film released this year, but it won't be the last to get to the century mark.
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February 25th, 2013
The Oscars proved to be too much competition for the new releases as neither Snitch nor Dark Skies were able to find much success. Indeed, it was Identity Thief that rose to top spot in its third week of release. Most films in the top five were able to at least match expectations, but the overall box office still plummeted 27% from last weekend to just $103 million. The comparison to last year was not quite as bad, but it was still down by a stunning 23%. Ouch. 2013 is now behind 2012 by a full $100 million or 6.7% at $1.41 billion to $1.51 billion.
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February 22nd, 2013
The winners of our Yippee-ki-yay! contest were determined and they are...
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February 21st, 2013
There are just two wide releases coming out this week, Snitch and Dark Skies. Most analysts think Snitch is the stronger of the two films, but most also think Identity Thief will return to top spot. Looking at all of the evidence, it certainly seems that way. Unless one of the new releases is a truly big surprise, it looks like we won't keep pace with last year again this weekend. 2013 needed to get off to a really fast start, because there's no film that's going to match The Hunger Games, and once we are dealing with that film in the year-over-year comparison, 2013 might be sunk for good.
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February 21st, 2013
Thanks to the Chinese New Year, Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons rocketed into first place with $94.26 million in 5 markets over the weekend for a total run of $113.09 million. The film broke a number of records in its native China, including biggest opening day for a Chinese film ($12.3 million) and biggest single day of all time ($19.6 million) and fastest to $100 million in China (8 days). At this point, someone in North America should be interested in grabbing the film for a domestic release.
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February 20th, 2013
The Valentine's Day / President's Day five-day weekend wasn't as lucrative as many had hoped, at least not at the top, which is really bad news for a year that is not off to a great start. A Good Day to Die Hard won the race, but barely, with Identity Thief coming in a very close second over the weekend. Other new releases, like Safe Haven and Escape From Planet Earth did better than expected, while Beautiful Creatures crashed. The overall box office did rise by 36% to $141 million over the three-day period, but the holiday explains that growth. Compare to last year, 2013 actually failed to match last President's Day by 9.3% over the three-day period and with $168 million including Monday, missed the four-day period by 13%. Year-to-date, 2013 is behind 2012 by 6.7% at $1.28 billion to $1.37 billion. I am officially concerned.
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February 17th, 2013
President's Day weekend will end with a win and a solid opening for A Good Day to Die Hard, based on studio estimates released on Sunday, but it'll be a close run thing. Safe Haven was a predictable winner on Valentine's Day but has faded fast and is projected to earn $21.4 million Friday-Sunday for third place. Second place is going to be claimed by Identity Thief with about $23.4 million over three days, during which time it has steadily caught up with Die Hard, so much so that it has a good chance of winning the day on Monday. The Bruce Willis actioner will, however, get to claim the title for the weekend with a respectable $25 million for three days and close to $40 million in total by the end of Monday.
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February 14th, 2013
It's Valentine's Day today, while Monday is President's Day, so the box office has an unofficial five-day weekend. There's not much of a mystery regarding which of the four wide releases will top the chart this weekend, as nearly everyone expects A Good Day to Die Hard will come out on top. Maybe Safe Haven will earn first place tonight, but very few expect that will last after Valentine's day. Despite earning better than expected reviews, Beautiful Creatures isn't expected to compete for the top spot, or even second place. So far there are no reviews for Escape From Planet Earth and it might be stuck in fifth place. Because of a misalignment in Valentine's Day, we should do better this weekend compared to the same weekend last year, which is good news, as 2013 is in a mini-slump.
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February 14th, 2013
For the third weekend in a row, Django Unchained earned first place on the international chart. This weekend it earned $19.55 million on 5,090 screens in 65 markets for totals of $187.71 million internationally and $342.23 million worldwide. It has now made more than Inglourious Basterds made worldwide, and it is a week away from becoming Quentin Tarantino's undisputed biggest hit of his career. Plus, it has yet to open in Japan and a few other markets, so it might have more milestones ahead.
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February 12th, 2013
It was a great week at the box office, all things considered, with Identity Thief crushing expectations and all of the holdovers matching theirs. Only Side Effects struggled at the box office. This helped the overall box office climb 18% from last week to $104 million. This was 47% lower than the same weekend last year; however, this weekend last year was Valentine's weekend, which is one of the biggest non-holiday weekends of the year, so the comparison isn't fair. As I predicted last week, the lead 2013 had built up has evaporated and it is now 1.2% lower than 2012 at $1.05 billion to $1.06 billion. Since Valentine's Day is this Thursday, we should make up the difference quickly.
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February 8th, 2013
Valentine's Day is next week, to be more specific, it is on Thursday. Going to the movies is such an iconic date, it makes sense romantic movies like Safe Haven and Beautiful Creatures are opening that day. I'm not even surprised a family film like Escape From Planet Earth is opening, because it gives families something to do. I'm a little more concerned about A Good Day to Die Hard. While it is the odd one out, it still should win the weekend box office race and it is the target film for this week's box office prediction contest. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for A Good Day to Die Hard.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a copy of Bonanza: Season Five on DVD.
Meanwhile, whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will win a copy of Gunsmoke: Season Seven, Volume Two on DVD.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
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February 1st, 2013
For the most part, January was a really good month and 2013 got off to a really good start. I'm not so sure about February, on the other hand. There's only one film that has a statistically significant shot at $100 million, A Good Day to Die Hard, but I'm a little concerned that it won't live up to expectations. The franchise has been around a long time and it is possible that the target audience has either moved on or are too young to remember when these films were huge at the box office. The film I'm most looking forward to seeing is Warm Bodies, which is earning amazing early reviews (the keyword there is "early"), but it is too high-concept to be a major hit. Last February, there were a couple of films that topped $100 million, plus a few other midlevel hits. I would like to think that would also be the case this year, but I have to be more cautious than that. The evidence points to a weak month ahead, for the most part.
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December 18th, 2012
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey had a record-breaking start on IMAX earning $15.1 million on 452 screens worldwide, which is the best ever December opening for the format. The worldwide total was split $10.1 million on 326 screens domestically and $5 million on 126 screens internationally.
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