Limited and VOD Releases: Plenty of Tales that Need to be Told
April 22, 2016
There are several limited releases on this week's list, including three that have a shot at earning a spot in the top ten. However, the best-reviewed releases are among the smaller releases: Tale of Tales and The Meddler included. However, if you don't want to go out, Holidays is good bet on Video on Demand.
Compadres - Reviews
Elvis and Nixon - Reviews
Hockney - Reviews
Holidays - Reviews
A Hologram for the King - Reviews
Men and Chicken - Reviews
The Meddler - Reviews
Nina - Reviews
Sworn Virgin - Reviews
Tale of Tales - Reviews
Omar Chaparro plays an undercover Mexican cop who has infiltrated a drug cartel. However, his cover is blown, he's framed and the FBI want him, while his girlfriend was kidnapped. Now the only one who can help him is an American hacker, Joey Morgan. It's a buddy cop comedy aimed an an Hispanic audience. This audience is large, but underserved. The reviews are not good, but they are not bad either. It could have some break-out success and match its $3 million production budget during its theatrical run. Compadres opens tonight in 368 theaters.
This film is based on a real life events. It tells the story of when Elvis went to Nixon and asked to be an undercover FBI agent to be part of the War on Drugs. To repeat myself, this is based on real live events. The source material was begging to be made into a movie and the two leads give great performances, but most critics agree it doesn't reach the level it should. Still, worth checking out. Elvis and Nixon opens tonight in 381 theaters.
A documentary about David Hockney, who is considered the most influential British artist of the 20th century. He did live in the States for most of his career, so the usual target audience for documentaries should be familiar with his work and that should help its box office chances. Hockney opens tonight in four theaters.
Video on Demand
A horror anthology opening in limited release. Its reviews are good, but not great, while it is playing on VOD. There's no chance this film will find an audience in theaters. On the other hand, it could do very well on the home market and develop a cult following.
Tom Hanks stars as a businessman who travels to Saudi Arabia for what he hopes is the deal of a lifetime, but culture clash keeps getting in the way. The reviews are good, but not great, while the film is opening in 401 theaters. It could earn a place in the top ten with more than $1 million. It could also miss the Mendoza Line by a mile.
This movie is too weird to thrive, even in limited release. It's weird enough that I think it's best to not spoil anything. It's about two brothers who learn from their dead father's will that they are half-brothers and that they were adopted. They then travel to a small village to find out who their real father was. Men and Chicken opens tonight in two theaters, one in New York City and the other in Los Angeles, with planned expansions over the coming weeks. Check out the official site for more details.
When Susan Sarandon's husband dies, she decides to follow her daughter, Rose Byrne, from New York City to Los Angeles, so she can start a new life. The reviews are great and the cast is fantastic. This could be a sleeper hit in limited release. The Meddler opens tonight in four theaters, split evenly between New York City and the Los Angeles area.
A biopic of Nina Simone, a R&B singer. In the movie, she's played by Zoe Saldana, which caused a bit of controversy, as Zoe Saldana is a lot lighter than Nina Simone and some people thought this was a deliberate act to lighten Nina Simone and make her less Black. They decided to darken Zoe Saldana skin, but that just made things worse. Now that the reviews are in, this controversy is the least of the film's problems. Fortunately, it will likely be completely forgotten very soon.
Alba Rohrwacher plays Hanna, a woman who lives in a small town in Albania. The town has very traditional values when it comes to gender rolls, so in order to have any freedom, she has to take a vow of chastity and live as a man, Mark. While traveling to Italy, she experience freedom and decides to again live as Hanna. The reviews for this film are good, but likely not good enough to thrive in limited release. You can already pre-order the DVD.
This is an anthology movie set in three kingdoms. The reviews are excellent and the cast has better star power than most limited releases have. However, anthology movies tend to work better on the home market. Furthermore, this isn't even the only anthology film coming out this week. Still, out of all of the films on this list, this one intrigues me the most.
Filed under: Limited Releases, VOD Releases, Home Market Releases, A Hologram for the King, Elvis & Nixon, Nina, Il racconto dei racconti, The Meddler, Mænd og Høns, Compadres, Vergine giurata, Holidays, Hockney, Tom Hanks, Kevin Spacey, Rose Byrne, Zoe Saldana, Susan Sarandon, Michael Shannon, Omar Chaparro, Alba Rohrwacher, Joey Morgan