May 2nd, 2016
This week the biggest releases are busted Oscar-bait, Joy; a post-apocalyptic young adult adaptation, The 5th Wave; and the latest from Nicholas Sparks, The Choice. Joy is worth at least a rental. The other two are not. There are no major releases that are contenders for Pick of the Week, so that title will go to a smaller release, East Side Sushi on DVD. It has earned unanimously positive reviews, but no buzz.
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March 4th, 2016
There's no limited release on this week's list that looks like a sure hit. Knight of Cups has the pedigree, but not the reviews. On the other hand, Emelie has excellent reviews, but it is playing on Video on Demand. Songs My Brothers Taught Me is a low key release, but maybe it will find a receptive audience in theaters.
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February 1st, 2015
It was a record-breaking January thanks entirely to American Sniper, which set records, both during its limited release run and especially when it expanded wide. There were a couple of other films that did well, but for the most part, it was a typical January. The question is, will American Sniper boost the overall box office, which would help February, or will its effects fade as it does? There are ten wide releases in February; there are a few films that may or may not open in the top ten. Of these, there are only two that have a real shot at true box office success. The biggest film in terms of buzz is Fifty Shades of Grey, which looks so, so bad. Personally, I would rather watch The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water a hundred times than sit through just the trailer for Fifty Shades of Grey. If Fifty Shades of Grey becomes the biggest hit of the month, it will mrean the end of civilization. Because. I. Will. End. Civilization. Last February was mostly mediocre, except for The LEGO Movie which was a huge early year hit. There's no chance any film opening this month will match The LEGO Movie; the top two films likely won't match The LEGO Movie. Because of this, 2015 will need to rely on depth to come out ahead. I'm not sure how likely that will be.
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October 21st, 2013
This week on the home market is... well... it's short. Last week, according to Amazon.com, there were 459 new releases or reissues. This week there are 161. Fortunately, there are a few releases of note, including The Conjuring, which pulled in more than $300 million worldwide on a production budget of just $20 million. Fortunately, it really deserved this success and the DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack are contenders for Pick of the Week. Other contenders include Before Midnight on DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack and The Way Way Back on DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack. In the end, it was literally a coin toss and The Conjuring won.
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September 2nd, 2013
From Up on Poppy Hill is the latest film from Studio Ghibli to reach our shores. The film opened in limited release earlier this year and became the first film released by GKIDS to cross $1 million. Can the film live up to Studio Ghibli's previous films? If not, is it still good in its own regard?
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June 7th, 2013
There are not a ton of new releases this week, but there are a few earning good reviews, and even a couple that are earning excellent reviews. Hopefully several will do well enough at the box office to thrive, but the only one I'm really bullish about is Much Ado About Nothing. It has excellent reviews, lots of buzz, and plenty of name recognition on both sides of the camera.
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