February 22nd, 2015
The Independent Spirit Awards winners were announced last night and there were few surprises. Birdman led the way with 3 wins, but it wasn't the only film to come away with more than one award.
More...
February 2nd, 2015
It is a slow week on the home market, and will remain a slow week until the winter blockbusters start coming out. According to Amazon.com, this week the biggest release is John Wick. Granted, the Blu-ray Combo Pack is Pick of the Week material, but the film only made $43 million at the box office, so it likely won't sell a lot on the home market. The other two contenders for Pick of the Week are The Overnighters on DVD or Blu-ray and Dear White People - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray. Are three are worth picking up. The Overnighters is arguably the best, but I love the Film Noir style in John Wick, so I'm awarding that one the Pick of the Week.
More...
December 6th, 2014
The Independent Spirit Awards nominations were announced last week and I'm getting to them a little late, because I needed to organize the whole Awards Season stories. Firstly, I've decided to use the year the movies were released not the year the awards are handed out, unlike what we did last year. This means both will have 2014 as the year. Not ideal, but it is better to fix the mistake now than carry on making it. Secondly, the headlines are just going to be the name of the Awards and either nominations or winners. This will make it easier for readers to find later on. As for the Independent Spirit Awards nominations, Birdman led the way with 6 nods, while Boyhood, Nightcrawler, and Selma were right behind with 5 each.
More...
November 12th, 2014
There were four films in the $10,000 club, including The Theory of Everything, which led the way with an average of $41,753 in five theaters. This is high enough to make some measure of mainstream success nearly inevitable. Up next were a pair of wide releases. Big Hero 6 earned an average of $14,947, while Interstellar was right behind with an average of $13,342. The final film in the $10,000 club was National Gallery, which earned $10,049 in one theater over the weekend for a total opening of $13,165.
More...
November 5th, 2014
For the third weekend in a row, Birdman led the per theater chart. In fact, this week it was the only one in the $10,000 club earning an average of $10,348 in 231 screens. At this point, the film has already earned some measure of mainstream success, while it still has room to grow.
More...
October 28th, 2014
Despite growing its theater count to 50, Birdman was able to remain in top spot on the per theater chart with a powerful average of $27,593. Next up was CitizenFour, which was really close behind with an average of $25,264 in five theaters. This is excellent for a documentary, but as a documentary, it's chances of expanding significantly are limited. Laggies will likely expand somewhat after opening with an average of $14,828, also in five theaters. It has a much more mainstream appeal, so it if does expand, it could do well. Then again, this is never an easy strategy and I'm sure the studio will be happy with a strong home market run. Force Majeure was the final film in the $10,000 club with an average of $11,655 in two theaters.
More...
October 21st, 2014
Birdman debuted in first place on the Per Theater Chart with an amazing average of $106,099. This is the best per theater average since The Grand Budapest Hotel opened with just over $200,000 for its per theater average. It wasn't the only film in the $10,000 club, as Dear White People opened with an average of $31,633 in eleven theaters. The Tale of Princess Kaguya was surprisingly strong during its opening weekend earning an average of $18,305 in three theaters. God the Father earned $15,037 in one theater. The final film in the $10,000 club was Listen Up Philip, which earned an average of $11,642 in two theaters. Diplomacy might have made it in the $10,000 club if it opened on Friday. However, it opened on Wednesday earning $8,518 in one theater over the weekend for a total opening of $12,750.
More...
October 19th, 2014
Fury will top the box office chart this weekend with a solid, but unspectacular, $23.5 million, according to Sony’s Sunday morning estimate. Pre-weekend projections had the film closer to $30 million, and with an $80 million price tag, and Brad Pitt starring, the film is really underperforming at this point. By way of comparison, Gone Girl opened with $37.5 million three weeks ago. Fury will need really good legs, or a really strong performance overseas, to post a profit.
More...
October 17th, 2014
It's an excellent week for limited releases with several films earning overwhelmingly positive reviews. This includes a couple that are also earning really loud buzz. Of these, Birdman is probably going to win the weekend race on the Per Theater Chart, while Dear White People should also be a hit. Diplomacy, Housebound, The Tale of Princess Kaguya, and others also deserve to find audiences, but not all will do so for various reasons (wrong genre, opening in Video on Demand, etc.).
More...