November 1st, 2018
October continued 2018’s phenomenal box office run, for the most part. There were a couple of films that missed expectations by $10 million or more, but on the other hand, Vemon and Halloween were smash hits and are now the first and second biggest October debuts of all time. Furthermore, 2018’s lead over 2017 is, as I’m writing this, just shy of $1 billion and if 2018 can maintain this lead, it will be one of the biggest year-over-year increases of all time. It won’t. The fun times end now. Why is that? Last November was amazing. There were only eight wide releases, but six of them earned more than $100 million. Three of those hit $200 million, including Thor: Ragnarok, which earned over $300 million. This year, there are a lot more movies opening in November, but it is a case of quantity over quality. No movie is expected to come close to $300 million and it would take a bit of luck just to have five $100 million hits. The film I’m looking forward to the most is Ralph Breaks the Internet, while it, Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch, and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald are all aiming for $200 million this month. Fortunately, even if 2018 is behind 2017’s pace by around $300 million, 2018 has built up such a large lead that it should still go into December with an insurmountable lead at the box office.
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September 4th, 2018
Like last week, this week is rather busy on the home market with many more TV on DVD releases. There are not a lot of big releases this week, nor are there a lot of contenders for Pick of the Week. It’s really a two-horse race between Won’t You Be My Neighbor? and New Game!!: Season Twp. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? on Blu-ray won that race rather easily.
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September 3rd, 2018
The Cat o’ Nine Tails is the second in Argento’s Animal Trilogy. It was rushed out into production after The Bird with the Crystal Plumage was a big hit. For much of Argento’s career, he considered this film to be his weakest. It was also critically panned when it first came here. Is it really this bad? Or was it treated unfairly when it first came out?
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April 10th, 2018
The last box office hit of 2017, The Greatest Showman, hits the home market this week. There are also a couple of Awards Season contenders, but for the most part, it is another slow week. Phantom Thread on Blu-ray is the clear Pick of the Week winner. Meanwhile, Molly’s Game on Blu-ray Combo Pack is the only real competition.
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March 14th, 2018
It’s Oscar week on the home market with several Oscar nominees and winners. Many of these films, like Call Me by Your Name and I, Tonya, are contenders for Pick of the Week. The actual winner of this title is The Shape of Water on Blu-ray Combo Pack or 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack. It’s not the biggest release on this week’s list, as that honor goes to Star Wars: The Last Jedi, but that’s only coming out on Video on Demand.
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March 6th, 2018
Thor: Ragnarok is by far the biggest Blu-ray release of the week and one of the best blockbusters of 2017. However, it was already named Pick of the Week last week, so we will have to pick a different film this week. There are a few contenders: The Breadwinner, Faces Places, and Lady Bird. All three of them are Oscars nominated films, none of them won. It was a close call, but in the end, Lady Bird won.
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January 22nd, 2018
It’s a really slow week on the home market. There are only a few releases that went anywhere at the box office, led by Jigsaw, which is a bad movie. Meanwhile, Geostorm is so bad it’s good. It’s fun, if you are into B movies, but it’s not Pick of the Week material. The only real contenders are Jane, which is only coming out on Video on Demand, and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, which is getting a Two-Disc Special Edition. In the end, I went with Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, mainly because Jane doesn’t come out on DVD / Blu-ray until next month.
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December 19th, 2017
By this time next week, Christmas will be over. This resulted in a short list, but not a bad week. Dunkirk is the biggest new release of the week and it is award-worthy and a contender for Pick of the Week. It isn’t the only contender, The Amicus Collection, Stronger, A Town Called Panic: The Collection, and others are too. As for the best of the best, I went with The Tragically Hip: A National Celebration on DVD or Blu-ray.
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December 16th, 2017
Both the first installment First-run Releases and the second installment, TV on DVD releases, were shorter than I would have liked, as this hasn’t been a great year for either wide releases or TV on DVD releases. That said, the third installment of our Holiday Gift Guide deals with limited releases, classics, and foreign imports and this list can get out of hand rather quickly. There will more releases on this list than the previous two, starting with...
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September 13th, 2017
Apparently it is Halloween, because there are a lot of horror titles on this week’s list. Some of them are good, some are not. As for Pick of the Week contenders, there are a few of them. If you have kids, then Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie on DVD, Blu-ray Combo Pack, or 4K Ultra Combo Pack is your best bet. If you are a fan of Sci-fi, then go with the final season for Orphan Black. However, in the end I went with Phenomena on Blu-ray. You can also buy the movie from the Official Site in a Steelbox with soundtrack and pamphlet.
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June 20th, 2017
Summer time is usually the worst time of year on the home market and that is certainly the case this week. The biggest release of the week is Life, which only made $30 million at the box office. As for the best new release on this week’s list... I’m going to have to go with GLOW: Season One, which hits Netflix on Friday.
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January 27th, 2014
Dario Argento is a master of the horror genre. In fact, he helped change the genre and his influence is still felt today. However, it has been nearly 20 years since a film of his has earned overall positive reviews, and nearly 30 years since his last great movie. Will Argento's Dracula be the film that turns his recent streak around? Or is it more of the same weak releases he's put out in the past two decades?
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October 4th, 2013
There are ten limited releases on this week's list, but only one of them is earning overwhelmingly positive reviews. Let the Fire Burn is the standout, with a 92% positive response. The Summit is earning 73% positive reviews, which is good, but not great. Then there's Grace Unplugged, which is opening in more than 500 theaters, but with no reviews. That's a horrible combination. Overall, there's nothing that jumps out as a potential limited release hit.
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