Limited and VOD Releases: Previewing Prevenge and Others
March 24, 2017
It is not a great week for limited releases. Granted, there are several that are earning excellent reviews, films like Dig Two Graves, I Called Him Morgan, The Levelling, and A Woman, A Part. However, none of them look like they will be box office hits. The film I’m most interested in seeing is Prevenge and this film could be a hit, when it hits the home market.
Bokeh - Reviews
Dig Two Graves - Reviews
I Called Him Morgan - Reviews
I, Olga Hepnarova - Reviews
The Levelling - Reviews
Phillauri - No Reviews
Prevenge - Reviews
Slamma Jamma - No Reviews
Wilson - Reviews
A Woman, A Part - Reviews
Secondary VOD Releases:
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Video on Demand
A couple goes on a romantic vacation in Iceland only to wake up one day and discover they are the last people on Earth. Most critics agree that the minimalist style helps the filmmakers get the most out of their budget, but that the premise is too shallow to be engaging.
Video on Demand
This film is about a young girl called Jake, whose brother drowns. She is then approached by a trio of locals who claim they can bring him back to life, but someone else must die in his place. The reviews are excellent, but it is playing on VOD, so its box office chances are very poor. Frankly, it likely didn’t cost a lot to make, so it could break even on VOD alone.
A biographical documentary about Lee Morgan, a 1970s Jazz musician who was killed by his wife. This is one of the best-reviewed releases on this week’s list and it could do very well in theaters, at least for a documentary.
A movie about Olga Hepnarova, a mass murdered who became the last women executed in Czechoslovakia. The reviews are right on the border between good and good enough for limited release, but I fear the subject matter doesn’t have a cultural connection here, so it will fail to find an audience.
Ellie Kendrick plays a young lady who returns home after learning her younger brother is dead only to find her family farm was devastated in recent floods and her father is barely hanging on. There are only five reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, but so far all five are positive. Maybe it will find an audience in the art house circuit, but there’s not a lot of buzz here.
A Bollywood film about a man who is forced to marry a tree to protect the woman he loves. However, it turns out the tree has a spirit in it. I've heard stranger plots before.
Out of all of the films on this week’s list, this is the one I’m most interested in seeing. It stars Alice Lowe, who is also making her writing and directing debuts. In the movie, she plays a very pregnant woman whose husband dies in a climbing accident. She then begins to hear the fetus talk to her and tell her to kill anyone responsible for the accident and anyone who gets in her way. The film’s reviews are well over 90% positive, but this is not the kind of film that tends to thrive in limited release.
Normally I skip films with no reviews, but this one is playing in 500 theaters, so I can’t ignore it. It is about a former basketball player who was convicted for a crime he didn’t commit. When he gets out of prison, he enters the national slam dunk contest. I would be surprised if it opened above the Mendoza Line.
Woody Harrelson plays a misanthrope who learns he has a teenage daughter, which gives him another shot at happiness. The cast is good and this film has louder buzz than most limited releases get, but the reviews are mixed and that will likely prove fatal. It is playing in just over 300 theaters, so it should have the biggest total box office, but a really weak theater average.
Maggie Siff plays an actress in her 40s who quits her popular, but unfulfilling, sitcom and travels back to New York to reconnect with her friends in theater. However, she didn’t leave on a good note and the reunion isn’t exactly friendly. There are not a lot of reviews for this film, but nearly all of them are positive with Maggie Siff earning a lot of praise for her performance. It is certainly worth checking out.
Bloomin Mud Shuffle - No Reviews - Video on Demand
House on Willow Street - Reviews - Video on Demand
One Under the Sun - No Reviews - Video on Demand
The three secondary VOD releases have a combined 2 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, both of them for House on Willow Street.
Filed under: Limited Releases, VOD Releases, Home Market Releases, Wilson, Já, Olga Hepnarová, The Levelling, Slamma Jamma, I Called Him Morgan, Bokeh, One Under the Sun, Prevenge, Phillauri, Dig Two Graves, Bloomin Mud Shuffle, A Woman, A Part, House on Willow Street, Woody Harrelson, Maggie Siff, Ellie Kendrick, Alice Lowe, Samantha Isler, Isabella Amara