Limited and VOD Releases: Limited Releases are Leaving us in Suspense

October 26, 2018

Suspiria

It is a little difficult to figure out which limited release has the best shot at box office success. Suspiria has the loudest buzz, but its reviews are only good and not great. Shirkers’ reviews are great, but it is playing on Netflix, so it likely won’t go anywhere in theaters. Life & Nothing More, Border, Burning, and others could pick up the slack, but none jump out as guaranteed hits.

1985 - Reviews
 A retro black and white film set in Texas in 1985, during the first wave of the AIDS epidemic, and focusing on a closet gay man dealing with his conservative family. This film’s Tomatometer Score is over 90% positive, but it’s average review is just 6.8 out of 10, so while most critics liked the movie, very few loved it.

Border - Reviews
 A Swedish film about a customs agent, Tina, who can almost smell the guilt on travelers. One day, she smells something else on a traveler, Vore, and it intrigues her. When she tries to learn more, she learns something shocking about herself. This is one of a handful of foreign-language films on this week’s list that could do really well on the art house circuit, but has no chance of expanding wide.

A Bread Factory, Part One: For the Sake of Gold - Reviews
 A Bread Factory, Part Two: Walk With Me A While - Reviews
 To call this film art house is an understatement. It is a two-part, four hour film about gentrification in a small town. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of star power here and the reviews are 100% positive across the two parts, so it could do well on the theater average chart, but I just can’t see this film doing any business in multiplexes.

Burning - Reviews
 A South Korean movie about three people who have coincidental connections with each other. The film’s reviews are award-worthy, so it should find an audience on the art house circuit. On the other hand, it is a foreign-language film, so its chances of earning some measure of mainstream success are limited.

The Fog - Reviews
 This horror film from the 1980s isn’t exactly a classic, but if you are a fan of horror from the early 1980s, this film is better than most. Granted, it is also available on Blu-ray, but if you want to do something Halloween related this weekend, going out to watch The Fog on the big screen is a good choice.

Life & Nothing More - Reviews
 Antonio Mendez Esparza wrote and directed this movie about a single mother, Regina Williams, who is worried her teenage son, Andrew Bleechington, will end up in prison like his father. The reviews are excellent, so it could do well in limited release.

London Fields - Reviews
 So far this film has 22 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, but none of them are positive. I don’t think I need to say anything more.

Monrovia, Indiana - Reviews
 A documentary about life in a small town and how these small towns affect national politics. The reviews are over 90% positive and documentaries are on a winning streak this year. On the other hand, there’s a lot of competition in this genre in theaters right now.

Senso - Reviews
 This Italian film from 1968 is getting a 50th anniversary re-release this week. The film is about a romance during wartime that turns out to not be all that romantic. The film does have a Criterion Collection Blu-ray release, which is still surprisingly affordable, given it came out seven years ago. Fans of films from the era will still want to see it in theaters if they are able to, but at least there’s another option.

Shirkers - Reviews
 Video on Demand
This documentary is about a lost film and the filmmakers quest to find it. It is earning 100% positive reviews and documentaries have had a lot of success at the box office; however, it is playing on Netflix, so its box office chances are very limited.

Suspiria - Reviews
 The original Suspiria came out in the late 1970s and it is widely considered a classic. This one is earning good reviews, but nowhere near as good are the original’s reviews were and not positive enough to think it will thrive in limited release. That said, the film is earning a lot of buzz and could do well enough during its opening weekend to overcome its reviews.

Secondary VOD Releases:
Air Strike - No Reviews - Video on Demand
Don’t Go - Reviews - Video on Demand
Killer Kate! - Reviews - Video on Demand
The School - No Reviews - Video on Demand
Killer Kate! only has one review, but it is positive, which makes it the best of the secondary VOD releases.

Filed under: Limited Releases, VOD Releases, Home Market Releases, The Fog, Suspiria, London Fields, The School, Shirkers, Beoning, Gräns, Monrovia, Indiana, Don’t Go, Killer Kate!, 1985, Life & Nothing More, Air Strike, Senso, A Bread Factory, Part One: For the Sake of Gold, A Bread Factory, Part Two: Walk With Me A While, Antonio Mendez Esparza, Eero Milonoff, Regina Williams, Eva Melander, Andrew Bleechington