Limited and VOD Releases: Will Any Release Solve the Box Office Puzzle?

July 27, 2018

Puzzle

We are entering the dog days of summer, which means there are not a lot of limited releases. It’s too late to get a boost from summer vacations while trying to expand, but it is way too early for Awards Season buzz. There are some films that could find smaller audiences in theaters, like Scarred Hearts or Puzzle, but I don’t expect any of them to earn any real measure of mainstream success.

93Queen - Reviews
 A documentary about a group of Hasidic Jewish women who go against the patriarchal nature of their community by creating the first all-female ambulance corps in New York City. The reviews are good enough to suggest it will do well in limited release, but not well enough to expand significantly.

The Captain - Reviews
 The real-life story of a World War II German army deserter, who finds a Nazi uniform and pretends to be a high-ranking member, taking over a camp used to hold other deserters and soon becomes intoxicated on power. The reviews are good, but not great, so I’m not sure it is going to find an audience in theaters.

Cocote - Reviews
 Vicente Santos plays Alberto, a man who travels back home after the death of his father. He learns his father was killed by a powerful local figure and that his family expects him to avenge his father by killing this other man, which is an abhorrent idea for Alberto. The film’s Tomatometer Score is 100% positive, but the average score is only 7.1 out of 10. That’s still good, but it might not be good enough to thrive in limited release.

Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings - Reviews
 This film doesn’t have enough reviews to be included here, nor are the reviews overwhelmingly positive. That said, it is the latest installment in a franchise that has had some success in the past and it is worth mentioning. I think most people who are interested in the movie will have to wait till it hits the home market to see it, on the other hand.

Good Manners - Reviews
 One of the better reviewed films of the weekend, it tells the story of a lonely nurse who is hired by a pregnant woman to help take care of her soon to be born child. Only one fateful full moon changes their situation. The film might do well in limited release, but I can’t imagine it will escape the art house circuit.

Hot Summer Nights - Reviews
 Video On Demand
Timothée Chalamet is one of the most in-demand young actors working today. I would be surprised if he doesn’t win an Oscar, possibly before he’s 30. That said, this film won’t be a highlight of his resume. It’s not terrible, but it certainly isn’t good. Maybe it is worth a rental, but that’s it.

Our House - Reviews
 Video on Demand
A Sci-fi horror movie about a machine that can bring back the dead. It’s reviews are good, but not good enough, while even great horror films rarely thrive in limited release. That said, 70% positive reviews are great for a VOD rental.

Puzzle - Reviews
 Kelly Macdonald stars as Anges, woman in her 40s who has never really left her small immigrant community. Her life changes when she is given a puzzle as a gift and realizes that she not only loves puzzles, but she’s really good at it. The reviews are good enough that the film could do well in limited release. I don’t expect it to earn any real measure of mainstream success, on the other hand.

Scarred Hearts - Reviews
 This film is about a man who goes to a hospital to treat bone tuberculosis, but instead of wallowing in misery while being confined to a body cast, he learns there’s quite a lot of lively activity at the hospital. The reviews are good enough to do well in limited release, but it is a foreign-language film, so don’t expect significant expansion over the coming weeks.

Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood - Reviews
 A documentary about an ex-Marine who ran a gas station close to a Hollywood studio and who “catered” to closeted gay stars, among others. The reviews are amazing and art house aficionados tend to like movies about Hollywood. That said, I don’t think this will be a mainstream hit, even with the recent success stories in the genre.

Secondary VOD Releases:
14 Cameras - Reviews - Video on Demand
How to Get Rid of a Body and Still be Friends - No Reviews - Video on Demand
The Row - Reviews - Video on Demand
There are three secondary VOD releases this week and none of them have a single positive review. How to Get Rid of a Body and Still be Friends has no reviews, so that makes it the “best” secondary VOD release of the week.

Filed under: Limited Releases, VOD Releases, Home Market Releases, Inimi cicatrizate, Puzzle, Der Hauptmann, Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood, Hot Summer Nights, 14 Cameras, Our House, The Row, As Boas Maneiras, Cocote, Di Ren Jie Zhi Si Da Tian Wang, 93Queen, How to Get Rid of a Body and Still be Friends, Detective Dee, Kelly Macdonald, Timothée Chalamet, Vicente Santos