New on DVD and Blu-ray Week of July 28-August 3
Harley Lond - wrote on 07/28/15 at 01:41 AM CT
THIS WEEK'S BEST BETS:
"White God" (2014 -- Hungary) is a cautionary tale about our supposed "superiority" over the "lesser beasts." A new set of Hungarian laws favor pedigree and purebred dogs, placing a severe tax on those who own mixed breeds. These laws have real consequences, especially for 13-year-old Lili (Zsofia Psotta). Already a pawn from her parent's bitter divorce, she can't …
Weekend Box Office: Ant-Man Retains Top Spot, Pixels Comes Up Short
Chris Kavan - wrote on 07/26/15 at 09:17 PM CT
Turns out the little Marvel movie that could isn't so puny and is a force to be reckoned with. Ant-Man held off the Adam Sandler ensemble 8-bit comedy Pixels to hold on the number one spot. Paper Towns turned out to be a front-loaded disappointment while Southpaw wound up ahead of estimates though didn't exactly throw a knock-out punch. All told, the top 12 films earned $140.6 million - a slight …
New in Theaters July 24: Pixels, Southpaw, Paper Towns
Chris Kavan - wrote on 07/23/15 at 06:41 AM CT
It was a minor Marvel letdown when Ant-Man didn't quite pull his own weight last weekend. But luckily Amy Schumer and her Trainwreck managed to stay on track and came in ahead of estimates. This weekend we have a dramatic boxing film, a fun ensemble cast taking down classic video games and a teen-centric mystery. I have a feeling none of the films are going to open as big as many of the previous …
New on DVD and Blu-ray Week of July 21-July 27
Harley Lond - wrote on 07/21/15 at 02:56 AM CT
THIS WEEK'S THEATRICAL RELEASES:
"What We Do in the Shadows" is definitely the sleeper hit of the year, crossing over from horror cultists to mainstream moviegoers. The wacky film -- imagine, if you will, a cross between "Borat" and "The Adams Family," only much, much better -- is a New Zealand indie outing by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, creators of the HBO hit series "Flight of the …
Weekend Box Office: Ant-Man Rules and Trainwreck Anything But
Chris Kavan - wrote on 07/19/15 at 10:59 PM CT
There wasn't much of a doubt which film was going to take the top of the box office - the only question was how Ant-Man would compare to other Marvel films. The other question was whether Amy Schumer would be able to drive an R-rated comedy to a decent opening. Overall, results were mixed but still good news for Hollywood. The top 12 generated $185.3 million - a 37.4% increase from the same …
New in Theaters July 17: Ant-Man, Trainwreck
Chris Kavan - wrote on 07/16/15 at 06:44 AM CT
With Minions clearly winning the box office battle for families - who dares challenge the little, yellow hellions? That would be Marvel, who is introducing their latest superhero to the fold as well as Amy Schumer in a raunchy comedy that is looking to attract an audience that has, for the most part, eluded most other comedies this year. It should be another great weekend - for both new and …
New on DVD and Blu-ray Week of July 14-July 20
Harley Lond - wrote on 07/14/15 at 04:19 PM CT
THIS WEEK'S THEATRICAL RELEASES:
There's two breakout films this week by up-and-coming young directors:
"Ex Machina": Written and directed by Alex Garland (writer of Danny Boyle's "Sunshine" and "28 days Later" as well as the screenplay for "Never Let Me Go"), this thinking-person's sci-fi film is an oasis in a dry world of special effects laden speculative adventures. It's basically a …
Weekend Box Office: Minions Massive Opening Crushes Competitors
Chris Kavan - wrote on 07/12/15 at 09:39 PM CT
I didn't know if the box office could support two animated titans, but it turns out the little, yellow guys were more than a match for Inside Out and clearly dominated the weekend. That meant there wasn't much left over as The Gallows had a typical horror opening while the sci-fi thriller Self/less landed with a thud. Once again it was a bit improvement over last year - by a hefty 42% compared …
New in Theaters July 10: Minions, Self/less, The Gallows
Chris Kavan - wrote on 07/09/15 at 06:51 AM CT
Inside Out managed to just squeak by Jurassic World for the 4th of July holiday (and weekend), meaning that the debut of Minions this weekend will be all the more telling. It looks like it is going to be a dual between two animated titans, as the horror offering and a sci-fi mystery thriller aren't likely to draw as much of a crowd. What is certain is it should be another good weekend for …
New on DVD and Blu-ray Week of July 7-July 13
Harley Lond - wrote on 07/07/15 at 02:32 AM CT
THIS WEEK'S BEST BETS:
The DVD highlight this week is The Criterion Collection's release (in one set) of two versions of "The Killers," Ernest Hemingway's simple but gripping short tale. The first was adapted by noir stylist Robert Siodmak ("Criss Cross") in a 1946 film that helped define the noir style and helped launch the careers of Burt Lancaster and Ava Gardner; the second was directed …
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