August 1st, 2017
July is over and we should all be happy about that. Granted, there were some positive results we can talk about. Spider-Man: Homecoming is a huge hit and Despicable Me 3 will pull in a sizable profit before it reaches the home market. There were also a couple of other $100 million hits and a midlevel hit or two; however, overall, 2017 wasn’t able to compete with 2016 and the box office finally lost its lead over last year. 2017 started the summer about $200 million ahead of 2016, but will finish July about $100 million behind last year’s pace. August doesn’t look any better. There are a couple of films that have a reasonable shot at $100 million, The Dark Tower and Annabelle: Creation, as well as a few that should be solid midlevel hits. However, last year we had Sausage Party and Don’t Breathe, both of which nearly hit $100 million, then we had midlevel hits like Pete’s Dragon, Kubo and the Two Strings, and War Dogs. I don’t know if 2017 will be able to compete with that. ... Now some of you are thinking I forgot about Suicide Squad. Trust me, I will never forget that movie. I ignored it to make a point. Even without Suicide Squad, I don’t think 2017 will make up the deficit it has with 2016. With Suicide Squad, it is going to be a disaster. I want to be optimistic, but there’s no evidence to suggest I should be.
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November 17th, 2015
It's an off week of sorts. The biggest release is extended edition of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. In fact, there are five versions of this film that are near the top of the list. There are not a lot of other first-run releases on this week's list, which means we have to look to the classics for potential Pick of the Week contenders. Fortunately, there are plenty of those worth picking up. Leading the way is The Collected Works of Hayao Miyazaki on Blu-ray. It is expensive, but you get a lot for your money. There is another top-notch release this week, Rush - R40 Live on DVD or Blu-ray, which wins the coveted Puck of the Week for best Canadian release.
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December 3rd, 2014
The winner of our Black and White contest was determined and it is...
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November 20th, 2014
Next weekend is Thanksgiving weekend and there are two films hoping to not be crushed by The Hunger Games: Mockyingjay, Part 1, which will be in its second week of release. Penguins of Madagascar will likely beat out Horrible Bosses 2 for second place and as such, it is the choice for the target film for this week's box office prediction contest. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Penguins of Madagascar.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going over, will win a copy of Jeff Dunham: All Over the Map on Blu-ray.
Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), without going under, will win a previously reviewed DVD or Blu-ray.
Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
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November 19th, 2014
The winners of our Smart and Smarter contest were determined and they are...
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November 19th, 2014
There are no summer tentpole releases making their home market debuts this week, but that doesn't mean it is a bad week on the home market. 22 Jump Street is leading the way, while there are four other first run releases among the new releases, ranging from If I Stay to Sin City: A Dame to Kill For in terms of box office numbers. Not only that, but this week there are a trio of Hayao Miyazak releases, including his more recent film, The Wind Rises, which is coming out on DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack. That film, along with the double-shot, are the Picks of the Week. However, they are not the only films worth picking up. If you like horror / comedy, give Housebound on DVD or Blu-ray a try.
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April 13th, 2014
The Nut Job opened earlier this year and was a surprise hit more than doubling its production budget domestically. It did so well that a sequel is already in the works. Is this a good movie? Is it merely good enough for a kids movie? Or did it thrive because there wasn't a lot of competition when it opened?
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March 17th, 2014
It's a good week / bad week on the home market. The good news is there are four films coming out this week that earned some level of Awards Season buzz. The bad news... there are four films coming out this week that earned some level of Awards Season buzz and they scared away the competition. Two of those four films are strong enough to be contenders for Pick of the Week, Frozen on DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack and American Hustle on DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack. Unfortunately, I'm still waiting for the screeners for both of those movies, so I'm not sure which of those two is the Pick of the Week. Fortunately, the screener for 12 Years a Slave arrived and the Blu-ray is Pick of the Week material.
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