Limited and VOD Releases: Looking to Rake in the Green

April 1, 2016

Green Room

There are a handful of films on this week's list earning great reviews and/or loud buzz. Of these four films, Green Room is the one I want to see the most, but Everybody Wants Some is the one most likely to become a box office hit.

The Dark Horse - Reviews
 A BioPic of Genesis Potini, a Maori speed-chess champion who struggled with bipolar disorder. This film is earning some of the best reviews of the year and this should help it do well on the art house circuit. It might do well enough to earn some measure of mainstream success, but it is too soon to tell.

Everybody Wants Some - Reviews
 Richard Linklater latest film is set in the 1980s and focuses on college baseball players. The film opened on Wednesday and it has already earned nearly $50,000 in five theaters. It should have a very good opening weekend and should expand wide enough to earn some measure of mainstream success. It likely won't expand truly wide, on the other hand.

Francofonia - Reviews
 A documentary about the Louvre that is used to discuss more matters than just art. The reviews are 90% positive and it should do well in the art house circuit.

Green Room - Reviews
 A struggling band take a gig at an out of the way, rundown bar. However, they witness an act of violence and a skinhead gang led by Patrick Stewart decides they have to die. This film has been generating some buzz and the reviews are even better than the buzz. It might be too intense for mainstream audiences, so expanding truly wide is very likely out of the question. That said, it should do well on the home market.

Kill Your Friends - Reviews
 Video on Demand
Nicholas Hoult stars as an A&R agent whose career has taken a serious hit after musical tastes have changed. The reviews are bad and it is playing on VOD, so its box office chances are nearly zero.

Meet the Blacks - Reviews
 A parody of The Purge with Mike Epps starring as man moving his family to a rich neighborhood just before the annual purge. There are almost no reviews, but the film did well during its previews last night, so it should earn a spot in the top ten over the weekend. Meet the Blacks is playing in just over 1,000 theaters.

Miles Ahead - Reviews
 Don Cheadle makes his directorial debut in this Miles Davis biopic. He also co-wrote the script and stars as the legendary jazz musician. The reviews are good, but they are not great. The star power might help it survive in limited release, but I don't think it will expand beyond a few hundred theaters at its peak. Miles Ahead opens tonight in four theaters, split evenly between New York City and Los Angeles.

No Home Movie - Reviews
 A documentary about the filmmaker's mother, who was a Polish Jew who survived the Holocaust. The reviews are good, but not great, and limited releases generally need great reviews to thrive.

Pandemic - Reviews
 Rachel Nichols stars as a scientist who is working to cure a pandemic that is turning people into zombies. The reviews are not good and it is the wrong genre for limited release. It will have to wait for the home market to find an audience.

Filed under: Limited Releases, VOD Releases, Home Market Releases, Green Room, Pandemic, The Dark Horse, Kill Your Friends, Miles Ahead, Everybody Wants Some, Francofonia, Meet the Blacks, No Home Movie, Don Cheadle, Mike Epps, Nicholas Hoult, Richard Linklater, Rachel Nichols, Patrick Stewart