Week 3 (Street Date 12/15/2009)

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George Lopez: Tall Dark & Chicano

Studio: HBO MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Stand-up Pre Order Date: 11/9/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: Cable09  Number Of Screens: HBO Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 8/09 HBO Director: Marty Callner Cast: George Lopez stand-up act Videoretailer.com Review: George Lopez stars in his second HBO solo special featuring a live stand-up special performed in front of a crowd at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, TX. His highly marketed talk show will have been on the air for about a month when this stand-up title is released, so there may be some accelerated interest in this title and in Lopez’s strange Jimmy Fallon haircut, but unless you have reason to believe that your market sports a big Lopez fanbase, most should be fine with 1-3.

G-Force

Studio: Buena MPAA Rating: PG Genre: Family-Adv Pre Order Date: 10/19/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 118.0 Number Of Screens: 3697 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 7/24/09 Director: Hoyt H. Yeatman Cast: Voices of: Bill Nighy, Sam Rockwell, Will Arnett, Jon Favreau, Nicolas Cage, Penelope Cruz, Steve Buscemi Videoretailer.com Review: Brilliant scientist (Zach Galifianakis), has been working for the Department of Homeland Security training animals into an elite special-forces unit – in this case, a trio of guinea pigs that form the heart of “G-Force”, consisting of the leader, ‘Darwin’ (voice of Sam Rockwell); the flirty but tough ‘Juarez’ (Penelope Cruz); the fearless & extreme ‘Blaster’ (Tracy Morgan) and tech-whiz mole named ‘Speckles’ (Nicolas Cage). The team must stop a home appliance mogul (Bill Nighy) from turning his household appliances into a robot army that will take over the world, all the while being hunted by an FBI agent (Will Arnett) who wants the G-Force program shut down. Jerry Bruckheimer-produced CGI / real action family film is very light on story, plot and creative dialogue, but the FX are impressive. Despite a pretty good $119M B/O, critics and consumers were largely disappointed in this flick, most concluding that it will be okay & safe entertainment for kids, but that adults won’t get past the shallow writing, story and humor. This is a good month to release this however, as family films do well, and this should have great initial appeal, but probably not much longevity after the ball drops on Times Square. Maybe compare with 3/09’s “Beverly Hills Chihuahua”…another poorly reviewed family film that did well n the box-office. IMDB User Rating = 4.7 (out of 10).

Girl From Monoco

Studio: Magnolia MPAA Rating: R Genre: Comedy Pre Order Date: 11/16/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 0.6 Number Of Screens: 30 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 7/3/09 Director: Anne Fontaine Cast: Fabrice Luchini, Roschdy Zem - France Videoretailer.com Review: ‘Bertrand Beauvois’ is a successful 50-something attorney hired to represent a woman charged with killing a man with ties to the Russian mafia. Her adult son, ‘Louis’ has been warned that Russian thugs may try to silence his mother and her legal team, so he hires a private security team to protect Bertrand by assigning bodyguard ‘Christophe to shadow his every move. As Bertrand and Christophe strike up a friendship, trouble is around the corner when a young femme fatale begins throwing herself at Bertrand, and Christophe has a hard time convincing his client that something is clearly not right. Relatively enjoyable French dramedic romp starts out a light and breezy comedy, but takes a turn for the more serious around the half-way point – a trait that confused audiences, infuriating some while just befuddling others. Lack of much foreign starpower won’t create a destination out of this title, but some fans of French cinema will take interest. Most will need no more than 1-2. IMDB User Rating = 5.9 (out of 10).

Hangover, The

Studio: Warner MPAA Rating: R Genre: Comedy Pre Order Date: 10/26/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 276.0 Number Of Screens: 3545 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 6/5/09 Director: Todd Phillips Cast: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Bartha, Heather Graham Videoretailer.com Review: In 48 hours, ‘Doug’ (Justin Bartha) is scheduled to walk down the aisle, ending his reign as a rowdy bachelor. Realizing that this is their last blowout together, Doug's groomsmen organize a crazy night in Vegas, but the next morning, the groomsmen awaken in their Caesar's Palace suite to find a tiger in the bathroom, a six-month-old baby in the closet, and a missing groom. With no memory of the previous night's transgressions and precious little time to spare, the trio sets out on a hazy attempt to retrace their steps and discover exactly what transpired the night before in order to find and get Doug back to L.A. in time for his wedding. The funniest film of the year, this laugh-out-loud adult comedy took in an enormous B/O (how often do you see a comedy near the $300M milestone?) for a flick with a $35M budget and a cast with marginal starpower…it’s all in the story, the dialogue and the comic timing, causing this comedy to entertain not only frat / party-boys, but 30-somethings, 40-somethings, 50-somethings and so on, of both sexes. Initial interest and demand will be significant, and this is one of those types of titles, like “Superbad”, “40-Year Old Virgin” and “Step Brothers” that will have real good endurance as well. Buy deep and have previously viewed copies ready to go as soon as they’re taking up space. IMDB User Rating = 8.1 (out of 10).

	Ice Road Truckers - Season 3 (3dsc)
	Studio: A&E MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Reality-TV Pre Order Date: 11/16/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: TV09 Number Of Screens: History Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2009 History Chan. Director: Cast: Reality show on truckers who haul supplies across a dangerous and frozen wasteland Videoretailer.com Review: Coming soon

Inglorious Basterds

Studio: Universal MPAA Rating: R Genre: Drama Pre Order Date: 11/2/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 119.5 Number Of Screens: 3358 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 8/21/09 Director: Quentin Tarantino Cast: Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger Videoretailer.com Review: At the height of Nazi occupation in WWII, Nazi hater ‘Lt. Aldo Raine’ (Brad Pitt) recruits a ruthless team of cold-blooded killers known as "The Basterds" which includes baseball-bat-wielding Bostonian Sgt. ‘Donnie Donowitz’ (Eli Roth) and steely psychopath ‘Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz’ (Til Schweiger), among others, and when the Basterds' learn that the Nazi's will be staging the French premiere of a rousing propaganda film based on the exploits of German hero ‘Fredrick Zoller’ at a local theater owned by Jewish cinephile ‘Shoshanna Dreyfus’ they hatch an explosive plan to take out as many Nazis as possible at the premiere. Unbeknownst to them however, Shoshanna also plans a Nazi massacre at the expense of the theater. While not necessarily a historically accurate WWII-based film, this is what you would expect of a Tarantino action movie that uses WWII as a prop for his storytelling, as it is gratuitously violent, a little off-kilter and full of witty dialogue / situations. Certainly not for all audiences, there were and will be some who hate this, but the consensus from critics, consumer and the box-office take was mostly very positive. Initial demand will be very good and there will be some endurance from stragglers waiting to hear word-of-mouth before taking it for a ride. As with any Tarantino flick, it’s difficult to find a title that may be a good matchup of performance…this has good starpower, an appealing premise and did well on the big screen…perhaps compare with 11/08’s “Tropic Thunder”? They may not be from the same pod, but should have similar performances. IMDB User Rating = 8.7 (out of 10).

Other Man, The

Studio: Image MPAA Rating: R Genre: Drama Pre Order Date: 11/17/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: Ltd Number Of Screens: Fests Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2008 Fests Director: Richard Eyre Cast: Antonio Banderas, Laura Linney, Liam Neeson, Romola Garai Videoretailer.com Review: ‘Peter’ (Liam Neeson) is a successful IT guy who thinks he’s happily married to wife ‘Lisa’ (Laura Linney) until he discovers evidence on Lisa’s computer that she’s having an affair with a suave Italian named ‘Ralph’ (Antonio Banderas). When Laura unexpectedly leaves, jealous Peter motors over to Milan to confront this new rival. What follows is a game of cat & mouse as Peter tries to get a feel of what’s really going on between Ralph and Lisa. What starts out intriguing enough fizzles completely out by the time Peter plays his first chess game with Ralph, creating a disappointing & boring cinematic experience that tries to throw a curve ball toward the 3rd act that is nothing but blandly awkward. A great cast here is wasted, but the starpower will find some mainstream appeal and will mostly end up in the hands of drama fans lured by the cast and premise. As we’ve seen with “The Code” (Morgan Freeman, Antonio Banderas), a great cast mixed with a bad direct to video movie can mean good things in the rental market…Liam Neeson has renewed starpower thanks to “Taken”, but given that this is a drama and that was an action thriller, this will be a tougher sell to the masses. Perhaps its recommendable to take your order for “The Code” and cut it in half. IMDB User Rating = 5.8 (out of 10).

Psycho Ward

Studio: Lions Gate MPAA Rating: R Genre: Horror Pre Order Date: 11/17/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: DTV Number Of Screens: Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: Director: Patrick McBrearty Cast: Ryan Barrett, Jacqueline Betts Videoretailer.com Review: While on a research outing, a group of urban explorers get more than they bargained for when the visit the site of an abandoned mental hospital and find themselves trapped in the giant prison and start to disappear one by one. Their only chance of escape is to put together seemingly random clues, avoid a killer, and use their unique skills to survive. Direct to video horror rip-off of “Cube” and “Saw” and countless others, is not a very well done flick. Good news is the boxart is alright, and should find interest with fans of no-name horror titles. Most should be alright with 1-2. IMDB User Rating = 2.4 (out of 10).

Robot Chicken - Season 4 (2dsc)

Studio: Warner MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Comedy Pre Order Date: 11/9/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: TV08 Number Of Screens: Com Central Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2008 Comedy Central Director: Cast: Voices of Seth Green, Breckin Meyer & others Videoretailer.com Review: Season 4 of 4, this Comedy Central Adult Swim staple features episodes that have 5 – 60 second skits – much of which are pop-culture references, all told via claymated action figures. Most of these vignettes are quite funny. Robot Chicken has also done some 30-minute “Star Wars” spoofs a-la “Family Guy”. Bottom line with these is that it’s popular fare with hipsters / fans of “Family Guy”, “Aqua Teen Hunger Force”…etc, and it’s popularity is not without credentials…it’s won 3 consecutive Emmys. If you’ve picked these up in the past, see how they’ve rented for you…this should play out no differently.

Taking Woodstock

Studio: Universal MPAA Rating: R Genre: Comedy Pre Order Date: 10/26/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 7.4 Number Of Screens: 1393 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 8/28/09 Director: Ang Lee Cast: Henry Goodman, Emile Hirsch, Paul Dano, Kelli Garner, Videoretailer.com Review: It's 1969, and ‘Elliot Tiber’ (Demetri Martin), a down-on-his-luck interior designer in Greenwich Village, NY, has to move back upstate to help his parents run their dilapidated Catskills motel, The El Monaco. The bank's about to foreclose, his father wants to burn the place down, and Elliot is still figuring how to come out to his parents. When Elliot hears that a neighboring town has pulled the permit on a hippie music festival, he calls the producers, thinking he could drum up some much-needed business for the motel. Three weeks later, half a million people are on their way to his neighbor's farm in White Lake, NY, and Elliot finds himself swept up in a generation-defining experience that would change his life, and American culture, forever. Pretty good Ang Lee slice-of-yesteryear dramedy captures the feel of the times uncannily, but a blatant oddity is the fact that there is zero focus on the music of Woodstock; granted, this is about the people and the times, but the lack of the music was a sore point with audiences. Appeal will be with both those who lived the times and with those who wished they had…Woodstock is still a popular cultural attraction with all adult ages and this should find some okay interest across various demographics…keep in mind, teens today own Dead bootlegs. Maybe compare with 9/09’s “Away We Go”, but bump this up for the seasonality, the broader potential appeal and for the extra buzz this has had. IMDB User Rating = 7.1 (out of 10).

Tudors, The - Season 3 (4dsc)

Studio: Paramount MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Drama Pre Order Date: 11/2/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: Cable09 Number Of Screens: Showtime Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2009 Showtime Director: Cast: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Nathalie Dormer Videoretailer.com Review: Season 3 of 3 and counting, this Showtime period drama follows the reign of King Henry VIII from his young marriage with Katherine of Aragon and affair with Anne Boleyn through to his eventual decent into madness. Season 3 focuses on Henry's marriages to Jane Seymour and Anne of Cleves, his ruthless suppression of the Pilgrimage of Grace, the downfall of Thomas Cromwell, and the beginnings of Henry's relationship with the dangerous Katherine Howard. Excellent series has found enormous critical acclaim, has been nominated for 51 awards, winning 25, and has a substantial fanbase. Those who carry this TV-to-DVD series have found that it can be a popular renter…see how previous seasons have done for you and buy accordingly. Season 4 will conclude the series.

	Wizards Of Waverly Place: The Movie
	Studio: Buena MPAA Rating: G Genre: Kids-Adv Pre Order Date: 10/19/2009 Video Release Date: 12/15/2009 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: TV09 Number Of Screens: Disney Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 8/09 Disney Chan. Director: Lev L. Spiro Cast: Selena Gomez, David Henrie, Jake T. Austin Videoretailer.com Review: Coming soon