Week 1 (Street Date 2/2/2010)

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Amelia

Studio: Fox MPAA Rating: PG Genre: Drama Pre Order Date: 1/5/2010 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 14.1 Number Of Screens: 1070 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 10/23/09 Director: Mira Nair Cast: Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Mia Wasikowska Videoretailer.com Review: Bio-Drama starring Hilary Swank as ‘Amelia Earhart’, aviation’s first female figurehead, who discovered her love for flight at the age of 23, and within ten years had become the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. At the age of 39, Earhart, with the anxious support of her publicist / husband (Richard Gere) and lifetime friend and lover (Ewan McGregor), set out to circumnavigate the globe, and as we all know, she never returned from that, some think disappearing somewhere around the South Pacific, creating an instant legend. This theatrical release was a blatant Oscar bid…the TV ad alone felt like a snippet you would see on the Oscar broadcast, but unfortunately, the wooden direction and uninspired writing makes this feel more educational than entertaining…better suited for the classroom than a theater. Costumes and Art Design may get a nod, but don’t expect this to be getting much award buzz. The starpower and familiarity with the subject matter will find good mainstream interest, but as with dull period dramas, there’s usually not much rental endurance beyond initial interest for genre fans. Maybe compare with 4/09’s Frost / Nixon, keeping in mind that “Frost…” was rightfully nominated for 5 Oscars; “Amelia” is merely an Oscar wannabe. IMDB User Rating = 5.8 (out of 10).

	Beverly Hills 90120 - Season 9 (7dsc)
	Studio: Paramount MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Drama Pre Order Date: 12/17/09 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: TV08 Number Of Screens: Fox Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2008 Fox Director: Cast: Jennie Garth, Tori Spelling, Ian Ziering, Jason Priestly, Luke Perry Videoretailer.com Review: Coming soon

Cold Souls

Studio: Fox MPAA Rating: PG13 Genre: Comedy Pre Order Date: 1/5/2010 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 0.9 Number Of Screens: 52 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 8/7/09 Director: Sophie Barnes Cast: Paul Giamatti, Emily Watson, Dina Korzun, David Strathairn Videoretailer.com Review: Paul Giamatti stars as himself – Paul Giamatti – an anxious New Yorker who thinks he’s found an answer to his emotional malaise when a company claims to have found a solution to human suffering by deep-freezing souls and thereby giving their customers a life free from fear, doubt, and worry. Eager to free himself, Giamatti eagerly enlists their services, but trouble arises when his soul is swiped by a soul-trafficking "mule" who in turn gives it to a no-talent Russian soap opera actress. Now, in order to get back his soul, Giamatti must travel to St. Petersburg on a soul-searching quest and discovers along the way that the true key to happiness isn't the absence of pain, but the ability to feel – good or bad. Darkly humorous, and intelligently sharp, this indie comedy has a good cast that did well with the existential material, while critics and consumer mostly agreed that this was an intriguing and entertaining piece that played out a lot like “Being John Malkovich” and “Stranger Than Fiction”. Titles like this are never particularly easy calls – it’s a good quality flick with good starpower that won’t find much mainstream enjoyment, but will find pretty good interest from hipsters and free-thinking scholars with a taste for off-center entertainment. Compare with 7/09’s “The Great Buck Howard”. IMDB User Rating = 7.2 (out of 10).

House Of the Devil

Studio: MPI MPAA Rating: R Genre: Horror Pre Order Date: 12/23/2009 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: Ltd Number Of Screens: Fests Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2009 Fests Director: Ti West Cast: Jocelin Donahue, Tom Noonan, Dee Wallace Videoretailer.com Review: College girl ‘Samantha’ (Jocelin Donahue) needs some quick cash to pay for a fancy new apartment and finds a want-ad for a babysitter on a community bulletin board that promises $400 for the gig, but there’s something really odd about the whole thing. Soon Samantha is offered work as a caretaker in the home of ‘Mr. and Mrs. Ulman’, (Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov). But upon arriving at the spooky home, she has reservations, but puts on a brave face and tries to whistle her way through the tension. But the house is full of bumps in the night that just get worse and worse…until she’s living a full-on nightmare. Directed by “The Roost”s Ti West, this homage to 80’s ‘babysitter in a scary situation’ flicks plays out similarly to “The Roost” where it gives in to spooky atmosphere over fancy FX, and manages to output a creepfest for those patient enough to sit through a pretty slow 1st act. Following a pretty heady festival run, this found very good critic reviews, but there is very little starpower here, and not title awareness…chances are demand won’t be anything fabulous, or more than what you would expect. Most should be alright with 1-3. IMDB User Rating = 7.4 (out of 10).

Love Happens

Studio: Universal MPAA Rating: PG13 Genre: Romance Pre Order Date: 12/14/2009 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 23.0 Number Of Screens: 1922 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 9/18/09 Director: Brandon Camp Cast: Aaron Eckhart, Jennifer Aniston, Martin Sheen, Judy Greer Videoretailer.com Review: ‘Dr. Burke Ryan’ (Aaron Eckhart) is a widower self-help guru on the cusp of a major multimedia deal, but the therapist who asks his patients to openly confront their pain is secretly unable to take his own advice. ‘Eloise Chandler’ (Jennfier Aniston) has sworn off men and decided to focus on her floral business. However, when she meets Burke at the hotel where he's speaking, there is an instant attraction, but will two people who have met the right person at exactly the wrong time be able to overcome the hurt of love and loss, and let go of the past? Totally forgettable romantic dramedy is of the cookie cutter variety and has nothing new to offer, nor any alluring chemistry between the leads. Most critics and consumers called this a schmaltzy disappointment while the few who enjoyed felt it was a heartfelt affair. The starpower will find good to very good initial mainstream interest, but there’s nothing going on here that will cause this to do anything surprising, or spawn any positive word-of-mouth – its formula to the nines and not a very good one. Compare with 5/09’s “New In Town”. IMDB User Rating = 5.4 (out of 10).

	Mary Tyler Moore Show - Season 6 (3dsc)
	Studio: Fox MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Comedy Pre Order Date: 1/5/2010 Video Release Date: 10/6/09 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: TV75 Number Of Screens: CBS Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 1975 CBS Director: Cast: Mary Tyler Moore, Ed Asner, Ted Knight Videoretailer.com Review: Coming soon

More Than A Game

Studio: Lions Gate MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Documentary Pre Order Date: 1/5/2010 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 0.9 Number Of Screens: 111 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 10/2/09 Director: Kristopher Belman Cast: Follows NBA star LeBron James & four of his teammates through their high school years to the pros Videoretailer.com Review: When NBA superstar LeBron James was still in high school, and he and three of his teammates were known as the ‘Fab Four’ Sports Illustrated dubbed him ‘The Chosen One’, and suddenly all eyes of the basketball universe were on this young prodigy. This documentary follows James, and his tight-knit group of teammates (that eventually took on another to become the ‘Fab Five’) through their meager beginnings in a decrepit inner-city gymnasium, to James’ success in the NBA, exploring how all the pressures of the pending stardom took its toll on James and the others in the Fab Five. Interest in this well-done documentary will be niche to fans of basketball – particularly in the Cleveland area. For all outside of the Cleveland or L.A. areas, compare with 11/09’s “Kobe Doin’ Work”. IMDB User Rating = 7.3 (out of 10).

New York, I Love You

Studio: Visual MPAA Rating: R Genre: Romance Pre Order Date: 12/28/2009 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 1.6 Number Of Screens: 119 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 10/16/09 Director: Various Cast: Blake Lively, Natalie Portman, Bradley Cooper, Shia LaBeouf, Ethan Hawke, Orlando Blom, Hayden Christiansen, John Hurt, Christina Ricci, Robin Wright Penn, James Caan, Chris Cooper, Andy Garcia, Cloris Leachman Videoretailer.com Review: 10 different directors weave together 10 short films in a collaboration of storytelling that works as a kaleidoscope of the spontaneous, surprising, electrifying human connections that pump the New York City’s heartbeat…from Tribeca to Central Park to Brooklyn, the stories bring together a tale of love as diverse as the very fabric of New York itself. Sequel of sorts to “Paris, Je T’Aime”, as expected, some of the vignettes here are better than others, but none of the ten stories are spectacular while on the other side, none are awful. The ensemble cast is impressive, and will find a little mainstream interest, but for the most part, the target here will be fans of non-fluff / indie metro dramas – there will be obvious increased interest in and around the Big Apple. Real tough to find a comp title for this sort of thing, maybe compare with 2/09’s “Bottle Shock” – different type of film altogether, but similar box-office, starpower and target - same release month. IMDB User Rating = 7.8 (out of 10).

Ong Bak 2: The Beginning

Studio: Magnolia MPAA Rating: R Genre: Action Pre Order Date: 1/4/2010 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 0.1 Number Of Screens: 12 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 10/23/09 Director: Tony Jaa Cast: Tony Jaa, Sorapong Chatree - Thailand Videoretailer.com Review: Set in the mid 1400’s, ‘Tien’ (Tony Jaa) is a man who had his nobility stripped from him when his parents were murdered, and Tien was taken in by a band of thieves who taught him how to steal and fight, and Tien's expertise as a thief and fighter grows and it isn't long before he is made head thief. Then Tien discovers something disturbing - a competition is being held to find the best knights to serve under the very man who had killed Tien's parents all those years ago. Tien passes the tests easily and is made ‘Lord Rachasana's 2nd Knight. Now, he has his opportunity to strike but he will have to use all his skill and ingenuity if he is going to get his revenge on the man who killed his parents. Sequel only in title to the excellent “Ong Bak” (released to DVD 9/05), this intriguing period martial arts film has stupendous action / fight scenes, but the storyline is pretty thin. Good news is, thin plot, great fighting didn’t hurt Ong Bak, which turned out to find interest outside of the martial arts niche thanks to word-of-mouth, so the fans of that will find great entertainment here as well. Given, a lot of water has passed under the bridge between 2005 and now, but go back and see how “Ong Bak” did for you…this will perform similarly. IMDB User Rating = 6.4 (out of 10).

	Planet Hulk
	Studio: Lions Gate MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Anim-Kids Pre Order Date: 1/5/2010 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: DTV Number Of Screens: Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: Director: Cast: Animated Hulk Videoretailer.com Review: Coming soon

Triangle, The

Studio: First Look MPAA Rating: R Genre: Horror Pre Order Date: 12/28/2009 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: Ltd Number Of Screens: Fests Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 2009 Fests Director: Christopher Smith Cast: Liam Hemsworth, Melissa George Videoretailer.com Review: When ‘Jess’ (Melissa George) sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends, she cannot shake the feeling that there is something wrong, and her suspicions are realized when the yacht hits a storm and the group is forced to board a passing ocean liner to get to safety - a ship Jess is convinced she's been on before. The ship appears deserted, the clock on board has stopped, but they are not alone... Someone is intent on hunting them down, one by one. And Jess unknowingly holds the key to end the terror. While several notches above your run-of-the-mill supernatural thriller, this well-done trippy flick tinkers with the time continuum a-la “Groundhog Day”, and ultimately is a very simple, yet very complicated picture that confounded some, but found very good buzz at the festivals where it played. Good boxart will find interest – in most cases renters will be pleasantly surprised. Most should be alright with 1-4. IMDB User Rating = 6.6 (out of 10).

Universal Soldier: Regeneration

Studio: Sony MPAA Rating: NR Genre: Sci-Fi Pre Order Date: 12/30/2009 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: DTV Number Of Screens: Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: Director: John Hyams Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren Videoretailer.com Review: With stolen top-secret technology, terrorists have created a next-generation Universal Soldier - an elite fighter genetically altered into a programmable killing machine. With this "UniSol" leading the way, they seize the crippled Chernobyl nuclear reactor, threatening to unleash a lethal radioactive cloud, and the only one who can stop them is ‘Luc Deveraux’ (Jean-Claude Van Damme), a UniSol who's been decommissioned for years, but is now reactivated and retrained to make a full-on assault on the heavily armed fortress. But inside, he'll discover not one but two of these virtually indestructible warriors – and one of them is ‘Andrew Scott’ (Dolph Lundgren), Deveraux's vicious UniSol nemesis. What more could fans of 1992’s “Universal Soldier” ask for? An unlikely sequel 10 years after the last sequel, pairing together Van Damme and Lundgren for the first time since this original. What’s more is that this isn’t bad…lots of action, good production values and a re-teaming of sorts…not to mention that 10 years has passed since the lousy “Universal Soldier: The Return”, so the consumers burned by that have pretty much forgotten the sting, and should be ready for more…there should be no sting with this one. You’ll probably want to bulk up with this…interest should be significant and as we often say, some DTV titles can perform real well for you if you buy as you would a theatrical release – customers will notice several copies while passing by a couple copies of the same title. Buy a bunch, and make this title stand-out – most consumers won’t know this is direct to video, they’ll just think it’s a theatrical title they missed. The extra faces will create an excitement and all of a sudden, you have a big title on your hands. IMDB User Rating = 8.7 (out of 10).

Zombieland

Studio: Sony MPAA Rating: R Genre: Com-Horror Pre Order Date: 12/30/2009 Video Release Date: 2/2/2010 Box Office Sales / Broadcast Details: 75.6 Number Of Screens: 3171 Theatrical / Broadcast Release Date: 10/2/09 Director: Ruben Fleischer Cast: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Amber Heard, Bill Murray Videoretailer.com Review: A cowardly shut-in named ‘Columbus’ (Jesse Eisenberg) is forced to join up with a seasoned zombie slayer named ‘Tallahassee’ (Woody Harrelson) in order to survive a zombie apocalypse. As Tallahassee sets out on a mission to find the last Twinkie on Earth, the duo meets up with ‘Wichita’ (Emma Stone) and ‘Little Rock’ (Abigail Breslin), two young girls who have resorted to some rather unorthodox methods to survive amidst the chaos. Reluctant partners in the battle against the undead, all four soon begin to wonder if it might be better to simply take their chances alone. Very entertaining comedy is sort of like a high-octane, rednecked remake of “Shaun Of The Dead”, and combines some gratuitous gore with quality laughs – this is a fun, funny ride that found terrific critical and consumer response. Good starpower, a combination of popular genres and a good buzz will make this title a rental destination that should have excellent demand and some good endurance with broad mainstream interest and repeat customers…don’t underestimate. IMDB User Rating = 8.0 (out of 10).