I was not intending to post a piece today but as usual something jumped into my head so here I am. WIN WIN is a movie that almost anyone would like. I liked it (and will review it more fully on Crimespree Cinema) but I would not call it an art house movie. Yet that is where it's playing in my neighborhood. At an art house theater along with two movies in foreign languages.
WIN WIN is not an art house movie. It is a mainstream movie. If it has any faults, it's that it is too ordinary to be in an art house. See the dilemma.
Why? When did this happen. When did the multiplexes stop showing movies that concern anything smaller (and quieter) than action movies or comedies about adolescent men. It used to be that movies like this or for instance Hoosiers played in every town.
I bet if you live in a small town, this movie will not even show up.
A few years ago, Little Miss Sunshine got the same treatment and eventually burst out of its arthouse confines. Same with Junebug. The studios always seem surprised that movies like this can draw an audience. I am surprised that some of the junk that came out this weekend can.
I bet WIN WIN would make a nice profit for the film-makers if they gave it a chance. Are you disappointed in the fare Hollywood puts on for the multiplexes?
16 comments:
If it's not a buddy movie with a disposible (and waaaaay too young) female along for eye-candy (and to dispel any notion that the heroes aren't heterosexual), along with some things that blow up real good, it doesn't get much exposure at our Cineplex. Also, it doesn't matter how many screens are available, about 75% of them will be showing the latest release only.
Perhaps those types of movies are popular because the audience doesn't have to actually, ya know, watch the movie. They can talk and text and blab on their cell phones to their hearts content.
/Dismounting soapbox now!
Although actually I have more trouble following the convoluted plots of some of those action pics than this one.
I can be quite disappointed by the general run of movies, including the arthouse releases (LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE was for me one of the most overrated films in the last decade, despite my being a fan of the cast), but Deb is definitely onto something...explosion movies that have no plot thread are loud experiences where consistently paying attention makes little difference and one can mouth off with one's friends, while having an overstimulating experience. And block-booking, since most of the awful explosion and buddy movies have no "legs" (no good word of mouth nor repeat business), is a matter of course.
These days, though, most of the film viewing people do is at home, one way or another...
Not me. I rarely even approximate the experience I have at a theater at home. Last night I went to a new theater that had a restaurant, a bar, and very nice theaters. It was packed. And people were, mostly young ones, were really dressed up. Maybe it will take these sorts of extras to lure people out.
We're lucky in Canton to have two good multiplexes that play almost everything. We got to see Cedar Rapids and Win Win at our normal movies spot. We even have the R rated Kings Speech still. I love going to the theater because its the only place I can really focus on a movie. I tend to see smaller movies in the theater and the bigger, broader movies at home. I wish some of these shows like Justified and Mad Men would have theatrical releases because I don;t have the time, or attention span at home to really get into them as deep as I'd like.
Is that an emagine theater, Bryon. They seem to show more diverse movies.
"Disappointed" is an understatement. The mainstream movies of today are just not made for people like us. If you're not a teen or a guy in his 20's, you're SOL.
WIN WIN is playing in what I'd consider the small, funky neighborhood theater where we prefer to go. They do show bigger mainstream movies there too (current fare: HOP, YOUR HIGHNESS, WIN WIN, JANE EYRE and POTICHE, but often they'll show "big" movies) but basically it's where we go to see the "small" movies.
For the "big screen" movies (Harry Potter, Avatar, etc.) we'll go into Manhattan.
Jeff M.
Deb, that struck a chord. This "art" theater is where we went to see the last Batman movie but had to get a refund because a stupid woman brought her three year old and was explaining it to him and objected (vehemently) when I asked her to tone it down.
Most appalling recent example: a group of young girls (high school age) on an obvious class outing to see LES MISERABLES in London. One could not wait for intermission to check her texts and share them with her neighbor.
To quote the Beach Boys, "I guess I just wasn't made for these times."
Jeff M.
WIN WIN is the sort of movie that used to be ubiquitous. Now it's a rarity. How did I miss the change in tastes? Or is it a Hollywood misperception?
I keep hearing great things about this film. With your appreciation, patti, I've got to take this in now. Thanks.
It's WIN WIN.
The home sets got better, home-viewing options got better, most theaters aren't that enticing to most older film enthusiasts (we considered going to the formerly mostly arty, and well-built and comfortable, Rave multiplex, formerly a Ritz, to see the best available option, SOURCE CODE, but the rather more cutrate Loews multiplex had more showtimes...and instead we opted for takeout and a video of ANIMAL KINGDOM and had a better [certainly more comfortable] time, I suspect [particularly as SOURCE CODE looks altogether not too distant from THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU]) and the kids still don't have a "third place" to be that's more stimulating than a large-screen theater.
Housebound mothers, too, in the experience of unhappy audiences such those Jeff has been in, have a similar perceived lack of options.
Films for adults is a shrinking genre. As Todd points out, older movie fans would rather just wait for the Blu-ray version and watch the movie on their HDTV. So theater operators won't show movies like WIN-WIN. They want GREEN LANTERN and THE MIGHTY THOR to bring in hordes of young males who spend a lot of money at the concession counter.
I might be wrong, but I think WIN WIN is gearing up for a wider release this coming weekend. My wife and I are going to be attending a screener of this movie later this week at a larger theater, and these screenings usually precede larger opening weekends. I'm guessing that they started marketing it to the smaller theaters as a marketing move to build a little buzz for the film prior to a wide release
That's great! I hope that's the case.
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