It's widely agreed that Hollywood is short on ideas. The one area of cranial athletics that seems to be in robust health, however, is a long-standing tendency for covetous exploitation. Evidence of this can be found in the news that 'Batman, The Dark Knight' is scheduled to be re-released in January so it can be eligible for the Oscars.It's a highly enjoyable and well crafted movie, but let's be honest; A major reason why Warners has already enjoyed a $900+ million Box Office haul is due to the public's desire to see Heath Ledger's mesmeric swansong as The Joker.
Now they want a re-run so they can earn even more.
January is the peak of voting season for the Academy Awards, so the Knight would then become a contender. And should the Producers be blessed with a little golden guy the attendant caché would not exactly hurt DVD sales. It already has the second-highest gross in history ["Titanic" earned $1.84 billion for Fox in '98,] and WB's intent is clearly to use subtle exploitation of Heath's premature loss to drive the movie past the mystical $1-Billion mark [I suspect some of Warner's execs were promised a rather nice bonus if that can be arranged.]
There's a snag, though. Dark Knight is due to hit DVD in December, which would decimate the returns from a theatre release. The only way to avoid the damage would be to defer the disk until after the holidays. And that's a bitter pill; Do you stall the DVD and miss the biggest cash-cow of the year, or release the disk and cash-in on the frenzy, then just hope for the best at the theatres?
The decision, along with the guilt for its cause are thankfully not part of my burden, and for that I'm boundlessly glad.
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2 comments:
I don't think a DVD release in December would decimate the ticket sales of a re-release of Dark Knight in January. The various Star Wars movies enjoyed successful re-releases even after their videotapes were released. If anything, after sing it on DVD, many folks may be encouraged to see it in the theater again for the experience.
Yes, the prevalence of home video exctinctified the revival theaters, but certain "event" movies, cult movies, and rarities defy those odds and become the exception that proves the rule.
You're right, Captain. But Star Wars isn't a movie, it's a deity. The curious beings who comprise the unquestioning army of devoted disciples of that ever-expanding opus would buy every super-special, wide-screen, director's cut variant George might deign to release,...and they'd still line up six-deep at 2am in a New York winter to see it in theaters - They're obsessed! :)
Dark Knight is a great film. I just think WB need to place their respect for Heath above their lust for Ben Franklin.
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