DVD Releases of the Week: 'Edge of Tomorrow' Re-branded as 'Live Die Repeat' and 'A Million Ways to Die in the West'
And here come the flops! With so many films coming out in theaters, studios are dropping a number of box office failures onto DVD this week. There is an assortment of titles starring such renowned actors as Tom Cruise, Seth MacFarlane, Charlize Theron, Jake Lacy and Jon Hamm. There is also a number of genres to choose from including action, documentary, foreign and comedy.
Here is a list of this week's releases:
"Edge of Tomorrow" - Those that missed Tom Cruise's latest science fiction will want to see this critically acclaimed film. Also starring Emily Blunt, "Edge of Tomorrow" tells the story of an officer who finds himself caught in a time loop in a war with the alien race. His skills increase as he faces the same brutal combat scenarios, and his union with a Special Forces warrior gets him closer to defeating the enemy. When the movie was released during the summer, it failed with audiences and flopped. For the DVD release Warner Bros. is trying to remarket the flick with a new title. The studio is using the slogan "Live Die Repeat" on the front cover and ignoring the original title. It will be interesting to see if this marketing ploy will actually work when it is released. However, with good reviews and potential awards buzz, Warner Bros could recover some of its losses from the theatrical run.
"A Million Ways to Die in the West" - Back in May Universal thought it had an automatic hit with Seth MacFarlane's latest film starring MacFarlane, Liam Neeson and Charlize Theron. However, it was also a flop. The western comedy tells the story of a cowardly farmer who begins to fall for the mysterious new woman in town. However, he must put his newfound courage to the test when her husband, a notorious gun-slinger, announces his arrival. Universal has not really done a lot of marketing for the release and it is unlikely this film will land a new following particularly with the surplus of comedies coming out in the next weeks. MacFarlane fans however, will appreciate it.
"Million Dollar Arm" - The new Jon Hamm starrer about a sports agent who stages an unconventional recruitment strategy to get talented Indian cricket players to play Major League Baseball will be released after underperforming over the summer. Disney hoped to get family and sports audiences over to the cinema in May but failed. However, now that baseball season is underway and there is a lot of enthusiasm, perhaps the studio can reach its targeted market. Hamm also has a huge following particularly from "Mad Men" and this will definitely be something Disney hopes to bank on in its DVD release.
"Obvious Child" - A24 will release the Sundance hit after a modest release. The comedy, starring Jenny Slate, tells the story of a twenty-something comedienne's unplanned pregnancy which forces her to confront the realities of independent womanhood for the first time. Having opened to rave reviews, A24 expected the film could possibly play to the mainstream similar to how "Juno" crossed over. However the movie never quite reached the intended goal and closed to a disappointing $3 million. With awards season coming along, the feature should definitely figure into awards talk and possibly could receive Indie Spirit Awards.
"A Coffee in Berlin" - Music Box's latest film is a tragicomedy about a young man who drops out of university and ends up wandering the streets of Berlin. The movie opened to rave reviews over the summer and Latin Post stated, "A Coffee in Berlin" is a slow-paced film about soul searching filled with intelligent filmmaking and an insightful script." While it won the German Film awards a few years ago, the movie was not able to gain a huge following from art house audiences. The Music Box film could reach a better audience through streaming services. However, it will likely be buried.
Also being released this week are "To Be Takei," "Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods," "Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon" and "Tasting Menu."