Ah, January. Along with February (and to a lesser extent March) it’s that ever-so-reliable dumping ground for shitty movies not good enough for the Oscar season and not marketable enough for summer. The first weekend of 2012 sees the movie gods being especially gracious to us as they have only sent one wide release to test our faith in the power of cinema…
I suppose with the recent success of the “found footage” Paranormal Activity series and the historical success of The Exorcist, there was bound to one day be a horror flick that tried to capitalize on the success of both. Except…that film already happened over a year ago. So what new gimmick does The Devil Inside bring to the table? Oh, this time there are multiple demons possessing her! OOOOooooOOOoooo! At the very least, you can always count on an exorcism movie to pull out all the stops to try and get your attention. Even though the vast majority of critics say that it does nothing interesting other than pull out one of the worst endings in many years out of its ass, we can remain hopeful, right? It sure seems like the rest of the internet is, as online activity and lack of competition points to The Devil Inside making a healthy $21-26 million in its debut frame.
And…that’s it. Other than an 800-theater expansion of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, there are no other new releases this weekend. I suppose this is where I would ask you all to let us know your thoughts on The Devil Inside except, well, c’mon…anyway, stay tuned for Academy Idol results and more Oscar news on The Awards Circuit!
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Tags: crimes against art, The Devil Inside, tinker tailor soldier spy, Weekend Openings
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I quite liked The Last Exorcism…but this…yea….no.
Reports are running rampant on Twitter, the IMDB page, and other outlets that THE DEVIL INSIDE is horrifically bad with many people claiming they demanded their money back after attending the midnight screening. Apparently without credits the film is about 75 minutes or so and without spoiling anything, after the ending sequence occurs, viewers are asked to visit a website to continue to follow the case.
Shame on Paramount for this; but they are likely already profitable by the time I write this in acquiring and distributing the film.
Stay tuned for my take…
I actually have never minded the crappy Jan-Feb movie line up because it gives me time to catch up on the previous years movies that finally get wide releases and watch the 2011 dvds as they start to trickle out.
As example The Artist is finally going wide in my city next week! Hoping for Shame to follow.
February actually gave me my favorite film of 2010, Shutter Island, so release dates really mean nothing to me at this point. I agree with your thoughts.
I felt The Last Exorcism didn’t really pack the punch I had been hoping for, and found its ending irritating. I still think one of the very best exorcism films in recent times is The Exorcism of Emily Rose.