Movies
‘Cabin In The Woods’ Was Supposed To Be Direct-To-DVD In Australia, Until The Fans Spoke Up!
Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon’s The Cabin in the Woods is my favorite horror film of the year so far and, while I’m excited to own it on Blu-ray in a month or two, I’m very grateful I had the chance to see it in theaters twice. As much as the theatrical experience can be a pain in the ass these days (I literally get angry about people texting before I even get to the theater), when it goes well there’s nothing like watching a great movie with a room full of people who are eating it up.
But Australian horror fans almost didn’t get the chance to have that experience. Village Roadshow, who is handling some of the foreign territories for the film, almost released to straight to DVD in that territory according to The Daily Telegraph. So what happened? The fans spoke up. They emailed the studio, they posted on its Facebook page and they wouldn’t relent.
Finally the studio caved. Per The Telegraph, “A major distributor bowed to fan pressure – something that rarely happens – and announced that ‘The Cabin in the Woods’ would be getting a theatrical release after all, albeit very limited. Despite only playing on seven screens in Australia it still managed to take $85,152 in its opening weekend – a considerable feat for a film you have to actively seek out.”
What’s the lesson here? Fight for good horror (and good films in general). Let the studios know that there is an audience that respects the film. It’s not about supporting “studio horror” or “indie horror” – their are plenty of terrible films on both sides of the fence that shouldn’t be supported. But support the stuff you love – that’s the only way to make sure you get it and it continues to even be made.
If you live in Australia, The Cabin In The Woods is playing at the following theaters.
Sydney – Palace Chauvel, Paddington
Melbourne – Cinema Nova, Carlton
Adelaide – Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas
Perth – Luna Palace Cinemas
Brisbane – Palace Barracks Cinemas
Hobart – Village Cinemas, Glenorchy
Movies
‘The Exorcism’ Trailer – Russell Crowe Gets Possessed in Meta Horror Movie from Producer Kevin Williamson
Russell Crowe (The Pope’s Exorcist) is starring in a brand new meta possession horror movie titled The Exorcism, and Vertical has unleashed the official trailer this afternoon.
Vertical has picked up the North American rights to The Exorcism, which they’ll be bringing to theaters on June 7. Shudder is also on board to bring the film home later this year.
Joshua John Miller, who wrote 2015’s The Final Girls and also starred in films including Near Dark and And You Thought Your Parents Were Weird, directed The Exorcism.
Joshua John Miller also wrote the script with M.A. Fortin (The Final Girls). This one is personal for Miller, as his late father was the star of the best possession movie ever made.
Miller said in a statement this week, “The origins of the film stem from my childhood spent watching my father, Jason Miller, playing the doomed Father Karras flinging himself out a window at the climax of The Exorcist. If that wasn’t haunting enough on its own, my dad never shied away from telling me stories of just how “cursed” the movie was: the mysterious fires that plagued the production, the strange deaths, the lifelong injuries— the list went on and on. The lore of any “cursed film” has captivated me ever since.”
“With The Exorcism, we wanted to update the possession movie formula (“Heroic man rescues woman from forces she’s too weak and simple to battle herself!”) for a world where no one group owns goodness and decency over another,” he adds. “We were gifted with an extraordinary cast and creative team to tell a story about how we’re all vulnerable to darkness, to perpetuating it, if we fail to face our demons. The devil may retaliate, but what other choice do we have?”
The film had previously been announced under the title The Georgetown Project.
“The Exorcism follows Anthony Miller (Crowe), a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter (Ryan Simpkins) wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play.”
Sam Worthington (Avatar: The Way of Water), Chloe Bailey (Praise This), Adam Goldberg (The Equalizer) and David Hyde Pierce (Frasier) also star.
Of particular note, Kevin Williamson (Scream, Sick) produced The Exorcism.
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