GUEST EDITORIAL: Movies Make Money Beyond the Box Office

by Kevin Gardner

A common assumption is that motion pictures that die at the box office are simply forgotten and written off by the studio's accounting department, which is really not the case. Even the worst stinker at the local cinema has a streaming service waiting for it somewhere. Beyond streaming, other revenue sources spin forth from movies as well. You might assume that movies are all about fantasy, about distracting the movie-goer from the problematic real world for 90 minutes. In reality, motion pictures make up an incredibly profitable industry that interfaces with other big-ticket industries as well.

2021, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, StreamingDon ShanahanAugust 7, 2021Comment

GUEST EDITORIAL: 10 Movies For Fitness Lovers

by Kevin Gardner

Movies can have a significant impact on everyday life. Although their primary focus is to entertain, their influence affects your mood, behavior and sometimes even your speech. For fitness enthusiasts, some films inspire them to push harder in a workout or experiment with a new technique. The movies aren’t limited to ones with fitness-related plots, but they typically feature a well-known actor in excellent shape performing amazing feats. Here are the top ten films that fitness experts love.

Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, StreamingDon ShanahanAugust 7, 2021Comment

GUEST EDITORIAL: How Movie Sets Make Money Outside Of Ticket Sales

by Kevin Gardner

From independent films to big budget action movies, movie production is an incredibly expensive venture. This is especially true when you think of large Hollywood films, but most film production can still cost a pretty penny regardless of what kind of company produces it. While most big budget films can usually rely on a projection of the value that they’ll gain from attendants to the movies, those projections are only a guess and can never be completely called in correctly until after the movie has been produced and released. For budgetary reasons, most film sets want to ensure that there will be a return on the initial investment. This is why it’s so important for movie sets to find other ways to make money so they can cover the initial cost of the price of producing the film. Here are just a few ways outside of movie ticket sales that movies make money.

2021, Column, Editorial, Home Media, StreamingDon ShanahanAugust 7, 2021Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Jungle Cruise

Look, Jungle Cruise knows exactly what it is, much like the brand of comedy coming from Dwayne’s skipper that’s called out by Blunt’s pragmatic presence. The jokes are corny, the hijinks aim for hilarity, and the spectacle is large. Like its theme park inspiration and Pirates of the Caribbean walking so this movie could run, Jungle Cruise is meant to be a ride that puts a smile on your face, and it sure is a zippy one. That’s right where it’s supposed to be.

2021, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEW, StreamingDon ShanahanJuly 27, 2021Jungle CruiseComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Joe Bell

Much of Joe Bell has the pungent trace of an unglamourous “glamour project” for Mark Wahlberg and likely a few of the film’s manly executive producer backers including Jake Gyllenhaal, NFL Hall of Famer Derrick Brooks, and former NBA All-Star Michael Finley to name a few. Projecting for sure, this movie feels like a place where the A-lister is trying to put forth marketed atonement for his own past bigotry. When all of this movie adds up to be about him, the genuineness aligns to the wrong place.

2021, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Streaming, 2 STARSDon ShanahanJuly 21, 2021Joe Bell, Mark WahlbergComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Long Story Short

Rafe Spall’s Teddy shares a lovely line to his best girl Leanne, played by Zahra Newman, towards the beginning of Long Story Short. He says “I love you more than I did yesterday and not as much as I will tomorrow.” I adore that line. It speaks with such intentional optimism. If only we all lived our lives as honestly and as purposefully as that little mantra. If you see sweetness in that gracious sentiment, there’s much more where that came from in the romance at the center of this little Aussie VOD gem written and directed by actor Josh Lawson.

2021, 4 STARS, Home Media, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, StreamingDon ShanahanJuly 20, 2021Long Story ShortComment

What Comes Next for Movie Streaming?

It came as a bit of a surprise to some at the end of 2020 when Warner Bros announced their partnership with HBO Max to deliver the latest big box office releases directly to their online streaming platform as well as seeing cinema release and the first of the big studios to really make the change, but as all facets of entertainment move away from traditional physical locations and more toward online options like casinos here at casinogenie.org or even lately for music festivals as some were forced to offer virtual options this past year.

2021, Column, Editorial, Home Media, StreamingDon ShanahanJuly 9, 2021Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Black Widow

Slotted with a self-important story to tell that takes place after the events of 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, this prequel arrives with a better-late-than-never party invitation of hype. Boasting some of the best melee work in a Marvel film, Black Widow belongs on the big screen and displays gratifying action sequences that rightfully highlight powerful females worthy of the spotlight. It also belonged in front of our eyes five years ago and not now. There is an unshakable magnitude of foregone conclusions that curtail the upper tier of potential excitement.

2021, 3 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEW, StreamingDon ShanahanJuly 2, 2021Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Edge of the World

Edge of the World chronicles the story of James Brooke’s emergence as the first White Rajah of Sarawak on the Malaysian island of Borneo during the middle of the 19th century. The adoptive leader became the inspiration template for authors Rudyard Kipling and Joseph Conrad and their respective far-off adventure stories of The Man Who Would Be King and Lord Jim.

2021, 3 STARS, Independent Film, Home Media, MOVIE REVIEW, StreamingDon ShanahanJune 17, 2021Comment

Has The Online Box Office Shift Been a Success?

It did come as a surprise to many at the end of 2020 when Warner Bros had announced their partnership with streaming platform HBO Max to deliver some of the biggest titles of the year directly to online streaming, however, and although many of our favourite forms of entertainment through the likes of gaming options in new slots right through to sporting now being represented with the likes of esports, it was something almost inevitable, but has it been a success?

2021, Column, Editorial, Home Media, StreamingDon ShanahanJune 4, 2021Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Cruella

Cruella tosses that “psycho” term and label around flippantly, even with its successful motivation to be interesting and darker than the usual live-action works from the Mouse House. It offers a villainess to believe in, but what does that say to audiences? Swinging for sympathy towards the amoral could have amounted to the same mistake as Maleficent seven years ago. Luckily, the conniptions and confrontations of “Emma vs. Emma” are damn fun. There’s a welcome place to relish in their wickedness.

2021, 3 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, Home Media, MOVIE REVIEW, StreamingDon ShanahanMay 27, 2021Cruella, Emma Thompson, Emma StoneComment

GUEST EDITORIAL: Little Women: The Veracity of Description

by Jessica Chapman

Many readers would admit that they have either not read or aren't fond of Little Women's novel. However, it is hard to believe that this is the opinion of most readers. It is even less believable given the number of women writers such as Patti Smith, JK Rowling, and Simone de Beauvoir, publicly claiming that this 19th century novel by Louisa May Alcott has inspired them. One character from the most inspiring story is Jo because of her strong will and how much of a heroine she is.