By Chris Kavan - 08/22/13 at 07:54 AM CT
Last week although we had another onslaught of new films at the box office, pretty much everything other than the dramatic, historic Butler fueled much interest in audiences. Unfortunately, I have a feeling the next few weeks are going to bring more of the same. This is the time of year where a lot of the films either appeal only to a niche audience or are simply dumped off because the studio didn't have anywhere else to put them. This week it's not that the movies are particularly bad - but they do have a limited appeal.
THE WORLD'S END For those who have followed director Edgar Wright, and stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost on the epic "Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy" The World's End is the grand finale. The first film, Shaun of the Dead, followed a group of friends during a zombie apocalypse. Hot Fuzz was sendup of the classic buddy cop films with a droll British twist. Both films had plenty of violence as well. The World's End also follows a group of friends as they take part in a pub crawl only to find themselves up against a robotic/alien threat. The premise sound ridiculous - but then, the other two films were kind of like that as well. I'll watch it simply for the fact I loved the previous two films. This is the kind of movie that won't have a super wide appeal - it will attract a loyal fan base but I doubt general audiences are going to flock to this one.
YOU'RE NEXT Adam Wingard has been staking his claim in the horror genre. He contributed to the horror anthologies V/H/S, V/H/S 2 and The ABCs of Death as well as helming A Horrible Way to Die, which has developed a cult following, Now comes his most accessible film yet, You're Next, in which a family is assailed by a mysterious gang of killers - who, in turn, find one of their "victims" has a talent for fighting back. Horror films have done well lately - just look at The Purge and The Conjuring and You're Next certainly has a good chance of joining those two. Plus, like those two films, this isn't going to have a high-dollar blockbuster production cost, so it shouldn't have much trouble earning back its budget. I'm very selective about horror films, so there's a better chance of me catching it on Netflix than in theaters, but if enough people praise it, I may sneak out to watch this one too.
MORTAL INSTRUMENTS: CITY OF BONES
There has been a rough patch lately for films based on massive tween hits. Everyone wants to be the studio that brings about the next Harry Potter or Twilight - but as The Host and Beautiful Creatures proved earlier this year - just because your book is popular does not mean your movie is going to follow suit. This is nothing new - The Golden Compass, His Dark Materials, Eragon - there are so many examples of films failing to meet fans' expectations, I'm surprised anyone is still trying. Despite having a cast including featuring the likes of Lily Collins, Lena Headey, Jared Harris and Jonathan Rhys Meyers - early reviews haven't been kind and I think this is going to join the long line of YA novels turned into generic, bland movies. A sequel is already in the works for 2014 and it will be interesting to see if the film can justify that move.
It should be another somewhat slow weekend - I think the only chance of having a breakout is if another horror film attracts a wide audience. We'll find out on Sunday.
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