Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland

[Daniel]

Alice has received the following from the MPAA:

Title: Alice In Wonderland (2010)
Rating: PG
Rating Reason: Rated PG for fantasy action/violence involving scary images and situations, and for a smoking caterpillar.
Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures

That's just too funny!

[Locall]

So now with all the boycot against it, is Disney making a statement?

I looked forward to this movie for such a long time... I love Disney, I love Tim Burton, I love Johny Depp and I love Alice in Wonderland... so getting all these elements together on the big screen was a highlight for me, but now the Netherlands is officially boycotting it :S
I heard England was planning on doing so aswell, so have other countries announced their boycots yet?

[chernabog]

From what I heard the Netherlands are still showing it, but they're limiting its run. As for the UK (where I'm from) the word is that ODEON, Vue and Showcase are boycotting it if Disney doesn't lengthen the window between the theatrical release and the DVD. This is a huge deal, because Disney is projected to lose £40 million from UK audiences if this goes ahead as these cinema chains constitute 95%of all those across the country.

This actually happened a few years ago with the new Rambo film where Odeon boycotted it for its entire run, but this is obviously a much more serious case. In the end I think one side will back down because neither one wants to lose money, but I sincerely hope it's the cinemas that do because as far as I'm concerned Disney is completely justified in its decision to bring forward the DVD release date and I really don't believe that it will affect the cinemas at all.

[Ben]

Darn it, I was so looking forward to seeing this. But I can't now, because of a smoking caterpillar!

Honestly...and more seriously, I don't see why Disney is shortening the window. If it plays well, then extending is what they need to do...and a big summer film will ALWAYS be a big Christmas film on disc. Trying to "maximize" the advertising is a week argument...it's going to get that a theatrical experience isn't anything special any more and more and more people will simply wait for a disc to come in two months rather than add to the box office take.

Whatever happened to letting a film find an audience too? Crazy.

[Dacey]

Um...did I miss something here? What "boycott" are you guys talking about?

[EricJ]

UK theater chains boycotting the movie because Disney wants to do its favorite "Limited-time 3-D engagement!" (that they started with Miley Cyrus and continued on through Toy Story and Christmas Carol), which ould unfortunately would "limit" the 3-D version out of most all of its later European engagements before hitting disk.

You don't "boycott" unless there's a specific party making a mistake, and yes, some of us audiences would like Disney to stop making this mistake, too...It's started to get old.

[Ben]

Disney are cutting Alice's run in theaters to below the "accepted" three month norm. I say "accepted", but that's only because it's shrunk to that window between theatrical and home video over time...the exhibitors are not happy since the longer a profitable film runs the more they take.

Alice will actually be yanked from theaters - even if it's doing big numbers - in order to build on that hype for an early home video release where Disney feels demand will be higher.

The problem is that some chains are now refusing to take the film at all and, in the UK, that means the Big Three won't have Alice in theaters, theoretically making it a no-show in the UK and losing Disney a potential $40m in gross.

[chernabog]

The funny thing of course is that both Disney and the exhibitors stand to lose money, but neither one wants to be the first to give in.

[chernabog]

Well it's official. Odeon are boycotting Alice in Wonderland. I will never forgive them for this. Now I have to travel miles and miles to a non-Odeon cinema. If any others cinema chains follow suit I'm gonna have to take a day trip to France just to see it!

[Foxtale]

That is crazy. I'm sorry for you guys across the pond.

I'm only stoked to see the movie in theaters if I can see the 3D IMAX version.

[Meg]

If any others cinema chains follow suit I'm gonna have to take a day trip to France just to see it!

Geeze, I wish I could take a day trip to France!

[EricJ]

Well it's official. Odeon are boycotting Alice in Wonderland. I will never forgive them for this. Now I have to travel miles and miles to a non-Odeon cinema. If any others cinema chains follow suit I'm gonna have to take a day trip to France just to see it!

Hey, you are lucky, pal--At least it's a Tim Burton movie you're missing:

I remember seeing theater chains boycott the 1983 Kevin Kline "Pirates of Penzance" and watching that one fall into obscurity because only arthouses would show it...Tell me which of the two YOU think deserves to live.
Oh, and as for traveling miles, how about all those Boston museum IMAX theaters that wouldn't show "Fantasia 2000", thus necessitating a trip to NY or Rhode Island?

[ShyViolet]

Cool Tim Burton blog with interesting info:

http://www.timburtoncollective.com/labe ... urton.html

According to a recent post Tim will be on Jonathan Ross (UK) this Friday at 10:35 pm. (BBC1)

[Ben]

Now I have to travel miles and miles to a non-Odeon cinema.

Or...create your own boycott and don't go and see it at all. That can only help the grosses fall lower, and then just wait the less than three months and just buy the BD/DVD! That will at least show that reduced windows are not a good idea since people will stop going to the theaters period (even if all the chains are showing a film) and just wait a few weeks to bring it home.

[Randall]

Hey, you are lucky, pal--At least it's a Tim Burton movie you're missing

Gee, I'm dying to see it. I love seeing whatever Burton tries. Even when he's not so successful, he's always interesting to me.

But like most films I'll likely wait for the Blu-ray, which I'm likely to buy regardless anyhow.