How to Sell Your Movie with a Poster: For Dummies.

As you probably know, for the past four years of my life, I've worked at a DVD store. Over these years, there have been a few things that I've learnt: a) No-one liked to keep classic movies in that shop, so I had to fuel my love for classic movies by actually buying them myself, b) No-one likes to order in foreign films because "no-one likes them" and c) When people come in to get a DVD, 95% of the time they make their choice based on the cover alone. While I was cleaning shelves, I noticed how achingly bad some DVD covers are, trying to sell themselves in one average sized rectangle. The worst offenders are generally the blockbusters and the straight-to-DVD B-movies, coz most indie flicks know that whoever is going to watch them probably knows a thing or two about movies.

Here's my guide, for dummies, to how you can market a movie with a poster:

Main Street (2010)
Despite the star power, this movie struggled to get a release (I think it went limited in America, but very few people saw it), and wound up on DVD, with a horrendous poster to match. But whoever designed the poster obviously had a field day with their assignment.

A) "From Horton Foote, screenwriter of To Kill a Mockingbird and Tender Mercies, and director John Doyle." That's cool, but come on, To Kill a Mockingbird was made just about 40 years ago. I get that this person won two Oscars for his work (but did it say that on the poster?), and unfortunately died before this movie was released, but the whole screen-writing thing is hopelessly dire on a poster. And John Doyle...this is his only film. But, oh well, putting stuff like that on a poster can only mean one thing: the production team really cared about their writer and director.
B) "Colin Firth, Ellen Burstyn, Patricia Clarkson with Amber Tamblyn and Orlando Bloom" Wow, what a cast. You always gotta capitalize on a cast. That's first and foremost the thing you should remember when designing a poster. Even if your cast sucks, just make sure you have someone quite famous who maybe has two-minutes of screen time and stick them on the poster. Names will get you everywhere.
C) The next best thing to names are faces. When you have quite a good ensemble cast, you just line them all up and have them walking somewhere (or, in the case of X-Men: First Class, just have some mutants walking, others just standing, all over the place, just so you can get every character on the page). Make sure they have mildly different faces. Like, old Colin looks quite jovial, Ellen Burstyn looks like that happy old lady, and Patricia Clarkson looks like...someone just farted.
D) Ha! Witty! You see, since the title is Main Street, of course the title had to be put on a street sign. Even if the street sign is sitting quite low in the middle of the footpath, and if Colin Firth walks any further and does not see it, he will be hit in a place which...yeah.
E) Good old Orlando Bloom. While everyone is looking like they just stepped out of Coronation Street, he is donning the action hero attire. Just trying to jazz it up a little, eh?

Monte Carlo (2011)
Teens are all about the clichés. More so if they're the target audience for the latest Disney-style flick starring Selena Gomez.

A) "She's having the time of someone else's life." The tagline. It can always draw the audience in with it's dry wit. Especially when you take a well-known cliché like 'She's having the time of her life' and make it even more clichéd by saying 'She's having the time of someone else's life'. Clever, or what?
B) Oh, don't they just look jovial?! Okay, so Leighton Meester, Selena Gomez and Katie Cassidy are three beautiful young girls...except, well, judging by some of the other stuff that Meester and Cassidy have been doing with their careers, they're kinda past this kind of teen fluff that Gomez is well into. So, they're just hanging in the background looking happy, trying to shrug off their spoiled brat Gossip Girl's and their Taken prostitutes, while squeaky-clean Selena Gomez is up the front, y'know, looking squeaky clean. The girls at the back can look happy, but not as happy as Gomez, because she's the only actress anyone under the age of 12 would know.
C) Ah, the clichés! As part of a poster, you always have to show off a little of the character and their story. In this case, our heroine is wearing an elegant ball gown, but underneath, she's wearing cowboy boots! Oh, this tells us SO much about her! Like, she's into the whole parading-around-as-a-princess thing, but she's staying true to her roots! Cool story bro.

Never Let Me Go (2010)
Yes, this is a very good movie. And yes, we know that there is a better poster out there. This one, however, is pretty bad, but it is the perfect example of following the poster making skills for dummies. Trust me, the DVD cover that we have in NZ is worse...this whole poster is kinda blurred together. I could probably recreate it in Microsoft Word.

A) Names! And what's even better than names? When they have Oscar nominations! But never mind that Andrew Garfield fulla, because, as he doesn't have the old "Academy Award Nominee" above his name, he must not be a worthy actor. But he's helped along by Academy Award Nominees Carey Mulligan and Keira Knightley, so he's worthy enough of your attention. Seriously...that's the kind of feeling I get from name dropping like this one. Not that I have anything against Oscar nominations though, they're all the rage on posters!
B) Keira Knightley is probably the most well-known cast member. So it's only natural that she gets to stare into the camera putting her hand up on the window in that fashion (and that doesn't really say that much about her character at all...Mulligan's character is someone more suited to that). Obviously, people will see her face and be like, "that's the chick off Pirates of the Caribbean!" and immediately put this in their mental watchlist. See, to be a good poster designer, you really have to get into the mentality of the person looking at this poster.
C) It's a love story baby just say yes. That's what I think when I look at that romantic shot of Garfield and Mulligan. People love their romances. It doesn't matter if this romance is a little different to that of The Notebook.
D) Ah, because that beautiful shot was featured on the completely normal poster, it just has to be included here. But really small and just as a place-filler. Because on this poster we have the characters, and now we have to have the setting. Not together, though, as that would be the easy thing to do.

Takers (2010)
This movie is pretty bad. And yet, people picked it up like it was the next The Godfather. Just with, y'know, rap stars.

A) Oh look at all those names! Matt Dillon, Paul Walker, Idris Elba, Jay Hernandez, Michael Ealy, Tip "T.I." Harris, Chris Brown, Hayden Christensen. There are so many great things about this:
-Firstly, they're all male. Hey, Zoe Saldana, the star of the highest grossing movie ever to grace this Earth, was in this movie! But no, with all that testosterone this is the coolest thing to happen to the world after The Expendables.
-Secondly, I haven't even heard of half of these people, but that doesn't matter. Because, if all these names managed to make it to the poster, then this movie must have a great cast!
-Thirdly, famed rapper 'T.I' used his full name Tip Harris on the poster. That shows some swag, man.
-Finally, Matt Dillon is first billed but he don't even get to be on the poster. Because, obviously, he ain't got enough swag like these bros here.
B) Ooooh, Chris Brown. Looking serious. Coz this is a serious acting job. His face is so serious that he looks just like what the public think of him, thanks to him beating up Rihanna. Yeah, no matter how serious this acting job is, we ain't never gonna let you live that one down, buddy.
C) Look how serious everyone else. And look how much swag everyone has. Except for maybe Hayden Christensen, who is proudly brought to you by PhotoShop. He's just sitting there, lightening the mood with his out-of-place top hat and nerdy bow-tie, just living up his status as the whitest guy in the room who doesn't have any swag. That shows character range, folks.
D) Again, the tagline! "Everyone's after something." Ain't that a great burst of philosophy? Especially when you apply it to a whole lot of gangsters.
E) Just look at everything on the table in front of them. A gun, an alcoholic beverage, a bottle of champagne, a martini, a suitcase which is presumably filled with money. Welcome to the 'Swag Parlour', where the men are as clichéd as their possessions.
F) The website! "WhoAretheTakers.com"...Yes, even the website URL has to ask a question which many don't really care to find out the answer for. Oh, how amazing is the internet?

 The Social Network (2010)
Last, but certainly not least, the DVD cover for one of my most favourite films, the amazing The Social Network. Which was given the most bland portrayal of poster making for dummies.

A) "Screenplay by AARON SORKIN, Directed by DAVID FINCHER." Two amazing people, yes, but usually the stars should get a little love, too. But they're so important they get to go right under the title, because everyone knows who they are. Which is unfortunately not true.
B) "A BRILLIANT FILM." "AN AMERICAN LANDMARK." "REVOLUTIONARY. ABSOLUTELY EMBLEMATIC OF ITS TIME AND PLACE." "SENSATIONAL. A ONCE-IN-A-GENERATION MOVIE." "MAMMOTH AND EXHILARATING." If you were around during 2010/2011 awards season, then there is no doubt you would have seen how critically acclaimed this movie is, which is why the poster designers decided to make the critical acclaim their big draw. Critical acclaim is everything, and when you have as much as this one had, then you just gotta shout it out from the rooftops. Or from a DVD cover...whatever floats your boat.
C) A single picture of Jesse Eisenberg's Mark Zuckerberg standing there smiling away while a couple have a little hug session. Wait...this isn't a romantic comedy? No, we're led to believe that Marky Mark is smiling because of all the critical acclaim this movie got. As I said, critical acclaim is everything.
D) We all love Facebook, don't we? So, incorporate the Facebook font into the title for this movie and BAM! People think they're seeing a movie about Facebook but really they're seeing a movie about a douchebag who shits on his best friend but his best friend tells him to lawyer up asshole because he's not coming back for 30% he's coming back for everything. And there's something about forced cannibalism in there.

So, do you have any tips for poster making for dummies?

16 Days of Birthday, Day 14: I Like to Cry at Movies

Remember how in that post I did about happiness in movies, I said that I prefer watching depressing movies or movies that make me cry? Well yeah, I'm a big crier at the movies. I will literally cry at anything.

You know, I used to be such a tough girl. I used to feel sad at some movies, but I never used to cry in them. No way, I was too tough for that kind of shit. That was until I watched the original version of A Star is Born (the one that was made in 1937 and it has Janet Gaynor in it), and I found myself tearing up a bit at the end of it. At first I was pretty angry at myself for breaking my rule of not crying, but little did I know that this was the start of something new. After that little episode, I was soon tearing up at anything. These days, if a movie has one shred of emotion in it, I will cry like a baby.

If I were to choose a movie which I've cried the most in, it would probably have to be Requiem for a Dream. And I think I was crying a lot more the second time I watched it, mainly because I had my friend crying along with me. How is it that the movie is so traumatizing, even though no-one dies? Well, it's like all of the characters die inside, which is pretty sad to watch. Then there's Clint Mansell's scary music blaring in the background, which I think sounds exactly like the struggle of life. But the one thing that makes me feel absolutely wrecked is when Sara Goldfarb has her last dream of being on TV, right before the credits start to roll. From there on, I'm left frozen in front of the screen, with tears just streaming down my face. I think watching this movie twice is enough for me.

The movie which I cried the most in at the cinemas, however, is probably Never Let Me Go. You know, the totally underrated and forgotten movie that was adapted from one of the best books ever. This movie is endlessly sad for me, because I really don't want to imagine living a life which is set out for me. In fact, I don't want to imagine a life where some people are kept away so much from the outside world, partly because that's what they're made to do and partly because the rest of the world seemed very ashamed of those poor donors. When I think about all that kind of stuff, even though it's not real, it makes me really sad. Brb, I'm just crying into my keyboard...

As you know, I'm a huge fan of Schindler's List. I cry a lot during this movie because I just can't believe that something as horrible as that could have happened in history. But the moment which I always have a good cry in is during Oskar's "I could have done more" speech. Why? Well, Liam Neeson totally owns in that scene (I miss those days, Liam, please let your sensitive side show again?), but I would have said the exact same thing. I would have cried because I couldn't save one more. Then again, I'm not a player or a guy who is obsessed with money...Oskar's transformation just makes that scene all the more sweet. Now I'll tell you a semi-funny story: me and my drama class were watching this because we wanted to get a better idea of the Holocaust for our Anne Frank unit. When we got up to this scene, I started crying a lot. I mean, tears were streaming down my face so much and I had to keep mopping them up with my jersey sleeve. Luckily I composed myself right when the credits started rolling, and everyone was looking around giving each other the 'that was a good movie' look. In ICT, we started talking about the movie and one girl was like "I nearly cried at the end!" So I blurted out, "I was in tears at the end...I couldn't stop myself!" Then the guy who was sitting next to me while watching the movie said "I didn't see you crying!" Wow. Either he is blind and deaf or I'm just a really composed crier.

Anyway, those are my main crying movies that never fail to make use a box of tissues.

Here, however, is a list of the weirdest movies I've ever cried in:

• Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging (when she gets a surprise birthday party...I wish I could have one of them but I always find out)
• Love and Other Drugs (okay, so I didn't cry during the movie. I just had a mental breakdown at the end of it for no reason - the movie was pretty dull)
• Gone with the Wind (it took me six watches to actually cry during the movie)
• Black Swan (I still don't know why I shed a tear during that movie...but it happened)
• Inception (the first time I saw it I cried so much - now I just cry at the sight of Christopher Nolan's name for some silly reason)
• The King's Speech (when I watched this with my cat when it first came out on DVD I cried rather vocally during the end speech...needless to say, my cat was scared)

What are some movies that you have had memorable crying experiences in? I'd like to know some weird ones!

Cinema--Never Let Me Go

or: Living a life set out for you.

One word to sum it up: Depressing.

Last year in social studies we did a debate about the 'ethics of death' and whether it was okay to have children born solely for the purpose of donating organs. This was a topic which completely baffled me. Was it okay to have a life cut short just for the comfort of others? Or did the others who really needed it have to have these kind of people around so they could have a shot at living? This argument was one which I had questioned such a long time ago, but after watching Never Let Me Go, I started to wonder about this again. All I know is, this movie has opened me up to a world which I never want to see happen. What these people go through is simply unfair.

On the surface, Never Let Me Go appears to be a film about a love triangle between friends Kathy (Carey Mulligan), Tommy (Andrew Garfield) and Ruth (Keira Knightley). The three spend their childhood at Hailsham, a seemingly idyllic and very organised boarding school. Kathy has always been interested in Tommy, but Ruth, who is quite manipulative, starts a relationship with Tommy, and Kathy quietly wishes that they would separate. But this love triangle is but a small factor of their lives. They live the life that they have planned out for them, and all the while protect themselves for the well being of others. All they have to do is prepare themselves for the haunting reality that awaits them.

Having not read the source material (I am going to very soon though), I can't make the comparisons and such between the two. The premise is a very intriguing one. To be perfectly honest, I wouldn't be able to live in a world knowing that someone has been cloned to benefit others, and these people were all locked away from the real world. Forget all the apocalyptic BS going around at the moment, this idea right here scares me. I would never want to live my life having it all planned out for me. And to be honest, I'd hate to live without making choices for myself. This is what makes this movie so sad. The children of Hailsham are treated like they aren't humans and they don't have souls. That just broke my heart.

Alex Garland has had a very interesting career. He started off by writing the novel for the much maligned movie The Beach. Then he wrote the screenplay for another Danny Boyle movie, 28 Days Later... He reteamed with Boyle again for sci-fi thriller Sunshine. These three movies all have something in common with Never Let Me Go. The Beach features another world which is so far away from the real one, much like Hailsham and the normal day-to-day life we would know. 28 Days Later... takes a look at not only science, but sacrifice and again, a different sort of world. Sunshine looks at the decisions people make for the greater good of others, and the choice to make the world exponentially better. Sure, the kids don't save the sun or whatever, but they bump life expectancy up a hell of a lot. Never Let Me Go is by far the most restrained of Garland's work, and while I felt that a great deal was missing from the screenplay, his work in capturing the poor lives of these people was brilliant. Mark Romanek provides a beautiful fluidity to the film, with brilliant cinematography and music to boot. Romanek made the right choice going with this one instead of The Wolfman, that's for sure.

While the screenplay required a bit more work, the actors ensured that things kept chugging along. Firstly, the actors chosen to play the three main characters as children were perfect. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought that their 'originals' were really Mulligan, Garfield and Knightley. Carey Mulligan, coming off the back of her stunning Oscar nominated performance in An Education won my heart over as the understanding Kathy. She was just so innocent and so relaxed. Keira Knightley, an actress who has dropped off the radar a bit of late, makes a good turn in this film. Her character was quite confounded and somewhat annoying, but Knightley pulled off these traits beautifully. But for me, Andrew Garfield stole the show. He was adorable (and I don't mean just looks wise). He was just so confused by it all, and Garfield paid attention to every single detail of this interesting character. After all, this man was the reason I cried so much. Just thinking about Never Let Me Go right now makes me feel so sad. Thought this would be a typical romantic drama for two? Think again. It's not for everyone, but it was definitely right for me.

THE VERDICT: A bleak tale with an interesting premise, the script may not complete the film, but all round, this is as depressing as they come. The performances are well done beyond compare.

What I hoped for:

What I got:

Why is NZ getting all these films WAY later than everyone else? Part two.

Remember this post back in November where I highlighted several release dates of movies which came here quite a while after their release in America? Well, it seems the trend is continuing. It never really bothered me until I really started getting into these cinema released films.

Conviction

USA release date: 15 October 2010. NZ release date: 24th February 2011. Distance between: 19 weeks.

When I saw this trailer attached to The King's Speech, I couldn't help but think this movie was old news. I mean, I remember the reviews from back in October and it seems like a distant memory. Am I correct in guessing that its already out on DVD in America? Sounds about right...

Tamara Drewe

USA release date: 8th October 2010 (limited). NZ release date: 24th February 2011. Distance between: 20 weeks.

Tamara Drewe has always been one of those movies which I have been interested in seeing, and even though it comes out in the next week, I think I'll just wait until it comes out on DVD. It's been so long the time will just blend together.

The Last Exorcism

USA release date: 27 August 2010. NZ release date: 24th February 2011. Distance between: 26 weeks.

It seems like this coming week is the week to have old releases from America finally come out here. I'm not too sure about what kind of release The Last Exorcism will get here. There was a cardboard cut out at the local-cinema-that-is-45-minutes-drive-away for quite some time, but they don't have it listed at all on their website. It will either go straight to DVD or only come out in the major city cinemas like Let Me In did.

Blue Valentine

USA release date: 29th December 2010. NZ release date: 10th March 2011. Distance between: 10 weeks.

Though Blue Valentine was first seen at Sundance way back in January 2010, it took it's time to come out in America, just as it has taken its time to come to NZ. And by the time it gets here, I can imagine it will go into extreme limited release.

Never Let Me Go

USA release date: 15th September 2010. NZ release date: 17th March 2011. Distance between: 26 weeks.

I've posted it before, and I'll post it again. While all you fullas in America are all like "OMG I'm gonna get out Never Let Me Go on DVD this weekend!" I'm like "OMG Never Let Me Go is coming out in cinemas in a month!" There ain't no way I'm missing this. I've missed Andrew Garfield.

Rabbit Hole

USA release date: 17th December 2010. NZ release date: 31st March 2011. Distance between: 15 weeks.

In a similar case to Blue Valentine, Rabbit Hole, a fellow Oscar nominee for Best Actress has been given a March release. By then everyone may have forgotten about it.

The Tempest

USA release date: 10th December 2010. NZ release date: 21st April 2011. Distance between: 19 weeks.

I'm not entirely looking forwatd to this one, and the picture sure doesn't help it a lot, but 19 weeks is a little lengthy.

Catfish

USA release date: 17th September 2010. NZ release date: 12th May 2011. Difference between: 35 weeks.

Jesus Christ, this is beyond ridiculous. 35 weeks?! It may as well just go straight to DVD.

The Next Three Days

USA release date: 19th November 2010. NZ release date: 12th May 2011. Distance between: 25 weeks.

The Russell Crowe starring remake of French thriller Anything for Her didn't get great reviews, which probably made it come out 25 weeks later here.

The Roommate

USA release date: 4th February 2011. NZ release date: 30th June 2011. Distance between: 21 weeks.

Not that I care, even with all the rave reviews this Leighton Meester yelper got, but can all the little teenage girls wait that long until the next scariest movie of the year?!

Here are some movies which came out a little while ago in USA but have been given the 'undated' sticker here:

All Good Things

Biutiful

Frankie and Alice

Restrepo

The Illusionist

The Other Woman

Waiting for 'Superman'

Top 10 movies I really want to see this year.

You may be expecting a list filled with the best 2011 as a year has to offer. Alas, that is not the case. Most of these movies are ones you probably saw last year, but I'll only be getting to see this year (when they come out on DVD, no less, because I'm so youthful), since New Zealand sucks.

10. Source Code

Expected NZ release date: Undated.

While I didn't entirely get the premise from the trailer (probably a good thing), I am really looking forward to seeing the next movie from Moon director Duncan Jones. The fact that it also stars the lovely Vera Farmiga (notably missing last year compared to her busy year before) has got my ticket already booked. And it should be nice to see Jake Gyllenhaal not being a beefcake prince or a viagra salesman...just back to what he does best, being a hero.

9. The Fighter

Expected NZ release date: January 20

If only this film had been released sometime after August this year, then I would have been able to go and see it no sweat. But nooooooo, gotta wait for it to be on DVD, which, at earliest, is May. I have to wait that long to see the best performed film of the year? Don't even tell me how great Christian Bale is. I might just cry.

8. Friends with Benefits



Expected NZ release date: October 13
"What?!" I hear you cry. Hey, this list is filled with awards bait and thrillers, so why can't I have a romantic comedy in there? Friends with Benefits looks like the best of the lot (not to be confused with Natalie Portman's No Strings Attached). Mila Kunis and Justin 'I'm an actor now' Timberlake take the lead role in Easy A helmer Will Gluck's latest, which also stars Emma Stone, Patricia Clarkson and Woody Harrelson. See? Can't be too bad.

7. The Adjustment Bureau

Expected NZ release date: March 3

Hey wait, wasn't this movie supposed to come out last year? Hopefully this movie is good, because God knows Emily Blunt needs it, after last years releases (The Wolfman, Wild Target, Gulliver's Travels). If it's based on a Phillip K. Dick story and has Matt Damon in the lead role, it's sure to work, right? I don't know, but I want THE EMILY BLUNT back!

6. The Tree of Life 

Expected NZ release date: Undated.

Is there another film coming out this year that's more exciting? No. Everyone with a filmic bone in their body wants to see this.

5. 127 Hours

Expected NZ release date: February 10

Bloody Danny Boyle choosing that funky music to go with his trailer filled with awesome visuals getting me excited for this one. And then, of course, since a man chops his arm off, the censors get afraid that I might follow suit after watching this movie because I'm so young, and they slap an R16 on it. So that's a June watch for me, then? I love you until then, James Franco...

4. Hanna

Expected NZ release date: June 14

Those comparisons between this and Kick-Ass' Hit-girl are incredibly lazy. Yes, there is a young girl killing machine (played by the always amazing Saoirse Ronan) who is smarter than the average bear, but that's about as far as it goes. Eric Bana comes back to our screens as a non time traveller, and Cate Blanchett also comes along for the ride. If she's there, I'm there. Plus it's directed by Joe Wright, who has most notably dabbled in period romance (Pride and Prejudice, Atonement), so this should be an interesting move.

3. Never Let Me Go

Expected NZ release date: March 17

Never Let Me Go might send me on a journey to the most expensive arthouse-esque cinema nearby for the first time in my life, mainly because I've waited so bloody long to see this movie come out. Yeah, Carey Mulligan and the noticably absent Keira Knightley are in it, but you know the real reason I want to see this. ANDREW GARFIELD. ANDREW GARFIELD. ANDREW GARFIELD. Okay, the story sounds scary enough, plus it's written by Alex Garland, so I'm in. But ANDREW GARFIELD is in it!

2. Black Swan

Expected NZ release date: January 27

Again, won't be seeing this in it's theatrical release, you know why. Damn, I've wanted to see this ever since the first trailer came out way back in August. Now Natalie Portman's getting all this Oscar buzz, I wanna see it more. Me and psychological thrillers usually go hand in hand, so this is really a no brainer.

1. Sucker Punch

Expected NZ release date: March 24

Yeah, I'm pretty sure guys are the only ones who are supposed to be uber-excited about this as it has all those hot chicks with machine guns. But I'm geeking out already for this one, mainly because I love Zack Snyder's work and he explained this as having 'multi levels of reality'. Inception, anyone? I'm hoping to God that this isn't a flop, because the trailers (with all their slow-mo and uber-awesomeness) make it look so cool! Come on Zack Snyder, you can do it!

What are you most looking forward to seeing in the coming year? Comment below!

Why is NZ getting all these films WAY later than everyone else?

With The Social Network being released this week (YAY!), even though the date was luckily pushed two weeks forward, New Zealand has been waiting quite a long time to see David Fincher's latest. But The Social Network isn't the only one with a delayed release date here. Check out this list:

Splice

USA release date: 4th June 2010. NZ release date: 18th November 2010. Distance between: around 25 weeks.

I think Splice is going into limited release here, but this release date keeps changing. It was first on during the New Zealand film festival in August, and then it was set up for release in September. Now it's going for November, but it's going to be released on DVD in January by Madman, which almost means an instant death in it's DVD release. Was it really that bad?

Machete

USA release date: 3rd September 2010. NZ release date: 25th November 2010. Distance between: 12 weeks.

Though there are several dates flying around for this one, it seems pretty clear that we will be getting this one more than 12 weeks after America. Meanwhile, some cheaters here will probably be downloading this film as I type.

Easy A

USA release date: 17th September 2010. NZ release date: 2nd December 2010. Distance between: 11 weeks.

This one, quite frankly, pisses me off. I really, really, want to see this movie! And by the time I do, everyone else will be like "this is old news!' It's not my fault!

The Kids Are All Right

USA release date: 30th July 2010. NZ release date: 26th December 2010. Distance between: over 21 weeks.

I have always wanted to see this film, mainly because of the amazing cast it seemed to get. However, when I went to the small cinema in the city it had a poster of this, with it's extremely late release date. The unfortunate thing it, this film will go into limited release here, and there's a possibility that we will miss out all together. Which will suck.

Secretariat

USA release date: 8th October 2010. NZ release date: 27th January 2011. Distance between: 16 weeks.

This one is undoubtedly delayed because it's one of those Oscar-bait movies and they always release here in the December-March period.

Hereafter

USA release date: 22nd October 2010. NZ release date: 3rd February 2011. Distance between: 16 weeks.

Despite the fact that it's directed by Clint Eastwood and stars Matt Damon, this film, which wasn't exactly greeted with rave reviews on it's release, won't be making it to NZ shores until next year. Even though there were interviews on the film on one of the chat shows.

127 Hours

USA release date: 5th November 2010 (?). NZ release date: 24th February 2011. Distance between: 16 weeks.

16 weeks until 127 Hours. Believe me, I'm counting down the days already.

Saw 3D

USA release date: 29th October 2010. NZ release date: 3rd March 2011. Distance between: 18 weeks.

Not that I give a shit, but most of the gore loving sadistic minded people who like this over-cooked series of blood will care that they don't get to see the final installment in 'mind-blowing 3D' until March next year. Even I think that's pretty stupid.

Never Let Me Go

USA release date: 15th September 2010. NZ release date: 17th March 2011. Distance between: 26 weeks.

Gosh, now I know that we are 26 weeks behind America in getting to see Never Let Me Go, I am really cheesed off. Yes, of course I want to see it because Andrew Garfield is in it, and the addition of Carey Mulligan and Keira Knightley certainly helps, but the trailer looked so sad and haunting I just can't resist seeing it. And I will still be excited once March rolls around, that's if its limited release ever happens.

Other films which have been released this year in USA, but have an undated release date here for next year:

Catfish

Jack Goes Boating

Stone

The Romantics

You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger

New Zealand may be the most beautiful country to live in, but why do the movie gods continue to give us lousy release dates which are weeks after everyone elses. That's the hardest thing about being in the blogosphere: by the time I see it, it's old news. Mind you, I watch them all on DVD, which I guess is kinda unique in the blogosphere.

Just promise me one thing. When I get to see The Social Network on Thursday (one of the first sessions here in NZ, so I am technically being an early-birdy), don't think I'm slack and think everything I'm saying is old news to you. It's not my fault!