A barren cinematic desert lies tucked between December’s prestigious dramas and spring break’s blockbusters. Smartly masked by the gleam of last year’s best and travel-preventing blizzards, this wasteland tends to pass unnoticed, until, suddenly, it’s a Friday night in February and there is nothing in theaters that is worth seeing.
Welcome to midwinter, the hallowed dumping grounds of Hollywood’s dregs.
Peruse this year’s offerings for a moment: only in the early winter months would yet another “Jackie Chan as a spy” movie, a Harrison Ford weepy, and multiple subpar romantic comedies (difficult in a genre already subpar by nature) be the highlights of the season.
I wanted to cry every time I saw a commercial for Tooth Fairy, a movie that has both Dwayne Johnson wearing wings and Dame Julie Andrews (best tagline of the season: “You Can’t Handle the Tooth”).
Even my combined love for Amy Adams and Matthew Goode (great, I assure you) could barely get me through just the trailer for Leap Year. Why spend ten dollars on the film itself when one can just see the whole uninspired plot in a free three-minute package?
I saw A Single Man instead.
For years, studios have released their lesser products throughout the early months of the year. Such strategy allows them to prioritize their attentions, focusing instead on their precious awards bait.
Most Oscar hopefuls expand into wide release in January, providing moviegoers with some decent options; here in southeastern Connecticut, Crazy Heart has finally graced us with its presence. Such peace offerings tide over the average cinephile for a few weeks, but the dry spell arrives eventually, leaving audiences reaching in its wake.
While, yes, Avatar was indeed a cultural phenomenon (well…that’s a whole different argument), maybe its rule at the box office, which continued throughout January, simply occurred because there was nothing else to see. Only Dear John (which might as well be titled The Notebook 2) toppled the mighty, once again proving the power of the tween set in American culture.
Some decent movies make it through the rubble. Last January saw the month’s best turnout, with Taken becoming a surprise hit. Seriously, who did not want to see Liam Neeson be a badass?
As for this year, audiences saw the typical, forgettable yet decently reviewed fare; Daybreakers and Youth in Revolt were both released in January, were well-received, and performed respectably.
Last week saw the release of Shutter Island, the latest Martin Scorsese/Leonardo DiCaprio vehicle, whose random shift to a late February opening left anticipating fans still excited, but wary; what is such a prestigious film doing in midwinter of all places?
Is it completely possible that the film, despite its megawatts of star power, is indeed worthy of its early release date? I mean, look at Nine.
However, I prefer to take a more positive attitude; maybe studios are actually trying to shuffle their fixed calendars for once. Maybe one can imagine future years with more Shutter Islands in the early months and, please, less Leap Years.
Well, I can dream, right?
