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HAVING A BARBIE MOMENT
OFFICIAL CHARTS' WORLD-FIRST…
…COMMENT ON NEW DIGITAL DATA
NEW CHAPTER FOR JOHN
BFI DONS PRETTY RED RESS…
AND SETS TARGETS FOR Q3
SLAM DUNK FROM ANIME…
…AS COMPANY UNVEILS FORTHCOMING TITLES
CARMEN LET'S GO…
…AS DAZZLER GETS ON THE TRAIN
BOWIE BACK AT HAMMERSMITH
QUOTES OF THE WEEK
TRAILERS OF THE WEEK
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It was a good week for… The Super Mario Bros Movie has kicked off well on its digital release, shifting more than 63,000 units in its first week as a download…
It was a bad week for… pirates operating illegal streaming services, hacking into legitimate accounts and sources and offering football, films and more to consumers, jailed with five jailed and one who failed to appear…
This week we have been watching… The Boogeyman, which has just landed in cinemas from 20th Century via Disney; the latest horror outing from young Brit helmer Rob Savage, this an accomplished Stephen King adaptation that marks him out as a director worth watching. Notable too because it was made for Hulu/Disney+, but was so successful, and so beloved by author King, that it was deemed to merit a theatrical bow. And given Savage’s work on physical media, notably with Second Sight’s lavish release of his debut Host, deserves a Blu-ray release too. Oh and also the latest animated Spider-Man outing, Across The Spider-verse at our local Picturehouse, and a mighty fine adventure it is too, with some jaw-dropping animation…
Rumours have been swirling around about a long-standing British indie operation that social media posts have suggested has gone under over the past week… As far as The Raygun understands, there are issues, but no clarification and no comment yet on the exact situation. We’re not going to comment on rumour, but stay tuned to our Twitter, LinkedIn and next week’s newsletter for more news…
Meanwhile, as anticipation grows for the forthcoming Barbie movie – the full trailer drop showed that this really is grade A material – the ongoing Moments Worth Paying For campaign, which highlights the importance of seeing films legitimately and why copyright matters, has joined forces with the talent from the forthcoming blockbuster based on the iconic Mattel doll to further educate the public. For in a specially delivered message, Margot Robbie, Barbie herself, and Sisu Liu are reminded consumers to see the film on the big screen and not via snide streams or downloads, You can see the latest theist in the ongoing, award-winning campaign here https://youtu.be/E396F4A1HmE. Comment came from BASE head of audience engagement Sylvia Dick who said: "Having Hollywood A-listers Margot Robbie and Simu Liu come together and deliver our bespoke Moments Worth Paying For message is a powerful endorsement of the continued work across BASE's consumer education work. Cinema remains the best viewing experience for new releases, with this trailer driving engagement for local screens across the UK and Ireland. My thanks go to Warner Bros. Discovery and the continued support of DCM, Pearl & Dean, Clear Channel and members of the UK Cinema Association.” Alexandra Lewis, senior vice president marketing, Warner Bros. Discovery U.K. & Ireland, added: “We have always been impressed by the work that BASE does to unite cinema and education through their Moments Worth Paying For program. We are pleased to partner with them again for Barbie, the most anticipated movie of the Summer, which is a celebration of great storytelling and a global icon; that so many of us grew up with, and helps kids around the world learn that they can be anything they want to be and that every day with Barbie is the best day ever!”
The Official Charts Company has led the way worldwide in offering up EST and video on demand data and, after giving the former to its regular subscribers and more since 2016 and the latter for the past three years, albeit monthly and with a six to eight week time lag, it is now launching a weekly digital video data service. The world-first is part of ongoing improvements to the service. The new data launched towards the end of May and, the organisation said in its announcement: “This significant upgrade to its world-beating home entertainment digital data service will position Official Charts’ digital video data as the best in the world. It will be the only such service in the world spanning all distributors’ repertoire and the only service based on data collected directly from retailers.” At the same time, it is also launching data services for 10 distributors on premium VOD and EST too. There will be a weekly report for subscribers for six months, before appearing on the Official Charts Company’s new online portal due to launch in November. For more details, contact commercial@officialcharts.com
Meanwhile, Official Charts Company commercial director Becca Monahan thanked “all retail and studio partners, plus industry associations BASE and ERA for their support in making the new, improved VOD data service possible”. She continued; “The ability to provide weekly VOD volume and value data direct from retailers is the culmination of a huge amount of work and collaboration across the industry. We’re proud to be able to provide world class data to the UK home entertainment industry and we are continuing to innovate our offering as the industry evolves. I would like to thank all the partners we work with, who have supported us to get to this point and I’m excited for the future of Official Charts data in this sector – in the UK and beyond. Official Charts Company operations director Chris Austin added: “We are extremely proud to be able to offer these enhancements. The UK is the first territory to provide volume and value data, including premium titles, based on retailer information - and these represent, not just a step forward but a dramatic evolution in digital video data analytics for the market.”
Talking of digital releases, just out from Lionsgate on May 29, with the physical edition, across DVD, Blu-Ray, UHD and special editions on Monday June 12, is John Wick Chapter 4, one of the most exciting – and biggest – films of 2023 so far and another addition to the franchise which is not only getting better with age, but also becoming more successful, bucking the trend for sequels. Comment on the release came from Lionsgate’s Imogen Dodds who said: “We have had a brilliant reaction to the film from audiences and press alike, with many heralding this as the ‘best John Wick movie yet’. This messaging is carrying on in our media campaign for the Home Ent release, where spots across ITVX, All4 and Samsung TV as well as socials showcase the plethora of five-star reviews the film received while keeping the iconic John Wick action front and centre. For our physical release, we have created bespoke, fan focussed Steelbooks as well as exclusive collectors’ editions with Amazon and HMV. Our Collector’s Limited Edition showcases illustrated artwork and includes a specialty Marquis Pin, 6 double-sided art cards, a custom map of Paris poster, Continental Hotel key card and a themed folder from the Osaka Continental Japan. Exclusively with HMV we have the First Edition featuring 12 art cards, a 24-page booklet on the franchise and an exclusive double-walled slipcase artwork. Amazon has an exclusive bonus disc giving fans an additional 20 minutes of behind-the-scenes content as well as our bespoke lenticular artwork that draws on the Osaka setting of the film.”
The BFI has unveiled a suitably diverse slate of titles due out in its ever-sumptuous titles due on its ever-sumptuous Blu-ray imprint for the third quarter. It includes cinema not just from the UK, but around the world too and includes some painstakingly restored classics and much-loved outings. The BFI’s Ben Stoddart talks us through the titles, noting; “The BFI’s Q3 slate is another wonderfully eclectic collection featuring recent festival fare, newly restored classics from the UK and France, one of the best debut features ever made, plus some John Wayne and Ken Russell (though sadly not together) thrown in for good measure! Following its UK theatrical release, July will see Nina Menkes’ Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power arrive on Blu-ray alongside an HD upgrade of Andrew Kötting’s 1996 family road-trip, Gallivant. August will see two fantastic films by Black directors with Isaac Julien’s 1991 feature Young Soul Rebels (newly remastered by the BFI National Archive) and Dionne Edwards’ Pretty Red Dress, which stars singer Alexandra Burke and is released in cinemas on June 16th. August will also see the release of one of Scotland’s most beloved films – Gregory’s Girl – in a brand new 4K restoration, packed full of extras and released on both UHD and Blu-ray.
Continuing with the BFI’s Q3 titles, the company’s Ben Stoddart continued: “The rest of the quarter sees another French classic make the jump to Blu-ray in the UK with Jean Renoir’s Partie de campagne, John Wayne tear through London in Brannigan, and Ken Russell doing what only he does in the star laden Gothic from 1986. Last but certainly not least is the previously announced but delayed release of Targets. Directed by the late great Peter Bogdanovich and produced by the legendary Roger Corman, Targets is rightly considered by many (including Quentin Tarantino) to be one of the finest debut features ever. Starring horror legend Boris Karloff the film has been newly restored and will be presented alongside a wealth of new and archive extras.
The bi-annual MCM event took place, as ever, over the late May Bank Holiday, with scores of uber-fans, cosplayers, freaks and geeks and sci-fi and other genre fans flocking to the Excel exhibition centre in east London for all kinds of shenanigans. Anime Ltd was one of the chief distributors putting its wares on display and used the event to announce a number of forthcoming releases. These included theatrical bows for Evangelion: 3.0+1.01 Thrice Upon A Time, the fourth and final film in the Rebuild Of Evangelion series; a return to cinemas for classic Macross Plus Movie Edition; The Tunnel to Summer, The Exit of Goodbyes (“a unique and emotionally riveting animated experience”, the company said) will land on July 14 theatrically. There was also a theatrical date for basketball drama The First Slam Dunk unveiled, with the title, which has broken box office records and been greeted with acclaim in Japan, due at cinemas on August 30. There were further home entertainment announcements, including “con-man epic” Great Pretender and 2022’s big hit One Piece: Film Red. More came in the shape of, to quote from the official statement announcing its plans, home entertainment bows for “the genre-defining epic that kicked off Hideaki Anno’s directorial debut in Gunbuster; the 50th anniversary celebration series of the world’s favourite gentleman thief as he travels to the United Kingdom with his friends and enemies in tow in Lupin the 3rd Part 6; a 4k Blu-Ray release of the storied movie trilogy that started it all in Mobile Suit Gundam; and the beginning of the saga of three young gunpla builders in Gundam Build Fighters.” And, as the company noted: “Each of these titles will receive the bespoke Collector’s Edition treatment that made Anime Ltd. famous with animation enthusiasts the world over.”
Anime Ltd’s Andrew Partridge said: “We're thrilled to bring a real treasure trove of titles out in the UK - Neon Genesis Evangelion is a property very close to the entire team heart so to bring the end of the saga to the cinema is a dream come true! I have a big place in my heart for the WIT Studio work too The Great Pretender, which we're bringing in a tour-de-force to the USA, Canada and United Kingdom in the not so distant future!”
Our return last week featured news from Eureka and we’ve got more from the pioneering indie this week with news of its August slate, run through, as ever, by the company’s national account manager Marcus Garwood, who said: “We kick off the month of August in 1923 with the first feature that Buster Keaton wrote, directed, and starred in, namely Three Ages. The film spoofs D.W. Griffith’s historical epic Intolerance. Like that film, Three Ages follows multiple narratives across different historical eras, which Keaton packs to the brim with incredible stunts and hilarious visual gags. This Keaton masterpiece makes its UK debut on Blu-ray as part of our Masters Of Cinema series, from a stunning restoration completed in 2022 by the Cohen Film Collection. The release is presented in a limited edition slipcase and contains a collector's booklet featuring new writing by Philip Kemp and Imogen Sara Smith. Disc extras include (amongst many others) a brand new audio commentary by film historian and writer David Kalat. Our serving of martial arts for August comes via Jeong Chang-Hwa's 1974 film The Skyhawk. Starring Carter Wong (Big Trouble In Little China), Sammo Hung (The Dead And The Deadly) and Hwang In-shik (Way Of The Dragon) The Skyhawk makes its UK home video debut, presented on Blu-ray from a brand new 2K restoration. The release is presented in a limited edition slipcase and contains a collector's booklet featuring new writing by James Oliver. Disc extras include (amongst many others) optional English subtitles, newly translated for this release, brand new feature length audio commentary by Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian Film Festival) and a brand new feature length audio commentary by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. The release also features a reversible sleeve design."
Just landed in cinemas is the latest release from Dazzler, which has added theatrical releases to its home entertainment output, with Carmen, starring Melissa Barrera and rising star and Oscar-nominated Paul Mescal. The June 2 release will be followed swiftly by home entertainment, as outlined by the company’s Paul Holland, who said: “Carmen is set on the Mexican border crossing into the US, where she, together with a border guard, Aiden (Paul Mescal) become embroiled in a deadly standoff, the pair are forced to escape together. A cinematic experience full of passion, music and drama. The film will be released on digitally and on DVD/Blu-Ray at the end of July.”
And there’s more from Dazzler, as explained by the company’s Holland, who said: “Also from Dazzler, titles coming this month including BBC's latest drama, 'The Steeltown Murders', starring Philip Glenister and Steffan Rhodri, this recalls two murders that shocked two South Wales towns in 1973. The Laurette, released theatrically last month, starring Dianna Agron and Laura Haddock is a romantic drama set in post World War One England and 'My House', a gripping new horror/thriller film starring Francis Magee and Mirren Mack. Also amongst a raft of factual titles comes Michael Portillo's Great Coastal Railway Journeys Series 2, Miriam and Alan's Lost In Scotland Series 1 and 2 and Series 2 of The World's Greatest Ships.
July 3 marks the 50th anniversary of David Bowie’s final Ziggy Stardust gig at the `Hammersmith Odeon, and to mark the occasion, there’s a screening of a restored version of the feature length film of the concert airing at the same venue on the same date, with the film and post-film panel conversation beamed to cinema around the uK and world. And all this will act as a curtain-raiser for a set of remastered releases of the film and soundtrack including a CD and Bu-ray set and digital versions. The Blu-ray and accompanying audio will land on August 11. The gig is legendary among Bowie fas and beyond, not least for its famous clipping comment from Bowie himself, who declared on stage: “Of all the shows on this tour, this particular show will remain with us the longest, because not only is it the last show of the tour, but it's the last show that we'll ever do.”
QUOTES OF THE WEEK
“Today’s sentencing is the result of a long and complex prosecution of a highly sophisticated operation. The sentences handed down, which are the longest sentences ever issued for piracy-related crimes, vindicate the efforts made to bring these individuals to justice and reflect the severity and extent of the crimes.
“This prosecution is another concrete example of the clear links between piracy and wider criminality, a warning we repeatedly make. While most Premier League fans enjoy watching our games in a safe way, those who were customers of these services were effectively supporting individuals involved in other sinister and dangerous organised crime.
“This was a hugely challenging case, and we are extremely grateful for the hard work and expertise of the authorities who supported us, in particular the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Trading Standards who coordinated the investigation and worked with law enforcement agencies across the country.
“The Premier League’s substantial financial contribution to the entire football pyramid is made possible through the ability to sell our broadcast rights. We are pleased that through rulings such as this, the courts continue to show that they recognise the importance of safeguarding the Premier League’s rights. We will continue to protect our rights and our fans by investigating and prosecuting illegal operators at all levels.”
Kevin Plumb, Premier League General Counsel
“FACT were delighted to support the Premier League on this landmark case, which is a powerful reminder that piracy is a serious crime with severe consequences. The successful result was made possible thanks to the invaluable support of numerous law enforcement agencies, including the Trading Standards teams from the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea City Council, and the Metropolitan, Lancashire, Gwent, and West Midlands police services. We were additionally assisted by the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit (NWROCU) and the Government Agency Intelligence Network (GAIN).
“I would like to express our sincere thanks to all those agencies for their invaluable support, which has resulted in the dismantling of a major organised crime operation and reiterates the importance of protecting the rights of creators and content owners.”
FACT CEO, Kieron Sharp
The pair were speaking after five defendants who ran the illegal Flawless, Shared VPS and Optimal (aka Cosmic) sites offering illegal streams of football, films and TV, earning more than £7 million in five years, were jailed for terms between 11 and just under four years, with one absconding. One of the defendants worked for “an online monitoring and enforcement agency”. Ringleader William Gould got the longest sentence, despite changing his plea.
TRAILERS OF THE WEEK
Opening the gates… https://youtu.be/R84DcRpCgNc
Coming soon from Signature…https://youtu.be/Wijo3y6lnFA
Shudder-bound https://youtu.be/8c4_pbxAu3w
Due from Universal… https://youtu.be/xNUbwrJpovQ
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