Pigs in the Gutter
It’s criminal and appalling, but the apparent fact is that quality-level DVD rips of The Hurt Locker have been on Pirate Bay for a long while now. And last night a journalist pal told me that a bootleg bum sold him a “clean” DVD of Kathryn Bigelow‘s film the day before yesterday in the Bronx. For a dollar. Which means that other bootleg gypsies are selling it also, not just in New York but in grubby, down-at-the-heels areas of every city in the country.
If you’re so obviously disgusted with DVD pirates, why would you include a link to their site?
A similar situation didn’t end up hurting TAKEN at all. And I’m afraid I have to take a “serves them right for sitting on it for so long” attitude with this one. I’m waiting for theaters though.
Newsflash: if journalists (such as Jeffrey Wells) constantly write about a film for 7 months and that film is not made commercially available, people will find other ways to see it. There are simple ways to minimize this problem: ie. don’t wait a year to release a film after it does the festival circuit!
I feel bad but I caved, downloaded it and watched it (and really liked it) last night.
I don’t know how you’ll take this Jeff but it’s only because of how long you’ve been touting the film that I got sick of waiting…
I want to wait for the big screen but if I see any “clean” screeners in NYC this weekend I might be tempted….
Not excusing the behavior, but at this point: I think the impact on box office is still fairly negligible.
While guys like Eli Roth have blamed piracy for disappointing returns,films like Taken, Paul Blart, Slumdog Millionaire, etc have done just fine this year despite having DVD quality screeners floating around before their US release.
Fact is: a lot of folks who watch pirated movies probably weren’t going to bother seeing them in a theater anyway.
Jesus Christ PAUL BLART screeners? Was that before they ditched the Oscar campaign?
“in grubby, down-at-the-heels areas of every city in the country”
In most non-Metro areas, you find them at the flea markets and swap meets. Been that way for over 10 years now.
Look, a leaked screener can kill your movie…if your movie sucks. But if your movie is good well, I think piracy might have HELPED Taken’s grosses.
Taken was probably helped by Neeson and Gran Torino.
Didn’t hurt American Gangster.
Sorry. This movie’s been done for a year and a half and up until a month ago didn’t even have a confirmed release date in this country, despite the fact that festival reviews have been stoking the demand for it.
You snooze, you lose.
What
the
fuck
did
they
expect
to
happen?
Seriously, on one hand you have HORDES of critics and bloggers who haven’t shut up for months on end about what a singularly exhilarating piece of filmmaking this is; and on the other hand, you have a studio that couldn’t release this goddamn thing if you spotted them 5000 screens, an entire July to themselves, and a 90/10 split at the gate.
NATURE TOOK ITS COURSE.
DZ: How did Gran Torino help Taken? Or should I ask?
Alexander: It’s got an older guy kicking ass and taking names. I doubt anyone would consider Neeson a credible action star otherwise, especially after Phantom Menace.
Downloaded and viewed this film a few months ago. Well put together movie that dodges all of the pratfalls of every other Iraq film (larger than life heroes, said heroes making partisan speeches about why we’re over there, shadowy leaders, etc).
Believe in your product and release films on their natural slate.
Some one should say it: distributors are ruining movies. Killing them. You say “Pirate” and we think crummy quality, shaky-cam. No way: this thing is out on Blu-Ray in Europe already. I can buy it legally online and have it shipped. Nothing criminal about it. The only thing criminal – ethically at least – is the distributors who are delaying the release of a movie for so long one feels it will eventually be buried. If one doesn’t use a pro-active approach and find a way to watch the movie on his own terms (hoping in a way that’s legal and respectful of the filmmaker’s rights) no one will do it for him. And no filmmaker has ever contested this practice, so in a way they are complacent (or taken hostage by their own sales agents).
And over here in Israel: no distributor has even picked up The Hurt Locker, not theatrically, not for DVD. Nothing. If Ms. Bigelow puts up a Pay-Pal account I’d happily pay her 10 bucks for viewing her movie. I’d like to hear what she thinks about the way distributors – thinking locally, never globally – rape movies. And it’s always the small, fine, prestigious ones who get screwed. Thank heavens for Dutch Blu-Ray discs.
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