2.72- UNDERWORLD

writer's note: UNDERWORLD is about to open and Columbia is promoting it very well. DOUBLE VISION is out on DVD. The purpose of the article is to talk about the two movies and sometimes movies don't get promoted as well as they should (but UNDERWORLD is). I have nothing against Columbia pictures because tehy have put out many good movies on DVD that I have enjoyed. The way they put out movies and promote them comes froma standpoint of when do they think it will do well and sometimes they do have priorties on what needs to be promoted. The picture from UNDERWORLD appears for the use in this article and is (c)2003 Screen Gems

UNDERWORLD

by David Blackwell

5-8-2003

There has been some really cool horror movies over the years, but the next great horror movie looks like it will be some film that is like Romeo and Juliet but with werewolves vs vampires and Juliet is some kick-ass vampire enforcer who falls in love with a werewolf. The movie I'm talking about is called UNDERWORLD and the movie is getting some great buzz on the internet already even though the movie isn't scheduled to open until september 19, 2003 in the USA.

The blurb at Yahoo describes the movie as:

Set in the secret nocturnal and supernatural world of vampires and werewolves, two groups that have been at war for centuries, this is the story of a romance between a female vampire warrior, Selene (Beckinsale), who's famous for her strength and werewolf-hunting prowess, and a peace-loving male werewolf, Michael (Speedman), who wants to end the war.

Where IMDB describes the plot as:

Underworld reimagines Vampires as a secretive clan of modern, aristocratic sophisticates whose mortal enemies are the Lycans (werewolves), a shrewd gang of street thugs who prowl the city's underbelly. The balance of power is upset when a beautiful young Vampire and a nascent Lycan, deadly rivals for centuries, fall in love.

And for some reason, they have been screening UNDERWORLD under the title of THE COVENANT. People say they are screening under a different name in an attempt to prevent reviews of the movie getting out on the internet! Talks like execs don't ahve a clue. I hope they don't think the movie should be retitled from UNDERWORLD to the bad title of THE COVENANT!!!

Personally, I think they should move the release date from September 19, 2003 (a dead month for movies box office-wise) to August (where it could do bonzo-box office since most of the choices for August just suck and UNDERWORLD could be a good choice for August box office dominance). I hear they are trying to get this movie to be PG-13. Another great horror movie called BLADE opened up in august. I mean the only big money maker I see out of August is AMERICAN WEDDING (the third movie in the AMERICAN PIE series) opening on August 1st and FREDDY VS.JASON will probably have a great opening weekend on August 15 (if New Line sticks to that release date. Look at how many times JASON X got bumped back on the release schedule.). I don't think JEEPERS CREEPERS 2 will be much competition.

So if I was Columbia Tristar, I would push UNDERWORLD from from Sept 19 to August 8 or August 22 because August doesn't look like a box office month and look at how well THE SIXTH SENSE and THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT did by opening up in August. For one, I don't like when Columbia releases horror movies. I mean DARKNESS FALLS didn't do bad in Janurary, but it could have done better by being released in some other month. September isn't one of the best months for making big bucks on movies. I think August would be a better month for UNDERWORLD to make more money.

Also, if Columbia does release UNDERWORLD earlier, they should release DOUBLE VISION on Sept 19 and attach a trailer for DOUBLE VISION with the prints of UNDERWORLD. DOUBLE VISION is an Asian horror movie where people are being killed in odd ways (like a man drowing on the 19th floor with no sight of water or a woman burning in her apartment with no trace of fire) and the Taiwan police call in an FBI profiler (David Morse) to help out. From the trailer I watched at http://www.doublevisionmovie.com , the movie looks like it will be one hell of horror movie that could be a great hit in the US only if Columbia releases it on the right date with good promotion.

Another Asian movie of interest I have seen the trailer of is an action movie called SO CLOSE ( http://www.so-close.com ) which could be a good hit in the USA only if Columbia promotes it right and releases it on the right date instead of a possible fate of being discovered on DVD with a lackluster box office performance in the fall. I could be wrong, but i think Columbia needs to do a better job of releasing their horror movies at the right time and promoting their foreign films they distribute in the United States. A prime example of a foreign film that Columbia could have handled better in releasing is the excellent French crime thriller THE CRIMSON RIVERS starring Jean Reno (the sequel is filming at this time).

Now the last thing I have to say is I wish Columbia would release their movies on better dates and promote them right. I think UNDERWORLD and DOUBLE VISION and SO CLOSE deserve the best chance they can get to make big money at the box office. On top of that, I hope UNDERWORLD is a big hit because it does look like it will be fun to watch if the trailer is any indication. I hope UNDERWORLD is a great film that does well.