Forum - View topicEditorial - Spirited Away's Distribution
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LordByronius
ANN Columnist
 Posts: 861 Location: Philippe for America! He is five. |
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http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/story/29495p-28024c.html
I don't wanna turn this into a DISNEY SUXXX LOLOL!11!1 thread, but here's an interesting little editorial from the NY Daily news regarding Spirited Away's pathetic release schedule. |
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GATSU
Posts: 15464 |
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It's a shame movie studios pay more attention to audiences than critics. OTOH, by that logic, Spirited Away's continuous take of $500,000 per week should convince Disney to expand. I think Disney's gonna try to hedge its bets by getting Spirited Away nominated for Best Animated Film and Best Foreign Film and then give it a wider expansion.
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Tenchi
 Posts: 4506 Location: Ottawa... now I'm an ex-Anglo Montrealer. |
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The non-Disney bashing/conspiracy theory explanation is that Disney's main interest is in the video/DVD sales, where the overhead's much lower than a wide theatrical release and the profits more immediate, and the theatrical release is really just a formality, for the hardcore otaku and the big Asian American markets (as well as possibly to fulfill certain terms of their contract with Tokuma; I know a theatrical release was required for Mononoke). Still, it is a bit of a shame it wasn't on a few hundred screens... I had no delusions that this would have been the next Lion King (in North America) or anything, but on a couple of hundred screens, it could have been another Amélie ($25-30 million).
I hope it does get nominated, though I would prefer to see Lilo and Stitch win, since I honestly liked that film just a little bit more (and, if anyone disagrees, well, I'm not an Academy voter, so my opinion shouldn't affect yours in any way, and if it does, well, T.S.). Kiki's Delivery Service is still my favourite Ghibli, followed by Whisper of the Heart, My Neighbor Totoro, THEN Spirited Away and after that Laputa and Porco Rosso. |
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GATSU
Posts: 15464 |
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I really didn't like Spirited Away much either, compared to other Miyazaki films, but I still appreciate Disney's efforts on the dub. If you go to Nausicaa.net, it looks like they're slowly adding more theaters for the next few weeks, so I don't think Disney isn't listening.
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Slim Shinji
Past ANN Contributor
 Posts: 263 |
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On the subject of "Best Animated Feature" Oscar...
If you recall last year Disney intentionally did NOT submit Atlantis for consideration for fear of splitting the vote between that film and Monsters Inc. What will they do this time, when they have THREE possible contenders (Lilo & Stitch, Spirited Away, and Treasure Planet)? Will they even submit Spirited Away, or will they withold it to give the homegrown Lilo and/or Treasure Planet better chances? It would be an outright crime if Spirited Away is not allowed to contend in next year's Oscars (though l too liked Lilo & Stitch just a wee bit more). |
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GATSU
Posts: 15464 |
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I doubt it. Atlantis was probably pulled back because it bombed so poorly that there wasn't any reason to promote it. Spirited Away is doing fairly well for itself. (The fact that it made more money than Princess Mononoke already might give them more faith in it.) It may not look like it now, but I don't think Disney got into a bidding war with Dreamworks over it for nothing. Importing will be the wave of the future, as domestic animation costs too much.
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ashram12
Posts: 86 |
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I just saw Spirited Away today. I liked the movie although I did find it a bit long. Anyway... I was a bit surprised too by the amount of people in the theaters. My last movie theater anime experience was Vampire Hunter D, and I think there were about 10 people in the theater. But with Spirited Away I was surprised to see a bigger crowd. Lots of little kids too...I'm not sure how they got there really, none of the people in the theater looked like "otakus" and Spirited Away promotion is non-existant.
On the topic of Oscar nominations, I predict this film will not be nominated for anything. The prejudice against foreign movies in the states is phenomenal... |
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GATSU
Posts: 15464 |
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No, the prejudice is against low-budget films, not foreign films. (Otherwise, there'd be no "Best Foreign Film" award.) If Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust was-say-funded by New Line, it might've actually been nominated for Best Animated Film. Also, they'll always award the movie which made the most money for that year. So if VHD beat Shrek at the box office, it would've easily gotten an award.
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Tenchi
Posts: 4506 Location: Ottawa... now I'm an ex-Anglo Montrealer. |
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You mean "the movie amongst the 3 or 5 nominees (the number of nominees depending on the category) which made the most money for that year." And I'm afraid you're correct at least 75% of the time, though I think LOTR:FOTR made more than A Beautiful Mind yet lost, but that's the exception not the rule. |
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GATSU
Posts: 15464 |
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Ok, here are the two ways they'll vote: 1)If the movie made a lot of money or 2)It has a universal message. (
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WFAC
Posts: 6 Location: Waterloo, Ontario, Canada |
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Unfortunately, "Spirited Away" will not be eligible for any Oscars.
Much like how "Jinroh" last year (when it would have easily won), a movie must be released in the calendar year it's due for consideration. Since the movie was released in 2001, it is not eligible for the 2002 Oscars. Jinroh was taken out of the running for the 2001 Oscars when it was discovered that it had a limited premiere release in December 2000 in France. |
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GATSU
Posts: 15464 |
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No, the rules are that it must be released exactly after the rules were officially instated, which was mid-to-late 2001. Jin Roh couldn't make it, because it came out in '99. Even though VHD premiered numerous times before, it was eligible, because UV said it wasn't the final version. Spirited Away is completely eligible. Escaflowne, though, is a stickler...
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Tenchi
Posts: 4506 Location: Ottawa... now I'm an ex-Anglo Montrealer. |
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Whether or not Escaflowne is eligible to be eligible is fairly moot, since, unlike Spirited Away, only a handful of critics and other people in the industry that matter when it comes to Oscar are even aware of its existence (12 total reviews listed at RottenTomatoes.com, with a Tomatometer reading of 50%); if I were Bandai Entertainment, I wouldn't waste the time, effort and money even submitting it let alone the vast, vast amounts of money it costs to take out full page "For Your Consideration" ads in the trades like Variety and sending copies to each Academy voter for it to have the slightest chance at even being nominated.
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