Here we look at the upcoming month’s offerings.

January 5, 2018

Insidious: The Last Key

Premise: From IMDb: “Parapsychologist Dr. Elise Rainier faces her most fearsome and personal haunting yet – in her own family home.”
Box Office Prospects: $45 M
Expectations: Adequate. The original film and the third made just over $50 million, but the second topped $80. While the reason for sequels is the success of a predecessor, the drop back to normal on the third film suggests the franchise is losing steam. While I doubt it will be an outright flop, the prior films all released later in the year. This early in the year won’t likely help the bottom line.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

January 12, 2018

The Commuter

Premise: From IMDb: “A businessman is caught up in a criminal conspiracy during his daily commute home.”
Box Office Prospects: $80 M
Expectations: Uncertain. Attempting to replicate the success of films like Taken and Non-Stop, Liam Neeson is in yet another thriller yarn. This time, the concept is a bit fresher, which could help its bottom line. That there’s so little competition on the horizon, it could do quite well.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Condorito: La Pelicula

Premise: From IMDb: “Condorito embarks in a hilarious adventure to save the planet and his loved ones from an evil alien.”
Box Office Prospects: $2 M
Expectations: Weak. A Spanish-language animated film will be a tough sell considering few audiences really seem to go for animated films produced outside the majors. And considering how Hayao Miyazaki performed, and he’s the most acclaimed foreigner animator in history, I wouldn’t expect much from this one.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: No trailer was available for review, so there has been no preview created.

Paddington 2

Premise: From IMDb: “Paddington, now happily settled with the Brown family and a popular member of the local community, picks up a series of odd jobs to buy the perfect present for his Aunt Lucy’s 100th birthday, only for the gift to be stolen.”
Box Office Prospects: $100 M
Expectations: Good. The original film made a surprising $76 million after being dumped by Weinstein. Now, it’s been acquired by Warner Bros. who knows how to market this kind of film. With the good will the original received, this one could be a solid hit.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Proud Mary

Premise: From IMDb: “An assassin meets a young boy who sparks her maternal instinct.”
Box Office Prospects: $75 M
Expectations: Uncertain. The trailer was engaging, but two thrillers so close together might result in a cannibalizing of the market. Yet, this film, if marketed right, could be a hit on its own.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

January 19, 2018

12 Strong

Premise: From IMDb: “12 Strong tells the story of the first Special Forces team deployed to Afghanistan after 9/11; under the leadership of a new captain, the team must work with an Afghani warlord to take down the Taliban.”
Box Office Prospects: $55 M
Expectations: Uncertain. Although this type of film has done well in the past, the last film to release in this window with the same profile only managed $52 million. With Chris Hemsworth in the lead, it could prove more popular.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Den of Thieves

Premise: From IMDb: “While planning a bank heist, a thief gets trapped between two sets of criminals.”
Box Office Prospects: $40 M
Expectations: Weak. The purpose of this bank heist film is obviously to bring audiences to the theater and looking at the heist from two different perspectives could be interesting. However, the trailer was utterly lackluster and there’s no one in the film that could be considered a box office draw suggesting it will likely hit tough times when released.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Forever My Girl

Premise: From IMDb: “After being gone for a decade a country star returns home to the love he left behind.”
Box Office Prospects: $25 M
Expectations: Weak. Romantic adaptations are sometimes popular, often not. Mix that with a country theme, which has seldom been successful at the modern box office and you have a film that has “flop” written all over it.
Oscar Prospects: Poor. While I’m sure the film will have an original song or two in it, I suspect the film’s early release will push it towards being forgotten.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

The Leisure Seeker (Limited)

Premise: From IMDb: “A runaway couple go on an unforgettable journey in the faithful old RV they call The Leisure Seeker.”
Box Office Prospects: $5 M
Expectations: Uncertain. With this kind of movie, it’s almost impossible to tell if it will translate well to a wide release or will perform modestly at the specialty box office. Appealing leads in an adult-centricstory could help bolster its profile, but the limited release may hinder its potential success.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

January 26, 2018

Maze Runner: The Death Cure

Premise: From IMDb: “Young hero, Thomas, embarks on a mission to find a cure to a deadly disease known as the “Flare”.”
Box Office Prospects: $65 M
Expectations: Decent. The first film in this series made $102 million in its initial run. The sequel pulled in $81 million. The third film faces an additional problem, namely that of a three-year span between it and the prior film. The first two only had a year’s gap. It could still do well with the fans of the series, but I doubt it performs quite up to its expectations.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

White Boy Rick

Premise: From IMDb: “The story of teenager Richard Wershe Jr., who became an undercover informant for the FBI during the 1980s and was ultimately arrested for drug-trafficking and sentenced to life in prison.”
Box Office Prospects: $15 M
Expectations: Uncertain. Matthew McConaughey is one of those actors who struggles to find an audience. When he’s in films by major names, he does incredibly well, but when he’s in movies directed by minor personalities, he does less well. This film is releasing at the wrong time and sounds more like Gold than Wolf of Wall Street.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: No trailer was available for review, so there has been no preview created.