Here we look at the upcoming month’s offerings.

November 5, 2021

Eternals

Premise: From IMDb: “The saga of the Eternals, a race of immortal beings who lived on Earth and shaped its history and civilizations.”
Box Office Prospects: $200 M
Expectations: Excellent. With the box office starting to rebound, Disney has done tremendously well getting audiences to the theater for films like Shang-Chi, so I expect this one should do fairly well.
Oscar Prospects: Good. The film will surely compete in Sound and Visual Effects categories if nowhere else.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Spencer (Limited)

Premise: From IMDb: “During her Christmas holidays with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, England, Diana decides to leave her marriage to Prince Charles.”
Box Office Prospects: $1.5 M
Expectations: Uncertain. While Anglophiles might make this one a success, past experience with films like Jackie suggests it isn’t likely.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. Kristen Stewart is in some conversations to land her first Oscar nomination for this performance. We’ll see if Hollywood is ready to reward her after her days in Twilight.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

November 12, 2021

Clifford the Big Red Dog (on Nov. 10, 2021)

Premise: From IMDb: “A young girl’s love for a tiny puppy named Clifford makes the dog grow to an enormous size.”
Box Office Prospects: $75 M
Expectations: Uncertain. While family films used to be big box office draws, those days aren’t quite back yet. This could be a nice litmus test in a non-streaming simulcast world.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Belfast

Premise: From IMDb: “A young boy and his working class family experience the tumultuous late 1960s.”
Box Office Prospects: $15 M
Expectations: Uncertain. They are opening this a bit wider than they should, but it could still succeed. That said, I would expect only film enthusiasts will be interested in it.
Oscar Prospects: Excellent. Word out of the festival circuti is strong, so expect this one to be one of the year’s biggest competitors
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

November 19, 2021

Ghostbusters: Afterlife

Premise: From IMDb: “When a single mom and her two kids arrive in a small town, they begin to discover their connection to the original Ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather left behind.”
Box Office Prospects: $200 M
Expectations: Excellent. The winter of blockbusters has a lot to offer and this should be another big seller.
Oscar Prospects: Weak. Best Visual Effects or Sound could be possible, but history doesn’t quite favor the film’s chances.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

King Richard

Premise: From IMDb: “A look at how tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams became who they are after the coaching from their father Richard Williams.”
Box Office Prospects: $35 M
Expectations: Uncertain. Will Smith used to be a big draw, but his last few films haven’t done so well on his name alone. This one could do much better than I expect because it’s about the rearing of legendary tennis sisters Venus and Serena Williams who are incredibly popular sports figures.
Oscar Prospects: Good. Early word is solid, though whether the film can manage more than Will Smith’s Best Actor nomination remains to be seen. We’ll have to see how it performs outside the festival circuit first.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

C’mon C’mon

Premise: From IMDb: “A radio journalist embarks on a a cross-country trip with his young nephew.”
Box Office Prospects: $1.5 M
Expectations: Weak. There’s no evidence to support Mike Mills being able to open and sell a movie, so a low gross is expected.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. There’s a pedigree here that might help with Oscar consideration, but there are also far too many other competitors. This one is likely to be ignored.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

November 24, 2021

Encanto

Premise: From IMDb: “A young Colombian girl has to face the frustration of being the only member of her family without magical powers.”
Box Office Prospects: $150 M
Expectations: Good. While we haven’t seen much of what Disney animation can do in a “post-“pandemic era, this could well be the test. Raya did poorly earlier this year, but the box office has since rebounded, so it’s possible this could be an improvement. Of course, Disney+ may have its worst affect on family films since families have to spend lots of money to go to the movies and the big screen just isn’t as big of a draw.
Oscar Prospects: Excellent. This looks like a wonderful musical adventure and should do well with Oscar nominations.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

House of Gucci

Premise: From IMDb: “Spanning three decades of love, betrayal, decadence, revenge, and ultimately murder, we see what a name means, what it’s worth, and how far a family will go for control.”
Box Office Prospects: $30 M
Expectations: Uncertain. It’s a story with a lot of drama, but it’s a story some have seen or heard before and there might not be as much interest in such a flick.
Oscar Prospects: Good. Ridley Scott hasn’t had much luck at the Oscars in recent years, but a lot about this film just seems to click, so I expect it to do well.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City

Premise: From IMDb: “Set in 1998, this ‘Resident Evil’ origin story explains the secrets of the Spencer Mansion and Raccoon City.”
Box Office Prospects: $20 M
Expectations: Uncertain. The laws of diminishing returns suggest a weak run for this film, but the franchise has remained surprisingly consistent, so it’s possible it does middling business.
Oscar Prospects: None.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

The Humans

Premise: From IMDb: “Set inside a pre-war duplex in downtown Manhattan, The Humans follows the course of an evening in which the Blake family gathers to celebrate Thanksgiving. As darkness falls outside the crumbling building, mysterious things start to go bump in the night and family tensions reach a boiling point.”
Box Office Prospects: $3 M
Expectations: Weak. It’s a small indie drama based on a play. There’s a finite number of potential viewers for a film like that.
Oscar Prospects: Good. The film had a terrific pedigree from its Tony run, so its Oscar run could also be worth a few nominations.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.

Licorice Pizza (on Nov. 26, 2021)

Premise: From IMDb: “Set in 1970s San Fernando Valley, the film follows a high school student, who is also a successful child actor.”
Box Office Prospects: $2.5 M
Expectations: Weak. Paul Thomas Anderson isn’t a box office draw, so don’t expect much from his movie.
Oscar Prospects: Uncertain. Anderson is typically a solid Oscar performer, but it’s been awhile and this seems more like his minor works that Oscar generally ignored.
Cinema Sight Preview: See my preview of this title here.