— The Daily Collegian Wednesday, Aug. 27, 1997 Fall movies leave explosions to blockbusters of summer By CHRIS KREWSON Collegian Arts Writer Summer's over or nearly so and Hollywood is leaving the explo sion-laden Con Air and Face/Off behind in favor of movies that rely heavily upon plot. This fall offers, among other films, Kevin Spacey in a crime thriller, Michael Dou glas as a billionaire and Al Pacino as the Devil. A far cry from two Nicolas Cage movies with shots flying every 10 minutes There is a shrewd marketing decision involved with the big-sum mer-movie theory, said Pat Trim ble, instructor of integrative arts. "Summer is the major time to showcase blockbusters," he said. "The idea is to show action movies like Con Air in summer, so they can be out on video by Christmas." Summer blockbusters are in a "What You Want To Eat" Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner • • - *0 • t•,..f W 4 CD :wmfl s :2 :°°State c) : College U: Martial 0 0- rl : Arts P ; Academy t \IA. 237-KICK u o 12 R URFA , . LESSON RATES • State day Sami-Spm 100 evening (spm-80m) 120 • In State 120 day/evening * * * * NO cost to switch FREE Roommate separation Personal Customer Service Fall films set sail great position to profit from a younger crowd, said Chris Jordan, assistant professor of media stud- "Movie makers are looking for young people out of school who want to see pyrotechnics and explosions, and they haven't been disappointed." That type of schedule gives "smart" movies only a few months to flourish. "Usually, the thoughtful films are caught between summer and Christmas, so they can only be showcased in September, October and November." Trimble said. "I think that the movie people would love to have May to Christmas full Tom! 12 MIDNITE SUNDAY-THURSDAY OPEN 'TIL 1 AM FRIDAY & SATURDAY THE HIESTER STREET•237S7IO to State service charges, monthly fees, minimum usages or calling circles of blockbusters. The dead months are between January and May." A few movies coming out this fall could easily fit in the summer blockbuster genre: Starship Troop ers and Titanic. They are slated for release on Nov. 7 and Dec. 19 respectively, long after the sum mer heat. Page 40 "I think what's happening is there are a lot of movies trying reach the same audiences," Trim ble said. "I read somewhere that there are a hundred films released between June 1 and Aug. 1, so that's going to mean a lot of films going up against each other. That happened with Air Force One and Conspiracy Theory. Obviously, you don't want Harrison Ford and Mel Gibson going up against each other. So they had to sit down and rethink it, and Conspiracy Theory was released later." That scheduling problem would Ma. Al TA Mobile infantry invade the surface of a planet occupied by alien insects in Starship troopers. Contrary to the norm, the film is a big-budget actioner to be released in the fall. mean a few movies that aim for the same viewers would be held for a later date. "With all that jockeying going on, it's wise to hold Starship Troopers and Titanic for the Christmas crowd," Trimble said. However, it can be misleading to L k Global Communications To sign up or for more information call us at 1-800-296-Telnet think every summer movie has to be a blockbuster and every fall film will be heavy on plot. Contact proved a well-written diversion to the fluffy summer fare, and Star ship Troopers seems more at home in the summer. The end of summer also saw a number of small inde- `Telnet pendent films such as Ulee's Gold "You don't want to draw a 'Point A to Point B' conclusion about when movies come out," Jordan said. "Movie people do try to keep their fingers on the pulse of the public, but that isn't the only rea son when movies are released."
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