Alice in Wonderland 2010
Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland opens in US theaters on March 5, but if your favorite (or only) theater, 3D or otherwise, is owned by AMC, you may be out of luck. Though nothing is definite yet, AMC has made it clear that a franchise-wide boycott is an option in response to Disney’s intention to fast track the film to DVD in only 12 weeks after its March premiere.
Two British theater chains and apparently all Dutch theaters have already stated they will not show the feature at all. The contention of theater owners is that, not only will it cut down significantly on their anticipated profits, it will also set a new precedent for new releases in the future.
Of course, to see Alice in Wonderland in 3D, you will need to see it in theaters. That probably answers the question of theater vs. DVD for most people. And, in fact, you may be wondering why the seemingly significant 3D factor hasn’t been brought up in this war over Wonderland. The reason is that it has absolutely nothing to do with it.
The truth is that only about 20% of a film’s profits come through the box office. The bulk of it, around 50%, comes from the sale of DVDs. With DVD bootlegging as common as it is, it goes without saying that those same DVD profits that studios have come to rely on have shrunk significantly. The general consensus in the industry is that committing new releases to DVD faster than has been done in the past will help to fix those declining profits.
True to the “Alice” nature, nothing is ever as it seems. As the titans battle for our bucks, we’re stuck in the middle. If you’re looking for a side to take in all of it, good luck. This is basically a custody battle over the movie-going public, and frankly, no one really cares what you have to say. Ouch, right? But it no doubt will have implications in the bigger economic picture, and you’ll have to follow a different kind of news for that kind of information.
It’s enough to make that rabbit hole look awfully tempting, if only to get out of the fallout.
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