Top Movie Rentals

How well do the top movie rentals correlate with the big opening weekend smash hits? The truth is that movies which kill at the box office often fail to generate hot sales on DVD. Conversely, movies which fare modestly in the theaters can suddenly become sleeper hits once they hit the booming DVD market.

There was a time that a movie's success or failure depended almost exclusively on its opening weekend performance. Nowadays, DVD sales and rentals can compensate for poor opening weekend performances, which spells good news for producers and executives, as well as the consumers who gobble up the new releases each Tuesday. Indeed, the online DVD and game rental business is already having a profound effect on the ways in which studios and executives develop their projects.

In terms of calculating a picture's financial viability, one needs to take into account foreign markets. With the advent of online movie rental services, more and more overseas film buffs are watching American movies at home. Indeed, as the quality of home entertainment systems continue to improve, industry watchers expect that this trend away from theatrical attendance will continue.

What's great about the DVD market is that it gives good movies a second chance at success. Oftentimes, great flicks get overshadowed by blockbusters during their opening weekends and thus fail to perform up to projected estimates. The DVD market allows these films a second shot at profitability and--based on preliminary indications--the cream does indeed rise to the top. Fans of quality films can only hope that this will lead to more merit-based distribution and promotion efforts from the studios.