The Mistry blog

A year go, I wouldn't have thought that I'd be sitting here now in January 2021, still waiting to see The Eternals or No Time To Die yet here we are. 2020 was a wild year, but very tame one for the box office. With the Covid-19 pandemic closing cinemas across the globe, many of the years biggest films have now moved to 2021 - which in other words means 2021 is STACKED with high profile films. We all have our most anticipated lists, so I thought I'd share with you the films I'm most excited to see in the coming year! Apologies in advance for the glaring omissions. RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON Disney's animation studio has been on a roll this past decade, producing quality film after quality film, and this one looks to be in the same vein as all those other great animated flicks. We've known about this film since D23 in 2019, and I've been really interested in how Disney are going to bring this story to life - dragons, warrior's, and a south-east Asia backdrop...

It’s an understatement to say tensions have been running high these past few months, and that’s racial tension to be precise. The death of George Floyd sparked numerous protests and debate worldwide around (initially) police brutality, and then wider issues around racial prejudice and injustice. Numerous other critical issues around systematic racism, privilege, and more have been bought to our attention, with even the Coronavirus Pandemic highlighting major flaws. So much debate has been created that now the film and wider entertainment industries are having to self-reflect and pave ways forward in making tomorrow’s world more inclusive for all. However the ways in which the industry is tackling these important issues are being called into question, and that’s what I want to discuss. One way in which companies are reacting is by removing “controversial” content from streaming platforms. HBO Max removed the classic film “Gone with the Wind” (albeit they put it back on), whilst Netf...

A decade in review... When it comes to cinematic achievements, we often hear of the usual list: Citizen Kane (1940) for its innovative storytelling and narrative structure; Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) for being the first ever feature length animated film; and Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) for its ground breaking use of visual effects. But throughout this past decade, we may have in fact witnessed the greatest one of all. I firmly believe we experienced one of the greatest achievements in the history of cinema, and that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The MCU is a franchise of films produced by Marvel Studios, consisting of 23 films to date which all take place along the same timeline and in the same universe (but most of you probably knew that). Starting in 2008 with Iron Man, the series went on to produce some of the greatest comic book films of all time, and some of the best cinema we have seen in the past decade. The MCU has been immensely successful both f...

A decade in review... Like any art form, film is universal. It has no boundaries and does not discriminate. The stories we all love, and those which grasp our imagination are meant for all to enjoy, no matter our race, colour, religion, or gender. Themes such as heroism and courage, greed and failure and more, transcend cultures, and the power of world cinema means audiences have enjoyed these stories for multiple generations in a variety of forms. But in the ever more globalised and diverse society we live in, diverse storytelling is crucial for inspiration, education, and a thriving film industry. As one of the most prominent gatekeepers of pop-culture, the film industry plays an integral role in shaping the society we live in. Diversity in film is arguably the single biggest challenge facing the film industry today. And when I say “diversity” I don’t just mean whose face we see in a movie, but also the faces behind the camera, the executives, producers, writers, cinematographe...

A decade in review... If you were to ask people what were the most prominent brands of the last decade, you’d hear names such as Apple, Disney, Amazon, and a bunch more tech companies that have cemented their place on both the stock market and our lives. But the one I’d put above them all is Netflix. For many, Netflix represents the most fundamental shift in consumer behaviour of this past decade…that is the rise of streaming! When you think Netflix, you think streaming. The two words are synonymous with each other, as it was Netflix who led the way in terms of streaming video online directly to consumers. Spotify comes to mind for music, but in streaming Netflix is king…well it has been so far. At the start of the last decade, Netflix expanded their DVD rental business, introducing the option to stream video directly to users for a monthly fee. No one knew whether Netflix’s model would work – but it did, and changed entertainment forever, offering consumers more freedom an...

A decade in review... The film and entertainment industry have seen a number of changes during the past decade, with forces both new and old shaping cinema as we know it today. Many things come to mind, but one aspect which headlines often overlook is the impact of globalisation. This past decade has seen consumerism and economics shift towards a truly global landscape, and film has been so exception. We now live in a truly global world, which means different parts of the world, for better or worse, have an influence on what media we consume. A global film industry means filmmakers must understand the implications their film’s themes and messages have on audiences. Political messages, religious beliefs, and mockery of either can have huge ramifications in terms of box office earnings, where the film is played, and how the film is received (especially by those audiences who are generally more conservative). Throughout the past decade we have begun to see the power and influen...

The latest (and last) instalment in the Fox/Marvel X-Men franchise, Dark Phoenix , debuted to a less-than-super $33m in North America and $136m worldwide, becoming the lowest opening weekend for an X-Men film. For a film with a production budget close to $200m, the opening weekend is a disaster for the studio and is expected to lose the studio a lot of money. As someone who thought the film wasn’t all that bad, it’s a sad way for this incarnation of the X-Men to bow out, especially as I am huge fan of both McAvoy and Fassbender’s portrayal of Professor X and Magneto . But as we’ve come to see in this early summer season, Dark Phoenix becomes the latest in a growing list of sequels and big-budget IP films to underperform. Secret Life of Pets 2 opened this weekend to $47m, under half of what the first film debuted with. Godzilla: King of the Monsters , Detective Pikachu , Hellboy , and Shazam also opened a lot lower than projected, and have since gone onto underperfo...

The summer movie season is now here, with so many high-profile films set for release. Yesterday I put of my film preview of summer 2019 , so today I thought it would only be right to do my summer 2019 box office prediction. Avengers: Endgame might be eating up the box office, but more competition in the next few weeks means there’s still plenty of money to go around. I’m basing my list on which UK releases, between May & August ( Endgame being the exception), make the most money worldwide. So without further or do, here is my box office prediction for the top 10 films in summer 2019... #1 Avengers: Endgame - Box Office Estimate - $2.9bn Fairly obvious pick for my number 1, Endgame has broken so many box office records already, it will definitely top Avatar , however will just miss out on that $3bn mark. #2 The Lion King - Box Office Estimate - $1.4bn With no real competition the week before or after, The Lion King could explode if reviews are great. Beaut...

It’s that time of the year again…the summer movie season is officially underway! Apart from the good weather (sometimes), late nights, and BBQ’s, one of the best things about summer is the sheer amount of major film releases, with each studio bringing their best to capitalise on more people going to cinema’s. The summer movie season traditionally lasts from May till August (although Avengers: Endgame may count even as an April release), and there are plenty of blockbusters to see this summer 2019. Here are my picks of the films to look out for this summer movie season (based on UK release dates)… MAY We’re off with a bang, with Godzilla: King of the Monsters (29/05) being my standout for May. The “monster-verse” is well and truly underway, and the trailers have set-up an epic showdown between Godzilla , King Ghidorah , and all the other “ titans ”. Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (10/05) is the other highlight, and with the marketing being top-notch, the film looks set to capitalis...

Muggle’s rejoice! Warner Bros announced on Monday that the untitled Fantastic Beasts 3 film will release on November 12, 2021 . That will be three years since the release of the previous instalment, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. The 2021 release date means Warner Bros are taking more time in developing the third instalment, moving away from their original plan of releasing each instalment every two years. Looking out how The Crimes of Grindelwald performed, this shouldn’t be a surprise. The last instalment made $653m worldwide on a $200m budget (not including marketing), meaning it barely broke even, whilst it was down from the $814m made by Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them . In a nutshell, things are not going well for Fantastic Beasts and Warner Bros. In the announcement, Ron Sanders (President, worldwide theatrical distribution and home entertainment) reiterated that the plan is still to make this a 5-film franchise, meaning the creative teams have th...