Indie Roundup: 'Wonderful World,' 'Capitalism,' and 'Paranormal'

Every week, look for Indie Roundup to provide a snapshot of what's been happening in the independent film world.

News. Have you been keeping up with the foreign-language film submissions for the Academy Awards? Our friends at indieWIRE have compiled a very handy list, ahead of the Academy's official release. More than 50 countries have made their choices known, while more than a dozen portential entries have not yet been announced. Notable flicks include The White Ribbon (Germany), Forever Enthralled (China), A Prophet (France), and Police, Adjective (Romania).

Deals. Matthew Broderick stars in Wonderful World, which will be released by Magnolia Pictures in early 2010, according to indieWIRE. Josh Goldin (Darkman scripter) makes his directorial debut. Broderick plays a "failed children's folk singer and less-than-extraordinary weekend dad" who becomes involved with his Senegalese roommate's sister. Romance and either heartache or happiness -- or perhaps both -- follow.

Indie Weekend Box Office. No surprises last weekend, as Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story blew away the competition, averaging $57,991 at the four theaters where it opened in New York and Los Angeles, per the calculations of Box Office Mojo. While the totals are good so far, they're not extraordinary, and the real test will come as it expands across the country. As always, the question remains: will the heartland embrace the provocations of Michael Moore?

How did the four other indie openers perform? Read more after the jump!


Also Opening. The release of a new film by Michael Moore tends to suck the air out of the atmosphere, since he attracts so much publicity to his latest cause / crusade for justice / fusillade of anger. In that kind of charged environment, congrats to Coco Before Chanel, which opened at five theaters and averaged $35,468, a robust figure for the early fall. The film's distributor, Sony Pictures Classics, has several more titles lined up to open in the next couple of months, and seems to be positioning the release dates to maximize prestige and possible awards consideration, as well as profits.

John Krasinski's Brief Interviews with Hideous Men did not do as poorly as its title might suggest, taking in $18,510 at one theater, but poor advance word surely won't help it next week. The Boys Are Back and Paranormal Activity (pictured) got off to slow starts, averaging $8,224 (on six screens) and $6,489 (on 12 screens), respectively. *

Paranormal Activity is an odd case, one of those horror flicks supposedly 'based on real life,' but with certain critics -- such as our own Eugene Novikov, not exactly a pushover when it comes to these kind of things -- and fans staunchly defending its merits. I think its delayed release makes it look like an also-ran, an imitator, and I suspect that many people are like me, wary of any film touting its "truthfulness" and documentary look and feel. Reality shows have pretty much burned through our appetite for 'reality films,' an appetite that was fed more by curiosity than anything else.

* ADDENDUM. Thanks to commenter Charlie Boss for pointing out that Paranormal Activity only screened twice each at those 12 screens, which does paint quite a different, much stronger picture of its performance. More midnight screenings have been added this weekend in additional cities.