I want to see Belle for my birthday
May 8, 2014 12:25 AM Subscribe
I'm in New Orleans. I have a car. Where can I see Belle?
I've had my heart set on seeing Belle since November. My local theater had posters up, saying it would be out 5/2, BUT Fandango and the Fox Searchlight website both suggest that that was a horrible lie. Why would they have a poster out if they weren't going to screen the movie? :(
I am sad! All I wanted was to see a beautiful period piece with a mixed race lead who's not a tragic mulatta. My cousin said she's willing to road trip up to 2 hrs to make this work. Can you help me find a complete list of theaters screening Belle? I've found a few, but when I read the comments, it seems like there are more screenings available than were initially posted by Fox Searchlight. Please hope me!
I've had my heart set on seeing Belle since November. My local theater had posters up, saying it would be out 5/2, BUT Fandango and the Fox Searchlight website both suggest that that was a horrible lie. Why would they have a poster out if they weren't going to screen the movie? :(
I am sad! All I wanted was to see a beautiful period piece with a mixed race lead who's not a tragic mulatta. My cousin said she's willing to road trip up to 2 hrs to make this work. Can you help me find a complete list of theaters screening Belle? I've found a few, but when I read the comments, it seems like there are more screenings available than were initially posted by Fox Searchlight. Please hope me!
Fox Searchlight has a list of available theaters up on their website for Belle. Unfortunately NOLA, and my city aren't on it (yet).
Fox Searchlight does mostly indie and UK-based films, which means that May 2nd was the start of it's limited release, and if it does well in LA and NYC, where most of the showings are, it will hopefully get a wide-release by mid-May or June. I know my city (Tallahassee) tends to get limited release indie films 1-2 weeks after the release date, for a week or two.
I'd just keep an eye on the showtimes for your local theaters, maybe sign up for a Fandango alert, and possibly just call your theater. They update their movie showtimes once a week, but somebody at the theater might know if/when they're getting it, if it's a few weeks out. And also, if you ask, then that helps gauge interest and will help the movie land a screen near you once the release expands.
posted by PearlRose at 8:39 AM on May 8, 2014
Fox Searchlight does mostly indie and UK-based films, which means that May 2nd was the start of it's limited release, and if it does well in LA and NYC, where most of the showings are, it will hopefully get a wide-release by mid-May or June. I know my city (Tallahassee) tends to get limited release indie films 1-2 weeks after the release date, for a week or two.
I'd just keep an eye on the showtimes for your local theaters, maybe sign up for a Fandango alert, and possibly just call your theater. They update their movie showtimes once a week, but somebody at the theater might know if/when they're getting it, if it's a few weeks out. And also, if you ask, then that helps gauge interest and will help the movie land a screen near you once the release expands.
posted by PearlRose at 8:39 AM on May 8, 2014
As far as I'm concerned, MovieFone is head and shoulders above other ticketing options since it allows you to choose an "unlimited" distance from your local viewing area. In theory, then, it will show you all of the bookings in the U.S. — at least all of those that show up in its database. (I suspect there may be some independent art houses and other venues that show films but don't get listed through MovieFone.) I've used it on several occasions to plot out-of-the-way screenings of movies that were taking place more than 30 or 40 miles from home.
MovieFone finds tonight's Baton Rouge screening Brujita mentions above, and indicates that the next-closest booking is in Chicago (!). It looks like your options suddenly get much worse tomorrow, requiring a trip to Dallas. (I would build links, but they don't seem to work since location data is lost. Just use the regular MovieFone tools and make sure to pick "Unlimited" as your "within X miles" option.) But the Fox Searchlight website indicates a pretty healthy expansion next week.
If you can't make it to Baton Rouge tonight, I'd call the theater just to verify that it is not showing over the weekend. (Some theaters, especially art houses, are slow to update their screenings with the online databases.) And then maybe keep an eye on MovieFone on a weekly basis to see where locations are being added. If you use this in conjunction with the Fox Searchlight website, it will probably give you a pretty complete picture of the platform release. And, yeah, it couldn't hurt to call the theater that had previously advertised this movie and ask whether it is coming soon.
One word of caution -- before you travel any real distance for a movie based on a listing online, call the theater to confirm! In my experience these showtimes are occasionally wrong.
posted by Mothlight at 11:10 AM on May 8, 2014
MovieFone finds tonight's Baton Rouge screening Brujita mentions above, and indicates that the next-closest booking is in Chicago (!). It looks like your options suddenly get much worse tomorrow, requiring a trip to Dallas. (I would build links, but they don't seem to work since location data is lost. Just use the regular MovieFone tools and make sure to pick "Unlimited" as your "within X miles" option.) But the Fox Searchlight website indicates a pretty healthy expansion next week.
If you can't make it to Baton Rouge tonight, I'd call the theater just to verify that it is not showing over the weekend. (Some theaters, especially art houses, are slow to update their screenings with the online databases.) And then maybe keep an eye on MovieFone on a weekly basis to see where locations are being added. If you use this in conjunction with the Fox Searchlight website, it will probably give you a pretty complete picture of the platform release. And, yeah, it couldn't hurt to call the theater that had previously advertised this movie and ask whether it is coming soon.
One word of caution -- before you travel any real distance for a movie based on a listing online, call the theater to confirm! In my experience these showtimes are occasionally wrong.
posted by Mothlight at 11:10 AM on May 8, 2014
Why not just call Canal Place and ask?
Are you sure the issue isn't whether it's coming to town, but when? Because New Orleans usually doesn't get little indies like this the first weekend they're open. Usually films like this open in just a few theaters in New York and Los Angeles (and possibly Chicago, which explains the Moviefone results Mothlight got), and then in the coming months if they do well, they'll gradually percolate out to more screens in big cities and the art-house circuit in other markets.
Deadline Hollywood, which is the go-to industry news website for this sort of thing, mentions that it was only open in New York and LA this past weekend. It's possible the date on the poster was a typo or a misunderstanding. That said, from the link it looks like Belle did well and will probably be opening wider in the coming weeks.
posted by Sara C. at 1:31 PM on May 8, 2014
Are you sure the issue isn't whether it's coming to town, but when? Because New Orleans usually doesn't get little indies like this the first weekend they're open. Usually films like this open in just a few theaters in New York and Los Angeles (and possibly Chicago, which explains the Moviefone results Mothlight got), and then in the coming months if they do well, they'll gradually percolate out to more screens in big cities and the art-house circuit in other markets.
Deadline Hollywood, which is the go-to industry news website for this sort of thing, mentions that it was only open in New York and LA this past weekend. It's possible the date on the poster was a typo or a misunderstanding. That said, from the link it looks like Belle did well and will probably be opening wider in the coming weeks.
posted by Sara C. at 1:31 PM on May 8, 2014
Response by poster: Brujita, you made a birthday miracle! Belle was showing in Baton Rouge, and they actually had to add another screen because of how many people bought tickets! I know one theater sold out and the other was so close my cousin sat on the floor instead of making an old lady move her oxygen tank. We actually both love that kind of audience experience, where there are so many people that the shocked gasps at dramatic events feel like a collective experience.
Thank you so much -- the film was great, some people gave us tickets to a film festival event tomorrow, and it was simply amazing.
posted by spunweb at 11:20 PM on May 8, 2014 [1 favorite]
Thank you so much -- the film was great, some people gave us tickets to a film festival event tomorrow, and it was simply amazing.
posted by spunweb at 11:20 PM on May 8, 2014 [1 favorite]
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