Miramax closes down

DeepBlue

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/jan/28/miramax-closes-disney-harvey-weinstein

Was surprised to see this (although it seems it was widely expected). They made a lot of good movies. There doesn't seem to be an explanation as to why Disney downscaled Miramax.

johnny_ultimate

While I think Miramax did a lot in the early 90s for independent cinema (it helped to get smaller, alternative films to the mainstream) I actually kind of sighed everytime I saw the logo in later years - a lot of the time their focus seemed to be on Oscar bait (dull period dramas with good acting were their specialties, especially when Anthony Minghella was the director). And with the two quirky brothers having departed, it certainly couldn't have been considered the old Miramax anymore.

Peter Biskind's cynical, gossipy tome Down & Dirty Pictures is certainly worth a read - an interesting, OTT account of a strange company.

Edit: interesting list of Miramax films here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_released_by_Miramax_Films. They did seem to champion quite a few good imports in later years (Diving Bell and the Butterfly, the Hoax etc...) though there are very few major hits over the last few years, despite some excellent productions (No Country, There Will Be Blood, Adventureland, City of Men, Gone Baby Gone to name a few) I'd say Kill Bill would've been their last major financial success... (although seems No Country for Old Men raked in quite a bit)

mike65

Companies like Disney have little interest in niche/art cinema in truth. They like the idea of owning these companies, the glitter rubs off for a while but then it fades and they loose interest, its just another column on the corporate balance sheet. If the hits stop coming they show no mercy.

bnt

Latest: Disney Has "Over 10 Bidders" For Miramax . Also: the Weinsteins apparently want their old sandbox back. It ain't dead yet.

conorhal

I'll seccond a reccomendation for Peter Biskind's 'Down & Dirty Pictures', it's a brilliant insight into the rise and fall of independent cinema in America and charts the dynastic rise of Miramax who's great strength lay it's ability to brilliantly market small indies as must see blockbusters. They are a curiously schitzophrenic company whose drive for commercial success crushed as many films as they championed and ultimatle created an over heated market for indies (a bit like our housing undustry) where the costs outstripped demand and precipitated a collapse.

faceman

Im not that suprised to be honest. Since entering the recession, we have seen the arty arms of studios releasing less films, with the almost-guaranteed return blockbuster movies being the focus.