Studios roll out romance for Valentine's

DSN Retailing Today, Nov 8, 2004

Affordable gifts with a personal touch are always popular around Valentine's Day, and that's why it's one of the top holidays for DVD sales. And as always, the studios will provide retailers with dozens of new titles early next year to meet that demand.

The top Valentine's Day title is likely to be "The Notebook," the tearjerker about a star-crossed couple starring James Garner and Joan Allen. New Line Home Entertainment is giving the $80 million summer hit a long window to release it just before Valentine's Day on Feb. 8.

"We're sure this will be the must-own Valentine's Day title of the year," said Justine Brody, vp of marketing for New Line. "It's a beautiful movie with a nice message."

New Line will promote "The Notebook" with a multi-million dollar marketing campaign that targets women through shows like "The View" and print ads in Shape and In Style. It's also devising a separate campaign to encourage men to buy it as a gift.

"It won't be as broad and straightforward as the main ad campaign, but we're working on something that targets that demographic," said Brody. The studio is also releasing the summer romantic comedy "Laws of Attraction" in time for the holiday.

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment has its quirky summer film "Little Black Book" timed for Valentine's Day shoppers. The comedy, starring Brittany Murphy, will debut on Jan. 4, followed by "Touch of Pink" on Jan. 18.

The Jennifer Lopez romance "Shall We Dance" is also being slated for release before Valentine's Day, but a Buena Vista Home Entertainment spokesman said the studio hasn't settled on a release date yet.

Buena Vista does have a date set for more than 20 romantic comedies due out on DVD Jan. 11. The list includes "Sweet Home Alabama," "Jersey Girl," "Amelie" and the 10th anniversary edition of "Pretty Woman."

According to the studio's marketing department, consumers spent an average of $99.24 on Valentine's Day gifts in 2004, a 22% increase from last year.

Other studios also are mining their film libraries to release old favorites for the first time on DVD or in special edition releases on DVD.

MGM Home Entertainment has nine titles coming out on DVD for the first time on Jan. 25. The list is headed by the Hugh Grant comedy "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and includes "Until September," "Impromptu" and "Nobody's Fool."

Warner Home Video will release a special edition of "The Bodyguard" on Feb. 1. The release will be the first DVD widescreen edition of the film and will include a new "making-of" documentary.