After becoming the surprise hit of the year, "Paranormal Activity" leads a decent set of new releases making their way to standard DVD and Blu-ray this week. Staying in the horror genre, the Megan Fox-starring "Jennifer's Body" also reaches the home audience after a lackluster box office performance. Animated "9" is the third most popular title to reach both formats this week, though it struggled to find its niche with audiences despite some favorable critical attention.
With a budget of just $15,000, "Paranormal Activity" shocked audiences this past fall, helping it to haul in $107 million in domestic revenue. It had been a decade since a release with a budget of less than $1 million earned $100 million or more in theaters, with "The Blair Witch Project" the last to do so. With such an unbelievable domestic intake, "Paranormal Activity" made more than big-budget films like "Watchmen," "Public Enemies" and "Where the Wild Things Are."
Utilizing mostly handheld cameras and amateur actors, "Paranormal Activity" tells the story of a seemingly normal couple who begin to be haunted by an unknown being. Stressing the slow building of suspense over standard horror clichés, "Paranormal" was lauded for its creativity in expressing psychological tension and manipulating the audience.
Released around the same time as "Paranormal Activity," "Jennifer's Body" tanked with horror audiences, posting one of the worst wide releases of the year. From scribe Diablo Cody, who also wrote the tremendously successful "Juno," "Jennifer's Body" failed to tap into the lucrative market for vampire-related thematic material, earning just $16 million domestically and $18 million worldwide. However, the R-rated "Jennifer's Body" had intense competition for adult audiences with the launching of comedy "The Informant!" and the continued success of "Inglourious Basterds," so it may fare better in the home market.
From producer Tim Burton, animated "9" was received well by most critics but struggled at the box office because of its PG-13 rating. In a genre dominated by big-budget PG films, "9" was too mature for younger audiences, where most animated releases make a majority of their money. "9" is an intricately crafted apocalyptic sci-fi tale set in the near future, when humanity is on the brink of complete annihilation. Look for "9" on standard DVD and special edition Blu-ray.
R-rated "A Perfect Getaway" also makes its way onto both formats after very minimal theatrical success. Blending comedy and thriller elements, "A Perfect Getaway" follows a happy couple on a supposedly once in a lifetime vacation, only to find that another couple they meet on the way is not who they appear to be. Starring Milla Jovovich and Steve Zahn, "Getaway" does boast a strong overall cast, though it also struggled due to competition for adult audiences upon its release this past August; "Funny People," "The Ugly Truth" and "The Hangover" were all still in wide release at the time and "Getaway" never managed a weekend intake of more than $6 million.
Documentary "Facing Ali" also hits DVD this week, with former boxers like George Foreman and Joe Frazier paying tribute to the great boxer Muhammad Ali. "Facing Ali" did not receive a theatrical distribution but could do well with niche audiences as it moves to the home market on standard DVD.
Next weekend, more horror is released in the form of "The Final Destination," which should cap the lucrative horror franchise from Warner Brothers/New Line. The Heath Ledger starring "10 Things I Hate About You" gets a Blu-ray release as does the popular documentary "Riding Giants."
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.