Iraq News Now

Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated new mob drama “The

Irishman” may turn into a case of ‘catch it if you can’ as far as traditional

moviegoers are concerned.
Netflix Inc said on Tuesday the movie, starring Robert De Niro

and Al Pacino and already generating Oscar buzz, will get a limited 26-day

release in independent U.S. movie theaters starting in November before arriving

on the streaming platform.
Netflix said it planned to

keep the movie in theaters for an unspecified period beyond the streaming

launch, however.
The announcement follows an

impasse in negotiations for a more traditional movie rollout between Netflix

and major theater chains like AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc and Cineplex Inc,

according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Movie theater chains prefer

an exclusive 90-day theatrical window before a film can appear elsewhere;

Netflix wants to offer its films to subscribers sooner.
While the limited release starting

Nov. 1 in independent movie theaters will not affect awards eligibility for

“The Irishman,” the decision reflects the tension between filmmakers, who like

their work shown on big screens, and streaming services that have upended

Hollywood’s traditional business models.
Scorsese, one of Hollywood’s

most influential directors, did not respond to a request for comment on

Tuesday.
But De Niro, who is also a

producer, told Reuters earlier this year that he, Scorsese and other producers

hoped “The Irishman” would “have as much theatrical as possible.”
Hollywood website Deadline on

Tuesday reported that British art house chain Picturehouse and European movie

chain Vue will not screen the film due to the limited theatrical window.
The National Association of

Theatre Owners, whose members include the largest movie theater chains in the

world, declined to comment on the Netflix announcement.
“The Irishman,” a saga of

organized crime in America spanning several decades, chronicles the mysterious

disappearance in 1975 of labor union boss Jimmy Hoffa, played by Pacino.
The film, which features

costly “de-aging” technology as its protagonists move back and forth in time,

will get its world premiere at the New York Film Festival on Sept. 27. Despite

not having been seen, it already tops several U.S. critics lists as a likely

Oscar best picture contender next year.
Netflix picked up “The

Irishman” from Viacom Inc’s Paramount Pictures in 2017 after ballooning costs.

The film cost $159 million to produce, according to a source familiar with the

situation.
Netflix’s limited theatrical

release of “The Irishman” is similar to that of Alfonso Cuaron’s

black-and-white movie “Roma,” which ran exclusively in theaters for 23 days.

“Roma” went on to win three Academy Awards in February but missed out on the

coveted best picture prize.