Last week, I detailed the first six months of the year and the types of movies that tend to be released during those months. We saw favorites like March, June, and January and the blockbuster and/or awards contenders that are usually released at those times. We also looked at months like February and March, which generally see lower box office receipts and worse movies.

Join us this week as we examine such favorites as August, November, and December!

July

This is the high water mark of the summer movie season. By this time, audiences are primed for and come to expect the big budget blockbusters that come out virtually every week.

In July, the week-by-week barrage of big releases that occurs in June has generally slowed down. While high profile releases are still abundant, July usually has about one or two films that are able to thrive off of their “big fish in a small pond” advantage.

Over the past three years the most successful summer release has come out in July.

Examples: The Dark Knight, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, Inception

August

By August, viewer fatigue and disenchantment usually starts to affect audiences across the country. A chronic moviegoer’s summer consists of multiple trips to the movie theater, multiple conversations about movies, and maybe just a little bit too much popcorn.

By this point, audiences and critics hold films up to the highest of standards, and lots of movies tend to fall through the cracks.  Additionally, August releases, by virtue of being released so late in the summer, are subject to the most hype, and therefore often disappoint and/or underwhelm audiences.

However, August usually has some of the best and most surprising movies of the summer.

Examples: Julie and Julia, Inglourious Basterds, Pineapple Express

September

As the summer movie season ends and people go back to work or school, movies become somewhat of an afterthought. Gone is the weekly excitement surrounding the latest and greatest release of the week.

September is comparable to its colder counterpart, February, in terms of releases. Studios tend to dump some of their less desirable titles during this time and the result is less than pretty.

That being said, September is also the unofficial beginning of the awards season, and towards the end of the month, studios begin releasing films that they hope can go toe to toe with the awards heavyweights being released later in the year.

Examples: The Informant!, All About Steve, The Queen

October

Interest in the film industry tends to pick up in intensity around October as awards talk and buzz build around potential critics’ darlings.

Also, as Halloween approaches, studios typically release their horror movie franchises. Not an October goes by without the latest Saw chapter gracing the silver screen.

Examples: Saw VII, Where the Wild Things Are, The Departed

November

November is significant in that it signifies the start of the holiday movie season. In November, movies about Santa, elves, holiday grief, mischievous children, dysfunctional families, and reindeer tend to start entering theaters across the country.

Christmas movies released in November typically elicit confusion among audience members because, well, Christmas is not in November.

The awards season wages on.

Examples: A Christmas Carol, Four Christmases, Slumdog Millionaire

December

If November is full of holiday movies and awards contenders, then December is bursting at the seams with them.

If June is the premier release month for summer movies, then December is the same for winter movies.  Each Friday brings with it a new film desperate for awards recognition in the coming months.

December is also home to the biggest holiday releases of the year. Makes sense. Christmas is in December.

Examples: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Avatar, The Holiday