Back in January, attendees of the Sundance Film Festival were abuzz talking about Escape from Tomorrow. Sure, the movie was good, but what really impressed viewers was that the production managed to shoot in Disney theme parks without permits--or permission. Many predicted the feature would never hit theatres. Turns out they were wrong.
A black-and-white thriller, Escape from Tomorrow follows a father who discovers he lost his job on a family vacation to Disney World. His day at the park becomes more and more surreal, with many comparing the movie to The Shining. Rides and Disney characters feature heavily in the story. If Disney wanted to, they could probably file a lawsuit that would bury the production and give it no hope of ever turning a profit. Instead, likely after weighing their options, they decided not to pursue a case that probably would have made the company look like the big bad wolf and would ignite the sympathies of indie film lovers and anti-corporate activists. They probably saved the filmmakers money, but also prevented millions more people from finding out about the movie. In that way, it's a bit of a win-win for both Disney and the filmmakers. Plus, there's the fact that Mattel lost a suit related to a Barbie artwork, Thomas Forsythe’s “Food Chain Barbie." After a five-year battle, judges cited the First Amendment and fair use when siding with the artist, and made Mattel pay $2 million in his attorney's fees. The same thing could likely happen here, and there's at least one law professor betting that Disney wouldn't win.
The Producers Distribution Agency has set a theatrical release date of October 11th, which will coincide with a VOD release on FilmBuff ,which appears to specializes in the kind of movies likely to find niche audiences among millions of at-home viewers. The undercover filming of the Disney-set movie will likely fuel interest. It's worth noting that PDA also released Exit Through the Gift Shop, about another undercover figure, graffiti artist Banksy, and perhaps the distributor will design a similar marketing campaign around the feature. Critics haven't given out-and-out raves to the feature, which has mixed grades on IndieWire, but there are enough As and Bs out there to suggest that Escape from Tomorrow is, at the very least, an interesting watch for adults who want to give their memories of their spinning teacups a twirl in the opposite direction.
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