It might not seem like movies like “The Walk,” “Beasts of No Nation,” “Steve Jobs,” “Our Brand Is Crisis” and “Freeheld” have much in common and they don’t—besides the fact that almost no one has seen them. These October releases all bombed at the box office, earning a combined $34.4 million in theaters (at the time of writing). For reference, that’s roughly what “The Maze Runner” and “Gone Girl” made in their opening weekends—and less than what that godawful “Minions” movie earned in a single day.
These films were all positioned to be players in this year’s Oscar race, released during the same month that birthed the last three best pictures—”Argo,” “12 Years a Slave” and “Birdman,” the reigning champ. Given October’s recent success at crowning winners, this past month’s crop was absurdly stacked, with fare like “Bridge of Spies,” “The Assassin,” “Victoria,” “The Martian,” “Suffragette,” “Room,” “Truth” and “I Smile Back” all hoping for an awards season boost through association. In addition to all the other movies that came out in October, they had to compete with September releases like “Sicario” and “Black Mass,” as well as November’s packed lineup—which includes “Carol,” “Spotlight,” “The Danish Girl” and “Brooklyn.”