Slashdot

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: There's an overwhelming sense of deja vu at multiplexes these days. In August alone, "Black Swan" (2010) is returning to theaters, along with the Tim Burton "Batman" movies from 1989 and 1992. Audiences will be able to revisit the oceanic terror of "Jaws" (1975), as well as the comic mystery (and multiple endings) of "Clue" (1985). Or they could groove to Prince's "Sign o' the Times" concert film from 1987. And it doesn't look like the rerelease trend is slowing down. In September, "The Breakfast Club" (1985) is returning, Pixar is bringing back "Toy Story" (1995), and "Apollo 13" (1995) is blasting off again. "Casper" (1995) will haunt screens for nearly the entire month of October, while "Avatar: The Way of Water" (2022) will run for about five days, teeing up the forthcoming "Avatar: Fire and Ash." And there are still more to come before the end of the year. Rereleases have long been part of the theatrical ecosystem. After all, "Star Wars" movies have been heading back to multiplexes routinely since 1981 -- before "Return of the Jedi" even debuted. But recently, studios have been digging deeper into their archives for a variety of reasons -- only some of which have to do with nostalgia. "Black Swan," from Searchlight, which is now owned by Disney, took over around 200 IMAX screens to commemorate its 15th anniversary. Universal's specialty arm, Focus Features, rereleased both "Pride & Prejudice" (2005) and "Brokeback Mountain" (2005) earlier this year. "Pride & Prejudice" ultimately grossed more than $6 million domestically this time around, about 16 percent of its original U.S. box office haul. In total, Universal has 12 rereleases on its 2025 slate -- not including a partnership with another distribution company -- compared with just four in 2024 and two in 2023. "We very much pay a lot of attention to our repertory business," the studio's president of domestic theatrical distribution, Jim Orr, said by phone, explaining, "We just think it's not only great fun for audiences, but a great business to be in as well." Orr explained that the size of Universal's rerelease slate this year was "more coincidental" than anything else, with all the films hitting anniversaries in 2025. Still, there is a strong business motivation: The rereleases help studios and exhibitors pad out relatively thin slates. "The truth of the matter is studios don't have enough product right now to give theaters, so that's why you're seeing an influx of these nostalgia plays," said Jeff Bock, senior media analyst at Exhibitor Relations. He added, "It doesn't cost a lot for them to do an anniversary edition or a 4K edition." There are several other reasons why Hollywood is rereleasing old movies, according to Orr. Rereleases are far cheaper to put out than launching a brand-new title. Studios also target films that already have strong, enduring audiences, "whether that's 'Pride & Prejudice,' with its meme-able depiction of yearning, or 'Casper,'" which he said had elicited 'decent' interest every year. Then there's what Orr calls "opportunistic dating." "There might be a window where something goes thematically or holiday-wise, whatever kind of fits in, or there might be some more screens available in specific formats," he said. Specialty format releases like IMAX, Dolby, or 3D also help bring moviegoers to the theaters.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

BrianFagioli shares a report from NERDS.xyz: LibreOffice 25.8 has landed, and while it packs in new features and speed improvements, the biggest headline is who just got left behind. If you are still running Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1, this is the end of the road. LibreOffice will not run on those systems anymore, and there are no workarounds. The suite has slammed the door shut. For years, LibreOffice kept older Windows users afloat while Microsoft and other developers moved on. That lifeline is gone. Anyone stubbornly clinging to Windows 7 or 8 now has two choices: upgrade or stay stuck on outdated software. LibreOffice has made it clear that it will not carry dead platforms any further. And the cuts do not stop there. 32-bit Windows builds are on their way out, with deprecation already in place. On the Mac side, 25.8 is the last release that runs on macOS 10.15. Starting with LibreOffice 26.2, only macOS 11 and newer will be supported. In other words, if your computer is too old to run modern systems, LibreOffice is walking away.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.