Make no mistake, MEN is not for everybody. It is strictly for the Horror fans. And it’s not even for all the Horror fans. If you’re the sort who thought HEREDITARY was “boring” you’d absolutely despise MEN. It is more for the rarified palate. And even the fans who really like to get intellectual with their entertainment might find this one a tad too flavorful, or not flavorful enough, depending on how you look at it. In short, MEN is a strange film that will appeal to a niche audience. Which is fine, but how does its success or failure affect the future? Will it help those of us who enjoy such experimental fare in the theater to see more of it, or make it harder for such films to get up on the big screen?
MEN made something like $3.3 million at the box office for its opening weekend. I can’t find any information regarding its budget, and damned if I’m gonna pay IMDB Pro for the figures, but we can assume the budget wasn’t big, relatively speaking. A movie has to make 2½ times its budget to be considered successful. I expect eventually MEN will break even and turn a bit of a profit, if it hasn’t already. So while it’s by no means setting any records, it also isn’t killing any chances for similar films in the future. That’s good news.
