Rodrigo Garcia Saiz directed this :40 in which a fear-stricken woman flees an unseen pursuer out to do her harm. But while her terror is real, a break out of the blue brings us back to reality, as we realize that her harrowing adventure has sprung from her reading a book.
“Woods” opens on the woman racing barefoot through a spooky forest: silhouetted trees, mist, penetrating moonlight. She pants and trips; an unseen threat nearing. She makes it to a tree and is about to be caught, if not killed, when a small hand reaches up with a jar. A child’s voice asks, “Mom, can you open the jar for me please?” The woman replies sweetly as if sitting in a comfortable kitchen, “Sure thing, honey.”
Then the action continues, accompanied by the super “Keep reading” and the Gandhi Bookstores logo.
“Woods” was one of two spots in the campaign directed by Garcia Saiz through his Mexico City company Central Films for Ogilvy Mexico. (Garcia Saiz is repped in the U.S. by Boxer Films.)
“Mufasa: The Lion King” and “Sonic 3” Rule Box Office For 1st Weekend Of 2025
The Walt Disney Co.'s "Mufasa: The Lion King" claimed the No. 1 spot on the North American box office charts over the first weekend of 2025.
The photorealistic "Lion King" prequel earned $23.8 million in its third weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Paramount's "Sonic the Hedgehog 3," which has dominated the past two weekends, wasn't far behind.
"Sonic 3" stayed close with a 3-day estimate of $21.2 million, bringing its total domestic earnings to $187.5 million and helping the overall franchise cross $1 billion worldwide. "Mufasa's" running total is slightly less, with $169.2 million.
In third place, Focus Features' "Nosferatu" remake defied the fate of so many of its genre predecessors and fell only 39% in its second weekend. Horror films typically fall sharply after the first weekend and anything less than a 50% decline is notable. "Nosferatu," which added 140 screens, claimed $13.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its running total to $69.4 million since its Christmas debut. The film, directed by Robert Eggers, already surpassed its reported production budget of $50 million, though that figure does not account for marketing and promotion expenses).
No new wide releases opened this weekend, leaving the box office top 10 once again to holdovers from previous weeks. Several have been in theaters since Thanksgiving. One of those, "Moana 2," claimed the No. 4 spot for Disney in its sixth weekend in theaters. The animated sequel earned another $12.4 million, bumping its global total to $960.5 million.
The Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown," dipped only slightly in its second weekend, bringing in $8.1 million. With $41.7 million total, it's Searchlight's highest grossing film since Disney acquired the company in... Read More