Redbelt stars the excellent, Golden Globe-nominated Chiwetel Ejiofor (Kinky Boots, Children of Men) as a Los Angeles martial arts teacher whose troubles lead him to enter the world of extreme prize-fighting. Cool premise, solid reviews (62 percent Fresh at Rotten Tomatoes), and, with a strategically-planned platform release, the movie would have a chance to find an audience. Instead, Sony Classics has made the mistake of opening wide with virtually no marketing support.

Studio sources tell me that Redbelt has only 16 percent Awareness and a disastrous 23 percent Definite Interest in industry tracking. This Mamet picture's First Choice is only 1 percent. It is hard to imagine, even with 1,000 locations, that Sony Classics will manage anything better than $2 million for the weekend.

Once the movie limps out of the gate, many of the popcorn multiplexes that have reluctantly booked it will find a way to add an extra screen of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (Disney) on May 16, or they will offer only a partial schedule for Redbelt in Week 2. Mamet's latest will almost certainly be a memory by the time Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Paramount) swamps commercial houses on May 22.

The right prescription for a film from a great auteur like David Mamet is a traditional platform release, multiple weeks onscreen at premiere arthouse locations, and the time to generate positive word-of-mouth and find an audience. Unfortunately, most people will not see Redbelt until it is at the local blockbuster or shows up in the mail from Netflix.