Only a few years ago, there was fury among cinema owners at the idea of movie in the US hitting pay-per-view at the same time as the cinema, but it’s now becoming increasingly common for smaller, indie movies to get a premium PPV release before it hits the big screen. That’s what’s happening with The Magic Of Belle Isle, although what’s unusual in this case is that the film has a big star, Morgan Freeman, and a well known director, Rob Reiner (Stand By Me, When Harry Met Sally). There’s no UK date yet, but it hits PPV on June 1st in the US, before a cinema release on July 6th. Here’s the synopsis: ‘Reuniting with his director from the hit film, The Bucket List, Morgan Freeman plays Monte Wildhorn, a famous Western novelist whose struggle with alcoholism has sapped his passion for writing. He takes a lakeside cabin for the summer in picturesque Belle Isle, and befriends the family next door–an attractive single mom (Virginia Madsen) and her young daughters–who help him find inspiration again.’