Wal-Mart in Cape to host 'Gone Girl' release party

A party will be held Monday at Wal-Mart in Cape Girardeau to celebrate the release of the much-anticipated "Gone Girl" DVD.

The movie, which was released in theaters Oct. 3, took Cape Girardeau by storm in September 2013. With hundreds of people from the area involved as extras and a number of locations in the city used for filming, "Gone Girl" was hard to miss.

Dave Avery, a shift manager at the Cape Wal-Mart, said about 10,000 copies of the movie were ordered for the release party, which will be at 10 p.m. Monday in the Subway area of the store.

"We don't usually get this many [copies], but then again, not all movies are filmed here in Cape," Avery said.

At 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, the movie will become available to purchase in DVD and Blu-ray formats.

Avery said he is excited about the release party because he knows how "Gone Girl" has been important to so many.

"I think our main thing is just taking care of the customer ... making sure that the video is available ... at a great price and having plenty of them so we don't run out," Avery said.

Avery said the release party will include cake and juice refreshments. Participants will be able to play "Gone Girl" trivia, and a slideshow of behind-the-scenes photos of the filming by area photographer Wes Langston will be shown.

Another event will be at 4 p.m. Tuesday for anyone who might have missed the previous evening's celebration. This event will be similar to Monday's, but will be in the electronics department instead.

"I want to make sure that we support the community here at Wal-Mart by trying to do this in a bigger way than a normal release, because it is something that is very important to the Cape area," said Gary Elders, the store's general manager.

Elders said turnouts for children's movie releases typically are larger than movies geared toward adults, but he is expecting a large response.

If the store runs out of copies, Elders said neighboring Wal-Marts, such as those in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and Sikeston, Missouri, might be a resource. He also can always order more, if necessary.

"I'm expecting a great response from the community," Elders said. "I don't think -- most people will not just buy one copy. If they're in the movie, they'll probably buy multiple copies to give to family and people they may know."

Pertinent address:

3439 William St., Cape Girardeau, Missouri