A reader writes:

My husband and I have been wanting to go see the movie "Miss Potter" about Beatrix Potter. We saw it in the previews at Edwards Theater back in December, but we have not seen it listed in the movies that are playing in Fresno. Do you know when it will come to Fresno? Or maybe it is playing somewhere and I haven't noticed it? It looked like a wonderful movie! I'd love to see it. It opened in limited theaters a month or so ago.

Alas, this is one of the most common questions -- why hasn't [fill in the blank] opened here? -- that I get asked. And the news often isn't good.

"Miss Potter," which stars Renee Zellwegger and Ewan McGregor, tells the life story of Beatrix Potter, the children's author. It looks like one of those high-quality biopics that often crop up around Oscar time -- the perfect entry point for a youngish star to get into the best-acting leagues.

"Miss Potter," a British film, was obviously positioned as an Oscar film. According to the indispensable Web site boxxoficemojo, it was released Dec. 29 in the United States on just two screens -- just barely making the deadline for awards consideration.

But instead of expanding, like "Notes on a Scandal," into lots more theaters in the following weeks, "Miss Potter" seemed to stall. It got pretty decent reviews but not exemplary ones, and its widest release so far was the weekend of Jan. 19, when it reached 38 theaters. Since then, the theater count has fallen; last week it had dipped to 17.

Is this situation because theater owners don't want to show "Miss Potter"? Not entirely. It's probably more to do with the fact that the distributor only made a small number of prints because they're so expensive. If the movie had taken off critically and gained Oscar momentum, the distributor would likely have upped its investment and made more prints. But without that momentum, it appears as if it decided to cut its losses.

Does that mean that "Miss Potter" won't open in Fresno? Probably. But there's a chance it will. As the film winds down its release, one of those few prints could find its way here -- if only to play for a couple of days as part of the Regal art film series.

It's times like these that make you glad for DVDs.