The Official Indy Film Buffs Blog

Ryan Reynolds Reveals Sandra Bullock 'Looks Terrific Naked'

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 04:29:00 +0000

DVD releases for June 16th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 11:35:00 +0000

Weekend box office for June 13th to 14 th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:35:00 +0000

The good times continued to roll for The Hangover and Up, though not so much for the new movies and the box office as a whole. Hangover kept its buzz going with an estimated $33.4 million, while Up maintained its slow descent with an estimated $30.5 million. Like last weekend, the race between the two pictures was tight: Hangover was tops on Friday, Up led Saturday, and Sunday is down to which movie's studio had the more accurate projection. While Hangover and Up were bustling, overall business was down 22 percent from the same weekend last year and had the lowest attendance for the timeframe in over a decade.

Imbibing an exceptional $105.4 million in ten days, The Hangover saw the smallest dip among nationwide releases (if estimates hold), down 26 percent. The ribald comedy held better than Knocked Up at the same point, though not quite as well as Wedding Crashers. Regardless of the percentage drops, though, it's grossed significantly more than those pictures at the ten-day mark, even when adjusted for ticket price inflation, and has flown way above genre norms.

Up eased 31 percent and its tally climbed to $187.2 million in 17 days, the third-highest total of the year behind Star Trek and Monsters Vs. Aliens. The Pixar comedy adventure's third weekend fall was less than Finding Nemo's. Like past weekends, 52 percent of Up's gross was generated from 3D showings.

Neither speeding nor stalling, The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 claimed an estimated $25 million on approximately 4,400 screens at 3,074 sites. The remake of the 1974 thriller of the same name posted an average opening for a Denzel Washington action vehicle, delivering similar attendance out of the gate to Man on Fire and John Q. among others, and it was in the same attendance range as co-star John Travolta's Swordfish and Broken Arrow. In its marketing, Taking appeared to have a typical hostage thriller plot, distinguished mostly by its dueling lead actors. Hence, its typical debut as there wasn't a compelling reason to see it in theaters beyond moviegoers' fondness for the stars or the genre. Distributor Sony Pictures' research indicated that 54 percent of Taking's audience was male and 62 percent was over 30 years old.

The weekend's other new nationwide release, Imagine That, sparked little interest, opening to an estimated $5.7 million on around 3,200 screens at 3,008 sites. That was about the same as the last Eddie Murphy family comedy, Meet Dave. The picture was in the same vein as Bedtime Stories and other fantastical family comedies, but lacked a tantalizing premise in its low key, generic advertising. A father receiving stock tips from his daughter's imaginary friends just didn't cut it, especially in a market with more spectacular family movies like Up and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.

Another disappointment aimed at families, Land of the Lost plummeted 51 percent to an estimated $9.2 million for $35 million in ten days. Scheduled as the third family comedy adventure in a row after the Night at the Museum sequel and Up, only with some ads pushing adult humor among other failings, Land failed to gain traction. The Night at the Museum sequel pulled ahead with an estimated $9.6 million, off 34 percent for $143.4 million in 24 days.

Meanwhile, Star Trek had another solid hold, retreating 33 percent to an estimated $5.6 million for a $232 million tally in 38 days, and Terminator Salvation and Angels & Demons remained the weakest of their franchises but held better than their predecessors

Imagine That

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:23:00 +0000

The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:20:00 +0000

By Helen Geib. The Taking of Pelham 123 is a solidly entertaining, mid-level Hollywood thriller. The narrative focus is on the public transit dispatcher and career civil servant hero played by Denzel Washington. The script effectively develops the character through his interactions with the hostage-taking subway car hijacker (John Travolta) at the other end of his radio and the police negotiator (John Turturro) whose job he unwillingly usurps. Washington's typically fine lead performance anchors and frequently elevates the material. The edge-of-sanity criminal mastermind villain is no stretch for Travolta, but he shows he still plays the role well. Where the film falters is when the lens moves away from the dispatcher/criminal dynamic. The comic relief is forced and unfunny and development of the supporting characters is limited and, even more problematic, often awkward. Overall not a must-see film, but one worth seeing.

2 1/2 stars out of 4

Great Death Scenes: Walken in A View To A Kill

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:18:00 +0000

Early Spiderman 4 talk

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:01:00 +0000

Kirsten Dunst will return as Mary Jane Watson, "Spider-Man 4" producer Todd Black told the New York Post.

The star will rejoin director Sam Raimi and star Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker's love interest in the latest installment in the popular superhero franchise, which is slated for May 6, 2011.

However, don't expect wedding bells for Mary Jane and Peter - Black told the newspaper that he was unaware of such a subplot. At the close of "Spider-Man 3," the two had an emotional - but ambiguous - reunion after the film's events drove the lovers apart.

Additionally, Black hinted at the film's villain, shooting down online rumors that pegged comic book character Morbius the Living Vampire as the latest member of Spidey's rogue gallery.

Instead, the producer told the Post that the villain had a significant connection to the Big Apple.

"We're just coming up with who the villain is now," he said. "We'll be shooting in New York again. Trust me, people will appreciate who we pick, because it'll be a big part of New York."

In past films, Spider-Man has faced off with the Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus, Venom and Sandman, leaving a number of famous villains who could make their silver screen debut in "Spider-Man 4."

Among the popular options are Kraven the Hunter, Chameleon, the Hobgoblin, Mysterio, Venom offspring Carnage and the Lizard, whose human alter-ego, Dr. Curt Connors, had a role in the previous two movies.

Another potential foe could be New York crime boss the Kingpin - however, the character appeared in 20th Century Fox's "Daredevil" and would likely require a rights acquisition by Sony Pictures.

But the crime lord would give the film a New York connection - and would also be Access Hollywood film critic Scott Mantz's top choice.

"The Kingpin is grounded in reality, and that's the appeal of Spider-Man," Mantz said, adding another suggestion to the mix - femme fatale the Black Cat. "I'd like to see the Kingpin and the Black Cat, to stir the pot with Peter's relationship with Mary Jane."

DVD releases for June 9th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 07:50:00 +0000

Box office update for June 5th to June 7th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 21:18:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES - It turns out Hollywood's weekend hangover was bigger than expected.

The Warner Bros. comedy "The Hangover" drew larger audiences than earlier projected to raise its weekend ticket sales to $45 million, about $1.8 million more than the studio estimated Sunday.

That made it the No. 1 draw for the weekend instead of Disney and Pixar Animation's "Up," which came in second with $44.3 million. Sunday studio estimates had "Up" edging "The Hangover" by about $1 million.

It's rare that the first- and second-place movies on Sunday flip-flop when final numbers come out Monday. But strong attendance Sunday allowed "The Hangover" to pull ahead.

With heavy matinee traffic, family films such as "Up" usually hold on better through Sunday than adult movies like "The Hangover."

Warner Bros. had expected Sunday's NBA championship game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic to cut into business for the R-rated "The Hangover," the tale of four friends at an out-of-control bachelor party weekend in Las Vegas.

Yet more people turned up for the movie than anticipated, said Dan Fellman, Warner head of distribution.

"The Lakers weren't the only winners," Fellman said. "We had an unbelievable day."

Disney spokeswoman Heidi Trotta said the studio was happy to come in at No. 2 with "Up," whose final weekend total came in about $100,000 higher than the studio estimated Sunday.

"Up" has topped $137 million in just 10 days and is on track to become the latest $200 million blockbuster from Disney and Pixar, whose hits include "WALL-E," "The Incredibles," "Finding Nemo" and the "Toy Story" movies.

Weekend box office for June 5th to June 7th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 03:58:00 +0000

The Hangover gave Up a run for its money after hitting the jackpot on Friday, but the Pixar adventure soared past the ribald comedy on Saturday and Sunday (based on projections) to lead the weekend. Both pictures were highly successful for their genres and wound up less than a million dollars apart. Less fortunate was Land of the Lost, which debuted at a distant third. The weekend as a whole came in at over $165 million, off six percent from the same weekend last year when Kung Fu Panda opened.

Deflating 35 percent, Up picked up an excellent estimated $44.2 million on approximately 6,700 screens at 3,818 sites, inflating its total to $137.3 million in ten days. Its drop was quite small for a movie performing at blockbuster levels, and it held nearly as well as Finding Nemo at the same point and much better than WALL-E and Cars among past Pixar summer releases.

The Hangover packed a much greater wallop than the norm for its genre, taking in an estimated $43.3 million on around 4,500 screens at 3,269 sites. It was hyped as the preordained raunchy comedy hit of the season and exceeded that expectation, opening higher than Wedding Crashers even when adjusted for ticket price inflation. In the spirit of Wedding Crashers, Old School, Harold and Kumar and Dude, Where's My Car?, the marketing portrayed a relatable yet over-the-top premise of three friends waking up in the bizarre aftermath of a Las Vegas bachelor party that they don't remember. Driving the comedy was the mystery of what happened to them and the whereabouts of the groom. Distributor Warner Bros.' research suggested that 52 percent of the audience was male and 53 percent was under 25 years old.

While The Hangover smashed, Land of the Lost crashed. Featuring Will Ferrell, the adventure comedy based on the 1970s television series of the same name stumbled out of the gate with an estimated $19.5 million on approximately 4,800 screens at 3,521 locations. The start was lower than the similar Journey to the Center of the Earth from last summer as well as Ferrell's last TV adaptation, Bewitched, though it was a bit higher than Speed Racer. Distributor Universal Pictures' exit polling indicated that 51 percent of Land's audience was 25 years and older, and, of that group, 40 percent were parents of a child under 13 and the "non-child" audience (13 plus) was evenly split between genders.

In its advertising campaign, Land of the Lost awkwardly straddled the line between comedy and adventure and between family and adult appeal. Ferrell has little cachet in the family genre, given his track record after Elf, and he seemed to simply offer his typical shtick. Since Land of the Lost is not well known today and science fiction-oriented comedy is a tough sell, the movie had questionable commercial potential from the outset, and it lacked a built-in audience or a context for its intentionally cheesy production values. Neither here nor there, the picture further paled compared to the Up juggernaut, which had both comedy and adventure clearly on tap for the entire family.

Among nationwide holdovers, Star Trek saw the smallest slide, down 33 percent to an estimated $8.4 million. Logging $222.8 million in 31 days, it flew past Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan to become the second-biggest movie of the Star Trek franchise adjusted for ticket price inflation, and it has set a course for the top spot currently held by the first movie, Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian lagged behind its predecessor again, slipping 40 percent to an estimated $14.7 million for a $127.3 million tally in 17 days. Terminator Salvation held a tad better than Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, retreating 50 percent to an estimated $8.2 million and hitting $105.5 million in 18 days, though it still trails its predecessor by a wide margin overall. Drag Me to Hell didn't reverse its curse and descended 54 percent to an estimated $7.3 million for $28.5 million in ten days, while Angels & Demons continued its mini-Da Vinci Code pattern, off 43 percent to an estimated $6.5 million for $116.1 million in 24 days.

Also opening nationwide, My Life in Ruins picked up a modest estimated $3.2 million at 1,164 sites. Featuring Nia Vardalos, creator of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the debut was slightly less attended than the start of her last picture, Connie and Carla.

Overseas, it was a different story as Terminator Salvation dominated in its major foreign rollout. Playing in 70 markets, the sci-fi action picture drew an estimated $67.5 million, lifting its total to $97.2 million and out-pacing Terminator 3 in comparable markets by around 20 percent through the same point. The Night at the Museum sequel was second with an estimated $26.7 million ($148.4 million total), followed by Angels & Demons, which mustered an estimated $22.3 million and stands as 2009's top-grossing picture internationally at $292.9 million

Land Of The Lost

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:29:00 +0000

By Jeff Faulkner This awful Sid and Marty Krofft childrens show from the 70's movie was green lit back in 1995, with several directors attached including, I'm not kidding you, Robert Rodriguez. At one point in 2006 Universal, after other studios including Disney passed, had a director with Adam McKay, bringing in his partner Will Farrell who together made Anchorman a success opening up another 70's TV show style send up ala Starsky & Hutch. I guess that was just too raunchy, even though Anchorman and Starsky & Hutch were rated PG-13. So they dumped McKay and Casper-ised things by bringing in that film's director Brad Silberling to make it more family friendly while still keeping Ferrell as the lead. Farrell brings in his buddy Danny McBride, from their raunchy and hilarious HBO series East Bound and Down and there you have it. When watching the movie, you see the raunchiness busting at the seams to get out. Unfortunately, this happens to be an expensive, hugely hyped Super Bowl ad backed film in February. Literally allowing people to bring their kids along to see this movie as a Summer adventure.
In result, you have a movie that failed in marketing it's correct audience, thereby splitting it down in two. Yes it was expensive to make, but that should not be an excuse to dupe the audience in to thinking it was Pirates of the Caribbean, when it was Starsky & Hutch at best.
1 1/2 stars out of four.

The Hangover

joe.durrant@gmail.com (Joe "Pez" Durrant) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:30:00 +0000

By Joe "Pez". Everything you’ve heard about "The Hangover" is true. It is painfully hilarious, it is about seventeen shades of wrong, and it is Zach Galifianakis’ movie inside and out. It goes places that few if any other movies have gone. As the credits ended and the R rating came up on the blue screen, I did my impression of Kevin Pollack doing his impression of Albert Brooks: “Really!”

It is not, as the trailer led me to believe, "Very Bad Things" meets "Three Men and a Baby." Despite the lengths and depths to which this movie goes, there is no murder, no chopping up of dead people as in VBT. And the baby is really only in about 5-10 minutes of the movie, plus there is a distinct lack of Guttenberg, so it is nothing close to TMAAB (although at one point the characters acknowledge the resemblance of their situation to that of Magnum PI and company).

Directed by Todd Phillips ("Old School," "Road Trip"), the movie’s premise is a common one: before the big wedding, a groom and his buddies head out to Vegas for what is sure to be a crazy bachelor party they’ll never forget. We’ve seen this story a million times before, right?

Not quite. Where this movie shines is in its buildup. The most depraved, twisted series of events, somewhere between the kickoff toast on the roof and the title-providing hangover the next morning, is forgotten by the main characters and only fully comes to light at the end of the movie. Sure, we quickly learn that the bachelor has turned up missing, but that almost seems like a side note- which is especially interesting given that the remaining three main characters spend pretty much the rest of the movie looking for him. Instead we are treated to gradual, very funny and out-of-left field clues as to what went down that fateful night. But here’s the thing: the more that we are introduced to characters, locations, and events of the previous night and are witness to their consequences, the crazier things get. The deck keeps on getting stacked, again and again. And it’s hard to determine which is more enjoyable: what we actually see, or how our imaginations fill the gaps in between. How did a tiger end up in the bathroom? How did Stu lose a tooth? What’s with the cop car? Why is the Chinese guy so angry? (actually, in fairness I’d be pretty angry too) What… Mike Tyson? What??

The central cast is well chosen and plays nicely off each other. Bradley Cooper, the sleazy villain from "Wedding Crashers," is perfect as Phil, the kind of guy who’s not so much looking for a good time (read: Vegas and all its trappings) as he is a human GPS honed in on it. Ed Helms, most popular from his stint as a correspondent on "The Daily Show," plays hen-pecked Stu, whose neuroses, fears, and worries boil over in consistently funny ways. Only Justin Bartha, as Doug the bachelor, is largely bland and forgettable- but, as mentioned above, this has much more to do with the story's structure than with Bartha or the character itself.

And then there’s Zach Galifianakis, the dude whose last name I had to add to my MS Word dictionary to keep from misspelling it. Before this movie, I was already aware of Galifianakis’ unique brand of humor from his specials on Comedy Central, including his part in the fabulous "Comedians of Comedy" (alongside fellow comedy ninjas Brian Posehn, Maria Bamford, and Patton Oswalt). And recently, I voraciously tore through most of his “Between Two Ferns” interviews on FunnyorDie.com (Here’s four of them- Michael Cera, you poor bastard). Galifianakis is, to put it mildly, an abstract, subdued, and incredibly intelligent comedian, who can also come off as genuinely creepy and demented. Think Steven Wright taken to the next level, playing the piano. Think Dane Cook’s worst nightmare.

Suffice it to say, I was convinced that "The Hangover" would water down Galifianakis’ humor for a wider audience. I am pleased to report that, for the most part, this was not the case. As Alan, the brother-in-law to be, he is a manchild, at times stupid and immature, but more often than not, operating on his own plane and just being plain twisted. Yet he is also aware of his lack of social skills and wants desperately to be one of the guys. His character rarely goes for the easy laugh, more often than not making you believe in his cause, or else getting delightfully lost in the absurdity of it. He steals pretty much every scene that he’s in and makes everyone around him seem like supporting characters.

And let’s go back to that one cameo in particular. Mike Tyson (Mike Tyson?!?!), who can feel it in the air tonight, oh lord, follows the illustrious list of celebrities who have cameo’d as themselves in comedies. It’s a road previously taken, and with similar levels of success in my opinion, by Neil Diamond in "Saving Silverman," David Bowie in "Zoolander," and Bob Barker in "Happy Gilmore." And damn, Galifinakis can really take a punch, even if it was just a Hollywood punch. I can’t say that I would accept any amount of money if I was told that Mike Tyson would just PRETEND to punch me in the face, and all I to do was roll with it.

The movie’s biggest flaw is that its payoff cannot possibly match its buildup. As it starts to wind towards a resolution, the unpredictability and unique humor give way to formula that is all too obvious, and some non-essential plot points are thrown in for the hell of it (I’m looking at you, Chinese quasi-mafia). And let’s face it, from the moment Black Doug utters that one line, up until the very end of the movie, you can see all of the pieces falling neatly into place, when so much of the movie before was thrillingly chaotic.

However, when the guys discover that the events of the forgotten night have actually all been chronicled in photos, and they decide to take a first- and last- look at the pictures, we are reminded as the credits roll, in three-seconds bursts of surprises and gut busting laughter, just how far this movie has taken us, and how much fun we had along the way.

Out of a possible 4 Pez candies, "The Hangover" gets…

"The Hangover" is rated R for pervasive language, sexual content including nudity, and some drug material. It’s what the kids would call a “hard R.” Take your grandmother, I double dog dare you.

In Memoriam: David Carradine 1936 - 2009

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:43:00 +0000

BANGKOK – Actor David Carradine, a born seeker and cult idol who broke through as the willing student called "grasshopper" in the 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" and decades later as leader of an assassin squad in "Kill Bill," was found dead Thursday in Thailand. Police said he appeared to have hanged himself.

The officer responsible for investigating the death, Teerapop Luanseng, said the 72-year-old actor was staying at a suite at the luxury Swissotel Nai Lert Park Hotel.

"I can confirm that we found his body, naked, hanging in the closet," Teerapop said. He said police suspected suicide.

A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy, Michael Turner, said the embassy was informed by Thai authorities that Carradine died either late Wednesday or early Thursday, but he could not provide further details out of consideration for his family.

Carradine came from an acting family. His father, John, made a career playing creepy, eccentric characters in film and on stage. His brothers Keith, Robert and Bruce also became actors. Actress Martha Plimpton is Keith Carradine's daughter.

"My Uncle David was a brilliantly talented, fiercely intelligent and generous man. He was the nexus of our family in so many ways, and drew us together over the years and kept us connected," Plimpton said Thursday.

Carradine was in Bangkok shooting the movie "Stretch," said his manager, Chuck Binder.

"We're very saddened, he was a wonderful guy," said Lori Binder, a partner in the agency that represented Carradine.

"It is shocking to me that he is no longer with us," said Michael Madsen, who played an assassin in "Kill Bill."

"I had been thinking about calling him for the last several days. ... I have so many great memories of David that I wouldn't even know where to begin . He has a very special place in my heart."

The Web site of the Thai newspaper The Nation said Carradine could not be contacted after he failed to appear for a meal with the rest of the film crew on Wednesday, and that his body was found by a hotel maid Thursday morning. It said a preliminary police investigation found that he had hanged himself with a cord used with the suite's curtains. It cited police as saying there was no sign that he had been assaulted.

Police said Carradine's body was taken to a hospital for an autopsy that would be done Friday.

Carradine appeared in more than 100 feature films with such directors as Martin Scorsese, Ingmar Bergman and Hal Ashby. One of his early film roles was as folk singer Woody Guthrie in Ashby's 1976 biopic, "Bound for Glory."

But he was best known for his role as Kwai Chang Caine, a Shaolin priest traveling the 1800s American frontier West in the TV series "Kung Fu," which aired in 1972-75.

"I wasn't like a TV star in those days, I was like a rock 'n' roll star," Carradine said in an interview with Associated Press Radio in 1996. "It was a phenomenon kind of thing. ... It was very special."

Actor Rainn Wilson, star of TV's "The Office," tweeted about Carradine's death on Twitter: "R.I.P. David Carradine. You were a true hero to so many of us children of the 70s. We'll miss you, Kwai Chang Caine."

Carradine reprised the role in a mid-1980s TV movie and played Caine's grandson in the 1990s syndicated series "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues."

He returned to the top in recent years as the title character in Quentin Tarantino's two-part saga "Kill Bill." Bill, the worldly father figure of a pack of crack assassins, was a shadowy presence in 2003's "Kill Bill — Vol. 1." In that film, one of Bill's former assassins (Uma Thurman) begins a vengeful rampage against her old associates, including Bill.

In "Kill Bill — Vol. 2," released in 2004, Thurman's character catches up to Bill. The role brought Carradine a Golden Globe nomination as best supporting actor.

Bill was a complete contrast to Caine, the soft-spoken refugee from a Shaolin monastery, serenely spreading wisdom and battling bad guys in the Old West. He left after three seasons, saying the show had started to repeat itself.

"David's always been kind of a seeker of knowledge and of wisdom in his own inimitable way," his brother, actor Keith Carradine, said in a 1995 interview.

After "Kung Fu," Carradine starred in the 1975 cult flick "Death Race 2000." He starred with Liv Ullmann in Bergman's "The Serpent's Egg" in 1977 and with his brothers in the 1980 Western "The Long Riders."

But after the early 1980s, he spent two decades doing mostly low-budget films. Tarantino's films changed that.

"All I've ever needed since I more or less retired from studio films a couple of decades ago ... is just to be in one," Carradine told The Associated Press in 2004.

"There isn't anything that Anthony Hopkins or Clint Eastwood or Sean Connery or any of those old guys are doing that I couldn't do," he said. "All that was ever required was somebody with Quentin's courage to take and put me in the spotlight."

One thing remained a constant after "Kung Fu": Carradine's interest in Asian herbs, exercise and philosophy. He wrote a personal memoir called "Spirit of Shaolin" and continued to make instructional videos on tai chi and other martial arts.

In the 2004 interview, Carradine talked candidly about his past boozing and narcotics use, but said he had put all that behind him and stuck to coffee and cigarettes.

"I didn't like the way I looked, for one thing. You're kind of out of control emotionally when you drink that much. I was quicker to anger."

"You're probably witnessing the last time I will ever answer those questions," Carradine said. "Because this is a regeneration. It is a renaissance. It is the start of a new career for me.

"It's time to do nothing but look forward."

My Life In Ruins

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:49:00 +0000

By Helen Geib. Nia Vardalos headlines this romantic comedy in the role of a Greek-American named Georgia, a classicist who has lost her university teaching job and is working unhappily as a tour guide for a cut-rate package tour company in Greece. Richard Dreyfuss is the most prominent of the walking stereotypes who make up her latest tour group. The plotline of Georgia discovering that tourists are people too is undermined by a script that smothers every glimmer of humanity under the weight of tired cliche. The film is an equal opportunity stereotyper: nationality, age, class, marital status, sexual orientation. Vulgar sexual humor is the film's other principal source of "comedy." Viagra jokes, gay jokes, old people having sex jokes, mock stripteases, and getting lucky jokes are the order of the day. There are a few funny non-sex jokes scattered through the film, but the promise of the witty title is unfulfilled. Georgia's romantic interest, the local tour bus driver, walked into the story from the pages of a Harlequin romance and has the believability to match. Donald Petrie's direction meanwhile has the visual style of a travelogue. While the film has many pretty picture-postcard views of Greece, on the whole I would rather have watched an actual travelogue.

1/2 star out of 4

DVD releases for June 2nd

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:04:00 +0000

The 2009 MTV Movie Awards Winners

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 10:26:00 +0000

By Jeff Faulkner At one time, MTV was cutting edge and a beacon to the youth generation. What do the kids think? was the big question. So they delved in movies in 1992 with all disinterested pre-recorded glory, until 2007 when they made it live. First of all, a channel called music television which never shows music, should not be an authority on another medium of entertainment. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the lifetime achievement awards to Chewbacca and Godzilla, but even those ideas got old real quick. At another time and incarnation they decided to let the stars in on the joke by having them perform in skits better suited to SNL more than anything, some were funny, I repeat, some were funny.
To me, the MTV movie awards got my interest to a point where I would actually consider it an alternative to movie award shows, just when it reached it's nadir. This was around the millennium when The Matrix broke. Perfect opportunity to fully engage on the pulse of the movie going youth as well as be MTV friendly to boot. They stuck it in the eye with Pulp Fiction over Forrest Gump to the Oscars in '95 and had a wave going, even The Matrix sucked the momentum from the Star Wars prequels. Then came the LOTR trilogy which sustained some life, but created a needless Matrix and theme ride based made up on the spot trilogy in Pirates of the Caribbean. By that point, this show was completely out of ideas.
Now it's just what 14 year girls want and who still actually watches MTV anymore. We already have the Golden Globes for an awards ceremony nobody takes seriously and at the right time in the calendar. Now we have, what really could have had potential in terms of stars letting their hair down and truly having fun during the popcorn season become victims of the lowest common denominator dictated by having them take full control. Don't they have the people's choice awards for that?

Best Movie
WINNER
Twilight (2008/I)

Other Nominees:

The Dark Knight (2008)

High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008)

Iron Man (2008)

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

Best Male Performance
WINNER
Zac Efron for High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008)

Other Nominees:

Christian Bale for The Dark Knight (2008)

Vin Diesel for Fast & Furious (2009)

Robert Downey Jr. for Iron Man (2008)

Shia LaBeouf for Eagle Eye (2008)

Best Female Performance
WINNER
Kristen Stewart for Twilight (2008/I)

Other Nominees:

Anne Hathaway for Bride Wars (2009)

Taraji P. Henson for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

Angelina Jolie for Wanted (2008)

Kate Winslet for The Reader (2008)

Breakthrough Performance - Male
WINNER
Robert Pattinson for Twilight (2008/I)

Other Nominees:

Ben Barnes for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)

Taylor Lautner for Twilight (2008/I)

Dev Patel for Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

Bobb'e J. Thompson for Role Models (2008)

Breakthrough Performance - Female
WINNER
Ashley Tisdale for High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008)

Other Nominees:

Miley Cyrus for Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009)

Kat Dennings for Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)

Vanessa Hudgens for High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008)

Freida Pinto for Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

Amanda Seyfried for Mamma Mia! (2008)

Best Comedic Performance
WINNER
Jim Carrey for Yes Man (2008)

Other Nominees:

Steve Carell for Get Smart (2008)

Anna Faris for The House Bunny (2008)

James Franco for Pineapple Express (2008)

Amy Poehler for Baby Mama (2008)

Best Villain
WINNER
Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight (2008)

Other Nominees:

Luke Goss for Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)

Dwayne Johnson for Get Smart (2008)

Derek Mears for Friday the 13th (2009)

Johnathon Schaech for Prom Night (2008/I)

Best Fight
WINNER
Twilight (2008/I): Robert Pattinson, Cam Gigandet

Other Nominees:

Bride Wars (2009): Anne Hathaway, Kate Hudson

The Dark Knight (2008): Christian Bale, Heath Ledger

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008): Ron Perlman, Luke Goss

Pineapple Express (2008): Seth Rogen, James Franco, Danny McBride

Best Kiss
WINNER
Twilight (2008/I): Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson

Other Nominees:

High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008): Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens

I Love You, Man (2009): Paul Rudd, Thomas Lennon

Milk (2008/I): Sean Penn, James Franco

Slumdog Millionaire (2008): Dev Patel, Freida Pinto

Wanted (2008): James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie

Best WTF Moment
WINNER
Baby Mama (2008): Amy Poehler(Peeing in the Sink)

Other Nominees:

Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008): Jason Segel, Kristen Bell(Naked Break-Up)

Slumdog Millionaire (2008): Ayush Mahesh Khedekar(Jumping in the Poop Shed)

Tropic Thunder (2008): Ben Stiller(Tasting the Decapitated Head)

Wanted (2008): Angelina Jolie(Curved Bullet Kill)

Best Song From a Movie
WINNER
Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009): Miley Cyrus("The Climb")

Other Nominees:

Slumdog Millionaire (2008): A.R. Rahman("Jai Ho")

Twilight (2008/I): Paramore("Decode")

The Wrestler (2008): Bruce Springsteen("The Wrestler")

Weekend box office for May 29th to May 31st

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 04:28:00 +0000

Pixar's commercial track record ballooned to a sensational ten for ten with the release of Up. The adventure comedy swooped in with an estimated $68.2 million start on approximately 6,700 screens at 3,766 sites, handily perched atop a weekend that grossed slightly less as a whole than the same timeframe last year when Sex and the City dominated.

In the pantheon of Pixar debuts, Up slots in third place, behind The Incredibles and Finding Nemo and ahead of WALL-E, which opened to $63.1 million last year and closed with a $223.8 million total. However, adjusted for ticket price inflation, Up would rank fifth as Toy Story 2 and Monsters, Inc. would rate significantly higher. When those pictures came out, though, computer animation was a fresher format and not dime a dozen like it seems to be today. Pixar has held up as a brand by focusing on story over spectacle, celebrity voices and pop culture references. In its marketing campaign, Up stood out with its tale of an old man who attaches balloons to his house and flies away on an adventure, which the advertising promised would have scope and humor and be less reliant on the crutch of talking animals or creatures than typical animated fare. Ads also cashed in on brand equity with references to Pixar's past movies.

That said, spectacle is also part of the Pixar brand, which is known for raising the computer animation bar, and Up was their first release in 3D, the format that studios are frequently using to distinguish their pictures amidst the C.G. glut. With 1,534 presentations, the format accounted for an estimated $35 million of Up's gross, which tops Monsters Vs. Aliens' $32.6 million as the new 3D opening benchmark. Furthermore, according to distributor Walt Disney Pictures' exit polling, Up displayed Pixar's usual broad family appeal as 53 percent of the audience was female and 47 percent was under 17 years old.

While Up ascended, the weekend's other nationwide release had descent as its theme and a relatively modest turn-out to boot. Drag Me to Hell conjured an estimated $16.6 million on around 2,900 screens at 2,508 sites. That was about average for a supernatural horror movie but lower than The Strangers, which claimed $21 million on the same weekend last year. Despite being dubbed "the return to true horror" in its aggressive marketing, Drag was the latest in a string of movies in which a person is cursed and haunted by demons, from The Unborn (2009) to The Grudge, but offered a lighter, more over-the-top touch that made it a borderline horror comedy, a commercially troublesome sub-genre. Distributor Universal Pictures' research indicated that 52 percent of the audience was female and 54 percent was under 25 years old.

Last weekend's top-grossing movie, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, retreated 53 percent to an estimated $25.5 million (including over $2 million from IMAX theaters), bringing its total to $105.3 million (including $8.2 million from IMAX) in ten days. The family comedy sequel saw a steeper slide and smaller turn-out than Madagascar, another family movie featuring Ben Stiller that also had a Memorial weekend debut, not to mention its predecessor. The first Night at the Museum isn't an apples-to-apples comparison because its first and second weekends were during Christmas and New Year's, but, nonetheless, its second weekend was $36.8 million for a $115.8 million ten-day tally, and Battle of the Smithsonian is poised to ultimately make significantly less than its $250.9 million final haul.

True to its nature as a fan-driven property, Terminator Salvation declined 62 percent to an estimated $16.1 million, increasing its tally to $90.7 million in eleven days. The sci-fi action sequel had a more precipitous fall than Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, which was off 56 percent to $19.5 million at the same point and had generated $104.6 million through its 11th day. The disparity is even greater factoring ticket-price inflation, but Salvation is on course to retain more of Terminator 3's attendance than Terminator 3 compared to Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

Star Trek, which surpassed Monsters Vs. Aliens on Wednesday to become 2009's top grosser, had the best hold among nationwide releases, down 44 percent to an estimated $12.8 million. With $209.5 million in 24 days, the sci-fi adventure eclipsed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan to become the Star Trek franchise's third biggest movie adjusted for ticket price inflation, and it's on the verge of eclipsing Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

Meanwhile, Angels & Demons tumbled 48 percent to an estimated $11.2 million for $104.8 million in 17 days. Not only are the grosses much lower than The Da Vinci Code, the percentage loss was higher as well. Below Angels, there was very little business, which was a product of a May slate populated by a few big movies and little else.

Drag Me To Hell

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Fri, 29 May 2009 21:12:00 +0000

Up

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Fri, 29 May 2009 21:11:00 +0000

DVD releases for May 26th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Tue, 26 May 2009 22:30:00 +0000

Weekend holiday box office for May 22nd to May 24th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Mon, 25 May 2009 12:05:00 +0000

In one corner this Memorial Day weekend was the sequel to a blockbuster and first major family comedy event in two months, and, in the other, the latest entry in a faded action franchise, emerging from a six-year dormancy and lacking its most iconic figure. It was clear which picture would gross more, and, while both may ultimately pale compared to their predecessors, they each did about as well as could reasonably be expected.

Night of the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian exhibited an estimated $53.5 million on approximately 7,000 screens at 4,096 sites, while Terminator Salvation delivered an estimated $43 million on around 6,400 screens at 3,530 sites (for a $56.4 million tally including its Thursday opening). Overall weekend business was an estimated $174 million, which was up a tick from the same period last year when Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull debuted.

Boasting the top start for a live-action Ben Stiller movie, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian was on par with Stiller's animated Madagascar, which opened on Memorial weekend 2005, adjusted for ticket price inflation, though a bit less than the last family comedy Monsters Vs. Aliens. The first Night at the Museum made $30.4 million on approximately 4,900 screens at 3,685 sites in its first three days, which was huge by the standards of its Christmas berth.

Memorial releases tend to be more front-loaded than Christmas releases, and it's unlikely that Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian will wind up near the first Night's $250.9 million final gross. That wouldn't be disappointing because sequels of this ilk frequently fail to sustain the audience of their predecessors, even when the predecessors are well-liked, from Ghostbusters to Men in Black to the recent Pink Panther redux. In its marketing campaign, Battle of the Smithsonian simply offered more of the same shenanigans as the first Night, adding a few new characters to the mix but without a new hook. It coasted on the audience's good will from the first movie, so retaining most of that audience would be a fine result.

Runs at 160 IMAX sites accounted for an estimated $4.1 million of Battle of the Smithsonian's gross. One of those was the Smithsonian itself, which was the picture's top-grossing venue. Distributor 20th Century Fox's exit polling classified 52 percent of the audience as "non-family" (the other 48 percent being families), and suggested that 55 percent of that crowd was under 25 years old with an even split between the genders.

Following the disappointment of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines six years ago, the ratings fizzle of the television series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and the failure of California "Governator" Arnold Schwarzenegger (who only makes a digital cameo in the new movie), Terminator Salvation rose from the ashes with a solid debut. Distributor Warner Bros.' research indicated that 63 percent of Salvation's audience was male and 58 percent was in the 18-34-year-old range, and attendance was lower than Terminator 3 (T3) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (T2). T3's first weekend was $44 million at 3,504 locations, which would adjust to around $53 million today, while T2's $31.8 million weekend at 2,274 locations back in 1991 is the equivalent of over $54 million today, and each had greater four-day attendance tallies than Salvation. Though initial numbers were similar, T3 didn't have the market impact of T2, and quickly faded to a $150.4 million final gross.

In the context of the Terminator franchise, Terminator Salvation is as much a prequel as it is a sequel, because the future is treated as the past in the previous movies (and inevitable in T3). Not only that, Salvation is set before the future/past the audience was told about. Coming off as fan boy fantasias more than story advancers, prequels can struggle to appeal beyond the franchise bases. That's why Salvation seemed destined to be commercially more akin to X-Men Origins: Wolverine (which also hit a series low) than the rebooted Star Trek. However, the previous Terminators' dramatic flashes of the post-apocalyptic future captured viewers' imaginations to a degree that further exploration was welcome enough (even if artistically unnecessary) to retain more of the audience than a T3 retread might have. Credit must also go to Salvation's slick advertisements that promised a grand action drama.

Down 49 percent, Star Trek notched an estimated $22 million, docking in third place in its third weekend, and jumped ahead of Star Trek III: The Search for Spock to become the Star Trek franchise's fourth most-attended picture with a $183.6 million total. Its descent was partly due to a loss of IMAX showings: the Night at the Museum sequel took over nearly all of them. Playing only midnight shows at 130 sites, Star Trek's IMAX-only weekend was an estimated $500,000, off over 90 percent from last weekend for an IMAX-only tally of $20.6 million.

Angels & Demons held slightly better than The Da Vinci Code, which also had the Memorial Day timeframe for its second weekend. Down 54 percent, the thriller sequel collected an estimated $21.4 million for $81.5 million in ten days, though Da Vinci nabbed $136.5 million through the same point. As with Da Vinci, foreign box office was the main story here, accounting for over 70 percent of the worldwide gross. While ranking fourth domestically, Angels & Demons was again the weekend's top movie on the foreign front with an estimated $60.4 million, followed by the Night at the Museum sequel (an estimated $50.1 million in 93 markets). Angels' worldwide tally is $280 million, though Da Vinci reached $454 million in the same amount of time.

While franchise recycling proliferated on Memorial weekend, moviegoers showed modest interest in the latest haphazard, Frankenstein's monster approach to spoofing. With an estimated $11.1 million on around 2,600 screens at 2,450 venues, Dance Flick had a lower-grossing opening than any of the movies it mocked, but it nearly doubled the start of the last spoof of its kind, Disaster Movie, thanks to greater thematic focus. Part of the problem was that the main movie it spoofed, Save the Last Dance, was eight years old, not to mention that the dance sub-genre has not produced a blockbuster in decades: generally-speaking, the more popular the target, the more popular the spoof.

Now Playing: Dance Flick

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Sat, 23 May 2009 06:47:00 +0000

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Sat, 23 May 2009 06:33:00 +0000

By Helen Geib. Like too many sequels, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian tries to compensate for re-playing the same material as the first film by doing it all bigger, stupider, and noisier. One bad-tempered monkey slapping regular-guy hero Larry in the first movie wasn't enough for you? This time around he gets slapped around by two bad-tempered monkeys. And so on. The "great men of history" types, from Lincoln on down, are caricatured and trivialized. Amy Adams is charming and vivacious as Amelia Earhart, but the real pioneering aviator didn't accomplish what she did through pluck and high spirits. What's good about the film: the special effects are great, and a very big part of the film; the Smithsonian is an amazing place - this movie does nothing for history, but may encourage tourism to the nation's galleries; the comic duo of Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan, reprising their roles as miniatures, and Hank Azaria as a mummy with delusions of grandeur are very funny.

1 star out of 4

Terminator: Salvation

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Thu, 21 May 2009 11:11:00 +0000

By Helen Geib. Loaded up with chases, firefights, and hand-to-hand combat set against a finely realized backdrop of post-apocalyptic desolation, the fourth film in the "Terminator" series is first and foremost an action movie. The action focus and a new hero, a cyborg in existential crisis, make it easy to jump into the series at this point. That doesn't mean the filmmakers don't want to please the hardcore fans. Terminator Salvation - simultaneously prequel and sequel thanks to the time travel paradox at the heart of the original film - takes its place in the timeline seriously. The film's exploration of the series theme of what it means to be human is neither subtle nor nuanced, but the conviction in the actors' delivery and the primal appeal of the man vs. machine(-man) story combine to put the material over.
3 stars out of 4

DVD releases for May 19th

leomoviegoer@yahoo.com (Jeff Faulkner - Editor in chief) — Tue, 19 May 2009 06:55:00 +0000