Box Office Breakdown: Book of Secrets a National Hit
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, Disney, Fox Searchlight, New Line, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Musicals, Period, Political, Romance, Satire, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
This holiday weekend introduced a slew of big-ticket features in our cineplexes. It also brought us a wide cast of former Oscar-winners competing for our theater dollars. By Monday, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Johnny Depp, Hilary Swank and Oscar-nominee John C. Reilly had all made entries into the Top Ten - but it was Nicolas Cage who wound up striking gold.
National Treasure: Book of Secrets earned $45 million, an increase of $10 million over the 2004 original. This was the second hit for Cage this year, following the critically-panned Ghost Rider. In addition to having the weekend’s best gross, Secrets also had the best average of any movie over those three days. Although Charlie Wilson’s War‘s fourth place was respectable (especially for a politically-based film these days), its $3760 per screen take clearly set it apart from this week’s champ. In contrast, Juno earned an $11,184 average for an impressive 10th place finish.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Book of Secrets a National Hit
Yahoo!
Advertisement
Review: ‘Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street’
Posted by David Onda Categories: DreamWorks, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Classics, Drama, Horror, Musicals, Period, Thrillers, New Releases, Theatrical Reviews,
I just got back from the midnight showing of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Previously, I had seen the original Broadway cast perform this show via video cassette tape in my “History of Theater” class. I also saw a very stripped down version of the show performed by a national touring cast without sets or costumes. This film was every bit as good visually, musically and narratively as either one of those shows. For those of you who are unaware of the plot, let me catch you up.
Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) is a happily married man with a beautiful yellow-haired wife and a bouncing bay girl living in ye olde London. A man by the name of Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) takes a liking to Barker’s wife and frames him for a crime which he is convicted and exiled for. Upon Barker’s return to London years later, he finds that his wife is dead and his little girl is being held hostage by the evil Turpin. Hell bent on revenge, and now going by the name Sweeney Todd, Barker takes up residence above Mrs. Lovett’s (Helena Bonham Carter) Meat Pie shop. There, the trained barber kills his customers in hopes that one day it will be the Judge’s turn for a shave.
Oh yeah, and the bodies get baked into the pies.
Click to continue reading Review: ‘Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street’
Box Office Breakdown: Will Smith a Legend in December
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, New Line, Warner Bros, Yari Film Group Releasing, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Period, Romance, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,
You have to wonder whether Tom Cruise is just a wee bit jealous of his friend’s success…
This weekend, Will Smith not only smashed the box office debut of Cruise’s Lions for Lambs, he pounded everything in his path. I Am Legend - the third adaptation of the 1954 Richard Matheson novel - nearly doubled the take of its nearest competitor while breaking the record for a December release. Legend’s $77 million debut surpassed the bar set by Oscar-winner The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. The final installment in the Lords trilogy brought in $72.6 million back in 2003.
Although Alvin and the Chipmunks was far behind in second place, its $44 million weekend was nothing to sneeze at. The movie not only exceeded most expectations, it downright embarrassed third place finisher, The Golden Compass. How could anyone possibly explain freaky-looking chipmunks taking down a large polar bear? The latter film only added another $8.8 million to its total, putting it a smidge closer to its $180 million budget. (Granted, it has done better overseas.)
But let’s not be fooled by the large numbers at the top of the charts, the weekend’s most notable turnout was made by #11: Juno. The comedic charmer earned an impressive $35,686 per screen. Meanwhile, Legend (which opened in 3566 more theaters) averaged only $21,411. Take that, Fresh Prince!
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Will Smith a Legend in December
Yahoo!
In Theaters This Weekend (12/14)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, Fox Searchlight, Magnolia, Warner Bros, Yari Film Group Releasing, Adaptation, Documentary, Drama, Family, Foreign, Musicals, Political, Religious, Romance, Comedy, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases,
Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:
- Alvin and the Chipmunks (PG): starring Jason Lee, David Cross, Cameron Richardson (directed by Tim Hill)
- I Am Legend (PG-13): starring Will Smith, Alice Braga, Salli Richardson-Whitfield (directed by Francis Lawrence)
- The Perfect Holiday (PG): starring Queen Latifah, Gabrielle Union, Morris Chestnut (directed by Lance Rivera)
- Goodbye Bafana* (NR): starring Joseph Fiennes, Dennis Haysbert, Diane Kruger (directed by Bille August)
- Juno* (PG-13): starring Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner (directed by Jason Reitman)
Click to continue reading In Theaters This Weekend (12/14)
People
‘Alvin and the Chipmunks’ Gets CGI Treatment
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: 20th Century Fox, Adaptation, Animation, Family, Musicals, Upcoming Releases,
I still remember Saturday mornings watching Alvin and the Chipmunks, the cartoon, on TV. I even remember the special show the series did about the Berlin Wall – truly heady stuff for a show designed only for children. Every year around this time, you’ll hear their Christmas tune on the radio. Now, someone has taken the bold step to answer the question which plagues my generation: does Alvin still want a hula-hoop?
Okay, that’s not really the burning question. A better question would be, what madman thought a live-action version of the chipmunks would work? And WHY? But like it or not, the live-action version of Alvin and the Chipmunks is indeed coming to theaters, and as soon as December 14. What can fans expect from this barely-publicized flick?
Click to continue reading ‘Alvin and the Chipmunks’ Gets CGI Treatment
Yahoo! News
FilmCrunch 065: Transformers, 9/11 Loose Change, Old Cartoons
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: DreamWorks, Paramount, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Documentary, Period, Political, Full Episodes, Theatrical Reviews, Videocasts,
Veronica Santiago and Neil Estep review the theatrical release of Transformers in this episode of FilmCrunch. In addition, they also look at the 9/11 documentary Loose Change and give their thoughts on the evidence and theories presented in the movie. Lastly, they take a look at the influx of old-school cartoons being transformed and updated for the big screen. Check the video for all the goods.
Now we want to hear from you - hit the forums and let us know what you think, what you want us to watch next, and any other recommendations you have for the show.
Advertisement
© Gear Live Media, LLC. 2007 – User-posted content, unless source is quoted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Public Domain License. Gear Live graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, videos, articles, blogs, forums, scripts and other service names are the trademarks of Gear Live Inc.