Box Office Breakdown: Juno Makes An Impressive Surge

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, Disney, Fox Searchlight, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Musicals, Period, Political, Romance, Satire, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

Come Wednesday morning, the box office chart saw very few changes at the top. That’s not to say the five-day holiday weekend didn’t have any notable moments at all:
- Strong word of mouth helped boost last week’s #10, Juno, up five whole spaces. The movie - already in it’s 4th week - continues to soar despite its fairly limited release. It’s $15,788 per screen average even topped National Treasure’s $14,232.
- Golden Globes buzz also contributed to the success of seven-time nominee Atonement. Although it only placed 14th overall, the romantic weeper scored a $15,764 average.
- Alvin and the Chipmunks outmuscled last week’s #2, I Am Legend. The family-friendly flick traded spots with the Will Smith blockbuster thanks to its $2.5 million edge.
- The Debaters narrowly missed a place in the Top Ten despite its connection to both Denzel Washington and Oprah. You heard it right - the talk show host’s touch does not always mean gold.
- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story followed up its disappointing debut with another out of tune performance. The musical satire plummeted five spots all the way down to #13.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Juno Makes An Impressive Surge
Yahoo! Movies
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Daniel Day-Lewis Marks Return With ‘Blood’

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Paramount, Adaptation, Drama, Casting, New Releases,
Known for his odd little ways, his do-or-die acting methods, and his fabulous skill, Daniel Day-Lewis has enjoyed a stellar film career - though by Hollywood standards, he makes films infrequently. Missing from the big screen since 2005, the award-winning actor has made a triumphant return to films today in Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood. Very different from the bevy of family-oriented holiday flicks currently clogging up the theaters, this feature film deals in avarice, oil, madness and, of course, blood.
Anderson is known for dramatic films like Magnolia and Mark Wahlberg’s break-out film Boogie Nights, but There Will Be Blood isn’t like either one of these previous efforts. Day-Lewis (whose own unique brand of method acting has labeled him as truly eccentric and maybe even a little ’round the bend) plays Daniel Plainview in a performance that’s being heralded by the critics (he’s already received a Golden Globe nomination, too). Plainview is involved with oil in a century-old setting, a man who will do whatever he has to do to get his own way.
Yahoo! reviewers have called the dramatic epic a “masterpiece” and granted the film three and a half stars (on a scale of four total). Why is the film this good? Because Daniel Day-Lewis is in it.
Yahoo! News
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
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In Theaters This Holiday Weekend (12/25)

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Miramax, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Weinstein Company, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Foreign, Horror, Mystery, Period, Science Fiction, Sequels, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases,

Here are some possible suggestions for your holiday enjoyment:
- Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (R): starring Reiko Aylesworth, Steven Pasquale, Gina Holden (directed by Greg Strause, Colin Strause)
- The Great Debaters (PG-13): starring Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Jermaine Williams (directed by Denzel Washington)
- The Water Horse (PG): starring Emily Watson, Ben Chaplin, Alex Etel (directed by Jay Russell)
- The Bucket List* (PG-13): starring Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Serena Reeder (directed by Rob Reiner)
- Honeydripper* (PG-13): starring Danny Glover, Gary Clark Jr., Keb Mo (directed by John Sayles)
Click to continue reading In Theaters This Holiday Weekend (12/25)
The Buzz About ‘The Secret Life of Bees’

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Fox Searchlight, Adaptation, Drama, Casting, Celeb News, Upcoming Releases,
The Secret Life of Bees is one bee movie which will boast A-list stars. An adaptation of the best-selling book, the story is a coming-of-age tale which focuses on two friends. Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, and Sophie Okonedo are already signed up, while negotiations with Dakota Fanning and Alicia Keys are just on the verge of being wrapped up.
Set in the 1960s American south, The Secret Life of Bees is about teen Lily Owens (the role undoubtedly going to Fanning) and her pal Rosaleen (Hudson). The pair leave their homes on a quest to discover the truth about Lily’s deceased mother. While in South Carolina, the two meet three sisters who keep bees (Latifah, Okonedo and Keys). Since the script was completed pre-strike, this is one movie project that may not be quickly canceled.
Right now, Fox Searchlight plans to release the flick in 2008.
Yahoo! News
In Theaters This Weekend (12/21)

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, Disney, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Drama, Horror, Musicals, Romance, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:
- Charlie Wilson’s War (R): starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman (directed by Mike Nichols)
- National Treasure: Book of Secrets (PG): starring Nicolas Cage, Jon Voight, Helen Mirren (directed by Jon Turteltaub)
- P.S. I Love You (PG-13): starring Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler, Lisa Kudrow (directed by Richard LaGravanese)
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (R): starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen (directed by Tim Burton)
- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (R): starring John C. Reilly, Jenna Fischer, Kristen Wiig (directed by Jake Kasdan)
- Steep* (PG): starring Ingrid Backstrom, Doug Coombs, Shane McConkey (directed by Mark Obenhaus)
*limited and/or gradual release
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)
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Box Office Breakdown: The Golden Compass Lacks Luster

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, MGM, New Line, Paramount, Warner Bros, Weinstein Company, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Romance, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

A Narnia-esque adaptation partnered with a holiday release date and an A-list cast should have conjured box office magic for The Golden Compass. Surprisingly, this weekend’s release from New Line Cinema brought in barely enough money to cover the film’s catering budget.
Compass, based on Philip Pullman’s children’s series His Dark Materials, was Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig’s second disappointing collaboration this year (the first being The Invasion). While it was enough for a first place finish, the $25 million debut was hardly impressive given the film’s $180 million price tag.
In other news, holiday flick This Christmas remained in third place while the critically-panned Fred Claus bumped up two spaces from last week. Meanwhile, Juno and Atonement did well with their very limited releases.
Be looking for the highly-promoted I Am Legend (and Alvin and the Chipmunks) to enter next week’s charts.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: The Golden Compass Lacks Luster
E! Online
‘I Am Legend’: I Am Unimpressed

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Drama, Horror, Science Fiction, Thrillers, Upcoming Releases,
The thin plot. The ridiculously unbelievable scenario. The misconceptions of biological warfare. If I Am Legend has a single saving grace, it must be mega-movie star Will Smith. Everything this man gets involved in turns to gold, and that’s the only reason I Am Legend will survive at the box office.
Okay, here’s the plot. Scientists create a virus, and this germ accidentally kills every single living human on Earth. Not the animals, mind you – just the humans. All but for Robert Neville, a military virologist played by Smith who has managed to survive. How? Well, that’s not really important to the movie-makers. By the way, there are some human-like creatures who have had odd effects from the infection and turn zombie-like. Zombies. That’s right, everybody, billion-dollar movie star Will Smith is starring in what is essentially a zombie flick.
Click to continue reading ‘I Am Legend’: I Am Unimpressed
Yahoo! News
‘The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian’ Trailer

Posted by David Onda Categories: Disney, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Classics, Drama, Family, Religious, Sequels, Thrillers, Books, Trailers, Upcoming Releases,
The very first trailer for Walt Disney Pictures’ The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian has been released and it looks freakin’ awesome! Caspian, which opens this summer, is the sequel to the 2005 box-office smash, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, which is based off the classic novel by C.S. Lewis. The franchise’s principal cast returns for this film, which will find Pevensie kids back in the magical fantasy world of Narnia. But what was a one year hiatus for them, has been a couple thousand for the folks in Narnia - and things aren’t quite the same.
Check out the first heart-pounding The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian trailer after the jump.
Click to continue reading ‘The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian’ Trailer
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