Monday, August 4, 2008
BOX OFFICE ROUND-UP: THERE IS NO STOPPNG THE DARK NIGHT
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 4:34 PM
The Dark Knight isn't king of the world, but it's getting closer.
The fastest-grossing blockbuster in Hollywood history took in another $43.8 million at the weekend box office, per studio estimates, staying on course for a potential run of $500 million—or more.
The latest Mummy movie, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon, did about what was expected, if a little less than the most outsized predictions, coming up with $42.5 million. If estimates hold, it'll finish second behind The Dark Knight.
For The Dark Knight now, it's not so much about where it places—although it's the first movie since 2007's Disturbia to top the box office three straight weekends—but how fast it movie descends the mountain of money it made in its opening days.
If it comes down from the peak gradually—and it was down only 42 percent this weekend—it could become only the second film, after Titanic, to break $500 million at the domestic box office.
Much sooner than that will come the $400 million milestone.
With the movie currently sitting on about $394.9 million, Warner Bros. executive Jeff Goldstein said The Dark Knight should enter the $400 million realm by Monday or Tuesday.
"What happens after this is only a guess," Goldstein said today.
Here's a recap of the top-grossing weekend films based on Friday-Sunday estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:
1. The Dark Knight, $43.8 million
2. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon, $42.5 million
3. Step Brothers, $16.3 million
4. Mamma Mia!, $13.1 million
5. Journey to the Center of the Earth, $6.9 million
6. Swing Vote, $6.3 million
7. Hancock, $5.2 million
8. WALL-E, $4.7 million
9. The X-Files: I Want to Believe, $3.4 million
10. Space Chimps, $2.8 million
The fastest-grossing blockbuster in Hollywood history took in another $43.8 million at the weekend box office, per studio estimates, staying on course for a potential run of $500 million—or more.
The latest Mummy movie, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon, did about what was expected, if a little less than the most outsized predictions, coming up with $42.5 million. If estimates hold, it'll finish second behind The Dark Knight.
For The Dark Knight now, it's not so much about where it places—although it's the first movie since 2007's Disturbia to top the box office three straight weekends—but how fast it movie descends the mountain of money it made in its opening days.
If it comes down from the peak gradually—and it was down only 42 percent this weekend—it could become only the second film, after Titanic, to break $500 million at the domestic box office.
Much sooner than that will come the $400 million milestone.
With the movie currently sitting on about $394.9 million, Warner Bros. executive Jeff Goldstein said The Dark Knight should enter the $400 million realm by Monday or Tuesday.
"What happens after this is only a guess," Goldstein said today.
Here's a recap of the top-grossing weekend films based on Friday-Sunday estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:
1. The Dark Knight, $43.8 million
2. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon, $42.5 million
3. Step Brothers, $16.3 million
4. Mamma Mia!, $13.1 million
5. Journey to the Center of the Earth, $6.9 million
6. Swing Vote, $6.3 million
7. Hancock, $5.2 million
8. WALL-E, $4.7 million
9. The X-Files: I Want to Believe, $3.4 million
10. Space Chimps, $2.8 million
E!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Set in South Carolina in 1964, the film is the moving tale of Lily Owens a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother. To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen, her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters, Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping, honey and the Black Madonna.
The film is written and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood (Love & Basketball, Disappearing Acts) and stars Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson and Oscar nominees Angela Basset, Queen Latifah, Sophie Okonedo and SAG award nominee Dakota Fanning. Alicia Keys is said to also give a stirring performance.
The film is set to hit theaters October 17th.
IT'S IMPOSSIBLE FOR TE, CHARLIE & I TO BE MORE EXCITED!
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 10:17 AM
The first real trailer for the greatest movie ever made (perhaps I'm overstating it)has just been released. Beverly Hills Chihuahua! Sure there's no singing in this one but dammit it's got box office gold all over it!
My nephew Te & Charlie Murphy (who is quite proud to see his fellow furry brethren represented, though ya'll could've called a brotha).
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Here's a match made in…a lab?
With Amy Winehouse long out of commission, Alicia Keys has signed on to lend her sultry, soulful pipes to the new theme song being readied for the upcoming James Bond installment, Quantum of Solace, by alt-rocker Jack White.
The male half of the White Stripes, who wrote and produced the tune, called "Another Way to Die," will also play drums. The film's soundtrack is due out Oct. 28, while the movie itself, the second 007 flick featuring hunky blond Bond Daniel Craig, hits theaters Nov. 7.
With Amy Winehouse long out of commission, Alicia Keys has signed on to lend her sultry, soulful pipes to the new theme song being readied for the upcoming James Bond installment, Quantum of Solace, by alt-rocker Jack White.
The male half of the White Stripes, who wrote and produced the tune, called "Another Way to Die," will also play drums. The film's soundtrack is due out Oct. 28, while the movie itself, the second 007 flick featuring hunky blond Bond Daniel Craig, hits theaters Nov. 7.
E!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Chasin tail? Drunk drivin? Oh the Bush administration isn't gonna like this.
I can't wait.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Pics have surfaced of Oliver Stones Bush biopic "W" and for the first time we get to see Brit actress THANDIE NEWTON as Secretary Of State Condeleezza Rice. The film hits theaters this winter.
Next up: $400 million.
The Dark Knight was primed to enter a stratosphere reached by only seven films in Hollywood history after grossing an estimated $75.6 million this weekend, and surpassing $300 million domestically in record time.
Among the box office also-rans, Will Ferrell got his mojo back, while Scully and Mulder had theirs abducted.
More than anyone, Batman was again the man. Where once a $400 million overall take for the latest Caped Crusader adventure was considered a possibility, now it's considered a lock.
"Certainly, $400 million, boom, that's going to happen," Media by Numbers box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian said today.
"The trajectory it's on has never before been seen. This is absolutely unprecedented."
The Dark Knight's second-weekend gross was, per studio estimates, the biggest ever, despite the usual 50 percent or so drop in business.
Dergarabedian forecasts that The Dark Knight will bash the $400 million mark in about a week from now, or 18 days after its release. In 2004, it took Shrek 2 a comparatively pokey 43 days to reach $400 million, a mark that was—and, as of today, still is—the Hollywood benchmark.
The Dark Knight has demonstrated quite the talent for setting land-speed records. According to the stats at Box Office Mojo, it's the fastest movie to reach $100 million (two days), $200 million (five days) and, as of today, $300 million (10 days).
If the movie really wants to show off, it'll set its sights on a record that, unlike the opening-weekend mark, hasn't been broken—or even seriously challenged—this decade: Titanic's all-time domestic gross of $601 million.
"The reason Titanic hit that number is because it became a cultural phenomenon," Dergarabedian said. "And The Dark Knight has become a kind of cultural phenomenon."
Here's a recap of the top-grossing weekend films based on Friday-Sunday estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:
1. The Dark Knight, $75.6 million
2. Step Brothers, $30 million
3. Mamma Mia!, $17.9 million
4. The X-Files: I Want to Believe, $10.2 million
5. Journey to the Center of the Earth, $9.4 million
6. Hancock, $8.2 million
7. WALL-E, $6.3 million
8. Hellboy II: The Golden Army, $4.9 million
9. Space Chimps, $4.4 million
10. Wanted, $2.7 million
The Dark Knight was primed to enter a stratosphere reached by only seven films in Hollywood history after grossing an estimated $75.6 million this weekend, and surpassing $300 million domestically in record time.
Among the box office also-rans, Will Ferrell got his mojo back, while Scully and Mulder had theirs abducted.
More than anyone, Batman was again the man. Where once a $400 million overall take for the latest Caped Crusader adventure was considered a possibility, now it's considered a lock.
"Certainly, $400 million, boom, that's going to happen," Media by Numbers box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian said today.
"The trajectory it's on has never before been seen. This is absolutely unprecedented."
The Dark Knight's second-weekend gross was, per studio estimates, the biggest ever, despite the usual 50 percent or so drop in business.
Dergarabedian forecasts that The Dark Knight will bash the $400 million mark in about a week from now, or 18 days after its release. In 2004, it took Shrek 2 a comparatively pokey 43 days to reach $400 million, a mark that was—and, as of today, still is—the Hollywood benchmark.
The Dark Knight has demonstrated quite the talent for setting land-speed records. According to the stats at Box Office Mojo, it's the fastest movie to reach $100 million (two days), $200 million (five days) and, as of today, $300 million (10 days).
If the movie really wants to show off, it'll set its sights on a record that, unlike the opening-weekend mark, hasn't been broken—or even seriously challenged—this decade: Titanic's all-time domestic gross of $601 million.
"The reason Titanic hit that number is because it became a cultural phenomenon," Dergarabedian said. "And The Dark Knight has become a kind of cultural phenomenon."
Here's a recap of the top-grossing weekend films based on Friday-Sunday estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:
1. The Dark Knight, $75.6 million
2. Step Brothers, $30 million
3. Mamma Mia!, $17.9 million
4. The X-Files: I Want to Believe, $10.2 million
5. Journey to the Center of the Earth, $9.4 million
6. Hancock, $8.2 million
7. WALL-E, $6.3 million
8. Hellboy II: The Golden Army, $4.9 million
9. Space Chimps, $4.4 million
10. Wanted, $2.7 million
Monday, July 21, 2008
THE BOX OFFICE ROUNDUP: IT WAS THREE DAYS OF 'DARK KNIGHTS'
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 10:46 AM
The Dark Knight chased Spider-Man 3 from the record books with a $155.3 Million opening weekend gross, per Exhibitor Relations Co. estimates today.
The figure capped three days of eye-popping figures for the Christopher Nolan film. The highlights:
The Dark Knight made more money in Friday midnight screenings ($18.5 million) than its predecessor, Batman Begins, made in any one day.
The Dark Knight made more money in one day ($66.4 million on Friday) than Batman Begins made in any one weekend.
The Dark Knight made about as much money in its second-biggest day ($48 million on Saturday) as Batman Begins made in its biggest weekend ($48.7 million).
The Dark Knight made more money in its third-biggest day ($39 million on Sunday) than Get Smart and You Don't Mess With the Zohan, to name two recent hits, made in their respective opening weekends.
The Dark Knight made more money in its biggest day than Hancock, WALL-E and Kung-Fu Panda, to name three recent supersize hits, made in their respective opening weekends.
The Dark Knight made more money in its opening weekend than the previous top-three-opening Batman movies (Batman Forever, Batman Begins, Batman Returns) made in their opening weekends—combined.
About the only thing The Dark Knight didn't do was keep up the frenetic pace it set with Friday's $66.4 million blowout, a performance which set new records as Hollywood's biggest-ever opening day and biggest-ever single day.
"Some people probably stayed away [to avoid] the crowds," Exhibitor Relations' Jeff Bock said.
Bock does not think audiences will stay away next weekend. He expects The Dark Knight will become only the second movie this summer, after Iron Man, to hold the No. 1 position at the box office for more than one weekend.
"Spider-Man 3 was savaged by critics, and it fell off pretty quickly," Bock said. "I don't expect anything to happen with The Dark Knight."
Especially not with the Heath Ledger factor at play.
To Bock, The Dark Knight's box office benefited immensely from both curiosity and buzz surrounding Ledger's performance as iconic Batman foe The Joker. The role was the last completed by the young actor before his death in January.
"This is really unprecedented, an actor in a blockbuster film dying before the release," Bock said.
"Unprecedented" is one word to sum up the weekend.
"Batman" is another.
The figure capped three days of eye-popping figures for the Christopher Nolan film. The highlights:
The Dark Knight made more money in Friday midnight screenings ($18.5 million) than its predecessor, Batman Begins, made in any one day.
The Dark Knight made more money in one day ($66.4 million on Friday) than Batman Begins made in any one weekend.
The Dark Knight made about as much money in its second-biggest day ($48 million on Saturday) as Batman Begins made in its biggest weekend ($48.7 million).
The Dark Knight made more money in its third-biggest day ($39 million on Sunday) than Get Smart and You Don't Mess With the Zohan, to name two recent hits, made in their respective opening weekends.
The Dark Knight made more money in its biggest day than Hancock, WALL-E and Kung-Fu Panda, to name three recent supersize hits, made in their respective opening weekends.
The Dark Knight made more money in its opening weekend than the previous top-three-opening Batman movies (Batman Forever, Batman Begins, Batman Returns) made in their opening weekends—combined.
About the only thing The Dark Knight didn't do was keep up the frenetic pace it set with Friday's $66.4 million blowout, a performance which set new records as Hollywood's biggest-ever opening day and biggest-ever single day.
"Some people probably stayed away [to avoid] the crowds," Exhibitor Relations' Jeff Bock said.
Bock does not think audiences will stay away next weekend. He expects The Dark Knight will become only the second movie this summer, after Iron Man, to hold the No. 1 position at the box office for more than one weekend.
"Spider-Man 3 was savaged by critics, and it fell off pretty quickly," Bock said. "I don't expect anything to happen with The Dark Knight."
Especially not with the Heath Ledger factor at play.
To Bock, The Dark Knight's box office benefited immensely from both curiosity and buzz surrounding Ledger's performance as iconic Batman foe The Joker. The role was the last completed by the young actor before his death in January.
"This is really unprecedented, an actor in a blockbuster film dying before the release," Bock said.
"Unprecedented" is one word to sum up the weekend.
"Batman" is another.
Monday, June 2, 2008
There are some moments in your life that as they happen, you know years later, you’ll be able to recount every last detail. And then there are moments where try as you might, you’ll never remember more than the broadstrokes. And then, there are the rarest of moments where, years later, the individual pieces will mean nothing because all you’ll ever need to remember about that place in time was the way you felt.
From the very first chime of the familiar tune, burned so pointedly in our minds, a genuine applause erupted in the theater filled with women, young, old, single, married and everything in between. We had all purchased our tickets days in advance, we’d all stood in the 40 minute line outside the theater to get choice seats. And we’d all donned our best heels and purses, kissed our men and kids goodbye and settled in to welcome back our four friends.
Charlotte, Miranda, Samantha and of course Carrie proved to us that they were worth the wait.
It was everything I expected it to be, both good and bad. And there were a few surprises along the way. The biggest came with the 2:20 minute running time. The second was, they’d found a way to take a forty minutes show, triple it and still make me want to stay and watch the credits.
Sex & The City: The Movie, picks up three years after the shows conclusion, with Carrie, the consummate heroin, blissfully in love with a man we now know as John James Preston but whom will forever be Mr. Big. Miranda is still in Brooklyn, but we find her simply coasting along in a ghastly sinking marriage to bar owner Steve. Charlotte, whom admittedly, has always gotten the short end of the character development stick, has settled nicely into motherhood with her adopted Chinese daughter and is very much in love with her Jewish, divorce attorney husband Harry. And then there’s Samantha…Whom much to my surprise is living in LA with her now TV star boyfriend, Smith.
I’m not going to lie to you, perfect it ain’t. There are plot issues galore (Samantha’s journey is never set up well enough to make her payoff mean anything to us), and the pacing of the too long first act just reminds us that Michael Patrick King (the shows EP and the movie’s writer/director) should stick to half-hours and 60 minute dramas. But problems aside, it was in short, the movie we’d all come to see.
An emotional roller coaster from the very first scene, I laughed at all the right moments, like Charlottes Mexican mishap. I tinged when careless statements like Miranda’s regrettable, “Let’s just get it over with?” were thrown out there. And when Big does the (predictable, yet) unthinkable, I along with every other woman, and gay man, in the theater, held my breath, both equally as angry as I was hurt.
Still I’d have to say the biggest surprise for me wasn’t the inclusion of Louise, Carrie’s new assistant and SATC’s only major Black female character; but rather that Jennifer Hudson played her so comfortably that she felt as though she’d been there all along.
And then of course there were the clothes.
If there was ever a sixth woman in the group (I’ll get to the fifth in a second), it was and still very much is the incomparable Patricia Fields. This movie was so flawlessly styled that even in Carrie’s darkest moments, with greasy hair and not a stitch of make-up in sight, even her old tattered pj’s looked fierce. I’m still a little shaky on what exactly took place while she and Miranda shopped for Halloween costumes due to the breathtakingly fabulous black leather and fur coat hugging Carrie’s body.
But about that fifth lady…My biggest problem with this movie was that with the exception of a few street scenes, one on New Years eve, I felt we didn’t get enough time with the city that has nurtured these girls into the women we loved. Where were the bars, clubs and restaurants that had made our show the consummate name dropper? And where oh where was Carrie’s moment with the place she once defended to an out of town sailor, warning, “Nobody messes with my boyfriend.”
As I watched this movie I’d waited so long for, I looked around the theater and saw familiar expressions on the faces of the women around me. Cards up: I missed Sex & the City because while everyone speculated openly about which woman represented her, the truth is, there are pieces of each of these ladies in everyone of us. And this show, this silly little show with such a catchy title allowed us to see ourselves in third person, frankly, flawed and fabulously.
The truth is Charlotte, Miranda, Samantha and Carrie allowed us to feel ok about some of the things we as women deal with everyday. From the mundane like getting a Brazilian for the first time, to the devastating, like our mothers dying, to that which is so vulnerable that we dare not speak it aloud, like some of us are still madly in love with men who broke our hearts: with each dilemma, each pep talk and each breakfast, they made us feel like we weren’t the only ones. And tonight, four years later, these seven women (including J. Hud, the fabulous Pat and of course the beautiful Big Apple) proved to us, they still got it. And that was the sex we really needed.
Monday, April 21, 2008
The big surprise this weekend? Nope it wasn't the nice weather or the Friday morning mid-western earthquakes.
It's the fact that Jet Li & Jackie Chan can still open a movie. The Forbidden Kingdom, starring the two king-fu legends, opened #1 this weekend, despite low tracking the week before.
the other minor surprise was the the ery well reviewed/pubbed comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall came in at number 2. It's the latest from the Judd Apatow wheelhouse to underperform, despite hilarious writing, strong performances and solid reviews.
The Idris Elba vehicle, Prom Night held on in the top 5, taking the #3 spot. And Street Kings, starring Keanu Reeves, Forrest Whittaker, my husband Common & (Swoll-Faced) Game went home 7th.
1.”The Forbidden Kingdom,” $20.8 million
2.”Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” $17.3 million
3.”Prom Night,” $9.1 million
4.”88 Minutes,” $6.8 million
5.”Nim’s Island” $5.6 million
6.”21,” $5.5 million
7.”Street Kings,” $4 million
8.”Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who,” $3.5 million
9.”Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed,” $3.1 million
10.”Leatherheads,” $3 million
Monday, April 14, 2008
Rapper-turned-actor THE GAME forced movie co-star KEANU REEVES to beat him with a real phonebook, so scenes in their new movie STREET KINGS would look real.
Reeves, who plays a cop chasing The Games' bad guy, was stunned by the request, but agreed - after getting advice from real life cops on how to properly use the book as a weapon.
He explains, "For me to get this information out of him, I had to convince him. So I hit him with the fake phonebook. But he said, 'This isn't working, I don't believe you. Use the real phone book.'
"This real cop gave me some phone book techniques.
"So I took the phonebook and hit him around the head. And The Game said, 'OK I'm good.' He felt it.
"He was right. It gave the film some authenticity."
Look...I saw Street Kings. And if you got itch slapped with a phone book for THAT, we need to get you looked at. Cause clearly there's some error in your judgement.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Tom Ludlow is a veteran LAPD cop who finds life difficult to navigate after the death of his wife. When evidence implicates him in the execution of a fellow officer, he is forced to go up against the cop culture he's been a part of his entire career, ultimately leading him to question the loyalties of everyone around him.
Sure the "Vigilante cop" angle is nothing new. But what this brisk, gritty cop drama lacks in originality, it more than makes up for in persona.KEANU is Keanu. His slightly disinterested approach is back as he once again phones in a performance while cashing a $15 million pay-day. But you can't deny his charm. And his wise choice to leave the real acting to award winners FORREST WHITTAKER and HUGH LAURIE.
The surprise of the film isn't newly-minted actor COMMON; but surprisingly, the fresh face award here goes to JAYCEON 'THE GAME' TAYLOR. If he can keep himself from beating up kids on the playground, he might have a silver-screen laden future ahead of him.
BOTTOM LINE: It's worth checking out. Is it Oscar worthy? No. Does it break the mold? No. But is it a better use of your time, than say..MEET THE BROWNS? ABSOLUTELY. The film opens nationwide April 11th.
BOTTOM LINE: It's worth checking out. Is it Oscar worthy? No. Does it break the mold? No. But is it a better use of your time, than say..MEET THE BROWNS? ABSOLUTELY. The film opens nationwide April 11th.
And plus, Common just looks so pretty.
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