“42″ Scores at the Box Office

Over the weekend, the new baseball movie 42 scored big with a much higher than anticipated $ 27.4 million. The film about baseball great Jackie Robinson starring Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford was a crowd pleaser (I gave it a solid “B” grade) and it easily defeated the underwhelming debut of Scary Movie 5 which only took in $14 million. Looks like that franchise is finally out of steam. The Croods held up well in its fourth week while Evil Dead plummeted 63 % in its second week. For more on their totals and all the numbers, head to Box Office Mojo. Then check out the new top ten below which also features the Ryan Gosling/Bradley Cooper indie The Place Beyond the Pines making its first appearance in the top-tier after expanding to just over 500 theaters.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 N 42 WB $27,487,144 – 3,003 – $9,153 $27,487,144 $40 1
2 N Scary Movie 5 W/Dim. $14,157,367 – 3,402 – $4,161 $14,157,367 $20 1
3 3 The Croods Fox $13,115,074 -36.5% 3,689 -190 $3,555 $142,439,144 $135 4
4 2 G.I. Joe: Retaliation Par. $10,894,415 -47.8% 3,535 -199 $3,082 $102,520,113 $130 3
5 1 Evil Dead (2013) TriS $9,488,302 -63.2% 3,025 – $3,137 $41,530,084 $17 2
6 4 Jurassic Park 3D Uni. $8,861,820 -52.4% 2,778 +7 $3,190 $31,970,985 $10 2
7 5 Olympus Has Fallen FD $7,250,084 -28.7% 2,935 -124 $2,470 $81,856,898 $70 4
8 7 Oz The Great and Powerful BV $4,859,958 -39.3% 2,504 -401 $1,941 $219,381,370 $215 6
9 6 Tyler Perry’s Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor LGF $4,503,102 -55.4% 1,805 -242 $2,495 $45,425,098 – 3
10 13 The Place Beyond the Pines Focus $3,865,687 +449.6% 514 +484 $7,521 $5,239,866 $15 3

“Zero Dark Thirty” Tops the Box Office

On a weekend when its star Jessica Chastain won her first and much deserved Golden Globe Award and in its first weekend in national release, the controversial but brilliant thriller Zero Dark Thirty hit the top of the box office chart with $24 million. That brings the film’s total to $29 million with much more to come for this Oscar contender that I gave a “A” grade to…. Zero easily beat the two newcomers as the new horror spoof A Haunted House took in $ 18 million while the star-studded action drama Gangster Squad with Emma Stone, Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling and Josh Brolin opened to an ok $16 million… The Oscar noms gave nice boosts to Lincoln and Silver Linings Playbook while Globe winner Les Miserables topped $119 million and became the fifth biggest musical film in history surpassing Hairspray… For more on all the numbers, head to Box Office Mojo here and check out the new top ten below.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 16 Zero Dark Thirty Sony $24,000,000 +790.2% 2,937 +2,877 $8,172 $29,481,000 $40 4
2 N A Haunted House ORF $18,817,000 – 2,160 – $8,712 $18,817,000 $2.5 1
3 N Gangster Squad WB $16,710,000 – 3,103 – $5,385 $16,710,000 – 1
4 2 Django Unchained Wein. $11,065,000 -44.7% 3,012 +2 $3,674 $125,399,000 $100 3
5 4 Les Miserables (2012) Uni. $10,127,000 -36.8% 2,927 +23 $3,460 $119,206,000 $61 3
6 3 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey WB $9,080,000 -48.2% 3,012 -743 $3,015 $278,124,000 – 5
7 8 Lincoln BV $6,314,000 +16.6% 2,027 +126 $3,115 $152,579,000 $65 10
8 5 Parental Guidance Fox $6,100,000 -37.1% 2,957 -411 $2,063 $60,650,000 $25 3
9 1 Texas Chainsaw 3D LGF $5,150,000 -76.3% 2,659 +5 $1,937 $30,752,000 – 2
10 12 Silver Linings Playbook Wein. $5,000,000 +38.2% 810 +65 $6,173 $41,306,000 $21 9

“The Killing” is still a Killer Show

Last week, I had the privilege of going to a special screening of an episode of AMC’s The Killing followed by a Q & A with the cast and creator Veena Sud. It was a wonderful evening held at the Television Academy and the episode screened, “Off the Reservation“, (which aired last night) was incredible. It was another showcase for the show’s star Mireille Enos who grabbed an Emmy nomination last year and should find herself in the running again for this emotional installment as her character was searching for her missing partner Holder (played by the incredibly charismatic Joel Kinnaman). Those two detectives have been going rogue a bit lately in this second season of the fantastic mystery thriller as they try to solve the murder of teen Rosie Larson. There seems to be a conspiracy involving the cops, the mayor and the Indian casino reservation, and those two aren’t sure who to trust. Still in the mix are Larson’s grieving parents, played by the amazing Brent Sexton and Emmy nominated Michelle Forbes, and her aunt Terry (the wonderfully damaged Jamie Anne Allman) who has some secrets of her own. The political connections to the crime continue to weigh heavily as well with Billy Campbell, Kristen Lehman and Eric Ladin all giving incredible performances as well as they deal with Campbell’s character’s recent paralysis and campaign crises. The Killing remains a tense and brilliant thriller week in and week out and I hope it gets more Emmy recognition this year especially for the amazing Enos, who couldn’t be nicer and more lovely by the way. Enos has such wonderful intensity, vulnerability and relatability and can say so much with just a tiny glint of emotion in her eye. Watch for her to be a big movie star soon too in Gangster Squad  with Sean Penn and Ryan Gosling and alongside Brad Pitt in World War Z.  She and most of the cast (Sexton, Allman, Lehman, Kinnaman, and a very funny Campbell) were at the Q&A and gave some great insight into this tremendous program. I highly recommend you catch up with it ASAP before we finally learn who actually killed Rosie at the end of this season. For more on the show, head to AMC here and check out my pictures below. Please enjoy my friend Giana Mucci in the pictures as well. She loves the show as much as me and clearly loved the cast too.
The Killing airs Sunday nights at 10pm on AMC.

And here’s a look at season 2 of The Killing

And here are our photos from the event…

My Current Obsession~ the Music from “Drive”

I finally caught up with one of the best, most innovative, surprising and simply awesome films of the year this week, Drive. I am kicking myself for not having seen it when it hit theaters in September because it’s just fantastic. This film starring Ryan Gosling (who’s reaped Critics Choice and Independent Spirit Award nominations for his performance) as a stunt driver who gets wrapped up in the dark crime underworld of LA got raves from critics when it was released. However, it only did so so at the box office. That’s unfortunate because it’s one of the best films of 2012. Carey Mulligan is wonderful as the woman Gosling chooses to protect from some scary circumstances and Golden Globe/Independent Spirit/Critics Choice nominee Albert Brooks is stunning as an evil mob boss plus great turns by Emmy winner Bryan Cranston, Emmy nominee Christina Hendricks, Ron Pearlman and Oscar Isaac. The movie has brilliant direction (by Independent Spirit/Critics Choice nominee Nicholas Winding Refn), editing and cinematography and one incredible element that has also received great notice~ the music. The soundtrack and score are reminiscent of 80′s new wave classics and they will stick in your head. The music is available on iTunes and other digital outlets now and I highly recommend you get it. So, take a listen to some choice cuts from the wonderful soundtrack to the film Drive which hits dvd next month. Oh and the film gets an “A” grade by the way.

The music from Drive….

“A Real Hero”- College featuring Electric Youth

“Nightcall”- Kavinsky

“Under Your Spell”- Desire

And here’s the trailer for the best most unsung film of 2011: Drive

2011′s Acting Overachievers

It seemed everywhere you turned in 2011, there was a gorgeous new actress tearing up the screen. Whether playing a dim bulb Southern belle, a long-suffering wife, a young Mossad agent or a Shakespearean muse, Jessica Chastain was pretty much flawless. And it’s likely she’ll grab an Oscar nomination for her role in The Help (though some have championed her work in The Tree of Life). Regardless, Chastain is 2011′s biggest overachiever with roles in 7 films…. However, she’s not alone. Take a look at this list of the year’s biggest stars and their multiple film roles.

2011′s Big Screen Overachievers:

1. Jessica Chastain: She’s the undisputed breakthrough star of the year and is being hailed as the heir to the Meryl Streep/Cate Blanchett throne.
Her output this year~ The Help, Take Shelter, The Tree of Life, The Debt, Corolianus, Texas Killing Fields, Wild Salome

2. Michael Fassbender: this sexy star first turned our heads in Inglorious Basterds. Now, he has three potential Oscar contenders and should grab his first nomination for his soul and body baring role in Shame.
His films: Shame, A Dangerous Method, X Men: First Class, Jane Eyre

3. Robin Wright: the critically respected actress finally parted ways with Sean Penn a while back and has been working nonstop in critically respected films big and small turning out amazing work this year, especially in Rampart as a conflicted boozy litigator and as the stoic woman being held responsible in the assassination of Lincoln in The Conspirator.
Wrights films: The Conspirator, Rampart, Moneyball, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

4. Daniel Craig: Mr. James Bond had a rather roller coaster year with a big summer bomb (Cowboys & Aliens) and a smash end of the year hit (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)
Craig’s films: Cowboys & Aliens, Dream House, The Adventures of Tin Tin, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

5. Matt Damon: the guy just never stops working and he’s always good even when the movies are bad…
Damon’s films: The Adjustment Bureau, Contagion, Margaret, Happy Feet 2, We Bought a Zoo

And some honorable mentions go to these busy actors over the past year…

Kate Winslet: Carnage, Contagion and the epic miniseries Mildred Pierce
Ryan Reynolds: poor guy was bomb central with The Green Lantern, Fireflies in the Garden (what?) and The Change Up
Emma Stone: The Help, Friends with Benefits, Crazy Stupid Love
Chris Evans: Puncture, What’s Your Number, Captain America: The First Avenger
Dame Judi Dench: Jane Eyre, My Week with Marilyn, J. Edgar

And I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few, so if you want to add to the list, hit me up in the comments. And who do you think will be 2012′s overachiever?

Real Steel Knocks out the Box Office Competition

Apparently moviegoers like boxing robots more than an Oscar-winning superstar, Mr. George Clooney and the sexiest guy currently in the movies, Ryan Gosling as Real Steel pummelled the competition to open at # 1 with $27.3 million. The boxing robot movie starring Hugh Jackman had a strong opening and good audience reaction that should keep it swinging in the weeks ahead. Opening in second was Clooney and Gosling’s Oscar bait political thriller The Ides of March which grabbed an ok $ 10.4 million. Due to strong reviews and anticipated awards, this one may have good legs as well…. Holding up strongly in its second weekend was 50/50 with a small drop of only 34%, the best of last week’s openers. Take a look at the full top ten below and for more, head to Box Office Mojo here.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 N Real Steel BV $27,319,677 – 3,440 – $7,942 $27,319,677 – 1
2 N The Ides of March Sony $10,470,143 – 2,199 – $4,761 $10,470,143 – 1
3 1 Dolphin Tale WB $9,131,091 -34.4% 3,478 -37 $2,625 $49,040,736 $37 3
4 2 Moneyball Sony $7,453,989 -38.0% 3,018 +25 $2,470 $49,207,167 $50 3
5 5 50/50 Sum. $5,652,149 -34.6% 2,479 +21 $2,280 $17,482,521 $8 2
6 4 Courageous TriS $4,867,876 -46.6% 1,161 – $4,193 $16,160,032 $2 2
7 3 The Lion King (in 3D) BV $4,598,606 -56.7% 2,267 -73 $2,028 $86,008,595 – 4
8 6 Dream House Uni. $4,475,525 -44.9% 2,664 +3 $1,680 $14,467,490 $50 2
9 8 What’s Your Number? Fox $3,126,782 -42.3% 3,011 +9 $1,038 $10,382,800 $20 2
10 10 Contagion WB $2,942,322 -40.0% 2,250 -494 $1,308 $69,026,543 $60 5

The Lion eats up SJP and Ryan Gosling at the Box Office

Never underestimate the bite of a big furry cat. That’s what Ryan Gosling, Sarah Jessica Parker and Alexander Skarsgaard found out this weekend as the rerelease of The Lion King ate up all the competition at the box office with a big $29.3 million. For a movie that’s like 17 years old and available everywhere, that’s pretty amazing. Granted it’s a brilliant film and now it’s in 3D!.. So, just how did those stars fare against Simba and friends? Well, the sexiest man on Earth, Gosling did the best with his incredibly well reviewed action drama Drive which took in an ok $11 million. It may have legs in the weeks ahead because of those critical notices and strong audience reaction. The same can’t be said for Parker who had her biggest bomb to date with I Don’t Know How She Does It limping into sixth place with $4.5 million. Just barely beating it was the new take on Straw Dogs featuring the True Blood hunk alongside James Marsden and Kate Bosworth which took in a sad $ 5 million. Watch for both to hit dvd in a minute or two. Holding up well were The Help, Contagion and The Debt. For more on the numbers, head to Box Office Mojo here and check out the new top ten below.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 N The Lion King (in 3D) BV $29,300,000 – 2,330 – $12,575 $29,300,000 – 1
2 1 Contagion WB $14,480,000 -35.4% 3,222 – $4,494 $44,192,000 $60 2
3 N Drive (2011) FD $11,019,000 – 2,886 – $3,818 $11,019,000 – 1
4 2 The Help BV $6,438,000 -27.9% 3,014 +79 $2,136 $147,365,000 $25 6
5 N Straw Dogs (2011) SGem $5,000,000 – 2,408 – $2,076 $5,000,000 – 1
6 N I Don’t Know How She Does It Wein. $4,502,000 – 2,476 – $1,818 $4,502,000 – 1
7 4 The Debt Focus $2,945,897 -38.3% 1,831 -43 $1,609 $26,543,546 $20 3
8 3 Warrior LGF $2,770,000 -47.2% 1,883 +14 $1,471 $9,912,000 $25 2
9 6 Rise of the Planet of the Apes Fox $2,625,000 -32.5% 2,340 -547 $1,122 $171,618,000 $93 7
10 5 Colombiana TriS $2,300,000 -41.7% 1,933 -421 $1,190 $33,347,000 $40 4

Will the Oscars Crown Clooney Again?

2006 was the year of George Clooney and the Oscar. He won for Supporting Actor for Syriana and grabbed nods for Director and Screenplay for Goodnight and Good Luck. As we head into this year’s Oscar season, it looks like Clooney may be ready for a sequel of his own as the Academy king. This year he has two films in the race, and just like when he won, he’s the star of one and writes, directs and stars in another.
In The Descendants, Clooney plays a grieving father who tries to connect with his two daughters in a film by Oscar winner Alexander Payne (Sideways) and co-starring in her first big buzzworthy performance Shailene Woodley (The Secret Life of An American Teenager). Looking at the trailer and the people involved, it may be just the ticket to getting Clooney his first Best Actor award. (He was previously nominated in that race for Up in the Air and Michael Clayton). For more on The Descendants which hits theatres on November 23rd, click here and check out the trailer below.

The Descendants

Clooney’s other film is the adaptation of Beau Willimon’s award-winning play Farragut North. Now titled The Ides of March, the movie has a hefty Oscar pedigree with Clooney directing, co-starring and co-writing a cast including Oscar winners Marisa Tomei and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Oscar nominees Ryan Gosling and Paul Giamatti, Emmy winner Jeffrey Wright (Angels in America) and Emmy nominee Evan Rachel Wood (Mildred Pierce). This political thriller follows a principled staffer (Gosling) working on a political campaign for Clooney’s character and gets thrust into a world of dirty dealings and machinations on the campaign trail. This one looks like total Oscar bait after viewing its trailer and I can’t wait to see it when it hits theatres on October 7th. I’m betting the film will be a huge contender for Picture, Screenplay, Director, Actor (Gosling) and Supporting Actor (Hoffman, Giamatti, Clooney). For more on March, head here and check out the trailer below…. Will it be all Clooney all the time at this year’s Oscars? I think it’s a safe bet….

The Ides of March

An Underperforming “Cowboys” eecks out a win over “The Smurfs”

So, I head out-of-town for a few days, and when I return, Hollywood has gone a little crazy. How else to explain The Smurfs almost overtaking the highly touted Cowboys & Aliens at the box office this weekend. Well, for one, audiences loved the Smurfs which surprisingly overperformed opening to $35.6 million.  And secondly, Cowboys couldn’t match expectations, got bad reviews and poor audience scores and just narrowly won the weekend with $36.4 million. (That was a full $10 million under most already low-balled projections). The road ahead for Cowboys looks very rough considering its ginormous price tag and will likely give Universal two stinkers in a row after Larry Crowne. At least they had the massive success of Bridesmaids and Fast Five earlier this summer. As for The Smurfs, watch for this family friendly film to hold up well in the weeks ahead. The same could be said for the other opening film this weekend, the lovely romantic comedy Crazy Stupid Love with Steve Carrell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore and Emma Stone that opened to a good $19.1 million…. Elsewhere at the box office, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 officially became the highest grossing film in the series this weekend both domestically and internationally. Holy Harry! … For more numbers and info, head to Box Office Mojo here and check out the new top ten below.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 N Cowboys & Aliens Uni. $36,431,290 – 3,750 – $9,715 $36,431,290 $163 1
2 N The Smurfs Sony $35,611,637 – 3,395 – $10,489 $35,611,637 – 1
3 1 Captain America: The First Avenger Par. $25,554,303 -60.7% 3,715 – $6,879 $117,421,571 $140 2
4 2 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 WB $21,977,093 -53.7% 4,145 -230 $5,302 $318,511,602 – 3
5 N Crazy, Stupid, Love. WB $19,104,303 – 3,020 – $6,326 $19,104,303 – 1
6 3 Friends with Benefits SGem $9,275,692 -50.2% 2,926 – $3,170 $38,175,973 $35 2
7 5 Horrible Bosses WB (NL) $7,189,365 -39.5% 2,510 -594 $2,864 $96,290,917 $35 4
8 4 Transformers: Dark of the Moon P/DW $6,086,311 -49.5% 2,604 -771 $2,337 $338,007,725 $195 5
9 6 Zookeeper Sony $4,301,893 -50.6% 2,418 -797 $1,779 $68,832,733 $80 4
10 7 Cars 2 BV $2,349,142 -58.5% 1,763 -905 $1,332 $182,118,690 $200 6

First Look~ Crazy Stupid Love!

Emmy nominee and Golden Globe winner Steve Carrell is about to finish his run on NBC’s The Office on April 28th with a super sized episode that will tell us what happens to the one and only Michael Scott… However, you won’t have to wait long to see Carrell again as he’ll be appearing in one of the most anticipated comedies of the summer Crazy Stupid Love. This romantic comedy features Carrell dealing with a broken marriage to Oscar nominee Julianne Moore and learning how to date again with lessons from a young playboy in the form of Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling. Other big names in the cast include Golden Globe nominee Emma Stone, Golden Globe winner Kevin Bacon and Oscar winner Marisa Tomei. The film which opens July 29th looks like it could be a breakout hit among a sizable audience and actually a good movie to boot… Besides that, there’s Gosling’s abs… which are pretty much ridiculous…. Check out the trailer below for proof.

Crazy Stupid Love