On Gear Live: Samsung S95C: The OLED TV You Can’t Afford (to Ignore!)

Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Drawn to Obsessed

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Animation, Documentary, Drama, Family, Musicals, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,

Obsessed

It was a battle between two stars at the box office this weekend.

After back-to-back roles in music-related dramas, Beyonce Knowles proved she could deliver without having to sing a note. , a thriller produced for approximately $20 million, pulled in nearly $29 million for a 1st place finish. The film, also featuring two NBC stars (The Office’s Idris Elba and Heroes’ Ali Larter), more than doubled last week’s champ, 17 Again.

Meanwhile, an Academy Award winner and an Iron Man joined forces for a surprising fourth place finish. , costarring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr., didn’t even cross the $10 million mark. Although it was once considered as a pre-Oscars release, the film’s debut grossed less than last week’s nominee-filled entry, State of Play.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Drawn to Obsessed

Read More | Variety

Advertisement

Will Jamie Foxx Play Mike Tyson?

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Documentary, Celebrity Gossip,


He’s already channeled a blind singer and a schizophrenic musician, so why couldn’t play an ear-biting boxer?

Even though there’s a documentary currently out about the former heavyweight champion, Mike Tyson is still interested in seeing a dramatized version of his life. If all goes as planned, it’ll be star we see in the ring.

Click to continue reading Will Jamie Foxx Play Mike Tyson?

Read More | MTV Movies

In Theaters This Weekend: April 24, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, Magnolia, Sony, Universal, Action, Documentary, Drama, Foreign, Political, Science Fiction, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases,

The Soloist

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

Box Office Breakdown: Tyler Perry vs. George Clooney

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adventure, Drama, Family, Horror, Independent, Musicals, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

Michael Clayton

This weekend saw , , and all fighting for your box office dollars—so who would have thought would come out the big winner?

Even though two of his last three films opened with impressive numbers, very few predicted the writer/actor/producer/director would topple the competition.  Now the number crunchers know better.  Though the debut underperformed 2005’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman ($21.9 million) and 2006’s Madea’s Family Reunion ($30 million), Tyler Perry’s still scored $10 million more than its nearest competitor.

Additionally surprising was the lasting success of Disney’s .  The film finally dropped one notch to #2 in its third week—also beating out and .  Although kid-friendly fare is rarity these days, the movie’s ability to remain so strong is quite impressive.

 

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Tyler Perry vs. George Clooney


Box Office Breakdown: The Rock Upsets The Heartbreak Kid

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, Disney, Lionsgate, New Line, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Action, Drama, Family, Period, Romance, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

The Heartbreak Kid

Despite what you may have learned in school, + The Farrelly Brothers does not necessarily equal box office gold.

The team behind There’s Something About Mary took a backseat to last weekend’s winner:  The Game Plan.  The Heartbreak Kid, a remake of the 1972 Neil Simon comedy, raked in only $14 million.  While Mary did open with a smaller gross back in 1998 ($13.7M), it’s doubtful this critically-panned movie will become another sleeper hit for the trio.  Thankfully co-star will have the upcoming Gone Baby Gone to wash this disappointment away.

The only other new entries into the Top 10 included the fantasy flick, The Seeker ($3.7M), and the J.Lo-produced dance film, Feel the Noise ($3.1M).  Meanwhile, the well-reviewed Michael Clayton pulled impressive numbers in limited release ($46,000 per screen).  Expect the vehicle to open wide this weekend.

 

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: The Rock Upsets The Heartbreak Kid


Box Office Breakdown:  The Game Plan Scores the Win

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Lionsgate, New Line, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Drama, Horror, Independent, Musicals, Political, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

The Game Plan

The execs at Disney must be loving themselves this week.  Not only are are they attached to one of hottest concert tours of the year, they have just taken a surprise win at the box office.  Although many had predicted good things for the terrorism thriller, The Kingdom, a simple father/daughter bonding film moved theatergoers this weekend.

At $22.9 million, The Game Plan took in almost $6 million more than the / vehicle. The movie about a football player who meets the daughter he never knew he had (how exactly is that a Disney storyline?) gave “The Rock” his second best opening (behind 2002’s The Scorpion King).

Meanwhile, Julie Taymor’s Across the Universe made its first entry into the Top 10.  After several weeks in limited release, the musical—which uses 33 Beatles songs to tell its story—will expand into more theaters come October 12th. 

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown:  The Game Plan Scores the Win


In Theaters This Weekend (9/28)

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: FOCUS, Disney, Fox Searchlight, MGM, Lionsgate, Universal, Drama, Family, Independent, Romance, Comedy, Thrillers, Lists, Upcoming Releases,

The Kingdom

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

  • The Game Plan (PG):  starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Madison Pettis (directed by Andy Fickman)
  • The Kingdom (R):  starring Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner (directed by Peter Berg)
  • The Darjeeling Limited* (R):  starring Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson (directed by Wes Anderson)
  • Feast of Love* (R):  starring Morgan Freeman, Greg Kinnear (directed by Robert Benton)
  • Lust, Caution* (NC-17):  starring Tony Leung, Tang Wei (directed by Ang Lee)
  • Outsourced* (PG-13):  starring Larry Pine, Asif Basra (directed by John Jeffcoat)
  • Trade* (R):  starring Kevin Kline, Cesar Ramos (directed by Marco Kreuzpaintner)


*limited or gradual release


FilmCrunch 035: Dreamgirls Review

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: DreamWorks, Paramount, Adaptation, Drama, Musicals, Period, Short FilmCrunch, Theatrical Reviews, Videocasts,

Veronica Santiago and Neil Estep report back with their review of the Academy Award-winning Dreamgirls:

Set in the turbulent early 1960s to mid-70s, the tale follows the rise of a trio of women—Effie, Deena and Lorrell—who have formed a promising girl group called The Dreamettes. At a talent competition, they are discovered by an ambitious manager named Curtis Taylor, Jr., who offers them the opportunity of a lifetime: to become the back-up singers for headliner James “Thunder” Early. Curtis gradually takes control of the girls’ look and sound, eventually giving them their own shot in the spotlight as The Dreams. That spotlight, however, begins to narrow in on Deena, finally pushing the less attractive Effie out altogether. Though the Dreams become a cross-over phenomenon, they soon realize that the cost of fame and fortune may be higher than they ever imagined.


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.


FilmCrunch 032: Dreamgirls, Pan’s Labyrinth, Employee of the Month, The Illusionist

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Lionsgate, Picturehouse, Paramount, Adaptation, Drama, Foreign, Musicals, Period, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, DVD Reviews, Full Episodes, Theatrical Reviews, Videocasts,

Veronica Santiago and Neil Estep are back with another full episode of FilmCrunch. This time they review the theatrical releases of Dreamgirls and Pans Labyrinth, as well as the DVD releases of Employee of the Month, and The Illusionist.

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.


Box Office Breakdown

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Paramount, Universal, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Musicals, Comedy, Box Office, Lists, New Releases,

ArthurAlthough theater audiences were not offered much new to watch over the four-day weekend, I must say that I was bit surprised as to how the box office totals shook out.  I was certain that Primeval would reign supreme. I mean—when when does a movie about a serial-killing crocodile not come out on top??  And despite Madonna’s participation, I thought Arthur and the Invisibles would place higher than 9th.  Parents are always desperate to find something for their rug rats, right?

Here are the totals for last week (as compiled by Media By Numbers LLC):

1. Stomp the Yard, Sony Screen Gems, $25,876,318
2. Night at the Museum, Fox, $21,847,867
3. The Pursuit of Happyness, Sony, $10,703,352
4. Dreamgirls, Paramount, $10,259,911
5. Freedom Writers, Paramount, $8,849,005
6. Children of Men, Universal, $7,449,555
7. Alpha Dog, Universal, $7,411,750
8. Primeval, Disney, $6,792,318
9. Arthur and the Invisibles, MGM, $5,702,789
10. Charlotte’s Web, Paramount, $5,348,867


Advertisement

{solspace:toolbar}