Breaking Box Office Part Two

The big and unavoidable story this weekend was that the Twilight series finely came to an end with Kristen Stewart vamping out and nobody using red eye autocorrection on their cameras. I've also heard that the story ends in a stupid way that satisfies both Team Edw---  anyway, I've heard how the last book ends and I'm as incredulous as this elephant. 

WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME LEE PACE WAS IN THIS MOVIE?

Box Office Top Ten
01 THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PT. 2  $141.3 *NEW* 
02 SKYFALL $41.5 (cum. $161.3) Review
03 LINCOLN  $21 (cum. $22.4) Podcast
04 WRECK-IT RALPH  $18.3 (cum. $121.4)
05 FLIGHT $8.6 (cum. $61.3) Review

Skyfall's global gross of 669 million (thus far) makes it the most successful Bond ever. All that and it's only in its second American weekend with a big holiday weekend just around the corner (Happy Thanksgiving in Advance!). Of course if you adjust for inflation, as you should with such a long running franchise, the picture is different and the mid sixties Sean Connery entries (particularly Thunderball and Goldfinger) are still the peak of Bond's popularity... though the series has an uncanny ability to gross in the same-ish ballpark pretty much every time out.

In other box office news: Anna Karenina (or whatever you want to call it) and Silver Linings Playbook both opened on a dozen plus screens to solid business; Argo tied The Town's final $92 million domestic gross in its sixth weekend but it's still going pretty strong and it took The Town twice as long to hit that total; The Sessions expanded considerably but is no longer playing to packed houses. 

Which film did you see and was the ticket price worth it?

$00000007

Double Os aren't enough any more for Bond, James Bond. You need seven 0s at this point, 8 if you count the already astounding international grosses ($4288 million to date outside of the US). My review will be posted tomorrow night and there's a few more Bond pieces coming before we say goodbye until 2014 or whenever.

3 Bond Girls. 2 ½ Sex Scenes. 2 Villains. 500 million dollars

Box Office Top Ten
01 SKYFALL  $87.8 *NEW* 
02 WRECK-IT RALPH  $33 (cum. $93.6)
03 FLIGHT  $15.1 (cum. $47.7)
04 ARGO  $6.7 (cum. $85.7)
05 TAKEN 2 $4 *NEW* (cum $131.2)
06 HERE COMES THE BOOM  $2.5  (cum. $39)
07 CLOUD ATLAS $2.5 (cum. $22.7)
08 PITCH PERFECT $2.5 (cum $59)
09 THE MAN WITH THE IRON FISTS $2.4  (cum $12.7)
10 HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA $2.3 (cum $140.9)

Pitch Perfect just keeps humming, huh? Flight and Argo are benefiting from Oscar buzz and word of mouth and both are going to enjoy long runs. Which movies did you see this weekend? I went to Holy Motors and Lincoln (which opens wide next week but earned almost a million from very limited screens this weekend). More on both soon.

Box Office: Wreck-It, Denzel!

A very strong weekend after a quiet one. Wreck-It Ralph's big showing isn't a surprise given the track record of noisy colorful animated films for kids (i.e. they always open big) and its use of nostalgic characters  to hook parents. Denzel Washington, one of the last true movie stars, can also be counted on for strong openings and Flight is no exception. What did you see this weekend?

Box Office Top Ten
01 WRECK-IT RALPH  $49.1 *NEW* 
02 FLIGHT $25 *NEW* 
03 ARGO  $10.2 (cum. $75.8)
04 MAN WITH THE IRON FISTS $8.2 *NEW* 
05 TAKEN 2  $6  (cum. $125.6)
06 CLOUD ATLAS $5.2 (cum $18.2)
07 HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA $4.5 (cum $137.5)
08 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 $4.3  (cum $49.5)
09 HERE COMES THE BOOM $3.6 (cum $35.5)
10 SILENT HILL REVELATION $3.3 (cum $13.9)

I saw Flight on Friday night in a crowded theater (review tomorrow) and though the audience seemed to be with it the whole time -- reacting big in all the key places -- as I was leaving I overheard the following conversation between two 20something girls.

OVERHEARD

Girl #1: That was not at all what I was expecting.
Girl #2: I know. It was... [unconvinced] good. I think I need a little more feel-good in my movies.

Curious comment since Flight works overtime and some would say inelegantly in its finale to hurdle its feel-bad problem. But, then again, they have been marketing it with the crash and Denzel's ace flying that's only the beginning of the movie so maybe the audience was expecting something more action-packed and heroic? 

Speaking of heroic feats: Ben Affleck's Argo is losing so little of its audience from week to week that he'll totally have his first $100 million blockbuster soon (The Town came close). And all that from a "prestige" movie, too. His ascendance is nearly complete. All that's left on the road to being a wildly overrated filmmaker (he's good don't get me wrong) is another Oscar. Do you think he'll win it?

"Argo" is a Fake Movie but its Box Office is Real

Argo F*** yourself!"

That's what I imagine Ben Affleck and team were saying to their box office competition this weekend. In the Best Picture hopeful's third weekend, it climbed to the top of the charts which is a fine very good extremely significant sign that it's going to have legs and thus a indefatigable sturdy stride towards February's Oscar ceremony. Those getting f***ed included Cloud Atlas (some are wild for it -- see below -- some think its silly but the nearly 3 hour running time and gargantuan budget have made profit a ridiculously ambitious dream), and Chasing Mavericks... When was the last time Gerard Butler had a real hit? Was it The Ugly Truth? The specialty box office was good for The Loneliest Planet (reviewed) and The Sessions which will continue to expand as it moves into awards season.

Did you know that ARGO was inspired by this Wired article by Joshuah Bearman?

Box Office 15
01 ARGO  $12.3 (cum $60.7)
02 HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA $9.5 (cum. $130.4)
03 CLOUD ATLAS  $9.4 *NEW IN WIDE RELEASE* 
04 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 $8.6 (cum. $42.6)
05 TAKEN 2  $8  (cum. $117.3)
06 SILENT HILL: REVELATION 3D $8 *NEW IN WIDE RELEASE* 
07 HERE COMES THE BOOM $5.5 (cum $30.6)
08 SINISTER $5  (cum $39.5)
09 ALEX CROSS $5 (cum $19.3)
10 FUN SIZE $4 *NEW IN WIDE RELEASE*

a rather, uh, "enthusiastic" text received from Beau. Some people just go crazy for this movie!

11 PITCH PERFECT $3.9  (cum $51.3) podcast fun
12 FRANKENWEENIE $2.4 (cum $31.7) capsule | notes on the original short
13 CHASING MAVERICKS $2.2 *NEW IN WIDE RELEASE*
14 LOOPER $2.1  (cum $61.5) Review
15 SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS $1.4 (cum $11.9)

What did you see this past week? 

I saw Anna Karenina but Cloud Atlas eluded me in part because I am allergic to three hour movies, in part because I haven't rushed to see it because I disliked every single film the Wachowski Siblings made after The Matrix (which I didn't even love as much as Bound so it's frankly been all downhill with them since their debut). But mostly I missed it because my favorite theater stopped showing movies at 2 pm today (!) -- presumably due to Hurricane Sandy (quite the troublemaker)  -- and the subways are also closing up tonight which is big trouble. Boo. Thankfully I have screeners to keep me company and Sunday night is always good television (Revenge + Homeland. Holla!)

Liam Neeson Delivers Another Box Office Beatdown

Jean Grey, mysteriously having lost all of her mutant powers, relies on Liam Neeson for rescueLiam Neeson's surprising late career popularity continues. People love to see him putting the vicious beat down on evil types. Even if the film is as generically titled and redundantly plotted (from what I hear) as Taken 2. I wonder when we'll Neeson working a softer side again onscreen like he did in Nell, Husbands and Wives or Kinsey. Well I suppose he was more cerebral than soft in Kinsey, but the point stands. Kinsey was only 8 years ago but it seems like a different lifetime ago. It must be all those dead bodies he's left behind him onscreen since!

Box Office Dozen
01 TAKEN 2  $50 *NEW IN WIDE RELEASE*
02 HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA  $26.3 (cum. $76)
03 PITCH PERFECT $14.7 *EXPANDING* (cum. $21.6)
04 LOOPER $12.2 (cum. $40.3) review
05 FRANKENWEENIE $11.5 *NEW IN WIDE RELEASE* on the original short

06 END OF WATCH  $4 (cum $32.8)
07 TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE $3.8 (cum. $29.7)
08 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET $3.6 (cum. $27.5)
08 THE MASTER $1.8 (cum. $12.3) Team Experience
09 FINDING NEMO 3-D $1.5 (cum. $38.9 this time around) 

I'm sad that the surprisingly worthwhile and funny Frankenweenie didn't seem to connect with ticket buyers. It's Tim Burton's best since Corpse Bride. (Maybe he should stick to animation for awhile?).

This weekend I went to Pitch Perfect with my two besties. The movie wasn't quite Aca-mazing -- I wish the filmmaking itself had been stronger -- but it was definitely a good time. Our favorites were Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) who the marketing campaign is forcing has chosen as everyone's favorite, and Lilly (Hana Mae Lee) who trusted that if you missed her barely audible punchlines, they were still funny. She was right.

I have to set fire to things to feel joy"

What did you see this weekend?