Hulk Smash Box Office!

Here's one of the very smartest things about The Avengers that I read all weekend and surely a sign as to why it's handily smashed opening weekend box office records with its mighty $200 mil.

Perhaps people like The Avengers so much because it celebrates a triumph of branding. The Hulk reinforces his brand by blending together a sensitive, indie, yet still hunky Mark Ruffalo with a green, childlike, cartoonish embodiment of aggression that smashes things.  Viewing the film is like watching Pepsi chat with McDonalds ironically about the inadequacies of Apple as Facebook dons a blue mask before ripping Nike's hammer away in a fit of pique."
-The Film Doctor

I haven't read this elsewhere but I think it's worth noting that this exact same weekend 10 years ago was also historic. Spider-Man (2002) was our first ever $100+ opening weekend. In ten short years the booty has practically doubled but in Spider-Man's defense they have raised ticket prices radically in that span of time. I liked The Avengers but the only way I'd see it again in theaters is if I can find a matinee 2D screening.

Hulk crush Harry Potter & Batman © Nathaniel Rogers

TOP FIFTEEN 
01 THE AVENGERS new  $200.3 Review
02 THINK LIKE A MAN  $8 (cum $73)
03 HUNGER GAMES  $5.7 Review (cum $380.7... and suddenly looking far less likely to stay the #1 movie of the year)
04 THE LUCKY ONE  $5.5 (cum $47.9)
05 THE PIRATES! $5.4 (cum $18.5)
06 FIVE YEAR ENGAGEMENT  $5.1 (cum $19.2)
07 THE RAVEN  $2.5 (cum $12)
08 SAFE $2.4 (cum. $12.8)
09 CHIMPANZEE $2.3 (cum. $23)
10 THREE STOOGES $1.8  (cum $39.6)

11 CABIN IN THE WOODS $1.5(cum. $38)
12 JOHN CARTER  $1.3 Review (cum $75) 
13 21 JUMP ST  $1 Review (cum $133.9)
14 AMERICAN REUNION  $.8 (cum $55.3)
15 THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL new $.7

What did you see over the weekend? I checked in at the The Bext Exotic Dame-Packed Hotel... which I'll write a little something about soon. If they were going for counterprogramming against The Avengers maybe they should have opened in more theaters? With Hotel's high per screen average and a weak showing for everything but the superheroes (and a strangely resurgent John Carter. What's going on there???), I bet they could have opened in the top ten. Then again, I assume Manhattan's very mobile elderly get out to the movies far more often than their counterparts elsewhere. It seems impossible but we may have been the youngest people in the theater.

Linksplosion

Scribble Junkies wonders if short men make better directors
My New Plaid Pants sneak peaks End of Watch with Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena
IndieWire Oops, we deleted the movie. The growing pains of digital cinema
Cinema Blend Joss Whedon on his success with The Hulk. Speaking of...
Tom Shone thinks the Hulk is the only thing he got right.
Huffington Post thanks the foundations laid down in the Whedonverse for The Avengers success
USA Today gets good quote from the Core Four in The Avengers. And everyone has a good laugh about Mark Ruffalo in his motion capture phase. The man himself:

The first day of the leotard I said, OK (expletive), get a good laugh. Let's just get it out in the open. There was a lot of snickering and off-color jokes about the leo part of my tard. I don't think that needs explaining. 

Wow Report the best job in Hollywood is...
ASME announces the best magazine covers of the year. Truly odd choices here, I have to say. Mila Kunis' GQ cover is the only actress cover featured. 
Guardian sad legal battles over the Zsa Zsa Gabor estate. The famous actress is 95 and is probably not long for this world
Forbes released their list of the 100 Most Powerful Women in the World. The highest and only ranked actress is Angelina Jolie at 29 (unless you think of Beyoncé #18 as an actress). 
Newsorama has a ten-wide list of things we've learned from The Avengers... but it's more about what Marvel Studios can learn from it. 
The Mary Sue Brave's Princess Merida already showing up at Disney parks 

Theater Watch
Potentially terrible news for New Yorkers. The fate of the awesome Zeigfeld Theater on 54th street is up in the air. That's a pity. This is hallowed ground we're talking about. It's one of the few single screen ginormous theaters left. It's where I saw Moulin Rouge! for the first time. It's where I saw Michelle Pfeiffer in the pflesh and its the only suitable place for big deal starry movie premieres in Manhattan. Please don't close up!

This Weekend's Must Read...
The Hairpin points us to this amazing Elizabeth Berkeley interview right before Showgirls (1995) came out. It's hilarious and fascinating and sympathetic in retrospect. So much titillating delusion.

I thought, ‘I have to do this.’ I mean, this role, I would kill for. It’s very rare you read a script where the whole focus of the film is on a woman. Also, I’m so passionate about what I go after and I really felt a lot of connection with the character right away...

The bottom line is the character is so emotional. She’s constantly on the edge of a breakdown so that was hard because what’s two minutes in her life was 17 hours for me. There was one scene in particular where I’m on stage auditioning for the showgirl spot where Alan Rachins’ character is wanting me to put ice cubes on my nipples. That was so difficult. Everyone on the set just felt really upset by it because the fact is that goes when showgirls audition. I mean, it’s part of the process.  

Authenticity!

Review: "The Avengers"

This review was originally published in my column at Towleroad...

If Agent Natasha Romanoff can interrupt an espionage interrogation to attend...

If Thor can find a way back to Earth without his rainbow bridge...

If Tony Stark can stop erecting enormous arguably phallic odes to himself for a moment...

If Captain America can get back in shape now that he's out of deep freeze...

And if Dr Bruce Banner can come out of self-imposed exile to join Marvel's THE AVENGERS, than I really ought to be able to review some movies again. Let's go.

After roughly four years of movie-length commercials for The Avengers (formerly known as: Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger) "Earth's Mightiest Heroes" have finally assembled. To fans of the superhero genre, this probably feels like an impossible dream realized. To non-fans of the superhero genre this might play like the perfect time for a showstopping climax -take a bow and give mere mortals some movies again! The latter group should brace themselves. This particular blockbuster is lively enough to greenlight an even bigger movie family of men (and hopefully some women) in tights. MORE AFTER THE JUMP...

Click to read more ...

The Link Initiative

The Avengers Initiative
Wired the physics of the Hulk's jump
Monkey See suggests some other team-up films that should follow The Avengers. Love the ending. Hee!
Guardian have you heard this ridiculously whiny Samuel L Jackson story? He's incensed that AO Scott gave The Avengers a thumbs down. I like AO Scott. The New York Times critic was at my screening and patiently waited in line. NY 1's Neil Rosen thought himself way too important to wait and just walked to the front. How do you like them apples? 
Scanners Jim Emerson sounds off on this same controversy (the Jackson vs Scott thing not Rosen's apples!) 

Not Relation
Empire Joseph Gordon-Levitt may headline a remake of Little Shop of Horrors (1986). Uh, good luck finding another Ellen Greene.
Coming Soon Sharlto Copley (District 9) is lining up a lot of movies. He next stars in Old Grave then Old Boy (the two films are not related) and now maybe Maleficent with Angelina Jolie
Details The Friday Night Lights movie is on! Squeeeeeeee
Cinema Blend Kellan Lutz will play a motion capture animated Tarzan in another adventure for the vine swinging ape man
The Wrap in the most important news of the century Demi Moore changes her twitter handle. She's no longers Mrs Kutcher 
Towleroad Anna Paquin "being bisexual is actually a thing"
Next Movie summer blockbusters reimagined as indies via their posters 

California readers take note: There's a three benefit celebrity-hosted performance of The Last Five Years in Hollywood this weekend. It's easily one of the five best original musicals to emerge in the last 10 years and you can buy tickets here. I can't imagine how it will quite work in terms of cumulative emotion with a rotating cast -- it's a two person musical in which the lovers tell their story forwards (the man) and backwards (the woman) simultaneously but it so transcends its gimmick. If you've never seen it, go. If you're not near Hollywood, give the CD a chance if you love musicals. 

I use to want to see it made into a movie but it's probably better left untouched since it's so very much a stage piece.

Link Roll Call

Gold Derby has the complete list of MTV Movie Awards. As per usual it's a Harry Potter/Twilight party, crashed this time out by The Hunger Games. So YA.
Movie|Line interviews smashing Mark Ruffalo on playing The Hulk and Dance Dance Revolution with his castmates.
Hero Chan "The Birth of Venus Black Widow"
Incredible Suit massive difference between old and new Spider-Man movies demonstrated
My New Plaid Pants "do dump or marry?" The Royal Tenenbaums edition

Pajiba 10 actors who will never be nominated for Emmy no matter how much they deserve it. 
Guardian because all franchises refuse to die, they're thinking of resurrecting Dracula to star Tom Cruise as Van Helsing. Won't the vampire craze be over by the time they're finished? It has to be on its last legs now.
The Envelope Oscar is staying put in the same theater for another couple of decades. It is "Kodak" no more but now "Dolby" I believe. 
Cracked great behind the scenes photos that break the movie spell
Vulture April's best celebrity portraiture from Michelle Williams to Adepere Oduye
Awards Daily first photos of Nicole Kidman on set of Railway Man. Ugh, I hate when they make my fav goddesses frumpy for movie roles 

Finally, I heart this new poster for Snow White and the Huntsman. Oh please let the evil queen win!