Box Office Results and Weekly Movie News

Movies coming out this week!

Knowing - When Ted Myles (Cage) begins to suspect that his son has discovered an artifact that accurately predicts natural disasters and other catastrophes, he goes on to believe his family plays a role in the events that are about to unfold.

Duplicity - A pair of corporate spies (Owen and Roberts) who share a steamy past hook up to pull off the ultimate con job on their respective bosses -- but can they learn to truly love and trust one another?

I Love You, Man - Friendless Peter Klaven (Rudd) goes on a series of man-dates to find a Best Man for his wedding. But when his insta-bond his new B.F.F.(Segel) puts a strain on his relationship with his fiancée (Jones) can the trio learn to live happily ever after?

Movies coming out on DVD this week!
Elegy
Punisher: War Zone
Twilight

Box Office results for the weekend!

1 Race to Witch Mountain$25.0 M

2 Watchmen $18.0 M

3The Last House on the Left (2009)$14.6 M

4 Taken $6.6 M

5Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail $5.1 M

6 Slumdog Millionaire $5.0 M

7 Paul Blart: Mall Cop $3.1 M

8He's Just Not That into You $2.9 M

9Coraline $2.6 M

10Miss March $2.3 M

"Watchmen" can be considered a great movie while also being considered a commercial failure. The film was made with a large budget (well over $100 million) and in two weeks has made $86 million. It dropped almost 70 percent from the previous week.

Families needed to take kids to movies and "Watchmen" certainly isn't that film, so "Race to Witch Mountain" won the weekend simply for that family reason. "The Last House on the Left" did well considering it is another remake of a horror film.

All the other films are just petering out the month of March. "Miss March: itself failed in getting its audience, but I didn't expect it to do that well anyway.

What film will be No. 1 next weekend?

Punisher: War Zone Review

"Punisher: War Zone"

I love comic books and movies. When the two combine, it can be something amazing or something terrible. There have been bits of both over the years. "War Zone" treads a very thin line over those two extremes.

"War Zone" is about Frank Castle, a man not killing criminals for revenge, but for justice for theirs sins. I enjoy the tale of the Punisher and to see the awesome ways he kills people. This movie offer a lot of killing.



It starts off so-so, what with a mansion shoot-out and killing everyone (regardless of age or gender). The creation of Jigsaw is seen in a gruesome manner. The setting of this opening (and of the rest of the movie) is supposed to be in New York, but it doesn't feel like the place. Wasn't a problem for me. I was interested in other things.

The movie gets better as you watch it, it really does. A film will usually start of well and then suck at the end, but "War Zone" does the incredible of making up for its first half with its truly entertaining finale.



The one downfall of this film are the villains. Jigsaw and Looney Bin Jim (made for the film, not from the comics) are extremely campy, but this feels like it was intentionally done. They just get annoying that you love the ending when the Punisher has to take them down.

I thought I was going to be drowned in excessive gore, but it wasn't that bad. Was there a lot? Yes, but with movies like "Saw" and "300" around, it didn't feel excessive. And the film had interesting moods with the lighting. Green and blue hues filled the screened, especially in the Punisher's hideout or while walking in the streets.

This film also has a good amount of shout outs to the fans, but so did the previous "Punisher" film. The Thomas Jane version let Frank Castle live in a complex that housed residents straight from the "Welcome Back, Frank" storyline from the comics. "War Zone" gives us Microchip (played by Wayne Knight), a accomplice of the Punisher who provides him with weapons and intelligence, and Martin Soap (played by Dash Mihok), a cop character also taken from the "Welcome Back, Frank" comic storyline.

By the end of the film, I felt satisfied and wanted to see more since the film got better as it went along. The ending was also very iconic for me, as a religious sign behind the Punisher fades from "Jesus Saves" to just "Saves" and the skull image brightens before the sound of a final gunshot.

The film is not perfect, but it is still fun to watch. If you don't know who the Punisher is, you will surely find out from this film.
7.2/10 "This is just the beginning."

Box Office Results and Weekly Movie News

Movies coming out this Friday! Plot summaries thanks to IMDB!

The Day the Earth Stood Still - Aliens land on Earth with an important message for its citizens. A remake of the classic 1951 sci-fi film directed by Robert Wise.

Nothing Like the Holidays - The scattered members of the Rodriguez family return to their parents' home in Chicago to celebrate the holiday season, as well as their youngest's safe return from combat overseas. But when old tensions surface, the pressure is on the individuals to truly come together as a family.

Delgo - When Delgo (voice of Prinze, Jr.), a troubled teenager, is framed for a crime he didn't commit, his subsequent prison escape leads him and a group of unlikely friends on adventure to save two sparring races from a common enemy.

Movies coming out on DVD!

The Dark Knight
Horton Hears a Who!

Box Office results for the weekend!

1 Four Christmases$18.2 M

2 Twilight $13.2 M

3 Bolt $9.7 M

4 Australia $7.0 M

5 Quantum of Solace$6.6 M

6 Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa $5.1 M

7 Transporter 3$4.5 M

8 Punisher: War Zone $4.0 M

9 Cadillac Records$3.5 M

10 Role Models $2.6 M

"Four Christmases" continues to be the #1 movie in America for two weeks in a row. Darn holiday films always come out during the holidays! Coincidence? I think not.
"Bolt" and "Quantum of Solace" fell down a few ranks as "Australia" stayed alive. "Twilight" still makes the big bucks, but the big news on that movie I will post about later (director stuff).
Other films continue to stay alive (mad props goes to "Role Models" for staying in the top 10), but the biggest upset of the weekend was the bombing of "Punisher: War Zone." This movie flopped and that makes me sad because we might not see Punisher in theaters again for a long time now...if ever.

Ray Stevenson Wants Punisher 2

There have been three different Punisher films over the years, each with a different actor and a different take on the Punisher storyline.

1989, "The Punisher" came out starring Dolph Lundgren as Frank Castle. Then in 2004, the film was remade as "The Punisher" starring Thomas Jane as Frank Castle. The newest reboot of the Punisher franchise is "Punisher: War Zone," starring Ray Stevenson as the merciless version of Frank Castle.

Stevenson hopes to make a sequel to "War Zone" and to return as the kill first, ask never Punisher.

According to MTV News, "At one point, star Ray Stevenson looks at one of these poor, dying schlubs and remarks: 'This is just the beginning.'

Stevenson revealed to us that he put the line in there as a wink to the fans, hoping to say two things: He’s the only Frank Castle from now on, and he’ll be back.

'I snuck that in,' the actor laughed, talking about a moment you can see for yourself in 'War Zone' now that it’s in theaters. 'It kind of worked [during that killing], like ‘This is just the beginning of your hell,’ but at the time something in me was just feeling ‘Let’s be bold enough to make a statement.’'

[I wanted to] be bold enough to say ‘We’ve gone right down to the grassroots to show the Punisher,’ and [the fans] are all aware that if this works, if it’s successful, there will be sequels to this…This is just the beginning, and to the people who respond to it, there will be more if they want more.'"

In the past films, Punisher had to face crime lords and mafia bosses. In "War Zone," Punisher must deal with a nemesis taken straight from the comics, Jigsaw. If there are sequels, hopefully more enemies from the comics will come forth for the Punisher to face.

“We dispatched a few, but there are some other great ones,” Stevenson said in his MTV interview about other comic-book villains for Punisher.. “Some of the great stories that are in [the Punisher comics], there is one about the Slavers — the prostitution rings, and bringing women over from Europe. There is also Barracuda, who is almost as mean and ornery as Frank. Some are more real, or more tangible than others, while some of them are larger-than-life like Jigsaw, but there are plenty [of stories to tell]. What I love is the depth that [writer] Garth Ennis gets to; he doesn’t do broad brush strokes, he really gets in there. These villains have a real motivation, a real determination that must be stopped, and you get to play off of it. That should be fun.”

Would you like to see Ray Stevenson return as the Punisher? Would you like more villains from the comics?

More news to come! Catch ya' later!
EDIT: Post #200. Wow....

Gale Anne Hurd Interview

Latino Review got to sit down with producer Gale Ann Hurd ("Terminator," "The Incredible Hulk" and "Punisher: War Zone") to talk about some of her current projects.

Here are some cool clips from the interview.

In regard to the previous two 'Punishers', what do you think this film does right that the others didn't do?

Hurd: There are a few things. The first is that the film is set in New York City with a great nemesis. Regardless of whether you thought he was over the top a little he was taken directly from the comic book and the film is populated with characters from the comic books and the look of the comic book is there with Ray Stevenson as Frank Castle. He honestly looks like he came out of a Tim Bradstreet cover.

Tim Blake Nelson talked about wanting to play The Leader in 'The Hulk'. Have there been sequel talks?

Hurd: Just 'Avengers'. But yes, the more that the online community says, 'We want to see a sequel –' the more likely it is that it'll happen.

So it'd be Hulk as a part of The Avengers? Will Hulk be the villain, or part of the team then become a villain?

Hurd: I don't know and if I did I couldn't tell you.

But as far as a sequel for 'The Hulk' would you like to see the same cast?

Hurd: I'd love to.

'Gearhead' was just announced.

Hurd: Yes. It is very cool.

What's it about basically?

Hurd: It's a lawless America sometime in a future, an alternate America in which the outcasts are living outside of society and regular society is run by some pretty villainous superheroes. Once again I love the idea of the outcast.

It's a female lead too, right?

Hurd: It is a female. Yes, she is.

What about 'Magdalena'?

Hurd: That's the Top Cow comic 'Magdalena'. We have a writer onboard.

Is it a Biblical story?

Hurd: No. I mean, it's inspired by the Lion of the Magdalena. She is a descendant. Her weapon is the spirit destiny. It's kind of cool. Imagine 'Da Vinci Code' meets 'Wanted'.


All very interesting. Go to Latino Review to read the rest of the interview!
More news to come! catch ya' later!

Box Office results and news about this week

Thanksgiving came and gone! It stopped my posting for a few days, but now I'm back!
Movies coming out this Friday! Plot summaries thanks to IMDB!

Cadillac Records- A chronicle of the rise and fall of Chess Records, the Chicago-based record label founded by Leonard Chess (Brody), whose musical ear and business savvy helped foster the careers of Etta James (Knowles), Chuck Berry (Def), and other rhythm-and-blues pioneers.

Punisher: War Zone - Continuing his crusade to punish violent criminals, former FBI agent Frank Castle (Stevenson) arrives in New York to take on the city's underworld bosses.

Frost/Nixon (in NY/LA, wide release on 12/25) - BBC host David Frost interviews Richard Nixon in 1977, where the scandal-plagued President opens up about his role in the Watergate scandal.

Movies coming out on DVD!

Prince Caspian
Wanted
Step Brothers
The x-Files: I Want to Believe

Box Office results for the past weekend!

1 Four Christmases$31.8 M

2 Bolt $26.6 M

3 Twilight $26.3 M

4 Quantum of Solace $19.5 M

5 Australia $14.8 M

6 Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa $14.5 M

7 Transporter 3$12.3 M

8 Role Models $5.2 M

The holiday film "Four Christmases pulled an upset over the weekend, knocking "Twilight" off its perch. "Bolt" made even more money this weekend than on its opening weekend. Guess word has spread on how the film "Twilight" is. Bond stays alive and don't plan on seeing "Australia" as high on the list as it is now next week. "Transporter 3" is up there only because the fans of the previous movies helped it.

December 2008

After a dull Fall line of movies, Winter comes along to pick things up.
This month has Quantum of Solace and Twilight out there, which are sure to bring their desired audiences. My eyes are already looking at December which is sure to look like a good month.
Here are some choices!

Punisher: War Zone 12/5/08



The Day the Earth Stood Still 12/12/08



Gran Torino 12/17/08(limited), 1/16/09(everywhere)



Yes Man 12/19/08



The Spirit 12/25/08



Valkrie 12/26/08



The Curious Case of Benjamin Button 12/25/08

Director of Punisher: War Zone Interview

Comicus[in Italian, scroll all the way down for English] got an extensive and exclusive interview with Lexi Alexander, director of the upcoming (and very anticipated) reboot of the Punisher series, Punisher: War Zone.

“I read the ‘Punisher’ comic books before I made the decision to do this, because that is the only way you can learn about an existing comic book character’s essence,” Alexander said in the Comicus interview. “Frank Castle knows only two sides: Good and Evil. There is no grey zone for him. If you are evil now, or have been in the past, or planning to be in the future, you are going to die. Period.

“The great thing about a reboot is, you can learn from the past if you care enough. I obviously watched the previous version, but I didn’t critique it and just crossed my fingers that I can do it better. I spent weeks on the computer, reading reviews and fan reactions about it. It was pretty damn clear what the fans liked and didn’t like about it. I basically had a road map for this reboot written by proper Punisher fans and the headline was. ‘Don’t go to Tampa!’ [Tampa being the setting for the previous film]”

Meanwhile, Alexander had nothing but praise for the film’s star, Ray Stevenson. “He is a real actor and you will experience this character with all his pain, the brutality of what happened in his past and certainly a soul that is struggling to see the light through his own darkness. Ray can portray all of that without ever saying a word and those are my favorite scenes to watch, even now after I’ve seen this film a few thousand times.”

Lexi seems to know her stuff about the Punisher.

Punisher: War Zone comes out Dec. 5, 2008.

Punisher: War Zone gets new site

The upcoming Punisher movie, Punisher: War Zone, has a new updated website letting you tour the world of the Punisher.
Check it out here. Punisher site

"Waging his one-man war on the world of organized crime, ruthless vigilante-hero Frank Castle sets his sights on overeager mob boss Billy Russoti. After Russoti is left horribly disfigured by Castle, he sets out for vengeance under his new alias: Jigsaw. With the "Punisher Task Force" hot on his trail and the FBI unable to take Jigsaw in, Frank must stand up to the formidable army that Jigsaw has recruited before more of his evil deeds go unpunished."

Punisher: War Zone comes out on Dec. 5. It is rated R.

November and December releases

Just throwing out some movies coming out in November and December that look of interest.
Do you know Jason Statham? Well you should. He is becoming a really great action flick guy. Transporter, Transporter 2, Crank, and Death Race he has all behind him. Now Crank 2 will be coming out next year and Transporter 3 comes out Nov. 26. And it is shaping up to be a pretty decent trilogy.
See the trailer here!
Other interesting films (in my opinion) coming out are Punisher: War Zone, Star Trek, and Twilight. Even though I am not really interested in Twilight, I know plenty of fangirls who are....
Watch the awesome Punisher trailer here! This is just the beginning...
So far the Star Trek film is being kept under wraps, but the teaser is here! Space, the final frontier...
Eh...here is Twilight trailer......right here. I still think vampires are cool though.
I will need to figure out how to make the videos actually be here instead of making them links. Still working on things! But....getting there....woo!
Will also be looking up more awesome films for the rest of 2008!
Catch ya' later!

Yes, yes....Frank Castle is very, very, very BA.