Box Office Results and Weekly Movie News

Movies coming out this week!

Green Zone - Discovering covert and faulty intelligence causes a U.S. Army officer (Damon) to go rogue as he hunts for Weapons on Mass Destruction in an unstable region.

Remember Me - A romantic drama centered on two new lovers: Tyler (Pattinson), whose parents have split in the wake of his brother's suicide, and Ally (de Ravin), who lives each day to the fullest since witnessing her mother's murder.

She's Out of My League - A guy (Baruchel) lets his insecurities pick away at his fledgling relationship with the perfect gal (Eve).

Our Family Wedding - The weeks leading up to a young couple's wedding is comic and stressful, especially as their respective fathers (Whitaker and Mencia) try to lay to rest their long-standing feud.

Movies coming out on DVD and Blu-ray!

Up in the Air
Precious
Old Dogs
Planet 51
The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day

Box Office results for the weekend!

1 Alice in Wonderland $116.3 M

2 Brooklyn's Finest$13.5 M

3 Shutter Island $13.3 M

4 Cop Out $9.1 M

5 Avatar $7.7 M

6 The Crazies $7.0 M

7 Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief $5.1 M

8 Valentine's Day $4.2 M

9 Crazy Heart $3.3 M

10 Dear John $2.8 M

Audiences followed Tim Burton and Johnny Depp down the rabbit hole this weekend as "Alice in Wonderland" scored the sixth largest debut of all time, shattering box office records for 3-D and IMAX along the way and was the second biggest PG opening ever ($5 M behind "Shrek the Third").

The debut was nearly $40 million more than analysts predicted and gave the film the largest debut ever for a non-sequel, beating out "Spider-Man."

The film also smashed records set just a few weeks ago by "Avatar," including largest debut on IMAX.

"Wonderland" raked in $11.9 million on IMAX, surpassing "Avatar's" $9.5 million.

The 2009 Sundance hit "Brooklyn's Finest" held its own with a $13.5 million opening and beating out "Shutter Island," which came in third.

"Cop Out" came in fourth and was followed by "Avatar." After three months on screen, Avatar has racked up $720.2 million and has yet to drop out of the top five. Worldwide, it has done $2.6 billion, another record.

The rest of the films kind of did bottom barrel business as usual. Say goodbye to "Valentine's Day" as you won't be seeing it around these parts anymore.

Expect films like "Green Zone" and "She's Out of My League" to be battling for second place next weekend as I expect "Alice in Wonderland" to stay in the top spot.

More news to come! Catch ya' later
(Latino Review, Rope of Silicon, USA Today)

3D Bonanza: More Films go to the Next Dimension

The new wave in blockbuster action cinema is almost upon us. Hate it or Love it, 3D films are now happening around us everyday. Who in the world could have given every major studio the notion that 3D equals buckets of money?

The easy answer is James Cameron and "Avatar," but he can only be held responsible for so much. Animated 3D movies aimed at children have been doing well for awhile - maybe because you can charge more money for tickets and kids see it as a gimmick.

James Cameron just proved you could do 3D for adults.

He didn't necessarily prove that just because you can you should, and the difference between a gimmick and a new tool for directors lies in the audience's tolerance of it.

"Avatar" was a game changer, but we're still playing the game. It's time to expect a shotgun approach that's shaping up to be something like Jason Bourne shaky cam or Bullet Time, except this one costs the theater-goer more money and makes the potential for electronics company to bring new products into your home - so this new trick isn't acting like a new tool.

Then again, I extend an open invitation to any of the below mentioned films to come slap the cynisim right out of me. Through my 3D glasses, of course.

Warner Bros is upping the ante by upgrading Zach Snyder's action-fantasy "Sucker Punch" up another dimension in time for it's March 25, 2011 release, and it's also giving Ryan Reynolds' superhero flick "Green Lantern" a boost to 3D for June 17, 2011.

So now Warner Brothers is going 3D crazy? I guess they're satisfied with the way "Clash of the Titans" turned out in 3D.

To be honest, this isn't all that surprising, but it could be considered exciting. We already know Hollywood is going 3D crazy, it just took a little while for Warner Brothers to join in.

Also on the list of films to go 3D is the upcoming "Alien" prequel that is set to be directed by Ridely Scott.

Shadow Locked spoke with Roger Christian (art director on "Star Wars" and "Alien") who mentioned that Scott's "Alien" prequel would be getting the 3D treatment.

Honestly, it was inevitable that we'd hear this sooner or later, since everything under the sun is going into the third dimension. So acid spit and chest splitting aliens will be flying right at our faces in the new installment.

Unfortunately, I think the studios are going to convert most of these movies to 3D in post-production and not shooting any of them in 3D from the start. Hopefully that kind of decision will backfire on some studios and cause them to shoot 3D the way it should be shot.

Any thoughts on all these films becoming 3D?

More news to come! Catch ya' later!
Sources: First Showing (1,2), Latino Review, Live for Films

'Legend of the Guardians' Trailer

I'm going to have to take some time to work out the tag change for this post and others since Zack Snyder's animated film "The Guardians of Ga'hoole" had its named changed to the generic title "Legend of the Guardians."

Anyway, the trailer for the film is now online and it kind of reminds me of "300" - but with owls.

Watch below and see what you think.

The film is based on the series of children's books by Kathryn Lasky. It's is set in the Forest of Tyto, where Barn Owls live in peace until their kingdom is threatened by an evil that could destroy their home.

Does this trailer get you excited for this movie?
"Legend of the Guardians" hits theaters September 24, 2010.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

'Wolverine 2' Script Finished and Shooting to Begin in Jan. 2011

THR's Showbiz 411 has confirmed that the sequel to "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" will be ready to begin shooting by January of 2011.

Christopher McQuarrie ("The Usual Suspects," "Valkyrie") has finished the screenplay for the project, which will see star Hugh Jackman returning as the metal-clawed mutant.

In Chris Claremont and Frank Miller's 1982 four-issue comic book miniseries, Wolverine journeys to the Far East to track down former fiancee Mariko Yashida and learns the ways of the samurai. He battles a ninja clan called The Hand as he struggles with whether to give in to his animalistic killer instincts or follow the samurai code of honor and respect.

There is no director yet, but THR's Roger Friedman says the script is a bit different than originally thought.

"It's a beautiful story," a source said, "and will be very different than the first film."

And that's a good thing as I'm hoping "Wolverine 2" will be better than the first film. While it was a decent action flick, it was nothing to really get excited about.

They're definitely in the right direction with McQuarrie writing the screenplay as I think he's a great writer (he won an Oscar for "The Usual Suspects"). Secondly, they're using the storyline from Wolverine's Japanese comic book arc from the 80s, which is amazing and will hopefully translate well to the big screen. And they're hiring a Japanese actress to play opposite Hugh Jackman as his love interest.

Now all that's left is to find a director who can put the finishing touches on and show us the "Wolverine" movie we've wanted to see. I'm not expecting it to be rated-R, but maybe they can make it a hard PG-13 like "The Dark Knight."

More news to come! Catch ya' later!
Sources: The Geek Files, First Showing

Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov adapting 'Abe Lincoln: Vampire Hunter'

According to Heat Vision, Tim Burton ("Batman," "Alice in Wonderland") and Timur Bekmambetov ("Wanted") are joining forces to bring the Seth Grahame-Smith novel "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" to the big screen.

Grahame-Smith, who combined zombies and Jane Austen in the best-selling novel “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,” will write the screenplay. The film adaptation of that novel is set up at Lionsgate with Natalie Portman producing and attached to star.

The story kicks off with the revelation that Lincoln's mother was killed by a supernatural creature, which fueled his passion to crush vampires and their slave-owning helpers. The book depicts the 16th US president as a highly trained vampire killer!

Burton and Bekmambetov, who have also teamed up to produce Shane Acker's "9," bought the rights with their own money and haven't involved any studios yet. This is a neat idea and I'm down for seeing this on the big screen. I like the concepts that Seth Grahame-Smith is coming up with - this guy is going to break out huge once one of these movies actually gets made. Let's hope Burton and Bekmambetov find a director who can start working on this right away.

In anticipation of the book's release, a short video was made to highlight what the story would be about. Is this what we can expect the film to possibly be like?



Are you excited for "Abe Lincoln: Vampire Hunter"? Are you a fan of Grahame-Smith's work thus far?

More news to come! Catch ya' later!
Sources: Live for Films, First Showing

New 'Prince of Persia' Trailer

The first trailer for Disney’s "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" that was released back in November highlighted the special effects driven scenery and action that moviegoers will witness in the summer blockbuster.

IGN has just released a new "Prince of Persia" trailer and it’s a bit better than the first. It doesn’t reveal anything new overall but it does feature more story elements through Gemma Arterton’s exposition/narration intertwined with quick action shots. We also get to see a bit more of the use of the dagger to slow and reverse time which I hope is going to be used for some cool action sequences.


Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Trailer 2 in HD

Trailer Park Movies | MySpace Video

In the fantasy adventure based on Ubisoft's popular video game, Gyllenhaal will play Dastan, a young prince in sixth century Persia who must join forces with Tamina (Arterton), a feisty and exotic princess, to prevent a villainous nobleman from possessing the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that can reverse time and allow its possessor to rule the world.

I’m a big fan of the game and from what I’ve see so far from the trailers and features, there’s not enough cool sword fighting and parkour (basically what made the game a success). Hopefully more will come.

The film is directed by Mike Newell and stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan, Gemma Arterton as Tamina, Alfred Molina, Ben Kingsley and Toby Kebbell.

"Prince of Persia" hits theaters May 28, 2010.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!
Sources: Latino Review, Screen Rant

Movie News Mash 32

Guardians of Ga'Hoole

According to THR, Zack Snyder's ("300", "Watchmen") animated film "Guardians of Ga'Hoole" has been renamed "Legend of the Guardians."

That is a really, really generic name. I actually liked "Guardians of Ga'Hoole." Sure, it sounded like an offbeat role playing game, but different is good, right? Oh, well. I'm sure it will be good no matter what it's called.

The film is based on the series of children's books by Kathryn Lasky and set in the Forest of Tyto, where Barn Owls live in peace until their kingdom is threatened by an evil that could destroy their home. The voice cast includes Hugh Jackman, Hugo Weaving, Ryan Kwanten, Jim Sturgess, Geoffrey Rush, Rachael Taylor, David Wenham and Sam Neill.

The movie hit theaters Sept. 24.
(Rope of Silicon, Latino Review)

Arthur
According to THR, ABC's "Modern Family" director/producer Jason Winer has signed on to direct "Arthur" for Warner Bros. starring Russell Brand as the title character.

The film is a remake of the 1981 Oscar-winning comedy starring Dudley Moore who played Arthur, a boozy playboy rascal who is set to inherit a fortune if he marries an heiress his family thinks will make something out of him. However, he falls in love with a working-class woman and turns to his valet for help when his family makes him choose between money and love.

I enjoyed Russell in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," so I'm excited to see what he does with the character. What do you guys think? Have most of you seen the original Arthur?
(Rope of Silicon, Latino Review)

Zoolander 2
Fans of the 2001 Ben Stiller comedy, "Zoolander," were probably ecstatic last week when news hit that a sequel was in the works.

Details at the time of the announcement were that Stiller is writing the script along with his "Tropic Thunder" scribe Justin Theroux, and that Theroux is also planning on directing.

In a chat with MTV News, we get word from Stiller himself that "Zoolander 2" is definitely happening and he gave some details on what we can expect from the long anticipated sequel. He discussed such things as the possibility of Will Ferrell coming back as the character of Mugatu, and also that the story will take place 10 years after the first movie ended, when Derek and Hansel (played by Owen Wilson in the first) are literally forgotten about.

Instead of transcribing everything Stiller said, why not just check out the video for yourself? Here it is, courtesy of MTV:

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

Do you like the details you’re hearing about "Zoolander 2"? Are you glad they’re making another one?
(Screen Rant)

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

'Wanted 2' Will Move Forward Without Angelina Jolie

Last week, word broke that Angelina Jolie had turned down the chance to reprise her role as Fox in "Wanted 2." Despite initial rumors claiming that the potential sequel had been shelved by Universal, "Wanted" co-creator Mark Millar has indicated the film will proceed without Jolie.

“'Wanted 2' will be certainly going ahead, because the first one made too much money for them not to do a sequel," explained Millar during an interview with STV. "What I heard was that there’s filming this year for a release at the end of next year, so the plot that they had will have some modifications now. Her character will have to be written out completely. We’ll see what happens, I don’t know, it changes every day. Again, things get so out of your hands with film because 300 people are involved, whereas with comics it’s just you and your artist."

The first "Wanted" movie differed significantly from the original miniseries - especially in regards to the fate of Jolie's character at the end of the film.

“What was funny was originally 'Wanted' was just going to be one movie, and Angelina [Jolie] dies at the end," related Millar. “The idea was that it was going to be self-contained, but the movie cost $75 million to make and it made $314 million back just theatrically. At the premiere the tracking was really good and everything, and the producer came up and said ‘What are we going to do for 'Wanted 2?'’ and I was like ‘I don’t have any ideas!’"

“So they put something together, and it was bringing Angelina back from the dead and everything," continued Millar. "I don’t know, I think that probably just didn’t sit easily with her, because it has to be a really good reason why somebody comes back from the dead.”

“I think it’s actually more authentic if they keep her dead," added Millar. "She was the star of the movie really, but how cool is it to have the star dead and bring in another cool character for the next one?"

According to the Hollywood Reporter, sources at Universal Studios have also confirmed that "Wanted 2" is still "alive."

Jolie left the sequel to work on a film called "Gravity," but the same THR report states that she is in negotiations to appear in director Darren Aronofsky's adaptation of the novel "Serena." Entertainment Weekly states that Jolie’s representatives "say the actress has passed on doing 'Gravity' at Warner Bros. and that even WB "is still unable to confirm whether or not 'Gravity' is even set up with the studio."

Jolie will next be seen in the action-thriller "Salt" where she plays a CIA officer accused by a defector of being a Russian sleeper spy. "Salt" hits theaters on July 23. After that, she'll be seen in the "The Tourist" opposite Johnny Depp with an unknown 2011 release date. And after that she'll once again lend her voice to the character of Tigress in "Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom of Doom," which is set to hit theaters on June 3, 2011.

Are you happy that there will be a "Wanted 2" after all? How do you feel about Jolie not returning for the sequel?

More news to come! Catch ya' later!
Sources: MTV News, Rope of Silicon