The "Inception" Train Keeps On Rolling, #1 at the Box Office 3 Weeks in a Row!

The title of the post pretty much explains it all. But I wanted to just take a second and comment on why this is a big deal.

Inception is #1 at the box office for the 3rd week in a row leading into August. That's a huge accomplishment. Summer movies usually get a week, maybe 2 at the top before a competitor comes along to take the top spot.

The percentage drop from one week to the next is much lower than other summer films. Usually you get a 60% drop off in business from opening number 1 to the following week. Inception is only dropping at a 35% rate, amazing. This is largely in part due to people going multiple times to see the film, as well as great word-of-mouth.

Lastly, the movie is an original! No comic-book, no sequel, prequel or reboot. This is a big deal. Rarely do we see original material last this long at number one. Similar to Avatar's longevity at the theater, Inception keeps rolling.

July 30th was director Christopher Nolan's 40th birthday, and what a way to celebrate. #1 Movie in America as well as single handidly showing Hollywood that audiences are yearning for original mater; just give it to us!

My, how the mighty have fallen. Why, Mel Gibson, why?

This guy is suuuuuch an idiot.  I want to take a look at Mel Gibson in a nut shell.  My, how the mighty have fallen.

At one point, Mel Gibson was absolutely, hands down my favorite actor in Hollywood.  He was funny, he could bring emotion, he was in great action movies, he was the whole package.  He went on to direct Braveheart and win Oscars for said movie; he could do no wrong.

Passion of the Christ came out, and all but cemented the notion that "no publicity is bad publicity".  The movie was stomped on by Jewish-rights activists for it's portrayal of Jews in the film.  But the movie just kept making more and more money.  The guy could do no wrong!


Oh but he did wrong.  He got arrested in 2007 for a d.u.i. like everyone knows by now.  Then he goes off about Jews to the arresting officer.  What did we expect to happen?  The officer wasn't going to put it in the report?  He sure did put it in his report and the whole world attacked Gibson for his comments.

Time goes by, people begin to forget.  I guess time does heal all wounds.  It's 2010, it's been about 7 years since Gibson has been in a film (M. Night Shyamalan's Signs in 2002).  The movie is Edge of Darkness, and it performs below average for Gibson.  It's OK, it's cool.  Even Tom Cruise is having trouble at the box office these days, and he's just an idiot in general, not because he's Anti-Semitic.  So Edge of Darkness was to be the beginning of a return for Gibson.  And then THIS happens.

I don't want this blog to ever be a gossip column.  So when I heard that some celebrity gossip website got a hold of some tape, with Mel Gibson cursing and threatening his ex-girlfriend, I ignored it.  But today the tape is been made public and it is indeed Mel Gibson.  It is definitely Mel Gibson in the tape.  And it's as bad as the websites have been reporting.  He calls his ex every name in the book and throws an "n" word in for good measure.  This is so God awful, disgusting.

When is Gibson ever going to be punished for his actions, for his words?  I'm not talking monetarily either.  Well, it looks like people in and around Hollywood are just sick of his nonsense, and are going to do something about it.  The police have opened an investigation into an incident earlier this year where Gibson reportedly punched out two of his ex-girlfriends teeth in a domestic disturbance.  The new tape of Gibson belittling his ex-girlfriend is now evidence.

Second, his agency, William Morris Endeavor dropped him from their roster just hours ago!  After the general public all but forgot the d.u.i. charges and racial slurs, you go and do this you idiot?  Really?  Like really?  All we wanted, all IIIII wanted, was the Gibson of old.  The man in Ransom, the man in Braveheart and Lethal Weapon.  It's pretty apparent that I'm not going to see that man anymore, instead, the man in the picture to the right.  A mug shot so we can all remember how horrible a person Mel Gibson is.

The A-Team review

I complain A LOT bout Hollywood's lack of original material.  A sequel here, a prequel there and every kind of reboot you could imagine.  The A-Team was no different to me.  Hollywood took an 80's TV show and decided they could make money on it.  How?  Reboot of course!

Well, it's 2010 and we have to work with what we've got.  Let me tell you something, this is the most fun I've had at the movies since the FIRST Iron Man, I'm not kidding!  The movie is a ton of fun, and I can't wait to talk about it with FattMatt.

Let me refresh everyone on our reviews, opinion, not plot.  I go over my "likes" and "dislikes", let's dive in!

What I liked about the movie:
The Casting
Wow, the chemistry amongst the four primary actors is awesome!  Hannibal, played by Liam Neeson.  Face played by Bradley Cooper.  B.A. Baracus played by Quiton Jackson.  And last, but certainly not least, Murdock played by Sharlto Copley.  I have never, EVER given a casting director a shout out... but here goes the first!  Deborah Aquila, thank you!


Neeson is just bad ass as the leader of the group.  I knew he had the action chops after Taken, this movie further proved the obvious.  Cooper played the arrogant, good looking guy perfectly.  Just the right mix of charm, humor and attitude so we loved him, not hated him.  I have to say, when I first heard about Jackson being cast in the movie, I was not OK with it.  But I stand corrected.  Jackson brings the physical presence needed for the role; plus there's an emotional side that was very well written for the Baracus character.

The man who steals the show.... drum roll please... Sharlto Copley as Murdock.  I can't explain enough how good Copley is in this movie.  After District 9 everyone knew Copley could play a corky type of character, but this is beyond that.  Murdock is a brilliant pilot that is literally insane... literally, he's in a mental hospital.  The comedy Copley brought to the role is awesome.  He alone is reason enough to see the movie.

The Action
Unbelievable, memorable, stunts!  Usually action movies have 3 separate action sequences.  One is usually in the beginning, the next is the middle and the third is the climax of the film.  The A-Team has 5 lengthy action sequences, FIVE!  All of which are creative, inventive ways to show action we haven't seen before.  The beginning of the movie jumps right in with a great escape scene.  There are planes, cars, helicopters, boats and motorcycles that develop into an awesome spectacle.  Thumbs up to Joe Carnahan, director of the film for the action.

The Director
Carnahan can do it all in my opinion.  Narc was a suspense thriller that was a critical success and had a decent sized following.  He directed Smokin' Aces which was also a fun ride.  He knows how to do action, he can direct big name actors, The A-Team was no different.  The pacing, the tone, the comedic timing and the score, all of them worked.  People criticize his editing choices, but I love it.  It's fast, and it's representative of the action.
Side-Note: watch the Narc DVD special features for an explanation from Carnahan about his editing.

What I didn't like about the movie:
Simple
I think Hollywood takes us fans as really simple people.  I touched on this a little bit in my 'Prince of Persia' review; the plots to movies these days are so simple.  Don't misunderstand me, I liked the plot to The A-Team, it's just so simple.  It's also a story I've read or saw in film a dozen times; as recently as this Summer's The Losers.  It's OK studio executives, we can handle a complex story!  I know the studios play it safe with simple stories like these, but come on, give us more!


Miss Jessica Claire Biel
I'm sorry to all of our male, testosterone driven readers, miss Biel just doesn't do it for me.  And I'm speaking from both a physical and acting level.   I will say this though, the character is essential to the story, I'm just not a fan of Biel.  She has to play this really tough Captain in the military, yet she's got a ton of make up on.  Not saying attractive women wouldn't be in a position of power in the military; I just don't see them caring more for their hair products than they do for the safety of the country.


The things I didn't like are really quite minor in comparison to the positives in the movie.  It was so much fun, I actually laughed and clapped at a movie!  Other than Toy Story 3, this is the only other highlight to an otherwise abysmal Summer at the movies.  I haven't seen The Karate Kid yet; but I'm going to say this will easily end up in my top 3 movies of the Summer this year.

The A-Team did the TV series justice and improved on it in my opinion.  The characters felt a bit more real than the TV show.  The acting and directing were top notch as well.  Go see it and tell everyone about it!  There's no reason this film shouldn't be doing better numbers at the box office.  And hopefully, HOPEFULLY they make a sequel to this awesome action flick!

The Karate Kid sequel is officially in development

I'll keep this post short and sweet. It comes as no surprise that this is happening. The Karate Kid starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan opened HUGE. To the tune of 55 million dollars, 30 million dollars MORE than second place The A-Team. The studio is working on a sequel and says it will be independent of the 80's sequels. I'm hoping to see the movie this week, I'll post a review. Til then, Hollywood's rehashing continues.

133.6 Million for Iron Man 2 is no Dark Knight

Iron Man 2 opened to a HUGE 133.6 million dollars opening weekend. The movie opened at the high end of it's studio's estimates (125-135 million). The movie was well below the record opening of The Dark Knight (158+ million). It was however the 5th biggest opening in history; pretty damn good!

I have to say I called this one. Last week I told you I didn't think it was going to surpass The Dark Knight's opening weekend numbers. I did give the movie a mostly positive review despite it's flaws. The rest of the movie going community feels the same way as I do... 74% at Rotten Tomatoes and 89% from their users.

I've spent most of the weekend reading reviews all over the net, and everyone is on the same page, which was refreshing. Most of the time, these big movies split people across a wide range of reviews; but with Iron Man 2, people all agreed about what they did and did not like.

Everyone also agrees that it's unfair to compare Iron Man 2 to The Dark Knight. Unless we're discussing box office numbers. So until the next HUGE comic book movie is released, The Dark Knight is still opening weekend king of the box office!

What the heck happened to Clash of the Titans this weekend?

Good afternoon everyone. I came online to check the box office results and was BLOWN away by what I saw. Let's break it down a bit.

Number 1 this week, How to Train Your Dragon. WHAT?!?! It just all of a sudden leap froged a few spots to number one? I saw the film, and loved it, absolutely loved it. It was action, adventure, dragons, the whole nine. It was performing pretty steadily at the box office, but just couldn't grab the number spot, until this week. (NOTE: That might change as of tomorrow because the race between the first and second place movies was so close).

Number 2 went to a new-comer, Kick Ass. In all my estimations, I thought this movie was going to open number 1, and it stay may do so tomorrow. The movie has been getting great reviews, has a funny story line, and has a great cast. In fact, 13 year old actress Chloe Moretz is getting a lot of attention for her role as "Hit-Girl". Must be all that swearing and killing she's doing in the movie.

Number 3, Date Night. Just like this week, last weeks box office winner came down to the wire. Date Night looked like they had the top spot until Monday morning. They were battling it out with Clash of the Titans for number 1. So to see it drop to three isn't necessarily a bad thing, just surprising. Surprising because "Dragon" has been out for awhile now, and to see it take a leap above a movie that's been out for 10 days, that's crazy.

Number 4, also a newcomer, Death at a Funeral. Not a huge surprise; the movie landed where I think it was supposed to. I think it will do about the same number for the weeks coming up.

Number 5, surprise of the week, Clash of the Titans. What the heck? It was first place last week and drops to fifth place this week? Wha, who, ha, how? Well, after 2 seconds of thinking about it, I figured out why it dropped; BECAUSE THE MOVIE SUCKED. It took the movie crowds a few weeks to see it, but they finally came to their senses. There are a few other factors involved in the drop.

First is the fact that Kick-Ass and Death at a Funeral both came out this week. Kick-Ass especially demanded more screens at theaters. This gave "Titans" less screens, and less of a battle against the other movies in the top five.

Second is the fact that "Titans" was an abomination in 3D. So what do you think the theaters did? Including Valencia, CA... theater owners opted to use their 3D screens for "Dragon" rather than "Titans". This obviously boasted the ticket sales of one apposed to the other.

I guess, the overall theme of this rambling post is this; we're not going to pay for lame 3D movies anymore. These studios need to understand that the movie-going public will not just buy 3D tickets anymore, JUST to buy 3D tickets. The movie has to be shot in 3D, not just converted in post-production. Movies like "Dragon" that utilize the technology to better tell their story is the way to do it; rather than using it as a gimmick for kicks.

This blogger made a promise to himself never to see another 3D movie that was converted in post-production. This happened after the debacle that was Alice in Wonderland. No comment.

Avatar opens with 73 million dollars

James Cameron's Avatar did what everyone thought it would do... well! The movie pulled in 73 million dollars and was a huge critical success. 73 million is actually less than predicted, but it was only because of the UNpredictable. Snow blizzards on the East Coast caused the movie to dip a bit in the number, but still broke a record.

Avatar broke a record for the biggest opening of any "original" movie in history. That means, it wasn't adapted from a book or comic book, and was NOT a sequel. That's like Star Wars status right there! The critics all agree and the box office doesn't lie (most of the time). But did you go see it? Tell us what you think? FattMatt was busy camping this weekend, and Tonedog was just flat out busy. Maybe this week!

Quickie: This is It early numbers are big

Variety is reporting big numbers for the Michael Jackson behind-the-scenes film, This is It. Try 20 million dollars! The movie was released Tuesday at midnight and all day yesterday. Not bad! I saw the film last night and will be posting a full review by the end of the day. He really is the King isn't he?

Couple's Retreat wins the box office

That's right, Couple's Retreat won the box office, as expected I must say. The comedy featuring everyone who's funny in Hollywood came up with 35.3 million over the weekend; defeating last weeks champ, Zombieland, which did 15 million dollars on its own.

Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs dropped to third place with 12 million dollars. The re-release of Toy Story 1 & 2 in 3D came in at 7.7 million dollars. Here's the rest of the top ten:

1. "Couples Retreat," $35.3 million.

2. "Zombieland," $15 million.

3. "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," $12 million.

4. "Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2" in 3-D, $7.7 million.

5. "Paranormal Activity," $7.1 million.

6. "Surrogates," $4.1 million.

7. "The Invention of Lying," $3.4 million.

8. "Whip It," $2.8 million.

9. "Capitalism: A Love Story," $2.7 million.

10. "Fame," $2.6 million.

The 'Basterds' win the weekend box office

Quentin Tarantino has done it again... won the weekend box office. Inglourious Basterds took in 37.6 million dollars Friday to Sunday. The industry experts predicted 25 million. The film marks Tarantino's biggest opening ever, beating out Kill Bill Vol. 2 back in 2004; that movie took in 25 million its first weekend. The movie had great reviews from both fans and critics. AtD reviews coming soon.

District 9 was the surprise hit last week, and continued to do well this week. The film took in a great 18.9 million dollars in its second week. G.I. Joe fell to third, but is doing well at 120+ million so far.

Tarantino's long time friend and collaborator, Robert Rodriguez had Shorts, a family film, hit the top ten this week. The movie took in 6.6 million and is expected to have a long run through September as kids are going back to school. Here's the rest of the top ten:


1. "Inglourious Basterds," $37.6 million.

2. "District 9," $18.9 million.

3. "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," $12.5 million.

4. "The Time Traveler's Wife," $10 million.

5. "Julie & Julia," $9 million.

6. "Shorts," $6.6 million.

7. "G-Force," $4.2 million.

8. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," $3.5 million.

9. "The Ugly Truth," $2.9 million.

10. "Post Grad," $2.8 million.

Quickie: The Time Traveler's Wife coming to TV

The Time Traveler's Wife did very well this last week in theaters. 19.2 million dollars for the best selling book adaptation. ABC has picked up the rights to the TV series based on the book, according to thewrap.com. The TV studio says its been in talks for years... ahem, BS, ahem. Funny how it's been in talks for years, but the week after its a box office hit the deal is done. ABC is working with the creator of "Friends", Marta Kauffman and Warner Bros. Television to produce the show.

District 9 wins the weekend box office

A surprise win at the box office this week, District 9 has taken the top spot from G.I. Joe. The film grossed 37 million dollars in the Friday to Sunday draw. With a reported 30 million dollar budget, the film has already made money. What a huge take down to G.I. Joe. Last week's number one dropped to second place with 22.5 million dollars. A steep drop off, but still brought the movie into the top two.

District 9 doesn't have any big name stars but picked up a lot of buzz with its viral campaigning. Online buzz was positive and the studio threw the fact that Peter Jackson was producing in everyone's face. The movie is about aliens living among us here on earth. Hmm... I'm not that interested to be honest, but will probably end up watching it.

The Time Traveler's Wife starring Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana came in at number three with 19.2 million dollars. Based on a best selling book, the movie is about a time traveler (Bana) who doesn't know when or two where, or for how long he is going to time travel. In the meantime he has a wife (McAdams) at home who never knows where he is.

The biggest disappointment off the weekend came at the hands of The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard. The movie only managed to take in 5.4 million dollars and a very disappointing 6th place behind G-Force of all movies. The movie stars Jeremy Piven in his first real leading role. The 'R' rating always has an effect on movies, but this film may just be a dud regardless of hilarious trailers.

Here's a look at the rest of the top ten:

1. "District 9," $37 million.

2. "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," $22.5 million.

3. "The Time Traveler's Wife," $19.2 million.

4. "Julie & Julia," $12.4 million.

5. "G-Force," $6.9 million.

6. "The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard," $5.4 million.

7. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," $5.2 million.

8. "The Ugly Truth," $4.5 million.

9. "Ponyo," $3.5 million.

10. "500 Days of Summer," $3 million.

Quickie: G.I. Joe wins big box office

So Paramount decided not to show the film to critics before its release, but that didn't stop people from going in swarms to the theater to see the action flick G.I. Joe. The movie grossed 56.2 million dollars in its first three days. Not really that big of a surprise if you ask me. It's the last action blockbuster of the summer, already had a great following, and advertising support from the studio.

The great Meryl Streep also had a film released this week, Julie & Julia, co-starring Amy Adams. The film opened with a respectable 20.1 million dollars. And perhaps the biggest disappointment of the list goes to Adam Sandler's Funny People. The film dropped an astonishing 64 percent to just 7.9 million this week after opening number last week. Here are the rest of the results this week:


1. "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," $56.2 million.

2. "Julie & Julia," $20.1 million.

3. "G-Force," $9.8 million.

4. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," $8.9 million.

5. "Funny People," $7.9 million.

6. "The Ugly Truth," $7 million.

7. "A Perfect Getaway," $5.8 million.

8. "Aliens in the Attic," $4 million.

9. "Orphan," $3.73 million.

10. "500 Days of Summer," $3.7 million.

Funny People wins the box office

This week goes to Adam Sandler's Funny People, directed by the always successful Judd Apatow. The movie scored 23.4 million dollars. Not a complete surprise that the movie finished first, but the dollar amount is. It's actually Adam Sandler's worst opening in nearly four years.

The surprise of the week was "Harry Potter" holding strong, it came in second place with 17.7 million dollars. That was a good sign after last weeks surprise hit G-Force knocked it off the top spot. G-Force placed third with 17.1 million dollars.

The only other new release this week was Aliens in the Attic, placing fifth place with 7.8 million dollars. I'd like to make one point. Transformers 2: Revenge of the Suck is at tenth place which hopefully means next week it will be off the top ten. ;) Here's the rest of the top ten:

1. "Funny People," $23.4 million.

2. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," $17.7 million.

3. "G-Force," $17.1 million.

4. "The Ugly Truth," $13 million.

5. "Aliens in the Attic," $7.8 million.

6. "Orphan," $7.3 million.

7. "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaur," $5.3 million.

8. "The Hangover," $5.1 million.

9. "The Proposal," $4.8 million.

10. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," $4.6 million.

G-Force tops Harry Potter at this week's box office

Wow... Matt and I made a conscious decision not to post information unless it was something we're passionate about, I'm sorry we're going against that right now. G-Force, the Disney 3D animation picture has taken this week's box office from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. The movie opened to 32+ million dollars. Harry Potter followed suit with 30 million dollars. The other movies opening this week were The Ugly Truth which took in a respectable 27 million dollars, and Orphan, taking in 12.8 million dollars.

Yes G-Force made a lot of money, but that was to be expected with the hype, and it being a family friendly pic. The surprise of the week was The Ugly Truth starring Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler. Their chemistry was obviously playing well to audiences because Rotten Tomatoes gave the picture a horrible 15% approval rating from critics. But the crowds have spoken and Heigl and Butler are the new Queen and King of the Rom-Com genre. Here are the rest of the top ten:

1. "G-Force," $32.2 million.

2. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," $30 million.

3. "The Ugly Truth," $27 million.

4. "Orphan," $12.8 million.

5. "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs," $8.2 million.

6. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," $8 million.

7. "The Hangover," $6.5 million.

8. "The Proposal," $6.4 million.

9. "Public Enemies," $4.2 million.

10. "Bruno," $2.7 million.

Hangover wins the box office again, poor Eddie Murphy.

The weekend estimates are in and the AP announced that The Hangover was again the winner at the box office this weekend. Just like last week, The Hangover took first and Up, took second. The Hangover is closing in on $200 million before the summer is over and cost a reported $31 million to make! That's a nice profit I'd say. The Denzel Washington, John Travolta action/drama, The Taking of Pelham 123, came in third place with a respectable $25 million.

But the spotlight was not on the winners of this week, it was on poor Eddie Murphy. Imagine That opened to a whopping $5.7 million; and drew criticism from its own studio. Eddie Murphy is an idiot. ORRR, his agent is the worst agent in the history of the history of the industry (yes I wrote in the history of twice on purpose). Why the flip does he constantly try to make these idiotic, meaningless family movies. Meet Dave, The Haunted Mansion, Norbit, and the biggest movie loss in history... Pluto Nash! Those are just off the top of my head; I bet I could IMDB a few more. Fire your agent Eddie! And stick to the shtick! Some of you will understand that.

Here are the rest of the top ten this week:


1. "The Hangover," $33.4 million.

2. "Up," $30.5 million.

3. "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3," $25 million.

4. "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian," $9.6 million.

5. "Land of the Lost," $9.2 million.

6. "Imagine That," $5.7 million.

7. "Star Trek," $5.6 million.

8. "Terminator Salvation," $4.7 million.

9. "Angels & Demons," $4.2 million.

10. "Drag Me to Hell," $3.9 million.

CORRECTION: "Up" is NOT this weeks champ

This rarely happens in Hollywood, but the estimates were wrong closing out Sunday's box office weekend. Monday's final tally on the weekend's movies proved a shift in the number one spot. This week's box office champ is "The Hangover" by a mere 1 million over "Up". I'm going to take a guess and say late Sunday showings are to blame for 'Hangover's jump to first. Either way it's going to be fun to see both movies.

"Up" is this weeks champ... again!

Hello folks and good morning on a beautiful Monday. Looks like "Up" is the little movie that could... or big budget movie that could, either way. "Up" is the champ again this week at the box office which isn't a huge surprise. The movie had great numbers last week and the word of mouth and positive reviews are all to blame. This week, we had a couple of new comers to the top ten, including "The Hangover" and "Land of the Lost". "The Hangover" did very well for its first week out. Being that it earned an "R" rating, 40+ million is very good. Number three this week was the less than successful "Land of the Lost". I love Will Ferrell and love Danny McBride even more. You don't know who Danny McBride is just yet, but for all you HBO fans, remember this name: Kenny Powers! 'Land' had poor reviews and is a remake of the tv show by the same name, decades ago. I haven't seen it yet, so I don't want to give a full review, but to be honest I don't have any real desire to watch this film. The rest of the top ten are listed below... see you shortly.



1. "Up," $44.2 million.

2. "The Hangover," $43.3 million.

3. "Land of the Lost," $19.5 million.

4. "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian," $14.7 million.

5. "Star Trek," $8.4 million.

6. "Terminator Salvation," $8.2 million.

7. "Drag Me to Hell," $7.3 million.

8. "Angels & Demons," $6.5 million.

9. "My Life in Ruins," $3.2 million.

10. "Dance Flick," $2 million.

Tickets on sale for "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"

Tickets are on sale now at all the online ticketing stores, fandango.com, etc. Who's down for the midnight showing?!?!?!