June is essentially over, but the box office is about to heat up as July looks to beat last July's $1.395 billion to replace it as the highest grossing month of all time.
It is still too early to call this weekend's releases hits or misses, although Ted and Magic Mike, which both look to open around $50 million, will definitely be better off than Tyler Perry's Madea's Witness Protection and People Like Us. However, their success really depends on how well they hold up against two of the biggest films of the year: Spider-Man and The Dark Knight Rises.
But anyway, here's my box office scorecard for the month of June.
What worked:
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted
With $170 million already in the bank domestically, the third outing of everybody's favorite group of talking former zoo animals is definitely going to outgross the first two installments' $193 and $180 million domestic grosses. I'm sure y'all are just as excited to find out where they'll end up in the next sequel...
Brave
Pixar's thirteenth film looks to continue the studio's remarkable $200 million track record. After this weekend the film should have a gross of $130 million domestically. It should continue to play well throughout the summer, considering that Merida's only family friendly, animated competitors are Madagascar 3, Ice Age 4 and ParaNorman. Madagascar 3 has a few weeks' head start, but Brave has a good chance of outgrossing it and The Lorax to become the highest grossing animated film of the year.
The Avengers
Joss Whedon sure is greedy these days. Breaking all of the records wasn't enough, so now he has to go and beat Titanic's original run of $600.8 million. Whedon's behemoth grossed $70 million this month, making him the second ever director of a $600 million domestic grossing film. Jim Cameron's response? Avatar 2, 3, and 4.
Moonrise Kingdom
Though released in May, Moonrise Kingdom didn't receive wide distribution until the last weekend of June. After an amazing opening weekend, Anderson's most recent film has continued on an impressive incline, and looks to finish out the month above its $16 million production budget.
What didn't:
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
Steve Carell might be able to weather the end of days (I don't really know because I haven't seen it yet...) but he didn't do such a great job weathering the summer box office. Of all the films released in June in more than 1000 theaters, Seeking had the worst domestic opening weekend with almost $4 million. It will probably get close to its $10 million production budget, but has no chance of doing any better than that. Is Steve's star fading? I hope not, because he is one of my favorite comedic actors.
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
I normally don't have complaints about films involving Tim Burton, but 2012 has been a tough year for him so far. From the reviews I have read about Lincoln, the biggest problem for the film was the decision to play it straight rather than going campy. (Ironically, I remember criticizing Burton's Dark Shadows for going too far in the opposite direction.) The result? A $70 million should-be blockbuster with a tiny $25 million domestic gross.
Rock of Ages & That's My Boy
Same release date, both recalling the 1980s, both with production budgets around $70 million, and both have currently grossed $30 million domestically. Bad investments? Probably. Worth discussing further? Not in my opinion.
Honorable Mention:
Prometheus
If you've read my reviews you know how much I liked Prometheus, so it makes me sad that it hasn't quite reached the blockbuster proportions that I feel it deserves. A domestic gross of $115 million is respectable, except for the fact that the film is Ridley Scott's return to the Alien universe and the science fiction genre. Adjusted for ticket price inflation, Prometheus currently has the third highest domestic gross of the franchise, behind Alien and Aliens, with $249 million and $181 million respectively. It's a little better knowing that the film's $260 million worldwide gross is double its production budget, and hopefully that will be enough to convince Fox to invest in a sequel.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
July 2012 Preview!
Here is a quick look at the new releases I plan to see in July:
The Amazing Spider-Man
July starts with a bang as Marc Webb and Andrew Garfield reboot the beloved franchise. I'm excited about the darker vibe and the changes in the origin story from Raimi's trilogy. And considering how bad Maguire's third installment was, bringing some new blood into the franchise should help the reboot, and its already scheduled sequel, return to the huge domestic gross of the first film.
The Dark Knight Rises
Definitely worth standing in line for days to see the midnight premiere in IMAX 3D (if you can find a screening that isn't already sold out...) I originally considered this the no-brainer highest grossing film of the year, but Avengers threw a wrench in that prediction. It will definitely end up with one of the highest grosses of the year, but outgrossing Avengers' mammoth $600 million haul is unlikely.
Ruby Sparks
Another film from the directors of Little Miss Sunshine. Starring Paul Dano as a struggling writer whose ideal, yet fictional, woman comes to life. This will be one of the rare instances where I'm excited about seeing a romantic comedy.
What excites you the most about July's slate?
The Amazing Spider-Man
July starts with a bang as Marc Webb and Andrew Garfield reboot the beloved franchise. I'm excited about the darker vibe and the changes in the origin story from Raimi's trilogy. And considering how bad Maguire's third installment was, bringing some new blood into the franchise should help the reboot, and its already scheduled sequel, return to the huge domestic gross of the first film.
The Dark Knight Rises
Definitely worth standing in line for days to see the midnight premiere in IMAX 3D (if you can find a screening that isn't already sold out...) I originally considered this the no-brainer highest grossing film of the year, but Avengers threw a wrench in that prediction. It will definitely end up with one of the highest grosses of the year, but outgrossing Avengers' mammoth $600 million haul is unlikely.
Ruby Sparks
Another film from the directors of Little Miss Sunshine. Starring Paul Dano as a struggling writer whose ideal, yet fictional, woman comes to life. This will be one of the rare instances where I'm excited about seeing a romantic comedy.
What excites you the most about July's slate?
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Prometheus
Prometheus (2012)
Directed by Ridley Scott
Sorry about this being a week late...I would have posted this sooner but I've been a little busy with work and moving into a new apartment (which doesn't have internet yet... )
So eight of my friends and I went to see the midnight release of Prometheus in IMAX 3D. We arrived at the theater around 10 pm and received our awesome, exclusive, limited edition, 12:01 showing posters. They are cool.
I've read a few reviews that claim Prometheus didn't live up to the reputation of Alien. True, it's not as groundbreaking, but to be fair you have to acknowledge that Alien was something that had never been seen before. All the mysteries and questions of Prometheus are old, but the film still approaches them in a fresh new way.
The film did have some faults though. I quickly grew tired of the overused helmet cams, especially after witnessing such exquisite cinematography in the prologue. And while I love Damon Lindelof, a good portion of Noomi's dialogue was too on-the-head. Rather than using subtext to move the plot, Damon had Dr. Elizabeth Shaw just say exactly what she meant. Perhaps it was a combination of bad dialogue and a stiff performance. Maybe Damon was just trying too hard to define Shaw and overdid it. I don't know what exactly went wrong there.
But I do know that David was perfectly written and performed.
And I do know that majority of the cinematography was absolutely breathtaking (especially in IMAX.)
And I do know that the set pieces and special effects were gorgeous.
And I know that Prometheus was one hell of an enjoyable movie, and if Ridley Scott had kept his mouth shut about it being an Alien-quasi-prequel-sequel-whatever nobody would be complaining about it.
Even though I had to look away during a certain scene, this is definitely my favorite film of the year so far.
The Final Word: Build a time machine, go back to June 7, 2012, and go to the midnight premier in IMAX 3D. Wash, rinse, repeat.
4.99 out of 5 stars
Viewed 12:01 am June 8, 2012 at Cinemark 17 & IMAX in Dallas, TX
Directed by Ridley Scott
Sorry about this being a week late...I would have posted this sooner but I've been a little busy with work and moving into a new apartment (which doesn't have internet yet... )
I've read a few reviews that claim Prometheus didn't live up to the reputation of Alien. True, it's not as groundbreaking, but to be fair you have to acknowledge that Alien was something that had never been seen before. All the mysteries and questions of Prometheus are old, but the film still approaches them in a fresh new way.
The film did have some faults though. I quickly grew tired of the overused helmet cams, especially after witnessing such exquisite cinematography in the prologue. And while I love Damon Lindelof, a good portion of Noomi's dialogue was too on-the-head. Rather than using subtext to move the plot, Damon had Dr. Elizabeth Shaw just say exactly what she meant. Perhaps it was a combination of bad dialogue and a stiff performance. Maybe Damon was just trying too hard to define Shaw and overdid it. I don't know what exactly went wrong there.
But I do know that David was perfectly written and performed.
And I do know that majority of the cinematography was absolutely breathtaking (especially in IMAX.)
And I do know that the set pieces and special effects were gorgeous.
And I know that Prometheus was one hell of an enjoyable movie, and if Ridley Scott had kept his mouth shut about it being an Alien-quasi-prequel-sequel-whatever nobody would be complaining about it.
Even though I had to look away during a certain scene, this is definitely my favorite film of the year so far.
The Final Word: Build a time machine, go back to June 7, 2012, and go to the midnight premier in IMAX 3D. Wash, rinse, repeat.
4.99 out of 5 stars
Viewed 12:01 am June 8, 2012 at Cinemark 17 & IMAX in Dallas, TX
Monday, June 11, 2012
Darling the Short Film
This post isn't actually a review...it is more of a shameless plug for another of my creative ventures.
For the past six months I've had the pleasure of working with countless talented artists of all types while producing Darling as my senior film project at the University of North Texas.
And now the film is finished, but this isn't the end of its life.
We are now embarking on the long and arduous journey of taking Darling to festivals, and there is a way for you to be part of that journey.
In order to take Darling to as many festivals as we would like to, we have started a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter, which you can find here:
Darling Goes to Festivals
If you're not familiar with Kickstarter, it is a funding platform for independent creative projects.
Check out our project, share it with a friend, or donate a dollar, and join us in this continuing adventure!
For the past six months I've had the pleasure of working with countless talented artists of all types while producing Darling as my senior film project at the University of North Texas.
And now the film is finished, but this isn't the end of its life.
We are now embarking on the long and arduous journey of taking Darling to festivals, and there is a way for you to be part of that journey.
In order to take Darling to as many festivals as we would like to, we have started a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter, which you can find here:
Darling Goes to Festivals
If you're not familiar with Kickstarter, it is a funding platform for independent creative projects.
Check out our project, share it with a friend, or donate a dollar, and join us in this continuing adventure!
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