October 2012 Preview!

Here is a quick list of the films I plan to see in October:

Frankenweenie
Can't say no to a Tim Burton film, even if you have no clue what the plot of the film really is!

Butter
Jennifer Garner competes in a butter carving contest, and Olivia Wilde is a hooker. What more could you want?

Argo
Ben Affleck's directorial follow up to The Town, based on the 2007 Wired article "How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran".

Alex Cross
Matthew Fox is bald, cray, and somehow sober. Tyler Perry is the detective hunting him down for murdering his wife. Sounds interesting, but I'm not so sure about Perry trying to become an action hero...

Cloud Atlas
Sci-Fi epic starring Tom Hanks, a seven-Oscar cast and crew, and the power of love through time and space. Early reviews from the Toronto Film Festival have been very polarized, but the newest film from the Wachowski siblings and Tom Tykwer (of Run Lola Run fame) isn't something to miss.

What films are you most excited about seeing this month?

The Fifth Element

The Fifth Element (1997)
Directed by Luc Besson

If I had seen this sometime during the nineties, I am positive that it would have been one of my favorite movies ever.

Unfortunately I didn't see it until 2012.

To say whether I liked or didn't like the film would be a grossly oversimplified explanation of how I felt while watching it. So instead of doing that, I'll make a list of the things I did like, and another of what I did not like.

Likes:

Milla Jovovich (And not just for that reason, you perverts...)

Fight sequences

Editing

Anti-likes:

Most of the dialogue

Creature design

Music

Costumes

90% of the CG

Gary Oldman

Gary Oldman's hair

Gary Oldman's accent

Apparently I disliked more about this film than I liked about it. However, it was still an entertaining film to watch.

So it's not my favorite movie ever. But is it yours? Share why (or why not) below!

2.5 out of 5 Stars
Viewed September 7, 2012 on DVD.

Brave

Brave (2012)
Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman, and Steve Purcell

Late reviews, part deux!

This time I'm writing almost a week in advance! So it's like I'm talking to your future self! O.o What are things like next week? I'm getting a headache now...let's not think about this ever again.

I bet y'all are taking bets on whether I can recover and write a decent review...Thanks guys.

Anyways...Hello! Happy Saturday!

Like Spider-Man, I saw Brave about two months ago but things came up and I never sat down and wrote a review.

I think that Brave is one of Pixar's best films ever, which is really saying something. Rather than obsessing with sequels and remakes like the rest of the industry, Pixar consistently tells original and heartfelt stories that resonate with audience members of all ages. Brave is no exception to the rule that Pixar rocks.

Box office wise, Brave has been a little below average for a Pixar film. It has grossed $232 million domestically and $470 million worldwide. Those numbers are nothing for Pixar to be ashamed of, especially since Brave had to follow Cars 2, which was a disappointment both critically and at the box office (the only Pixar film it outgrossed was A Bug's Life), and made some people question whether Pixar was beginning to run low on originality.

Luckily they were wrong.

4.5 out of 5 stars
Viewed July 6, 2012 at Cinema 6 in Mt. Pleasant, TX

PS - My favorite Pixar movie is Finding Nemo. What's yours?

The Amazing Spider-Man #1

The Amazing Spider-Man #1 (2012)
Directed by Marc Webb

So I thought I should probably try to get caught up on some overdue reviews...starting with the oldest. (I saw Spider-Man during its opening weekend... :/ ) So this review may not be totally coherent, but I'm going to give it a try. This is also the beginning of my attempt to stick to a regular schedule! I'm writing this on Monday, but y'all won't be reading it until Wednesday... O.O So happy Wednesday!

Anyway...Spider-Man.

As I've said before, I'm really glad that Andrew Garfield was chosen to replace That Other Guy for the reboot. From my understanding of the comics (I haven't read any of the comics) Garfield's goofy Peter Parker is much closer to the original character than That Other Guy's was. I also loved the onscreen chemistry between Garfield and Emma Stone. Imagine how adorable it would be if they were together in real life!

*dies in a suffocating pile of adorableness (which is a lot like getting smothered by tribbles. Literally.)*

What I disliked the most about the film would be The Lizard. Rhys Ifans did a great job providing a Dr. Connors that the audience could sympathize for, but I just don't feel like The Lizard was a big enough villain for the reboot of the franchise. (since I know so much about the comics...) I do however know that The Lizard was one of the worst creature designs I've seen in a long time from a major studio's summer tentpole blockbuster. Next time, just hire Neville Page. Even if you have to pay him a zillion dollars. It is worth it. Neville Page + a zillion dollars =! The Lizard.

So yeah. A little rambly (rambly isn't a word? :( oh well.) but keep in mind I'm writing a review for a movie I saw about two months ago. If you find the rambling annoying, let me know and I'll try to keep it to a minimum.

Did you enjoy The Amazing Spider-Man #1? And what are your thoughts/predictions/psychic foreknowledges for #2?

4 out of 5 stars
Viewed July 4, 2012 at Cinema 6 in Mt. Pleasant, TX

ParaNorman

ParaNorman (2012)
Directed by Chris Butler and Sam Fell

I fell in love with this movie the first time I saw its trailer. Especially this part:

What's not to love about a nerdy kid who can see ghosts and has a healthy obsession with zombies?

The best thing about the film, though, is its message. The film isn't really about fighting zombies, curses, and a scary witch, it is about acceptance and the importance of respecting everybody, no matter how different they are from you. If Norman could save his town from certain destruction by showing that kind of acceptance, just imagine how much of a difference we could make in real life if we did the same.

(Sorry for such a short review... This one was difficult for me to write and I don't know why. As always, if you any thoughts you'd like to discuss, leave a comment below!)

4 out of 5 Stars
Viewed August, 23, 2012 at Cinemark 14 in Denton, Texas

Premium Rush

Premium Rush (2012)
Directed by David Koepp

I would like to start by saying how disappointed I am with how poorly Premium Rush has been performing at the box office. As of 9/3, Rush has only grossed about $13.5 million.

Though I really enjoyed Rush and I would see almost any movie with JGL in it, I will admit that it isn't perfect. I had a little trouble following the chronology after the first jump in time. When the first slate popped up showing the time, it made me think that the story was going to play out in real time. So that first jump was unexpected and felt out of place. It didn't take me long to figure out what was happening (since I'm such a genius) but it did take me out of the story for a few minutes. However, I did like how the time jumps later in the film gave us insights and different viewpoints (figuratively and literally) of events that happened earlier in the film.

My biggest complaint about the film would have to be the villain: Michael Shannon's Detective Monday. The telling of his backstory felt way too rushed and unrelatable for him to be a good villain. I didn't really care that he was a dirty cop with a gambling problem, and I never felt any sympathy towards him. This is an action thriller. I should be afraid of what the bad guy is capable of doing to the protagonist, yet I should feel at least a little sympathy towards him. I felt neither of those things. In fact, the only thing I felt toward him was annoyance.

What I like most about Rush, other than getting to watch JGL be awesome on a bike for ninety minutes, is that it promised an hour and a half of fast-paced and death defying bike riding through the streets of New York City, and that's exactly what it delivered. You have to give the marketing team points for honesty, even if they didn't do so great with volume or title recognition.

4 out of 5 stars
Viewed August 25, 2012 at Cinemark 14 in Denton, TX

The Formats!

So we've been here together for...four months. Four months! That makes this my longest functioning relationship with another human being! Yay!

:(

Anyways....I think things are going pretty well here, but I've had a brilliant idea: give the blog some format! XD
It's not really that exciting...

So far I've just been watching movies and posting reviews (which is ok) but for our relationship (relationship?) to really flourish, it should probably have some formatting. So...

1. I'm going to start posting on a REGULAR SCHEDULE!! I'm thinking Saturdays and Wednesdays? (If that doesn't work I might try out different days.) But...

2. I'll still post important reviews (ie. Skyfall, The Hobbit, etc.) immediately after seeing the films,

3. AND I'll keep posting monthly previews (on the 2nd to last day of the month) and box office reviews (on the 2nd of the month).

4. MOST IMPORTANTLY: I really really really want this blog to be about discussing films, rather than me just shouting my opinions into the void of teh interwebs even though I really love the sound of my own voice. I hate film reviews that solely try to convince the reader to adopt the critics viewpoint. I know I'm not always right, and I know that your opinions are just as important as mine are. So don't be shy, let me know what you think!

I hope y'all like the new formats...(if you don't please let me know!)

Thank you to all my readers in America, Russia, Germany, UK, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, Vietnam, Australia, and France! (Sorry if I left off your country... Blogger only shows me the ten top countries by number of views.)

Thank you thank you!

<3

(If you have any format suggestions let me know! :D)

Box Office Review: August 2012

August is a very transitional month. Summer changes into fall. Lazy days out in the sun turn into hours of torture (aka learning) at the hands of teachers. And the box office goes from its highest grossing month: July (record of $1.395 billion in 2011); to its lowest grossing month: September (record of $603 million in 2011). The beginning of August historically sees the studios' last attempts to make a buck with B action flicks, but by the end of the month it's clear that the box office frenzy of summer is over.

August 2012 is no different, with an unimpressive total gross of $803 million.

Here is a quick look at the movies that succeeded in spite of the end-of-summer doldrums, and those that didn't.

What worked:

The Dark Knight Rises
The year's number two grossing film is once again the highest grossing film of the month. TDKR grossed $122 million in August for a domestic total thus far of $431 million. It is now the ninth highest domestic grossing film of all time.

The Bourne Legacy
Though the sequel/reboot is the highest grossing film released in August, it is currently the lowest grossing film in its franchise. So far the introduction to Jeremy Renner as Aaron Cross has grossed $90 million domestically, compared to $121 million, $176 million, and $227 million, the final grosses of Identity, Supremacy, and Ultimatum respectively. Fortunately this doesn't yet seem to be hurting the outlook for The Bourne (fill in the blank with a word more intense than Identity, Supremacy, Ultimatum, and Legacy). I was a little disappointed with Legacy, but I'm very excited to see JRen and Matt Damon working together.

2016 Obama's America
Most political documentaries don't play very well at the box office, especially ones with a conservative viewpoint. 2016 is the film that has broken that mold. During the film's six weeks in limited release it grossed an impressive $2.8 million. It expanded nationwide to 1091 theaters in its seventh weekend and grossed $6.5 million, making it the seventh highest grossing film for the weekend, above all three new releases (Premium Rush, Hit and Run, and The Apparition).

What didn't:

Total Recall
The Colin Farrell reboot of the classic Schwarzenegger film from 1990 was supposed to easily fill the void of the late summer wilderness. Instead it turned out to be another case of reboot-itis, and will be lucky to gross half of its $125 million production budget.

Premium Rush
This one makes me a little sad. I very much enjoyed Premium Rush, so I'm going to blame the film's performance on its mediocre marketing job. After a week in theaters, the JGL bike chase/thriller has grossed a mere $9.3 million. Considering its production budget of $35 million, there's no way this can't be considered a flop.

The Apparition
Warner Brothers did a wonderful job of sabotaging this film's release. After a practically nonexistent marketing push, the horror flick opened in only 810 theaters to an opening weekend gross of $2.8 million. So far the film has grossed $3.8 million, and has no chance of getting anywhere close to its $17 million production budget.

How do you think the box office will fare in September? There's potential for some big releases, such as Finding Nemo 3D, Resident Evil: Retribution, The Master, Trouble with the Curve, and Looper. Will they be enough to overcome the black hole that is September? Share your thoughts below!