Cinematicalhttp://www.cinematical.comCinematicalhttp://www.cinematical.com/media/feedlogo.gifCinematicalhttp://www.cinematical.comen-usCopyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/25/indie-roundup-sweetgrass-clarkworld-broken-embraces/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/25/indie-roundup-sweetgrass-clarkworld-broken-embraces/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/25/indie-roundup-sweetgrass-clarkworld-broken-embraces/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Cinematical's Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'

Indie Roundup gathers a selection of indie film news from the past seven days and offers a peek ahead to what's coming.

Deal. Do not despair that the first month of the new year will be filled solely with the expansion of award contenders. Distribution rights in the US for Sweetgrass have been acquired by The Cinema Guild, according to indieWIRE, and the documentary will open at Film Forum in Manhattan on January 6, followed by a rollout across the country.

Directed by Ilisa Barbasch and Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Sweetgrass "follows the last sheepherders to trail their flocks up into Montana's Beartooth mountains for summer pasture," per its official synopsis. After debuting at the Berlin Film Festival last year, the doc played the festival circuit quite successfully, picking up positive critical notices. Check out the splendid trailer in all its quiet, chud-chewing glory after the jump.

Online / On-Demand Viewing. Debuting on demand next Sunday, Clarkworld paints a portrait of filmmaker Bob Clark. Best known for his perennial holiday favorite A Christmas Story, Clark also made the groundbreaking Porky's, which set the tone for all raunchy teen comedies to come, and the significant slasher pic Black Christmas, another flick that was a trendsetter (or at least ripped off at will). Director Deren P. Abram talked with Peter Billingsley (former child star turned filmmaker), Kim Cattrall, Jon Voight, Denise Richards, Mary Steenburgen, John Saxon, Scott Baio, and other people who weren't even in any of his movies! We have the trailer for this one after the jump, too, which makes for an interesting contrast with the one for Sweetgrass. Look for the movie on cable systems via Cinetic FilmBuff.

After the jump: box office talk; trailers for Sweetgrass and Clarkworld.

Continue reading Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'

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]]>Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New OrleansBadLieutenant:PortOfCallNewOrleansbob clarkBobClarkbroken embracesBrokenEmbracesclarkworldderen abramDerenAbramfantastic mr foxFantasticMrFoxfeaturedindie weekend box officeIndieWeekendBoxOfficepedro almodovarPedroAlmodovarpreciousprecious moviePreciousMoviered cliffRedCliffsweetgrasssweetgrass the movieSweetgrassTheMoviePeter MartinWed, 25 Nov 2009 19:02:00 ESTWeekend Box Office: 'New Moon' Lives Up to the Hypehttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/23/weekend-box-office-new-moon-lives-up-to-the-hype/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/23/weekend-box-office-new-moon-lives-up-to-the-hype/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/23/weekend-box-office-new-moon-lives-up-to-the-hype/#commentsFiled under: ,

Sometimes a movie will consume the internet for weeks before its release, and then turn out to be Snakes on a Plane. This is not one of those times. New Moon didn't set the all time opening weekend box office record, but it came uncomfortably close, and -- holy crap -- it now owns the record for the highest single-day gross ever, a $72 million Friday. Twilight opened to almost precisely half of New Moon's $140 million number, and went on to gross $192 million. The sequel should pass that mark by next weekend.

New Moon's staying power is a bit difficult to forecast. On one hand, its grosses may be frontloaded, as is typical when rabid fans of the source material rush out to pack midnight and opening-day showings. On the other, this might just be the kind of film that, even more so than its predecessor, generates repeat business. (Along these lines, I wonder if the egregious objectification of men in New Moon's marketing campaign is a victory for feminism. I vote yes.)

Getting somewhat lost in all the New Moon hoopla is the slightly less dramatic victory scored by the earnest, good-natured tearjerker The Blind Side, which took second place with nearly $35 million, which I suspect is another testament to the enduring box office draw of Sandra Bullock. (As a side note, the enduring box office draw of Sandra Bullock must be a testament to the awfulness of All About Steve, which topped out at $33 million despite her prominent presence.) It was also smart of Warner Bros. to deemphasize the sports angle -- a "football movie" would not have done this well.

More, and the top 10, after the jump.

Continue reading Weekend Box Office: 'New Moon' Lives Up to the Hype

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]]>2012planet 51Planet51preciousthe blind sidethe twilight saga: new moonTheBlindSideTheTwilightSaga:NewMoonweekend box officeWeekendBoxOfficeEugene NovikovMon, 23 Nov 2009 09:02:00 ESTPhew! 'New Moon' Fails to Clinch Opening Weekend Recordhttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/22/new-moon-fails-opening-weekend-record/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/22/new-moon-fails-opening-weekend-record/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/22/new-moon-fails-opening-weekend-record/#commentsFiled under: , ,



According to estimates over at Variety, The Twilight Saga: New Moon failed to top The Dark Knight's three-day opening weekend record of $158 million, bringing what I'm sure will be a huge sigh of relief to all those folks (and there's lots of them) who felt the film was in no way deserving of these historic milestones. Instead, after clinching the Best Midnight Opening record and Best Opening Day record, New Moon will have to settle for third on the Best Opening Weekend list after walking away with a pretty astonishing $130 $140 million when it was all said and done.

If that number holds up (and it should), the film will replace Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End for third place on the list of all-time best opening weekends (domestic), and will settle in behind only Spider-Man 3 (second) and The Dark Knight (first). Still, with $130 $140 million, New Moon more than doubled Twilight's opening weekend ($69 million) -- in addition to taking in the largest domestic weekend gross of the year -- so if the franchise remains on that pace there's a good chance The Twilight Saga: Eclipse will indeed snatch the opening weekend record from The Dark Knight when it hits theaters on June 30th ... that is, unless Iron Man 2 doesn't get to it first.

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]]>new moon box officenew moon opening weekend box officeNewMoonBoxOfficeNewMoonOpeningWeekendBoxOfficethe dark knightthe twilight saga: eclipsethe twilight saga: new moonTheDarkKnightTheTwilightSaga:EclipseTheTwilightSaga:NewMoonErik DavisSun, 22 Nov 2009 11:37:00 EST'New Moon' Smashes 'Dark Knight's' Opening Day Record!http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/21/new-moon--box-office-record-dark-knight/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/21/new-moon--box-office-record-dark-knight/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/21/new-moon--box-office-record-dark-knight/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,



According to ERC, The Twilight Saga: New Moon sold roughly $71 million (Variety is reporting $72.7 million) worth of tickets on its opening day -- a number that, if correct, far surpasses the current opening day box office record of $67 million set by The Dark Knight back in 2008. With its $26 million take in midnight showings, that gives the second installment in the Twilight franchise two pretty giant records: Best Midnight Opening and Best Single Day Opening. Next up for the franchise is the three-day opening weekend record, also held by The Dark Knight with $158 million.

So what does this say about us? Well, while it's not as critically acclaimed as, say, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (previous midnight opening record holder) or The Dark Knight, these numbers do show just how much of an impact the female audience can have on a box office take. Sure, when The Dark Knight broke records everyone wanted to single out the teenage male audience as having won that film its titles, but polls showed females were responsible for upwards of 50% of that film's opening box office too. And now, with New Moon breaking records attracting a younger female audience, here's hoping studios wake up and realize that, yeah, the female audience is a damn powerful force.

So kudos to all you Twi-hards for showing up to support the property you love. Is the film truly worthy of its new records? Probably not. Will another film break those records within the next year? Yeah, most likely. But dammit if the folks at Summit Entertainment aren't partying their asses off this weekend. They just won the World Series at the box office. Congrats!

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]]>featuredharry potter and the half-blood princeHarryPotterAndTheHalf-bloodPrincenew moonnew moon box office recordNewMoonNewMoonBoxOfficeRecordthe dark knightthe twilight saga: new moonTheDarkKnightTheTwilightSaga:NewMoonErik DavisSat, 21 Nov 2009 10:55:00 ESTForbes Determines Hollywood's Most Overpaid Actorshttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/20/forbes-determines-hollywoods-most-overpaid-actors/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/20/forbes-determines-hollywoods-most-overpaid-actors/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/20/forbes-determines-hollywoods-most-overpaid-actors/#commentsFiled under: ,

Just the other day, I tackled the notion of whether A-List actors were becoming an endangered species. Now Forbes is adding to the celebrities woes with a list of Hollywood's 10 Most Overpaid Stars. Their criteria for the list: Look at the 100 biggest stars who have starred in at least 3 flicks opening in more than 500 theaters in the last 5 years, and calculate a return-on-investment by dividing total operating income on the 3 movies by the actor's total compensation (salaries and sales earnings).

So, who could possibly end up on such a list? Hazard a guess? Well, here are some hints. The 10-spot actor, who has the biggest earnings for his pay, earns an average of $8.62 for every $1 paid, while the worst offender skyrocketed to the #1 spot with a pretty big flop this year, earning only $3.29 for every buck paid. Some of the names in the middle are quite expected, especially Tom Cruise and Eddie Murphy, the former still dealing with image issues, and the latter found out that his silly-comedy formula isn't working like it used to. Also, there is one lone woman on the list, but this actress might be a little hard to guess.

Considering the previous post and some of the names on this list, I think we might be seeing a big decrease in star-power pay over the next few years. But for now ... Who's the least-bad investment, the worst, and the woman? Can you figure out the names in-between? Take a stab and then check out the list after the jump

Continue reading Forbes Determines Hollywood's Most Overpaid Actors

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]]>10 Most Overpaid Actors10MostOverpaidActorsA-ListCinematicalEddie MurphyEddieMurphyForbesHollywoodoverpaid actorsOverpaidActorsTom CruiseTomCruiseMonika BartyzelFri, 20 Nov 2009 17:15:00 ESTAre the A-List Actors Becoming an Endangered Species?http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/a-list-becomes-z-list/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/a-list-becomes-z-list/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/a-list-becomes-z-list/#commentsFiled under: ,

There was a time, not too long ago, when the dream was to be on the A-list in Hollywood. Being so high up on the ladder meant great roles, great movies, and box office success. It was a world raining money. Now, however, not only are times tough, but Hollywood is learning a valuable lesson: It's not all about the stars. (Something we wondered about three years ago.)

Reuters reports that the movie town is rethinking the millions of dollars they spend to grab the big stars because big celebrity doesn't necessarily equal big box office. They cited the money brought in by The Hangover, District 9, Paranormal Activity, and the Twilight Saga, and the fact that none of these productions had big celebs leading the way. Meanwhile, the star extravaganzas like A Christmas Carol, Surrogates, Funny People, Land of the Lost, Imagine That, and Duplicity boasted big-name talent, but still flopped. Now insiders say that the stars used to big paychecks and gross profit deals are having a heck of a time getting their demands met. As Reuters says: "several films have shown that a great concept or story can trump star appeal when it comes to luring fans."

What a concept! A worthy story being more important than the actors who star? Crazy talk! Could we, dare I say, be headed towards a Hollywood where they don't just write a bunch of crap to have big names appear in (say, Sandra Bullock), and actually put some more effort into the story? Or will we just get greeted by the same crappy stories, but now with unknown names?

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]]>A-listbox officeBoxOfficeCinematicalfeaturedHollywoodMonika BartyzelMon, 16 Nov 2009 17:15:00 EST'New Moon' Becomes Biggest Advanced Ticket Seller Ever!http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/new-moon-advanced-ticket-sales-record/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/new-moon-advanced-ticket-sales-record/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/new-moon-advanced-ticket-sales-record/#commentsFiled under: ,

You gotta wonder how many studio people see the buzz and money pouring in for the Twilight franchise and want to break things -- not for dislike of the plot, but because that sucker was passed up by major studios and fighting turnaround before Summit grabbed it and made it for little money only to watch it earn a killing. But it looks like that will be nothing in comparison to what could happen with New Moon.

According to Nikki Finke, the sequel has become the top advanced ticket seller ever on Fandango. Twilight was able to make it to the 5-spot, but was never able to bust through the biggie competition like installment number two (part of its success could be due to the film selling advanced tickets beginning in September). What's the biggie competition? The Dark Knight was 4, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince rested at 3, and Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith used to be on top. Yes, folks, Stephenie Meyer's vampires are obliterating some of our classic fandom.

Now the question is whether New Moon can break through to the top 100 grossing movies of all time. Twilight wasn't able to grab a spot on the list, making only $383 million, while the lowest spot is Die Another Day with $432 mil. But the first of the series also wasn't trouncing beloved flicks like The Dark Knight. At the very least, I'd presume it gets on the list.

What do you think will happen when the werewolves and vampires descend upon the theaters this week? Could New Moon transcend its niche and becoming a regular box office success?

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]]>CinematicalfeaturedNew MoonNewMoonStephenie MeyerStephenieMeyerTwilightTwilight Saga: New MoonTwilightSaga:NewMoonMonika BartyzelMon, 16 Nov 2009 12:48:00 ESTWeekend Box Office: '2012' Feeds Appetite for Destructionhttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/weekend-box-office-2012-feeds-appetite-for-destruction/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/weekend-box-office-2012-feeds-appetite-for-destruction/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/16/weekend-box-office-2012-feeds-appetite-for-destruction/#commentsFiled under: ,

Occasionally you'll hear a movie branded as "criticproof," which I take to be a derisive term implying that the masses will flock even though the movie in question is garbage If there's an entire genre that may now get described as "criticproof" it's the disaster movie. No amount of bad reviews could keep people away from watching Roland Emmerich destroy the world anew in 2012, which made $65 million domestically and $225 million worldwide. The domestic numbers are comparable to The Day After Tomorrow which, among other things, ran 40 minutes shorter. The foreign numbers are even stronger. Those who've seen the movie shouldn't be surprised. Think of it what you will (it's probably my favorite Emmerich film, which is not saying a lot), but it's pretty incomparable as special effects spectacle.

2012 had the box office pretty well to itself this weekend. Its only new competition in even semi-wide release was Pirate Radio, which largely flopped despite the enthusiastic pimping of the Love Actually connection -- under $3 million on 880 screens. Faring better was Precious, which expanded to just under 200 screens and earned $6 million. With Precious and Paranormal Activity, this is proving to be a good season for slow roll-out platform releases; Precious seems to be doing a nice job of building awards buzz, too.

As expected, A Christmas Carol turned out to be durable, still running way ahead of The Polar Express, and looking to get a bump from the Thanksgiving holiday in a couple weeks. Look for this one to stick around the top 5 for a little while. On the other hand, the reign of 2012 meant big hits for the holdover genre films, including The Fourth Kind, The Box, and Paranormal Activity.

The box office chart after the jump.

Continue reading Weekend Box Office: '2012' Feeds Appetite for Destruction

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]]>2012a christmas carolAChristmasCarolparanormal activityParanormalActivitypirate radioPirateRadiopreciousthe boxthe fourth kindTheBoxTheFourthKindweekend box officeWeekendBoxOfficeEugene NovikovMon, 16 Nov 2009 09:02:00 ESTThe Little Movie That Could: 'Paranormal Activity' Hits $100 Millionhttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/15/the-little-movie-that-could-paranormal-activity-hits-100-mil/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/15/the-little-movie-that-could-paranormal-activity-hits-100-mil/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/15/the-little-movie-that-could-paranormal-activity-hits-100-mil/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Oren Peli is having the greatest Friday the 13th of his life. We all love the shifting Holiday, but none of us can be as happy to greet today as the director of Paranormal Activity, whose film will be hurtling over the $100 million threshold at some point today, which, like his film, is simultaneously believable and unbelievable. I can clearly see why it has dominated at the box office, but I don't think anyone involved with the film (either before or after it was bought) prophesied how monumentally successful it would become.

But I'm not here to tell you once again that you should go see Paranormal Activity, you've already heard that a thousand times over. I would, however, like to use this time to give Oren Peli a standing ovation by putting things a little further into perspective. Within another week, PA will have grossed more money than the cumulative totals of Halloween II, The Uninvited, The Stepfather, and Saw VI. Their combined budgets? Approximately $60 million. If that doesn't show a little innovation goes a long way, I don't know what does.

More at HorrorSquad!

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]]>Oren PeliOrenPeliParamountParanormal ActivityParanormalActivityPeter HallSun, 15 Nov 2009 19:03:00 ESTDominate the Virtual Multiplex with 'FlickPicks'http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/12/dominate-virtual-multiplex-flickpicks/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/12/dominate-virtual-multiplex-flickpicks/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/12/dominate-virtual-multiplex-flickpicks/#commentsFiled under: ,


As much as some people hate to talk about the box office side of the movie business, every film buff at least thinks about the opening haul at one point or another. There are those who idly glance at who landed in first place or who took third -- and then there are those who make financial predictions that require actual decimal placement. Regardless of which side you find yourself relating to, I at least guarantee that every single film geek has looked up showtimes at their local theater and groaned at the line-up, wondering why aren't they showing the new Indie X or how coming Blockbuster Y is still taking up two screens.

Well now there is a website that combines the fascination of what's popular with the frustration of trying to decide what's popular. It's called FlickPicks and it lets anyone who signs up become a virtual movie theater owner for free. It works a little like this: You have Monday through Thursday to choose what films you're going to show and how many screens each film is going to occupy. On Friday FlickPicks locks down your selections and then once the numbers roll in on over the weekend, invisible computer elves calculate how much money your hypothetical theater made and assign points accordingly.

Continue reading Dominate the Virtual Multiplex with 'FlickPicks'

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]]>box officeBoxOfficeflick picksFlickPicksmovie gamesMovieGamesPeter HallThu, 12 Nov 2009 19:18:00 ESTDiscuss: What Will Everyone Else Think About 'Precious'?http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/11/precious-movie-debate/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/11/precious-movie-debate/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/11/precious-movie-debate/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Oprah is pushing both Precious and the book it's based on, Push by Sapphire, on her show, and I'm seriously curious to know what her audience will think about it. How many people will be able to watch a film told from the point of view of an illiterate high schooler who is raped by her father, physically (and, in the book, sexually) abused by her mother, hates herself for not being white, has given birth to one child with Down's Syndrome who's nicknamed Mongo (short for Mongoloid), and is pregnant for a second time with her father's child?

Let's assume that Oprah's reach is strong enough and far enough to get her demographic to plunk down their eight to 12 dollars to see Precious - the Oprah Effect in full effect. (You can find out where and when Precious is playing near you on the official movie website.)

I'm not talking about critics and journalists or the people in big cities who like to participate in a friendly Oscar pool or want to be up on what was in the New York Times. They're already seeing the movie in droves; it made $1.8M in limited release its opening weekend. The latest numbers I could find on her demographic are from 2007, back when people were wondering if Oprah could help get a president elected. (Answer: Yes, she can.)

According to Nielsen via MSNBC, "Oprah's audience is predominantly female, white, and over the age of 55. Nationally 7.4 million people watch Oprah daily -- about 2.6% of American households. Four percent of American women (about 5.7 million) watch her daily, compared with 1.2% of men (1.7 million people). Overall, 2% of all 18- to 49-year-olds watch Oprah."

Continue reading Discuss: What Will Everyone Else Think About 'Precious'?

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]]>Gabourey SidibeGaboureySidibelee danielsLeeDanielsmariah careyMariahCareymarketingmoniqueoprahoscarPaula PattonPaulaPattonpreciousPrecious:BasedOnTheNovelPushBySapphirepushtyler perryTylerPerryJenni MillerWed, 11 Nov 2009 22:18:00 ESTIndie Roundup: Swanberg Sex, Veterans Day Docshttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/11/indie-roundup-swanberg-sex-veterans-day-docs/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/11/indie-roundup-swanberg-sex-veterans-day-docs/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/11/indie-roundup-swanberg-sex-veterans-day-docs/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Cinematical's Indie Roundup

Indie Roundup is your guide to what's new and cool in the indie film world.

On-Demand / Online Viewing. Love him or find him irritating, he's practically a category unto himself now. Joe Swanberg continues to explore the endlessly fascinating topic of twenty-something romantic relationships in Young American Bodies, a web series now on IFC.com. Season 4 debuted on Monday at IFC.com, and future episodes of the five-part series will premiere on a weekly basis. If you're a Swanberg fan, you'll want to check it out: it expands on his vision of sex and everything that leads up to it and follows afterward: elusive, kinda real, kinda fake, pretty messy.

In honor of Veterans Day, SnagFilms presents a selection of films appropriate for the occasion, covering a national shrine in Arlington: Field of Honor, dangerous missions in Baghdad Bound: Devil Dog Diaries, remembering the Battle for Midway, and so one. Truly, there's something for everyone to discover among the documentaries showcases. Similarly, Hulu has two films of interest: Jerabek, the tragic story of U.S. Marine Ryan Jerabek, and When I Came Home, which covers the troubling issue of homelessness among veterans.

Also newly available online: the enchanting "banjo player goes to Africa" doc Bela Fleck: Throw Down Your Heart (on iTunes) and a close-up (sorry) view of artist Chuck Close (also on iTunes).

Deals. As always, our friends at indieWIRE has been tracking recent acquisitions. The latest: romance My Year Without Sex (Strand Releasing, due spring 2010); drama The Good Heart, with Brian Cox and Paul Dano, directed by the very talented Dagur Kari (Magnolia Pictures, due next year); and social satire The Joneses, with David Duchovny and Demi Moore (Roadside Attractions, due spring 2010).

After the jump: more than Precious at the box office.

Continue reading Indie Roundup: Swanberg Sex, Veterans Day Docs

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]]>bela fleck throw down your heartBelaFleckThrowDownYourHeartchuck closeChuckClosejerabekjoe swanbergJoeSwanbergmy year without sexMyYearWithoutSexthe good heartthe jonesesTheGoodHeartTheJoneseswhen i came homeWhenICameHomeyoung american bodiesYoungAmericanBodiesPeter MartinWed, 11 Nov 2009 18:02:00 ESTFun with Math: The Huge Box Office Numbers for 'Precious'http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/10/fun-with-math-the-huge-box-office-numbers-for-precious/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/10/fun-with-math-the-huge-box-office-numbers-for-precious/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/10/fun-with-math-the-huge-box-office-numbers-for-precious/#commentsFiled under: ,

The final numbers are in, and the estimated $1.8 million earned by Precious in its limited-release opening weekend wasn't an exaggeration. In fact, it was a little short: The Sundance-prize-winning, Oprah-endorsed indie drama actually made $1,872,458 between Friday and Sunday. (Numbers courtesy of Box Office Mojo.) The reason that's so impressive is that it was only playing in 18 theaters, for an average of $104,025 per theater. For comparison's sake, A Christmas Carol made $8,159 per theater.

So let's put on our nerd hats and break down those Precious numbers. While it's only in 18 theaters, it played on 35 screens, because most cineplexes, anticipating the demand, booked two prints. (The per-screen average, therefore, was $53,499.) I looked at each theater's listings and added up how many showings the movie had over the weekend. That number was 507.

Then the math: It made $1,872,458 in 507 showings, for an average of $3,693 per showing. The average ticket price at the theaters in question is $11 (disregarding things like senior discounts and slightly cheaper prices for Friday matinees). That means each screening sold an average of about 335 tickets, which is surely the capacity for a lot of those theaters. That means a sell-out crowd for almost every screening. I guess I could have found out how many people each theater seats and determined exactly how many sell-outs there were, but that would be silly.

Box Office Mojo says the $104,025 per-theater average is the 12th highest ever -- but the 11 films ahead of it were all playing in no more than six locations. Precious played in 18 and still had a huge per-theater average. Any way you slice it, the delightful feel-good romp of the year opened with a splash.

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]]>featurednerderynumber-crunchingpreciousthings Oprah likesThingsOprahLikesEric D. SniderTue, 10 Nov 2009 09:02:00 ESTWeekend Box Office: 'Christmas Carol' and 'Precious' Bow Bighttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/09/weekend-box-office-christmas-carol-and-precious-bow-big/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/09/weekend-box-office-christmas-carol-and-precious-bow-big/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/09/weekend-box-office-christmas-carol-and-precious-bow-big/#commentsFiled under: ,

I was considering a title pun on Richard Kelly getting Box-ed out -- which works on multiple levels!! -- but I couldn't pull the trigger. That, though, is my main concern this weekend, to be honest: I am heartbroken (though not surprised) that Kelly's wonderful, hugely ambitious sci-fi flick couldn't get a foothold at the box office. People at my Thursday night screening thought they had seen one of the worst movies ever, which I guess is what happens when you're led to expect harmless PG-13 horror and get something so radically different. I also suspect that Donnie Darko would have been similarly received had it opened on 2,600 screens instead of building its cult cred in mini-release and on DVD.

Anyway, The Boxearned $7.9 million -- not a total disaster for a $25 million movie, but not exactly a resume-builder for Kelly to the extent he has commercial ambitions. It was roundly defeated by the rest of the weekend's newcomers, most notably A Christmas Carol, which took first place with $31 million. That may not seem like a lot, but note that Zemeckis's The Polar Express opened to even less on its way to $180 million. I predict that A Christmas Carol, which looks wonderful on IMAX 3-D, will hold up well.

The weekend's other big winner was Precious, which Lionsgate pushed to an impressive $100,000 per-screen average on 18 screens. Even accounting for the very limited release, that's pretty strong; Brokeback Mountain-like numbers ($80-90 million) are probably within reach.

More, and the weekend top 10, after the jump.

Continue reading Weekend Box Office: 'Christmas Carol' and 'Precious' Bow Big

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]]>A Christmas CarolAChristmasCarolpreciousprecious: based on the novel push by sapphirePrecious:BasedOnTheNovelPushBySapphirepush: based on the novel by sapphirePush:BasedOnTheNovelBySapphirerichard kellyRichardKellythe bourne ultimatumthe fourth kindThe men who stare at goatsTheBourneUltimatumTheFourthKindTheMenWhoStareAtGoatsweekend box officeWeekendBoxOfficeEugene NovikovMon, 09 Nov 2009 09:02:00 ESTIndie Roundup: 'Splinterheads,' 'Ghost World,' 'Devil'http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/04/indie-roundup-splinterheads-ghost-world-devil/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/04/indie-roundup-splinterheads-ghost-world-devil/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/04/indie-roundup-splinterheads-ghost-world-devil/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Cinematical's Indie Roundup for the Week of 11/3

Clockwise from upper left: Splinterheads, Ghost World, An Education, House of the Devil.

Opening. Amiable and pleasant, Splinterheads revolves around a romance between Justin (Thomas Middleditch), an aimless small town dreamer, and Galaxy (Rachael Taylor), a gorgeous grifter who (literally) bumps into him at a gas station. She's more interested in separating him from his money than getting to know the lunkhead within, while he quickly decides that he's met the love of his life -- or, even better, a reason to leave his upstate New York world behind and start living for himself instead of his mother and grandfather.

Brent Sersen (Blackballed) is a better director than writer; the characters hold few surprises and the plot's trajectory threatens to die of old age before it reaches its pre-ordained conclusion. Still, he takes advantage of a visiting carnival and the grifter's obsession with geocaching, a variation on treasure hunting, to string together several lyrical interludes and enough laughs to deserve a recommendation. Dean Winters, Lea Thompson, and Christopher McDonald provide reliable support. Splinterheads opens in New York on Friday and expands to other cities the following week; check the official site for theaters and showtimes. Also opening in New York the same day: Collapse, Chris Smith's latest doc (more from last week and the exclusive poster debut).

On-Demand / Online Viewing. Terry Zwigoff's adaptation of Daniel Clowes' graphic novel Ghost World departs from the source material quite abruptly, but still remains faithful to the dark spirit of loneliness that haunts the characters. Thora Birch, Scarlett Johannson, and Steve Buscemi star. It's now available on FilmBuff, Cinetic's cable on-demand channel; check local listings to watch this essential indie at home.

After the jump: Who educated the devil?

Continue reading Indie Roundup: 'Splinterheads,' 'Ghost World,' 'Devil'

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]]>brent sersenBrentSersenghost worldGhostWorldhouse of the devilHouseOfTheDevilindie roundupindie weekend box officeIndieRoundupIndieWeekendBoxOfficesplinterheadsterry zwigoffTerryZwigoffti westTiWestPeter MartinWed, 04 Nov 2009 17:10:00 ESTWeekend Box Office: Long Live the King of Pophttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/02/weekend-box-office-long-live-the-king-of-pop/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/02/weekend-box-office-long-live-the-king-of-pop/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/11/02/weekend-box-office-long-live-the-king-of-pop/#commentsFiled under: ,

Michael Jackson's This is It was the only new wide release this weekend, and essentially had the box office to itself. This may seem weird, but this is as it should be -- and it has more to do with Halloween falling on a Saturday than with any show of respect for the King of Pop. Predictably, This is It won the weekend, grossing $21.3 million for a total of $32.5 million since its Wednesday opening. That's a good number, and monumental for a documentary, though it is also an instance where the studio's hype machine may have led people astray.

Those who read the breathless press releases about the trumped-up advance ticket sales frenzy surrounding This Is It may be disappointed (or in any case surprised) by these figures. But over $30 million in five days for a concert documentary is nothing to sneeze at -- and I don't think that expecting much more was reasonable. (As a footnote, too, the movie made nearly $70 million outside of North America -- which also makes sense.)

The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day bowed on 68 screens and grossed just under half a million in 16th place, which isn't bad, really -- confirming the small cult following for Boondock Saints that everyone already knew existed. Among holdovers, Paranormal Activity continued to add screens, and continued to hold up well -- it should break $100 million by this time next week. Saw VI and Where the Wild Things Are both suffered drops over 60%; Wild Things will top out around $70 million (pretty good for an art film), while Saw VI will wind up making around (or just over) half of the next lowest grosser in the franchise. Will the next one go straight to DVD? (Probably not, but it might be time to start asking the question.)

The full top 10 after the jump.

Continue reading Weekend Box Office: Long Live the King of Pop

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]]>featuredmichael jacksonmichael jacksons this is itMichaelJacksonMichaelJacksonsThisIsItparanormal activityParanormalActivitysaw viSawVithe boondock saints II: all saints dayTheBoondockSaintsIi:AllSaintsDaythis is itThisIsItWhere the Wild Things AreWhereTheWildThingsAreEugene NovikovMon, 02 Nov 2009 09:45:00 ESTIndie Roundup: Deals, 'Smithereens,' More 'Maid,' AFI Festhttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/28/indie-roundup-deals-smithereens-more-maid-afi-fest/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/28/indie-roundup-deals-smithereens-more-maid-afi-fest/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/28/indie-roundup-deals-smithereens-more-maid-afi-fest/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Cinematical's Indie Roundup

Indie Roundup, your weekly dose of what's happening (slightly) outside the mainstream.

Deals. Via our friends at indieWIRE, we learn that Brian Baugh's faith-based To Save a Life will be released by Samuel Goldwyn Films in January 2010. The film follows an "all-American teen" boy dealing with the aftermath of a friend's death. Cross-cultural romantic drama Cairo Time, starring Patricia Clarkson, will hit theaters and on-demand home viewing systems sometime in the new year, courtesy of IFC Films. Bradley Rust Gray's The Exploding Girl will open in early 2010 through Oscilloscope Laboratories. Zoe Kazan stars as a young college woman dealing with conflicting romantic feelings while home in New York for spring break.

Online / On Demand Viewing. Two recommendations this week, both for titles that are newly available through Amazon's VOD service. Susan Seidelman's Smithereens is a quintessentially New York picture and a fiercely independent experience from a time when indies were few and far between. It's a blast of fresh air about Wren (Susan Berman), a rough-talking young woman, and her travails through the seedier side of life as she tries to make something of herself. It's essential viewing, especially if you've been disappointed by one too many slick faux-indies. Musician Richard Hell is great, too.

Much less essential, but no less vital viewing, is Arlene Nelson's Naked States, which trails along as Spencer Tunick engineers massive works of art composed by live, naked human flesh. Tunick is a fascinating photographer / hustler, and so are the people who decide to bare all for the sake of art.

Activity of a different kind, Chilean cleaning, and AFI Fest -- after the jump!

Continue reading Indie Roundup: Deals, 'Smithereens,' More 'Maid,' AFI Fest

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]]>afi festAfiFestantichristindie roundupindie weekend box officeIndieRoundupIndieWeekendBoxOfficenaked statesNakedStatesparanormal activityParanormalActivitysmithereenssouth asian film festivalSouthAsianFilmFestivalspencer tunickSpencerTunicksusan seidelmanSusanSeidelmanthe maidTheMaidPeter MartinWed, 28 Oct 2009 19:32:00 ESTHow 'Saw' Got Its Groove Back ... If Not at the Box Officehttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/26/how-saw-got-its-groove-back/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/26/how-saw-got-its-groove-back/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/26/how-saw-got-its-groove-back/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,



This one is for the increasingly few of you who have steadfastly stuck with the Saw franchise through thick-and-thin in the aughts. The opening weekend numbers for Saw VI are the weakest since the first film, mostly thanks to some stiff competition from breakout hit Paranormal Activity. But box-office returns aren't everything. So: what'd you think?

I wrote this little piece before the release of Saw V last year, in the mode of a frustrated fan hoping for a revitalized franchise. It didn't happen; Saw V was boring and incomprehensible, and I was ready to skip the sixth film altogether. Then it got some decent reviews, and I thought what the hell. I'm glad I did. Saw VI, which sees editor Kevin Greutert take over directing duties, is easily the best Saw movie since the third. That may not be the most enthusiastic bit of praise I've ever issued, but miracle of miracles: the fifth sequel to a half-decent horror flick is legitimately pretty good. Here's how I think Saw got some of its bite back:
  • Thriller momentum. For the first time in three years, a Saw movie is exciting, in an old-fashioned what-happens-next sort of way. There are creative traps a-plenty -- some of the most ingenious ones in the series, for those who are into that sort of thing -- but the film doesn't depend on them: it has a semblance of a protagonist, and a story that moves forward, and draws you in, and makes the 90 minutes feel like less. Which is related to my next point, namely:

Continue reading How 'Saw' Got Its Groove Back ... If Not at the Box Office

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]]>kevin greutertKevinGreutertparanormal activityParanormalActivitysawsaw vsaw viSawVSawViEugene NovikovMon, 26 Oct 2009 12:02:00 ESTWeekend Box Office: 'Paranormal Activity' Wins Weekend Horrorfesthttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/26/weekend-box-office-paranormal-activity-wins-weekend-horrorfes/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/26/weekend-box-office-paranormal-activity-wins-weekend-horrorfes/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/26/weekend-box-office-paranormal-activity-wins-weekend-horrorfes/#commentsFiled under: ,

Is the Saw bubble finally deflating for good? The sixth installment of the mainstay franchise played second fiddle to the still-surging Paranormal Activity this weekend, grossing only $14.8 million dollars -- less than half the bow of the previous four installments, and lower even than the original 2004 film. The competition from the plucky indie horror film likely has something to do with Saw VI's disappointing returns, waning interest is probably involved as well. Paranormal Activity, for its part, claimed the top spot for the first time in its impressive five-week run, hanging on to its momentum in its first weekend of legitimate wide release.

The Paranormal/Saw horror combo left the weekend's other newcomers floundering. Summit's Astro Boy didn't have the marketing muscle it needed, while Amelia was hurt by bad reviews and a lack of studio enthusiasm. But the weekend's real disappointment is Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant, an obvious attempt by Universal to kick-start a new kiddie fantasy franchise, and a far, far bigger (albeit cheaper) fizzle than The Golden Compass. The Weitz brothers should no longer be permitted to work in this genre.

Where the Wild Things Are took a honking 55% hit in its second weekend, a victim of being an art film in mainstream guise. Law Abiding Citizen fared a little better -- it's now Overture's highest-grossing film.

The full top 11 after the jump.

Continue reading Weekend Box Office: 'Paranormal Activity' Wins Weekend Horrorfest

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]]>ameliaastro boyAstroBoycirque du freak: the vampires assistantCirqueDuFreak:TheVampiresAssistantlaw abiding citizenLawAbidingCitizenparanormal activityParanormalActivitysaw viSawViEugene NovikovMon, 26 Oct 2009 09:45:00 ESTParamount Eyes 'Paranormal Activity' Sequelhttp://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/25/paramount-eyes-paranormal-activity-sequel/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/25/paramount-eyes-paranormal-activity-sequel/http://www.cinematical.com/2009/10/25/paramount-eyes-paranormal-activity-sequel/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



We'll have our full box office report tomorrow morning, but we should let you know now that, as expected (and reported back on Saturday morning), Paranormal Activity has claimed its first weekend win, slicing and dicing its way through Saw VI (only $14 million) on its way to a $22 million take. Naturally, Paramount wasted no time in announcing that they may indeed pursue a Paranormal Activity sequel if it seems like the right move to make. Speaking to the LA Times, Paramount Chairman Brad Grey said, "We have the rights on a worldwide basis to do Paranormal 2, and we're looking to see if that makes some sense."

Well, considering that this little film with a budget of $11,000 could give the studio its greatest return ever, something tells me a sequel makes a whole lotta sense to the folks crunching numbers. That said, I'm not the only one who remembers the gigantic piece of moose crap that was Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, and so if Paramount is going to try to turn Paranormal Activity into some sort of franchise, they'll have to do so very carefully.

Personally, I'd rather see them invest in writer-director Oren Peli and his other fun, low-budget ideas than to see them throw a few million and some over-the-top special effects at a sequel that will never live up to the original. Let's face it, like Blair Witch before it, a lot of the fun with Paranormal Activity came in discovering it through word of mouth instead of through the normal Hollywood marketing system. It was (and still is) an underdog, and folks love the underdog. The same won't be said for the sequel.

What do you think they should do here?

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]]>cinematicalfeaturedoren peliOrenPeliparanormal activityparanormal activity 2ParanormalActivityParanormalActivity2Erik DavisSun, 25 Oct 2009 17:02:00 EST