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Thursday, November 26, 2009
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2005-09-26
Every week films get a second chance at success from the home market; or, in some cases, a first chance at success. Here is a list of wide releases, limited releases, classics and a few from the growing TV on DVD section. There are two entries on the DVD Pick of the Week, both from the TV on DVD section: Gilmore Girls - The Complete Fourth Season - Buy from Amazon and Corner Gas - Season 2 - Buy from Amazon.ca.
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2003-12-30
Every week films get a second chance at success from the home market; or, in some cases, a first chance at success. Here is a list of wide releases, limited releases and even one or two from the growing TV on DVD section. This week has more to offer than last week, which is not saying much.
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2003-10-21
the-numbers.com/movies/2003/BADB2.php>Bad Boys II won the international weekend for the second weekend in a row with a nearly identical box office of $16.2 million compared to last week's $16.1 million. Number one debuts in Russia and France helped push its international total to $85.2 million, more than the original made in 1995. It is also just one week from hitting $100 million internationally, the 20th film to do so this year.
After a disappointing run at the domestic box office, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is doing better internationally. It has a decidedly ordinary opening in the U.K. and big drops in large markets like Japan and Italy but still came in second with $10.6 million. With an international total currently sitting at $85.1 million, this film should have the legs to cross $100 million, not enough to make the movie a success, but enough to same someone's job.
For the second week in a row Finding Nemo placed in the top five thanks to its performance in the U.K. Its U.K. numbers accounted for more than 95% of its international weekend box office of $10.1 million. It is now starting to climb the international charts with $123.7 million (good enough for 186th place) and the worldwide charts with $461.8 million (good enough for 34th place.) However, without a major opening for the next three weeks it will most likely drop out of the top five before it hits its peak.
Kill Bill: Volume 1 opened in several large markets over the weekend, but only managed $9.5 million overall. While this total wasn't bad, it wasn't quite up to expectations either.
Continuing its climb American Pie: The Wedding took in another $6.5 million making it just past $100 million. It is the 19th film to reach that international milestone this year. It has yet to open in a few strong markets, so topping the other American Pie movies' international totals is still within reach.
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2003-10-08
ne openings in Germany, France, Australia and Switzerland, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen won the international box office race this week. It earned a respectable $14.6 million on 3,327 screens over 34 markets. There's good news; another week like that and its international total will top its domestic box office. There's also bad news; that's still not enough to make the movie a success.
After an unbelievable seven weeks at the top of the international box office, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl dropped to second with $11.1 million on 4,608 screens. It has now passed $300 million internationally, the 23rd film to do so, and $600 million worldwide, 18th on that list. The next major milestone is only $10 million away when it becomes the 20th highest grossing movie on the international market, passing E.T..
Close behind Pirates was Bad Boys II with $10.8 million on 4,608 screens to push its international total to $43.5 million. In a couple of weeks it should hit $200 million worldwide.
American Pie: The Wedding opened in Italy over the weekend and easily took top place with $2.4 million. Its international box office of $6.7 million for the weekend was good enough for 4th place. It is edging closer to $100 million internationally and $200 million worldwide.
In fifth place was The Italian Job with $4.7 million, on only 1453 screens. It has yet to open in some major markets like Germany, so bigger weekends are yet to come.
Finding Nemo opened in an exclusive performance Leicester Odeon Square in London over the weekend pulling in nearly a quarter of a million dollars. Nemo Watch: International Edition kicks off into high gear next weekend when it opens wide in the U.K. Despite not opening in most major international markets the Pixar animated classic has already earned $95 million internationally.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-10-03
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl continues to lead the international box office despite dropping weekend totals. This week's take of $12.7 million was a significant drop from last week, but was still nearly double its nearest competitor. It was also enough to move the movie into 20th place on the all-time worldwide box office, ahead of Armageddon. It will still take a few more weeks to break $300 million internationally and $600 million worldwide.
The Italian Job stayed in second place with $6.5 million, nearly the same as last weekend. Its international take is now $28.2 million with several openings in large markets still to come. These include South Korea this weekend and Germany later in November.
A pair of number one openings in Asia helped S.W.A.T. to a weekend total of $4.6. It's still way too early in the game to tell where its final figure will land.
Four was the charm for Calendar Girls, which topped the U.K. box office in its fourth week of release there. The British comedy has only opened in a few countries but was still able to take fourth place internationally with $3.6 million. It opens stateside on December 19th.
Rounding out the top five was American Pie: The Wedding, also with $3.6 million. It's hard not to compare its run to the first two, and with more than 2 dozen openings still to come beating American Pie's $100 million internationally is almost guaranteed. Topping American Pie 2's $140 less assured, but still quite likely.
On a side note, Nemo Watch: International Edition will kick into high gear this weekend. Finding Nemo is being shown in previews in the U.K. this week before opening wide next weekend. We will then see a better picture on how the movie will compare to other hits this year and other animated movies from the past.
Submitted by: C.S.
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2003-09-25
in a row Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl finished first with $20.0 million. Its international total is now $270 million, second best for the year (behind The Matrix Reloaded's total of over $450 million.) Without any more major openings expect the weekly numbers to slow down. But $300 million by the end of September or shortly after is expected.
A number one opening in the U.K. helped propel The Italian Job into second place this weekend. $3.6 million earned there was more than half the $7.1 million international total this week. The Italian Job will need strong legs internationally to match its domestic run.
Three movies were in a virtual tie for third place with $4.2 million each. In third was The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. A number one finish in Brazil and a second place opening in Australia led Bad Boys II into fourth place. While first place openings in Holland and Norway gave American Pie: The Wedding fifth place.
On an additional note, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines finished first in Italy this past weekend and by doing so it was able to open in first place in every market. That's quite a feat.
Submitted by: C.S.St
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2003-09-19
nd, I will not be talking like a Pirate for the entire story. Instead, I'll just point you to the official homepage of International Talk Like a Pirate Day. But before we got on with the real story, I will give you two pieces of advice. First, it's International Talk Like a Pirate Day and not International Dress Like a Pirate Day, if you show up to work wearing an eye-patch you are on your own. Second, despite how it sounds, 'Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey' is not a dirty saying, however, that won't stop you from getting into trouble if you use it.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl has plenty to celebrate easily winning last weekend's international box office race with $29.7 million. That figure was earned partial through strong openings in markets like Greece and Australia. And partially through strong holdovers in markets like Germany and Italy. Worldwide total for the movie crossed $500 million and into 25th place on the all time chart.
Well back was The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen with $6.6 million. Results can only be described as solid, and while the international run will top its domestic performance, the price tag for the movie is too high for it to be called a success.
American Pie: The Wedding finished in a virtual tie with Bruce Almighty with $5.1 million. The last in the American Pie Trilogy will finish somewhere in between the first two movies domestically, but much closer to the first. Internationally it has been fairing better in many markets and could top the second's $131 million.
Meanwhile, Bruce Almighty's second first place finish in France propelled the movie to $5.1 million internationally for the weekend. Its international total is $212 million, and it has yet to open in Japan. It's already the highest grossing Jim Carrey movie of all time and its worldwide total could hit $500 million.
After a one week exclusive showing in London, Calendar Girls opened wide in the U.K. and pulled in most of its $2.7 million international haul there. It won't open stateside till December 19th.
In other news, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers passed Jurassic Park into fourth place on the all-time worldwide box office. Combined with the massive rental and sales in the home market and the outlook for Lord of the Rings: Return of the King is very impressive with $1 billion worldwide box office not out of the question.
Submitted by: The Dread Pirate C.S.Strowbridge
For to find out your own pirate name take the
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2003-09-12
in Germany, Italy and others Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl easily won this week's international box office race with $38.5 million. This includes first place opening of $10.5 million in Germany, $4.2 million in Italy and excellent holdovers in other nations; it was in first place after five weeks in the U.K. Internationally it has earned $190 million international and over $100 million in Europe alone.
Well back were Bruce Almighty with $7.9 million, most of that from it's opening in France and American Pie: The Wedding with $7.0 million in still just a handful of markets.
Finding Nemo was fourth with $4.8 million helped by a strong holdover in Australia. The next big opening for Finding Nemo will be on October 10th in the U.K. After than we will have a better handle on where the movie will end up on international and worldwide charts.
Thanks to big openings in Spain and Hong Kong The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen made the top five with $4.5 million. Expect international performances to beat its domestic haul, but that will be too little, too late to save this production.
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2003-09-08
tarted much slower than predicted. Not only did the two new movies fail to deliver at the box office (or critically), none of the holdovers managed to perform well either. Not only was the weekend the weakest of the year so far, it was arguably the weakest in the past several years. The total box office was down 35% from last week and 7% from last year.
Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star was in a close battle to win top spot at the box office this week. It did come in a bit lower than expected with only $6.7 million, and with very poor reviews don't expect much more than that for the rest of its run. On the positive side, with a production budget believed to be under $20 million it could show a profit from the home market.
While a drop of 57% is massive no matter how you look at it, it wasn't as massive as predicted. Combined with the poor showing of the rest of the holdovers, that led to Jeepers Creepers 2 dropping only one spot to second place with $6.6 million.
With the best drop-off in the top five, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl climbed two places into the top three. Its 9th weekend grab of $5.3 million was also enough to vault it over The Matrix Reloaded into second place for the year and 19th on the all time chart.
Still one weekend away from the coveted $100 million club, Freaky Friday earned another $5.0 million at the box office.
S.W.A.T. managed one last weekend in the top five adding another $4.6 million to its total.
Both the early reviews and the box office for The Order were a little better than expected. Reviews were at one time at 28% positive, nothing to brag about, but not the complete disaster. However, they have since come down and are now at 10% including 0% from the Cream of the Crop. And its opening weekend take of $4.4 million is better than expected. But when compared to an estimated production budget of $35 million, a few hundred thousand more at the box office is essentially meaningless.
American Wedding dropped out of the top ten this week, but it was able to cross the $100 million mark. That's enough to cover the production budget and a bit of the advertising. Add in its international run, which has barely started, and you have a profitable performance.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-09-05
you than The Labor Day long weekend is the slowest long weekend of the year. The rest of September is traditionally the slowest time of the year. And this year it looks to break no traditions with only two marginal releases.
The box office should be led by Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, the latest David Spade movie. Reviews for Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star are almost twice as good as Spade's previous movie, Joe Dirt, but at 19% that's not much praise. Joe Dirt made $8 million during its opening weekend, but it opening in several hundred more theatres and during a more lucrative time at the box office. Better reviews and higher ticket prices will leave Dickie Roberts with the same opening weekend.
Many families saw movies last Monday to celebrate back to school, ok, the parents were celebrating while the children were mourning. I think a significant number will also go to movies this weekend as a treat for the children who survived the first week. This should help Freaky Friday maintain most of its box office. $6.5 million is good, but not quite good enough to cross $100 million this week.
Poor reviews, sequel effect, horror genre, post long weekend and the general ennui of 2003 will lead to a massive drop at the box office for Jeepers Creepers 2. Look for a drop just north of 60% for a weekend box office of $6 million.
Very few movies have shown real legs at the box office this year. So far this year's champion has to be Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl which, if my calculations are correct, will move up a spot on the charts for a second week in a row. Also, the $5.5 million earned will push it past The Matrix Reloaded into second place for the year.
Spending its last week in the top five will be Open Range. Another $5.0 million will increase its total past $50 million in four weeks. That may not seem like much compared to the $300 million Pirates of the Caribbean is shooting for, but it's the best Kevin Costner effort since Waterworld.
And that leads us to the second new release of the week, The Order. How bad are the prospects for The Order? Firstly, it wasn't screened for reviewers and that's never a good sign. Secondly, it has been bounced around to no less than four release dates, also not a good sign. And it underwent a name change after a disastrous preview screening in 2002. And now it has been dumped during the weakest time of the year in fewer than 2000 theatres. An opening weekend of only $4 million and a quick exit from theatres is the most likely result.
On a more positive note, American Wedding should break through the $100 million barrier this weekend. If it does it will be the 20th movie to do so this year, with Freaky Friday becoming 21st just a few days later. It's almost a lock that 2003 will set the record for most $100 million movies in a single year. With a couple of surprises we may even see 30 $100 million movies this year.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-09-03
the-numbers.com/movies/2003/PIRAT.php>Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl continues to perform well both domestically and internationally. This weekend its international box office was $20.5 million despite no major openings. Next week in a whole other story altogether, the swashbuckling flick opens in both Germany and Italy. Total worldwide take is over $400 million, with $500 million well within reach.
American Pie: The Wedding continues to amass large numbers in a small number of markets. Another $10.1 million was added to its international total this week in just six markets. The real surprise is how well the movie is holding onto its box-office with smaller than expected drops in most markets.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines cracked the $250 million mark internationally this weekend. With its nearly $150 million domestically Terminator 3 is now just a few hundred thousand from $400 million worldwide.
The international box office for Lara Croft: Cradle of Life is mediocre at best. In some markets is it performing well, but in most it is significantly below the original's performance. It did manage $7.2 million this week, but with only two more major international releases, its total will be disappointing.
$400 million worldwide is a popular number this week. Finding Nemo, or as I will refer to it, Finding Nemo: The Search for Nemo (It was the only movie in the top five without a colon in the name.) An international catch of $6.2 million pushed it past $400 million. More than 80% of its box office came from the record setting opening in Australia. However, after next week's release in Hungary there is a more than a month till its next release, October 10th in the U.K.
In other news, The Hulk managed to top $100 million internationally this week. That will allow the studio to save some face, but they still won't be happy with the results.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-09-03
r a long weekend, this Labor Day long weekend broke records for biggest opening weekend and highest total box office. It's no surprise that the three day total is up, albeit only 0.8% from last weekend, and the four day total is up approximately 9% from last year.
Jeepers Creepers 2 broke the record for best Labor Day weekend, a record that the original set in 2001. Despite reviews that were much worse than the original, Jeepers Creepers 2 made $15.3 million for the 3 day weekend and $18.4 million total.
As predicted, Freaky Friday was able to climb back into second place. The addition $9.2 million / $12.6 million puts the Disney remake roughly one week away from $100 million.
The next three movies were very close. In fact, their standing at the box office changes depending on if you count Monday or not.
S.W.A.T. did crack the $100 million mark this week, and did it with a better than expected $8.3 million / $10.8 million. That was good for 3rd / 4th depending on how many days you count.
Earning almost exactly what it was predicted to, Open Range nevertheless finished one place lower for the three day weekend and two places lower for the four day weekend. With a final tally of $8.1 million / $10.7 million it was just a rounding error behind S.W.A.T.
It seems than Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl benefited the most from the long weekend as its box office was up the most out of the top five (or the top ten for that matter.) Its $8 million for the 3 day weekend was good enough for fifth place. But add in Monday's figure and the total of $10.8 put it into third place.
And now for an update on the three other movies are trying for the $100 million club this weekend.
Charlie's Angels: Full throttle lost almost two thirds of its box office from last weekend, but that was still more than enough.
The Italian Job's expansion helped more than expected as the movie rose to 12th place with $3 million. Almost $1 million more than it needed to cross $100 million.
Seabiscuit needed the most money at the box office to make it. It also earned the most, hitting $100 million on Sunday.
Next on the list to cross $100 million? As I've already mentioned, Freaky Friday could do it next weekend, but American Wedding will probably beat it to that goal.
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2003-08-26
the international box office was Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. This weekend's total of $20.5 million also helped the Disney adventure movie pass the $100 million mark internationally. The total was earned with a number one opening in Russia and several low drop-offs in other key markets like the U.K. and France.
Continue to perform well in a limited number of markets was American Pie: The Wedding. The latest in the American Pie trilogy has only opened in 5 markets, but its weekend take of $12.3 million was good enough for second place.
Winding down its international run, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines finished third with $10 million. It is now just a couple of weeks from $250 million internationally and $400 million worldwide.
Also in international box office news, The Matrix Reloaded reached $450 million internationally. It will be interesting to see how well Finding Nemo can perform in comparison. We will know more after next weekend as Finding Nemo opens in Australia on the28th.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-08-20
the-numbers.com/movies/2003/PIRAT.php>Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl led the way internationally this week with four first place finishes in its four openings. Belgium, France, Holland and Spain all saw amazing premieres as the movie earned $24.1 million to raise its worldwide total past the $300 million mark. It is now just a few million away from entering the Top 100 Worldwide box office.
Meanwhile, Terminator 3 dropped to second place as it crossed the $200 million mark sometime during the mid-week. Its weekly totals are slowing down with $16.1 million this week. Also, it is quickly running out of major markets with only China and Italy to go.
American Pie: The Wedding, as American Wedding is known overseas, managed third place despite being released in just two markets. This week it earned $8.5 million in just the U.K. and Australia.
Finding Nemo has yet to create a major wave internally adding just $2.5 million for a total of $61 million. It will open in Australia on Aug 28, which should generate some impressive numbers. But even after that, major openings are few and far between till the Christmas season.
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2003-08-12
Friday's predictions, but the holdovers all fell faster than expected. This mixed result led the box office down 3.4% from last week and 2.3% from last year.
S.W.A.T. not only finished first, but did so with a much higher box office than predicted. An opening weekend of $37.1 million is pretty good for a movie budgeted at $70 million. However, weak reviews will probably mean its legs will be cut short. Still, if it does similar business internationally it should make a profit before it hits the home market.
Even after upping my prediction for Freaky Friday last Friday, it wasn't enough. The Disney remake earned an impressive $22.2 million on a production budget of just $26 million. (Although P&A budget could be more than the production budget.) Garnering some of the best reviews this summer, which was a bit of a surprise, and given its family friendly nature, this movie could have serious legs.
Dropping more than expected, but better than average was the last in the American Pie trilogy, American Wedding. Earning $15.5 million in its second weekend will make getting $100 million a little harder to come by, but still within reach.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl earned another $13.0 million this weekend, but probably won't overtake Bruce Almighty till next weekend, and not mid-week like I predicted.
Seabiscuit dropped a little more than expected, down to $12 million. With a total box office of nearly $70 million, breaking the $100 million mark could be possible, but it will have to show some serious legs to get there.
Barring a complete collapse of two of next week's four new openings Finding Nemo has spent it's last week in the top 10. And while it earned $2.5 million last weekend it is still a couple of weeks before it beats Forest Gump into 8th place.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-08-09
wide releases this week, one of which was already released on Wednesday. Reviews for both movies started out strong, but only one was able to hold on to the positive press.
This week sees the release of Colin Farrell's fourth of five movies this year. Each one will either bring him closer to superstardom or overexposure. And while it's almost a sure thing S.W.A.T. will finish first, it looks like this movie won't make Colin Farrell a superstar. Reviews started out strong, over 80% on Wednesday, but have now fallen to just over 50%, and they could fall farther as the weekend progresses. In the end $25 million for the weekend and a total take equal to its production budget are in the cards.
My prediction for Freaky Friday's Wednesday opening was right on the money with $6 million. However, my prediction that the reviews would take a drop was not. In fact, reviews have increased to 89%. Because of this I'm increasing my prediction for the weekend to $20 million.
After disappointing figures its first week, American Wedding will start to quickly drop down the list landing in third place this week. Its box office will be cut in half to just under $17 million, which is better than most this summer.
Its weekday numbers are tracking on par with last week, but Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl is starting to shed theatres so a slightly bigger drop-off than last week is in the cards. That still leaves Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl $15 million and just shy of Bruce Almighty. It should beat that movie sometime mid-week.
The battle for fifth place is too close to call at this point. Seabiscuit did have a miniscule 15% drop last week, but it also had a more than 20% increase in theatre count. And without a significant increase in theatres with week I see a much larger drop in box office, down to $13 million. That's the same number I see for Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over. That would bring its three week total to $90 million, ahead of Spy Kids 2's total run.
Nemo Watch takes a break this week as there are no milestone that Finding Nemo is likely to cross this week. At least not on the domestic front.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-08-04
ter than expected this week, however in most cases it was just a slight increase. And one of the movies that missed expectations really missed them. This led to an overall drop in the box office, 8.8% from last week and 7.7% from last year.
While American Wedding finished first, it didn't dominate the box office like predicted. $33.4 million is quite short of the predicted $42 million, but not bad for a movie that cost $50 - $60 million to make, (advertising not included.) Reviewers were quite kind to the movie giving it a 55%, just shy of the overall positive mark. But considering it's a sequel, longevity at the box office is still an issue.
To say Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over didn't live up to expectations would be unfair. Sure, it only made $19.5 million when I predicted $21 million. However, my prediction was higher than most and the drop was only 42%, much better than most movies this year. Nearly $69 million after two weeks is also a great success and it should become the highest grossing movie in the Spy Kids Trilogy.
Just 25 days into its run Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl crossed the $200 million dollar mark. That ties Titanic for 10th fastest to reach that milestone. It should beat X-Men 2 sometime this week to rise to fourth place for 2003.
Seabiscuit did better than expected dropping only 15% to $17.6 million. However, that was with an increase of nearly 22% in theatre count. Taking that into account it’s a Per Theatre average drop of a little more than 30%, still impressive. But it is most likely not impressive enough for its budget.
Bad Boys II did much better in its third week dropping only 42%. The movie earned $12.7 million and could beat the original's worldwide gross with just its domestic run.
Gigli did better than expected both critically and financially. That is not to say that it did well in either case, cause it didn't. I just had really, really low expectations. It got better ratings than Boat Trip and better box office than From Justin to Kelly. Both were mild surprises. However, 7% overall and 3% from the Cream of the Crop reviewers (which was much lower than the 10% Boat Trip received) and only $3.8 million at the box office were both incredibly low. This movie's final box office could end up being less than one tenth its total budget.
On a much happier note, Finding Nemo actually climbed a spot in its tenth week in release. It reached $320 million and now sits in 9th place all time.
Also on a happy note, Fox Searchlight expanded Bend it Like Beckham into more than 1000 theatres this week. This is almost twice its previous high of 555. It pulled in another $1.8 million the most it earned in a single weekend since Memorial Day and by the end of next weekend should cross $30 million.
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2003-08-01
g released this week and both are getting better reviews that I thought they would. Neither is getting good reviews, but they are higher than I thought they'd be.
A safe bet to take first place, American Wedding is the third feature in the American Pie trilogy. Reviews for this installment are surprisingly high, currently at 58%, just shy of the overall positive mark and just shy of the first film. Also, given it's a straight up comedy and not an action film I think it will get a bit of a boost. $42 million for its opening weekend and a profitable run.
Speaking of profitable runs, Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over should do much better during its second weekend that most this year. It should earn another $21 million to raise its total take to $70 million in just two weeks. That's more than its total budget, but after taking the Theatres' share into account, it still has a few more weeks till the studio sees a profit.
Becoming the 5th film of 2003 to break $200 million, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl is looking at $16 million at the box office. At this point $250 million is looking like a sure thing. Can The Matrix Reloaded be overtaken, again?
Dropping the least this week will be Seabiscuit with $15 million. That's less than 30%, but still not enough given its high budget. The best the studio can hope for is some Oscar buzz when it's released to video.
Another 50% drop is in store for Bad Boys II. This will leave it with only $10 million at the box office and in fifth place. That's enough to cross the $100 million mark, but it won't beat its production budget.
Gigli has been getting a lot of press recently, and none of it good. Some are already calling it the worst movie of all time. Reviews are the worst for a widely reviewed movie this year, 4% overall and 0% from the Cream of the Crop reviewers. Most predictions have Gigli bombing at the box office, but I'm going to buck the trend and say it's going to bomb in epic proportions. We're talking bombing of From Justin to Kelly proportions. So bad Sony's stock will drop into negative numbers. So bad Miramax will push back Jersey Girl to some time in the next century. So bad the very fabric of space-time will be torn asunder. Ok, maybe not that bad, but it certainly won't be good. $3 million this week, less than $1 million the next and out on video by September.
On a happier note, Finding Nemo entered the Top Ten All-time Domestic Grosses this week. And it should pass Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by the end of the weekend. After that, there's a large gap to the next film, Forrest Gump.
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2003-07-30
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. Strange mix this week with mostly placeholders plus a few minor changes. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
American Wedding
Current Content: Nothing has changed since I reviewed it last week. TV Spots and clips are still marked coming soon. But you can still check out the trailer, 'Bubble Clips', games, etc.
And Now Ladies and Gentlemen
Current Content: All the usual features are here, presented in a simply fashion with nice animated segues. There is, unfortunately, no sound. The inclusion of background music would have really helped this site stand out.
Anything Else
Current Content: Just a placeholder site. Currently it just has the name and release date. ... Wait a second, the trailer was just added. How's that for up to the minute updates.
Bollywood/Hollywood
Current Content: It was just learned that the movie's American release was pushed back a month, but the site has been up since it's Canadian release last year. A Bollywood Musical by way of Canada, this site naturally has a lot of music. There are six clips including Rocky's Song, which pays on the home page. Now the music is very much Bollywood themed so it's probably something you've never heard before, but it grows on you. There's also the synopsis, cast bios, the trailer and animation on every page. It's the little touches like the animations that helped this site win the wondrous Weekly Website Awards.
Bubba Ho-Tep
Current Content: Most of this site is dedicated to the press this film has received, and there is a lot of it. Reviews, stories, audio clips, etc., it's all there. There's also a synopsis and a trailer, but there should have been some more sounds as well. I would have loved to hear some Bruce Campbell as Elvis quotes.
Envy
Current Content: The VaPOOrizer site was removed and replaced with the old placeholder site.
Freaky Friday
Current Content: A few more features were added, the Wild to Mild personality test, Fortune Cookies and Teenage Translator. The bios, party planner and auditions are still marked coming soon.
Freddy vs. Jason
Current Content: New images from the Weight In were added to the site.
Gigli
Current Content: This movie opens this week and Sony still hasn't launched a flash site. The last time that happened was with Hollywood Homicide, and we all know how that turned out.
Grind
Current Content: This site has an impressive amount of behind the scene clips. However, it is missing some of the regular info, like synopsis and cast and crew bios. There is some info on the characters and images and a game to play.
Gothika
Current Content: Typical Warner Bros. placeholder site with just a single image and a synopsis. Full site should be launched as the release date nears.
Intolerable Cruelty
Current Content: The site just launched but the movie doesn't come out till October. So right now there's just the synopsis, trailer and a few photos.
The Magdalene Sisters
Current Content: It's a Miramax site. So you know what that means.
The Run Down
Current Content: Slightly different format for the placeholder site. The trailer was added, and so were some animation and quotes for the transitions.
Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed
Current Content: Placeholder site with just the poster, photos (two of them) and news from the set.
The Secret Lives of Dentists
Current Content: This site screams for sound, which is too bad cause it has pretty much everything else. All the usual suspects are here, including not only the trailer bur four clips. There's even a section for the music, but no actual music.
Under the Tuscan Sun
Current Content: Placeholder site with trailer, poster and 20 images.
Wonderland
Current Content: Another placeholder site with just the trailer.
Submitted by:
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2003-07-24
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
American Wedding
Current Content: Cast and crew bios and production notes are up, TV Spots and clips are still marked coming soon, however.
Buffalo Soldiers
Current Content: One word: Miramax. This is a Miramax site. Small image of the poster. Trailer. Showtimes. Cast and crew, (no bios.) Synopsis. Just like every other Miramax site.
Civil Brand
Current Content: The placeholder site was removed and replaced with the standard Lions Gate Films under construction warning. Eventually it redirects you to the Lions Gates Films index page. This might be due the 'Caged Heat' vibe the images used on original site was giving off. Or was I the only one that felt that way?
Fighting Tempations
Current Content: Just a placeholder site with a synopsis, trailer and nine images.
Gigli
Current Content: A flipbook was added with about half a dozen images. I also heard Jennifer Lopez's 'booty' was trimmed down for the poster. But I can neither confirm nor deny that.
Hotel
Current Content: Another movie being released this week whose site that hasn't been updated since the last review. Which is a shame, as this site's only purpose seems to be to try to shock. It uses foul language, nudity and violence in a most unappealing way. Maybe if they talked more about the plot and characters it would be more engaging. Then again, if what some people are saying is true Hotel doesn't have a plot.
Intolerable Cruelty
Current Content: None, the URL just redirects you to Universal Pictures movie index.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life
Current Content: Major new look right before its release. It's mostly the same content with a better format. Animated segues, sound effects, background music. In fact, there are clips of nine songs. Impressive. In addition to the usual suspects there is also information about some of the mythology in the movie, lots of images and video clips. Also, there was something called iPIX but that wouldn't work with my browser.
Masked and Anonymous
Current Content: It appears that nothing has changed since this site was last reviewed in the beginning of the month. So the review again before it opens this week: This movie has a huge cast of very famous people, and the site wisely focuses a lot of attention on them. There’s page after page of information: Cast and crew bios, production notes, two essays, etc. The amount of multimedia is limited to the trailer and a couple of songs. But the text is so well written that no more is needed.
Mondays in the Sun
Current Content: As far as I can tell, nothing has changed on this site since it opened three months ago. More time is still spent on the director and producer than the rest of the movie.
Once Upon a Time in Mexico
Current Content: Sony's typical placeholder site. Synopsis, cast and crew (no bios), trailer and a few images. Expect a flash site within a few weeks.
The Run Down
Current Content: Another placeholder site. This time with a synopsis, cast and crew (no bios) and 9 images in the image gallery.
Seabiscuit
Current Content: The rest of the content has filtered in, but the overall continuity failed come together. Too bad, because it is an otherwise great site.
Second Hand Lions
Current Content: This movie site received a bit of a rework this week. It has the same content as before, just a different format. Now each section is linked by a picture with some animation and sound.
Spider-Man 2
Current Content: Would it be too early to call this the biggest movie of 2004? So far it's just a placeholder site with a synopsis and wallpaper.
Spy Kids 3D - Game Over
Current Content: The last two levels were added, theoretically. You see, you have to beat each level to progress to the next. And since I'm old and my reflexes are no longer as sharp as they once were, I'm unable to beat Platforms, the third level game. (Several hours pass) Woohoo! I finally beat Platforms. Never say I'm not willing to waste my time to bring you the information you desire. Moving on ... Level 4 (Lava Mountain) was much easier and allowed me to take on play the Unwinnable Level. If you can win here all hidden secrets can become unlocked, (with a little searching.) Even before the bonuses are unlocked this site is excellent, with them it easily wins the surreal Weekly Website Award.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-07-16
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
American Wedding
Current Content: The flash site launched this week, and while there is a few sections marked coming soon, most of the site is up. The starting section has good background music, which is not too short and loops well. It also has bubble rising up the left side and when you move the mouse over these bubbles they show clips of the movie. A lot of this site is interactive, a lot more than most sites. Trivia game, Stiffler's Learn to Boogie, Save the Cake, and more. Most of what's marked coming soon is the usual features. The trailer and synopsis is there, but cast and crew bios, production notes and clips are all marked coming soon.
The Anarchists Cookbook
Current Content: This site spends most of its time on character bios. The only other content is the trailer, a few reviews, cast and crew (no bios) and the poster that you can buy.
Bad Boys II
Current Content: Issue 5 launched with the usual four sections. Story contains bios and interviews with the cast and crew. Video has three clips from the movie, most of which has already been seen in the trailers and TV spots. There are six more images in the gallery and one wallpaper and one screensaver in Downloads. There's also a create your own Photo Album, but you have to be a member of Screenblasts to do so. There's a lot of content, and still one more issue to go. And so, it truly deserving the willy-nilly Weekly Website Award.
The Chosen One
Current Content: I found this site while trying to research upcoming traditional animation. Far from being traditional, this film will be done in flash animation. So far the site has a synopsis, character bios, crew bios, and under the news section a teaser trailer. Note: In the teaser is says the movie would be released in 2002. That obviously didn't happen. They are now aiming for a 2004 release date, and I'll keep you informed on how that progresses.
Civil Brand
Current Content: Just a placeholder site till the regular site launches. So far just the trailer is available.
Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star
Current Content: Another placeholder site launched this week. This time it has just the synopsis and a surprisingly funny trailer.
Dirty Pretty Things
Current Content: Nothing new since last week's review, so here it is. This site doesn't treat the movie like a movie. So while there's a synopsis and character bios, there's not mention of cast or crew or behind the scenes, etc. There is a trailer, but even that's is off-site. There's not much in the way of sound or animation, which is a shame.
Freaky Friday
Current Content: Fitting in with the theme of the movie, this site has two sides. The Tess side, with trailer, synopsis, crew (bios coming soon) and more. The Anna side has trailer, synopsis, cast (bios coming soon) photos, downloads and more. You can also press the Get Freaky button to have the two switch bodies. The site has good sound effects and some audio clips, but could use some background music. There's plenty of content still marked coming soon, so that could be added later on.
Garage Days
Current Content: This site as twice the content most sites do. From text like the synopsis, production note, cast, crew and character bios to more multimedia oriented sections. There are dozens of images spread throughout the site. Pre-production, behind the scenes, and even a massive crew shot. There are 360-degree virtual tours of some of the film sets. Videos include the trailer and several interviews with cast and crew. And while there are sound effects (guitar cords), there is no music, which is strange for a movie based around a garage band.
Gigli
Current Content: The trailer was added to the site.
Honey
Current Content: This is the first site I looked at for the Weekly column. And in all that time it's always just been the synopsis, cast and crew (no bios) and two images. Now they have all that, and a release date. Of course, since I checked the site out last, the release date has changed. So it's more of a theoretical release date, as opposed to something you should make plans around.
How to Deal
Current Content: It took me just a few seconds at this site to realize I'm not in its target audience, so writing a review for it is a little more difficult. There's a trailer, synopsis, cast and crew bios, quite a few clips from the movie, photo gallery, etc. There are also personality quizzes, relationship report cards, dating advice and other stuff that proves my feelings about the target audience and me. There are two whole songs that play in the background, but they are compressed enough to reduce the sound quality too much.
Johnny English
Current Content: No chances since the last time I reviewed the site. But the last time I reviewed the site it won the Weekly Website Award, so no changes were needed.
Madame Satã
Current Content: A simple design that would have benefited with some more formatting. For instance, the Press book section is just one long page filled with the synopsis, introduction, cast and crew bios, director's statement, etc. It would have been best if these were separated into their own pages, at the very least. In addition to the information found on that page, there is the trailer and an interview with writer director Karim Aïnouz.
Matchstick Men
Current Content: This would be a great site, if there were any sound. It has a lot of information, especially in the Production Notes section. Synopsis, cast and crew bios, screensaver, wallpapers, buddy icons, poster. There's even animated segues. So why there's no sounds is beyond me. However, there is a section for the soundtrack marked, coming soon. So there's hope sounds will be added later on.
The Medallion
Current Content: One of the features I like the most is background music. This site has background music, but the clip is less that four seconds long, so it becomes repetitive way too quickly. There's not much content overall, synopsis, trailer, character bios (cast bios are marked coming soon) images, wallpapers and e-cards. The best part is the game simply called, The Mission. Reminds me of a Double Dragon type game.
Spy Kids 3D - Game Over
Current Content: Another site that's been reviewed before where the flash site was just launched. So far just to first two levels are in place (Arena of Misfortune and Megarace.) As you explore these areas you unlock additional content for the main menu, (Synopsis, character bios, images, clips and build your own wallpaper.) So far this site is only half-way complete and it already looks great.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Current Content: So far just the trailer, the poster and nine images are on this site. But it's three months till the latest release date, and I expect at least one more delay from there.
This Thing of Ours
Current Content: The most unique feature of this site is the TV footage. Not TV spots, but footage of shows such as eXtra and Court TV talking about the movie. Most of which seems to talk about Danny Provenzano alleged mob connections. Besides this, the rest of the content is pretty sparse. Trailer, cast and crew (no bios), image gallery, etc. There's no sound effects and only two short music clips from the soundtrack.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-06-18
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
Alex and Emma
Current Content: No changes from the last time the site was reviewed. But it was an effective site, so no real changes were needed.
American Wedding
Current Content: A new trailer was added to the site.
Bad Boys II
Current Content: Issue 3 was added to the site, but it deals more with the first movie than with the new one. Also, both interviews from issues 2 and 3 have yet to be added.
Elf
Current Content: This site as again switched back to the new site, but it’s missing the trailer. There’s still not much content, just some images (poster, gallery, and wallpaper.) The music is well done, the clip is long enough but it doesn’t quite loop effectively.
From Justin to Kelly
Current Content: Some more behind the scene footage was added. So was information of the music, but they’re just link to Kelly and Justin’s homepages.
The Hulk
Current Content: This site is absolutely packed. Not only are all the usual suspects present, (synopsis, cast and crew bios, trailer) but there are more extras on this site than on all the other sites reviewed this week, combined. There are half a dozen clips from the movie, interviews with 9 different members of the cast and crew, a 14-part interview with Stan Lee, 8 clips from the press conference. And that’s just the multimedia section. There are games, trivia, background information galore, scientific information, etc. You could easily spend hours here. And that’s why this site wins the inconceivable Weekly Website Award.
Once Upon a Time in the Midlands
Current Content: Quite a basic site that doesn’t even have a trailer, but it does have the rest of the usual information, plus some images and production notes. Worth noting is the background music, which was long enough to not become repetitive too fast, but it did seem out of place. Perhaps it was used in the trailer.
Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas
Current Content: There were a lot of changes made in the past week, but it was mostly style without much new content. New animated segues are used, new animations in some of the menus, etc. There is a new game in the Fun Stuff section and cast and crew bios, with more marked coming soon.
Submitted by: C.
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2003-06-11
k promotional websites for several movies were launched and some older ones added additional content. Here’s a list of highlights, plus one last look at websites for films opening this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
American Wedding
Current Content: A rather large warning about the film’s content was added to the site.
Delgo
Current Content: This was the only new site on this list that wasn’t a placeholder site. And by that note, it wins the essential Weekly Website Award almost by default. But that is not to say it’s a bad site, far from it. The content is good, focusing more on images than text. There’s a very short synopsis, and equally short character bios, plus several photos. Each of the crew has a filmography and awards, plus several photos. There’s also a scrapbook, which is quite amusing. But the most unusual feature is the Digital Dailies where you get to look at the making of Delgo through some of the Dailies. Warning, some of these dailies are several megs long. And getting through them all could take days. The one complaint I have is about sound, or the lack of it. This is a silent site, which really detracts from the surfer’s enjoyment.
Dumb and Dumberer
Current Content: Just before its release into theatres, the site gets one more update. This time instructions on how to view the ‘glow in the dark’ site. Like most of the content that has been on the site, this update is simply a joke. In fact, there’s little on the site that isn’t a joke. There is no synopsis, no cast and crew bios, etc.
Elf
Current Content: Last week, just after I uploaded the Weekly Website Update, this site was updated. Not much, just a new trailer and such. But this week I check it out, and it’s back to the old site. It may switch back after I’ve posted this story.
Gigli
Current Content: Just the synopsis and cast and crew (no bios.)
Good Boy
Current Content: Another site that was released was just the bare bones, this time with only the synopsis and a teaser trailer. Although the dogs in the background a little something. More should be added at the release date nears.
Hollywood Homicide
Current Content: Despite being a major release from a major studio, this site doesn’t have a flash site just two days from its opening. There were some images added to the site, but that hardly makes up for the lack of flash.
The Hulk
Current Content: A new science section opened this week. It talks about Adrenaline, Gamma Radiation, Nanotechnology and DNA, all of which appear in the movie. It’s quite interesting to read, but hopefully isn’t necessary to watch the movie.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life
Current Content: New trailer is up, and so are the international sites.
Radio
Current Content: The third ‘teaser site’ opening this week. This one has just the trailer.
Rugrats Go Wild
Current Content: This site is obviously meant of kids, and it does a good job of creating an interactive environment for them to play with. There is also a lot of content, from synopsis, trailer and character info to a few games and downloads like wallpapers and screensavers.
Stuck on You
Current Content: Just the trailer. However, there is some sound and a short music clip.
Submitted by: C.
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