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Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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2009-05-26
It's a slow week, not that you can tell from the number of spotlight reviews. Over the past week, I received close to a dozen DVDs that were late. Fortunately, I was able to get to all of them, at least I until this afternoon when a couple more arrived late. (It never ends.) As for the DVD / Blu-rays coming out this week, there's not much of a selection. The best is Jeeves & Wooster - The Complete Series, but the lack of extras prevents it from being awarded the DVD Pick of the Week. On the other hand, the best on this week's list is Star Trek - Original Motion Picture Collection, which actually came out a couple of weeks ago. Even so, it is deserving of the DVD Pick of the Week. A slow week plus a lot of late reviews still results in a list so long it had to be spit into two. The second part can be found here.
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2006-09-12
Another busy week, but without much in the way of first run releases. There were a couple of limited releases that looking intriguing, and some special editions worth the upgrade, but in the end there were only two real contenders for DVD Pick of the Week: The Office - The Complete Second Season - Buy from Amazon and Smallville - The Complete Fifth Season - Buy from Amazon.
In a photo finish, Smallville - The Complete Fifth Season - Buy from Amazon won out, but this was partially because no matter how good The Office is, it's not as good as the original.
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2004-02-28
Just over 24 hours to go before the ceremony, and we're ready to call another result.
This time the category is costume design - one that has thrown up some surprises in the past.
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2004-02-26
Having called the results for Best Animate Feature and Achievement in Directing over the past two days, we're ready to announce a projected winner for the big prize... Best Picture.
Our projections are based on the entries in our Predict the Academy Awards competition.
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2004-01-27
Nominations for the 76the Annual Academy Awards were announced today. As always, here is a list of the nominations, plus reactions below.
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2004-01-26
While the Writers' Guild of America hand out more than a dozen awards each year, only two apply to theatrical releases, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Adapted Screenplay. Here are the nominations in each of those categories.
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2004-01-25
With the awards ceremony only hours away, here's one last look at the theatrical nominations for tonight's 61st annual Golden Globes awards.
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2004-01-18
On Thursday the 10th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards(R) Nominations were announced. Here is a list of all the nominations in theatrical categories as well as a brief reaction to them.
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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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2003-08-29
Labor Day long weekend is the slowest long weekend of the year. And this year looks to be no exception. Only one new movie is opening, however, The Italian Job is expanding to over 1900 theatres in a push to reach the $100 million milestone. Like last week, expect limited releases to get a boost from weak wide releases.
Finishing first will be no problem for Jeepers Creepers 2, the real question is whether it will beat the original. Earlier this summer it would have been a forgone conclusion that the sequel would open bigger, and drop faster, than the original. But lately that hasn't always been the case. Reviews for Jeepers Creepers 2 are bad, currently a little more than half what the original got. Added in sequel burn out and you get $13 million Friday to Sunday and $16 for the long weekend.
I know Freaky Friday finished fourth last week, but by Thursday it had risen to 2nd place. Add in the family friendly nature and this movie should benefit the most from the Labor Day long weekend. $8 million for Friday to Sunday and $10 million overall.
Coming in third for the third week in a row will be Open Range. Targeted at a more mature audience, this movie will also benefit more from the long weekend than other movies coming in virtual tie with Freaky Friday. $8 million for Friday to Sunday and $10 million overall.
S.W.A.T. has been in first place on the daily charts since Wednesday, but several other movies have been gaining on it during the week. So it will drop to fourth for the weekend, but the $7 million / $9 million it will earn will be enough to push it over the $100 million mark.
Returning to the top five after two weeks at number 6 is Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. At the beginning of the week it was more than $500 thousand out of top spot, but by Thursday it was only a little more than $100 thousand and comfortably in the top five. And even without a long weekend Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the black Peal had held up well at the box office. So expect it to do even better this weekend. $6 million Friday to Sunday and $8 million over the long weekend.
Three other movies are trying for the $100 million club this weekend.
After last weekend, Charlie's Angels: Full throttle had only $500,000 to reach the milestone, and even battle mid-week numbers would have cut that in half by Thursday. After taking into account the drop of 40% of its theatre count this weekend it should still make the grade by Monday.
The Italian Job is just a little more than $3 million away and this weekend it expands to over 1900 theatres. That gives it an outside shot at $100 million this weekend, but even if it just cuts the gap in half it should reach it by the end of next weekend.
Lastly, Seabiscuit has made more than $95 million, including more than $6 million last weekend. Giving its strong legs and the long weekend it has a very good chance at $100 million by Monday as well.
Submitted by:
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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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2003-07-28
a shocker with only one movie acting as predicted. Overall, there were more positive surprises than negative ones with the top five all making more than $20 million at the box office. And this is reflected in the 5.7% growth from last week and the 4.2% growth from last year.
The end of the Spy Kids trilogy started off with a bang. Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over beat every prediction I saw earning an impressive $33.4 million in its opening weekend. That's very nearly double what the last one earned, and significantly above the original. Reviewers were not so kind giving it just below 50%. Weaker reviews, the fact that it's a sequel and the 3-D gimmick could lead to smaller legs, but $100 million is still an attainable goal.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl dropped more than I expected, but it still earned an impressive $23.1 million this weekend. That's just a 32% drop, better than Finding Nemo during its third weekend. It's too early to say it could top Finding Nemo, but Bruce Almighty is in danger of losing third place.
Bad Boys II managed to recover after really weak mid-week numbers. It only dropped 53% to $22.1 million. (It's a sad indictment of the movies when a 53% drop can be seen as doing good.)
On Friday when I said somewhere in Paramount there is someone asking, 'Is it too late to get our money back on Tomb Raider?' I had no idea it would be this bad. For a movie that cost nearly $100 million grabbing only $21.8 million is a bomb, plain and simple. And the news isn't getting any better, abysmal reviews and the sequel effect will lead to weaker legs and $50 million could be out of reach.
The only movie to get positive reviews finished in fifth place. Seabiscuit did beat my prediction with $20.9 million, but with a total budget of over $100 million it's going to need very long legs to show a profit.
Finding Nemo is finally showing signs of weakness at the box office. It earned $4.4 million in its ninth week of release, which was significantly below my prediction. And because of that it just missed making the top ten. It did beat The Lion King to become the highest grossing animated movie of all time (Not counting The Lion King's Imax run.) It should beat The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring tonight and move into the top ten of all time.
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2003-07-25
er three movie compete for the all-important opening weekend. This time we have two sequels and a biopic competing. However, only one movie has a real chance at taking the top spot.
Somewhere in Paramount there is someone asking, 'Is it too late to get our money back on Tomb Raider?' With a price tag the same as the first, but prospects that are much, much lower. No prediction I've seen has it matching the original's $47.7 million, and some even go as low as $30 million. I'd go that low too, especially considering some of the reviews. Any way you slice it, 25% is bad, but it's much higher than the orginal's 18%. Still, most moviegoers are wary of sequels so I think $33 million will be as good as it gets, and big drops will be in store for the coming weeks.
Staying in second and moving in on $200 million is Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. By Tuesday it had overtaken Bad Boys II for top spot and is tracking for another sub 30% loss. $26 million and a place in the Top 100 of All Time will happen this weekend. And it should make $200 million by the end of the next.
Bad Boys II has really fallen during the week. By Tuesday it was traking similar to Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, and that movie lost more than 60% during its second weekend. I don't think Bad Boys II will do quite so bad, but it will drop a lot. Just north of $20 million for the weekend and $100 million is now a safe bet.
The third installment in the Spy Kids trilogy is here. Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over is getting just average reviews and its 53% postive at Rotten Tomatoes is quite a drop from the first two. Kids movies should be more impervious to the sudden sequel adversion at the box office. But beating the last movie will be difficult. A slightly better opening at $19 million the first weekend is an improvement, but $75 million overall is a bit of a drop.
The last movie to open wide this week is Seabiscuit. Opening in less than 2000 theatres will hurt its box office. But the reviews will not; 79% is the best-reviewed wide release of the week. The highest predictions are more than double the lowest, and I'd be more inclined to agree with the low end here. $12 million for the weekend and no come from behind finish here.
Lastly, the Finding Nemo watch continues. These weekend it will earn about $6 million, putting its total at nearly $314 million. That will make it the highest grossing animated movie of all time beating The Lion King. It will also put it ahead of The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring and into the top ten of all time.
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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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2003-07-10
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. This week there were a lot of new sites for smaller independent titles, as well as a lot of limited releases for this week. If you know of any new movie websites not on this list feel free to e-mail me with the details.
Bad Boys II
Current Content: No new issue, but a new was to check out the content, Virtual Miami. It adds a bit more flare to an already well done site.
Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights
Current Content: Opening night is a long time away, so it's not surprising there's very little content. So far just the synopsis, trailer and image gallery.
The Holy Land
Current Content: A very simple site, no animated transitions and no sound. And except for the trailer, it's just images and text. Despite the simple format, I found myself drawn into the site. It was a very interesting read, with not just the synopsis and cast and crew bios but with very extensive production notes and even more press.
The Haunted Mansion
Current Content: I liked the background music / sounds for this site. But the real draw for me was the concept art. The costumes were good, but the artwork for the mansion was incredible. There is also a synopsis, a trailer and a poster. But that was secondary to the concept art.
I Capture the Castle
Current Content: This is an otherwise good site marred by two problems. Firstly, it is another silent site. I wish more websites would incorporate sound into their site. Secondly, when I tried to watch the trailer none of the links worked. I was able to find the trailer elsewhere.
Dirty Pretty Things
Current Content: 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.
Jeepers Creepers 2
Current Content: Flash site launched this week, and it's almost entirely multimedia. No synopsis, no cast and crew bios, no productions note, yet. There's even a section for characters and it's all clips from the movie. In fact, most of this site is clips. Changing between sections shows you a flash animated pseudo-clip, there's for other clips from the movie, and two trailers. Speaking of the trailers, is it me or does the teaser trailer show a more in-depth look at the movie than the full trailer? There is also an image gallery, storyboards and downloads.
Kilometer Zero
Current Content: Simple presentation with sparse content. There's a synopsis, trailer, crew and character bios, (but no cast bios), a short note from the directors and a list of theatres. There's no sound and just two animated gifs.
The League
Current Content: New opening menu with international sites is up. But so far only the two English sites are available. When this site first opened, I was very impressed. There's more content dealing with just the characters than most sites have total. Then there's the usual information, Synopsis, cast and crew bios, production notes, the teaser and full trailers and two TV spots. The updates on the Nautilus and Technology were a bit of a disappointment, but overall the sight is still good.
Northfork
Current Content: This site's use of a view-master in its presentation is imaginative. The site does have the necessary elements, (synopsis, trailer, cast and crew bios) and a couple of minor extras, (under populated chat room and a theatre finder.) However, there is little else; what it has is done well, it could just use a little more. Some background music and a sound effect for the view-master, for instance.
Open Range
Current Content: Low key, but not low tech. This site has background music, sound effects and animated transitions. So right away you have a good format, and a fitting style. The content is not bad, synopsis, trailer, cast and crew (no bios.) There's also an image gallery and some wallpapers and screensavers to download. Plus a couple more sections marked coming soon.
Passionade
Current Content: Another site with no background music, no sound effects and no animated links; it's just text and images. However, practically ever image is a link so the site is still engaging. Not only are the all the usual features here, but there's also a section on Fado, the style of music that features prominently in the movie. And there are several seafood recipes marked coming soon. I'll be paying extra attention for that update.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Current Content: Arr, after going to this site I was as happy as an old coat who's loaded to the gunwhales and off to crack Jenny's tea cup. Background music, sound effects, animated transitions, a game, what more could you want? Arr, so ye want some content. Aye, matey! How about synopsis, cast and crew bios, plus a very detailed production notes. So ye be sayin' tat ain't enough! Yeah be wantin' multimedia! There's a photo gallery and concept art. Not enough? Well there's two trailers, six clips and 5 behind the scenes segments. What! Now ye be demanding some booty as well. There's wallpapers, posters, buddy icons, screensavers and more! Still, lookin' to take what not be yers, ye scurvy dogs. Ye might as well set anchors away and haul wind, cause it will be cold enough in hell to freeze the balls off a Brass Monkey before I be tellin' you more. (Note: That last statement wasn't as dirty as you think. A brass monkey was a device used to keep canon balls neatly stacked near the canons. However, when the weather got cold the metal would contract causing the canon balls to fall off. Hence the phrase, 'Freezing the balls off a Brass Monkey.' And you thought it was dirty.) Which a review filled with that much Pirate Speak, it's no surprise it wins the Arrrrmorous Weekly Website Award.
Runaway Jury
Current Content: So far it's just the placeholder site. Cast and crew, (no bios) a two sentence synopsis and the trailer. It's not set to be released till mid-October, so the current lack of content is not surprising.
Sea Biscuit
Current Content: This could be a good site. Unfortunately, most of the content is still marked coming soon. The main attraction is 30 modules that have quotes and audio and / or video clips from the movie. It seems a little too haphazard for me, but as the rest of the site is added it might all come together.
Second Hand Lions
Current Content: The second Robert Duvall movie site reviewed this week, and for the most part it is a placeholder site. Trailer, gallery, poster, e-cards and a wallpaper to round out the content. There are a couple of extra touches. First, a lion will roar intermittently. Secondly, a bi-plane trailing smoke will fly across the site. The flash site should open when the release date draws near.
Submitted by: C.
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