Hey everyone! Long time no see. Which is weird, cause I figured being out of school would give me more time to blog. But here's what's weird, I discovered this entirely new thing that keeps taking me away from my computer. I'm told it's called "the outside." And boy is it cool! Kayaking, Busch Gardens, yardwork, cookouts, swimming, bonfires. Plus, I am still working and seeing pretty much every movie that comes out. Who knew there was so much to do!
Hopefully you can understand that I'm trying to make the most of my last summer at home before making the harrowing journey to the real world. (Kinda, I'm just going to grad school lol.) But I missed yall too! So here's a look at just about all the movies that came out in May including Iron Man 3, The Iceman, The Great Gatsby, Star Trek Into Darkness, The Hangover III, Fast & Furious 6, After Earth, and Now You See Me.
May 3rd
Box Office
$174 million opening wknd
$396 million domestic total
$1.2 billion worldwide total
Review: I actually already did this one. You can check it out here!
The Final Word: 3.5/4 - Go buy a ticket.
The Final Word: 3.5/4 - Go buy a ticket.
Box Office
$88,000 opening wknd
$1.8 million domestic total
Review: Before Michael Shannon (Take Shelter, Revolutionary Road) goes head to head with Superman in this month's Man of Steel, he killed over 100 people in The Iceman as Richard Kuklinski. Of course, the film didn't show all of those kills, but the real man upon whom this film is based did actually commit that many murders during his time as a mob hitman, all to the surprise of his typical, middle class, American-dream family when he was finally apprehended. It's a long film that struggles with pacing, but which makes it to the finish line of respectable satisfaction on the shoulders of Shannon as the patriarchal assassin. And a shout out to David Schwimmer for being so awesome in his mobster role that I never once thought of him as Ross from Friends.
The Final Word: 2/4 - Wait to rent it.
The Final Word: 2/4 - Wait to rent it.
Box Office
$50 million open wknd
$137 million domestic total
$280 million worldwide total
Review: "Can't repeat the past? Of course you can." Leonardo DiCaprio (Django Unchained) as Jay Gatsby is correct; of course you can repeat the past. Just the fact that this film exists proves the point. Based on the epochal novel from F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby has been adapted a number of times, most notably in 1974 with Robert Redford (The Sting) in the titular role.
Why do it again? The answer is, of course, to make more money. But more than that, one could argue it is almost an obligation of society to continue to reintroduce literary and dramatic classics to new generations. No one complains that the American Shakespeare Center is doing another Shakespeare play yet again. Of course, much like the ASC shakes the cobwebs from Victorian theater, any filmmaker approaching a beloved classic must deliver a fresh perspective on the material, rather than mimicking a carbon copy of previous adaptations. Director Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge!) accomplishes this and then some with his flair for dazzling visual stimulations and an exceptional cast, despite an overemphasis on the angst of the characters at the expense of the sense of hope the novel dually captured.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
Why do it again? The answer is, of course, to make more money. But more than that, one could argue it is almost an obligation of society to continue to reintroduce literary and dramatic classics to new generations. No one complains that the American Shakespeare Center is doing another Shakespeare play yet again. Of course, much like the ASC shakes the cobwebs from Victorian theater, any filmmaker approaching a beloved classic must deliver a fresh perspective on the material, rather than mimicking a carbon copy of previous adaptations. Director Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge!) accomplishes this and then some with his flair for dazzling visual stimulations and an exceptional cast, despite an overemphasis on the angst of the characters at the expense of the sense of hope the novel dually captured.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
Box Office
$70 million opening wknd
$202 million domestic total
$379 million worldwide total
Review: My two-sentence review of this Star Trek sequel (learn from my mistakes and NEVER refer to Star Trek Into Darkness as "Star Trek 2," especially not in front of any Trekkies!) would go something like this: "That was pretty good! It didn't provide the same sense of wonder the 2009 Star Trek did introducing me to a new cinematic world, but Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock) was a much better villain!" And really, that just about covers it.
The Final Word: 3.5/4 - Go buy a ticket.
The Final Word: 3.5/4 - Go buy a ticket.
Box Office
$12 million opening day (Thurs)
$42 million opening wknd (Fri-Sun)
$104 million domestic total
$274 million worldwide total
Review: In the words of President Obama, "Uhhhhhh, let me be clear..." (in case you thought I was going to try to be vague): I, like so many Americans, absolutely loved 2009's The Hangover. It's sequel I hated for trying to make the same exact movie again, but just in a different location and with even dirtier humor. You can see from the box office numbers, movie goers joined me in being much more skeptical of The Wolfpack's return in The Hangover III. What I don't think is particularly reflected in the numbers is how much better the 3rd movie is when compared to the 2nd. It's got its own story, it's got its own jokes, it's got its own twists, and the mid-credits scene is one of the most surprising and hilarious things I've seen in a while. Its only unfortunate that the predecessors of sequels often determine the box office of the sequels themselves. The Hangover II did well because people liked the 1st film. The Hangover III isn't doing bigger totals because people disliked the 2nd film. In a fairer world, the numbers would be opposite.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
Box Office
$97 million opening wknd
$207 million domestic total
$589 million worldwide total
Review: I've never seen any of the other F&F movies. There. I said it. I'm sorry I'm so behind on the times, but let's face it, after F&F: Tokyo Drift failed to bring back any of the first two films headliners and then (7-year old spoiler!) killed off its own protagonist, it was a fair assumption the series was over. Boy was I wrong. F&F has come back in a manner worthy of its name. And you know what, despite my less than friendly expectations, I actually kinda liked what I saw. I even figured out that chronologically Tokyo Drift fits between FF6 and next year's F&F7! And while we're talking about the character Han, fun fact: his character actually debuted not in a F&F film, but in a 2002 movie called Better Luck Tomorrow directed by Justin Lin (who has directed every F&F movie aside from the first two). When Lin took over the F&F franchise and once again cast Better Luck Tomorrow actor Sung Kang, they decided to connect the films through the character Han.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
Review: I've never seen any of the other F&F movies. There. I said it. I'm sorry I'm so behind on the times, but let's face it, after F&F: Tokyo Drift failed to bring back any of the first two films headliners and then (7-year old spoiler!) killed off its own protagonist, it was a fair assumption the series was over. Boy was I wrong. F&F has come back in a manner worthy of its name. And you know what, despite my less than friendly expectations, I actually kinda liked what I saw. I even figured out that chronologically Tokyo Drift fits between FF6 and next year's F&F7! And while we're talking about the character Han, fun fact: his character actually debuted not in a F&F film, but in a 2002 movie called Better Luck Tomorrow directed by Justin Lin (who has directed every F&F movie aside from the first two). When Lin took over the F&F franchise and once again cast Better Luck Tomorrow actor Sung Kang, they decided to connect the films through the character Han.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
Box Office
$27 million opening wknd
$48 million domestic total
$97 million worldwide total
Review: The numbers don't lie, this is the worst Will Smith (Men In Black 3)-starring action flick in decades. And since I've played video games with more involved plots (and I don't play video games!), I'd say it has earned about what it deserved. The usually reliable blockbuster star is still a good actor, as is his son Jaden Smith (The Karate Kid) I'd also argue, so it can't be his fault can it? It would be easy to place the blame for this dull and predictable sci-fail (see what I did there?) on infamous director M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense), whose once promising career has plummeted since 2004 with bomb after bomb. But although Shyamalan did some work on the screenplay, the actual idea was hatched and developed by someone, who before After Earth, had never written anything for the big screen! Why would they trust this unknown writer? Because it was Will Smith. Oh. Awkward... So it looks like he is to blame after all and not Shyamalan (who was probably just happy to have a job offer). You'd think after being in so many great movies Smith could have come up with a more inventive adventure to share with his son.
The Final Word: 1/4 - Maybe watch it on t.v. one day if you're bored.
Now You See Me
The Final Word: 1/4 - Maybe watch it on t.v. one day if you're bored.
Box Office
$29 million opening wknd
$66 million domestic total
$76 million worldwide total
Review: When May 31st rolled around, not many people were surprised when F&F6 stayed on top of the box office for a second week. What did surprise people was that the little movie about magic outperformed the Will Smith film. But in our 20/20 hindsight it doesn't seem all that outrageous. Now You See Me assembled a large, eclectic cast and, although it failed to truly develop those characters enough to become the Ocean's Eleven of magic movies, it did give the actors so much to do that audiences stay engaged throughout. The mystery of the film truly is intriguing and even though the climax lacked the shock-and-awe farewell magical performance I wanted, the twist at the end sort of made up for it. This really is an interesting movie that will keep you guessing until the very end and even forgetting about the horrendous Burt Wonderstone.
The Final Word: 3/4 - Go buy a matinee ticket.
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