In some late-breaking comic book news last night, it was announced that Sony will agree to essentially share custody of their beloved Spider-Man with his original (and rightful) owner, Marvel Studios. This is a big deal, because it means that Spider-Man can now join the Marvel movies, team up with the Avengers, and have his own films within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sony will actually still own the character and continue to profit financially from the films, but hey, since nobody really cared about the last two Amazing Spider-Man movies anyway, it was obvious Sony had no real ideas about what to do with the iconic superhero. Of course, that means Andrew Garfield has been 86ed and the search is on for a new Spidey, ideally one who will be able to carry the Marvel movies once Robert Downey Jr. (finally) steps down as their flagship character of Iron Man. We can all expect a new Spider-Man movie in 2017 now, meaning their other slate of films has been pushed back (clearly Spidey's much more important to them than Thor 3, Captain Marvel, Black Panther, and the Inhumans). Who would you guys like to see cast as the next web-slinger?
TRAILER: "Wild Tales"
The foreign-language film with the best chance of taking down this year's frontrunner (and BAFTA winner) Ida is rumored to be Argentina's Wild Tales, which is apparently much more of an accessible, crowd-pleaser type film. I haven't been able to see it yet, but honestly, just by looking at this trailer, I can already see it winning. Ida is a bit distant and cold for this category- if this one is what it looks to be, a comedy that can appeal to a wider audience, it may very well be the spoiler.
RED BAND TRAILER: "Straight Outta Compton"
The new trailer for the NWA biopic Straight Outta Compton comes complete with a minute-and-a-half long introduction by Dr. Dre and Ice Cube. The movie's from F. Gary Gray, who directed Friday and the remake of The Italian Job, and is coming out August 14th. Kind of a surprise to see Paul Giamatti in it.
BOX OFFICE 2/06-2/08: 'SpongeBob' Takes Off; 'Jupiter Ascending' Bombs Hard
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water ended American Sniper's three week reign at the top of the box office this weekend, earning a surprisingly hefty $56 million, significantly more than the $32 million opening of the original SpongeBob movie back in 2004. I don't know what that's about, but apparently the fanbase is still there, as 50% of the audience was over the age of 18. I was never a fan, so I have no opinion or reaction to the SpongeBob success- it's just, whatever. Sniper fell to second place with $24 million, bringing the total to $282 million with a long way to go yet (it only fell 21% since last week).
The two new releases this week, Jupiter Ascending and The Seventh Son, were extremely expensive sci-fi extravaganzas that both belly-flopped on their opening debuts, with critics and audiences. The Wachowski's epic brought in just $19 million against a $170 million dollar budget, while The Seventh Son came in fourth with $7 million. Interestingly, both films co-star an Oscar frontrunner in Eddie Redmayne and Julianne Moore, who are both said to give disastrous performances, leading some to speculate whether that could affect their Oscar chances, but that's mostly an urban legend still spurred from the year Eddie Murphy lost for Dreamgirls, as Norbit was released during voting time (in truth, he was very likely going to lose anyway). Rounding out the top five was Paddington, bringing in another $5 million.
Top 5:
- The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water- $56 million
- American Sniper- $24.2 million
- Jupiter Ascending- $19 million
- The Seventh Son- $7.1 million
- Paddington- $5.4 million
Next week it's the big opening of Fifty Shades of Grey, a movie which seems destined to open huge (the atrocious books sold 100 million copies), but then just as likely to disappear in a week, depending on how bad it is. Still, it will probably crush everything in its path over the long President's Day weekend, which is corresponding with Valentine's Day this year (nice marketing, you gotta admit). Also coming out is the British action flick Kingsmen: The Secret Service, which may turn out a sleeper hit, especially if it gets decent reviews. See you then!
'Boyhood' Wins Picture and Director at the BAFTA's
So, just one night after Birdman sealed up the guilds, Boyhood comes roaring back with the top wins at BAFTA, which is a voting body about the same size as the Academy's, and shares an overlap of about 500 voters. Does this mean anything? I'd say yes- this is the first time Boyhood has proved itself as a consensus choice among a group of thousands. That guild combination is still much stronger, historically, but when The King's Speech won all the guilds in 2010 over The Social Network, it also swept BAFTA. So Boyhood is definitely still in this. I may have to lean towards predicting a split after all- Linklater in Director and Birdman in Picture.
British Film: The Theory of Everything
Music: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Production Design: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Animated Short: The Bigger Picture
Live Action Short: Boogaloo and Graham
Makeup & Hair: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Editing: Whiplash
Sound: Whiplash
Animated Film: The Lego Movie
Visual Effects: Interstellar
Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Cinematography: Birdman
British Debut: Pride
Original Screenplay: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Foreign Language Film: Ida
Adapted Screenplay: The Theory of Everything
Costume Design: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Rising Star: Jack O'Connell
Director: Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Actor: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
Actress: Julianne Moore, Still Alice
Picture: Boyhood
In other news, The Grand Budapest Hotel looks good for a lot of tech wins on Oscar night, while the acting winners look set to move on, Redmayne included (unfortunately). On a side note, Bafta's vomit-inducing love for Theory of Everything is totally inexplicable- seriously, that script could have been written by a 12-year-old. This is a very close race overall, and now we're done as far as Best Picture precursors, with voting taking place right now for the next week and a half. When in doubt, I say it's better to rely on the guilds, which is why I have to stick with Birdman. But it's going to be a nail-biter- I'm betting that before Best Picture is announced on Oscar night, both films will have won no more than two (maybe three) trophies each.
Alejandro Inarritu Takes the DGA for 'Birdman'
Game over, everybody. Alejandro G. Inarritu upset Richard Linklater (below) to win the Directors Guild award tonight, which means that Birdman has now taken PGA, SAG and DGA- all three of the major guild awards. The last time a movie swept all three of those and lost Best Picture was Apollo 13 in 1995 (the year that Ron Howard was not nominated for director at the Oscars). So, in light of this new information, it would be unwise to predict anything other than Birdman to win Best Picture. I can hardly believe that a movie that dark, weird and bizarre is going to win- there's literally no precedent for it that I can think of, but the lesson here is clearly never to forget that Hollywood loves movies about Hollywood more than any other subject.
This is also another year where the industry has totally overturned the critics choice, Golden Globe winner, and presumed frontrunner, choosing to reject Boyhood outright in favor of Inarritu's Hollywood satire (last time this happened was when The King's Speech beat down The Social Network). The only question now is can Michael Keaton beat Eddie Redmayne for Best Actor in the end? It seems likely- if the love for Birdman is this strong, how does Keaton not get swept up in it? That one's going to be a coin toss. I also believe there may still be a chance for Linklater to win Best Director, while Birdman takes Picture- which would give us our third Picture/Director split in a row. It's possible, given the achievement he pulled off, although at this point, it would also be unwise not to predict Inarritu. Tomorrow we'll see if the BAFTAS can tell us anything new, but with these three guilds sewn up, the Best Picture race looks pretty damn over. Now, we try to figure out how of if they're going to spread the wealth around in the smaller categories.
'Selma' Wins Big at NAACP Image Awards
Selma won best picture last night at the NAACP Awards, while David Oyelowo, Common and Carmen Ejogo all won acting honors for the film. Curiously, Ava DuVernay did not win best director, which instead went to Antoine Fuqua for The Equalizer- really? Huh. Seems like an odd oversight there.
Outstanding Motion Picture: Selma
Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture: David Oyelowo, Selma
Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture: Taraji P. Henson, No Good Deed
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: Common, Selma
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: Carmen Ejogo, Selma
Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture: Antoine Fuqua, The Equalizer
Outstanding Independent Motion Picture: Belle
Outstanding Documentary: Through A Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People
Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture: Belle
Kids Reenact Oscar Nominees
If you missed any of the Best Picture nominees, you can catch up by watching these child actors imitate everyone from Martin Luther King to Stephen Hawking. Some people really love this stuff (I have to confess, I don't find it quite as hilarious as others do- for me it's amusing for about five seconds). Speaking of the Oscars, voting officially commences today, as people will decide what to vote for in what looks like a pretty close race between Boyhood and Birdman. This weekend it's two important precursor awards ceremonies- the DGA tomorrow night and the BAFTAS, or the British Academy Awards, on Sunday afternoon (11am on the West Coast). Those two can be pretty significant- DGA is historically the most accurate Best Picture predictor, while the Baftas can often signal if an acting winner is going to surprise on Oscar night. I'll be posting the results as soon as they come in.
TRAILER: "Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter"
I think this is one of the last movies from last year's Sundance Film Festival to finally get released (although there may be more that have to wait years before coming out). Kumiko was nominated for a couple of Independent Spirit Awards for 2014, but is now finally opening on March 27th. Babel's Rinko Kikuchi stars aasa lost woman on a strange quest- it looks pretty cool, I have to say.
REVIEW: "Top Five" (2014) Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson. Dir. Chris Rock
Sometimes you watch a movie that works because it never tries to be more than it is, and yet it becomes so in spite of itself. That's how it feels to watch Chris Rock's Top Five, a delightful comedy that succeeds simply because it feels so effortless and most importantly, honest in what it's about. Chris Rock is one of the great stand-up comedians who hadn't been able to transfer his material to the big screen, instead flailing in lower tier comedies like Down to Earth or I Think I Love My Wife, but this time he takes a page out of Louis C.K.'s book and just writes what he knows- and it's nearly a complete triumph.
Rock plays movie star Andre Allen, who's had a hugely successful career as a former stand-up starring in a franchise called Hammy the Bear, of which he's made three and now wants to be taken seriously by releasing a new film about a Haitian slave rebellion. But no one wants to see him in serious movies, preferring him to just "be funny" (a common theme that's plagued comedians like Woody Allen and Louis C.K.), while he's afraid he can't because the success had fueled his alcohol and drug addiction and he's now fearful for his sobriety. The film sees Andre at a crossroads on the weekend of his movie release as he agrees to be interviewed by a New York Times journalist (Rosario Dawson), while also getting ready to marry his fiance (Gabrielle Union) a reality TV star whose only devotion is to the cameras (ala a Kardashian).
The conceit of the film allows for a constant exchange of flirtatious banter and confessions between Rock and Dawson, who share a great chemistry as they talk and banter their way across New York City and into various areas of Rock's personal life, including his family back home, his addictions, relationships, the realities of show business when you're a black movie star, and leads to the question of how to stay true to your art in a world where success brings out your worst self. All of this is incorporated smoothly and hilariously- this movie is more consistently funny than any other comedy I saw last year, and because it came from a place of honestly through of all things, gasp, dialogue! Most movies set up the jokes from a mile away and you see them coming, but the humor in this one springs from the characters and the relationships between people (although there are two of the funniest, most outrageous sex scenes you've seen in a long time in here as well).
Top Five revives the old theory that the more specific a situation is, the more universal it becomes. Not only does this movie touch on the common ideas at work in a comedian's mind on all observations of modern life (this movie is so alive and about right now that it feels more relevant than any drama that came out in 2014), but there's a moving and heartwarming romance at the center of it. You root for these two characters so much that this could well be one of the most sophisticated romantic comedies of the last fifteen years, at home with the best of the sparkling back and forth of a Tracy-Hepburn pairing in an old Hollywood studio film, but fully plugged into modern day sensibilities. Obviously that's a pretty high compliment, but I know it when I see it. Top Five is entertaining, accessible, hilarious and insightful all at the same time- I can't say enough good things about it.
* * * 1/2
TRAILER #2: "Minions"
We get a look at Sandra Bullock's voicework in the new trailer for the Minions movie, as she plays the ultimate villain(ess) that the minions must go work for. Looks kind of funny, but I have to admit, I never even saw the Despicable Me movies (sorry, don't hate me!). They just didn't grab my attention.
TRAILER: "Poltergeist"
Okay, I really don't know why it was necessary to do a remake of one of my favorite horror movies of all time- can people just not tolerate non-CGI effects anymore? And what's Sam Rockwell doing in this mess? Don't be fooled by the advertizing either- Sam Raimi did not direct this film, only produced it. If he did, it probably wouldn't look like all the other generic, cheap horror movies that get made every year now. Ugh. Trying to sully what was such a classic of the genre. See the old one, people.
