So, WB has ordered tens of millions of dollars worth of re-shoots to make this movie funny, and this new trailer keeps using pop songs to make audiences think the same, so I guess it really needs to deliver on that score. It does look more lighthearted than Batman/Superman, but anything that gets chopped up like this months before the release is suspect, in my opinion. We'll see how the finished product actually turns out on August 5th.
Will Smith receives the generation award
'Star Wars' Tops the MTV Movie Awards
Will Smith receives the generation award
The winners are pretty expected here, I'd say. Lots of wins for big stars and Deadpool, but the best winner is probably Charlize Theron for Mad Max. That's a cool one.
2016 MTV Movie Award Winners
- Best Movie of the Year: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Best Female Performance: Charlize Theron, Mad Max: Fury Road
- Best Male Performance: Leonardo Dicaprio, The Revenant
- Best Ensemble: Pitch Perfect 2
- Best Breakthrough Performance: Daisy Ridley, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Best Action Performance: Chris Pratt, Jurassic World
- Best Comedic Performance: Ryan Reynolds, Deadpool
- Best Virtual Performance: Amy Poehler, Inside Out
- Best Hero: Jennifer Lawrence, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 2
- Best Villain: Adam Driver, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Best Fight: Deadpool vs. Ajax
- Best Kiss: Pitch Perfect 2
- Best True Story: Straight Outta Compton
- Best Documentary: Amy
BOX OFFICE 4/08-4/10: Melissa McCarthy's 'The Boss' Edges Out 'Batman v Superman'
Did you guys know that Melissa McCarthy hasn't not had a number one opening at the box office since her scene-stealing turn in Bridesmaids five years ago? She is a true movie star, whatever the varying quality of some of these films. The Boss got dreadful reviews and a bad "C+" Cinemascore, so it might not stick around long, but she still has a fanbase that will go see her in just about anything on opening weekend, at least so far. I think she's hilarious, but she needs to stop using her clout to let her husband make movies, because with this and Tammy, Ben Falcone is clearly a terrible director. Make too many like those and the fanbase might eventually start to dwindle.
But anyway, it beat out BvS this weekend, though just barely, and the estimates might change when actuals come in tomorrow. Still, the superhero movie dipped another 58 percent and is fading fast- it looks like it won't reach the billion dollar mark worldwide and may not pass Deadpool domestically. So far it's as 296 million, while Zootopia is also at that mark, pulling in 14 million for the weekend and will certainly pass 300 in the next week. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 and the action movie Hardcore Henry filled out the top five.
Top 5:
- The Boss- 23.48 million
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice- 23.44 million
- Zootopia- 14.35 million
- My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2- 6.42 million
- Hardcore Henry- 5.1 million
In limited release, Jake Gyllenhaal's Demolition bombed, earning a PTA of just 1k- ouch. Not a whole lot going on in the indie world right now, I have to say, although if you're looking for something, Richard Linklater's Everybody Wants Some is out there and doing okay, even if it's not something targeted at the older demographic that goes to these movies these days. Next week The Jungle Book is expected to do well, and Barber Shop: The Next Cut is also coming out. See you guys then.
Ricky Gervais is Back in 'David Brent: Life on the Road'
Ricky Gervais reprises his iconic character from the original UK version of The Office (or as I like to call it, the true version), as he takes the world's most cringeworthy former boss on tour for his attempt to make it as a singer-songwriter. He obviously loves playing this guy, but I'd like to see them do another reunion movie that reunites all the original cast. What are Tim and Dawn up to these days (as I like to think of them, the far superior and more realistic versions of Jim and Pam)? In case you couldn't tell, just about everything about that original show was absolutely perfect in my mind, so I'd love to catch up with that group.
Anna Kendrick and Sam Rockwell in Black Comedy 'Mr. Right'
It's always weird now when I see trailers for what looks like a perfectly normal movie with legitimate name actors, in this case a black comedy rom-com, but it turns out it's coming straight to digital release and on demand. Are non-blockbuster films just dwindling to the point where the only thing that makes it to theaters now are movies that are part of franchises? So depressing. I don't even know if this will be good or not, but it certainly doesn't look like it should be relegated to on demand only.
Dirty Jokes Come Out in Red-Band Trailer for 'Neighbors 2'
Eh. Still not into it. The first Neighbors was just okay, and to me this one looks to be doubling down on the problem with Rose Byrne in the first movie, which is the idea that girls can be fun, but only by being exactly like boys and doing what they want them to do. Let's be honest- sororities are different from fraternities. They might have just as bad behavior, but in totally different ways, because girls are different. But this is a Seth Rogen movie, so of course they just want to redo the first one. Meh.
Felicity Jones Gears Up in 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' Teaser
Here we go with the now annual Star Wars hype. This time it's The Theory of Everything's Felicity Jones in the lead, as we see what went down with the building of the original Death Star before the first Star Wars movie in 1977. I think this doesn't look bad, but I have a couple of nitpicks, as is inevitable and kinda part of the ritual for anything SW-related these days, and why not? The material no longer belongs to George Lucas, but to the general public, and since the films are now being driven by fan fiction, it's my turn to chime in. One, why does everyone in the Star Wars universe now have british accents all of a sudden? Do they think that makes everything look and sound more "serious"? And two, if this Jyn Erso character turns out to be Rey's mother, as I'm almost certain is going to happen, I really really hope Luke is not her dad, because I HATE the idea of him having had a totally offscreen, but apparently very important, relationship that we were never privy to. Other than that, this one was directed by Godzilla's Gareth Edwards, so if anything, I'm sure it's going to be more visually stylish than The Force Awakens. And by the way, that IS actually Genevieve O'Reilly reprising her role as Mon Mothma, apparently with the aide of the same tech that was used to put Michael Douglas's 1980's face back on his head in Ant-Man. Oh god. They're not going to do that for Luke with Mark Hamill, are they?
Mark Rylance is a Giant in 'The BFG' Trailer
I don't quite know what to think of this movie, since I never read the Roald Dahl book it's based on. And Spielberg hasn't done a family film in a long time, so who knows how this one could turn out. But with a screenplay from the late Melissa Mathison, there's some hope that it could end up being worthwhile, as long as they get the CGI rendered giants right. Newly minted Oscar winner Mark Rylance takes on the key role of the giant here, and the movie's coming out July 1st. Here's hoping.
BOX OFFICE 4/01-4/03: 'Batman v Superman' Plummets 68% but Stays on Top
So, even though BvS stayed in first place in its second weekend in theaters, the big story is the 68 percent drop-off from the week before, which indicates toxic word-of-mouth, as was expected after poor reviews and a not so great Cinemascore from audiences. It fell further than Man of Steel did three years ago, and with pretty much zero competition to boot. Audiences are clearly indifferent to this superhero team-up at best, and even though it's grossed 681 million worldwide at this point, the staggering 82 percent drop-off in China of all places, probably has the studio more concerned than anything else. There's some question as to whether it reaches 1 billion globally now, which is what it needed to be profitable, given the budget. I wish the movie had been an even worse failure to ensure that WB changes course and fires the director, but I guess the brand name of the superheroes is bulletproof as far as initial interest is concerned. Still, if money is the bottom line, as it always is for the studios, they should at least be aware by now that if the movie had actually been any good, they could have easily made more. A lot more.
On the other hand, Zootopia has exhibited tremendous staying power in second place, falling a teeny 16 percent from last week and bringing in another 20 million, for a 275 million domestic total, and 787 million worldwide at this point. With Japan being the last international market for it to open in, there's a chance the well received Disney film could cross that billion dollar mark. As it is, it will be only the tenth animated film to make more than 300 million in the U.S. The rest of the top five was filled out by My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, which held nicely from last week, the new release God's Not Dead 2, which disappointed with 8 million, and the other faith based movie Miracles From Heaven, which is holding up well and is now at 46 million total.
Top 5:
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice- 52.4 million
- Zootopia- 20 million
- My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2- 11.1 million
- God's Not Dead 2- 8.1 million
- Miracles From Heaven- 7.6 million
In limited release, Richard Linklater's Everybody Wants Some opened in 19 theaters, earning 323k for the weekend and scoring a PTA of 17k, which is decent enough, while Don Cheadle's Miles Davis biopic Miles Ahead, opened on 4 screens for a strong PTA of 30k. Next week it's Melissa McCarthy's new comedy The Boss against the actioner Hardcore Henry, both opening in wide release. We'll see, but I think it's possible McCarthy's fanbase can get The Boss to take first place away from Batman/Superman, especially if it continues its steep fall.
10 Side-Splitting Comedies for April Fool's Day
April 1st may be the day where you can't believe anything you read on the internet, but my list of favorite comedies is the exception to the rule. You can definitely trust this one. I use this holiday to celebrate raucous comedies for the entire month, not just one day, and so you can go to our Movies For Every Month page to read about what I think makes a classic comedy. The list includes Tootsie, A Fish Called Wanda, His Girl Friday, Office Space, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and Ghostbusters, just to name a few. Then head over to the April movie page to see the complete list of my ten all time faves, with the original trailers, to sit back and laugh with all month long. Happy April Fools everyone!
Paul Rudd and Patton Oswalt Voice Act in Red Band Trailer for 'Nerdland'
Hmmm. Are animated movies for adults making a comeback? First Sausage Party and now this movie, the style of which resembles something more akin to the old Beavis and Butthead cartoons than the dominant CGI style of today. But at least it's something different. Who knows- maybe it could be good.
Jonah Hill and Miles Teller in Trailer for 'War Dogs'
Ugh. This is obviously another movie about insufferable assholes acting insufferably, with a whole Wolf of Wall Street vibe, but for gun runners instead. Lovely. But frankly, it really doesn't help matters that this movie is starring two actors who tend to give off that vibe in real life as well. I don't know who would want to sit through this one.