February 26th, 2012
It's Oscars night. (Actually, it's 3:43 in the morning as I'm typing this, but I thought I would get a jump on the celebration.) As I do every year, I will follow the announcements live and update our list of Oscar winners. However, this year I will be doing it a little differently and the list of nominees below will include the favorites as picked by our readers in Italics and as picked by me in Bold. So you can watch live and tell when I'm out of the running for our Oscar contest. (I figure it will take at least 17 wins out of 24 to come out on top. Maybe even 18 or 19 wins.) So, will The Artist be the big winner tonight as our readers predict? Or will Hugo score the upset? Stay tuned to fine out.
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February 23rd, 2012
With our annual Oscar Prediction contest underway, now is the best time to look at the nominees and try and figure out who the favorites are and which films should just feel honored to be nominated. We wrap up our look at the prestigious categories with the most prestigious of them all: Best Picture. This year there were nine nominees, but not all of them really have a shot at winning. (One of the nominations generated more outrage than anything else.) Is there a favorite? And are there any that have a legitimate shot at the upset?
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February 23rd, 2012
With our annual Oscar Prediction contest underway, now is the best time to look at the nominees and try and figure out who the favorites are and which films should just feel honored to be nominated. Today we will look at the Best Director, which is one of the closer races, at least among the high prestige categories, with the two leading contenders splitting previous major awards.
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February 23rd, 2012
With our annual Oscar Prediction contest underway, now is the best time to look at the nominees and try and figure out who the favorites are and which films should just feel honored to be nominated. Today we will look at the two writing categories, finishing with Best Original Screenplay. This race could be closer than it looks at first, as differences in rules affected the WGA nominations, but will there be an upset?
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February 19th, 2012
The final major guild, the WGA, handed their awards out tonight. Due to rule differences, they are not as useful when it comes to predicting the Oscars this year as they are in some years, winning is still a good omen. So who won and what does that say about their chances?
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January 24th, 2012
Yesterday was one of the biggest days during Awards Season as The Oscar nominations were announced in the morning. It was a two horse race for top spot as far as the big winners are concerned. Hugo earned the most nominations with eleven, while The Artist was right behind with ten. However, one could argue The Artist is the bigger winner, as more of its nominations were in the more prestigious categories.
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January 16th, 2012
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association handed out the Golden Globes last night, and after an Awards Season most notable for the lack of surprises, there were not a lot of surprises either. In fact, the biggest storyline of the night was how many different movies earned wins. The Artist led the way with just three, while The Descendents was the only other film to win more than once.
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January 12th, 2012
After previously announcing Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film, the Directors Guild of America announced the nominations for the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary category. This is the final major award we track before the Oscars and, at this point, there are definitely favorites for the big night.
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January 6th, 2012
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 climbed into first place on the Blu-ray sales chart with 232,000 units / $4.63 million over the week for a total of 4.79 million units / $102.50 million after seven weeks of release. It became only the third Blu-ray to reach the $100 million milestone.
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January 5th, 2012
The latest round of major nominations were released today with the WGA nominations. Like much of the rest of the previous announcements, the only surprise was the lack of surprises. Four of the five Original Screenplays earned other nominations in that category or other guild nominations. That number rises to five out of five for Adapted Screenplays. There's little doubt about what films are Oscar contenders at this point. The Documentary films category is a little more contentious, but it usually is.
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January 4th, 2012
The nominees for this year's Producers Guild of America were announced and there were not a lot of surprises. For instance, nine of the ten nominees for Theatrical Motion Pictures also earned Golden Globe Nominations for either Best Drama or Best Musical / Comedy. Four of the five Animated films also did the same. It does make the Awards Season picture a lot clearer going forward, but it makes coming up with something to say much harder.
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January 4th, 2012
There were only four new releases to reach the top 30 on this week's DVD sales chart, and only one of those placed in the top five. The Hangover II rose to first place with 521,000 units / $5.20 million for the week and 2.26 million units / $31.22 million after three. This is barely more than half what the original sold during its first week of release.
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December 20th, 2011
Christmas is less than a week away and there are a few releases that would make great last minute gifts. There are also very few releases overall so expect a short list this week. These great last minute gift ideas include Midnight in Paris on DVD or Blu-ray, Dolphin Tale in 3D Combo Pack and Futurama: Volume Six on DVD or Blu-ray. However, for Pick of the Week, I'm going with Warrior on Blu-ray Combo Pack. It's a great movie and there are plenty of extras on the DVD and the Blu-ray includes a Picture-in-Picture track.
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December 16th, 2011
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominations and the Awards Season picture started to look a whole lot clearer. The Artist led the way with six nominations, while The Descendents and The Help were right behind with five apiece.
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December 15th, 2011
The SAG nominations were handed out this week, and while The Help led the way with four nods, it wasn't the only film that earned multiple nominations.
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November 30th, 2011
As it does every year, Independent Spirit Award nominations kick off the unofficial start of Awards Season. This year there were two films that topped the list of nominations: The Artist and Take Shelter. Both of those films earned five nominations, but they weren't the only films to be singled out.
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August 24th, 2011
Red State continued its run of special engagements this past weekend earning $25,800 in one theater. The only other film to reach the $10,000 mark was Senna, which earned an average of $11,365 in 14 theaters.
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July 19th, 2011
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallow, Part 2 added another record over the weekend earning the highest per theater average for a wide release with $38,672, surpassing the previous record holder, The Dark Knight. However, Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour still holds the record for best per theater average for a number one film at $45,561. That record might not be broken till the $200 million opening weekend milestone is cracked. The only other member of the $10,000 club was Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Darkness, which grew by a few percent to $20,998. Its ability to expand is untested, but growth is always a good sign.
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July 12th, 2011
Beats, Rhymes, and Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest opened in first place on the per theater chart with an average of $27,996 in four theaters, which was the best per theater average in more than a month. Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Darkness was relatively close behind with $20,247 in its lone theater. Transformers: Dark of the Moon was the only holdover to reach $10,000 on the per theater chart with an average of $11,469.
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July 6th, 2011
There were only two films in the $10,000 club with Transformers: Dark of the Moon easily outperforming Terri $23,937 to $10,851. For the former, that was enough to break records over Independence Day. For the latter it's probably not enough to suggest significant expansion, but it might stick around longer than most limited releases.
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June 29th, 2011
Not only did Cars 2 win the overall box office race, but it also won the race on the per theater chart with an average of $16,072. A Better Life and PASSIONE: A Musical Adventure were right behind with $15,522 and $15,377 respectively. The final film in the $10,000 club was Bad Teacher, which was a surprise entrant with $10,365.
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June 21st, 2011
A trio of documentaries led the way on the per theater chart starting with Buck. This filmed earned an average of $16,887 in four theaters, which is better than expected. Page One: Inside the New York Times opened with an average of $14,456 in two theaters, while JIG was right behind with an average of $14,086 in five. The overall box office leader, Green Lantern, also topped $10,000 on the per theater chart with an average of $13,935. The Tree of Life barely managed to stay ahead of the $10,000 mark with an average of $10,121; however, it is in its fourth week of release and it is playing in more than 100 theaters, so this is a fantastic result.
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June 19th, 2011
As expected, Green Lantern led the way at the box office this weekend, based on studio estimates released on Sunday, but a weak performance on Saturday and an expected further decline on Sunday will leave it with a fairly modest $52.69 million weekend, according to Warner Bros.' estimate. That puts it behind X-Men: First Class ($55 million) and Thor ($66 million) so far as opening weekends for superhero movies are concerned, and its reviews suggest it won't have the legs of the other two. Mr. Popper's Penguins also under-performed compared to original expectations, although its $18.2 million debut is in line with the numbers Fox was expecting going in to the weekend.
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June 14th, 2011
The Tree of Life remained in top spot on the per theater chart with an average of $17,596 in 47 theaters. It will clearly expand further, and it is safe to say it has already earned some measure of mainstream success. The Trip opened well with an average of $12,984 in six theaters. It did earn great reviews, so it might last a long time in theaters. On the other hand, I think its target audience is too narrow to expand significantly. Beginners was in a virtual tie with an average of $12,793. It will start hitting milestones soon. Super 8 opened with an average of $10,492 while in saturation level theater count.
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June 13th, 2011
Nearly every film in the top five beat Thursday's predictions, and the one film that didn't landed within a rounding error of doing so. This helped the overall box office reach $138 million for the weekend, but while this was better than expected, it was still 14% lower than last weekend and 9% lower than the same weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2011 is behind 2010 by 7% at $4.43 billion to $4.76 billion, but this is better than it has been for the majority of the year.
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June 12th, 2011
As someone on Twitter put it this morning, Super 8's $37 million opening takes E.T.'s lifetime gross to $472 million.
The robust opening for J.J. Abrams homage to Steven Spielberg will satisfy Paramount, especially with the heart of the Summer season ahead of it, good reviews and great word-of-mouth. $100 million should be easily achieved from this beginning, and even better numbers aren't out of the question. For a film that reportedly cost $50 million, that's not bad going.
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June 9th, 2011
After X-Men: First Class opened on the low end of expectations last weekend, it is even more important that Super 8 carries its weight this weekend if 2011 is to continue its winning ways. Even if Super 8 does land on the high end of expectations, it might not be enough, as this weekend last year saw the release of The Karate Kid, which was a surprise hit that opened with $55 million.
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June 7th, 2011
The Tree of Life held onto top spot on the per theater chart with an average of $30,915 in 20 theaters. It will undoubtedly expand further. Beginners was right behind with an average of $28,268 in five theaters. Midnight in Paris continues to shine with an average of $18,843 in 147 theaters. It has a planned semi-wide expansion this weekend, so this is very likely the last time it will top $10,000 on the per theater chart, but it will continue to hit milestones. X-Men: First Class earned first place on the overall box office chart and fourth place on the per theater chart with $15,134. Submarine managed to top $10,000 on the per theater chart, but it was close with and average of $10,458 in four theaters.
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June 6th, 2011
It wasn't exactly a disappointing weekend at the box office, but we did see the overall box office fall closer to the low end of expectations. With $160 million over the weekend, the box office was down 28% from the Friday-through-Sunday portion of the Memorial Day long weekend. However, it was up 24% from this weekend last year. Year-to-date, 2011 now has pulled in $4.23 billion, compared to $4.55 billion for last year. 2011 is still in a massive hole, but at least there's a chance we can close the gap, while reaching $10 billion in total for the year has become a lot more likely.
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June 5th, 2011
2011 continued its winning streak at the box office this weekend, with five films topping $10 million and X-Men: First Class posting a very respectable $56 million opening, according to Fox's Sunday estimate. With the studio setting expectations a little lower than that, they can claim an excellent weekend. And they do have a point, but the truth is that this is the worst opening for a movie in the franchise since the first movie arrived in 2000 (and the latest film's estimate is only ahead by a couple of million dollars, so it might not even beat that mark). Excellent reviews and peak Summer business should help the film over the next few weeks, but it can't afford a 60% decline next weekend.
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June 2nd, 2011
After a record-breaking Memorial Day long weekend, the industry is hoping to maintain that momentum throughout the summer. There's only one wide release to deal with this weekend, X-Men: First Class, but most analysts expect it to earn more than the four wide releases earned in total this weekend last year. Add in stronger holdovers, and every indication says there should be a solid win for 2011 in the year-over-year comparison.
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June 1st, 2011
It was another amazing week on the per theater chart as The Tree of Life led the way with an average of $93,230 in four theaters. This represents the best per screen average for the director and for the distributor. Add in reviews that might be Oscar-worthy, and the film should expand over the coming weeks / months. Speaking of expanding, and Oscar -worthy reviews, Midnight in Paris saw its theater count grow from 6 to 58, while its per theater average held on strong at $33,268. The overall number one film, The Hangover 2, was next with an average of $23,775, while Kung Fu Panda 2 was the only other film to cross the $10,000 mark on the per theater chart with an average of $12,142.
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May 31st, 2011
Records were broken on Memorial Day long weekend, which makes the weekend one to remember. Ironic then that the biggest hit of the weekend was a film about people who can't remember the night before. Yes, The Hangover 2 easily took top spot, while Kung Fu Panda 2 was disappointingly far behind. On the other hand, it still earned more than last year's number one film, Shrek Forever After, so it at least pulled its weight. Overall, the three-day box office was a very healthy $223 million, or 33% more than last weekend and 47% more than the same weekend last year. Over four days, the box office pulled in $277 million, or 44% more than last year. Those figures were both records for biggest Memorial Day long weekend ever, crushing 2007's offering by $22 million. Year-to-date, 2011 now has $4.02 billion and has cut the gap with 2010 to just over 8% at $4.38 billion. If the rest of the summer is as strong as May was, we could be in good shape going into the fall.
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May 29th, 2011
The Hangover: Part II is set to earn $86.48 million over the three-day weekend, according to estimates released by Warner Bros. on Sunday. That puts it on track to top $100 million in just four days, and will be the biggest ever weekend for a comedy, barring an unexpected collapse on Sunday. Kung Fu Panda 2 is set to earn $48 million Friday-Sunday, which is a slightly disappointing result, but it should do very well on Memorial Day and is likely to enjoy a strong few weeks until the arrival of Cars 2 on June 24.
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May 26th, 2011
It's Memorial Day long weekend, which is one of the most important weekends of the year. Not only is it one of the most lucrative, but it can help set the tone for the rest of summer. 30 million people going to theaters, each seeing countless posters, trailers, etc. for upcoming releases is a boon for the marketing for those film. This is why when both new releases failed to make an impact last year, it was such a devastating result. This time around, there are two sequels opening, Kung Fu Panda 2 and The Hangover 2, both of which should earn more individually than Sex and the City 2 and Prince of Persia earned combined. There's a slim chance one will dominate the other, but in that case, the overall box office should still be a large step up from last year. But the best case scenario has both of them becoming monster hits, and that would have a positive effect on the rest of the box office for weeks to come.
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May 24th, 2011
Midnight in Paris had the best per screen average for the year so far and came within a rounding error of topping $100,000. The film opened with $599,003 in 6 theaters for an average of $99,834, which represents a career best for Woody Allen. Add in its Oscar-worthy reviews, and there's no telling where it could go. The overall number one film, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, was the only other film to crack $10,000 on the per theater chart, as it opened with an average of $21,697.
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May 22nd, 2011
While a $90 million opening is nothing to sniff at, and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides will most likely become, briefly, 2011's top-grossing movie, the film's performance puts Disney in an interesting position. On the one hand, its international performance so far has been impressive, and there's a good chance it will end with $700 million or so outside North America. That alone will make it a highly-profitable movie. But domestically it will most likely top out around $250 million, which won't take much of a chunk out of its estimated $250 million production budget, and home video sales are unlikely to come anywhere near the kind of numbers posted by previous movies in the franchise. So from a purely domestic perspective, it would be tempting to scale back or retire the franchise. But the international demand clearly suggests it has some life yet.
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May 20th, 2011
This week's list of limited releases is not very strong with only one film with a better than 50% chance of making much noise. That film, Midnight in Paris, is the latest from Woody Allen and is earning the auteur's best reviews in more than a decade and a half. Perhaps it will be able to join Jane Eyre and Win Win at more than $10 million. (The latter hasn't made it there yet, but it should do so relatively soon.) Speaking of movies with $10-million ambitions, The Beaver was supposed to expand wide this weekend, but after struggling in limited release, that's not happening. It will be playing in more than 160 theaters, on the other hand, which is higher than most limited releases ever manage.
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May 18th, 2011
Fast Five remained in top spot on the international chart with $58.34 million on 8,819 screens in 61 markets for totals of $272.24 million internationally and $441.93 million worldwide. The film's only major market opening was in China, where it grabbed $9.1 million, which was easily enough for first place. It remained in first place in France ($4.97 million on 500 screens) and in Mexico ($4.77 million on 1,003) while it now has $15.17 million and $17.22 million in those two markets respectively. Its biggest market so far has been Russia, where it has earned $27.39 million after three weeks of release, including $2.53 million on 752 screens this past weekend. At this point, $600 million worldwide is becoming very likely, even with few additional markets left to open in. In fact, its next major market is Japan, but it doesn't open there till October.
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