Tag Archives: turner-classic

Wah-Wah-Weekend Receipts: Not Screened Cold Light Of Day Rings In Lousy Box Office Weekend

Woe is the poor, lonely Henry Cavill actioner Cold Light of Day , which opened in wide release and climbed its way to the bottom (well okay, #13) with a paltry $1.8 million take. As in, TOTAL. Not screening a film and giving it virtually no promotion will do that, even with the future Superman holding a gun and Bruce Willis and Sigourney Weaver posing like the T-800 on the poster. But it was also a terrible movie-going weekend all-around, with the bleakest numbers in recent memory spreading across all comers. Hit it for the Debbie Downer of Weekend Receipts and let’s all look to Finding Nemo and Milla Jovovich’s leather pants next week for salvation. 1. The Possession Gross: $9,500,000 (Cume: $33,349,000) 
Screens: 2,834 (PSA: $3,352) 
Weeks: 2 (Change: -46.4%) Lionsgate’s supernatural horror-thriller held the top spot with just $9.5 million in receipts – yikes. Expect the Jeffrey Dean Morgan – dybbuk picture to drop next week when real competition from genre sequel Resident Evil: Retribution muscles its way into the box office. 2. Lawless Gross: $6,002,000 (Cume: $23,520,000) Screens: 3,138 (PSA: $1,913) Week 2 How refreshing to see a movie for grownups zooming up the charts! Even with a less-than-stellar $1,913 per-screen take, the violent, sweater-filled Shia LaBeouf-Tom Hardy period drama is still director John Hillcoat’s biggest opener to date, behind 2009’s The Road ($8.1M gross) and 2006’s The Proposition ($1.9M gross). 3. The Words Gross: $5,000,000 Screens: 2,801 (PSA: $1,785) Week: 1 Despite a concerted marketing push, CBS Films notched a dud with this Bradley Cooper drama about a writer and a book and his lady and something something something … which goes to show that if your target audience doesn’t quite get what your film is about, they won’t show up in droves to see it. The Words was acquired at Sundance for $2 million, so at least it’s not a huge wash, but don’t expect this one to break out in the coming weeks. 4. The Expendables 2 Gross: $4,750,000 (Cume: $75,417,000) Screens: 3,260 (PSA: $1,457) Week: 4 (Change: -47.4%) Sly Stallone & Co’s old dudes kicking ass sequel made a splash this summer but suffered a -47.4% drop off. Could it be the testosterone-seeking set stayed home to watch beefy men hit each other on the football field instead? 5. The Bourne Legacy Gross: $4,000,000 (Cume: $103,700,000) Screens: 2,766 (PSA: $1,446) Weeks: 5 (Change: -44.7%) At least the terrible weekend put Bourne Legacy into the $100 mil club. (Worldwide take to date: $165 million.) Just a few weekends more and Universal should make back its costs + P&A! 6. ParaNorman Gross: $3,830,000 (Cume: $45,098,000) Screens: 2,856 (PSA: $1,341) Weeks: 4 (Change: -41.7%) The technically amazing (but pretty damn dark ) stop motion/CG kids tale earned some of the highest critical praise of late, matching The Dark Knight Rises with an 87 percent Tomatometer ranking. Fingers crossed more kids and parents seek it out next week as the much fluffier Finding Nemo 3-D re-release barrels into theaters. 7. The Odd Life of Timothy Green Gross: $3,650,000 (Cume: $43,007,000) Screens: 2,717 (PSA: $1,343) Weeks: 4 (Change: -41.8%) The tree-child-made-of-wishes picture suffered its biggest decline in week 4, on par with most of the weekend’s contenders. Was this odd fantasy not what children everywhere were jonesing for as they began their intrepid march back into the classroom? Did parents the nation ’round not clamor to see a weird-ass movie about infertility and magical babies as they re-acclimated to the grinding realities of sending their young back to school?? 8. The Campaign Gross: $3,530,000 (Cume $79,473,000) Screens: 2,542 (PSA: $1,389) Weeks: 5 (Change: -38.2%) Well, we had more interesting ( and comical ) political entertainment to watch on TV last week. 9. The Dark Knight Rises Gross: $3,285,000 (Cume: $437,849,000) Screens: 1,987 (PSA: $1,653) Weeks: 8 (Change: -46.3%) I love it when huge blockbusters with record-breaking box office tallies still sneak their way into the Top 10 with tiny returns. Are these repeat viewings or first-time TDKR -watchers? Who waits two months to see The Dark Knight Rises ?? So many questions. 10. 2016 Obama’s America Gross: $3,281,000 (Cume: $26,088,000) Screens: 2,017 (PSA: $1,627) Weeks: 9 (Change: -41.5%) Despite a significant -41.5% drop-off from last week (when it ranked #9), the polarizing partisan doc has reached its widest release, hitting 2,017 theaters nationwide. It’s now the longest in-theater release in the Top 10, with a $26 million cume to date. — 13. The Cold Light of Day Gross: $1,800,000 Screens: 1,511 (PSA: $1,191) Weeks: 1 WOW. Despite starring Bruce Willis, Henry Cavill, and Sigourney Weaver, poor little Cold Light of Day – the first wide release of its kind to not be screened for critics in a while – opened in wide release outside of the Top 10. The cold shoulder from Summit Entertainment helped the thriller on its way to an early theatrical grave. [Source: Box Office Mojo ]

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Wah-Wah-Weekend Receipts: Not Screened Cold Light Of Day Rings In Lousy Box Office Weekend

Toronto Film Festival Pick Ups; Beasts Of The Southern Wild Wins Deauville Prize: Biz Break

In Monday’s round-up of news briefs, a quick look at weekend pick ups at the Toronto International Film Festival including The Place Beyond the Pines , Aftershock , Great Expectations and more that will head to a theater (hopefully) near you. Also Beasts Of The Southern Wild takes a top prize at the Deauville Film Festival in France. Focus Features Takes Toronto’s The Place Beyond the Pines The new drama starring Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper and Eva Mendes will be released in the U.S. via Focus Features. Directed by Derek Cianfrance ( Blue Valentine ). A World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, the film explores the consequences of motorcycle rider Luke (Mr. Gosling)’s fateful decision to commit a crime to support his child. The incident renders him targeted by policeman Avery (Mr. Cooper), and the two men become locked on a tense collision course which will have a devastating impact on both of their families in the years following. Toronto’s Great Expectations Heads to U.S. Theaters The Toronto Gala starring Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Jeremy Irvine, and Holliday Grainger, will head to theaters in North America via Outsource Media Group. Directed by Mike Newell, Great Expectations is a retelling of the classic and beloved Charles Dickens story of the young orphan Pip, who is given a chance to rise from his humble beginnings thanks to a mysterious benefactor. Moving through London’s class-ridden world as a gentleman, Pip uses his newfound position to pursue the beautiful Estella, a spoilt heiress he’s loved since childhood. Michel Gondry’s The We and the I Heads to N. American Theaters French director Michel Gondry’s Cannes Directors Fortnight opener The We and the I , which is having its N. American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, will open in theaters in the U.S. and Canada in early March. Distribution partners 108 Media and Paladin acquired the rights to the film that follows a group of Bronx high schoolers who board a city bus on their way home. With summer break ahead of them, and feeling more liberated than usual, this broad array of kids–the cool ones, the outsiders, and everyone in between–act out as only teenagers can and, in the course of one afternoon, their friendships, rivalries, ambitions, and anxieties are revealed. Strand Nabs In the Fog U.S. rights to Sergei Loznitsa’s In the Fog are headed to Strand Releasing. The film follows three men three men who find themselves deep in a forest during World War II and face a moral conflict. It received a FIPRESCI prize in Cannes. The film is currently playing Toronto. Leviathan Heads to Cinema Guild The doc by Lucien Castaing-Taylor will open theatrically in early 2013. The film takes a look at the commercial fishing business in the North Atlantic. It is having its North Americna premiere in Toronto and will have its U.S. debut at the upcoming New York Film Festival. Around the ‘net… Beasts of the Southern Wild, Una Noche Win Top Deauville Prizes Benh Zeitlin’s debut film won the Grand Prize at France’s Deauville Film Festival as well as the Cartier Revelation Award, while Lucy Mulloy’s “day in the life Cuban drama” took the Jury Prize. The International Critics Prize went to Michel Gondry’s The We and the I , THR reports . Dimension Scores Eli Roth’s Aftershock and Clown Dimension picked up rights to Aftershock , which is screening at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is an earthquake thriller scripted by Roth, Nicolas Lopez & Guillermo Amoedo. The label headed by Bob Weinstein also picked up rights to Eli Roth’s Clown , which is based on a fan-made trailer that grabbed Roth’s attention after it went viral, Deadline reports .

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Toronto Film Festival Pick Ups; Beasts Of The Southern Wild Wins Deauville Prize: Biz Break

30-Year-Old E.T. Will Return Home (To Theaters) For One Night In October

In honor of its 30th anniversary (and to promote the upcoming Blu-ray release, ka-ching!), Steven Spielberg’s E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial will return to theaters in October for a one-night only special engagement in October, via Fathom Events. As a bonus, the digitally-remastered film will be accompanied by making-of materials and a remembrance by Drew Barrymore — Gertie! — and, probably, buckets full of Reese’s Pieces. From Universal Pictures: “TCM Presents ‘E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial’ 30th Anniversary Event” will take place Wednesday, October 3 at 7:00 p.m. local time, with special matinee screenings in select theaters at 2:00 p.m. local time. Presented by NCM® Fathom Events, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Universal Pictures as part of the studio’s 100th Anniversary celebration, the event features the all-new, digitally remastered feature film, as well as a special taped introduction by TCM host Ben Mankiewicz, who will take audiences through the making of this modern classic. Fans will discover how Spielberg came up with the idea for “E.T.” and learn what working on the film was like for the film’s three young stars. As an added treat, Drew Barrymore, who plays Gertie in the film and who currently co-hosts TCM’s “The Essentials” showcase, shares what the film means to her 30 years later.” I’m not a huge fan of these simultaneous digital projection events, but it could be a very special big screen first-viewing for parents with tots of their own. I mean, it’s E.T. ! Tickets and more info here .

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30-Year-Old E.T. Will Return Home (To Theaters) For One Night In October