Movie News

Biggest Bombs Of 2015: In The Category Of Ack!

Published

5 years ago

September 15, 2015

The pace was set for duds at the Cinema in late January with the release of the Andy and Laura Wachowski’s bomb Jupiter Ascending, which quickly proved itself a theatrical black hole, losing about $100 million by some estimates, despite the point that the competition just after Christmas is all but nonexistent.

The film, made by the folks who brought you the Matrix series and the vastly under-appreciated Cloud Atlas, still managed to bomb. Rumors are the plot was indecipherable, but my research notes indicate it was about a girl who something something something, nudge, yawn, snap self awake while credits are rolling or very close to that, anyway. It stars Mila Kunis and Tatum Channing, which adds up to one actress and one go back to school, if you know what I mean.

For the production budget and blind ambitions, Jupiter Ascending leads the way, but the most impressive cast to bomb this year was the dreadful Mortdecai, staring Johnny Depp, which took unfunny to a new level. Some critics complained that Depp coasted through this one, as he sometimes does when the makeup weighs more than he does, but it was more misguided than that: It was intended as a British comedy of manners, but starred a would-be British cast of, well, Americans. Depp, it turns out, had plenty of help crashing Mortdecai, which also featured Gweneth Paltrow, Ewan MacGregor, Olivia Munn and Jeff Goldblum. That reportedly cost $50 million to make and earned a paltry $4.2 million in its first weekend, before it quickly vanished from sight.

The Gunman is the year’s most inexplicable bomb. Sean Penn as a beefed up paid mercenary operating in a third world environment, while trying to maintain some sense of dignity and a palatable love life (the love interest in this was played by the alluring Jasmine Trinca).

With that sizzling firepower, it still went poof, taking in about $5 million in its first weekend, having cost and estimated $40 million.

What else bombed.? Seventh Son, staring Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore, has come and gone from our consciousness. That would be two – not one – Oscar-winning actors, both of whom got lost in the special effects and the existential confusion that passed for a plot.

Unfinished Business, a comedy staring Vince Vaghn, Nick Frost, Dave Franco and Sienna Miller couldn’t muster much attention at the box office, pulling in $4.8 million domestically in its first weekend, against a $35 million budget. And the Long Wave Good-bye Award for the year goes to Aloha, the dopey Bradley Cooper, Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray, Alex Baldwin, Emma Stone fiasco, directed by Cameron Crowe that was quickly panned by critics and was snipped at here for being an overpaid, tax-write off vacation in Hawaii for a cast and crew.

Related Topics:action bombs Bridges comedy Cooper Depp duds film flops McAdams Moore movies Murray Paltrow panned Penn thriller Vaughn

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Izzy

Movie Magic: The De-Aging Technique of The Irishman

Published

1 year ago

November 20, 2019

Matt

Have you read Izzy yet? If so, you know that Izzy makes the apples that give the Gods their youth and immortality. It also seems Robert De Niro discovered one of Izzy’s apples too… In Martin Scorsese’s upcoming biographical film, he stars as Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran, a labor union leader and alleged hitman for the Bufalino crime family. The trailer for the movie, which will premieres NEXT WEEK (!), also features a “de-aged” De Niro. “We’re so used to watching them as the older faces,” Scorsese said in an interview on the A24 podcast. “Does it change the eyes at all? …If that’s the case, what was in the eyes that I liked? Was it intensity? Was it gravitas? Was it threat?…How do we get that? I don’t know.” Some might consider this magic and I for one can’t wait to see the impact of Izzy’s apples on screen for myself. ????

Movie News

“Captain Marvel” Retains Top Slot at the Box Office

Published

2 years ago

April 17, 2019

Mark McPherson

It’s no surprise that in its second weekend, the first Marvel Cinematic Universe of 2019 is still riding high. Captain Marvel, the latest in the MCU with Brie Larson starring as the lead, generated another $69 million over the weekend, placing its domestic total at $266 million. Tallying up the international box office, the film’s global total to date is $760 million. Despite the online controversy, the film is looking to be another strong box office smash for Disney and Marvel.

As for the premieres for the weekend, and there were plenty, they were all over the map. Just below Captain Marvel was the animated adventure Wonder Park, bringing in $16 million, another film with controversy when the director’s name was removed from the picture after sexual harassment charges. Five Feet Apart, the dying teen drama about a romance amid cystic fibrosis, only came in at #3 with a weekend gross of $13 million. And debuting the lowest in the top 10 for debuts was Captive State, a sci-fi dystopian tale, only making $3 million. The film debuted so low the little film No Manches Frida 2 was able to sneak about it at #6 with a gross of $3.8 million.

Drops were fairly low all around for the returning films, mostly because Captain Marvel was dominating the previous weekend. The only milestone worth noting is that The LEGO Movie 2, after six weeks at the box office, finally cracked $100 million. And the sun is now setting on Green Book’s post-Oscar run by coming in at #10 for the final weekend of its top 10 run over the past few weeks.

View the full top ten weekend box office results below:

Captain Marvel ($69,318,000)

Wonder Park ($16,000,000)

Five Feet Apart ($13,150,000)

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World ($9,345,000)

Tyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeral ($8,085,000)

No Manches Frida 2 ($3,894,000)

Captive State ($3,163,000)

The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part ($2,135,000)

Alita: Battle Angel ($1,900,000)

Green Book ($1,277,000)

Next weekend, Captain Marvel may very well have some competition when Jordan Peele’s new horror film Us hits over 3,600 theaters.

Movie News

“Dragon” Continues To Soar, “Funeral” Close Behind, “Green Book” Back

Published

2 years ago

March 11, 2019

Mark McPherson

With little competition for the weekend, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, the third in the animated fantasy saga, was able to secure the box office once more. In its second weekend, the animated epic made $30 million to push its domestic total to $97 million. So far the film has done about the same as the previous film and is on track to stay in the top 10 for a few more weeks in March.

Debuts this weekend were small with one big exception. Tyler Perry’s latest Madea film, A Madea Family Funeral, naturally made a relatively big splash with its dedicated audience. Starting at #2, the film made $27 million for its first weekend. No word on the budget yet but it’s most likely on a budget as most Tyler Perry productions are, so it’s safe to call this a success, especially for debuting with a box office so close to Dragon.

The rest of the premieres were not as strong at all. Greta, the new thriller starring Chloe Moretz, debuted all the way down at #8 with $4.5 million box office. To be fair, however, the film was in a constant battle for its spot as three other films also reported earnings around $4 million for the weekend. Of note, Green Book, fresh off winning the Academy Award for Best Picture one weekend ago, splashed back into more theaters to arise even higher in the top 10 with its domestic total now sitting at $73 million. Don’t count on it remaining there long as bigger blockbusters will be swooping as we plow through the last remnants of winter movies.

Check out the full listing of the top 10 box office weekend results below:

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World ($30,046,000)

Tyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeral ($27,050,000)

Alita: Battle Angel ($7,000,000)

The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part ($6,615,000)

Green Book ($4,711,000)

Fighting With My Family ($4,691,284)

Isn’t it Romantic ($4,645,000)

Greta ($4,585,000)

What Men Want ($2,700,000)

Happy Death Day 2U ($2,516,000)

Next weekend is once again all about Marvel as their latest superhero solo film, Captain Marvel, will be appearing in 4,100 theaters.