'The Hurt Locker' wins Producers Guild Award
LOS ANGELES – "The Hurt Locker" scored the top film award from the Producers Guild of America, building new momentum for the Iraq war drama in the expanded Oscar race for best picture.
The film about a risk-taking bomb disposal technician beat out such celebrated nominees as "Avatar," "Inglourious Basterds" and "Up in the Air" Sunday night.
"The Hurt Locker" also bested the films "Star Trek," "District 9," "An Education," "Invictus," "Up" and "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' By Sapphire" at the Producer Guild Awards in Hollywood.
The awards were the latest kudofest in the run-up to the Academy Awards in March.
'Avatar' tops box office for sixth-straight week
LOS ANGELES – James Cameron's "Avatar" is on a course to sink "Titanic" at the box office.
Number 1 for the sixth-straight weekend with $36 million, the 20th Century Fox sci-fi spectacle lifted its domestic total to $552.8 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. "Avatar" raised its worldwide total to $1.841 billion. That's $2 million shy of first place behind Cameron's last movie, the 1997 shipwreck epic "Titanic," at $1.843 billion.
"It defies all superlatives," said Chris Aronson, head of distribution for Fox.
The studio said "Avatar" has hit $1.29 billion in international ticket sales, passing the $1.24 billion mark set by "Titanic." The saga set on the alien world of Pandora is also en route to overtake "Titanic" in domestic sales. After 37 days in theaters, "Avatar" soared past "The Dark Knight" on Saturday to become the second highest grossing film.
"We're witnessing box office history," said Paul Dergarabedian, box office analyst for Hollywood.com. "We're watching all of these big records fall, and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight. 'Avatar' is dominating at a time where it has no big summer blockbusters to compete with it. It's perfectly poised to keep breaking all these records."
"Avatar" is also positioned to win acclaim during awards season. While the computer-assisted performances didn't earn any honors at Saturday's Screen Actors Guild Awards, it captured the best drama and director trophies at last week's Golden Globes and is considered a likely best-picture front runner when Oscar nominations are announced Feb. 2.
Screen Gems' apocalyptic thriller "Legion," featuring Paul Bettany as an Armageddon-fighting fallen angel, debuted behind "Avatar" at No. 2 with $18.2 million. Fox's family fantasy comedy "Tooth Fairy," starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as a hockey player who spreads his wings as a magical deity, took flight in the No. 4 spot with $14.5 million.
Warner Bros. grabbed the No. 3 position with "The Book of Eli" at $17 million in its second week, despite three other films debuting in wide release this weekend. The post-apocalyptic action flick stars Denzel Washington as a traveling prophet who battles a villainous gang leader played by Gary Oldman while protecting the last known Bible.
The medical drama "Extraordinary Measures," the first film from new distributor CBS Films, opened with a disappointing $7 million in the No. 7 position. The film features Harrison Ford and Brendan Fraser as a doctor and businessman who collaborate to develop a drug that will treat a rare genetic disorder affecting children.
"It did well in middle America," said Steven Friedlander, head of distribution for CBS Films. "This is not a shoot-'em-up or fantasy film. It's the true story of people doing courageous things, and it's building good word of mouth. This is the kind of movie that plays well to a family friendly crowd who doesn't need to see the movie the weekend it opens."
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "Avatar," $36 million.
2. "Legion," $18.2 million.
2. "The Book of Eli," $17 million.
3. "Tooth Fairy," $14.5 million.
5. "The Lovely Bones," $8.8 million.
6. "Sherlock Holmes," $7.1 million.
7. "Extraordinary Measures," $7 million.
8. "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel," $6.5 million.
9. "It's Complicated," $6.2 million.
10. "The Spy Next Door," $4.8 million.
The Couch Potato Report - January 24th, 2010
This week The Couch Potato Report peels films about love, lying, departures and boogie nights. Do the hustle, if you need to.
One of the main reasons I continue to love movies is due to the fact that they take us places we may never get the opportunity to actually get to.
For instance, I have always wanted to see the Great pyramids and the Sphinx in Egypt, but alas…I have yet to get there in person.
But this week, through a movie, I was able to see them!
That movie was a Canadian made film called CAIRO TIME starring Patricia Clarkson as a woman who travels to Egypt to meet up with her husband, who has been delayed due to his work.
The husband asks a long-time friend to pick her up at the airport, since it's too dangerous for a single foreign woman to walk the streets of Cairo alone, and the two hit it off immediately.
And as the husband continues to be delayed, they continue to get closer.
CAIRO TIME would like to be as good as THE ENGLISH PATIENT or THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, but while the two leads in the film have a nice chemistry together, it isn’t quite in the same league as those films.
In the end, CAIRO TIME is a very good, but not great movie for grown-ups. However, if the only way you might ever get to see Egypt is through a film…this movie will definitely show you the sights.
From Egypt, we cinematically head now to Boston…a place that I have been to in real life, and through the movies…and that is the truth!!
This film is the latest from Ricky Gervais, the man who gave us the original BBC version of THE OFFICE and the show EXTRAS.
He is a comedian who never fails to make me laugh…I completely enjoyed watching him host The Golden Globes last Sunday…but I know that his work is not for everyone, and that is definitely true for his latest film THE INVENTION OF LYING, which is set in an alternate reality in which no one has ever lied and where people speak their minds, blurting out very blunt remarks and opinions that people in the real world would normally keep to themselves.
Gervais plays a man who is broke, about to lose his job, and is head over heels in love with the great Jennifer Garner from GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST and JUNO, but she is not attracted to him at all.
And then…in a world where everyone can only tell the truth…he learns to lie…and the world falls at his feet.
As I said, Ricky Gervais is someone who never fails to make me laugh, and laugh I did at this film. Plus, I adore Jennifer Garner, so the movie gets points for her being in it as well…and the supporting cast includes Tina Fey, Rob Lowe and Louis C.K….people whose work I also enjoy…so I loved this film! It made me laugh out loud.
However, after the lying begins and the film changes from an out & out comedy to a movie about a guy who basically invents religion by acting as a conduit for what he calls “The Man In The Sky”, it just isn’t for everyone.
THE INVENTION OF LYING is a movie that I love and am glad I own, but if you don’t like Ricky Gervais…you might want to skip it.
But I loved it!!
Prior to his work hosting The Golden Globes last week, the buzz around Hollywood was that Ricky Gervais would be a great host for the Academy Awards some day.
I thought he did a great job…but the buzz around Hollywood this week is that he was good enough for the Globes, but not for the Oscars.
And that is the beauty of the Academy Awards, and everything surrounding it and Hollywood itself: The buzz can change in a heartbeat…for instance, this time last year, the buzz in Hollywood was that WALTZ WITH BASHIR would win the Best Foreign Film statuette.
However, when Liam Neeson opened the envelope and said the name of the winner, the buzz changed instantaneously as a movie called DEPARTURES actually won.
DEPARTURES is a funny, charming and interesting film about a newly unemployed cellist who answers a vague help wanted ad in a newspaper looking for someone to help with “departures.”
When he shows up to inquire about the position, he finds out that he will be responsible for preparing the dead for funerals.
DEPARTURES is a little bit slow at times, but I think that works for the movie and it’s subject matter.
I still think that WALTZ WITH BASHIR is better, but this is a very good movie.
From an Academy Award winner, we now move to movie that has no shot at such a prestigious honour.
WHITEOUT was filmed in and around Winnipeg and Gimli, Manitoba and Montreal and it stars Kate Beckinsale from the UNDERWORLD films as a U.S. Marshal who is tracking a killer in Antarctica.
Now, in addition to this happening during the last three days of her assignment, with the Antarctic winter drawing close, she must try and complete the investigation before the arrival of an incoming storm…a whiteout.
WHITEOUT is based on the 1998 comic book of the same name by Greg Rucka and Steve Lieber, and the source material is great!
However, the film is not…even though it has a very interesting premise, and a very good cast, this is one of the most boring action films that I have ever seen.
Unless you are the biggest fan of Kate Beckinsale in the world, then you should skip this.
Unfortunately, the next film I have for you this week isn’t much better.
Yes, I will admit that GAMER has some pretty cool action and stunts, but very little else.
This film - set in a future-world where humans can control other humans in a mass-scale, multi-player online gaming environment - is just awful!
GAMER stars Gerard Butler from 300 in what is basically an update and remake of the Arnold Schwarzenegger film THE RUNNING MAN, without any of the humour, personality or entertainment value.
If you are a fan of first-person shooter games and action movies that feature an abundance of pointless, over-the-top violence, then you might…and I mean MIGHT enjoy GAMER…otherwise…stay as far away from it as you can.
It is just awful!!
No, I wasn’t a big fan of GAMER or WHITEOUT, and I admit that I’m not a big fan of BIG FAN either, although I did enjoy this little sports movie better than those other two combined.
BIG FAN is about a hardcore New York Giants football fan who has to make some life altering decisions after he is beaten up in a bar by his favourite player.
His dilemma surrounding those decisions surrounds the fact that if he stands up for himself and his rights, his team will lose.
And it is a dilemma, as he is a big fan.
There are parts of BIG FAN that I liked…especially when the guys sit in the parking lot watching the games when they can’t get tickets…but in the end this movie is really only for people who are HUGE sports fans, as you may see a little of yourself in it.
I did, and that is what I liked about it…but this is really just an okay little film, it really isn’t anything special.
Up next is ACROSS THE HALL, a film that stars Brittany Murphy, a young actress who died last month.
No, this movie isn’t being rush-released to capitalize on her death, it had been scheduled to come out this week way before she died…however, now that it is available, it’s too bad that it isn’t a film that is a better fit with her cinematic legacy…one that includes the films CLUELESS and 8 MILE, along with her voice work as Luanne on the television show KING OF THE HILL.
But unfortunately it too is just an okay little film that is nothing special.
ACROSS THE HALL is a wannabe thriller about a jealous boyfriend who thinks that his fiancée is having an affair, and his best friend who is trying to keep him from killing anyone.
I watched all of ACROSS THE HALL because I wanted to see what would happen, but I admit that I didn’t really care because the main characters are one note movie people and the supporting cast is just a bit too quirky and oddball.
The film isn’t a complete waste of time, but I was personally hoping for something that was better than okay.
There are a couple of TV Shows On DVD sets for me to tell you about now…and I will start with the once great show WEEDS.
When this series began in 2005 it was about a suburban mother turned marijuana dealer and it featured very interesting storylines and characters that weren’t normally seen on TV.
But then, after a couple of seasons, it started to go downhill…and I lost interest, so much so that I skipped all of the fourth season. I didn’t even watch one episode.
But, after a year off, I sat down this week to watch the three disc set for SEASON FIVE of WEEDS…and while the downward spiral has seemingly stopped…the show still isn’t as great as it once was.
What I had always liked about the show was seeing how the writers would get Mary-Louise Parker’s Nancy Botwin out of the scenarios they put her in. They used to come up with some unique and inventive stuff.
In SEASON FIVE, she just seems to get out of it…and while I was still rooting for her…I knew she would get out of trouble again and the episode would end. Nothing unique or inventive at all!
The one part I did really like about this season of WEEDS was guest star Alanis Morissette. Her characters is fun and interesting! The rest of the cast?…well, they used to be.
If you LOVE this show, this set is for you!! If you have never seen it, I recommend Seasons One and Two…and maybe the first episodes of Season Three.
Up next this week, is Chuck, an action-comedy series about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" who – in SEASON ONE - received an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the CIA.
That message placed the only remaining copy of the world's greatest spy secrets – the Intersect - into our hero’s brain.
In SEASON TWO, the new Intersect is ready, and that means Chuck can go back to his old life, but in the spy game, nothing ever goes as planned.
CHUCK is one of those shows that I really like. It is smart, features a great cast, has some great spies and spy gear, and it is fun and funny.
If you are looking for something new to watch, give CHUCK a try!
CHUCK – THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON is available as a 6-DVD and 5-Blu-ray set.
Finally this week, the BLU-RAY BEACON shines it’ slight on the great 1997 movie BOOGIE NIGHTS.
This still-great film garnered Academy Awards nominations for Burt Reynolds as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Julianne Moore in the Best Actress in a Supporting Role category and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen for writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson.
BOOGIE NIGHTS stars Heather Graham, John C. Reilly, Don Cheadle, William H. Macy and Mark Wahlburg as a young man who becomes a star in the adult film industry in Californian in the 1970s and 1980s.
It is a very entertaining and fun film, that might not be for everyone due to it’s content, but I continue to enjoy it.
And now - in High Definition – it looks and sounds even better…even when it isn’t supposed to.
The Blu-ray also comes with a great Director’s Commentary that features some great insight and stories about the film.
The great film BOOGIE NIGHTS, THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON of CHUCK, SEASON FIVE of WEEDS, ACROSS THE HALL, GAMER, WHITEOUT, the Canadian film CAIRO TIME and Rickey Gervais’ THE INVENTION OF LYING are all available now on Blu-ray and DVD.
BIG FAN and the Academy Award winning Best Foreign Film DEPARTURES can be found only on DVD.
Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report are the Canadian films TIMEKEEPER and DETOUR and Nova Scotia’s Ellen Page stars in the roller-skating comedy WHIP IT.
Also next week, MICHAEL JACKSON’S – THIS IS IT, SAW VI and THE BLU-RAY BEACON will shine on WWII IN HD
I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.
For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here again next time on The Couch!
Leaner New Line ready for a tentpole again
Two years ago, the 40-plus-year run of New Line as a largely autonomous film entity came to an abrupt end with the ouster of founder Bob Shaye and a restructuring that brought the company fully under the mantel as a unit of Warner Bros. After a run of films that had seen less-than-stellar B.O. returns ("Shoot 'Em Up," "Nativity," "Number 23," "The Golden Compass," "Tenacious D," "Domino," "Snakes on a Plane") and Shaye's attention diverted to his pet helming project, "The Last Mimzy," New Line was given a new mandate: Go through studio toppers Alan Horn and Jeff Robinov for greenlights, make about six pictures a year and focus mostly on bread-and-butter genre and comedy fare ... along with the occasional tentpole.
Now, with a leaner New Line having banked a run of solid performers (mostly romantic comedies such as "He's Just Not That Into You" and "17 Again") and a genuine blockbuster ("Sex and the City"), the division is looking to return to its glory days of "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy with a pair of "Hobbit" prequels directed by Guillermo Del Toro.
In short, it's tentpole time at New Line again -- but with calculated bottom-line prudence shaping the rest of its slate.
Despite its longstanding reputation for seat-of-the-pants decisionmaking, president Toby Emmerich says the new New Line is a more calculating enterprise these days. With only six films a year -- about half the pre-2008 slate -- Emmerich and production president Richard Brener say no to much more than they used to.
The more discerning approach seems to have paid off: Of 17 total films released since the division was subsumed into Warner Bros., "Semi-Pro" and "Inkheart" have been the only underperformers.
"We've been incredibly consistent," says Emmerich.
Horn emphasizes that it was "sad and painful" to downsize New Line, but says he's pleased with Emmerich's strategic execution and his ability to remain calm and focused amid the seismic changes that reshaped what used to be the town's leading mini-major.
"We are feeling pretty good about our relationship with these guys," Horn says. "The proof is in the pudding, and the pudding tastes pretty good."
And the Warners chiefs say they have no plans to impose any changes on how New Line operates.
"They have their own sensibilities, and it gives us a diversified slate," says Horn. "This is very much a collaborative partnership so that if Toby wants to do a film it's a long way down the road toward getting a greenlight."
New Line took in more than $950 million in grosses worldwide last year from eight films, led by "He's Just Not That Into You," "17 Again," "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" and "Friday the 13th."
The unit will release just five films in 2010, the first year for which its projects had to go through the greenlight process via parent Warner Bros. It's got four romantic comedies -- "Valentine's Day," "Sex and the City 2," "Going the Distance" and "Hall Pass" -- and a relaunch of "Nightmare on Elm Street."
Tracking on "Valentine's Day" is already looking promising with high awareness among young women.
New Line began putting more comedies into the pipeline when it elevated longtime exec Brener to production president three years ago. Brener's probably best known for shepherding "Wedding Crashers," which grossed nearly $300 million worldwide six years ago.
For 2011, New Line will likely include more horror films in the mix, with "Friday the 13th," "Orphanage" and "The Rite." It's also got two comedies -- "Horrible Bosses" and "Valentine's Day" spinoff "New Year's Eve" -- along with a "Journey to the Center of the Earth" sequel and a musical, "Rock of Ages."
And then there's "The Hobbit." Emmerich's on familiar turf when it comes to the two-pic project thanks to his extensive involvement with the "Rings" trilogy and the presence of producer-director-screenwriter Peter Jackson on all five films.
Emmerich was promoted to head of production at the point in 2001 when the first cut of "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the King" was prepped for post-production, and he oversaw the pic's reshoots.
"It's similar, though this is more expensive and much more of a known entity," says Emmerich of the "LOTR" ramp-up vs. the advance work being done on "The Hobbit."
JRR Tolkien's novel is set 60 years before "The Lord of the Rings," with Bilbo Baggins as its unassuming hero in an adventure that centers on his acquiring from the evil Gollum the all-powerful ring that figures into "LOTR." A few "Rings" cast members, such as Andy Serkis and Ian McKellen, will make return appearances in "The Hobbit."
New Line's "LOTR" financing scheme, in which foreign presales provided much of the budget for the trilogy, is not how "Hobbit" is being bankrolled. Instead, New Line shares financing rights with MGM/UA, which bought the original rights in 1969; the complication this time around is that the Lion could conceivably sell those rights as part of MGM's restructuring.
Once the script for the second film is in -- Jackson and his longtime collaborators Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens are working on it with Del Toro -- New Line will work up a budget for both films and start casting. New Line exec Michael Disco, who was once Emmerich's assistant, will oversee for the studio.
Horn won't predict when the first of the two "Hobbit" films will be out, but says the most probable scenario would be a release in the fourth quarter of 2012.
"It's a big bet for us. But it's one we think will pay off given the success of 'Lord of the Rings,'" says Emmerich. "This is one of the few movies it feels like people are waiting for."
Telethon raises more than $58 mln for Haiti
NEW YORK (AFP) – A telethon led by actor George Clooney to help earthquake victims in Haiti has raised more than 58 million dollars, setting a new donation record by the general public, organizers announced.
"The public has set a new standard of giving for a relief telethon with 'Hope for Haiti Now,' and the donations continue to come in -- people can still contribute 24/7 via phone, web and text," said Lisa Paulsen, president and chief executive officer of the Entertainment Industry Foundation, a non-profit organization providing philanthropic support to "Hope for Haiti Now."
The event led by Clooney was broadcast by all major television networks in the United States.
It featured performances by Wyclef Jean, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer Hudson, Beyonce, Coldplay, Bono, Jay-Z, and Rihanna.
Internet social networks Facebook and MySpace contributed to funds collection.
The January 12 earthquake has left more than 111,000 Haitians dead and about 500,000 homeless, according to the latest figures released by the Haitian Interior Ministry.
'Inglourious Basterds' wins SAG film award
LOS ANGELES – While Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock's chances for Academy Award gold were advanced with their trophies at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, the blockbuster "Avatar" may have felt a touch blue.
The computer-assisted performances in James Cameron's "Avatar" didn't make the cut for SAG nominations. But the groundbreaking sci-fi film remains a strong best-picture contender for the Oscars in March.
For Bridges of "Crazy Heart," Bullock of "The Blind Side" and for SAG supporting-acting honorees Mo'Nique of "Precious" and Christoph Waltz of "Inglourious Basterds," there's reason to suspect the Oscar ceremony will be a happy rerun of Saturday's SAG Awards and last Sunday's Golden Globes.
All four were recognized at the Globes, as well, while "Avatar" was named best drama and Cameron won as best director.
He will face competition from director Quentin Tarantino, whose "Inglourious Basterds" won the SAG Award for best ensemble performance, which can be a precursor to the top Oscar award. Last year, SAG's movie cast award was presented to "Slumdog Millionaire," which went on to win the best picture Oscar.
"It was an honor to be part of it, Quentin," "Inglourious Basterds" cast member Eli Roth said in accepting the award for his fellow actors in the off-kilter World War II revenge saga.
Bullock declined — strenuously — to look ahead.
"Shhhhh. Shhhhh. Shhhhh," Bullock said backstage when she was asked to speculate on her Oscar chances. She won for her portrayal of a tenacious real-life mom, Leigh Anne Tuohy, who helped a youth in need, future NFL player Michael Oher.
"I would be a hostess or a waitress or a house restorer before I ever considered myself an actor, because I never thought I was good enough," she added.
Although respected by his peers, Bridges has largely been bypassed for major awards.
"I love being an actor — pretending to be other people and getting into the shoes of other folks," said Bridges, who plays a hard-luck, hard-living country singer in "Crazy Heart."
Waltz was honored for his role as an enthusiastically ruthless Nazi. Mo'Nique's trophy came for her searing portrayal of an abusive mother in "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' By Sapphire."
On the TV side of the SAG Awards, the cast of AMC's 1960s Madison Avenue saga "Mad Men" won the trophy for best drama series ensemble for the second year in a row, while 19 cast members of Fox TV newcomer "Glee," about misfits in a high school singing club, accepted the award for best comedy series ensemble.
"Glee" claimed the best comedy series award at the Golden Globes.
Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey of NBC's "30 Rock" won for best acting in a comedy series, allowing Fey to get in a sly joke about NBC and its bitter late-night battle with Conan O'Brien in her acceptance speech.
"I just wanted to take a moment to say to everyone at NBC, we are very happy with everything, and happy to be there," she said. Both she and Baldwin won the awards last year.
Golden Globe winner Michael C. Hall of Showtime's "Dexter," wearing a cap because of treatment he's receiving for Hodgkin's lymphoma, won best actor in a drama series. The award for best actress in a drama went to Julianna Margulies of CBS' "The Good Wife."
Kevin Bacon won as best actor in a movie or miniseries for the war-themed drama, "Taking Chance," while Drew Barrymore received best actress honors in the category for "Grey Gardens," about eccentric relatives of Jacqueline Onassis.
Betty White, 88, accepted a lifetime achievement award from Bullock for an enduring career that included "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Golden Girls," and showed her sharp comedic chops.
When Bullock joked that she finds White annoying, White shot back, "Isn't it heartening to see how far a girl as plain as she is can go."
"I should be presenting an award to you for the privilege of working in this wonderful business all this time. And you still can't get rid of me," White told the audience.
Actors in two highly critically acclaimed films went home empty-handed, including "Up in the Air" star George Clooney and the film's supporting actresses, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. The cast of "The Hurt Locker" also lost out.
Clooney, however, was lauded by SAG President Ken Howard for helping organize Friday's telethon to raise money for earthquake-devastated Haiti, a rare reference to the tragedy.
Two honors not shown in the telecast went to stunt ensembles for the film "Star Trek" and the TV show "24."
German rock band Scorpions to end career
BERLIN – The German rock band Scorpions is bringing down the curtain on a career spanning more than four decades.
The band, known for its early 1990s hit "Wind of Change" among others, said on its Web site Sunday that "we agree we have reached the end of the road."
It said it would end its career with a final album — "Sting In The Tail," to be released in March — and a tour that will start in Germany in May and take it across the world "over the next few years."
Guitarist Rudolf Schenker founded the band in Hannover in 1965. Singer Klaus Meine joined a few years later. Both men are 61.