Box Office Breakdown: ‘Suicide Squad’ Back On Top, ‘Sausage Party’ Digs Into Second Spot

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August 14, 2016

Those hardcore DC fans who want Suicide Squad to succeed, I got some good news and some bad news. The good news? The Warner Bros. DC adaptation made its way into the number one spot again, earning $43.7 million during its second weekend. The bad news? That’s a 67.3% drop, and it only continues to plummet with each passing day. Bad reviews, tepid word-of-mouth and general ill-grievances are hurting the newest anti-hero film, so we’ll see how David Ayer’s latest holds it own in the weeks to come. Consider it both a win and a bit of a loss. I’m sure you’ve formed your own opinions on the matter, though.

An unquestionable success this weekend, however, was Sausage Party, the adult CG animated film that, with a budget projected around $19 million (?!), earned $33.6 million in second place — which means it’s already earning a healthy profit. The Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg-produced Sony feature has the best opening for an R-rated comedy so far this year, and strong reviews, good marketing, a likable cast and the fact that it’s fairly different than anything audiences have seen before (or anything in theaters right now, really) are really helping its prospects.

No matter what, this one is basically a win. A pretty well deserved one too. In a summer driven by pointless sequels, reboots, remakes and anything in-between, it’s nice to see an original film become of the season’s better success stories. Yay to originality!

Coming in at third is another new release, Disney’s Pete’s Dragon, which earned a respectable $21.5 million. The remake of the 1977 film was met with warm reviews and good word-of-mouth, but anticipation was ultimately limited. The decent box office numbers suggest Disney still knows how to promote a good movie, but it’s a shame this one isn’t getting more love from audiences. With its $65 million budget, it has a little ways to go, but it should break even, at the very least. This one was never predicted to shake new ground, so it’s not a loss by any means. But I’m sure Disney would like something a little more profitable. We’ll see how the positive reception to the film will help David Lowery’s latest in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, speaking of opening modestly, the Meryl Streep-led British biopic Florence Foster Jenkins came in eighth place with $6.6 million earned in its American debut. That’s roughly on par with Ricki and the Flash, Streep’s musical August release from last year. The Stephen Frears film was met with some of the weekend’s most positive reviews, but it had trouble earning an audience under 25. Even though I liked the movie fine enough, as a 23-year-old, I have no problem believing this one had trouble gathering people my age. Especially with Sausage Party now in theaters. But it has its audience, and they’re meeting it well. It should do okay business here in the States.

Now, back to the already-released titles. Jason Bourne came in fourth place over its third weekend with $126.8 million added to its domestic total. With a budget of $120 million, it’s now approaching the black. Universal should be pleased. Additionally, Bad Moms continues to impress in fifth place with $11.4 million added to its $71.4 million domestic gross. On the other side of the coin, Star Trek Beyond is still a little wobbly in seventh place with $6.8 million earned during its fourth weekend, bringing its domestic gross still below its $185 million budget with $139.7 million. And Nine Lives continues to tank in ninth place, appropriately enough, during its second weekend with a meager $3.5 million added to its litter box.

Now to round out the weekend with more good news and bad news. We’ll start with the bad first. Ghostbusters is now officially out of the top 10 this weekend, coming in at 12th place with $2.3 million during its fifth weekend. With pundits now officially calling it a box office flop this week, things are rather dour for Ghostbusters (2016).

So what’s the good news? Well, David Mackenzie’s acclaimed Hell or High Water is doing pretty well during its limited release. It earned an exceptional $592,000 in its 31 locations. That makes its location average a very impressive $18,500. I’m seeing it tomorrow, and I’ve heard nothing but good things. While it looks a little too much like No Country For Old Men, it’s usually a good thing when something is compared to the Coens’ recent Western masterpiece. I’m excited to see what’s driving all the hoopla.

Check out the box office numbers, courtesy of THR and Box Office Mojo, below.

Suicide Squad Weekend: $43.7 million Domestic Gross: $222.9 million
Sausage Party Weekend: $33.6 million Domestic Gross: $33.6 million
Pete’s Dragon Weekend: $21.5 million Domestic Gross: $21.5 million
Jason Bourne Weekend: $13.6 million Domestic Gross: $126.8 million
Bad Moms Weekend: $11.4 million Domestic Gross: $71.5 million
The Secret Life of Pets Weekend: $8.8 million Domestic Gross: $335.9 million
Star Trek Beyond Weekend: $6.8 million Domestic Gross: $139.7 million
Florence Foster Jenkins Weekend: $6.6 million Domestic Gross: $6.6 million
Nine Lives Weekend: $3.5 million Domestic Gross: $13.6 million
Lights Out Weekend: $3.2 million Domestic Gross: $61.1 million

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‘Fantastic Four’ (2015) Retrospective Review – What Went Wrong?

By

Jonathan Bruce

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August 13, 2016

Quick question- where are the Thing’s pants? Photo Credit: Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox

Fantastic Four is a tough nut to crack for Hollywood. Despite two previous attempts, the team has yet to strike gold as a movie franchise. What is going wrong?

In the span of a few years, Josh Trank has gone from one of cinema’s rising talents to a pariah. His work on Chronicle was good, but 2015’s Fantastic Four debacle makes him persona non grata.

Reed Richards (Miles Teller) discovers teleportation in grade school. Years later, he is recruited by Dr. Franklin Storm (Reg Cathey) to work at the Baxter Building think tank. His colleagues include Sue Storm (Kate Mara), her brother Johnny (Michael B. Jordan), and antisocial programer Victor Von Doom (Toby Kebell). There is an obvious tension between Reed and Doom, because the latter is the first to have found existence of an alternate dimension. Cue the sinister music.

While drunk, Reed, Victor and Johnny decide to go over to the new dimension, bringing along the former’s friend Ben Grimm (Jamie Bell). Lo and behold, something goes wrong during the trip, and Victor is lost in the process. Upon their return, Sue is also affected by the blast and gains invisibility powers. Johnny combusts into flames and fly. Reed can stretch to great proportions, and Ben transforms into a rock-type creature. Distraught, Reed escapes to Central America. One year later, the four are brought together to face Victor, who is still alive in the other dimension.

The cast does adequate with what little they have to work with. Teller plays Reed with a believable intensity. His precocious beginnings harken to the kid heroes of Steven Spielberg’s filmography. Bell is a reliable, supportive Ben Grimm, yet he disappears for a long portion of the movie’s first half. His transformation into the Thing is difficult to watch, though. It would have helped if his friendship with Reed was given more development.

Michael B. Jordan does well showing Johnny’s recklessness and troubled nature. Despite the film’s flaws, he gives a well-rounded take on the Torch. Ironically, Jordan is one of the few good points of the movie. Mara doesn’t have much to do as Susan Storm, who’s the adopted daughter in this version. While she’s intelligent and driven, Mara has a believable chemistry with Jordan. As Franklin, Cathey provides the knowing, paternal figure and voice of reason.

Kebell is problematic as Victor Von Doom. From the get-go, he’s a creepy computer genius with feelings for Sue. However, he does not feel menacing or commanding in Doom mode. Nor does he bring anything new to the character. His one major moment takes place in a long hallway, but it feels reminiscent of a similar scene in Chronicle. Only difference is, he’s not chilling like Dane DeHaan.

Fantastic Four‘s biggest problem is the tone. Instead of an action-packed adventure, the plot feels akin to a David Cronenberg film, because there is fear and loathing instead of joy and excitement. It does not have much humour and instead goes for a horror-science-fiction feel. Nor does the team get much time to bond as a quartet of heroes; indeed, the only time they come together is in the last twenty minutes. Trank chooses to have the movie shot in pallid blues, black and grey hues.

The film’s editing feels choppy and very strung together, which seems like a cut-and-paste job. As you saw in the trailer, an impressive scene where the Thing drops from a plane is not in the final cut. Similarly, the visual effects range from good to shoddy at best. For example, the Thing’s craggy look is impressive. The Human Torch effects are quite cool, but Mr. Fantastic’s rubbery stretching does not follow suit.

Overall, Fantastic Four is a disappointing adaptation. In trying to be different, Trank misses the point of the characters entirely. Looking back, it’s clear Fox needs to go back to the drawing board. Either that, or let the film rights revert to Marvel.

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‘Jessica Jones’ Showrunner Talks Season 2 Villain, ‘Defenders’ Connection

By

Aric Sweeny

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August 13, 2016

A few months back we officially confirmed that Jessica Jones season two was greenlit. Since then, however, news revolving around the season has been relatively slow.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Jessica Jones showrunner Melissa Rosenberg talked about the villain(s) we could see in season two, along with the season’s connection to 2017’s Defenders.

On the Defenders connection:

My colleagues Marco Ramirez and Doug Petrie, who are doing Defenders, they’ve shared material. We’ve sat down for many conversations about what are they doing, what’s happening with Jessica? They want my input, they want all the different showrunners’ input on the characters that they’re most familiar with. Marvel was very smart in hiring those guys, because they’re really collaborative. They enjoy collaboration, which is not always the case, and they listen, and we listen to them. We’re really trying to find a way to respond to the things that they want to do, and them to respond to the things we want to do. So far so good. It’s working out. If they weren’t who they were as people, it could be very problematic. But they’re the absolutely right people to do this.”

On possible villains in the season:

“Or antagonists, plural. No one is ever going to beat David Tennant as Kilgrave, so you don’t do that. The biggest mistake would be to try to repeat that. You just go, “OK, we’re not doing that, so we have this open to us.” I can’t spoil a surprise. [Responding to the follow-up question of who this might be]”

Are you excited for Jessica Jones season two? Be sure to let us know in the comments section of this article, down below.

Season two of Jessica Jones hits Netflix sometime in 2018.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T96vjUlr06Q

Source: EW.

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Former Warner Brothers Employee Trashes ‘Suicide Squad’ And ‘Wonder Woman’

By

Jonathan Bruce

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August 13, 2016

Remember the saying “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you?”

While Suicide Squad is doing well, Warner Brothers has a major issue to deal with.

Recently, an ex-employee released an open letter addressed to Warners’ CEO Kevin Tsujihara. The source of her ire? Suicide Squad. Not to mention, the ways things are being run.

Having seen Suicide Squad, Grace Law writes about her anger at how the studio handles its owned properties. She voices her contempt for the film, which she calls “this train wreck of a movie.”

“Yes, it is unfathomable to me that Warner Bros could mess up a movie starring Will Smith, Margot Robbie, and The Joker so completely,” Law writes. “But that just had me flummoxed.”

Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman movie does not get off so easily. Law describes the film as “such a mess. People inside are already confirming it’s another mess. It is almost impressive how you keep rewarding the same producers and executives for making the same mistakes, over and over.”

Law goes one step further: “And it’s not just DC movies, it’s your whole slate. Jupiter Ascending. Get Hard. Hot Pursuit. Max. Vacation. Pan. Point Break. Fucking PAN, you jerk. People lost their jobs and you decided Pan was a good idea. You think another Jungle Book is a good idea.”

The letter points to Zack Snyder as contributing to the problem. According to Law: “Is he being punished? Assistants who were doing fantastic work certainly were. People in finance and in marketing and in IT. They had no say in a movie called Batman V Superman only having 8 minutes of Batman fighting Superman in it, that ends because their moms have the same name.”

Keep in mind, this could just be the words of a bitter ex-worker. If true, it may not bode well for the DC Film Universe.

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Review: ‘Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable’: Episode 20

By

Anthony Wendel

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August 13, 2016

Yukako Yamagishi Dreams of Cinderella

SPOILER ALERT

This episode is all about Yukako finding a way to make things right with Koichi. She meets Aya Tsuji, an aesthetician with a Stand called Cinderella. It has the ability to apply make up which changes a person’s luck and fortune. This allows Yukako to have a date with Koichi and things slowly start to get better. Will it be enough to allow Koichi and Yukako to truly cement themselves in a relationship or has she done something irreversible?

This feels a bit forced. Yes, Koichi and Yukako are the one of cutest couples to come out of the entire Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure series. At the same time it feels like these elements should have built over time, like Koichi realizing he likes her, their kiss, and the love sacrifice he is willing to do at the end. These are the kinds of moments which take other animes there entire run to get around to executing and here it’s done in the course of just a single episode. It’s what can be expected as this is a Shonen series which means the focus tends to be more on action and adventure. It still seems like if they had spaced the story over a two parter it would have felt less stuffed to the brim. They even had to take out the opening and closing to be able to tell the story completely which should be a pretty big sign to show the plot was crowded. At least the fans of the Yukako and Koichi relationship will always have this episode to fall back to remind them the couple they were routing had this special moment.

Enough time has passed between the last chunk of action so hopefully next time things will get back in gear. The team has had enough downtime to catch a breather. Time to finally track down the murderer who is terrorizing the town.

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable is streaming on Crunchyroll.

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Review: ‘Berserk’ 7: Strange Team Ups

By

Anthony Wendel

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August 13, 2016

The Black Witch

Casca and her curse which causes demons to gather near her results in Luca and the rest of the girls running into too much attention. Considering people are being burned at the stake or dragged off in chains for for being suspicious, prying eyes are not a real good thing.

Guts arrives at the camp and he gets show off his heroism. Yes he’s crass and lacking in charm but he still lives by a code of honor which tells him to step in and save those who can’t save themselves. He may not be Prince Charming but he’s still one of the best individuals to be introduced in this entire world so far. Seeing him step between an innocent person and a whip or run at top speed on his way to save Casca really make you want to stand up and cheer for him.

Isidoro and Puck get a lot of screen time together in this episode and proclaim their intentions to stick with Guts. This team up offers some lighter comedic moments complete with Puck giving Isidoro a teasing nickname. This does serve a purpose and helps to alleviate the extreme moments of violence and implied rape which can occur in the series. Still the off putting weird art style they employ to show the lighter side isn’t helping the difficulty with the dealing with the rough slapstick animation style which continues to be the biggest flaw of this series.

The episode is okay but really wins with the very last moments. The set up for next episode builds perfect anticipation for Guts to fight some demons and save Casca in the process. Hopefully the art will be a bit more balanced next time as well but it’s starting to feel like this might be asking too much.

Berserk is streaming on Crunchyroll.

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Star Wars’ Kenny Baker Dead at 81

By

Gary Moloney

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August 13, 2016

The man beneath the dome; Kenny Baker, has died following a long battle with illness. The actor who played the lovable R2-D2 was found dead in his home early on Saturday morning. Baker starred in six Star Wars movies, having shot to fame with the release of A New Hope in 1977 and reprising his role in prequel trilogy. Outside of Star Wars, Baker appeared in many classic 80s films such as Willow, Labyrinth and Flash Gordon. Baker’s illness prevented him from reprising his role as R2-D2 in last year’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but he continued to be involved as a consultant.

Baker was a regular on the convention scene and was always happy to meet fans. In recent years, his illness had prevented him from travelling. His death did not come as a surprise to his family, who noted that he had “a long and fulfilled life”. Standing only 3ft 8in tall, Kenny Baker proved that a small man could have a huge impact on people’s lives. He will, undoubtedly, be missed and is survived by his two children.

Update: We initially reported that Kenny Baker died at aged 83. His official website notes he was 81. We apologise for the error.

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Happy Birthday Alfred Hitchcock: A Look At My 5 Favorite Hitchcock Films

By

EJ Moreno

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August 13, 2016

Celebrate The Birth Of One Of Film’s Greatest Influences Alfred Hitchcock By Looking At My Favorite Films

Seems to be no other director in cinema history with the reputation quite like Sir Alfred Hitchcock. From notorious on-set antics to his filmography, Hitchcock has proven that he is a lasting force within the industry. Countless directors have been inspired by his work and he’s constantly homaged. To celebrate what would be his 117th birthday on August 13th, I look back at my five favorite Hitchcock films.

With over 60 directing credits, it’s a hard mission to narrowing down to 5. You can’t leave out one iconic film without making some cinema fan angry. Taken into consideration is each film’s legacy, acclaim, and watchability. This is also about how each film personally touched me as well.

Let me know if your favorite film from the British filmmaker makes the list!

“A good film is when the price of the dinner, the theatre admission and the babysitter were worth it.”
-Alfred Hitchcock

Honorable Mentions:
-Strangers On A Train
-Dial M For Murder
-Suspicion
-The Birds

5. The Lady Vanishes (1938)
-This film marks the only time Hitchcock ever received an award for his directing. Winning a Critics Circle Award, this early film remains of his very best. ‘The Lady Vanishes’ was dubbed the future of Hollywood and little proves otherwise. Also what’s up with Hitchcock and his problem with trains?

4. Vertigo (1958)
-It took a very long time before a filmmaker could make a film this maddening again. Dizzying and Oedipal, ‘Vertigo‘ is hailed as one of the greatest films of all time. The film also de-throned ‘Citizen Kane‘ in a critic’s poll as the best film ever. But what makes the film so special is the tremendous score by Bernard Herrmann.

3. Rear Window (1954)
-Often imitated, never duplicated. ‘Rear Window‘ is one of the best stories with some of the best cinematography featuring some of the best actors ever. Perfect example of why Alfred Hitchcock is such a legend still to this day. Also, how perfect was Grace Kelly was the typical Hitchcock girl? Utter brilliance.

2. Rope (1948)
-Learning about this film and the boundaries it pushed, Hitchcock made his edgiest film with ‘Rope‘. Testing the limits of what you can do in filmmaking is hard; the director’s attempt was to make the film seem like a single take. If you have ever tried to make a movie, that’s nearly impossible. He cheated along the way but it almost works as a seamless piece. He also challenged the censorship by featuring very heavy homosexual overtones in a time that was a major taboo.

1. Psycho (1963)
-Could there be anything else? What can be said about ‘Psycho‘ that already hasn’t? We all know this film shaped horror for an entire generation after but it’s also a dissection of American life in that era. Before this film, horror was about the monsters-like creatures but ‘Psycho‘ made humans the true monster.

Do you agree with this list?

Celebrate Hitchcock’s birthday and comment with your favorite film!

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‘PaRappa the Rapper’ Anime Announced

By

Aric Sweeny

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August 12, 2016

PaRappa the Rapper is getting a new series of animated shorts.

Titled PJ Berri no Mogu-Mogu Munya-Munya, each episode will run for an estimated 96 seconds long.

The pilot episode is set to premiere next week on the Japanese show Hi Pou l.

The series of animated shorts is celebrating the character’s 20th anniversary, which is in December.

Are you excited about this new series? Be sure to let us know in the comments section down below.

Source: Polygon.

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Review: ‘Steven Universe’: Know Your Fusion: Repeats Itself

By

Anthony Wendel

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August 12, 2016

Steven and the Gems examine fusions.

SPOILER ALERT

Steven and Amethyst fuse into Smokey Quartz and show off their skills. Pearl and Garnet become Sardonyx and proceeds to interview them like they are on a late night talk show. This is really the entire plot of the episode. There is little new elements explained except for the idea fusion gems get their own sections of the Gem temple.

The idea was basically to show the value of Smokey Quartz as a fusion which it barely does at the end of the episode by having her save Pearl and Garnet. Why was this necessary? On her first appearance Smokey successfully took down Jasper, a warrior which previously defeated Garnet. Jasper even fused with a corrupt Gem to become stronger to try and win and was still defeated. Again, why was it necessary to show what Smokey was capable of? The fans already knew and Pearl and Garnet didn’t need to have an entire episode to figure out Smokey was a competent fighter.

It almost feels like this was supposed to be the premise of a clip show, complete with scenes from old episodes and talking about what happened in them. Luckily there has never been a complete show ever this show’s history but if this is their attempt to employ the same elements to catch people up on the story it may just be better to show a full clip show. The idea of watching a talk show with the characters seems fun but the concept goes on for far too long and makes the entire episode not really worth watching. It looks like the less plot centered episodes have started and unfortunately, if they are anything like this then they will be just as hard to sit through as Steven Floats.

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The Black Witch

Celebrate The Birth Of One Of Film’s Greatest Influences Alfred Hitchcock By Looking At My Favorite Films

“A good film is when the price of the dinner, the theatre admission and the babysitter were worth it.” -Alfred Hitchcock

“A good film is when the price of the dinner, the theatre admission and the babysitter were worth it.”
-Alfred Hitchcock