Jacob Hall
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Weekend Box Office Report: A Good Day to be ‘A Good Day to Die Hard’
In retrospect, it's easy to say "Of course the new 'Die hard' movie was going to open at number one at the box office!" but you can bet Bruce Willis and company were a little worried. After all, 'A Good Day to Die Hard' opened in the wake of the failure of 'The Last Stand,' 'Parker' and 'Bullet to the Head,' three other macho, R-rated movies starring modern action icons. However, the strength of the 'Die Hard' brand seems to have broken that trend: John McClane's fifth outing made $25 million over the weekend.
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Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Identity Thief’ Steals $36 Million
Is Melissa McCarthy a movie star yet? The opening weekend of 'Identity Thief' suggests that yes, she is. After all, all of those people weren't flocking to this movie because of Jason Bateman (as delightful as he is). Anyway, all of this pretty much means that McCarthy's asking price just doubled.
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2013 Oscars: Watch the Best Animated Short Nominees!
For many people, the short film categories at the Oscars serve as an opportunity to run to the bathroom or to grab a beer from the kitchen. After all, what kind of investment can you have in a category where you know nothing about any of the nominees? Well, let's rectify that! All five of the nominees in the Best Animated Short category have popped up online and you can watch them below!
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Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Warm Bodies’ Heats Up the Box Office
Eventually, the popular opinion on zombies is going to shift and people are going to stop watching 'The Walking Dead' and buying zombie-themed video games, but that day is not today. People still love zombies and if the opening weekend is any indication, they love 'Warm Bodies.'
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Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Hansel & Gretel’ Conquer the Competition
Make no mistake: this was a slow and bad weekend at the box office, an example of the January doldrums at their absolute worst. However, this was probably the only environment where a film titled 'Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters' could have flourished, so at least someone is happy.
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Weekend Box Office Report: Jessica Chastain Wins the Weekend
Is Jessica Chastain a movie star? Probably not. At least not yet. However, this weekend proved that she's well on her way to being one. Headlining the top two films at the box office in a single weekend is a great start. The Oscar nomination certainly doesn't hurt either.
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Is Leonardo DiCaprio Taking a Break From Acting?
There are few actors as hardworking and reliably great as Leonardo DiCaprio and there are fewer with such discerning taste. After all, not every actor out there has managed to work with James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Sam Mendes, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese. Filmmakers, audiences and critics alike all seem to love him with equal fervor...which means the news that he's taking a break from acting is enough to make us a little sad.
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SNL Previews All 19 ‘Hobbit’ Movies
Welcome back, SNL! Everyone's simultaneously beloved and hated live sketch comedy show returned last night after its holiday break and, naturally, they had to play catch-up, making fun of everything that they missed in the past couple of weeks. First on their list? 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.' Or rather, its eighteen sequels.
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Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ is Number One
You really only need to say one thing about the opening weekend of Kathryn Bigelow's 'Zero Dark Thirty': it made more in three days than 'The Hurt Locker' did in its entire run. If there's anything that's going to alleviate getting snubbed for at the Oscars in the Best Director category, it's that.
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‘Ninja Turtles’ Reboot to Begin Production in April?
When it was announced that 'Transformers' director Michael Bay was going to produce a reboot of the 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' franchise, there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth across the great expanse of the internet. Then there was the title change, removing "teenage" and "mutant" from the equation (at least on the surface). Then there was the script leak and the reveal that the Turtles were now aliens. Then there was the announcement of Jonathan Liebesman as director. To say that fans were unhappy would be an understatement -- things got so ugly that Bay had to personally address them on his blog.
But the film is still moving forward. In fact, it looks like it may start shooting in April.
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Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Texas Chainsaw 3D’ Slashes Through the Competition
Here's the thing about January: it's usually a wasteland. With the studios concentrating on their Oscar campaigns and the profitable summer months still half a year away, this month is where all of the crap usually gets dumped. However, this is also one of the few months where crap has a chance of performing well, hence the success of last year's 'The Devil Inside' and now 'Texas Chainsaw 3D,' which took the weekend with a strong $23 million opening.
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Holiday Box Office Update: ‘Les Miserables’ and ‘Django Unchained’ Start Strong
Who says Christmas is about staying warm by the fire and exchanging gifts with your loved ones? Everyone knows that the holidays are all about movies! A depressing musical adaptation of a Victor Hugo novel and an ultra-violent revenge fantasy may not sound like Christmas material, but the opening days of 'Les Miserables' and 'Django Unchained' prove otherwise.