Breaking Box Office Part Two
Sunday, November 18, 2012 at 7:55PM The big and unavoidable story this weekend was that the Twilight series finely came to an end with Kristen Stewart vamping out and nobody using red eye autocorrection on their cameras. I've also heard that the story ends in a stupid way that satisfies both Team Edw--- anyway, I've heard how the last book ends and I'm as incredulous as this elephant.
WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME LEE PACE WAS IN THIS MOVIE?
Box Office Top Ten
01 THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PT. 2 $141.3 *NEW*
02 SKYFALL $41.5 (cum. $161.3) Review
03 LINCOLN $21 (cum. $22.4) Podcast
04 WRECK-IT RALPH $18.3 (cum. $121.4)
05 FLIGHT $8.6 (cum. $61.3) Review
Skyfall's global gross of 669 million (thus far) makes it the most successful Bond ever. All that and it's only in its second American weekend with a big holiday weekend just around the corner (Happy Thanksgiving in Advance!). Of course if you adjust for inflation, as you should with such a long running franchise, the picture is different and the mid sixties Sean Connery entries (particularly Thunderball and Goldfinger) are still the peak of Bond's popularity... though the series has an uncanny ability to gross in the same-ish ballpark pretty much every time out.
In other box office news: Anna Karenina (or whatever you want to call it) and Silver Linings Playbook both opened on a dozen plus screens to solid business; Argo tied The Town's final $92 million domestic gross in its sixth weekend but it's still going pretty strong and it took The Town twice as long to hit that total; The Sessions expanded considerably but is no longer playing to packed houses.
Which film did you see and was the ticket price worth it?
Reader Comments (22)
Saw Silver Linings Playbook to a sold-out crowd in DC. For the first 30 minutes I was holding my judgment, but I ended up liking it a whole lot. Definitely flirts with some indie comedy cliches, but somehow it all seems fresh under Russell's direction. Jennifer Lawrence was really good, and Bradley Cooper was easily her match.
Can't wait for Thanksgiving weekend to see Life of Pi, Anna Karenina, and perhaps Flight.
I also saw Silver Linings Playbook this weekend, and loved it. I haven't walked out of a theatre in such a good mood in a long time.
I'm off starting Wednesday this week, so its Lincoln, Life of Pi, Rise of the Guardians, The Sessions and Hitchcock. Needless to say this is my favorite time of year. Hopefully Anna Karenina opens in Miami soon so I can add it to that list!
"Holy Motors" was sold out (isn't that refreshing?) so I went to a restored version of "Babette's Feast". It was such an inspired choice! I loved it. If you haven't seen it, you definitely have to. It's a visual fest and also a touching story.
I went on a mini-binge. Fortunately, all four were worth the ticket price:
Holy Motors: Well, that was certainly interesting, wasn't it? Really, though, I thought it was terrific, at least on a scene-to-scene basis. Gah, those accordions! I would have watched two hours of just that. But I thought the monkeys were stupid. Why was I annoyed by them but not by the demented, hair-eating leprechaun? I can't say.
Anna Karenina: Really liked it and would have liked it even more with different leads. I'm a Keira Knightley fan, but she doesn't really dig into the character as much as is necessary, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson is almost comically wrong as Vronsky. Was Tom Hiddleston not available? But Jude Law is heartbreaking. His best performance since . . . Cold Mountain? Wow, it's been a while. And Joe Wright's eye for shot composition and cinematic movement is as stunning as ever. A true visual feast.
Lincoln: Well written, acted, and designed, and overall a compelling movie, but it lacked that essential spark that really would have grabbed me. Sort of a less-than-the-sum-of-its-parts deal. A great history lesson but a good movie.
Skyfall: An improvement over Quantum of Solace, but I still like Casino Royale more. I didn't think any of the action setpieces were all that memorable, maybe excepting the opening chase on the train. Still, I loved the expanded role for M, and the movie has more memorable shots than I can count on my fingers and toes. A worthy Bond entry.
I saw "Skyfall" which was worth it. This is Daniel Craig's best bond movie and one the the top ten in the 50 year old series. Barden camps it up too much as the villain ( was he auditioning to play the Joker?) But I did like the new Q. It's a stunning looking movie and Adele is probably going to get an Oscar for her terrific title song.
Saw "The Sessions," and enjoyed the performances. Was pleasantly surprised with Helen Hunt, although I thought her Bahston accent was on and off.
Lincoln. Definitely worth the ticket price.
Saw both Argo and Skyfall. Skyfall was entertaining if a little long but definitely one of the better Bonds. Argo was even better. Extremely well directed, even though I knew the outcome it created a real sense of tension. Money well spent on both.
Wanted to see Lincoln but just couldn't fit it in so already made plans to catch it next weekend.
Saw Lincoln and totally loved it. For some reason, I'm super extra happy you rated it as highly as I did.
It was immaculate from a design perspective and the performances are great, but I was actually quite moved by it. Spielberg's schmaltzy sensibilities usually don't do it for me, but there was none of that here. Just great filmmaking and a great story. And Kushner's work is ace.
Finally watching Skyfall this week, too.
Is the box office for AK and SLP really that strong? The folks over on David Poland's blog seem to have all gone on suicide watch over its opening.
I saw three movies in theaters last week, but none this weekend. Stayed in and caught up on stuff via netflix streaming, including A CAT IN PARIS, which is absolutely delightful. Loved every second of it.
Rust and Bone: I ♥ Audiard (and his actors)
Anna Karenina: I ♥ Jude
Skyfall: I ♥ Deakins (and Adele and the whole shebang)
Lincoln: I ♥ DDL (in some ways my favorite performance so far this year)
I saw Lincoln, which was good AND it had Lee Pace in it. I saw Twilight 5 too, which was bad, but hey, Lee Pace was in it. It was the best Lee Pace fan weekend ever!
I saw Lincoln. It was terrific. Daniel Day-Lewis was sublime. I liked Sally Field a lot but kept feeling like Mary Todd was some time-travelling combo of Mama Gump and M'Lynn Eatenton.
My man wanted to see Lincoln but it was sold out (as was Skyfall), so we saw Flight instead. Denzel was PHENOMENAL - a cousin of mine was an addict and this was so true to what I experienced from him in life that I actually gasped and held my breath at certain moments. Too bad the film itself wasn't as good as that performance and everything on the plane. I just didn't buy the ending AT ALL. Tonally it just felt off from the rest of the film and not true to the character and his arc.
I dunno. I'm kind of thinking that anything after Cloud Atlas would be a disappointment.
I finally saw "The Sessions" - I love John Hawkes and I loved his performance in this. So simple, so clean, so moving. He can only use his face and there was no mugging, no forcing, no grasping for a capital-A "Acting" moment. I really hope the Academy recognizes the performance but I'm worried such a seemingly effortless performance in a small movie might get crowded out by someone in a bigger movie that peaks at the right time, like, say, Bradley Cooper (not saying he isn't deserving as I haven't seen it yet).
As much as I love Daniel Day Lewis, it makes me sad he might be the one to break the Best Actor record. I was hoping it would be Jack or Dustin.
My friends and I joked about having a LEE PACE WEEKEND by seeing LINCOLN and TWILIGHT, because well... it's Lee Pace. Cooler heads prevailed and we just checked out LINCOLN which was great (though the beginning was a bit slow and the ending was perhaps two scenes too long).
I also ended up seeing WRECK-IT RALPH which was delightfully fun.
Saw "Lincoln" Friday night. Daniel Day-Lewis is an acting God and all that, but I must have been the only one who was almost put to sleep by it. So wordy and stagey and long. 2 and a half hours? Come on, Mr. Spielberg! Sally Field felt miscast, and as much as I normally dig Tony Kushner's words, this time I was left ice cold. Gotta say that Tommy Lee Jones rocked it though. I think I'd rather see him win his second than Day-Lewis win his third.
Roark -- i characterized it here as "solid" not strong. which means word of mouth will make or break.
Oh, so you did. Sorry - didn't mean to put words in your mouth.
it's okay. .. i almost typed strong and i'm like "nathaniel, those aren't strong for limited. just decent." perhaps you read my first thought.
ANNA KARENINA: Glorious. The dance sequence is probably the most ecstatic five minutes of filmmaking all year. (But "dance sequence" is misleading...the entire film is a marvel of choreography.) I agree with Liz N. that Jude is the heart of the film. But I love me some Keira.
SKYFALL: Oh, Bond. No matter how contemporary the series get, it's still full of dubious representations of women and queers. Why doesn't Dame Judi get to shoot a baddie dead? Why does Bardem have to feel up 007? But the Deakins cinematography in the skyscraper was breathtaking.