Crazy, Now Richer Asians
Sunday, August 19, 2018 at 5:28PM by Nathaniel R
The past two years have definitely been a huge wakeup call to Hollywood -- American audiences are demanding more diversity onscreen. It wasn't just the sleeper smash of Get Out, or the bigger than Batman/Superman numbers for Wonder Woman, or the record-breaking figures for Black Panther. Add Crazy Rich Asians to the increasingly large stack of hits proving to the powers that be that people value representation onscreen and movies that reflect the ethnic diversity of real life and the fact that the human race is 50% female.
| Weekend Box Office Estimates (August 17-19) |
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| W I D E 800+ screens |
PLATFORM / LIMITED excluding prev. wide |
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| 1. 🔺 CRAZY RICH ASIANS $25.2 (cum. $34) *NEW* Review, Michelle Yeoh |
1. THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS $498k on 276 screens (cum. $10.5) Review |
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| 2. THE MEG $21.1 (cum. $83.7) Review |
2. 🔺 PUZZLE $217k on 108 screens (cum. $733k) |
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| 3. 🔺 MILE 22 $13.6 *NEW* |
3. 🔺 THE MISEDUCATION OF CAMERON POST $138k on 72 screens (cum. $404k) Podcast, Interview |
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| 4. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE -FALLOUT $10.5 (cum. $180.7) Review, Podcast |
4. 🔺 MCQUEEN $111k on 72 screens (cum. $972k) Review |
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| 5. 🔺 ALPHA $10.5 *NEW* |
5. 🔺 THE WIFE $111k on 4 screens *NEW* Review, Poster Blurb & Glenn's Oscar |
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| 6.CHRISTOPHER ROBIN $8.8 (cum. $66.8) Review |
6. BLINDSPOTTING $110k on 47 screens (cum. $4) |
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| 7. BLACK KLANSMAN $7 (cum. $23) Review, Podcast, Spike Lee's Career |
7. LEAVE NO TRACE $81k on 93 screens (cum. $5.6) |
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| 8. SLENDER MAN $4.9 (cum. $20.7) |
8. 🔺WE THE ANIMALS $66k on 3 screens *NEW*) Review, Interview |
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| 9. HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3 $3.6 (cum. $153.8) |
9. 🔺JULIET, NAKED $60k on 4 screens * NEW* |
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| 10. MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN $3.3 (cum. $111.2) Review, Cher & ABBA | 10. 🔺BLAZE $45k on 3 screens *NEW* |
| 🔺 = new or expanding theater count numbers (in millions unless otherwise noted) from box office mojo |
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Beyond Crazy Rich Asians, when it came to new films, Alpha didn't embarrass itself, but Mile 22 opened mostly below Mark Wahlberg's usual numbers (could it look more generic?).
The week's strongest per screen averages were reserved for the Glenn Close star vehicle The Wife, on 4 screens, and the Latino family drama We The Animals, on 3 screens. Both are must-sees, The Wife because it houses a deep and riveting performance by Glenn Close and We The Animals because it's fantastic. I was fascinated to read in Murtada's We the Animals interview about how the director pictured the movie while reading the book because it seemed unfilmable to me while reading. I was wrong; this is a superb adaptation of the memoir, taking liberties to make it cinematic but completely nailing the book's tone and purpose.
Last Chance? Won't You Be My Neighbor?, the Mr Rogers doc is now at $22 million and the pitch-perfect junior high film Eighth Grade, is now at $11 million (both exceedingly successful given the type of films they are). But they're losing big chunks of theaters now so make sure to catch them if you've been interested.
WHAT DID YOU SEE THIS WEEKEND? I skipped the movies this weekend since I'd already seen the three exciting new films ...though apparently people are enjoying Rose Byrne in Juliet, Naked so perhaps I'll check that out this week.
Reader Comments (24)
Last night I saw Mission Impossible: Fallout and it was a blast. Really enjoyed it.
I also saw American Animals and was pleasantly surprised by how good it was. It made me root for the “bad” guys.
Then I made the mistake seeing Book Club. Awful, awful movie. There was nothing to like about it. It’s just plain awful.
I really enjoyed Crazy Rich Asians. The male lead is incrediblly beautiful and the whole cast is great. esp. Michelle Yeoh. The dinner scene with Awkwafina and her family is hysterical. I also think Constance and Gemma do a great job. Very pleasant movie.
CRA wasn't as good as the book and I still think they made a mistake not going with Netlifx -- the books become so dense and dramatic that a long-form series would've worked better a la Downton Abbey.
Nevertheless, it's the first big glamorous comedy I can remember since The Devil Wears Prada. People in my theater were definitely having fun watching the froth and luxury.
I watched Crazy Rich Asians and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, which are both the best romantic comedies I’ve seen in recent years. Who knew that all that was needed to make romantic comedies great again was to cast Asian-American actors in the lead roles.
A re-watch of The Nutty Professor starring Eddie Murphy and first-timers in a 1996 anthology film in Cosmos that features a segment directed by Denis Villeneuve and just now, Novitiate.
Summer movie theory: if "Mamma Mia 2" was all plot no conflict, "Crazy Rich Asians" was a conflict without a plot. Really enjoyed "C.R.A." but there just wasn't a clear story structure - so many characters, so much exposition, but so few incidents or set pieces.
Saw First Reformed Hawke for the Nomination.
CRA was a disappointment to me. Dull and flat.
CRA ... it's not a good movie, but it was kind of fun. The script is really clunky and amateur in places, and assumes the audience is a bunch of dummies. Hate that. But overall, it was fine. Summer throwaway.
Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood. It was a little long and Scotty is an unreliable narrator. The piece digs a little too deep into some horrible things that happened to him. But overall, it was entertaining.
I also saw Puzzle, which I enjoyed. Kelly Macdonald needs more work!
Now, can someone please make The Wife happen in DC!!!!!
I saw and enjoyed " Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood" a very good documentary- perhaps Bowers isn't a reliable narrator but he is a lot of fun to listen to and in very good shape for a guy who is 90. A must watch for anyone interested in Hollywood history
Bia and Raul- Yes to everything you said!
The black-women-kick-ass double feature of Breaking In with Gabrielle Union and Traffik with Paula Patton, both of whom deserve so much better than they're routinely given.
In the UK Equalizer 2 and Christopher Robin opened.
It's been a terrible weekend.
I ducked the moviehouse this weekend and instead saw John Duigan's 1981 drama called Winter of Our Dreams starring Judy Davis, Bryan Brown and a very young Baz Luhrmann. I like the quaintness and datedness of the film, how clothes were worn then (there's also lots of scenes of near-nudity), the blocking of certain scenes, and how lines are delivered. It is definitely an analogue era where pre-internet characters have other pressing concerns that do not include social media. Judy Davis unsurprisingly commands the screen -- vulnerable and raw and heartbreaking: she radiates and telegraphs everything clearly. Bryan Brown is okay, verging on the serviceable. He embodies a relaxed masculinity, a tad superficial, at times feral and sexy. I didn't know that Baz Luhrmann ever acted and if this film debut is indicative of his actorly skills set had he pursued acting instead of directing, he is a good actor. The few scenes he shared with Davis were like scenes from Mike Leigh's films. As Pete, he is focused, brave, intense. A guy operating mostly on major chords. But the story is captivating even if I don't believe the story can happen in real life (or at least my lifeworld), and that ending is poignant. I like Duigan's refusal to end with a clear resolution.
Rewatched Majid Majidi's 1997 film Children of Heaven. A lovely story revolving around class, social mobilities, formative education, and shoes. It just revolves on those themes to show a microcosm of Iranian society. There is an exhilarating foot race at the end that offers genuine catharsis. Just like most of Majidi's films, Children of Heaven delved on 'heavy' issues with nuance and depth but done oh so quietly.
Will watch Crazy Rich Asians sometime soon but won't brave the throngs of people in the theater.
Am I the only one who really really disliked BlacKkKlansman?? I didn't like it at all ... the most overrated movie of the year by far.
Crazy Rich Asians was a pleasant surprise. So much fun!!
It's great seeing Crazy Rich Asians win the box office, but seeing it beat that racist Mark-Wahlberg-Shoots-Southeast-Asians action slog on the same weekend.
I'm surprised to see the negativity directed at Crazy Rich Asians - I loved it and thought it was filled with great performances. My favorite was Awkwafina, but Gemma is so beautiful, and the costumes were to die for.
I also watched A Very English Scandal on Amazon. Hugh Grant and Ben Whinshaw were fantastic, and the story was fascinating (as an American, I had never heard about this series of incidents), but I kind of wish it had a more inventive director at the helm. Still worth watching though, and it annoys me that the two leads were overlooked at the Emmys.
Went down to Metrograph to catch The Story of Adele H. for the first time. HOLY MOTHER OF GOD Isabelle Adjani is amazing in it. And I really liked the movie as a whole, as well. Great cinematography and score.
As for new stuff, I saw Christopher Robin which was definitely slight and somewhat by-the-numbers (and had some shockingly bad cinematography and editing), but definitely gave me the warm fuzzies, which was the whole point. And the CGI was not NEARLY as creepy as it looked in the trailer, thank the lord.
I can't wait to see Crazy Rich Asians - they (thankfully) changed the UK release date from freaking November to 14 September! (Still frustrating but you know, not November.)
So I watched To All The Boys I've Loved Before (so sweet, I loved it) and Christopher Robin (not a fan of whatever Ewan McGregor or Mark Gatiss were doing, but the little girl was adorable and I still have the Winnie the Pooh I had as a child so I loved there was so much of the toys!).
Watched BlacKkKlansman. An incredible experience, especially with an audience. Spike Lee knows the vocabulary of filmmaking down to the last syllable. I also saw it has his rebuke of Tarantino for Django Unchained.
Saw Roman Holiday which is charming and kind of fun once it gets going (that first 1/3 is awfully slow), but Best Actress? Don't get it but I haven't seen the other nominees yet.
Funnily enough, I really liked the actor playing Peck's buddy Irving. There was something very modern (maybe it was the facial hair), natural and sexy about him, plus he was just aces with all the physical comedy. Then I learn it's Eddie Albert, nominated as Best Supporting Actor, who I JUST watched for the 1972 Smackdown where he was also nominated for The Heartbreak Kid. I just happened to see his only two nominations, 20 years apart, a week apart.
Also saw McQueen. God his work is just so amazing. I just wish they showed his runway shows better - the camera would zoom in and out all over the place so you barely got to actually see the work they were raving about. They had to fit a lot of life into two hours so you're left wanting more details about things they bring up, but really glad I saw it in the theater.
Mamma Mia 2 crossed the $300M worldwide mark. That seems significant? All praise to ABBA.
I saw Crazy Rich Asians with an audience that loved it. Some of these downer comments are off base. It's a solid and entertaining rom-com.
@ Owl - Children of Heaven is one of those movies that can't help but make me grin ear to ear. So simple and so delightful.
Yeah, not sure where the negativity are coming from. Did we see the same film? I thought CRAZY RICH ASIANS was absolutely fabulous and fun. I can't wait to see it again.