What did you see this week?
Tuesday, August 29, 2023 at 7:30AM by Nathaniel R
Moviegoing is slowing down as summer winds down. It's the way of things. Even "Barbenheimer" is finally losing theaters though the legs are still impressive; Barbie will cross the rare $600 million domestic mark by next weekend and Oppenheimer crosses $300 any day now which is in its own way even more impressive given the limits of the prestige biopic genre. In an effort to not lose their standings in the "biggest hits of the year" race, Super Mario Bros the Movie and The Little Mermaid reexpanded though Barbie and Oppenheimer have officially leapfrogged them in receipts. Did you hit the movies this weekend? We caught Emma Seligman's irreverent absurd Bottoms which was very funny and surprisingly* violent.
* I skipped the trailer on that one and only went because I loved Emma Seligman's debut, Shiva Baby.
| Weekend Box Office Aug 25-27 🔺 = new or expanding / ★ = Recommended |
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| WIDE (Over 600 Screens) | LIMITED / PLATFORM |
 GRAN TURISMO |
 BOTTOMS |
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1 🔺 GRAN TURISMO $17.4 *NEW* 3856 screens |
1 🔺★ BOTTOMS (US, comedy) $461k *NEW* 10 screens |
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2 ★ BARBIE $15.1 (cum. $592.8) 3736 screens |
2 OLDBOY (South Korea, rerelease) $182k (cum. $1.4) 182 screens |
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3 BLUE BEETLE $12.1 (cum. $45.7) 3,871 screens |
3 ★ THEATER CAMP (US, comedy) $111k (cum. $3.6) |
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4 ★ OPPENHEIMER $8.2 (cum. $299.2) 2872 screens |
4 ★🔺 ASTEROID CITY $83k (cum. $28) 310 screens |
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5 TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES MUTANT MAYHEM $7.2 (cum. $99.3) 3,145 screens |
5 ★ THE MIRACLE CLUB (Ireland/UK, drama) $58k (cum. $2.1) |
|
6 STRAYS $4.9 (cum. $16.4) 3,232 screens |
6 ★ PASSAGES (France/Germany, drama) $44k (cum. $415k) 66 screens |
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7 MEG 2 THE TRENCH $4.8 (cum. $74.1) 2,932 screens |
7 CATVIDEOFEST 2023 $39k (cum. $366k) 22 screens |
 GOLDA |
 FREMONT |
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8 🔺 RETRIBUTION $3.5 *NEW* 1,750 screens |
8 🔺★ FREMONT (US) $21k *NEW* 4 screens |
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9 🔺 THE HILL $2.3 *NEW* 1,570 screens |
9 LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND $18k (cum. $190k) 212 screens |
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10 TALK TO ME $2 (cum. $41) 1,321 screens |
10 🔺 SCRAPPER (UK) $14k *NEW* 4 screens |
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11 MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE -DEAD RECKONING PART ONE $2 (cum. $168) 1,680 screens |
11 🔺 THE ELEPHANT 6 RECORDING CO (doc) $14k *NEW* 5 screens |
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12 HAUNTED MANSION $1.9 (cum. $62.1) 1,630 screens |
12 WINTER KILLS (rerelease) $13k (cum. $50k) 2 screens |
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13 🔺★ JURASSIC PARK (30th anniversary) $1.7 *RERELEASE* only 12 movies in wide release |
13 AFIRE (Germany, dramedy) $8k (cum. $204k) 18 screens |
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14 🔺 GOLDA $1.6 *NEW* 883 screens |
14 SHORTCOMING (US, comedy) $7k (cum. $653k) 14 screens |
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15 SOUND OF FREEDOM $1.5 (cum. $180.5) 1,602 screens |
15 HAVE YOU GOT IT YET? THE STORY OF SYD BARRETT AND PINK FLOYD (doc) $6k (cum. $114k) 8 screens |
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16 THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER $730k (cum. $13.2) 1,381 screens |
16 THE UNKNOWN COUNTRY $5k (cum. $42k) 6 screens |
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17 🔺 THE LITTLE MERMAID (2023) $604k (cum. $297.8) 1,600 screens |
17 CHILE '76 (Chile) $5k (cum. $160k) 2 screens |
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18 🔺 SUPER MARIO BROS THE MOVIE $462k (cum. $574.4) 1,451 screens |
18 DAY BY DAY (Sweden, dramedy) $5k (cum. $89k) 13 screens |
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18 movies are in wide release which is the most in ages |
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What did you see? We caught Emma Seligman's irreverent absurd Bottoms which was very funny and surprisingly violent. I say surprisingly only because I skipped the trailer (the violence is baked in to the concept) going because I loved Emma Seligman's debut, Shiva Baby.
THE VENICE FILM FESTIVAL starts tomorrow!
Next weekend at the movies?
The Labor Day Weekend is not typically a big moviegoing weekend as people are interested in getting their finally outdoor weekend on. The widest new release will be The Equalizer 3. Other films arriving include Ernest and Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia, The Good Mother, and Mr Jimmy.
box office
Reader Comments (6)
I saw “Golda” with Helen Mirren playing prime minister Golda Meir.
We didn’t even realize it was $4 Movie Day! Crowded multiplex and line ups at the concession stand, so money was being made.
I didn’t expect much, but I was drawn in. Clear narrative, sharply delineated characters, and Mirren portraying Meir as intelligent, pragmatic, determined, and haunted.
It was like working with a good scholar. Their goal is to bring you closer to the material, and arrange and clarify, so you can make up your own mind, rather than impressing you with their cleverness.
Still trying to fly through what's left of my Nextflix DVD queue, so I saw these randoms:
-- STARTING OVER - OK kitchen-sink drama but man, I never thought I'd experience a charmless Burt Reynolds performance
-- COMING HOME - Bruce Dern gave a good jolt of electricity everytime on screen, but I didn't get into this much otherwise. My favorite thing was apparently at the Oscars that year when Maggie Smith won SA over Penelope Milford, Jane told her "I lost to Maggie my first time too."
-- WONDER BOYS - a splendid comfort movie
Usual mixture of female dramas and horror,my 2 favourite genres
Rambling Rose - quirky and a little icky in places,better than I remembered with all cast members on form.
The Final Terror Daryl Hannah starring slasher which is more of a survivalist thriller than slasher,though it has the tropes.
Avalon Barry Levinson 1990 sentimental family saga,predictable but very enjoyable and funny.
Virtuosity a 1995 si-fi thriller Denzel and Russell probably forgot they made,entertaining though quite violent,Louise Fletcher pops up too.
Within The Rock low budget Alien knock off,just goes to how why Alien is a classic.
Kingdom Of Spiders well done William Shatner creepy crawly horror with a bleak ending.
The 6th Day Duvall and Schwarzenegger in a funnier than it should be sci-fi actioner.
A trio of re-watches on Plex and TUBI in some late night B-movies in Ring of Fire with Don "the Dragon" Wilson, Dead Tides with the late, great "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and the late Tawny Kitaen, and Sleeping Beauty starring Emily Browning while I also saw a first-timer in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem which was fucking awesome. Take the kids to see it.
A few from 1932
One Way Passage: Surprisingly moving soap opera with William Powell and Kay Francis. Superb supporting cast.
Jewel Robbery: Another Francis/Powell joint. Delicious fun.
Shanghai Express: I didn't love it like I was hoping but the scenes with Anna May Wong and Marlene Deitrich together are choice.
After Tomorrow: Borzage, stop breaking my heart.
I got my first TIFF tickets!
I was unable to get my first choice (“La Chimera”) or my third choice (“Fair Play”),
But I have tickets for “Rustin” and “Nyad”.
I’ll have to wait to see other movies when they come out, and I’ll be reading the coverage to know what’s special. So I’ll be reading everything Cláudio has to say about TIFF! I hope he has a good experience.