Thanksgiving was Unkind to the Box Office

By Ben Miller

Thanksgiving weekend can usually be counted on for a big box office, but that was certainly not the case this year.  The entire box office managed just $92.9 million for the three-day weekend.  That's the lowest Thanksgiving box office weekend since 1994 (not counting 2020, obviously).  Black Panther: Wakanda Forever cruised to another easy box office win, dropping a mere 31% in it's third week of release.  The two new releases of Disney's Strange World and the war film Devotion both landed with relative thuds.  The marketing on both has been dubious at best...

Weekend Box Office (actuals) November 25th-27th 🔺 = new or expanding /  ★ = Recommended
WIDE (OVER 800 SCREENS)	LIMITED / PLATFORM
BLACK PANTHER WAKANDA FOREVER	GLASS ONION
1 BLACK PANTHER WAKANDA FOREVER $45.6 (cum. $367.5)	1 🔺★ GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY $9.4 *NEW* 696 screens

Click to read more ...

Best International Film Reviews: Belgium, Pakistan, and Ukraine

by Cláudio Alves

The most wonderful time of the year is upon us. No, not the holiday season. No, not even the awards season as a whole. It's time to delve deep into the submissions for Best International Film before the Academy's committees whittle down the 92 titles to a measly 15-wide shortlist from which the entire voting body will choose its five nominees. The list will be made public on December 21st, so until then, we shall explore the race's offerings, from its major contenders to more obscure selections. To start things off, let's look into three titles that feel bound to make the shortlist, both for reasons of quality, reputation, and international controversy…

Click to read more ...

Review: "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" Provides Wonderful Family Entertainment

By Christopher James

It’s been 18 years since Antonio Banderas’ Puss in Boots first flashed his huge eyes onscreen in box office smash and Cannes in-competition film Shrek 2. Though the Shrek franchise faded with each half-baked sequel, Puss in Boots got the origin story treatment in a 2011 installment. A decade later you'd assume that this Puss in Boots: The Last Wish would feel stale and dated. Instead it's a charming winner filled with imagination and fun! The story is a familiar one, centering around wish fulfillment and a grand race. Yet, there is plenty of juice left in this fairy tale world. The film blends childlike mania with poignant themes of belonging to make this perfect programming for families looking for a movie this holiday season.

When we catch up with Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas), he’s leading a sing-a-long about his prowess while getting in a fight with both a town and a giant...

Click to read more ...

Team Experience Predix - Round 1: Post-Thanksgiving Snapshot

We'll be polling Team Experience biweekly to get their (collective) take on the Oscar race. This week, the 'Big Six' categories and Screenplay prizes.

THE FABELMANS

BEST PICTURE

Click to get expanded view.It’s a dangerous business to be an early frontrunner. However, if anyone can handle that title, it’s Steven Spielberg...

Click to read more ...

Where is the buzz for "My Father's Dragon"?

by Nathaniel R

"Too much of a good thing" sounds like an oxymoron but it's something that can happen. It's difficult to look at this year's Best Animated Feature Race for instance and not wonder whether Netflix's endless supply of movies is not totally working. This year alone they have enough contenders to fill up literally that entire Oscar category all by themselves and all of them come from previous Oscar nominees: Richard Linklater's nostalgia piece Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood, Chris Williams' animated adventure The Sea Beast, Henry Selick's horror-comedy Wendell & Wild and Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio next month.

Somehow Netflix's fifth contender, Cartoon Saloon's My Father's Dragon (which began streaming this month) has generated little press despite being quite charming, beautiful to look at, and also arriving with a ready made Oscar pedigree...

Click to read more ...