Halfway Mark: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (So Far)

Mainstream cinema is having a rough summer, qualitatively... but let's honor what mainstream cinema often does best, for this episode of the Halfway Mark Review. Which is to say the broad strokes of Good vs Evil.

Not that mainstream movies always ace this low bar, mind you: Marvel remains mostly terrible at crafting villains, Batman v Superman was so inept that it didn't even understand that you need heroes in superhero movies. X-Men Apocalypse was a crowded repetitive mess on either side of the good/bad divide. But enough about stinkers - happy thoughts:  BESTS! 

Heroes of the Year

• The Avengers (Chris Evans, Cast & FX Team) in Captain America: Civil War
Can't they all just get along? While it'd be silly to say that Civil War doesn't tell you which team to be on (Hint: it's in the title) it does offer up enough sympathetic furrowed brow angst when looking at Team Iron Man that it's easy to understand both sides of this argument. That's half the battle in the selling the film. The other half is staging the battles so that everyone survives but looks deeply affected by the blows, which it also does well. Black Panther and Spider-Man are wonderful new additions, and Black Widow again demonstrates that she's the swiftest, most asskicking, and consistently double sided tape that arguably holds these movies together. If only Captain America, Marvel's most successful comic-to-film translation, weren't having to fight for so much attention in his own damn franchise; Iron Man never had to that. 

• Horus (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) in Gods of Egypt
What's that you say? 'Gods of Egypt is a terrible movie!' Why yes, Yes it is. But that doesn't mean I can't honor Nikolaj's well shaped silly/serious turn as a blinded God. He's one of only two actors who knows what kind of movie he's in (the other is Geoffrey Rush, even better with the heightened camp) and he's fun to watch, helping to make this a sort of enjoyable terrible movie insteaad of just a terrible movie.  

Zootopia, Warcraft, The Conjuring 2 and more after the jump...

Click to read more ...

Audiences didn't feel divided about Civil War

Only two new wide releases hit this weekend but there was only one Money Monster and it wasn't Money Monster but that superhero-filled Civil War. Naturally the good Captain didn't make room for them in his second weekend, planting himself like a tree. "No, you move." Speaking of plants with no give - The Jungle Book isn't budging either. The next two weekends will be a tougher test for both The Avenger's and Mowgli's staying power since five new multiplex friendly movies enter the fray soon: Angry Birds, The Nice Guys, and Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising are next (I'm hearing surprisingly good things about all three. WTF?); and for Memorial Day Weekend the Alice in Wonderland and X-Men sequels challenge all of them for summer box office dominance though they're sure to win the gaudy sweepstakes.

Which of those five upcoming pictures are you planning to see and what did you catch this weekend?

Arrows indicate losing or gaining screens

TOP WIDE RELEASES
01 Captain America: Civil War $72.6 (cum. $295.9) Review
🔻02 The Jungle Book $17.1 (cum. $311.1) Articles
03 Money Monster $14.7 NEW Jack O'Connell
04 Darkness $4.9 NEW
🔺05 Mother's Day $3.2 (cum. $28.7) 

TOP TEN LIMITED
Excluding previously wide.
🔺01 Sing Street $619K (cum. $1.9) Review
🔺02 The Man Who Knew Infinity $508K  (cum. $.9)
🔺03 Green Room $411K (cum. $2.7)
🔺04 The Meddler $372K (cum. $1)  Review
🔻05 Hologram for the King $233K (cum. $3.8) Review
06 The Lobster $190K NEW Reviewish
🔺07 A Bigger Splash $189K (cum. $.3) Reviewish
08 Love & Friendship $133K NEW Review
09 AmeriGeddon $131K NEW
🔻10 Compadres $150K (cum. $2.9)

 I saw Love & Friendship on Jose's recommendation and it was delightfully arch and funny. I especially enjoyed Chloe Sevigny's awful American accomplice to Lady Susan's shady lady antics. Then I returned to Civil War because my bestie wanted to see it. My opinion didn't budge an iota from the first time (which is generally not a good sign that the movie will continue to grow in estimation). In short: good movie but the least of the three Captain Americas, largely because it's much slower, longer (they've been jumping 10 extra minutes with each Cap movie!)  and loses the focus on the All American Super Soldier to set up multiple future franchises from Spider-Man: Homecoming to The Black Panther to Avengers: Infinity War Pts 1 & 2 (the latter two will be getting a title change and won't be Parts 1 and Parts 2 as the public has finally caught on to that cheat for extra dollars for one movie).

Recommended Elsewhere...

Seven things I quite enjoyed reading this weekend.

"We're still friends, right?"Seventh Row Is Tom Hiddleston's charm getting in the way of greatness as an actor? 
Meta Komik I've recently discovered that "Doubtman" has been my arch enemy all along (3 pages)
Cinesnark lovely piece on the tiny arc of Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier within Captain America: Civil War
The Onion "Aging succubus lowering standards for men ever since she turned 40,000"
Thrillist why Black Widow is Marvel Studio's Best & Worst character 
New York Review of Books a classic from Joan Didion on Woody Allen's new "serious" phase (originally published in the late 1970s but it's most definitely still brilliant.)
Pajiba which of the Avengers would be the best in bed? I support the results, actually, except for the absurd undervaluing of Agent Peggy Carter (it is *very* clear they haven't watched Agent Carter). On the other end of the spectrum now I feel even worse for tragic Bucky.

Thank Link It's Friday

Vanity Fair meet Millicent Simmonds, a young deaf actress starring in Todd Haynes next film Wonderstruck
Film Independent if you are very rich and can afford $150+ to see a live screenplay reading, Hannah and Her Sisters is being performed tonight in Manhattan. Olivia Wilde directs an all star cast including: Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne, Uma Thurman, Michael Sheen, Maya Rudolph, and Salman Rushdie. (Love all those ladies but I'll save my pennies to see two fully staged Broadway shows on discount for that price. Jesus)
Oscars YouTube has released a bunch of conversational videos with the team behind Beauty & The Beast for its 25th Anniversary
Decider Joe Reid remembers gay romcom The Broken Hearts Club (2000)
The Film Stage interview with Terence Davies about Sunset Song (2016) now playing
Vulture why X-Men Apocalypse has so little buzz

 

Stage Buddy Nico Tortorella, of Younger fame, tests his comic chops out on stage in "Crude"
Nick's Flick Picks is revisiting the 1996 Cannes Festival, day by screening day. First up was Oscar nominees Ridicule (1996)
Film Forum (NYC) is screening several films based on the work of Noél Coward starting today including Design for Living, Bunny Lake is Missing, and Brief Encounter
Rolling Stone on a newly restored X rated Japanese anime from the 70s, Belladonna of Sadness
Talk House a comic strip review of a comic book movie (Civil War) - this is really fun
THR George Miller talks about his past Cannes jury stints (this next week he's leading the jury) and Oscar night for Mad Max Fury Road 
Interview Magazine unearths a Laura Dern interview from 1990. Great photos. 

Off Cinema
Monkey See lovely piece on reading to your children and the power of spoilers with a Star Wars slant
Madonnarama Madonna will be honoring the late Prince with a performance at the Billboard music awards on May 22nd
Vox on progressive US's citizens frequent threat to move to Canada -- hard to do!
Mic LGBT magazines have an unfortunate habit of lily white male covers, straight and gay. Here are 100 suggestions for LGBT people of color who'd look great on magazine covers. 

Body Positivity
This topic seems to be in the air right now -- and god knows who couldn't use it? -- so here are two good links on insecurities and self-discoveries  
Buzzfeed "Wrestling taught me how (not) to be a man"  
Towleroad "I am a Man..." is there strength in revealing our insecurities? Or just camarederie? 

This is Funny
I don't know who did it though I'd love to give credit -- maybe it's from here? -- but I LOL'ed 

More Captain America Funny: In related unexpectedly amusing news, the US Army confirms that it would indeed owe Steve Rogers 66 years of back pay after he was thawed out in Captain America: The First Avengers; Pajiba reveals a list of every "Chris" that is not part of the Marvel-verse; Over at Funny or Die, thanks to Tony Hale, Civil War Reenactments now mean a completely different thing...It's not a hobby it's a lifestyle!

Random News To Go
• Godzilla 2 has been pushed back to 2019. Way to strike while the iron is hot, Warner Bros. Five years between movies? Strange.
• It's not official official yet but Lupita Nyong'o is reportedly in talks for Marvel's Black Panther, assumed to be the superhero's love interest
• We dreaded it and it's now official: Agent Carter, Marvel's most joyful current property (and they have so many now on TV and film) has been cancelled. In much happier news, The Real O'Neals (absolutely adorable and super funny - please tell me you're watching) has been renewed. Here's a bunch of other new cancellations and renewals.

Box Office

Black Panther coming for your ticket moneyWhile Captain America v. Iron Man didn't prove to be that much hotter a ringside ticket than Batman v. Superman did in its opening weekend (there's just a 15 million difference or so), the gap will surely widen. The movie's general quality will help it outlive and outperform that earlier embarrassment. One thing the two films do have in common is that the audience excitement appears to be primarily wrapped up in the new characters (Wonder Woman then & Spider-Man/Black Panther now) as opposed to the familiar faces. In related news, Bunny v Fox aka Zootopia overtook Batman v Superman this weekend to become the second highest grossing film of the year thus far.

But real question: who on earth was going to Batman v Superman THIS weekend of all weekends (it earned another million) with Iron Man vs. Captain America available to them? 

TOP TEN WIDE
01 Captain America: Civil War $181.7 NEW Review
02 The Jungle Book $21.8 (cum. $285.9) Articles
03 Mother's Day $9 (cum. $20.7)
04 The Huntsman Winters War $3.5 (cum. $40.3)  Review
05 Keanu $3 (cum. $15.1) 
06 Barbershop: The Next Cut $2.7 (cum. $48.7)
07 Zootopia $2.6 (cum. $327.6)  Reviewish
08 The Boss $1.7 (cum. $59.1)  Review
09 Ratchet & Clank $1.4 (cum. $7) 
10 Batman v. Superman $1 (cum. $327.2) Review 

Sing Street is benefitting from great word of mouth as it expands

Other movies steered clear of opening against the third Avengers film but for Luca Guadagino's I Am Love follow up A Bigger Splash which began its platform release. Now there's an annual franchise option we could get behind. Imagine a world where each Gaudagino & Swinton release is as buzzed about and dissected as any new "Underoos!" moment from Marvel. We're here for that world, whenever it collides with this one.

TOP TEN PLATFORM
01 Sing Street $422K on 153 screens (cum. $1.1) Review
02 Green Room $343K on 470 screens (cum. $2)
03 The Meddler $294K on 53 screens (cum. $.6)  Review
04 The Man Who Knew Infinity $220K on 40 screens (cum. $.3)
05 Papa Hemingway in Cuba $181K on 208 Screens (cum. $.8)
06 Compadres $170K on 212 screens (cum. $2.7)
07 Miles Ahead $131K on 141 screens (cum. $2.2) Review
08 Everybody Wants Some $110K on 131 screens (cum. $3.2) Review Con, Review Pro, Podcast
09 A Bigger Splash $110K on 5 screens NEW Articles
10 The Family Fang $104K on 52 screens Review

What did you catch this week in theaters?