Month: May 2013

Side Effects Movie Review

Side Effects is not an easy movie to review without major spoilers, so my thoughts here on the picture will be fairly brief.

Steven Soderbergh is one of the most exciting and versatile directors of the last quarter century. He’s directed everything from sex, lies, and videotape to Out of Sight to Erin Brockovich to Traffic to Contagion to Magic Mike. And there’s that enormously successful Ocean’s 11-13 trilogy, too.

The director has said that Side Effects may be his last theatrical feature, but I doubt this will be the case. I hope not. Soderbergh is way too important to movies to stop making them. Hell, this Sunday, you can watch his HBO Liberace biopic Behind the Candelabra starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon. It’s getting fantastic reviews by the way and don’t be surprised if I have a review of that posted quite soon.

The plot of Side Effects is pretty damn clever. The film begins as an expose of the pharmaceutical industry with a psychiatrist (Jude Law) treating a depressed patient (Rooney Mara) whose husband (Channing Tatum) has just been released from prison. And then it becomes something else entirely.

And… ladies and gentlemen, that’s about all I can reveal about the plot without ruining stuff. You’ll thank me later. Part of the joy of Side Effects is discovering the truly unexpected paths the film goes down. There are plot twists that are genuinely surprising. The movie shifts from one genre to the next with mostly successful results.

Rooney Mara and Jude Law anchor this twisty little picture with effective performances. Their doctor-patient relationship goes through a number of iterations in Scott Z. Burns’ screenplay and their interplay is always intriguing. Many reviews have compared Side Effects to the work of Hitchcock, especially the final half. I can see why, but saying more would spoil the fun.

Even though the Hitchcock comparison is fair, Side Effects doesn’t come close to reaching the level of the master’s greatest works. And it’s not in the upper echelon of Soderbergh’s cannon either, but it is sharply written, well-acted, and will keep you guessing for nearly its whole running length. The last few minutes or so get a tad predictable, but it’s a trip getting there.

*** (out of four)

Trailer Park: Don Jon, The World’s End, We’re the Millers

In this week’s edition of Trailer Park, I take a look at three summer films with comedic elements.

We start with Don Jon, marking the directorial debut of actor Joseph Gordon Levitt. The actor has been on a roll recently with appearances in Chris Nolan’s Inception and The Dark Knight Rises, Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln, and Rian Johnson’s inventive sci-fi thriller Looper. He’s certainly worked with some A-list directors so we’ll see if that translates to his directorial ability.

Don Jon looks promising. Levitt stars as a buff ladies man who also seems to have a bit of a porn addiction. The trailer shows him falling for Scarlett Johannson and also in a relationship with Julianne Moore. We even have Tony Danza playing his dad!

I didn’t know much about Don Jon before watching the trailer and the spot succeeded in its mission of making me more curious to see it. I’m also curious to see the movie within a movie that seems to be featured here with Channing Tatum and Anne Hathaway. And you gotta love that the trailer unexpectedly includes Mark Wahlberg… or rather, Marky Mark as Don Jon sings along to “Good Vibrations” in his car. That is until he comes to a stoplight and gets embarrassed. Been there, done that! Trailer Grade: B+

Next: The World’s End, reuniting the creative team behind 2004’s Shaun of the Dead and 2007’s Hot Fuzz. The story centers on a group of British dudes attempting to recreate a classic night from their youth. Their epic bar crawl seems to go seriously wrong with some supernatural happenings that aren’t specifically spelled out in the trailer. Director Edgar Wright and stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have covered this ground before and the trailer does look somewhat derivative of Shaun of the Dead, in particular. Still, these guys know how to do energetic and satisfying comedy and the trailer gives us enough to get pretty excited about. Trailer Grade: B

Last and least is the trailer for We’re the Millers starring Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis. It focuses on Aniston as a stripper and Sudeikis as a pot dealer who pose as a wholesome American family traveling to Mexico to pay back a drug dealer. There simply aren’t many laughs to be had in the trailer. The spot certainly wants to focus on Aniston being scantily clad with her stripper moves, but even that angle seems tired since the actress did the bad girl thing already in 2011’s Horrible Bosses, also with Sudeikis. Everything about this trailer screamed “wait until HBO or Showtime” for me. Trailer Grade: C

I’ll be back next week with fresh thoughts on new trailers!

 

Box Office Predictions: Memorial Day Weekend 2013

Well, folks, we’ve arrived at my Top Five Box Office Predictions for one of the most confusing and wild weekends I can ever recall.

Why?

Well, we have two huge releases Fast and Furious 6 and The Hangover Part III opening opposite each other. And we have Fox’s animated Epic which may have a hefty debut as well. I wrote separate blog posts on all three major openings with my predictions:

https://toddmthatcher.wordpress.com/2013/05/19/the-hangover-part-iii-box-office-prediction/

https://toddmthatcher.wordpress.com/2013/05/20/fastfurious-6-box-office-prediction/

https://toddmthatcher.wordpress.com/2013/05/21/epic-box-office-prediction/

We’ve got the second weekend of Star Trek Into Darkness, which debuted below expectations last weekend with $83.7 million. It was expected to make over $100 million. And we’ve still got Tony Stark and Gatsby out there. Can you say crowded marketplace?

I’ve extensively discussed what I think will happen in the posts above. Bottom line: I look for Vin Diesel, The Rock, and his Fast cohorts to dominate The Hangover‘s Wolf Pack. I expect Epic to have a solid debut.

And I look for Star Trek to lose about half its audience and continue its surprisingly unremarkable returns. Iron Man 3 should round out the top five. It’s worth noting that Hangover opens Thursday, while Fast and Epic debut Friday. My Top Five projections are my Friday-Monday (Memorial Day) predictions, but I’ve factored in my full five-day Hangover prediction. Got that? Yeah, it’s confusing.

MEMORIAL DAY 2013 BOX OFFICE PREDICTIONS

1. Fast&Furious 6

Predicted Gross: $106.8 million

2. The Hangover Part III

Predicted Gross: $60.3 million ($77.4 million projected five-day opening)

3. Epic

Predicted Gross: $45.5 million

4. Star Trek Into Darkness

Predicted Gross: $41 million

5. Iron Man 3

Predicted Gross: $21.7 million

I’ll be updating the Facebook page throughout the long weekend with results and Monday on the blog with final results. I will readily admit – this has been the toughest weekend since I started the blog to predict results. We’ll see what happens.

Epic Box Office Prediction

From 20th Century Fox this Memorial Day weekend comes Epic, a new animated feature that may benefit from being the only title in release marketing towards a kiddie audience.

It’s been two months since The Croods did robust business and that feature is now winding down. While we have two other huge debuts this weekend in Fast&Furious 6 and The Hangover Part III, those flicks are competing for the same audience. Epic is going after little ones and their parents.

Featuring a seriously eclectic voice cast that includes Amanda Seyfried, Colin Farrell, Josh Hutcherson, Christoph Waltz, Beyonce Knowles, Steven Tyler, Jason Sudeikis, and rapper Pitbull, Epic has the benefit of being the first animated feature out of the gate this summer. Oh, there will be plenty more: Monsters University, Despicable Me 2, Turbo, and Planes. 

Two months ago, The Croods opened at $43.8 million on a three-day gross, albeit in a less crowded market. Frankly, anything below $40M for any high-profile animated flick is pretty weak and I expect Epic to top that, though not by a whole lot. Even with a four-day gross factored in, Epic doesn’t seem to have any major buzz to it, but should still bring in enough of its target audience. As with any animated film, Epic could certainly surpass my somewhat modest prediction, but I’ll say:

Epic opening weekend prediction: $45.5 million

Tomorrow on the blog, my projection for Memorial Weekend’s Top Five.

Movie Perfection: Behind Raquel Welch

Hope.

That’s what The Shawshank Redemption is all about. There is a reason this movie resonates with audiences in the way that it does. It puts its central character in one of the worst possible scenarios imaginable. Wrongfully convicted of a murder he did not commit. Sentenced to life in prison. For many, all hope would be lost.

The circumstances at Shawshank prison often don’t give much reason to be hopeful. A corrupt and horrible warden who uses Andy Dufresne to assist with his money laundering schemes. The brutal rape and beatings from other inmates. The weeks spent in “the hole”. The warden’s destruction of evidence exonerating Andy… the evidence is another inmate.

Whenever possible, however, Andy orchestrates ways to make an intolerable situation tolerable. His friendship with Red and others. His deal making that results in the boys getting to drink some beers on the top of that roof. The library that he builds through endless and patient persistence.

There is a point reached in The Shawshank Redemption, after the warden orders Hadley to take out Tommy, where all hope seems lost. We believe Andy is likely to commit suicide, especially based on a conversation he has with Red. As an audience, we’re diffused.

And then the morning roll call happens. Andy is nowhere to be found. The warden is incredulous. And we, the audience, are dumbfounded. Completely dumbfounded. What the hell is going on??

At this point: answers. The warden throws one of Andy’s custom made rocks through his poster of starlet Raquel Welch. This reveals a tunnel behind the cell wall that Andy has been digging away at for a long time. And then comes Morgan Freeman’s narration… the best kind of narration in the history of narration. He describes the unbelievable circumstances Andy had to go through to make his escape. It culminates in that stunning shot of the rain beating down on Andy, cleansing his body and washing away 40 years of captivity.

I’ve often said The Shawshank Redemption may have the happiest ending of any movie ever. Every time I watch it, I beam from ear to ear. We smile at the deserved ending that befalls the warden. We smile when Hadley gets carted off to jail. We smile when Red’s ambivalent parole hearing speech actually gets him released. And we smile when Red takes the long walk down the beach where Andy is working on his boat. And happy tears come along when they share an embrace as the credits roll. I’ll be damned if Shawshank isn’t just about the greatest film ever about friendship. 

That amazing series of events that keeps us smiling begins with an unexpected question – what’s behind Raquel Welch? The answer, it turns out, is hope. And it’s Movie Perfection.

Fast and Furious 6 Box Office Prediction

Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Paul Walker, and company take on the Wolf Pack in an epic showdown at the Memorial Day box office this weekend. It’s beginning to look like Fast will outpace The Hangover franchise.

I wrote extensively yesterday about the Wolf Pack’s chances at the multiplex this weekend and you can peruse that post right here:

https://toddmthatcher.wordpress.com/2013/05/19/the-hangover-part-iii-box-office-prediction/

As mentioned in the blog post, The Hangover seems like a franchise that’s losing steam. We are seeing the opposite with the Furious franchise. Let’s take a trip down franchise memory lane, shall we?

The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Opening Weekend: $40.8M. Total Domestic Gross: $144.5M

2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

Opening Weekend: $50.4M. Total Domestic Gross: $127.1M

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)

Opening Weekend: $23.9M. Total Domestic Gross: $62.5M

Fast and Furious (2009)

Opening Weekend: $70.9M. Total Domestic Gross: $155M

Fast Five (2011)

Opening Weekend: $86.1M. Total Domestic Gross: $209.8M

You will notice that the last two Fast pics were enormous blockbusters. Fast Five not only was by far the franchise’s biggest grosser – it also earned critical respect unlike any other entry. The 2001 original had previously been the highest on Rotten Tomatoes at a decent 52%. Fast Five got 78%! Where does Fast&Furious 6 currently sit? 78%.

This all leads me to the conclusion that the sixth installment is likely to capitalize on the good will brought forth by its predecessor. Additionally, Fast 6 has the benefit of a four-day opening over a holiday weekend. If it performs similar to #5’s numbers with the extra day factored in, we could be looking at a gross of over $100 million for opening weekend.

What could stand in its way? One word: competition. The Hangover Part III and the second weekend of Star Trek Into Darkness are most certainly gunning for the same audience. This fact alone could mean that Fast 6 opens lower than expected.

However, I don’t believe it will. This franchise is red-hot at the right time and looks poised for an massive debut. I’m convinced it will be #1, landing the Wolf Pack a second place finish. Who would’ve thought this unexpected 2001 hit would turn into the franchise it is today? You gotta give Universal a lot of credit and I believe this weekend will keep the momentum going. By the way, #7 will be out next summer.

Fast&Furious 6 opening weekend prediction: $106.8 million

Tomorrow on the blog, look for my prediction for Epic, the animated feature that will attempt to get the kiddos to the theater this weekend. On Wednesday, my prediction for the Top Five including the second weekend of Star Trek Into Darkness. 

The Hangover Part III Box Office Prediction

Memorial Day weekend may answer the following question at the box office: Are moviegoers beginning to tire of the Wolf Pack?

Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, and Ed Helms return in The Hangover Part III, which opens on Thursday. Two years ago over the same weekend, the second Hangover installment earned an astonishing $135 million over the Thursday-Monday holiday period. This time around, there’s a key difference. While the first Hangover was a beloved comedy where audiences couldn’t wait for the gang to return, the sequel (while a huge hit) was met with a more mixed reaction. Due to this, the chances of #3 posting a similar debut weekend seems unlikely.

And then there’s the competition factor. In 2011, The Hangover Part II‘s opened against Kung Fu Panda 2, which was obviously going after a different audience. Now the Wolf Pack faces some serious competition in the form of Fast and Furious 6. I honestly was surprised when the decisions were made to open these titles against each other as I believe it will negatively effect numbers for both. Both Hangover and Furious are going after the younger male audience.

A fair comparison to what I believe could happen to this franchise is the Fockers trilogy with Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller. Audiences loved the original and were eager to see the second. The first sequel, Meet the Fockers, made a huge $279 million. By the time the third entry Little Fockers came around, audiences had begun to tire of the series and it only made $148 million. The first Hangover stormed multiplexes in summer 2009 with $277 million. The second in 2011 made $254 million. I don’t expect the third time to be the charm. It also doesn’t help that the trailers really haven’t been very funny.

Of course, there will be plenty of moviegoers ready to welcome the Wolf Pack back. I just don’t believe it will approach past entries. I’m actually more worried that my five-day prediction might be a little too high with Vin Diesel and company competing against it. And there’s also the second weekend of Star Trek Into Darkness, even though it opened lower than expectations. Maybe I’m wrong that audiences are giving up on this franchise, but that’s the feeling I get.

The Hangover Part III opening prediction: $77.4 million

Yep, that’s a full $58 million less than the second film’s take just two years ago and would be considered a pretty major disappointment.

Tomorrow on the blog, I’ll make my prediction for Fast and Furious 6. Stay tuned!

Box Office Results: May 16-19

Star Trek Into Darkness had a surprise opening at the box office this weekend with a softer than expected debut. Most prognosticators (including yours truly) estimated the sequel to the 2009 hit would gross over $100 million over the Thursday to Sunday frame. My exact prediction was $106.2M.

It didn’t go down that way. Darkness earned $84.1 million, not much higher than the three day opening of the original four summers ago. This has got to be a letdown for Paramount when one of their summer tentpoles opens a full $20 million below expectations. Still, an A Cinemascore grade could forecast nice legs ahead, even though there is fierce competition coming next weekend.

Other titles came in just a bit below my predictions. Iron Man 3 was second with $35.2 million (I projected $37.3M). In its second weekend, The Great Gatsby took third with $23.4 million (I estimated $25.6M). Pain and Gain was fourth with $3.1 million (I went with $3.4M). I incorrectly estimated 42 would be fifth with a $3.3 million gross. It came in sixth with $2.7 million, making The Croods fifth with $2.8 million.

Starting tonight on the blog, I’ll have prediction posts for the three big debuts for Memorial weekend. This evening – my prediction for The Hangover Part III. Tomorrow – Fast and Furious 6. Tuesday – the animated feature Epic. Stay tuned!

50 Best Saturday Night Live Celebrity Impersonations: Part Five

Well, here we are! 40 entries have been posted on the blog and that leaves…

The Top Ten

Let me simply state that compiling this list was not easy and it was especially hard to decide what impressions made the final cut and especially the Top Ten. This just goes to show the rich history of SNL and its amazing performers. And now a confession: a particular entry was written down on my master list and somehow I didn’t circle the name for inclusion on the list. Good news is: the impression would probably be right where I’m listing it… so we’ll call #10 1/2. Without further adieu, here’s my personal Top Ten (and a half):

10 1/2: Will Ferrell as James Lipton

Ferrell’s classic take on the “Inside the Actors Studio” host comes complete with Lipton’s heightened sense of himself and the overly “actor-y” pompousness. And you can’t beat the huge stack of blue note cards.

10. Jimmy Fallon as Barry Gibb

The future “Tonight Show” host and the great Justin Timberlake gave us one of the best series of sketches in the SNL cannon. Fallon’s portrayal as Barry Gibb as a character who loses his s**t if someone says the wrong thing is unforgettable.

9. Dana Carvey as President George H.W. Bush

Carvey’s take on Bush 41 isn’t going for accuracy, but instead the terrific Carvey goes way over-the-top in hilarious fashion. Wouldn’t be prudent… not at this juncture! Not gonna do it!

<div style=”font-size:12px;”><a href=”http://www.metacafe.com/watch/400999/dana_carvey_as_bush/”>Dana Carvey As Bush</a> – <a href=”http://www.metacafe.com/”>Click here for more free videos</a></div>

8. Will Ferrell as Harry Caray

Hey!!! Cubs win!!! Ferrell’s impression of the legendary sports announcer is side splitting fun and totally bizarre in the best way.

7. Darrell Hammond as Vice President Al Gore

Had Al Gore won the 2000 election, Darrell Hammond’s spot-on impersonation might rank even higher because we would’ve seen more of it. Still, this is one of the greatest impressions in SNL history. Lock box.

6. Darrell Hammond as President Bill Clinton

Hammond strikes again in the political world. Phil Hartman’s take on Bubba ranked high as well, but the edge goes to Hammond’s take, which got the 42nd President’s mannerisms down to a tee.

5. Dana Carvey as Ross Perot

As much I love his Bush impression, Carvey’s Ross Perot is even more genius. The 1992 debate with Carvey playing Bush and Perot, alongside Hartman’s Clinton, is one of the top sketches period.

4. Eddie Murphy as James Brown

A perfect impression per usual from Murphy, but his James Brown ranks highest due to the Hot Tub sketch… a Top Ten SNL skit.

3. Fred Armisen as Governor David Paterson

Inappropriate. Edgy. And also absolutely tears streaming down your face uproarious. Armisen boldly made his impression about the ex-New York Governor’s blindness. And damn it was funny.

2. Will Ferrell as President George W. Bush

Ferrell’s impression of the #43 is so legendary that he did a full Broadway show as Dubya. No matter what side of the political fence you’re on, his impersonation is the top Presidential entry in a show full of wonderful ones.

1. Tina Fey as Sarah Palin

No other impression became the cultural phenomenon than Fey’s take on the 2008 Vice-Presidential contender. As soon as Governor Palin burst onto the scene in fall 2008, everyone knew it would be Tina doing her on SNL. Expectations were high and Fey came through and then some. When all is said and done, very few historical write-ups about Palin won’t mention Tina. And for that… Tina Fey’s Palin earns the #1 spot.

And there you have it! 50 terrific SNL celebrity impersonations from the most important comedy show ever.

50 Best Saturday Night Live Celebrity Impersonations: Part Four

It’s getting more difficult! We’ve reached the Top 20 of the Top 50 best SNL cast member celebrity impressions. Here are numbers 20-11 before we reach the Top Ten in part five of this five-part series:

20. Martin Short as Katherine Hepburn

Marty Short is a comedic genius and his one season on SNL was a wonderful one. His Kate Hepburn is probably my favorite of many.

http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/digital-shorts/video/kate-and-ali/1351153/

19. Phil Hartman as Phil Donahue

Hartman’s take on the daytime talk show host was spot-on and also had the advantage of being in a brilliant sketch. It’s worth noting that Darrell Hammond also did a great Donahue years later.

18. Phil Hartman as President Ronald Reagan

The Hartman love continues with the performer’s clever take on Reagan. When he was in public, he was the affable, soft-spoken leader we all know. Behind the scenes – he was a tyrant. “Back to work!!!”

17. Eddie Murphy as Little Richard Simmons

This impression makes it high on the list due to the genius notion of combining Richard Simmons and Little Richard into one character in a hilarious sketch.

16. Will Ferrell as Janet Reno

“It’s Reno time!” Ferrell killed it with his macho take on Clinton’s Attorney General.

15. Phil Hartman as Frank Sinatra

Joe Piscopo had a nice take on the Chairman of the Board as well, but it’s the master Phil Hartman whose Sinatra is SNL’s best.

14. Dana Carvey as John McLaughlin

“Issue 2!!!” Carvey nailed roundtable show host McLaughlin in a series of fabulous sketches.

13. Phil Hartman as President Bill Clinton

The scene with Hartman playing the President in McDonald’s talking to regular people is one of the best SNL sketches ever and it cements Hartman’s Slick Willie as a high placer on the list. We may not be finished with the 42nd President however…

12. Dana Carvey as Johnny Carson

Carvey’s uncanny impression of the late night legend gave us a series of laugh out loud sketches.

11. Darrell Hammond as Sean Connery

Hammond’s exaggerated take on the original Bond came as part of the Jeopardy sketches that are among the best in the program’s long history.

And there you have it… we have ten entries left! Stay tuned for the Top Ten coming to the blog page very soon…