Tag: Andre Braugher

She Said Box Office Prediction

The true life tale of the New York Times journalists who exposed the crimes of Harvey Weinstein, Maria Schrader’s She Said debuts November 18th. Zoe Kazan and Carey Mulligan play the investigative reporters with a supporting cast including Patricia Clarkson, Andre Braugher, Jennifer Ehle, Tom Pelphrey, and Samantha Morton.

Critical reaction skewed positive after its premiere at the New York Film Festival. With an 82% Rotten Tomatoes score, She could contend for nods in some Oscar races including Picture. The best reviews have compared it to 2015’s BP winner Spotlight.

The ripped from the fairly recent headlines story could assist in bringing in filmgoers. Universal is certainly banking on a female turnout. My hunch is that this struggles in its opening and hopes for sturdy legs in subsequent frames. Low to mid single digits might be the start.

She Said opening weekend prediction: $3.4 million

For my The Menu prediction, click here:

The Menu Box Office Prediction

Oscar Predictions: She Said

At the New York Film Festival this evening, the curtain went up on She Said. From director Maria Schrader, the film recounts The New York Times investigation in movie mogul Harvey Weinstein. Carey Mulligan and Zoe Kazan portray the two lead reporters with a supporting cast including Patricia Clarkson, Andre Braugher, Samantha Morton, Tom Pelphrey, and Jennifer Ehle.

Recent journalistic exposes such as 2015’s Spotlight went all the way to a Best Picture victory. On the other hand, 2019’s Bombshell managed acting nods but missed BP and screenplay. Based on the early reviews coming out of the Big Apple, She Said may land somewhere in the middle. The initial reactions indicate this could absolutely make the ten contenders in Picture. Winning appears highly unlikely (several write-ups are in the solid but not great realm). As for its script, Adapted Screenplay is pretty weak in 2022. There’s no reason to think this won’t get in. I’d continue to put it behind Women Talking and The Whale. 

One of this season’s mysteries has been speculating on which performers here might rise to contention. Much of this could come down to Universal’s category placement decisions. It would seem that Mulligan and Kazan are both leads and that should mean Best Actress campaigns for both. Yet that lead derby (as has been discussed many times on this blog) is packed. That doesn’t hold true for Supporting Actress which appears far more open to possibilities. Both are generating good ink with Mulligan said to perhaps have a more clip friendly role. If the call is made for both to go supporting, one or either could get in. I wouldn’t say the same in Actress. Both Morton and Ehle are scoring kudos for their brief roles, but they could be too brief for consideration.

Bottom line: Picture and Adapted Screenplay are in the mix for She Said. We have to hear the studio’s plans for the cast before that becomes clearer. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…

Throwback Review: Poseidon

We’re gonna need a more interesting boat. That was basically the constant thought running through my mind while watching 2006’s Poseidon, the big-budget loose remake of 1972’s The Poseidon Adventure. I never saw it when it was released a dozen years ago. Neither did plenty of other moviegoers as this proved to be a costly flop for Warner Bros. I understand why.

The remake comes from Wolfgang Petersen, maker of far more successful action entries like Air Force One, The Perfect Storm, and Troy. With Storm and his 1981 acclaimed feature Das Boot, he’s a filmmaker who’s charted unstable waters before. Poseidon takes place on a luxury cruise liner on New Years Eve. The singing of “Auld Lang Syne” and midnight smooching is a short-lived celebration because a nasty wave capsizes the ship.

Sadly, there’s not many interesting characters around the disaster. Pro poker player Dylan (Josh Lucas) is a former Navy man who assumes the action hero role. He’s overshadowed by former New York City Mayor Robert Ramsey (Kurt Russell). This is because Russell is a far more engaging performer and we’ve grown accustomed to seeing him in these precarious situations. He escapes relatively unscathed. Ramsey has his daughter (Emmy Rossum) and boyfriend (Mike Vogel) with him. They have a perfunctory subplot about getting engaged with Rossum essentially in the same role she played in The Day After Tomorrow. Jacinda Barrett is a single mom with a young son among the survivors. Kevin Dillon is a sleazy gambler whose fate seems certain upon meeting him. And there’s Richard Dreyfuss, whose character apparently has suicidal tendencies that are rapidly forgotten within the first fifteen minutes. His character is indicative of the script’s laziness. It begins to give him a back story and then develops amnesia.

None of this would matter as much if the special effects carried the day. And Poseidon has its moments of visual splendor, but not enough to lift its quality above water. Even the 98 minute running time suggests its team might’ve known they didn’t have much to work with. This is one hour of an uninteresting group trying to get off the sinking boat. You’re better off never boarding.