Tag: Josh Hamilton

The Long Walk Box Office Prediction

Despite critical acclaim, The Long Walk could face a tough road when it debuts September 12th. The Lionsgate release is based on the first novel that Stephen King ever wrote when he was a teenager (it was eventually released under his pseudonym Richard Bachman in 1979). I Am Legend and Hunger Games series maker Francis Lawrence directs the dystopian horror flick. The cast includes Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Roman Griffin Davis, Jordan Gonzalez, Josh Hamilton, Judy Greer, and Mark Hamill.

Reviews are impressive with 93% on Rotten Tomatoes and 80 on Metacritic. That said, genre fans have had plenty of material to view lately and The Conjuring: Last Rites should still be haunting viewers in its sophomore frame. Solid word-of-mouth could push it over double digits, but I’m skeptical.

The Long Walk opening weekend prediction: $8.7 million

For my Demon Slayer: Kametsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle prediction, click here:

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle Box Office Prediction

For my Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale prediction, click here:

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Box Office Prediction

For my Spinal Tap II: The End Continues prediction, click here:

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues Box Office Prediction

Oscar Predictions: The Long Walk

Based on the first novel he ever wrote (though it wasn’t released until 1979), dystopian horror tale The Long Walk arrives in theaters September 12th. Francis Lawrence (maker of I Am Legend and every Hunger Games flick except the first one) is behind the camera with JT Mollner (writer/director of last year’s critical favorite Strange Darling) scripting. The cast includes Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Roman Griffin Davis, Jordan Gonzalez, Josh Hamilton, and Mark Hamill (in his second 2025 King adaptation after The Life of Chuck).

In a year where horror is receiving acclaim that the Academy could notice, Walk is generating high praise. Rotten Tomatoes is at 92% with 80 on Metacritic. Seen as an unadaptable novel (which explains how long it took to arrive on the big screen), critics are saying Lawrence/Mollner pull it off.

Unlike Sinners and Weapons, this is not anticipated to be a major box office juggernaut. With Sinners seemingly poised for Academy love and Weapons contending in Supporting Actress and Original Screenplay (if we’re being generous), Walk is unlikely to generate its own awards chatter. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…

Eighth Grade Movie Review

It’s not often that I find myself rooting for a character as much as I did with Kayla Day in Bo Burnham’s directorial debut Eighth Grade. Played with vulnerable authenticity by newcomer Elsie Fisher, this is a coming-of-age story different from others we’ve seen before (The Edge of Seventeen is another recent winning example). What makes this rather unique is an occasional urgency of now as it explores social media fixation, anxiety, and even issues of consent that have dominated headlines over the past months.

Burnham is a comedian who made his mark online in YouTube videos. That’s what his main character is trying to do when we first meet her. Kayla is a shy thirteen year old who achieves the unfortunate distinction of being voted Most Quiet student. She’s about to graduate eighth grade and enter the awkward world of high school. Yet there’s still a bit of awkward middle school to go. Kayla posts faux inspirational streams that go mostly unseen where she offers the best advice she’s garnered at a young age. Not having many friends, Kayla’s daily interaction is with her kind single dad (Josh Hamilton, who has some fine moments).

Kayla is ready to branch out of her shell, but hasn’t figured out how. And there’s nothing about Fisher’s portrayal of her that feels the least bit fake. That’s a credit to the actress playing her and Burnham’s perceptive screenplay. One could think that’s a bit awkward itself coming from a male writer in his late twenties. However, Eighth Grade speaks to the uncomfortable nature we all found ourselves in back then. This includes a game of truth or dare with a senior boy that generates more suspense and heartache than expected.

The script includes some archetypes we anticipate in the genre. There’s the nerdy kid who crushes on Kayla. The heart-throb boy she crushes on who is only after one thing. Of course, there’s the popular girl who pays her zero attention. We’ve seen them often. We rarely see a depiction of a teen like Kayla with this much care and attention to detail. That’s what makes her character special and worth cheering for. No one is really watching Kayla at this point in her life, but we get the feeling she’ll be worth keeping an eye on as life goes on. Watching what Burnham does in showing her adolescent experience is well worth viewing.

***1/2 (out of four)

 

Oscar Watch: Eighth Grade

The coming-of-age dramedy Eighth Grade checked into theaters this weekend in limited fashion and scored a sizzling per screen average. The film marks the directorial debut of comedian Bo Burnham, who debuted it at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Grade achieved raves and its Rotten Tomatoes rating stands at 99%.

Could Academy voters be ready to turn to this genre so soon after Lady Bird received multiple nods last year? Or will this play out like 2016’s acclaimed The Edge of Seventeen, which ended up with zero nods? My gut says the latter – unless this really manages to pick up steam as the months roll along. The film’s 15-year-old star Elsie Fisher is being noticed, but competition is likely to be steep.

The pic’s best chance could be in Original Screenplay category for Burnham, though it remains to be seen how crowded that race turns out to be.

My Oscar Watch posts will continue…