by The Flickcast, Feb 24 2011 // 3:00 PM
This may be the biggest year for the Academy Awards, as some major Hollywood players are going up against some fresh newcomers. Eyeballs everywhere will be glued to ABC on Sunday, February 27th at 8PM E/5PM P when the awards show goes live. But before that, we decided to do some picking of our own with the staff’s predictions for each award.
For a full list of the nominees, check out our previous article on the subject. Now, on to the predictions.
Best Picture
Shannon Hood-The Social Network. It had early and consistent momentum all year, and the Academy appears to be trying to shake up their stodgy image. This would be the perfect film to put their money where their mouth is.
Matt Raub – True Grit. Not only are the Coens a regular in the “I Have an Oscar” club, but this testament to classic western films is definitely one for record books, between its all-star cast and gritty (no pun intended) visual style, this one definitely deserves the golden statue.
Chris Ullrich – True Grit. Even though this was a pretty great year for movies and there are many excellent choices in this category, True Grit stands on its own as my pick. As an example of pure movie storytelling, this Coen Brothers masterpiece excels on every level and delivers a pure entertainment experience you will want to revisit many more times in the future.
Cortney Zamm – The Social Network. There’s a lot of great films in this category, some of them from my favorite directors and starring my favorite people. But the one that combined all of the essential elements of filmmaking into a truly gorgeous, compelling, and memorable film was The Social Network.
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Posted in: Academy Awards · Awards · Drama · Events · Exclusive · Features · Flickcast Picks · Flickcast Presents · Movies
Tagged: 127 Hours, Aaron Sorkin, Academy Awards, Alice in Wonderland, Amy Adams, Annette Bening, Another Year, Atticus Ross, Barney's Version, Biutiful, Black Swan, Christian Bale, Colin Firth, Country Strong, Darren Arronofsky, David Fincher, David O Russell, Day & Night, Ethan Coen, Exit Through the Gift Shop, Flickcast Picks, Geoffrey Rush, God of Love, hailee steinfeld, Harry Potter, Helena Bonham Carter, Hereafter, How to Train Your Dragon, I Am Love, Incendies, Inception, Iron Man 2, Jacki Weaver, James Franco, Javier Bardem, Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner, jesse eisenberg, Joel Coen, John Hawkes, Let's Pollute, mark ruffalo, Melissa Leo, Michelle Williams, Na Wewe, Natalie Portman, Nicole Kidman, Oscars, Salt, Tangled, The Confession, The Crush, The Fighter, The Gruffalo, The Illusionist, The Kids Are All Right, The King's Speech, The Lost Thing, The Social Network, The Tempest, The Way Back, The Wolfman, Tom Hooper, Toy Story 3, Trent Reznor, Tron Legacy, true grit, Unstoppable, Winter's Bone, Wish 143
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by Shannon Hood, Jan 25 2011 // 7:00 AM
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the nominees for the 83rd annual award ceremony this morning. The King’s Speech was the front-runner with 12 nominations. Overall, there weren’t too many surprises.
Many were disappointed that Christopher Nolan did not receive a best director nod, but as a consolation prize, Inception was nominated as a contender for best picture.
True Grit did quite well, with Hailee Steinfeld nabbing a best supporting actress nod, and nominations for best picture, best director(s), best actor, and best adapted screenplay. Winter’s Bone was recognized for best actress, best picture, and best adapted screenplay. Dogtooth, Jackie Weaver, and Javier Bardem were nice surprises.
Here are the nominees in the order that they were announced.
Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter The King’s Speech
Melissa Leo The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld True Grit
Jackie Weaver Animal Kingdom
Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale The Fighter
John Hawkes Winter’s Bone
Jeremy Renner The Town
Mark Ruffalo The Kids Are All Right
Jeffrey Rush The King’s Speech
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Posted in: Academy Awards · Awards · Movies · News
Tagged: 127 Hours, Academy Awards, Amy Adams, Annette Bening, Black Swan, Christian Bale, Colin Firth, Darren Aronofsky, David Fincher, David O Russell, hailee steinfeld, Helena Bonham Carter, Inception, Jackie Weaver, James Franco, Javier Bardem, Jeff Bridges, Jeffrey Rush, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner, jesse eisenberg, Joel and Ethan Coen, John Hawkes, mark ruffalo, Melissa Leo, Michelle Williams, Natalie Portman, Nicole Kidman, Oscars, The Fighter, The Kids Are All Right, The King's Speech, The Social Network, Tom Hooper, Toy Story 3, true grit, Winter's Bone
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by Sebastian Suchecki, Dec 28 2010 // 9:00 AM
There have been some pretty big hits in the box office this year, and some expected whales, but overall this has been a great year for the worldwide box office, and here’s the proof you need. From THR.
10. Clash of the Titans, $493.2 million worldwide
9. How to Train Your Dragon, $494.9 worldwide
8. Despicable Me, $539.9 million
7. Iron Man 2, $582.2 million
6. Twilight Saga: Eclipse, $693.5 million
5. Shrek Forever After: $739.8 million
4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1. $824.1
3. Inception, $825.4
2. Alice in Wonderland, $1 billion
1. Toy Story 3, $1.1 billion
There are a few genuine good films on the list, like Iron Man 2 and Inception. Some big surprises, considering how bad the reviews were for films like Shrek Forever After, Clash of the Titans, and Alice in Wonderland. And even a few expectations like Twilight, Harry Potter, and How to Train Your Dragon.
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Posted in: 3-D · Action · Box Office · Business · Iron Man 2 · Movies · News · Sci-Fi
Tagged: 2010, 3D, Alice in Wonderland, Box Office, Clash of the Titans, Despicable Me, Harry Potter, How to Train Your Dragon, Inception, Iron Man 2, Shrek Forever After, Toy Story 3, Twilight: Eclipse
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by Chris Ullrich, Dec 13 2010 // 10:00 AM
As we approach the end of 2010, we will naturally see list start to appear. List of best movies, best TV shows, best video games, best gadgets and tech and a whole lot more. In fact, you’ll see a few lists from us pretty soon too. It’s just how this end-of-the-year thing works these days.
Until we start to roll out our own lists, we have one for you to kick things off. This one comes from the American Film Institute and highlight their picks of the best Movies and TV programs for 2010. When you read over their selections, most of them pretty much make sense.
Most of the films and most of the TV programs listed here are among our favorites as well and all are of a high quality. Of course, on every list there’s always some items that don’t seem to belong. However, we won’t disparage the AFI’s list, we will just counter with a list of our own (or three) soon.
Here are AFI’s picks:
Movies
• BLACK SWAN
• THE FIGHTER
• INCEPTION
• THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
• 127 HOURS
• THE SOCIAL NETWORK
• THE TOWN
• TOY STORY 3
• TRUE GRIT
• WINTER’S BONE
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Posted in: Awards · Movies · News · TV
Tagged: 30 Rock, AFI, American Film Institute, Black Swan, Boardwalk Empire, Breaking Bad, Inception, Modern Family, Movies, The Social Network, The Town, The Walking Dead, Top Lists, Toy Story 3, true grit, TV, Winter's Bone
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by Shannon Hood, Aug 16 2010 // 8:00 AM
Well, Stallone and company have still got it. Score one for the aging action geezers, they dominated the box office with over $35 Million for the weekend. Expendables, a testosterone laden action movie, was a big hit with men, particularly those who grew up seeing members of the cast in iconic 80’s action movies.
Most people I know who saw it admitted that it was not a great movie, but thought that it delivered exactly what one would expect-lots of senseless action. That is more than can be said for the priv-lit drama Eat Pray Love.
As you read in our review here on The Flickcast, the movie failed to capture what many women fell in love with from the book. The inner turmoil of the protagonist was glossed over, disappointing fans of the book. Still, Eat Pray Love, starring Julia Roberts managed to make $23.7 Million. This is the best opening Julia Roberts has had since 2001, when she co-starred in America’s Sweethearts, with Catherine Zeta Jones and John Cusack.
Sadly, Scott Pilgrim vs The World (one of my favorite films of 2010) didn’t fare very well at all. The film placed fifth, and only made $10.5 Million, far below expectations. This is very similar to what happened with Kick Ass back in April.
Kick Ass was widely anticipated in film circles, hailed by critics and fanboys alike as a great, original movie, yet it failed to muster much at the box office. Kick-Ass debuted to $19 million its opening weekend, shocking prognosticators. After its entire run, the film only made $48 Million domestically.
Now, we have a film that has gotten even better reviews (as of this writing, it has an 80% on Rotten Tomatoes), and has had most industry insiders cheering for its success, yet it barely registers in the top five for the weekend. *Sigh*
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Posted in: Box Office · Movies · News
Tagged: Box Office, Eat Pray Love, Expendables, Inception, Salt, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, The Other Guys, Toy Story 3
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by Shannon Hood, Aug 2 2010 // 8:00 AM
Inception performed remarkably well for its third week in release, and won the weekend with over $27.5 Million. For those keeping track at home, that makes it three weeks in a row at the top spot.
That box office take is a big number for any movie, but it’s especially rewarding for everyone who feared intelligent adult fare wouldn’t stand a chance in summertime, which is usually more typical of “popcorn” action movies. Now standing at about $193 Million, the film is sure to surpass the coveted $200 Million mark this week.
This bodes well for everyone who enjoys adult drama. Studios should be somewhat energized from the box office results of Inception. Hopefully they will be inclined to green-light more original (non-franchise, non sequel) projects. Note: the key word here is should. Who knows if that will really happen, but one can always hope.
New release Dinner For Schmucks took the number two spot with $23.3 Million. This is slightly better than two of Paul Rudd’s recent movies. Both Role Models and I Love You Man made just under $20 Million on their opening weekend. This is probably in line with studio expectations, but I thought it would make a little closer to $30M over the weekend.
Angelina Jolie’s spy-driven action flick Salt came in at number three with $19.7 Million, but it dropped off 46% from last weekend, not a good sign of things to come for the movie. Still, it has made about $70 Million in its first ten days in release.
Despicable Me came in fourth. It is now boasting a cumulative total of $190 Million, and will become the first bona fide hit for Universal in 2010. The studio has had a string of box office stinkers thus far, including The Wolfman, Repo Men, Robin Hood, MacGruber, and more.
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Posted in: Box Office · Movies · News · Universal Pictures
Tagged: Box Office, Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore, Charlie St. Cloud, Despicable Me, Dinner With Schmucks, Inception, Salt, Toy Story 3, Universal
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by Shannon Hood, Jul 19 2010 // 10:00 AM
Cerebral movie lovers can rejoice. Christopher Nolan’s Inception handily won at the box office over the weekend, raking in over $60 Million. The film made over $3 Million on midnight showings Thursday night, and netted $20 Million on Friday, a true testament of the loyalty of Nolan’s fans. Marketing a cryptic plot is no easy task, so Warner Brothers has to be happy about the opening weekend.
On the other hand, it might be a long climb to recoup the $160 Million budget. The film will have to rely on repeat business from fans to maintain box office legs. Everyone I know who really liked the movie has said they want to see it again, but it remains to be seen whether people actually follow through with those intentions. At any rate, it is nice to see an original film have a good opening weekend.
Despicable Me came in at number two, dropping about 42% from its opening weekend, which was a little higher than I would have anticipated. It still earned a healthy $32 Million, and has grossed $118 Million in ten days. Disney’s wide release The Sorcerer’s Apprentice earned a paltry $17 Million, far below most industry expectations. The film opened last Wednesday, so its cumulative stands at $24 Million. The film had a budget of $150 Million, so unless it performs well overseas, it stands little chance of recouping its budget.
Twilight: Eclipse dropped off 57% from last weekend, which is a fairly significant drop. It managed $13 Million, and has made almost $265 Million in three weeks. Toy Story 3 is still doing well after five weeks, earning $11 Million over the weekend. Its cumulative now stands at $362 Million.
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Posted in: Box Office · Movies · News · Warner Bros
Tagged: Box Office, Christopher Nolan, Cyrus, Despicable Me, Inception, Predators, The Kids Are All Right, The Last Airbender, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Toy Story 3, Twilight: Eclipse, Warner Brothers
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by Shannon Hood, Jul 12 2010 // 8:00 AM
Animated films are having a pretty stellar summer. This weekend, Toy Story 3 just became the highest grossing Pixar film of all time (surpassing Finding Nemo.) Illumination Entertainment just released their first film, Despicable Me, and cleaned up at the box office. Despicable made over $60 Million during its opening weekend, earning the distinction of being the highest opening weekend for an animated film not made by Pixar or Dreamworks. Just like that, we have some serious competition for the animation studios. Not too bad for a movie with no built in audience.
Illumination spent about $69 Million for the animation in Despicable Me, which is well beneath the average for a Dreamworks or Pixar film. The film enjoyed a healthy “A” cinemascore rating by exiting audience members, which typically indicates long legs and good word of mouth. Despite the fact that the movie played in 3D, it was limited in its amount of theaters, because Toy Story and The Last Airbender are both still playing in quite a few 3D venues. There is no doubt that Despicable take would have been higher had it been able to capitalize on more 3D screens.
Twilight: Eclipse was bumped down to the number two spot this week. It had about a 48% drop from opening weekend, typical of the franchise that is historically heavily front-loaded. It still managed to make about $33 Million, hardly a number to scoff at. This brings the 12 day total to $237 Million, which is pretty astounding, and topped the total for New Moon in the same time period ($235 Million.)
Predators scared up a decent $25 Million over the weekend. With a modest budget of $40 Million, this bodes well for the film. Toy Story 3 nabbed the fourth spot with $22 Million. Its four week total is $340 Million.
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Posted in: Animation · Box Office · Movies · News · Twilight · Universal Pictures
Tagged: Box Office, Cyrus, Despicable Me, Movies, Predators, The Kids Are All Right, The Last Airbender, Toy Story 3, Twilight: Eclipse, Universal
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by Shannon Hood, Jul 5 2010 // 8:00 AM
*Note: this column was written on Sunday, so four-day totals that include Monday’s receipts will differ from these numbers.
It was no surprise that The Twilight Saga: Eclipse dominated the weekend box office. The film made $69 Million over the weekend. Add in a record breaking $30M midnight take on Tuesday night, and Wednesday and Thursday’s totals, and the movie has made $161 Million as of today.
It did fall short of breaking the all-time opening day record set by its predecessor New Moon, which made $72 Million on its opening day. Eclipse came awfully close, making about $68.5 in the same time frame. At any rate, Eclipse recouped its budget of $69 Million in one day.
We can expect the film to drop off quite a bit in upcoming weeks, as the series historically has been very front loaded, but this film does seem to be getting good word of mouth, so the drop off might not be as steep.
The Last Airbender did a lot better than I expected it to. Obviously the built in fan base helped elevate the critically reviled film to an okay opening weekend. Airbender made $40 Million over the weekend, but since it opened on Thursday, its total is now $56 Million.
That’s still a long way from its $150 Million budget, though, and word of mouth has been brutal, so the movie may fall off considerably after this weekend. If so, it will be a disaster for Paramount, which has sunk about $280M into the film between the budget and marketing. It also leaves the future of the franchise, and the career of director M. Night Shyamalan hanging in the balance.
Toy Story 3 is still going strong in its third week in release, making another $30 Million. This brings its total to $289 Million. Finding Nemo is Pixar’s highest grossing movie of all time, with $339 Million in ticket sales. It is looking highly likely that Toy Story 3 will exceed that during its theatrical run.
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Posted in: Box Office · News · Summit Entertainment · Twilight
Tagged: Box Office, Cyrus, Finding Nemo, Grown Ups, Knight and Day, News, Pixar, The Last Airbender, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, Toy Story 3, Twilight: New Moon
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by Shannon Hood, Jun 28 2010 // 8:00 AM
Toy Story 3 had another stellar weekend at the box office and held off new releases Knight and Day, and Grown Ups. It made over $59 Million over the weekend. That is a drop of around 46%, but that is not unusual when a movie has a huge opening weekend. The film still enjoyed a healthy $14,600 per/screen average.
Toy Story has now made $226.5 Million in its first 10 days in release. It is on the fast track to becoming the number one animated movie at the box office this year (Shrek Forever After currently stands at $229 Million after five weeks.) It’s also doing a bang up job abroad, earning another $100 Million overseas in the same time frame. So far, it looks like Toy Story 3 will become one of the biggest films of the year.
Grown Ups may have taken a critical drubbing, but audiences didn’t seem to mind. They snatched up a cool $40 Million in ticket sales, to make the movie the number two offering of the weekend. Love him or hate him, Adam Sandler is reliable at the box office. This will be his tenth movie to open at above $34 Million. There are not many stars working today who can match those numbers.
The same cannot be said for Knight and Day, the Cameron Diaz/Tom Cruise spy caper/romantic comedy. The movie opened on Wednesday, but benefited very little from that early opening. Wednesday night the film earned a little over $3 Milion, a paltry sum for two former box office draws.
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Posted in: Box Office · Movies · News
Tagged: Box Office, Cameron Diaz, Grown Ups, Jonah Hex, Knight and Day, Movies, News, The A-Team, The Karate Kid, Tom Cruise, Toy Story 3
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