Tuesday, May 31, 2011

The hangover of The Hangover remains...

Do sequels work? This is a common question that people debate about, though the answer seems simple. That they generally do! At least it is always worth a shot to make a sequel, if the first movie has been a phenomenal success. And if sequels did not work, we would never have had so many franchises that in the past have ran over an entire decade or two, at times. So when The Hangover, released in the summer of 2009, stunned the production studio by grossing $277 million at the US box office and $469 million in worldwide revenues on a meagre production budget of $35 million, they did the smart thing that anyone eager to earn more would have done. They made a sequel. They named it The Hangover 2. They brought in the same cast. They wrote a similar script. And they released it in the summer of 2011. And then what? They started counting the moolah. The Hangover 2 has had an amazing opening weekend, grabbing $118 million in the first four days itself (it is a long weekend in US, remember) which is more than double of what the original earned in its opening weekend. But while the original movie grew through word-of-mouth, the sequel should see a strong decline second weekend onwards. The Hangover 2 should however earn enough to make the producers want to make a third one in the series. But if they do, my request to them would be, at least bring in some freshness to the plot. Don't start again with a call from Bradley Cooper, then wind up backwards for the search of some missing person and end it finally with a bunch of photographs revealing the happenings of the forgotten night. The cast is good enough to pull up something new next time round, so try it! Though with this kind of response to The Hangover 2, advices like mine are bound to fall flat.

Kung Fu Panda 2 was the first big animation movie of the summer season released during the weekend, but the competition from The Hangover 2 has acted as a damper to Po and the Furious Five. The movie raked in $54 million in its opening weekend, which is slightly less than the original. Dreamworks would be disappointed with the numbers, I believe, as they would have expected Kung Fu Panda 2 to better its predecessor, which appears now to be a tough task. What has gone wrong is tough to say, as the reviews for the movie remain strong. Cars 2 is still a few weeks away, and maybe that could help Kung Fu Panda 2 reach around the $200 million mark at the US box office before its stint ends. But for me, if there was a third movie that I would wait for, it would have to be about the adventures of Po rather than learn about another missing person due to a hangover! Guess my taste for once, differs from the others...

Sunday, May 29, 2011

The Many Avatars of Johnny Depp

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides opened last weekend with $90 million at the US box office, about $25 million short of what the previous film of the franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, had gathered in its opening weekend four years back. But if you feel On Stranger Tides fell short here, then the $260million earned in the international market pretty much made up for it. This is the best overseas opening of all time, edging out Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince collections of $236 million. That not only tells you about the aura that the franchise carries with it worldwide, but also that Johnny Deep and his quirky character, Jack Sparrow, still rule! The 47 year old actor who started off his movie career in the 1984 cult slasher movie A Nightmare on Elm's Street, has come a long way indeed. His journey has been different, adventurous, quirky, unconventional and more importantly, successful. He has worn different looks, got various tattoos and has chosen roles that stood out, irrespective of what they could achieve on the box office. Here is a look back at the various avatars of the exceptional talent called Johnny Deep!

Glen Lantz in A Nightmare on Elm's Street (1984): A character that did not essentially get noticed much in the film then, but has become more famous over the years as the first character portrayed by Johnny Depp on the big screen. A young Depp played the role of the boyfriend of the leading lady of the movie, who eventually makes the fatal mistake of falling asleep and meets the infamous, Freddy Krueger. Great careers do have humble beginnings!

Edward Scissorhands in Edward Scissorhands (1990): The role that brought Johnny Depp into the limelight and marked his long association with Tim Burton. The story of an artificial man who has scissors instead of hands, and his love for a young girl (played by Winona Ryder, who incidentally was dating Depp at that time), Edward Scissorhands was the first of many out-of-the-ordinary roles Depp was to play, a role for which he was to be nominated for his first Golden Globe. The movie earned a respectable $54 million on the US box office as against its production budget of $20 million. Johnny Depp had been announced to the world!

Sam in Benny & Joon (1993): The role that got Johnny Depp his second Golden Globe nomination was the romantic comedy film, Benny & Joon. Playing an eccentric character comes with ease for Depp, and so it was no surprise that he excelled in his role of Sam, an eccentric man who emulates the antics of a silent movie comedian of the past. A role perfectly made for Depp!

Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow (1999): Johnny Depp had been rising steadily as an actor during the 90s, collecting his third Golden Globe nomination on the way for the role of cult filmmaker Edward Wood in the 1994 movie Ed Wood. But his role of a 18th century forward-looking and innovative police constable and his battle with the Headless Horseman was to become noteworthy and mark his first $100 movie, Sleepy Hollow, at the US box office. And in the backdrop of an ancient New York, the character became all the more memorable. What Johhny Depp showed in Sleepy Hollow was how easy it was for him to be different, and that is what people loved about him the most!

Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean Series (2003 - 2011): At times you need just one role to turn yourself from a great actor to a legendary one. And the role of the tipsy, courageous, witty (can add numerous other adjectives here!) Captain Jack Sparrow did it for Depp. A series that has won hearts across the globe, Jack Sparrow has become one of the most unforgettable characters in cinematic history. Love him or hate him, you cannot ignore him! This is a character that Johnny Depp made his own, characterising it on the The Rolling Stones guitarist, Keith Richards (who plays a cameo too in the movies!). The way Sparrow clumsily walks, the manner in which he talks, even the dialogues at times, have a Johnny Depp trademark over it. A character wherein the lines of right and wrong fade away and then resurface and blend with each other, making Jack Sparrow a truly unique character that would hold its own in Hollywood forever!

Sweeney Todd in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007): After 7 Golden Globe Nominations, Johnny Depp finally got his due when he won the Golden Globe for his role of the vengeful barber in Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd. With the shadows of Jack Sparrow all over him, Depp managed to break out of the mould with a classy performance in this musical and with a completely different avatar, the salt and pepper hairstyle bringing out the chills in the audience. It was a performance that landed him his third Oscar nomination as well. An avatar that can be hardly forgotten!

Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland (2010): Who could have played this any better, I wonder, and I can think of no one. The colourful Mad Hatter, with a craziness in his eyes, a strange smile, and a mind that wanders in and out of his head... who could have played this any better, I ask again. No one. It was meant to be Johnny Depp! Another venture with Tim Burton, Alice in Wonderland has proven to be Depp's biggest hit outside the Pirates franchise, earning $334 million at the US box office and about $1 billion in worldwide revenues (#6 on the all-time list).

Rango in Rango (2011): Eh, if you think I got the picture wrong, then... no! This is Depp in another avatar, as the animated chameleon in the 2011 hit Rango. A different animated look than the ones being made by the likes of Pixar and Dreamworks, Rango tells the story about a strange chameleon who gets appointed as the sheriff of a town. And when it comes to strange, Depp does it best. Depp's previous foray into animation, Corpse Bride, had managed only $53 million at the Us box office but Rango has grossed more than twice that amount and grabbed in $240 million in worldwide revenues so far. Even Depp's voice sells!

Johnny Depp stands out from his peers in more ways than one, and many of us look forward to a lot from this talented actor in years to come. And the wait shall not be long for his next movie The Rum Diary is slated for a release in October of this year, in which Depp is enacting a freelance journalist in the Caribbean. Keep it rolling, Johnny!

Johnny Depp in an interview in 2002: 'Film star', 'movie star' — whatever they want to try to call you is limiting, in the sense that I think an actor has to be able to play characters. I guess if I want to be close to anything, it would be a character actor, which is what I think an actor should be.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Aye Aye Captain!

Water! Ships! Pirates! Captains! Swords! And we are back in the world of Jack Sparrow... Eh, sorry, there should be a "Captain" in there somewhere! The phenomenal series is into its fourth instalment now with the release of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The anticipation is high, the thrill is back and so is Johnny Depp, reprising once again the role of the swashbuckling and at times bumbling pirate that landed him his first Oscar nomination. The summer season has started off well with Thor and Fast Five receiving strong comments coupled with strong earnings on the box office, but Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is the movie that holds the green ticket to a possible $300 million mark on the US box office. Each of the previous 3 movies achieved this feat and also grossed about $2.7 billion in worldwide revenues. Staggering to say the least! The story for this instalment of the franchise embarks on to a new adventure with Jack Sparrow hunting for the mysterious Fountain of Youth. While the presence of Captain Barbosa would continue to keep the charm alive, introduction of Angelica (Penelope Cruz) and Blackbeard (Ian McShane) will surely fire up things. The signs are bright, the sails have been set and the ship is off again... hopefully for a successful cruise!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Smile, and smile again...

I usually do not deviate much from what I talk about on this blog, which is movies and money and movies and money again. But a really interesting discussion with someone, gave me something new and different to write about. The 5 best smiles in Hollywood (all-female list, of course)! This list has been compiled with a lot of thought, but remember that it is finally a subjective list, one that you are free to refute and argue about. Though bettering this list would be a tough task. For these are the smiles that will make you sit back and respond with a smile of your own, with a babyish kind of happiness or maybe leave you just staring with awe and wonderment, with your heart thudding a few extra beats per second. But being me, I cannot just let the smiles snatch away the headlines... somewhere along the way the 'bucks' have to be involved!

No. 5 -- Elisha Cuthbert
You may remember her from The Girl Next Door, and if you don't then you haven't seen the movie yet. Elisha Cuthbert dazzled the screen in The Girl Next Door with her smile, a role that would have won her many new fans. She was also a part of the wide cast in Love Actually (that collected $248 million in worldwide revenues). Though she has gradually moved on to TV shows, 24, The Forgotten, Happy Endings, her smile still keeps the magic alive!

No .4 -- Meg Ryan
This one should not be a surprise. Meg Ryan ruled the late 80s and then the 90s with her bewitching smile that lit up the scenes in most of her romantic films, the more famous ones being When Harry Met Sally ($93 million at the US box office), Sleepless in Seattle ($127 million), French Kiss ($39 million), City of Angels ($79 million) and You've Got Mail ($116 million). Meg Ryan's smile has always been pleasant on the eyes, an endearing feature of her personality that even with time will fail to diminish!


No. 3 -- Marisa Tomei
When you talk of Marisa Tomei, you are swiftly taken back to 1992 and her unforgettable role as Mona Lisa Vito in My Cousin Vinny, a role that won her an Oscar, and a role where her smile was contagious, and even her frown seemed worth holding on to. Tomei has always been a bit different than commercial actors, mixing her roles between hits such as Anger Management and Wild Hogs with gritty tough roles in Wrestler (that won her an Oscar nomination) and the more recent The Lincoln Lawyer. And though the smiles have faded in her newer roles, the ones Marisa Tomei left behind in My Cousin Vinny would forever remain etched in one's memory.

No. 2 -- Elizabeth Banks
Holding one of the most charming smiles in the industry, Elizabeth Banks appears not to be ageing at all. A smile that can make you go ga-ga like a child, Elizabeth Banks has been around for about a decade in the industry and has not done badly for herself. She played the pretty Ms. Brant in the Spiderman series (the numbers for this series, of course, are huge) and the tough Laura Bush in W. But to see Elizabeth Banks at her charming best, one needs to catch hold of the romantic/comedy movies like Definitely, Maybe and Role Models. Elizabeth Banks also dazzled in the TV series Scrubs making J.D. go hippity-hoppity about her, and then in 30 Rock. With still a lot to come from Elizabeth Banks, this is one of the smiles that you ought not to miss!

No. 1 -- Rachel McAdams
When you are at the top position on a list, you are probably the one that will be the most dissected, questioned and attacked. But make any such list of the most amazing smiles, and if you fail to put Rachel McAdams on the top, then I am sorry to say, you are going wrong somewhere. Part of the Mean Girls gang ($86 million at the US box office), Rachel McAdams made a name for herself thanks to her fiery role as Allie in The Notebook ($81 million). This was followed up with the big hit The Wedding Crashers ($209 million) where McAdams' smile would have made the strongest of hearts skip a beat or two. This beatific smile made even the famous Holmes lose his judgement when McAdams played Irene Adler in last year's big hit Sherlock Holmes ($209 million in US & $524 in worldwide revenues). Rachel McAdams is set to reprise her role as Adler in the sequel later this year. And while we hope her career flourishes and reaches newer heights, one thing that would always continue to set her apart from her contemporaries is, of course, her smile...

Friday, May 13, 2011

A lull before the storm?

Two strong back-to-back weekends at the US box office... two movies that are part of larger franchises... both movies backed by strong reviews... And summer season seems to have begun well! Fast Five had struck gold with the best opening weekend numbers for the year two weeks back, with $86 million, and then last week the God of Thunder, Thor, did not disappoint either with $66 million on its opening weekend. Strong numbers when you consider that Thor comics are no match for the likes of Batman and Spiderman, plus the presence of a relative unknown hero in Chris Hemsworth. But with the euphoria created in the past two weeks, a bit of lull could set-in this weekend. There are no big-budget big-franchise movies releasing this time round, and movie-goers would not be too keen on choosing between the comedy Bridesmaids (with an unknown cast) and Priest starring Paul Bettany as a priest tracking down vampires (vampires are becoming way too common!). Thor might just then continue to keep the top spot. But for only one week, remember, coz guess who's coming next.... you guessed it right.... Captain Jack Sparrow!!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

The God of Thunder - Thor

The action certainly picked up last weekend and the start of summer now seems exciting. Fast Five posted the best opening weekend box office results for the year and the best results for its franchise with $86 million earnings last weekend. It has already grossed more than $100 million in its first week and to add to that, the reviews for the movie remain strong which should lead to strong earnings in the next couple of weeks as well. This all but guarantees a sixth instalment in the Fast and Furious franchise but I don't see anyone complaining...

Hollywood is awaiting with bated breath for the next potential blockbuster movie to open soon as this weekend Fast Five will have to battle it out with the hammer yielding God Thor. Part of the same Marvel world that includes Iron Man and Hulk (and the soon to be released Captain America), Thor is the story of an arrogant prince who is banished by his father from the mystical world of Asgard to the rather dull Earth. If you would have stuck around for the post-credits scene in Iron Man 2, you would have been introduced to the all-powerful hammer of Thor lying in the middle of a crater it created, implying the arrival of the Thunder God on this planet. And ever since then, Thor has been one of the most eagerly-awaited movies, especially for comic lovers. The movie boasts of a strong cast with the likes of Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins. But the lead role of Thor is being played by a relatively unknown Chris Hemsworth (who you could remember as the deceased father of James Kirk in the recent Star Trek movie). Chris Hemsworth carries a heavy burden on his shoulders for not only the earnings of this movie would be important to decide whether we would have a Thor 2, Thor 3 etc... but also for the role it will play in the buzz that is surrounding the 2012 release of Avengers. Casting a relatively unknown could turn out to be a big plus point in this movie, for if you recollect, Robert Downey Jr. had receded in the shadows before he emerged back with Iron Man and Christian Bale became what he is now only after Batman Begins. Having said that, both of them had given stellar performances that encouraged the audience to seek and sympathize with the burdens that a superhero has to carry, the dualities of life he has to fight with, and the difference between right and wrong that he has to truly understand. Hemsworth has to pull off something similar to make Thor appear as exciting as the other great movies in the superhero genre, instead of it ending up as just a hefty man throwing around a hammer at whatever he dislikes. For the sake of Avengers, I pin my hopes on the makers of Thor getting it right!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Vrooom.... Fast & Furious!

Last weekend Rio very well set the tone for a smashing summer season to come! The macaw birds remained at the top and would be surely grossing $100 million at the US box office in their third weekend, making it probably another wonderful year for animated movies (remember Rango is currently at the revenue charts for this year). Hop meanwhile already reached that mark during the last weekend, a surprise hit indeed it has been! But we no longer hope to be talking about whether movies would be able to crawl across the $100 million barrier or not from this weekend onwards. For it is the beginning of the most anticipated time of the year - the summer season! High-budget movies are going to be rolled week after week... some with the potential to make it so big that a franchise would soon evolve... some might end up in ruins and despair... all waiting for our final judgement, us, the movie-watchers... the stakes are always high, and amongst the movies releasing in the next three month period, there would be some that would be aiming for a potential $1 billion earnings in worldwide revenues. So which one would it be is the big question mark.

This weekend kicks off in some style... fast cars, muscled men, gorgeous women, and multiple car chases! The fifth movie in the Fast & Furious instalment, Fast Five. Normally you do not associate the fifth movie of a series to have the potential to be the biggest of the series, do you? But with this franchise, the story is different. While the first movie, The Fast and the Furious released in 2001 had created a name for itself and a name for its leading star, Vin Diesel, and raked in about $145 million at the US box office (on a budget of $38 million, mind you!), the next two instalments declined in comparison notably due to the absence of the no-nonsense style of Vin Diesel. So how to sort this problem? Simple, bring back the entire cast of the original movie and wola, Fast & Furious, the fourth movie of the series, turned out to be the biggest hit of the franchise with $360 million in worldwide revenues. So the next question is how do you top it? Simple again. If Vin Diesel is not enough to fill up the screen, add another macho 'no small talk' guy to the squad. Enter Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, as the tough-cop brought in to disrupt Vin Diesel and his team's plans. With the biggest budget yet amongst all the movies in this series, expectations are bound to be high. And with Justin Lin as the director (who worked on the last two movies too), the car chase scenes are bound to be great! So vrooom vrooom, here we go, the summer season is on!