Better late than never review: Greyhound

Possible spoilers ahead!

Directed by Aaron Schneider, 2020s “Greyhound” is an adaptation of the novel “The Good Shepherd” by C.S. Forester. The film stars Tom Hanks (who also wrote the film) as Ernest Krause, a seasoned Naval officer who’s granted his first command on the destroyer USS Keeling (call sign Greyhound) shortly after the U.S. enters World War II.

Krause is tasked with leading a group of Allied ships across the North Atlantic fr from air support. This means it’s up to Krause and his men to protect the vessels from attacks of German U-boats following them. As they enter the Mid-Atlantic, the Greyhound’s crew must not only battle their enemies, but also the treacherous conditions of the ocean and the exhaustion of staying on their feet as they face a non-stop barrage from the Germans during the crossing.

“Greyhound” is a movie that I was hoping to see on the big screen earlier this year, but as we all know the world went to hell, and the movie was shuffled off to Apple. Last week the wifey and I decided to sign up for Apple Tv and that’s where I finally got to see the movie over the weekend. Although I wasn’t familiar with the novel, I have to say the film adaptation impressed me in many ways. Not only is “Greyhound” visually stunning, but it’s nearly non-stop action.

First off, the filmmakers did a phenomenal job of making viewers feel like they were on the ship themselves. From the constant rocking motion, to how cold the men look as they cross the Atlantic in the middle of winter. As I said above, “Greyhound” is nearly non-stop action and I was on the edge of my seat from the moment Krause and his crew first spot a U-boat a few miles away. After that point I was as invested as the crew of the Greyhound and the more tired they got, I began to feel it too.

Acting-wise, Tom Hanks is terrific as usual. This man is one of the few actors out there who I believe in any role he’s in. Whether he’s an astronaut, Mr. Rogers, a guy named Joe, a ship captain, or anything else, Tom Hanks always manages to make me care about the person. There is no doubt in my mind that he is one of the best actors of all time.

However, “Greyhound” does have its fair share of flaws. While the action and cinematography are stunning, the movie fails is in giving us a sense of who Ernest Krause is in civilian life. There are nods to him being a man of faith (his bible is always on hand and he prays before eating anything). At the start of the film, we meet the woman he loves (Elisabeth Shue) but she is sadly wasted here with less than five minutes of screen time. Otherwise, the film struggles in giving the audience any background on Krause.

I for one would have like to know if he had been in the Navy before Pearl Harbor or if he joined right after. In some later scenes I got the feeling he was inexperienced, but this is barely touched upon so who knows for sure. Some other stuff too gets ignored like, how did he and Elisabeth Shue’s character meet, and why won’t she marry him before he ships off? These are questions the film never answers or acknowledges.

Sadly, the lack of character development also extends to the supporting cast. This is a shame given the great actors in the supporting cast. Actors like Stephen Graham, Rob Morgan, and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo fight for screentime and we’re lucky if we get their character’s name and/or rank. The only member of the Greyhound crew that I felt we got to know a little bit was Rob Morgan as George Cleveland, a Mess Attendant 2nd Class. Cleveland’s main job was to make sure the captain ate, and it seemed like they had a good relationship. Unfortunately, this is never explored in the film.

Yet, despite its flaws, “Greyhound” is still a movie I would recommend. The action is incredible and never lets up. Throughout there is always a sense of danger and that there is something at stake for captain Krause and his crew. Tom Hanks delivers another powerful performance, and the movie is worth watching for that alone. In the end, I still wish I had seen “Greyhound” on the big screen because the battle scene would have looked even better.

“Greyhound” grade: B

Movie Flashback: Apollo 13 (1995)

A few days go I was looking at box office numbers from the 1990s, and while taking a look at the films released 25 years ago in 1995, one immediately stood out to me as a true classic. No, it’s not “Batman Forever” or “GoldenEye.” The movie I’m talking about is “Apollo 13.”

For those who do not know the story of Apollo 13, allow me to briefly fill you in: On April 13, 1970, Apollo 13 was three days into its voyage to the Moon. An onboard explosion of an oxygen tank causes the crew to abort the mission. Apollo 13’s lunar module Aquarius ends up serving as a lifeboat for three astronauts as they attempt to return safely to earth. 25 years later, Ron Howard directed a film based on the mission starring Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Ed Harris, and Gary Sinise.

 

I thought everyone had seen this movie, but I was wrong. Last Christmas  I was talking to someone who hadn’t seen the movie, and he dared to say “Apollo 13 is just another run of the mill biopic inspired by real-life events.” That comment pissed me off because A) he hadn’t seen “Apollo 13” and B) “Apollo 13” just so happens to be one of the best movies based on actual events ever. Ron Howard’s epic set a high bar for all future real-events based films, a bar that few movies have managed to reach.

Part of the reason “Apollo 13” worked so well is because the story of the Apollo 13 crew is a triumph of human ingenuity and director Ron Hoard knew it was a team effort. That’s why the movie spends just as much time with the people at Mission Control in Houston as it does with the three astronauts in space.

However, what gave “Apollo 13” that extra push was its sense of realism. Not only did Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon have to act most of the movie in a small space, but all three also had to replicate weightlessness for the entirety of the scenes in space. Up to this point, this would have been done with wires, something that always made the actors float in strange ways. In “Apollo 13” Ron Howard decided the space scenes would both be easier and look better with actual weightlessness.

To achieve this the cast and crew took a series of flights on a NASA airplane that is capable of parabolic flight. By doing so, the actors could experience true weightlessness over and over again, enough times to have the scenes they needed for the film.

The cast in “Apollo 13” is also top-notch. Tom Hanks was coming off consecutive Oscar wins and his work here as commander Jim Lovell earned him another Academy Award nomination. Hanks is exceptional as Apollo 13’s commander, it’s easy to believe the other astronauts would follow his lead. But I like him best when he’s around his wife and kids. The scene with his youngest son where the boy asks him about the Apollo 1 fire is one of my favorite moments in the film. He never talks down to his son, he answers his question and explains to him how the problem has been fixed, it’s just a great scene.

But don’t think for one second that “Apollo 13” wasn’t a one-man show. Kevin Bacon as command module pilot Jack Swigert and Bill Paxton as lunar module pilot Fred Haise, are just as important as Hank’s Jim Lovell. But actors get their scenes to shine and both help get the capsule back home. On the ground in Houston, I was impressed with Gary Sinise as Ken Mattingly. He has several great scenes, but the one that always gets me is his reaction when he learns of the explosion. In one close-up, Gary Sinise goes from “Thank God I wasn’t on board” to “Oh my God, my best friends are up there.”

In charge of what happens at the mission, control was Ed Harris as Flight Director Gene Kranz. For my money, this is the best work Ed Harris has ever done. Kranz is respected by all his men and knows exactly how to get the best out of them. His steady guidance played a large role in his people coming up with the plans to bring the crew back. When he says “We have never lost an American in space, and we’re sure not gonna lose one on my watch. Failure is not an option.” you believe him!

 

I first saw “Apollo 13” during its week of release at the General Cinema in Braintree Ma. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a great day for me. I got laid off that morning and got caught in a thunderstorm walking home. Then my uncle suggested we go see “Apollo 13,” but as usual he waited until the last possible minute to drive to the theater. According to him, everything is “10 minutes away” but that didn’t take into account traffic or red lights.

 When we got the theater, the movie was of course sold out. The next show was over an hour later, so I suggested we get our tickets. My uncle said no and instead drove us to the South Shore Plaza across the street. The whole time I kept begging him to go back, and when we finally did guess what? The movie was sold out. I was ticked off by now and told him I just wanted to go home. Luckily, one of my friends was going to the movies that night so I was able to tag along and see the movie. And despite having one of the worst days possible, watching “Apollo 13” calmed me down and wowed me from start to finish.

“Apollo 13” is one of the few films that I consider flawless. There is nothing about this movie that I would change or edit. The special effects are innovative, and the acting is superb. Even the musical score adds to the excitement and suspense. This is an exceptional film and one that still holds up after 25 years.

 

Retro Review: From the Earth to the Moon

I’ve always been fascinated by space travel. As a kid, I spent hours reading everything I could about NASA and the various space programs around the world. My sixth-grade science project was on the Space Shuttle, and I even dressed up as an astronaut one Halloween.

Over the years I also devoured any movies and tv shows that had anything to do with space flight. One of my favorite space shows is HBO’s “From the Earth to the Moon.”

“From the Earth to the Moon,” was one of the most expensive television miniseries in history. Costing around $68 million, the twelve-part docudrama took viewers back to the incredible era of the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union, culminating with the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969.

Along with producers Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Michael Bostick, Tom Hanks served as executive producer/co-writer/co-director/actor and even introduced eleven out of the twelve episodes. Their passion is evident throughout the series, and all of them went to great lengths to ensure “From the Earth to the Moon” would be as accurate as possible.

The ambitious project aired weekly over six weeks in two-hour installments. Each chapter had radically different artistic styles behind the camera. With different writers and directors gave each episode its own tone, look and feel. Each hour of “From Earth to the Moon” plays like a mini-movie, beautifully mixing archival news footage with the new material.

But when “From the Earth to the Moon” first aired in 1998, I wasn’t able to see it, because I didn’t have HBO at the time. I didn’t discover the series until the following year when it hit DVD. It didn’t matter though, I was hooked from the first episode. “Can We Do This?”

Directed by Tom Hanks, the opening chaptter is arguably the most linear, condensing the first few years of the space program into an hour-long episode. This one episode told you everything you needed to know about the history of manned space flight and introduced you to all the key players for the rest of the mini-series. From the opening shots of the Vostok 1 launch to Mike Peck sequence. All of it was a joy to watch.

However, as good as “Can We Do This?” is, other episodes have become my personal favorites. For example, episode five “Spider” begins in 1961, as NASA engineer John Houbolt tried to convince management that the easiest way to land men on the Moon will be to use a separate landing craft. It then traces the design and development of the Lunar Module by a team led by Grumman engineer Tom Kelly.

“Spider” also covers the selection and training of the first crew to fly the LEM: James McDivitt and Rusty Schweickart (along with Command Module pilot David Scott), and culminates with their first flight of Spider in Earth orbit on Apollo 9.

Another episode I can watch over and over again is episode seven, “That’s All There Is.” This episode tells the story of Apollo 12, the second lunar landing mission. The entire episode is narrated by Lunar Module Pilot Alan Bean (Dave Foley).

I like this episode because of the friendship the Apollo 12 crew share, and how lost friends are never forgotten by the astronauts.  Pius, there are some very funny moments involving a camera, and a school field trip.

Finally, there is episode ten, “Galileo Was Right,” and episode twelve, “Le Voyage Dans La Lune.” I see these episodes as the two-part story of Harrison “Jack” Schmitt (Tom Amandes). He was the first scientist to go into space.

But maybe, more importantly, Schmitt was essential in getting the astronaut corp the geology training they needed. Plus I also like how nerdy Schmitt and professor Leon Silver (David Clennon) get on field trips.

All in all, “From the Earth to the Moon” remains one of my go-to space shows. IT’s brilliantly cast and directed, no other mini-series has topped it since. I can sit down and binge watch this series at any time, and I usually watch it at least once a year at least.

Whether you saw it twenty years ago, or are just hearing of it for the first time, “From the Earth to the Moon” is an exceptional piece of television, and well worth your time.

Better late than never review: A Hologram for the King

Possible spoilers ahead!

“A Hologram for the King” opens with perhaps the craziest thing you’ll ever see Tom Hanks do. The scene is set to “Once in a Lifetime” by the Talking Heads, Hanks talk-sings the opening lyrics as images of his house, car and wife going up in purple smoke. This sequence ends with a close-up of him alone, riding a roller coaster, as he stares blankly at the camera.

Now that scene alone, was worth the price of admission. Which in this case was nothing, because I borrowed the blu-ray from someone. But had I paid to see this movie, I would have been happy with the opening scene alone.

Anyways, Tom Hanks plays Hanks Alan Clay, a business man who is having money and life problems. The opening sequence is actually a dream Hanks is having on a plane on the way to Saudi Arabia. He’s going there hoping to sell a hologram contract to the king of Saudi Arabia, a deal that will make him enough money to pay for his daughter’s college tuition.

Hanks has to travel an hour every morning from the city to the project’s headquarters, only for a receptionist to tell him that the king is not in. The stresses pile up as his business trip becomes a seemingly endless, yet highly amusing adventure: His small tech team is set up in a tent but have no Wi-Fi, AC or food. It isn’t long before a giant bump appears on Alan’s back. And because he’s having trouble adjusting to Saudi Arabia, he misses his shuttle to the king’s headquarters because he oversleeps each morning.

However, this is a good thing because it forces him to call driver Yousef (Alexander Black), arguably the best character in the movie. Some of the movie’s funniest scenes include Yousef and his strange choice in music, and of course his fear his car is always rigged to explode.

After many car ride scenes and wide open shots of the desert, the film injects a romance into the third act. Hanks’ Alan Clay falls for the doctor treating his back bump, played by Sarita Choudhury. Of course due to several reasons, this romance isn’t easy on the two, and this plot is not given a ton of time in the movie. But you know what? I was okay with that, because it felt more natural this way. So I liked the fact the romance wasn’t the main focus of the film.

Hanks as usual, is a great everyman, which means he can elevate any movie he is in. Here, plays a wonderful outsider, and serves as our tour guide to a part of the world we really don’t see portrayed in a positive light too often.

Out of the three Tom Hanks movies released this year, “Sully” is easily the best one of the three. The most often forgotten 2016 Tom Hanks movie is probably “A Hologram for the King” which came out the same weekend as “The Jungle Book” and got crushed at the box office.

“A Hologram for the King” is not one of Hanks’ flashier roles, nor is it one of his best movies. But Hologram is a surprisingly charming movie. There is no bad guys here, no evil organization trying to take over, the world doesn’t even  need saving this time. “A Hologram for the King” is just a movie about a guy who forgot to enjoy life, who hs to go to Saudi Arabia to find work, and instead finds himself and a love he never expected.

“A Hologram for the King” final score: 7.5

Inferno Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

The mystery in “Inferno” begins when Havard professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) awakens in a hospital in Florence, Italy with a mysterious head wound and unable to remember anything that occurred over the previous couple of days, including how he got to Italy in the first place.

As doctor Sienna Brooks (Felicity Jones) tries to explain to Robert how he arrived at the hospital, a woman dressed as police officer shows up and tries to murder Langdon. With Sienna’s help, the two manage to escape the hospital and hide at the doctor’s apartment.

After a cup of that stuff you drink in the morning, Langdon does his best to piece together what happened to him over the last two days. He searches his belongings and finds a Faraday Pointer – one that projects an image of Sandro Botticelli’s Map of Hell, based on Dante’s Inferno. It contains a set of clues that are somehow connected to a billionaire madman’s presidental hopes.

Nah, I’m just kidding.

The billionaire here is played by one-time X-Man Ben Foster. See, he had a deadly plan for how to “solve” humanity’s over-population problem, and it involves killing half the world’s population with a virus named Inferno. Now, it’s up to Langdon and Sienna to follow the clues and see where they lead – in the hope that by doing so, they can sve the world.

T should take a moment to mention that I have not read any of Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon novels, so everything I know about Langdon comes from the three Ron Howard/Tom Hanks movies.

“Inferno” (based on Brown’s fourth Langdon novel), arrives seven years after the last Langdon adventure in “Angels & Demons.” And even though “Inferno” is far from perfect, I enjoyed the heck out of it.

Tom Hanks hit all the right notes as Robert Langdon, and he even managed to give the Harvard professor some extra charm and humor. He definitely sold being injured and did a good job in the action scenes. In other words, Hanks did his Hanks thing, and he did it well.

His leading lady this time out is Felicity Jones as Sienna Brooks, and the film does a solid job of making her more of an active and player in the plot. This helped move the story along while Langdon recovers from a concussion, and Sienna’s knowledgable of puzzles keeps the viewer’s attention. It was also nice that her character got more of a backstory than any of the previous leading ladies in the series.

The supporting cast of “Inferno” is the most impressive yet for this franchise. Ben Foster did good work here, though mostly in flashbacks. French actor Omar Sy and Danish actress Sidse Babett Knudsen play well off each other as W.H.O. agents, and they both get a couple of moments to shine during the movie.

Irrfan Khan plays the head of a shadowy private company that will do anything to protect their clients, his dark sense of humor and morally ambiguous status made him one of the best characters in any of the three movies.

I’ve always liked Ron Howard as a director, and with “Inferno” he seems to have finally found a balance between action and drama. Also, unlike the previous films, “Inferno” looked and felt epic. So all in all, a good job by Howard in stepping thing up.

My main issue with “Inferno” is its convoluted plot. Look, everyone enjoys a good mystery, but the villain’s plans in this movie depended too much on what other character might or might not do. Too much stuff is left to chance, and when all is revealed, it left me wanting more.

There was also a subplot about stealing a death mask from a museum. Although the mas is returned in the end, we never know what happened to Langdon’s friend or even if there are any repercussions to the theft.

But to its credit, “Inferno” does try to mix things up by putting Langdon at a disadvantage from the beginning of the story. By giving Langson amnesia, you take away his greatest weapon: his brain. And by doing so, it led to a more action packed movie than I was expecting.

If you haven’t liked any of the previous Robert Langdon movies, then I’m afraid
“Inferno” won’t change your mind. But if you have enjoyed Tom Hanks’ portrayal of Robert Langdon like I have, then “Inferno” is worth a look.

“Inferno” final score: 8

Movie Review: Sully

Possible spoilers ahead!

On January 15, 2009, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and his copilot Jeff Skiles managed to safely land their Airbus A320 in the middle of the Hudson River, after both of their engines were crippled when a flock of Geese collided with their plane.

After their incredible experience, Sully and Jeff find themselves flooded with attention and enthusiastic praise from both the public and the media. Everyone hails them as heroes, everyone, except the people who are investigating their water landing.

“Sully” takes place just days after the “Miracle on the Hudson,” and as the film opens, Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger (Tom Hanks) and copilot Jeff Skiles (Aaron Eckhart) find themselves overwhelmed by the attention. Both are also shaken up and haunted by nightmares about their flight. Sully in particular, can’t stop wondering about what might have happened, had he made the wrong choice during their flight.

Things get worse when the National Transportation Safety Board begins the investigation to determine whether or not the pilots did, in fact, make the right call, By this point even Sully starts doubting and asking: did he needlessly endanger the lives of all 155 onboard?

I bet most people think the best scenes in “Sully are those of the actual flight and water landing. And while those scenes are done rather well, my favorite moments in “Sully” were the quieter moments, like when Sully asks a hotel manager to dry clean his uniform. Or when Jeff invites Sully to a steakhouse. Even the scenes where Sully jogs around New York at night were highlights.

“Sully” also uses a number of flashbacks, most of them looking back to the flight and landing sequence, depicting the chain of events from different vantage points. The good thing is, this sequence didn’t feel repetitious to me. I felt each time the film went back it was to add something to Sully’s tale.

Tom Hanks, not surprisingly, is amazing in this movie. He’s perfectly cast as Captain Sullenberger. and plays him as just a man trying to do his job. Hanks has an easy-going chemistry with Aaron Eckhart, who once again proves himself to be a solid character actor. Although Eckhart’s mustache didn’t do him any favors.

My only complaints are that we don’t get to know much about the rest of the flight crew. As Sully says at one point, this miracle landing was a team effort, so why not give us a little more insight into the flight attendants?

The same complaint might have worked with the passengers on the plane. But the film made up for that during the end credits. Here, we meet the real passengers, and about halfway through the credits, we get to see them reunite with the flight crew.

“Sully” is the latest directorial effort from Clint Eastwood, his first since 2014’s “American Sniper.” Eastwood may be in his mid eighties, and he may talk to empty chairs now and then. But, there is no denying, Clint Eastwood has directed some brilliant movies (except for “Jersey Boys”). “Sully” is well crafted, well acted film. And, to my surprise, “Sully” is also a thought-provoking movie.

“Sully” final score: 8.5

Sully amounts to a respectable yet unmemorable account of real-life heroism, despite fine performances and capable direction. It’s possible the reason the film doesn’t (pardon the wording) fly higher is that the story behind the “Miracle on the Hudson” simply would have been better served by a documentary that could have focused on more of the people that were involved (via in-depth interviews with the crew and passengers), instead of a docudrama that stretches out Sully’s personal experiences during the event to fit the mold of a feature-length film. Nevertheless, Sully is a perfectly decent option for those moviegoers who are in the mood to see a piece of dramatic storytelling for adults… though, a number of them may have already seen what is arguably a better, albeit fictionalized, version of the general story being told here, in the form of Flight.

TRAILER

Trailer Park: Sully

Tom Hanks in a Clint Eastwood movie? Say no more.

Movie Review: Saving Mr. Banks

Possible spoilers ahead!

 

 

You could say “Saving Mr. Banks” is the latest fairy tale from Disney. But unlike other fairy tales, this one is based on an incredible true story.

The movie focuses on two weeks in 1961, when Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) made the final push to get P.L. Travers’ (Emma Thompson), Mary Poppins on the big screen. Walt Disney had spent 20 years trying to get the film rights tot he popular books, but failed every time. Now that sales of her work are slowing, P.L. Travers is encouraged by her agent to travel to California to meet Walt, and seriously consider his offer.

But Travers has ideas of her own, and she maintains “I won’t have her turned into one of your silly cartoons.” The author also has several conditions Walt Disney must agree to before she even considers handing over the film rights: No musicals, no animation, and no Dick Van Dyke.

And that’s just for starters.

For much of the movie, Travers treats Wal Disney and the other filmmakers like they’re beneath her. But tis not because she’s an evil woman at all. Travers is very protective of her creations, and she feels nobody understands her, or the story she was trying to tell in her books. To help us understand why P.L. Travers behaves this way, director John Lee Hancock uses flashbacks to tell her story.

The flashbacks take us to Australia in 1906, when 7-year-old Travers—born Helen Lyndon Goff, (Played by Annie Rose Buckley) was relocated to a remote outback town with her two younger sisters, overwhelmed mother, and loving though deeply alcoholic banker father (Colin Farrell). Here, we witness how Ginty, as she is called by her father, got her knack for storytelling and her maturity.

I would say about 50 percent of the film is told in flashback. That’s a lot fo any movie, but each flashback sequence was used to help the story along, it worked perfectly. Watching the film, I was equally invested in both stories, so kudos to John Lee Hancock for making it work.

The acting is phenomenal, and not just by Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson. Although Hanks doesn’t look or sound anything like like Walt Disney,  he’s instantly likable, and I completely bought into Hanks being Walt. Emma Thompson did what Emma Thompson always does: She was perfect. If she doesn’t get an Academy Award nomination, there is no justice in this world.

Paul Giamatti plays Ralph the driver, and he brought some great, yet subtle, humor to the movie. Jason Schwartzman, Bradley Whitford, and B. J. Novak star as the men responsible for the music in “Mary Poppins.” All their scenes are great, but my personal favorites were the scenes showing how “Let’s Go Fly a Kite” and “A Spoonful of Sugar” came to be.

However, the biggest surprise in “Saving Mr. Banks” was Colin Farrell. While I’ve always liked movies he’s starred in, I never once thought of him as an “actor.” I still can’t beleive how good he was in this movie, and I hope he’s able to land more roles like this.

“Saving Mr. Banks” is  PG-13, but just because this a Disney film, it doesn’t mean it’s all happy times.  You should think twice before taking young children to see Mr. Banks. There’s several dark moments in the film, like when Traver’s has to stop her mother from committing suicide.

In the end, this was a great movie, maybe one of the best dramas I’ve seen in years. This was one of those rare times when everything in the movie exceeded any expectations I may have had. I highly recommend checking out “Saving Mr. Banks.”

“Saving Mr. Banks” final score: 10

TNU Box Office Rewind: A Christmas shocker

Ron Burgandy got the crap beat out of him a by a hobbit. How many people saw that coming?

In its second weekend in theaters, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” shocked the world, along with many box office watchers. The film added an estimated $31.4 million this weekend, a 57 percent drop from last weekend. Strangely enough, the 57% drop is identical to the first Hobbit’s drop at the same point. To date, Smaug has earned $127.5 million, domestically, and $276,300,000 overseas.

“Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues” should have easily won the weekend, but something funny happened on the way the top. Playing at 3,507 locations, Anchorman 2 opened to $26.8 million this weekend. Believe it or not, that’s below the first Anchorman’s $28.4 million debut in 2004.  For the five-day frame, Anchorman 2 earned an estimated $40 million. which I find shockingly low.

I know its Christmas, but with the onslaught of advertising for Anchorman 2, I really thought the movie would earn at least $50 million. Or perhaps the heavy marketing campaign worked against the film?

According to Paramount, Anchorman’s opening was generally in line with their expectations, but I’m sure the studio is very disappointed with the film’s opening numbers.

In its fourth weekend, Disney Animation’s “Frozen” dipped 15 percent to $19.5 million. “Frozen” has now grossed $191.6 million, which puts it ahead of last year’s “Wreck-It Ralph” ($189.4 million). Chances are “Frozen” will be the first choice for family audiences over the holiday season, and it could pass $300 million by the end of its theatrical run.

After a week in limited release, David O. Russell’s star-studded “American Hustle” expanded to 2,507 locations and earned a solid $19.1 million. In comparison, Russell’s “The Fighter” took in $12.1 million when it expanded  in 2010, and “Silver Linings Playbook” earned $10,752,836 when it expanded in January 2013.  Both movies finished with over $100 million worldwide, and the same should happen with With “American Hustle.”

“Saving Mr. Banks” also expanded nationwide, but disappointed with $9.3 million from 2,110 locations. For Tom Hanks, that’s worse than “Charlie Wilson’s War” ($9.7 million), which opened on the same weekend in 2007. Not that it matters, but Charlie Wilson is one of my favorite Tom Hanks movies. You should check it out.

With an “A” CinemaScore and an audience of older women (57 percent female, 61 percent 35 years of age and up), “Saving Mr. Banks” could do better during the holiday week. But unless it wins a boat load of awards, I doubt it will get anywhere near $100 million.

 

In other news…

“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” dropped to sixth place this weekend, earning $8,750,000. However, the sequel has now earned $371.8 million, which makes it the second highest grossing film of 2013 ahead of “Despicable Me 2” ($367.5 million). Worldwide, Catching Fire has brought in a whopping $765,304,000.

Meanwhile, the bomb of the week award goes to “Walking with Dinosaurs.” The CGI film opened to a horrible $7.3 million, good enough for eighth place. It seems unlikely this movie will make a profit, even around Christmas. I don’t know what the budget for “Walking with Dinosaurs” was, but I’m sure it wasn’t cheap.

Your top five movies this weekend:

1. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – $31.5 million

2. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues – $26.8 million

3. Frozen – $19.2 million

4. American Hustle – $19.1 million

5. Saving Mr. Banks – $9.3 million

 

TNU Box Office Rewind: Space, the final frontier…

Well, shows you how much I know. On Friday, I predicted bio-flick “Captain Phillips” would win the weekend, and crush defending champion “Gravity.” Boy was I wrong!

WEEEEEEEEEE!

Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are dominating the Fall box office. After setting an October opening weekend record, “Gravity” dropped just 21 percent to an estimated $44.3 million.  But even more impressive, “Gravity” earned $9 million in IMAX, which is the highest second weekend ever for the format. putting “Gravity” slightly  ahead of “The Dark Knight Rises”  which held the record with $8.99 million. After only 10 days, “Gravity” has earned an impressive $123.4 million domestically, and another $68,000,000 in foreign markets.

Clearly, I underestimated Gravity’s strong word-of-mouth. When I saw “Captain Phillips”  on Friday night, people were buzzing about “Gravity”. Apparently, seeing the movie on the big screen in 3D is an event. For what its worth, the film’s 3D share was 82 percent this weekend, up from 80 percent in its opening weekend.The movie is likely to keep up this momentum at least another couple of weeks.

But In early November, “Gravity” will lose some IMAX and 3D screens to “Ender’s Game” and “Thor: The Dark World.” Even so, for “Gravity” the sky is the limit, and th $300 million mark could be within reach.

 

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, I wonder where, my glove will go?

“Captain Phillips” did strong business in its opening weekend, but it didn’t come close to Gravity’s numbers. Playing at 3,020 theaters, “Captain Phillips” opened to a very good $26 million. While that’s not record-breaking, it is better than the openings of 2012 award season darlings “Zero Dark Thirty” ($24.4 million) and “Argo” ($19.5 million), both of which opened on the same weekend last year.

$26 million is also one of the better openings for star Tom Hanks, who needed a box office boost after disappointing box office performers like “Cloud Atlas,” “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” and “Larry Crowne.”

According to reports, the audience for “Captain Phillips” was 52 percent male and 62 percent over the age of 35. I believe that, because I was the definitely youngest person in the theatre on Friday night. The film had a $55 million budget, and it should easily cross that once the movie opens in foreign markets. “Captain Phillips” won’t be a blockbuster, but it should earn around $75 million when all is said and done.

 

I thought you said this was a three hour tour.

In third place we find animated sequel “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2.” The film fell 32 percent to an estimated $14.2 million. To date, the animated film has earned $78 million, which is a bit below the original Cloudy through the same point. With little competition, this movie should keep on rolling.

The bomb of the week landed in fourth place. “Machete Kills” was dead on arrival, earning just $3.8 million. This is one of the worst openings ever for a movie playing in over 2,500 locations, and it’s also one of the worst openings of 2013. I bet Robert Rodriguez is counting the days until the Sin City sequel hits theatres.

It would seem adding Mel Gibson, Sofia Vergara, Lady Gaga and “Carlos Estevez” did little for the sequel. “Machete Kills” opened to one-third of the first Machete’s $11.4 million, which is an incredibly steep decline for any sequel. “Machete Kills” received a”B-” CinemaScore, which is better than I would have guessed. With heavy competition on the way, “Machete Kills” is unlikely to hit $10 million at the box office.

 

Your top five movies this weekend:

1. Gravity – $44.2 million

2. Captain Phillips – $26 million

3. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 – $14.2 million

4. Machete Kills – $3.79 million

5. Runner Runner – $3.73 million

I guess this means no Machete Tres?