Monday Morning Mixer: 'Argo,' you go, we all go for 'Argo'
Posted Monday, October 29, 2012 at 4:27 PM Central
by John Couture
So, did you check any of the World Series this week? Well, if not, I'd tell you to watch this week, but oh yeah, it's over. The Giants swept the team of my youth, the Detroit Tigers en route to their second World Series victory in three seasons.
I'm quite sure how that relates to anything else that you will soon read, but I thought I'd at least mention it. The other big event that is having a major impact on Hollywood (or at least their interests) is Hurricane Sandy as it makes her way along the east coast.
It's a good bet that sluggish box office numbers will be coming from the east coast from this past weekend and into this current week. With travel out of whack and the hurricane shutting down production in New York, it's a good bet that Film and TV will both be affected.
But enough about big, bad storms and more about this past big, bad weekend. It was an interesting one to say the least, but enough talking, let's get to it!
Box Office 411
It's really hard to quantify how much of the 12% drop from last year was due to the impending hurricane, the economic downturn or simply just a product of bad films opening this weekend.
In its third week of release, Argo finally snagged the top spot at the box office with an estimated $12.4 million. It has surpassed $60 million and looks well on its way to a $90 million gross and numerous Academy Award nominations.
Among the newcomers, Cloud Atlas stood out, if you can call it that, with its $9.4 million opening, good enough for third place. The high concept piece from the Wachowski siblings failed to make much inroads with audiences given its running time is over two and a half hours and the plot which takes place over many different time periods is convoluted at best.
There really wasn't any news to report from other new entries like Silent Hill: Revelation ($8 million) or Fun Size ($4.1 million). It was just a slow weekend at the box office which is usually normal for this time of the year, with the exception of one outlying horror film.
I would say that Paranormal Activity 4's flop is the most pressing reason for the year over year loss in box office audience. But help is on the way in the form of Bond, James Bond and Wreck-It Ralph.
After that, it's a smorgasbord of award caliber films to end the year. It's a great time of the year for the film buff, that's for sure.
Yippee Ki-Yay Mother What?
I admit it. I'm a sucker for a good Die Hard movie. There's just something that's as American as baseball and apple pie when John McClane is kicking bad guy butt and spouting out his trademark phrase.
"Yippee Ki-Yay Motherf#@%er"
When Bruce Willis puts on his wife beater, I am there, ready for a mindless barrage of bullets and blood that would make Al Capone jealous. At this point though, I'm a bit leery.
It all started with the last installment, Live Free or Die Hard, that is probably my least favorite installment despite the fact that it stars the object of all of my hetero man-crushes Kevin Smitj. The reason is simple, they changed the trademark slogan.
Aiming for a kid-friendlier rating of PG-13, the studio forced the film makers to snip the phrase so that the offending part was omitted. I mean that's like having the Lone Ranger without Tonto, BJ without his Bear. I think you get the idea.
In case you were hoping for a different fate this time around, I wouldn't hold my breath. While we haven't gotten the official MPAA rating, I bet Fox is demanding another PG-13 for A Good Day to Die Hard.
And this latest teaser poster doesn't exactly fill one with hope of an edgier, less pun-riddled film.
Fox also released the second trailer over the weekend and as you would expect, it's filled with Bruce, guns, explosions, half-naked women and a tease of the trademark phrase.
Now, will that tease translate into a better product on the big screen? Only time will tell. A Good Day to Die Hard opens in theaters just in time for Valentine's Day on February 13, 2013.
The Rule of Three
We all know about the "The Rule of Three," but it seems that our favorite quirky director is taking it new extremes. Total Film interviewed Quentin Tarantino at length and he hinted that Django Unchained might be part of a new trilogy.
What's even more interesting is that it seems that Django Unchained is loosely paired with one of Tarantino's older films.
I don’t know, Inglourious Basterds and Django Unchained bespeak a trilogy. As different as they are, there is a companion piece quality. There might very well be a third one. I just don’t know what it is yet.
Besides both films starring Christoph Waltz, there are truly very few parallels that can be drawn between these two films. I guess you could speculate wildly that both films deal with subjects that reflect the darkest moments of their respective countries. In Inglourious Basterds the issue is Hitler and Nazism for Germany, while in Django Unchained the human stain of slavery in America is put under the microscope.
I'm with Quentin here though, I'm hard-pressed to find a third topic/country that would easily fit within this framework, but it is certainly intriguing. For now, we'll consider this a strong rumor and keep our ears peeled.
Well, that about does it for today. I do apologize for the short length and tardiness, but I had an important meeting this morning. So, the morning mixer became more like a brunch mixer.
Until next week, mix well!