These days, you pretty much know what you're getting into with any film adapted from a Nicholas Sparks book, and recent release Safe Haven is the latest in his line of romances. A first glance alone features famous Sparks conventions — a beautiful couple on the verge of romance at the beach — and it got me thinking about the other common themes that show up repeatedly in Sparks movies.
Life Happens is also available on DVD this week.
Zac Efron stars as Logan, a conflicted marine in this schmaltzy adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks romantic novel. While overseas in Iraq, Logan finds a picture of a beautiful girl (Taylor Schilling) and comes to believe she's the reason he was able to get out of duty alive. Upon his return to the States, Logan finds her in Louisiana and becomes a part of her and her son's life, much to the chagrin of some protective friends. Efron is appealing, but the movie is cheesy and formulaic. The DVD comes with the "Zac and Taylor's Amazing Chemistry" featurette.
Taylor Kitsch and Alexander Skarsgard are brothers and navy men in Battleship, an overblown actionfest inspired by the board game of the same name. Alex (Kitsch) is a stubborn but lovable rule-breaker, while Stone (Skarsgard) is the dependable leader, but their world is flipped upside down when aliens touch down near their Hawaiian naval base. Suddenly, it becomes up to Alex to save his fellow troops, the country, and his girlfriend (Brooklyn Decker) from being demolished. The DVD includes an alternate ending and seven film featurettes.
One more release when you read more
After breaking the opening weekend record in its first week of release, The Avengers easily topped the box office again with $103.2 million, also setting a new record for best second weekend ever. New release Dark Shadows followed far behind in second place with $28.8 million, while Think Like a Man came in third with $6.3 million. The Hunger Games hung in there at No. 4 with $4.4 million, and The Lucky One rounded out the top five with $4.1 million.
Photo courtesy of Disney
Joss Whedon's superhero epic The Avengers smashed into the top spot at the box office with $200.3 million, breaking the record for biggest opening weekend of all time. The hotly anticipated action flick took down the previous record set last year by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 by over $40 million. Reigning champ Think Like a Man took a distant, distant second place with $8 million, followed by The Hunger Games with $5.7 million. Fourth and fifth place belonged to The Lucky One and The Pirates! Band of Misfits, with $5.5 million and $5.4 million, respectively.
Photo courtesy of Disney
For the second week in a row, Think Like a Man won the box office. This time the comedy raked in $18 million, raising its total gross to $60.8 million. Animated flick The Pirates! Band of Misfits followed in second with $11.4 million, barely edging by The Lucky One, which earned $11.3 million in its second week in theaters. Blockbuster The Hunger Games still held tight to a spot in the top five with $11.2 million, trailed by romantic comedy The Five-Year Engagement, which took in a disappointing $11.1 million in its opening weekend.
Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures
Taylor Schilling has been dominating the red carpets in her fashion-forward ensembles. She's currently costarring alongside Zac Efron in her newest film The Lucky One and delivering some enviable getups around the globe. Today we're highlighting her directional Peter Pilotto frock filled with bold colors and sporty accents. The style doesn't stop there; the actress's off-duty outfits are just as inspiring as her dressy counterparts. See Taylor's best looks in today's Fab Flash.
Zac Efron stepped out in a sophisticated George Clinton suit for the Berlin premiere of The Lucky One yesterday. He was joined by his costar Taylor Schilling, who walked the red carpet alongside him in a black Alaia dress. Zac also sported a bandage on his left hand. Zac injured his hand, and joked earlier this week that the wound was a result of being bitten by an overzealous fan.
Zac and Taylor are already enjoying success with The Lucky One, which opened in the number two spot over the weekend, and have been making appearances at the film's many European premieres. Zac will soon wrap up this round of press duties, but he'll be back at it again later this year when his next movie The Paperboy hits theaters.
Taylor Schilling continues to promote her new flick, The Lucky One, as well as her smashing fashion sense across the globe. During the London premiere (left), the actress wore a mesmerizing Peter Pilotto dress, then in NYC (right) she sported an equally fabulous satiny purple printed dress by Prabal Gurung. Inspired by Taylor's standout structured frocks, we set out to find equally knockout styles for all your upcoming Spring soirees. Step inside to see them all and to shop your favorite(s).
Zac Efron and his The Lucky One love interest Taylor Schilling were in London today for the European premiere of the Nicholas Sparks movie. Taylor wore a bright Peter Pilotto dress and peek-a-boo Rupert Sanderson heels for the occasion, while Zac dressed up in a sharp suit but appeared to be nursing a hand injury, with a bandage wrapped around one of his palms. Zac and Taylor's film hit theaters in the USA this weekend and made a strong showing at the box office, taking the second-place position. In the lead, though, was the romantic comedy Think Like a Man. The two love-themed films combined to finally knock The Hunger Games out of the leading spot after a solid month at the top. Some of The Lucky One's ticket-sales success might be due to Zac's work promoting the film in recent weeks. He graces the new cover of Men's Health and made several TV appearances, including a comical visit to Jimmy Kimmel Live, during which Jimmy put Zac's bra-unhooking skills to the test and got him to reveal his "musical theater geek" side.
After four weekends in the top spot, box office heavyweight champ The Hunger Games has finally been brought down. Think Like a Man opened to $33 million in its first weekend, which is more than double The Hunger Games' $14.5 million intake. Zac Efron's romantic drama The Lucky One also overtook The Hunger Games, winding up in second with $22.8 million in its debut weekend. Documentary Chimpanzee came in fourth with $10.2 million, followed by The Three Stooges, which took in $9.2 million in its second week.
Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures
