BuzzSugar

Box Office: Audiences Say Yes. . . Man

BuzzSugar — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 09:30:21 -0800

It seems the dismal weather plaguing parts of the nation proved detrimental to box office earnings this weekend. Of the less-than-robust numbers, however, the Jim Carrey-Zooey Deschanel comedy Yes Man ended up taking the most in ticket sales with a little over $18 million. Will Smith's Seven Pounds did almost as well, though still worse than expected with $16 million.

Variety claims both movies "were expected to come in at least $5 million higher" and blames inclement weather for the quiet opening weekend:

Friday’s crippling storm in the Northeast dragged down grosses dramatically in a menacing start to the Christmas holiday. Weekend was down by as much as 44% over last year. In Boston, Friday’s B.O. dropped a whopping 81% from the previous Friday, while it fell 45% in Gotham.

Yeesh. After Seven Pounds, The Tale of Despereaux came in third place, followed by The Day the Earth Stood Still and Four Christmases respectively. In less bah-humbuggy news, the indie film market is doing quite well these days: The Mickey Rourke movie The Wrestler had an excellent weekend, as did Slumdog Millionaire.

This upcoming holiday weekend promises a whole slew of fresh blood at theaters: Marley & Me, Valkyrie, Bedtime Stories, The Spirit, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button all open in wide release on Christmas Day this Thursday.

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

Seven Pounds: Slow and Frustrating

BuzzSugar — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:30:56 -0800

If you were confused by the trailer for Seven Pounds that's because the movie is mostly one long guessing game, meant to have a confusing, slow build-up to a twisty surprise ending. There seems to be such an emphasis on keeping the audience wondering what's going on, and I was frustrated not because I didn't understand the "why"s of the plot but because it's hard to care enough about these characters - even the lead played by Will Smith - to truly want to figure out what the heck's going on.

Mostly I just wished they would stop talking in gratingly general terms ("Remember that thing you took from me?" "Yes, and I remember the thing I gave you, too." "It's all about that pact we made a while ago! Remember the pact? And that other thing?"). This goes on for an absurdly long time and I just wanted to shout "Enough already! Tell us what the deal is so we can all go home!" This is not a good sign. I stuck with it until the end though, so for some of my thoughts on it all, read more.

The movie is basically a puzzling series of events leading up to a climactic end, so in order to not spoil everything, I'll sum up the plot like this: Will Smith plays an IRS agent who carries around tremendous guilt for an event that took place years ago. So, he sets out to find redemption for the terrible thing he feels responsible for by dramatically improving the lives of seven people. When he starts to develop a relationship with one of them, Emily Posa (Rosario Dawson), he finds not just redemption but the glimmer of love and hope, even though he knows it can't last forever.

In theory and perhaps on paper, the concept for this film is intriguing, and I can imagine being drawn to it as an actor or filmmaker. But something goes awry on the way to the screen. These are capable actors, Smith is fine in this role and I found his relationship with Dawson's character to be surprisingly endearing at times. There are moments of sweetness and true drama, but they are few and far between and they nearly drown amid the majority of the scenes which plod along at a glacial pace. It all errs on the side of sappy and sometimes it's downright boring. Adding to all this, there's some cheesy metaphoric stuff going on (the woman he loves needs a new heart) that certainly doesn't help the overall melodrama.

With a script like this, in which there's a series of mysterious things happening that we're supposed to be eagerly piecing together, it helps if there's something to keep us interested or if there are tense scenes alternating with the slow and quiet ones. As it is, the narrative is like a reverse death, flatlining for an hour and a half before jolting alive briefly at the end. This ending is, I believe, supposed to be hopeful and sweet in its own way - certainly redemptive. I'm just not convinced that it makes up for the previous hour and a half or so of trudging somberly along toward it.

Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures

Watch, Pass, TiVo, or Rent: Seven Pounds

BuzzSugar — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:30:57 -0800

Opening this Friday, Dec. 19, Seven Pounds stars Will Smith as an IRS agent with a secret who "embarks on an extraordinary journey of redemption by forever changing the lives of seven strangers." You can watch the trailer here.

Is this something you'll seek out in the theaters, or rent on DVD? Maybe you'll just wait for Seven Pounds to come on TV someday, or perhaps you'll never, ever see it, not ever.

One-sheet courtesy of Sony Pictures

Movie Preview: Will Smith in Seven Pounds

BuzzSugar — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:30:16 -0700

It's cool that there's a new trailer out for Will Smith's upcoming heartwarming drama Seven Pounds, even if it doesn't offer much insight into what the movie is about. I turned to IMDB for a little help, so here's the plot description as found on the Seven Pounds page: "Ben (Will Smith) is an IRS agent who is depressed and guilt-ridden about mistakes from his past. He sets out to make amends by helping seven strangers. When he meets Emily (Rosario Dawson), a beautiful woman with a heart condition, he falls in love with her, thereby complicating his plans." Ahhh, got it now.

The film is brought to us by the director of The Pursuit of Happyness and it opens Dec. 19. To check out the trailer and tell me what you think, read more.

Source

Buzz News Roundup, 4/23

BuzzSugar — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 13:30:45 -0700

Showtime's The Tudors has been renewed for a third season, USA Today reports.
Variety has news that Ang Lee's next directorial project will be Taking Woodstock, the autobiography of Elliot Tiber, a Catskills motel worker who played a pivotal role in making the Woodstock concert happen.
Naomi Campbell will guest-star on the season finale of Ugly Betty, the Associated Press reports.
Virginia Madsen has joined the cast of the Amelia Earhart biopic, which already included Hilary Swank and Richard Gere, writes ComingSoon.
Mariah Carey had her best album debut ever this week, easily landing at the top of the charts, Billboard reports.
TV Land will be airing a modeling competition focusing solely on women 35 and older; details are at The Futon Critic.
Tom Cruise's 13-year-old son Connor will have a minor, nonspeaking part as the younger version of Will Smith's character in the drama Seven Pounds, the AP reports.
Contestants from the VH1 game shows with "love" in the name (Flavor of Love, etc.) will compete in a new show called For Love or Money to win cash prizes, TV Guide reports.
Variety has the just-announced lineup for this year's Cannes Film Festival, which will include Clint Eastwood's 1920s thriller The Changeling starring Angelina Jolie, Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona . . . and Kung Fu Panda.

Photo courtesy of Showtime