Box office report
Disney/Pixar made it a perfect 10 in a row, flying the animated adventure “Up” to No. 1 at the box office with a $68.2 million opening weekend.
All 10 films from Pixar Animation Studios have opened in the top spot and gone on to become commercial and critical hits.
“Up” had the third-best opening for a film from Disney-owned Pixar, just behind the $70 million debuts for “Finding Nemo” and “The Incredibles.” Last summer’s Disney-Pixar release, “WALL-E,” debuted with $63.1 million, according to the Associated Press.
“Usually things that are very popular with audiences don’t necessarily go over that well with critics. These things do both, and pretty much consistently every time,” Hollywood.com box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian told the AP. “The Disney-Pixar collaboration is probably the closest thing to box-office perfection out there.”
“Up” features the voice of Ed Asner as a lonely widower who ties helium balloons to his house and flies to a South American adventure with an unexpected 9-year-old stowaway, Russell (newcomer Jordan Nagai).
Factoring in higher admission prices, earlier Pixar movies such as “Toy Story 2″ and “Monsters, Inc.” sold more tickets than “Up” over their first weekends, according to the AP.
“Up” drew both family crowds and adults without children, and the film’s 3-D release accounted for 51 percent of the total gross, the AP reported. “Up” is the first Pixar film to be released in 3-D.
The weekend’s other new wide release, director Sam Raimi’s return to horror, “Drag Me to Hell,” opened at No. 3 with $16.6 million. It wasn’t muc commpared to the blockbuster opening weekends for Raimi’s ”Spider-Man” movies but pretty good considering his previous efforts like the “Evil Dead” films, known as cult classics rather than blockbuster powerhouses.
The previous weekend’s No. 1 film, the family-friendly sequel “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” came in at No. 2 with $25.5 million. The sequel raised its 10-day total to $105.3 million.
“Star Trek” continued to boldly go toward box-office greatness, coming in at No. 5 with $12.8 million. Director J.J. Abrams’ reboot of the venerable sci-fi series raised its domestic total to $209.5 million, becoming the first 2009 release to cross the $200 million mark, according to the AP.
Hollywood finished off May with record revenues of $1.02 billion, coming in slightly ahead of the previous high in May 2007, the AP reported.
While May revenues came in 4.7 percent above those of May 2008, Hollywood has yet to see a soaring opening comparable to last year’s action hits “Iron Man” and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which both topped $300 million domestically.
Overall weekend revenues were at $167 million, virtually even with the same period last year, according to the AP.
Total revenues for 2009 rose to $4.1 billion, up 13.7 percent. Movie attendance was about 11 percent ahead of last year’s.
Here is the top 10 list, according to the AP:
1. “Up,” $68.2 million.
2. “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” $25.5 million.
3. “Drag Me to Hell,” $16.6 million.
4. “Terminator Salvation,” $16.1 million.
5. “Star Trek,” $12.8 million.
6. “Angels & Demons,” $11.2 million.
7. “Dance Flick,” $4.9 million.
8. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” $3.9 million.
9. “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” $1.9 million.
10. “Obsessed,” $665,000.
-BAM
Photo gallery: 2009 MTV Movie Awards
Host Andy Samberg performs at the 2009 MTV Movie Awards. (All photos Associated Press)
Here are some of the winning moments from Sunday night’s 2009 MTV Movie Awards. All photos are from the Associated Press.
You can watch the show at www.MTV.com.
“Twilight” director Catherine Hardwicke and the film’s cast celebrate receiving the best movie award.
“Twilight” stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart accept the best kiss prize.
Sacha Baron Cohen descends from the ceiling dressed as his character “Bruno.”
“The House Bunny” star Anna Faris and “Star Trek” star Chris Pine present the breakthrough female performance prize.
Ashley Tisdale of “High School Musical 3″ accepts the female breakthrough performance award.
See many more photos after the break.
Photo gallery: 2009 MTV Movie Award arrivals and backstage moments
MTV Movie Awards 2009 host Andy Samberg arrives. (Associated Press photos)
The 2009 MTV Movie Awards aired Sunday night on MTV. Check out these Associated Press photos of the arrivals and backstage goings-on. I’ll also post a photo gallery of images from the awards show itself.
Rock band Kings of Leon, which has Oklahoma ties, arrives at the MTV Movie Awards.
Kristen Stewart of “Twilight” on the red carpet.
“Twilight” stars, from left, Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson look at three of the film’s five golden popcorn trophies backstage.
Ashley Greene of “Twilight” arrives.
Billy Zane and “Twilight” director Catherine Hardwicke arrive.
Ben Stiller with his MTV Generation Award.
See many more photos after the break.
Paseo Arts Festival offers treats for the senses
Oklahoma City artist Thomas Stotts works on his latest painting while crowds mill about Monday at the Paseo Arts Festival. (BAM photo)
Mr. BAM and I decided to spend our Memorial Day off trying to remember what it was like when we went places without our children. Dispatching our boys to various relatives, we headed out for a day of kid-free fun.
We started out at the final day of the 33rd annual Paseo Arts Festival. If you didn’t make it out this year – or worse, if you’ve never been – I highly recommend you add the free event to your 2010 calendar. We’ve made it a tradition over the last few years, and it’s now hard for me to imagine the unofficial first weekend of summer without our jaunt down to the historic arts district.
Our first order of business was to hear Spiritful Voices Community Choir perform down on the wimgo.com (south) stage. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the group lately, and I wanted to hear the music. The lively group of adults enthusiastically belted a variety of songs, from a medley from “A Chorus Line” to “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” The performance was definitely worth the wait as sound system issues delayed the start of the music.
Then, it was time for lunch, and the festival offered many choices along the usual fair food lines. My husband, Patrick, went the traditional corn dog route, while I noshed an Oklahoma and personal favorite, the Indian taco. It was one of the best I’d ever eaten, with perfectly cooked fry bread. Big cups of tea helped stave of thirst caused by the bright sun and rising temperatures.
While we were eating, I struck up a conversation with local painter Thomas Stotts, who was working on his latest landscape outside Adelante! Gallery, where shows his work in Oklahoma City. We chatted about his current project, featuring a farmhouse reportedly owned by one of his ancestors, and about his use of a textured, wraparound canvas for the painting.
The more than 80 juried artists exhibiting along the Paseo provided a wide variety of artwork to peruse, from Dana Forrester’s amazing watercolors of vintage cars to Scott Gamble’s colorful glasswork to Connie Baker’s beautifully textured stucco art tiles of shells and fruits. Another favorite was Suzy Toronto’s whimsical “Wonderful Wacky Women” illustrations, one of which echoed my fashion philosophy – “Life is too short to wear panty hose.”
Checking out artwork in the late May sun is warm work, so we cooled down with scrumptious homemade gelato from Bella Crema. I’d heard raves about Bella Crema’s creamy concoctions, but they didn’t prepare me for the delightful taste and texture of my scoop of mint chocolate chip. And my husband liked the caramel so much, he only very reluctantly shared a bite. Bella Crema gelato is a favorite at local festivals and also can be found at the Buzz coffeeshop in downtown’s First National Center.
We followed our trip to the Paseo with a second viewing of J.J. Abrams’ awesome reboot “Star Trek.” Even though the movie opened last weekend, we actually had trouble getting into a matinee screening. It was worth making the effort to drive to another theater when the first cinema we tried had already sold out the 2 p.m. screening.
Most parents of young children will tell you that the rare opportunities for a couple’s day are not to be missed – and are made all the sweeter when your toddler grins at you when you reappear and then gives you an extra-long hug at bedtime. And if you can spend a date day at one of Oklahoma’s terrific arts festivals, so much the better.
- BAM
Box office report
It seems the Terminator isn’t so unstoppable after all.
The family-friendly sequel “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” won the top spot at the Memorial Day weekend box office, beating out “Terminator Salvation,” the dark fourth film of the long-running R-rated franchise.
The second “Night at the Museum” film, starring Ben Stiller, Amy Adams and Hank Azaria and distributed by 20th Century Fox, earned $70 million over the long weekend, according to the Associated Press. It far exceeded the debut of the first “Night at the Museum” movie, which made $30.4 million in its three-day opening in December 2006.
Warner Bros.’ “Terminator Salvation” raked in $53.8 million over the four-day holiday weekend – plus $13.4 million from Thursday screenings. That brought director McG’s take on the post-apocalyptic action series, starring Christian Bale, Anton Yelchin and Sam Worthington, to second place and a total of $67.2 million since debuting.
The three-day total of $43 million ranks the fourth movie in the “Terminator” series behind “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” the last of the franchise’s installments to star California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The third chapter generated $44 million in its first weekend in 2003.
“I think people expected it to be No. 1 because of that ‘Terminator’ name alone,” box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian of Hollywood.com told the AP. “If you look at it objectively though, it’s a sci-fi action film that played to an older audience. It didn’t have the broad based appeal of ‘Night at the Museum.’”
The weekend’s other wide release, Paramount’s over-the-top spoof “Dance Flick,” took the No. 5 spot with $13.1 million. So far, it is the worst movie I have seen in 2009, so I think even that is too much.
But Paramout’s “Star Trek” seems to be capitalizing on its great reviews and word of mouth, and I couldn’t be happier about its success. It was in third place but made another $29.4 million, raising its total to $191 million. J.J. Abrams’ reboot of the venerable franchise sits on the cusp of becoming the year’s top-grossing movie so far, approaching the $193.5 million gross of the animated “Monsters vs. Aliens.”
It appears that “Star Trek” is living up to its initial promise as this year’s “Iron Man” – a big blockbuster with legs. My husband and I ventured out to see it a second time today and found a 2 p.m. screening sold out at one local theater, forcing us to drive to another cinema.
“‘Star Trek’ is living long and prospering,” Dergarabedian told the AP. “It’s just one of those movies we knew would hold up. People are enjoying it and talking about it. It’s unusual for a summer blockbuster to be propelled by word of mouth, not just the typical marketing push for a big opening weekend. I think it’s going to continue to do well week after week.”
The previous weekend’s No. 1 movie, Sony’s “Angels & Demons,” fell to fourth place with $27.7 million. Its domestic take is now at $87.8 million.
Movie theaters continue to draw large crowds, as they have throughout this year of recession. Dergarabedian told the AP that the year-to-date attendance is running at a nearly 12 percent increase over last year. But 2007 remains the top Memorial Day weekend in box office history; the third installments of “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Shrek” and “Spider-Man” all opened over the holiday two years ago.
Here are the top 10 movies from Friday through Monday, according to the AP:
1. “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” $70 million.
2. “Terminator Salvation,” $53.8 million.
3. “Star Trek,” $29.4 million.
4. “Angels & Demons,” $27.7 million.
5. “Dance Flick,” $13.1 million.
6. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” $10.1 million.
7. “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” $4.8 million.
8. “Obsessed,” $2.5 million.
9. “Monsters vs. Aliens,” $1.9 million.
10. “17 Again,” $1.3 million.
-BAM
Box office report
“Angels & Demons,” the sequel to the 2006 hit “The Da Vinci Code” topped the box office over the weekend, raking in $48 million in its debut, according to the Associated Press.
The follow-up reteamed director and Oklahoma native Ron Howard with Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks, who reprises his ”Da Vinci Code” role as Harvard symbolist Robert Langdon. The second adaptation of a Dan Brown novel, “Angels & Demons” opened with far less than “The Da Vinci Code,” which earned $77.1 million when in opened in 2006.
“Angels & Demons” didn’t draw the protests, controversy and buzz that helped “The Da Vinci Code” attain a $753 million worldwide total. Reviews were not stellar for “Angels & Demons,” but they were mostly better than for its predecessor.
Overseas business was again solid for “Angels & Demons,” which earned $104.3 million internationally, according to the AP. Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution for Sony, told the AP the studio expects the film will eventually take in half a billion altogether in theatrical release.
“That chemistry (of Hanks and Howard) worked incredibly well with ‘Da Vinci’ and it looks like it’s absolutely headed in that same vein, certainly on a lesser scale,” said Bruer. “We never expected anything to the phenomenon of `Da Vinci.’”
In its second weekend, J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek” slipped to second place, but the reboot took in $43 million. That’s a strong second-week return following its $75.2 million opening last weekend, excluding its Thursday midnight screenings. The cumulative total has warped to $147.6 million.
In the No. 3 spot was “X-Men Originals: Wolverine,” which earned $14.8 million in its third week, bringing its total to $151.1 million. The prequel to the “X-Men” franchise, starring Hugh Jackman as the metal-clawed mutant, experienced a steep drop in its second week.
Here are the top 10 movies over the weekend, according to the AP:
1. “Angels & Demons,” $48 million.
2. “Star Trek,” $43 million.
3. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” $14.8 million.
4. “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” $6.9 million.
5. “Obsessed,” $4.6 million.
6. “17 Again,” $3.4 million.
7. “Monsters vs. Aliens,” $3 million.
8. “The Soloist,” $2.4 million.
9. “Next Day Air,” $2.2 million.
10. “Earth,” $1.7 million.
-BAM
Entertainment Insider: “The Killer Inside Me,” “Angels and Demons,” “Star Trek”
In this week’s Entertainment Insider, Gene Triplett, George Lang, Matt Price and I are talking about the film “The Killer Inside Me,” Oklahoma’s film incentives and the latest box office news. Check it out.
-BAM
DVD review: “Galaxy Quest Deluxe Edition”
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
“Galaxy Quest Deluxe Edition”
Until J.J. Abrams’ reboot opened last week, “Galaxy Quest” was the best “Star Trek” film to come out in many years. The friendly spoof was certainly more fun than 2002’s “Star Trek: Nemesis.”
“Galaxy Quest” gets a new deluxe edition DVD release to coincide with the movie’s 10th anniversary and the opening of Abrams’ “Star Trek.” (A trailer for the new film is the first item on the disc.) The loving parody of diehard sci-fi fans and frustrated, typecast actors continues to spark nearly nonstop laughs.
Tim Allen stars as the egotistical Jason Nesmith, who played the bold captain of a fake starship on the TV show “Galaxy Quest.” The series was canceled 18 years ago, and he and his castmates make their living appearing at conventions and signing autographs for hardcore fans.
When a group of naïve aliens (Enrico Colantoni, Patrick Breen, Missi Pyle) approaches Jason with a mission, he thinks they’re fans with some gig in mind. But they are actually Thermians who have misinterpreted the old TV episodes as “historical documents.” They transport Jason into space so he can negotiate a treaty with the intimidating Gen. Sarris (Robin Sachs).
The actor doesn’t realize until after the fact that he’s actually been to space, and he recruits his old TV crew to return with him to the Thermians’ ship. But the actors are unprepared to deal with the warmongering Sarris and risk getting themselves and the Thermians killed.
The entire cast plays the parody just right. Sigourney Weaver is great ironic casting as the show’s token woman, whose job on the ship was to repeat the computer and show cleavage. Alan Rickman seethes as the Shakespearean actor whose defining role involves an elaborate purple alien skull. And Sam Rockwell is pitch perfect as the former extra who fears his TV death with be replayed in real life in space.
DVD extras: Several making-of featurettes with new interviews with all the principals, deleted scenes, a rap by Weaver, and a silly audio track that translates the movie into Thermian. No commentary is included.
- BAM
Anton Yelchin talks “Terminator Salvation” and gelatinous killing machines
Anton Yelchin as Kyle Reese in “Terminator Salvation”
Anton Yelchin as Pavel Chekov in “Star Trek”
Our own George Lang of Staticblog traveled last weekend to Los Angeles for the junket for the upcoming sequel “Terminator Salvation.”
George talked to Anton Yelchin, who takes over the Kyle Reese role originated by Michael Biehn, about the 20-year-old actor’s longtime love of gelatinous killing machines. Check it out by clicking here.
Hopefully, this snippet will spark your interest because George will have later this week a full interview with Yelchin about his roles in two big summer blockbusters. Along with “Terminator Salvation,” Yelchin stars in this week’s No. 1 film, J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek.” He plays Pavel Chekov, the bright young helmsman originally played by Walter Koenig.
-BAM
BAM Column: Meeting Twinprov a lesson in patience and kindness
From left, Buck Vrazel, BAM and Clint Vrazel after the first public performance of the “Twinprov Star Trek Rap.”
From Tuesday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.
Twinprov rapping entertains
Sometimes your first instinct isn’t the best one, no matter what your ACT test prep instructor used to say.
On a recent Saturday, I attended an advance screening of “Star Trek” at a local theater. I was a little cranky from getting up early, a little apprehensive that my Trekkie husband would hate the movie, and a lot tired of the rain. And the guy behind me was spitting on me.
Actually, he was teaching his companions beatboxing techniques. But it sounded like spitting, and it went on for 25 minutes.
I was annoyed, but instead of going with my first instinct – to turn around and launch into an aggravated, sharply-worded tirade – I opted to try a bit of patience and humor.
“You’d better not be spitting on my favorite hat,” I said lightly (though maybe a little irritably).
“No, ma’am, we’re professionals. And my head was turned to the side,” said the guy behind me.
“Professional what?” I replied.
The spitters, er, rappers turned out to be Clint and Buck Vrazel, local improv comics who specialize in laying down hot and hilarious beats. Having heard nothing but rhythmic sputtering out of the brothers known as Twinprov, I was firmly unconvinced of their funniness.
But 90 minutes into “Star Trek,” I had a change of heart. The enthralling film stuttered to a halt, setting off cries of alarm in the audience. Before a Trekkie riot could ensue, Clint turned grumbles into giggles with his William Shatner-esque cry of “KHAN!”
OK, so maybe they were funny.
After the movie, I challenged the brothers Vrazel to meet me in the lobby in five minutes with a new “Star Trek” rap and “make it good.” They volleyed by spouting a fun and furious two-minute song based on the film. I replied by reporting about it on my blog, so the twins and their friends in turn pulled a couple of late-nighters to revise, film and post the rap online.
Next I knew, they were performing in front of 400 people at another “Star Trek” screening and later cracking wise in a “Trek”-related video and podcast at the NewsOK studios. Now, they’re pondering new raps based on this summer’s other big movies, maybe “Transformers” or “Harry Potter.”
Because I checked my temper, I got to meet a couple of funny local entertainers. I hope they go far and I get to cover it – and maybe feel like I contributed in some small way to the fun they’re making.
-BAM
