The Screening Log - blogging film

Weekend of April 17 – 19, 2009

Zac Efron’s latest teenage comedy “17 Again” slashed its competition at the North American box office this weekend with $24 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Directed by Burr Steers, the film follows a 37-year-old man who despises his existence and gets to relive his past as a 17-year-old. Leslie Mann, Thomas Lennon and Michelle Trachtenberg co-star.

Debuting in second place with $14 million was Kevin Macdonald’s thriller “State of Play,” which stars Russell Crowe as a print journalist who launches his own investigation into the murder of a congressman’s assistant. Ben Affleck, Helen Mirren and Rachel McAdams round out the lead cast.

Things didn’t turned out as well for “Crank: High Voltage,” the week’s third wide release. The action sequel starring Jason Statham opened at No. 6 with only $6.5 million, which is about half the opening weekend gross of its predecessor.

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Sunday

12Apr2009

Box Office: ‘Hannah Montana’ delivers solid $34M

Sunday, April 12, 2009 at 11:39AM | By

Weekend of April 10 – 12, 2009

Walt Disney’s “Hannah Montana: The Movie” soared to the top of the North American box office this weekend with $34 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Directed by Peter Chelsom, the film is based on Disney’s popular television series and stars Miley Cyrus as an energetic teenager who gets to reexamine her hectic double life as a famous pop star during a trip to her hometown.

Last week’s winner “Fast & Furious” collected another solid $28.7 million in second place, reaching a cumulative gross of $118 million after a strong two-week run. In the Justin Lin-directed action flick, Paul Walker and Vin Diesel team up to infiltrate the operations of a ruthless drug lord.

Meanwhile, DreamWorks Animation’s latest family adventure “Monsters vs. Aliens” dropped to No. 3, taking home $22.6 million and bringing its domestic total to $141 million. In the film, a group of eccentric monsters assist the U.S. government in battling a hostile alien planning to take over the world.

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Saturday

11Apr2009

'Hannah Montana: The Movie' scores $17M Friday

Saturday, April 11, 2009 at 8:56AM | By

Walt Disney's "Hannah Montana: The Movie" danced to the top of the North American box office Friday with an estimated $17.4 million in ticket sales.

The Peter Chelsom-directed adaptation of the ultra-popular television series follows Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus) as she travels to her hometown to get a new perspective on life and reexamine her singing alter ego.

Last week's box office champ "Fast & Furious" slipped to No. 2, collecting $10.5 million for an impressive domestic total of $99.8 million after just one week in release. The film is already closing in on the $127 million total gross of "2 Fast 2 Furious," the second installment in the series.

Meanwhile, DreamWorks Animation's latest family adventure "Monsters vs. Aliens" picked up $9 million in third place, lifting its cumulative gross to $127.4 million. Seth Rogen's latest comedy "Observe and Report" followed at No. 4 with a daily gross of $4.7 million.

At No. 5, Nicholas Cage's sci-fi thriller "Knowing" took home another $2.3 million, bringing its total haul to a decent $63.7 million.

This week's third wide release, "Dragonball Evolution," didn't perform that well, earning only $2 million in eighth place.

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

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Friday

10Apr2009

Movie Review: “Observe and Report”

Friday, April 10, 2009 at 6:30PM | By

Seen on: April 10, 2009

The players: Director: Jody Hill, Writer: Jody Hill, Cast: Seth Rogen, Anna Faris, Michael Pena, Ray Liotta, Jesse Plemons

Facts of interest: Jody Hill also directed "The Foot Fist Way."

The plot: Seth Rogen plays a mall security guard who desperately wants to become a real cop.

Our quick thoughts: Jody Hill’s “Observe and Report” is a crass, violent and a times hilarious comedy. It’s a weird little film starring Seth Rogen in a role quite different from what he’s done so far, and to be honest, I found it both daring and intriguing. Some will adore it, and others will hate it, but I admit I had a great time watching Rogen play an unstable mall cop who will stop at nothing to fulfill his dream.

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10Apr2009

'Observe and Report' web reviews

Friday, April 10, 2009 at 11:28AM | By

Seth Rogen returns to the big screen in Jody Hill's latest comedy "Observe and Report," in which he plays a bad-ass mall security guard who has a thing for Anna Faris and tries to bring down a nasty flasher. Michael Pena, Ray Liotta, Jesse Plemons co-star, and here is what the Web's critics think about the flick:

• Latino Review's Ron Henriques: "You're looking in the wrong place if you're in the mood for more of Rogen's clever social observations and camaraderie amongst equally witty friends. Many of these characters have no redeeming qualities and just about all of them are almost as weird as Ronnie."

• Cinema Blend's Josh Tyler: "It’s a celebration of savagery and madness, the story of a man who’s a hero in his own head."

• Joblo's JimmyO: "For Jody Hill, this latest offering is a stronger feature than 'Foot Fist.' Yet the previous film had a bit more going for it in the originality department."

• Film School Rejects' Neil Miller: "Put simply, this is one of those films that is as polarizing as they come, splitting both critics and audiences down the middle. If you dig on Jody Hill’s brand of humor, a very dark and aggressive brand of story set to a heavy rocking soundtrack (that is awesome, by the way), then you are going to love this film."

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Monday

06Apr2009

This week's new movie releases - April 10, 2009

Monday, April 6, 2009 at 9:45PM | By

This week, we're looking at three wide releases: Jody Hill's comedy "Observe and Report" with Seth Rogen and Anna Faris, Peter Chelsom's "Hannah Montana: The Movie" with Miley Cyrus, and James Wong's "Dragonball Evolution" with Justin Chatwin:

OBSERVE AND REPORT

Synopsis: At the Forest Ridge Mall, head of security Ronnie Barnhardt patrols his jurisdiction with an iron fist, combating skateboarders, shoplifters and the occasional unruly customer while dreaming of the day when he can swap his flashlight for a badge and a gun. His delusions of grandeur are put to the test when the mall is struck by a flasher.

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Thursday

26Mar2009

Three new 'Observe and Report' clips hit!

Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 8:28PM | By

No matter how many times I watch the trailer for Jody Hill's upcoming Seth Rogen mall cop comedy "Observe and Report, I always end up laughing out loud. Yeah, this flick does look hilarious.

Three brand-new clips recently popped up on the Web, and you can check them out after the jump. Okay, they're not exactly as funny as I thought, but that doesn't necessarily mean the movie won't be. Here's what it's about, anyway:

At the Forest Ridge Mall, head of security Ronnie Barnhardt patrols his jurisdiction with an iron fist, combating skateboarders, shoplifters and the occasional unruly customer while dreaming of the day when he can swap his flashlight for a badge and a gun.

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Tuesday

24Mar2009

What to expect at the movies in April '09

Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 9:07PM | By

This year's March at the movies has been a lot better than January and February, and while I still ended up seeing quite a bunch of weak flicks this month, I feel things are slowly improving. Well, April is coming up fast, and here is a brief look at what you can expect in theaters over the next 30 days.

The first weekend in April doesn't look that bad, primarily because I'm really excited to check out Greg Mottola's latest comedy "Adventureland." In the film, Jesse Eisenberg plays a college grad who takes on a job at a local amusement park. The trailer looks hilarious, the cast sounds great too, and with "Superbad," Mottola already proved he's capable of delivering top-notch comedy.

Also opening April 3 is Justin Lin's anticipated sequel "Fast & Furious," starring Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. I'm not sure they'll be able to reboot this franchise with style, but the recent trailers and TV spots at least promise plenty of explosive car action. That's what this is all about anyway, right?

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