Box Office Update 4/3-4/5: Fast & Furious Goes Wild on April

Wow. I figured the latest Fast & Furious franchise entry would open well, but I had no idea it would have the strength to shatter the April opening record. Seriously, it was not by a little bit that it took the top spot. The Vin Diesel action vehicle (sic) took in nearly $71 million, besting the previous record holder Anger Management, which opened to the tune of $42.5 million. Not only that, it made more in its opening weekend than the prior entry, Tokyo Drift, made in its entire run. It also looks to be on track to top the $144 million take of the original 2001 film. I wonder, is this enough to jump start Vin Diesel's and Paul Walker's careers?

Slipping to second place is Monsters vs. Aliens with a tally of $32 million. The animated feature is doing well with families, but I wonder just what sort of legs it will have? I suspect it will do decent and end up in the $165 million range, helped by the next couple of weeks not offering a lot in the way of competition.

Third place is held by the haunted house tale The Haunting in Connecticut. The more I think back on the film, the more affection I have for it. It is no classic by any stretch, but it is quite effective in setting a mood. The jump scares were a bit much, but when I wasn't guessing them, I was drawn to the creepiness.

Knowing is holding strong in fourth place. This is one of the year's best surprises in terms of intelligent filmmaking. I am glad to see that people are still going out for this one, I would have suspected it to drop a lot faster than it has.

Fifth place plays host to I Love You, Man this week. This comedy is quite funny and well worth your time. Is it perfect? Of course not, but it goes a long way towards being something original, something we always need in a comedy.

Adventureland debuts in sixth place, which means this comedy will likely not be around terribly long. I did not get the chance to see it this past weekend, but hope to do so soon. It looks pretty funny, and from what I hear is considerably different than what is shown in the ads.

Next up is Duplicity in seventh place, another film I haven't seen. Despite the star power, I cannot claim to have a strong desire to do so.

Eighth place is the Disney remake adventure Race to Witch Mountain. This feature is fun but a little hollow upon exit. I had hoped for something a little more substantive than what I got.

12 Rounds is clinging to life in its second weekend. This is an action film that will have to wait for DVD to really make any of its money back, and I suspect it will do quite well in that market

The final film in the round up is Sunshine Cleaning, an indie comedy that has gotten good notice but did not do as well as had been hoped as its release expands. I enjoyed the film, although I have to wonder if this weekend is enough to warrant a wider release?

Next weekend is Easter and will have three new features arriving. Seth Rogen's Observe and Report brings an R-rated Paul Blart to the cineplex, while Dragonball: Evolution attempts to draw in more money than the recent Street Fighter debacle. The third film is the tween targeted Hannah Montana: The Movie, which I can guarantee you will not see reviewed by me.

Three movies dropped off the top ten this week: Taken (11), The Last House on the Left (12), and Watchmen (13).

This Week	Last Week	Title	Wknd Gross	Overall	Week in release
1	N	Fast & Furious	$70,950,500	$70,950,500	1
2	1	Monsters vs. Aliens	$32,609,165	$104,799,387	2
3	2	The Haunting in Connecticut	$9,481,647	$37,171,280	2
4	3	Knowing	$8,146,156	$58,219,770	3
5	4	I Love You, Man	$7,722,469	$49,159,559	3
6	N	Adventureland	$5,722,039	$5,722,039	1
7	5	Duplicity	$4,174,240	$32,250,215	3
8	6	Race to Witch Mountain	$3,212,602	$58,249,111	4
9	7	12 Rounds	$2,260,906	$8,982,767	2
10	11	Sunshine Cleaning	$1,807,164	$4,702,721	4

Box Office Predictions Recap
I guess I was a little bit under when I made my Fast & Furious prediction. Seriously, who would have guessed it would have such a monstrous opening? Still, I think I did all right for the most part. I was able to get six of the positions correct and some of those gross predictions were so close it is almost spooky. We will see where next week takes us.

Here is how the field matched up:

Actual	Prediction	Title	Wknd Gross	Prediction
1	1	Fast & Furious	$70,950,500	$41 million
2	2	Monsters vs. Aliens	$32,609,165	$32 million
3	3	The Haunting in Connecticut	$9,481,647	$12 million
6	4	Adventureland	$5,722,039	$10.5 million
5	5	I Love You, Man	$7,722,469	$10 million
4	6	Knowing	$8,146,156	$8 million
7	7	Duplicity	$4,174,240	$4.5 million
8	8	Race to Witch Mountain	$3,212,602	$3.5 million
10	9	Sunshine Cleaning	$1,807,164	$3 million
9	10	12 Rounds	$2,260,906	$2.5 million

DVD Pick of the Week: Doubt

Welcome back! Well, to some of you, anyway. To the rest of you, glad you decided to stop by and I hope that this humble column helps you navigate the stacks of new releases each week. My goal is to point you toward titles of interest and warn you away from those films that seek to do nothing but leech away your time and give you nothing in return.

Full disclosure: I have not seen many of these titles and what follows are not necessarily reviews. It is my opinion based upon what I know of the titles I pluck from the new release lists that I peruse. The opinions I give based on the new releases are my own, and my recommendations upon them are based on my personal interest. In any case, I hope you enjoy and perhaps find something you like or a title to point me towards.

Doubt (also Blu-ray). This is a powerful film that will make you think about the way you approach everyday situations, not to mention its ability to force you attempt to come up with a conclusion to the events of the film yourself. What happened? It could go in any number of directions, it could be easy to come up with what happened, but, are you sure? This excellent film is bolstered by excellent performances and a first rate script.

Bedtime Stories (also Blu-ray). This is a family Disney film, and being such it is pretty easy to tell where it is going to end up. The best thing to do with this type of film is to just enjoy it for what it is, safe family entertainment. When viewing from this perspective, I found it rather easy to enjoy. It is not great by any stretch, but it is not bad in any offensive manner. It is the kind of movie that is competently made and has such a sweet disposition that kicking it and dragging it down seems to be a useless exercise in cinematic elitism. It is true that the story does not explain how anything happens, characters do not have terribly strong arcs, or are underused, but overall it is a simple, smile inducing film that people of any age can enjoy.

The Day the Earth Stood Still (also Blu-ray). Well made does not equal good. The tech side is fine, but this is not a good movie. The cause of this can be primarily attributed to a script that forgot to give its characters brains and forgot to marry a message with a plot. Fortunately, the 1951 film is still there to be enjoyed, and it is even included in the three disk release of the film.

The Tale of Despereaux (also Blu-ray). Mildly enjoyable adaptation features nice animation, but feels like it is moving at a snails pace. It is perfectly safe, perhaps even worthwhile, for youngsters, but it is not one I foresee revisiting all that often.

Yes Man (also Blu-ray). Not one of Carrey's best, but it does provide a bit of fun, provided you just go along with it. Some movies warrant, demand, or deserve personal involvement, but this is not one of them. It has its place and I enjoyed most of it, but it will not really entice you to think too hard. My biggest thought was when the shoe would drop and the "say yes" experiment would crumble like a house of cards.

Pre-Code Hollywood Collection (The Cheat / Merrily We Go to Hell / Hot
Saturday / Torch Singer / Murder at the Vanities / Search for Beauty). I am not familiar with any of these films, but I am interested in films from the pre-code era. This set of Universal Studios features were made prior to the 1934 implementation of the Code, which dictated what could or could not be in a film. This era was the Wild West where filmmakers could tackle any subject in any manner they chose.

American History X (Blu-ray). Arriving on high definition for the first time is this powerful film starring Edward Norton as a white supremacist. Fascinating film that will hold your attention and also contains one of the most cringe-inducing scenes of implied violence I have ever seen.

The Wedding Singer (Blu-ray). One of Adam Sandler's finest turns on the big screen arrives on high definition. Sandler plays a wedding singer with some personal issues, especially when he falls for a woman whose wedding he is helping plan.

Point of No Return (Blu-ray). This American remake of La Femme Nikita is more or less successful. It is clearly not the same film, but it it still an effective action/thriller. I wonder what it will look like in high definition?

Above the Law (Blu-ray). The first of a string of successful Steven Seagal action vehicles comes to Blu-ray. I always loved these early films in Seagal's career, plenty of action, lots of fighting, little bit of plot. This is what 80's action was all about.

Cleopatra: 75th Anniversary Edition. I have never seen this 1934 feature, but it is a Cecil B. DeMille production, meaning it should be worth the time.

Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942. These early theatrical animated shorts have been remastered and will hopefully look great. I have only ever seen a few of these, but this looks like a good opportunity to check some more out.

House (2008). Unfortunately, House fails to really tie its tale together in a cohesive manner. It is a film that begs the audience to put the pieces together but does not give enough of the pieces to finish the puzzle. When the end finally arrives, the light goes on and I got what they were doing but was left shaking my head and wondering how much greater the impact could have been had the story made a little more sense. Too much is left on the audience to figure out how everything goes with everything else.

No Country for Old Men: 2 Disk Collector's Edition (also Blu-ray). Sometimes it pays to wait, it helps avoid double dipping on films you like. This set comes with the feature and a plethora of bonus material covering the production and promotion of this Oscar winning film from the Coen Brothers.

Donkey Punch. I have heard some positive things about this British thriller. It concerns a group of twenty-somethings partying on a boat until one of them dies in a freak accident. What happens next? Well, that is what I want to find out.

Movie Review: Monsters vs. Aliens 3D

I think it was with Bolt that I first saw the trailer for Monsters vs. Aliens, I know it was with something that was 3D. The moment I saw it I knew I had to see it. Seriously, how could it go wrong? You have a collection of various monsters, some dastardly aliens, a threat to Earth, mix well and let it rip. Sounds like an absolute blast, and with the characters shown, would seem to have the potential to bring an experience similar to last year's Kung Fu Panda. Unfortunately, as I sit here thinking back on the experience and can only lament the lack of genuine entertainment. It is not a bad film by a long shot, but it is one that has its moments, but more often than not feels like it is stuck in neutral.

As the story begins, we are introduced to Susan (Reese Witherspoon) on her wedding day. She is about to enter wedded bliss with Derek (Paul Rudd) a local weatherman with big plans for his, not necessarily their, future. Before they get to walk down the aisle to tie the knot, a mysterious meteor comes crashing through the atmosphere and landing square on Susan; so begins a new life path for the would be bride. As she dusts herself off and heads into the church something strange happens. She begins to glow and grow to enormous proportions. Her physical changes send the guests running from the church, screaming, looking for shelter.

It does not take long for the military to show up, intent on subduing the now enormous fifty-foot tall Susan. Confused, scared, and not knowing what is happening, the military succeeds in their task. With this, Susan's dreams of honeymooning in Paris are replaced with a question mark for her own future.

Susan wakes up in an underground bunker where she meets her new roomies, a ragtag collection of monsters captured by the military over the span of decades. They were captured to protect them from themselves and keep the away from the population at large, letting the people still think creatures are something in their imaginations.

Anyway, Susan is having trouble adjusting to her new digs, which she shares with B.O.B. (Seth Rogen), a sentient gelatinous mass, The Missing Link (Will Arnett), Dr. Cockroach (Hugh Laurie), and the gigantic Insectosaurus.

The plan is to keep them locked up for life, but that changes when a mysterious alien robot arrives a need arises, a need for something a bit more extreme than what the armed forces can provide. The group of monsters are released from containment and are unleashed upon the evil alien forces.

Seriously, when you look at the description it looks like a great concept. The problem is that it lost something in the translation. There were times where the narrative dragged and not much was happening. It gave me an odd sense of detachment from a story that should be right up my alley. Still, it is not all bad.

Scattered throughout the film are homages to science fiction movies and creature features from the 1950's. These elements are very well done, mostly because they are not blatant references to said features, they are more subtle, references to the cliches that were pioneered during the period, a loving tribute that begins with an old-looking black and white Dreamworks logo used to open the film.

The voice performances were generally good with Seth Rogen turning in the most memorable performance as B.O.B. There is something about the guy that is naturally funny even when he doesn't seem to be trying. Other notable voice performances include Kiefer Sutherland as General W.R. Monger and Stephen Colbert as the President.

What helps improve the cinematic experience is the 3D process. There are those who are not a fan of the process, I am not one of them. It is used to very good effect here. There are a few things that pop out at the audience, but more often it is used to add depth to the screen, helping to give the on screen action added weight.

Bottomline. Not nearly as entertaining as I had hoped, but not so bad as to not be worth watching. It is a solid film that provides laughs, will keep the kids happy and remind adults of the films of their youth. Overall, it is positive experience, just one that could have been better.

Mildly Recommended.

Movie Review: The Haunting in Connecticut

It seems like forever since we have had a legitimately good haunted house story hit the big screen. The last ones I can remember are The Grudge and The Amityville Horror, both remakes and certainly questionable quality (for the record, I prefer The Grudge). There have been plenty of ghost-related stories, but they generally tended towards the J-horror style creepy dead girls with long black hair that walk funny and make odd noises, nothing in a true haunted house story. Then the trailers began popping up for The Haunting in Connecticut, and hope was born. The clips looked genuinely creepy and the washed out palette just helped feed into the creepy atmosphere and helped get me excited for a good haunted house tale. Also, do not forget the poster that oozed odd and evoked feelings of the 1980's.

The Haunting in Connecticut is based on the true account of the Parker family who moved into a home in Connecticut in 1986 in order to be closer to the hospital where their son was receiving cancer treatment. Shortly after arriving, the boy started seeing apparitions in the house. That is when all hell seemed to break loose in this quiet Connecticut community.

As the movie begins, we are introduced to the Campbell family. The year is 1986 and Matt Campbell (Kyle Gallner) is suffering from an aggressive form of cancer. Matt is undergoing some radical treatment at a Connecticut hospital. The trip to and from the hospital is taxing on the family as they struggle to help him defeat his illness. To help make things easier, they move into a nice looking home, not unlike the one the real-world Parker's moved into. It seems to have everything they need, plus a little secret. It is this secret that will threaten to tear the world out from under the Campbells.

You see, this house once functioned as a funeral home. Not only that, it was a place where dark rituals took place. The man running the home found himself a powerful medium who was learned in the ways of speaking to the dead through seances and a mysterious substance called ectoplasm (no, not the Ghostbusters variety). Before long, Matt is being haunted with visions of these rituals and the medium. They are rather frightening and appear to wish harm upon the family.

The tale is pretty straightforward and would be pretty easy to walk you through step by step, but where is the fun in that? So far as haunted house tales go, this one is pretty solid, and that is also its problem. It is far and away the best pure haunted house tale to hit theaters in some time, but it is far from perfect.

My biggest issue with the film is the over-reliance on jump scares. They came with such regularity that you could almost time them, not unlike ticking up an incline on a roller coaster before cresting and falling almost straight down only to reset and do it again. I have nothing against the jumps, only their overuse and my own annoying susceptibility to their insidious ability to make me tense without actually being afraid.

My other issue lies with the story. The big picture is fine, I just do not feel the screenplay from Adam Simon and Tim Metcalfe digs quite deep enough. I recognize the tight rope they needs to be navigated when telling a story like this and the generally do a decent job. However, for as admirable a job as they did, I still feel like there are holes that need to be plugged. I would have liked more information about those who worked in the funeral home and more about the priest who offers his assistance, played by Elias Koteas.

The performances are solid all around, anchored by Kyle Gallner as Matt and Virginia Madsen as Sara. I was convinced that they were under an attack from the other side. They really sold their performances, diving into the idea of being visited by a variety of ill-meaning spectres. I also got a good feeling that they are an actual family.

On the technical side of the coin, there is little to fault the film with. Peter Cornwell does a solid job directing the film, keeping the story moving, and developing an atmosphere suitable to support the heebie jeebies.

Bottomline. This is a fine, if flawed, haunted house story and well worth spending a little time with. It is a technically sound and involving tale of a family under siege from forces they do not understand. Could it have been better? Certainly, but how many films are perfect? This is an imperfect feature that will succeed in making you squirm.

Mildly Recommended.

New Movies & Box Office Predictions: Adventureland, Fast & Furious

March is over, April is upon us. It is now time to begin the build towards blockbuster season in earnest. Before you know it, May will be here, stacked with blockbuster titles like Star Trek, Wolverine, and Terminator. To help prime the pump, so to speak, you will be served a selection of films that aim to to ignite the spark, summer's kindling, if you will. This weekend is also the one that was originally slated to feature the new Wolfman film, until it was pushed to November, leaving a slot available for Fast & Furious to slip into (it was originally slated to open in June). So, anything look good to you?

Adventureland. (2009, 106 minutes, R, comedy) This looks pretty darn funny. It strikes me as a cross between Superbad and Waiting... It is a coming of age story centering on an uptight recent college grad whose life can no longer be subsidized by his parents. In order to fund his desired post-college activities he takes a job at a local amusement park, thus embarking on a journey of discovery and fun. The cast includes Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Martin Starr, Ryan Reynolds, Bill Hader, and Kristen Wiig. Superbad's director is also at the helm here, he goes by the name of Greg Mottola, and looks to get a similar vibe to his previous outing. I certainly hope that it delivers.



Fast & Furious. (2009, 99 minutes, PG-13, action) As the tag line says, "New Model, Original Parts." This fourth entry in the car-based series features the return of all four primaries from the original film, Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, and Michelle Rodriguez. They come together for director Justin Lin, making his second entry following Tokyo Drift. I truly cannot see this movie being any good, but it certainly looks like fun. I have no idea what the plot is, but the teaser trailer gave us a high energy action sequence that saw our heroes pulling off a daring heist of a gasoline land train. Will the rest of the movie match that energy? One can only hope.



Also opening this week, but not near me:

• Alien Trespass
• C Me Dance
• The Escapist
• Gigantic
• Paris 36
• The Song of Sparrows
• Sugar

Box Office Predictions
Will last week's top earner be able to hold on to the top spot for a second week? I think it is distinctly possibly, but I suspect the teen market will make a push for the top spot with the release of Fast & Furious. So, Monsters vs. Aliens will be ousted in favor of the new model. As for Adventureland, I suspect it will have a respectable open, but I doubt it will be anything spectacular. There is also the expansion of Sunshine Cleaning's expansion to consider, while not a wide release, it has been gaining solid notice and momentum that could carry it into the top ten.

Here is how I think it could play out.

Rank	Title	Box Office
1	Fast & Furious	$41 million
2	Monsters vs. Aliens	$32 million
3	The Haunting in Connecticut	$12 million
4	Adventureland	$10.5 million
5	I Love You, Man	$10 million
6	Knowing	$8 million
7	Duplicity	$4.5 million
8	Race to Witch Mountain	$3.5 million
9	Sunshine Cleaning	$3 million
10	12 Rounds	$2.5 million

Concert Review: Audible Thought at The Barking Frog (3/27/09 Beacon, NY)

By now, I am sure you are sick to death of hearing me talk about supporting the local music scene. Either you will or you won't, no amount of words from me will be able to convince you to of you don't, and if you do, my words won't matter as you are already out there. Let me just say that when you go out and support local artists, you will find a variety of music, both good and bad, watch bands as they improve at their craft, and possibly even make some friends. I know I have found my somewhat limited support of the local to scene to be immensely rewarding. Enough of this blathering, let's take a look at this night's show.

The day started like any other, I got up in the morning and went to work and waited for the clock to click over to 5:00. Once the magic hour hit I shutdown and got out of there, heading to my normal Friday hang out (that's right, a movie theater. You all know me too well). However, what came after the movie theater was a little more unusual. I headed across a couple of towns to a small bar called The Barking Frog. It may be small, but it is a comfortable place that doesn't cater to the uninhibited college student. This evening my friends in Audible Thought were scheduled to perform.

I arrived around a quarter to 10 to find a friend and former co-worker waiting there. I had just walked in the door and I was already being chastised for being late. While this was going on, the band was finishing setting up their equipment and doing their sound check. I could already tell it was going to be a fun night.

As we waited for the show to begin, I was talking with Lou (vocals) and Ryan (guitars) about how I am going to have to stop writing about them at some point. I have covered a number of their shows and I fear I will begin repeating myself. I have always been honest in my appraisals of them, but even still, there are only so many things you can say about them. Still, here I am, writing about them once again.

If nothing else, the band is becoming predictable when they play. They disappear for a few months and then play a show at The Chance in Poughkeepsie, NY, then a couple of weeks later they follow it up with one at The Frog in Beacon, NY, or vice versa. Perhaps one day they will get on a roll with their performance schedule. They have the talent to gather a good following around them given the opportunity. I could see them becoming the area's new Frail (a local act long since disbanded that had a loyal following and some killer tunes. I'll have to tell you about them sometime).

The one thing you can always count on from a show at The Frog is a bit more fun and a considerably looser atmosphere than at The Chance. Think of it as Spring Training versus regular season baseball. This is where they try out some new things, make a few more mistakes, toss in a few covers, and just play for the fun of it.

This performance was not one of their best, filled with little mistakes here and there. They played two sets of music, approximately forty-five minutes each, mixing up their original tunes with a few covers. One of those covers is a new one to their repertoire, Metallica's "Eye of the Beholder." You could tell it was one they recently learned, as it was filled with mistakes here and there, a missed drum beat here, a riff that runs a measure too long, vocals coming in early. Still, it was fun.

Another cover thy played is Drowning Pool's "Bodies." This is a fun one, but they played a little too fast making it sound rather odd. I later learned that if a song is played too fast it is drummer Mike Doyle's doing, as he wants to get it over with quick. I found that to be rather funny. Then there is their take on Skynyrd's "Simple Man." This is possibly their strongest cover tune and one they put their own spin on as they hit the gas towards the end, turning up the volume and the speed. It was a smooth as silk transition and really kicked things up a notch. I came to find out afterwards that this is not something they practice, it is more off the cuff on the stage. Impressive.

As for their originals, I was glad to find "Speed Demon" was not among them. I am just not much of a fan of that tune. On the other hand, they are doing good things with "Crushed," one of their newer and heavier cuts. "Can't Break Me" is another of my favorites that always seems to sound good.

I did notice a few different things during the performance. Ryan's solos seemed different on a few songs. I asked him about it afterwards and learned that many of his solos are not written, so they can change on a daily basis. I liked what he did here, he is a player to keep an eye on. I also noticed different drum fills and changes and such. When asking Mike about them, he told me that he has two different ways of playing each song, depending on whether he can hear the guitar and bass. I was intrigued by this, cannot say I ever encountered this type of forethought with the few other drummers I've spoken to.

Overall, the night was a blast, save for the interruption when the police came in to do a spot ID check. The guys were not in the best of forms, but there is no doubt they sounded good. I had the opportunity to hang out with them and some other friends, drink a few beers and stay out late. I also learned that Lou's wife, Tracy, was in a bad accident a few weeks ago. She was at the show, having a good time with everybody, and I have to say it was good seeing her out and I wish her all the best on her continued recovery.

Now, if only we could get Audible Thought to play out a bit more frequently. This summer, perhaps?