Black Sheep @ The Box Office

A new installment in a major franchise and a remake with two A-list stars fail to connect with audiences this week while BLACK SWAN, a twisted film about ballet, playing on less than a hundred screens, leaps into the Top 10 to become the toast of the town.

The third Narnia picture, VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER, opens on top this weekend with $24.5 million, less than half of what the two previous installments did on their opening weekends. This minor victory prevented Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie from scoring what should have been a hefty debut for THE TOURIST. Instead they could barely manage to bring in enough to cover one of their salaries with a soft $17 million debut.

No the big Top 10 news this week is the appearance of BLACK SWAN at number 6 with $3.3 million from just 90 screens in North America. The Darren Aronofsky directed Oscar contender scored a poweful $37K per screen average, an extreme rarity in the Top 10. As the accolades continue to pour in during awards season, BLACK SWAN looks poised for a standing ovation.

Below the Top 10, another critical darling scores a per screen average that is more than double the size of BLACK SWAN. David O. Russell's incredible boxing film, THE FIGHTER, pulled in an average of $80K per screen on just 4 screens across the country. It goes wide next week. Meanwhile, Colin Firth's work on the talk show circuit has helped THE KING'S SPEECH net a healthy $31K per screen average in its third week of limited release. There wasn't much love for Julie Taymor's THE TEMPEST, with Helen Mirren, which earned but $9K per screen on only 5 screens.

NEXT WEEK: Reese Witherspoon returns to the big screen, 2500 of them actually, with HOW DO YOU KNOW, opposite Paul Rudd. YOGI BEAR goes after the family fare picnic basket on 3400 screens. TRON LEGACY finally races onto more than 3300 screens. As previously mentioned, THE FIGHTER expands to 2200 screens. And the touching John Cameron Mitchell film, RABBIT HOLE, opens gently on 5 screens.

Source: Box Office Mojo

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THE TOURIST

Written by Florian Henckel von Donnersmark, Christopher McQuarrie and Julian Fellowes

Directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmark

Starring Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Paul Bettany and Timothy Dalton

Frank Tupelo: You're ravenous.

Elise Clifton-Ward: Do you mean ravishing?

Frank: Yes, I do.

Elise: You're ravenous.

Some poor sap of a math teacher from Wisconsin is sitting on a train en route to Venice from Paris when it happens. A devastatingly beautiful woman enters his car and spots the empty seat in front of him. Her gaze throws him completely off balance and from the moment she sits down, he doesn’t stand a chance. Who is she? Why would she sit with him when she could sit with any man she wanted? You just know that by the time they get off the train, their lives will be desperately intertwined. This is how Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie, two of today’s biggest stars, meet in German director, Florian Henckel von Donnersmark’s first American foray, THE TOURIST. It’s all so old Hollywood but sadly it’s also all so transparently so.

Sometimes star power can have a blinding effect. The wattage can burn so bright that you don’t necessarily see how distracting it is from the actual film. And with stars as big as Depp and Jolie in your picture, it isn’t surprising that von Donnersmark, the man behind Oscar winner, THE LIVES OF OTHERS, didn’t notice that they were not necessarily the best choices for their roles. Depp, with his beautiful hair and instinctual charm, is anything but a believable sap. Still, that charm inevitably saves him from coming off farcical and his decidedly anti-Bourne jaunt across shackled rooftops is certainly amusing. Meanwhile, Jolie seems to have been directed to walk around like a fembot of sorts, cold and false, from her perfect walk to her supposedly British accent. They are stars for a reason though and before long, the impossibly pretty people in the pretty foreign place lull you into comfortable and classical state of intrigue.

The setup for THE TOURIST is straight out of a Hitchcock movie. All the elements of a tantalizing mystery are there but all the goods are given away upfront so there is nothing left to guess at. Of course, seeing as how we don’t live in classical Hollywood, modern necessities like twists and surprises must occur and they are neither twisted nor surprising but at least they aren’t insulting. And so like a real tourist on a mediocre vacation that promised to be so gorgeous in the brochure, the stay is acceptable, at times even enjoyable, but we are happy to know we are going home when the credits roll.

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THE FIGHTER

Written by Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson

Directed by David O. Russell

Starring Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Melissa Leo

Before a boxer sets foot in any ring, he most likely has a plan of attack in place. If he is serious about what he does, he has studied his opponent; he knows his strategies, his weaknesses. A great boxer is in control of the game even when it seems like he might not be; he can see the match straight through to the knockout. THE FIGHTER is just like that boxer and once the bell rings, signifying the fight has begun, it comes at you fast and hits you hard. You won’t even see it coming. It’s that good.

Everyone is a fighter in THE FIGHTER but there are two that fit the bill in a more technical sense of the word. Mark Wahlberg, a producer on the film, plays Micky Ward, the real life Lowell, Massachusets native and now retired junior welterweight boxing champion. Ward was on hiatus from professional boxing in the early ‘90’s and the film picks up as he is preparing for his comeback in 1993, with his brother, Dickie Ecklund (Christian Bale), also a former boxer, coaching in his corner. Ecklund’s serious crack problem does not allow for him to be in anyone’s corner but his own really and Micky must learn to fight his way out from brother Dickie’s shadow in order to become his own man.

Wahlberg gives a strong performance, giving THE FIGHTER a solid center to move around but part of Micky’s character is to allow the more dominant forces in his life control his surroundings. This allows for the supporting players to truly stand out. Bale is a twisted and tortured mess, a refreshing return to form. Meanwhile, Melissa Leo is pure, trash gold as Micky & Dickie’s manager mom. Even Amy Adams turns a quiet role as Micky’s love interest into something smoldering. Her fights with Mama Leo are almost as gruesome as the one’s in the ring.

As incredible as THE FIGHTER is, it would be nothing without the man in its corner, director, David O. Russell. Russell has crafted a taut picture that plays like its working the ring from every angle possible and placing the viewer in the middle of this barrage of punches that rarely lets up. Don’t worry; you get out alive. You aren’t the same though.

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Tis the Season: The National Board of Review

(Scroll over any film title to read the full Black Sheep review.)

The National Board of Review doesn't waste any time with irksome distractions, like nominations. No, they get right to it and what they got right to this year is David Fincher's THE SOCIAL NETWORK. Not only did the film itself take top honours as Best Film but Fincher earned an award for his direction and screenwriter, Aaron Sorkin, earned one for his screenplay. The support for THE SOCIAL NETWORK also elevated star, Jesse Eisenberg, as an official Oscar contender for his portrayal of Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, with his win here as Best Actor.

Other unexpected wins went to Lesley Manville as Best Actress in Mike Leigh's ANOTHER YEAR, a film that made the NBR Top 10, and Jacki Weaver as Best Supporting Actress in ANIMAL KINGDOM, a film that made the NBR Independent Top 10. The last acting award went to Christian Bale, as Best Supporting Actor, in David O. Russell's THE FIGHTER, another NBR Top 10 film of 2010. Notable absences in the film lists include BLACK SWAN, 127 HOURS and THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT. Meanwhile, the Debra Granik hopeful, WINTER'S BONE, has somehow graduated from independent to major player with its inclusion in the Top 10 and star, Jennifer Lawrence's win for Breakthrough Performance is another graceful step toward an Oscar nomination.

Here are the National Board of Review winners in the major categories:

BEST FILM

THE SOCIAL NETWORK

TOP 10 FILMS

ANOTHER YEAR

THE FIGHTER

HEREAFTER

INCEPTION

THE KING'S SPEECH

SHUTTER ISLAND

THE TOWN

TOY STORY 3

TRUE GRIT

WINTER'S BONE

TOP INDEPENDENT FILMS

ANIMAL KINGDON

BURIED

FISH TANK

THE GHOST WRITER

GREENBERG

LET ME IN

MONSTERS

PLEASE GIVE

SOMEWHERE

YOUTH IN REVOLT

BEST ACTOR

Jesse Eisenberg, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST ACTRESS

Lesley Manville, ANOTHER YEAR

BEST DIRECTOR

David Fincher, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Aaron Sorkin, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Chris Sparling, BURIED

For a full list of winners, visit The National Board of Review website at www.nbrmp.org

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Tis the Season: The Film Independent Spirit Awards

(Scroll over film titles for the full Black Sheep review.)

Last week, I was in Montreal on non-movie related business. It was consuming to say the least. Not only did I miss the announcement that James Franco and Anne Hathaway will be hosting the Oscars, but I also missed the nominations for the Film Independent Spirit Awards. This ceremony is always held the evening before the Oscars and honours the best in American independent cinema, including shout-out's to foreign entries and documentaries as well.

The 2010 nominees are a fantastic bunch with a couple of notable exceptions that could cripple Oscar odds right from the start. Leading the pack with seven nominations, is WINTER'S BONE, the "chilling" tale of survival in the Ozarks, with nods for Best Feature, Director (Debra Granik) , Lead Actress (Jennifer Lawrence), Screenplay (Granik and Anne Rosellini), Supporting Actress (Dale Dickey) and Supporting Actor (John Hawkes). The film is considered an underdog at the Oscars and this will certainly assist its Best Picture odds, as well as its actors' chances. Coming in next with 5 nods is the summer indie favorite, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT, from director, Lisa Cholodenko. Cholodenko earns nods for writing and directing, while the film nabs a Best Feature nod and stars Annette Bening and Mark Ruffalo earn acting kudos in their respective categories. The film has a good shot at the Oscar Top 10 and Cholodenko might nab a screenplay nod as well, but no nomination for Julianne Moore in such a competitive year here, where she should have easily been rewarded, is a very bad start for her.

The Best Feature category is rounded out by 127 HOURS, BLACK SWAN and GREENBERG. Of the five nominees, GREENBERG is the only entry I don't believe in. I doubt the love shown here will translate elsewhere either. RABBIT HOLE would have been a much stronger choice. Still, the John Cameron Mitchell film was honoured with screenplay and direction nods, as well as one for lead actress, Nicole Kidman and lead actor, Aaron Eckhardt. Meanwhile, Oscar front runner, THE KING'S SPEECH earns a slot in the Foreign Film category, the only one it could have hoped for. This will certainly be the first amongst many accolades for the Tom Hooper hopeful. I was also disappointed not to see more love for the Nicole Holofcener gem PLEASE GIVE, which took just one nod for screenplay.

The Independent Spirit Awards will be held on February 26, 2011 and hosted by Joel McHale, the star of television's "Community". Here are the major category nominees:

BEST FEATURE

127 HOURS

BLACK SWAN

GREENBERG

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

WINTER'S BONE

BEST DIRECTOR

Darren Aronofsky, BLACK SWAN

Danny Boyle, 127 HOURS

Lisa Cholodenko, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

Debra Granik, WINTER'S BONE

John Cameron Mitchell, RABBIT HOLE

BEST SCREENPLAY

Lisa Cholodenko, Stuart Bloomberg, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini, WINTER'S BONE

Nicole Holofcener, PLEASE GIVE
David Lindsay-Abair, RABBIT HOLE

Todd Solondz, LIFE DURING WARTIME

BEST FEMALE LEAD

Annete Bening, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

Greta Gerwig, GREENBERG

Nicole Kidman, RABBIT HOLE

Jennifer Lawrence, WINTER'S BONE

Natalie Portman, BLACK SWAN

BEST MALE LEAD

Ronald Bronstein, DADDY LONG LEGS

Aaron Eckhardt, RABBIT HOLE

James Franco, 127 HOURS

John C. Reilly, CYRUS

Ben Stiller, GREENBERG

For a full list of nominees and more information on the Film Independent Spirit Awards, visit their website, Spiritawards.com

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Spy Game (2001)

Genre: Crime/Action/Drama

Starring: Robert Redford, Brad Pitt, Catherine McCormack, Stephen Dillane, Larry Bryggman

1991, just as the cold war is about to end, the United States President is due to visit China in order to ink a trade deal. Days before the presidents visit, a CIA operative Tom Bishop (Pitt) attempts to break into a Chinese prison and rescue a British national, Elizabeth Hadley (McCormack). Bishop gets captured and his arrest puts the United States government and the CIA in an uncomfortable position, especially since Bishop was working on his own. If USA does not claim Bishop he would be executed in 24 hours, however, claiming him could put the trade deal at risk. Nathan Muir (Redford) is a mid-level CIA agent who recruited and trained Bishop. The top-level of CIA try to grill Muir in order to extract more information from him about Bishop and pin-point an incidence which would give them an excuse for not claiming him. Muir realises the ugly game that the CIA is playing and uses his all his skill and experience to save the young boys life. There is a very interesting plot surrounding the movie and it seems to have gotten all the correct things in place. Good cast, good plot but the only aspect that let it down was the lack of character and substance. The movie has enormous scope to become a very enticing watch, if only there was more excitement and feel attached to it. Anyhow, you can never go wrong with a Brad Pitt movie.

Thumbs up: Great plot and performances

Thumbs down: Movie needs more excitement

Rating: 7.4/10

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I (2010)

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Thriller/Action/Drama

Starring: Daniel Radciffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Toby Jones (voice)

The seventh installment of the revered Harry Potter series of children's books gets divided into two parts. The division probably reflected Voldemort and his horcruxes, but maybe not. Harry (Radcliffe) and Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy have destroyed two of the seven horcruxes, magical objects that hold the divided soul of Lord Voldemort (Fiennes). Voldemort despises Muggles or non-magical people and wishes to put an end to them, much to the disagreement of other magical folk. After Dumbledore's tragic death, Harry is left with the task of finding and destroying the 5 remaining horcruxes. Without destroying them, he cannot eventually kill Voldemort. In the previous movie, Harry and Dumbledore found a locket which is supposed to be one of the horcruxes, however, this locket turned out to be a fake, in which the original was stolen by a certain R.A.B. Harry, along with his friends Ron (Grint) and Hermione (Watson) are on a quest for R.A.B and the remaining horcruxes. As a personal opinion, I didn't particularly enjoy the seventh book and the movie reflected just the same. Like the previous movie, this one too simply picked up the major scenes of the movie and glued them together without making any logical sense. For someone completely unfamiliar with the book, this movie is a complete waste, in fact, many people who have read the book might feel a bit lost at some parts too. There was little attempt in making the movie exciting and even the parts which were slightly more exciting were either cut short for the sake of conserving screen time or were just plain boring. A huge disappointment and an outright insult to the book, felt as if it was made for the sake of being made.

Thumbs up: Special effects

Thumbs down: Bad editing, unexciting and boring

Rating: 5.9/10

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