Thompson on Hollywood

Weekend Box Office Top Ten: 'Identity Thief' First Breakout of 2013 Amid Weak Field

Box Office

A weekend standout amid weather closings, "Identity Thief" outdid expectations for a terrific opening. While a number of recent releases and older Oscar contenders held up well (following the depleted Super Bowl weekend), most or all of the Top 10 films are successes. So what's the worry?

By Tom Brueggemann
|
February 10, 2013 1:04 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

'Argo' Wins Again at USC Scripter Awards

Awards

Unstoppable awards juggernaut "Argo" won yet another award Saturday night as New York screenwriter Chris Terrio, Wired journalist Joshuah Bearman ("The Great Escape") and ex-CIA analyst Tony Mendez ("The Master of Disguise") won the 25th annual Scripter Award. The USC Scripters go to adapted scripts as well as the original writers. It may have been just as well that the expected Scripter winners, "Team of Rivals" author Doris Kearns Goodwin and playwright/screenwriter Tony Kushner, were snowed in on the East Coast.

By Anne Thompson
|
February 10, 2013 2:42 AM
|
0 Comments

More:

Friday Box Office: 'Identity Thief' Outpaces Weak Pack

Box Office

The good news: Universal's Melissa McCarthy comedy "Identity Thief" scored the best Friday gross of any film so far this year. Battling both a Northeastern blizzard-- which closed theaters across the most populated stretch of the country-- and inferior reviews, it easily surpassed the first-day gross for "Bridesmaids" (just under $8 million in May 2011), which, propelled by great word of mouth, stuck around for months to gross a total $169 million. The bad news: the rest of the box office.

By Tom Brueggemann
|
February 9, 2013 2:48 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

Berlin: Damon on Affleck’s ‘Rough Spot,’ 'Promised Land'’s Bomb, and Berlin’s Airport Debacle

Festivals

At a press conference following the screening of his and Gus Van Sant’s "Promised Land" at the Berlinale today, Matt Damon was asked what the chances of Ben Affleck’s "Argo"winning the Academy Award, and if he was tired of talking about his friend and business partner. “His life is so interesting, I never get tired of talking about him,” said Damon with a smile. “He’s been on a roller coaster for the last fifteen years.”

By Tom Christie
|
February 8, 2013 7:23 PM
|
2 Comments

More:

Berlin Review: Tragi-Comedy 'Act of Killing' Confronts the Killer Inside (TRAILER)

Festivals

With his documentary "The Act of Killing," Joshua Oppenheimer has reset the bar for tragi-comedy. As in, don’t even bother trying, Hollywood. Ever again. In fact, why don’t we just dispense with next year’s Oscar race right now and give both the best documentary and the best feature award to this film? It even has a musical within it, so it could take that category at the Globes, too.

By Tom Christie
|
February 8, 2013 6:56 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

Immersed in Movies: Assessing the Production Design Oscar Race

Awards

If there is one word that best describes the five Oscar nominees for production design, it's upheaval. In "Anna Karenina," it's about the crumbling 19th-century Russian aristocracy. In "The Hobbit," Bilbo's comfortable life is turned upside down when Gandalf recruits him to help the dwarves take back their homeland. In "Les Misérables," the gritty adaptation of the celebrated musical evokes more of the political struggle to rid the inequality of 19th century France. In "Life of Pi," a boy endures a perilous spiritual journey alone on the ocean with a mysterious tiger. And in "Lincoln," the legendary 16th President struggles to end slavery and the Civil War and find peace of mind and his place in history.

By Bill Desowitz
|
February 8, 2013 4:03 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

State of the Oscar Race, Reading the Oscar Nominees Lunch Tea Leaves (VIDEO)

Awards

As of Friday, February 8, Academy members can vote for the Oscars, right up to February 19. Many have already received their paper ballots, and three have anonymously revealed their votes to the LA Times. All they reveal is that this year, more than most, the race is wide open and hard to call. "It's the best collection of movies in 90 years," says Harvey Weinstein...

By Anne Thompson
|
February 8, 2013 3:32 PM
|
4 Comments

More:

Screenvision Unveils Pre-Show Featurette of Stars at Sundance in 2,300 Theaters

News

Screenvision has teamed with Starz and Vanity Fair to provide moviegoers with a look at Hollywood stars at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The featurette will screen as part of the pre-show in Screenvision's 2,300-strong theater network on February 8.

By Beth Hanna
|
February 8, 2013 2:25 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

Best of the Week: DGA and Art Directors Guild, Berlinale Opens with 'Grandmaster,' Weinstein Q&A and More

News

The best stories of the week from TOH!

By TOH!
|
February 8, 2013 2:24 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

Berlin Market Roundup: New Adaptation from 'Terabithia' Author, Alba Stars in 'Weightless,' Dinklage in 'Long Way Home' and More

Festivals

Westend Films is teaming with Bob Barney's new label Picturehouse for "The Great Gilly Project," the latest adaptation from "Bridge to Terabithia" author Katherine Paterson. Kathy Bates and Danny Glover are attached to star, while Stephen Herek ("101 Dalmations") is set to helm. The film centers on a wise-cracking foster child who meets her match in unconventional foster mom Maime Trottoer (Bates).