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David Poland

By David Poland poland@moviecitynews.com

Friday Estimates by Klady

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66 Responses to “Friday Estimates by Klady”

  1. abba_70s says:

    Wow..I’m suprised..I thought Friday’s gross for CARS would be a lot higher..The 7pm show I went to was sold out in 20 minutes (the doors opened at 6pm). Oh well, I’m sure the matinees will do well.

  2. Aamir says:

    In your list, shouldn’t DVC be higher than X3 since it grossed 5.4 and X3 did 4.8 … or am I missing something?

  3. Wrecktum says:

    Since animated films’ first Saturdays are all over the map there’s no telling at this point if Cars will finish over that magic $70m. I’m betting it will.

  4. Direwolf says:

    It looks to me like Saturday’s for prior Pixar films are up anywhere from 15% to 50%. Some other animated features rose almost 60%. As I noted in the other thread, there is also the fact that this is truly a summer weekend. A lot of the other animated features opened wehn kids were in school. Could that mean a stronger Sunday than a Sat-Sun declien fo -20% to -25%? Did that help the Friday gross? I guess that upper $60s is fine. Legs will be the key. Big surprise.

  5. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    I’m sure they’ll announce it made more than Ice Age 2 whether it really did or didn’t. Still, for a movie almost everyone was ragging on for a while this is a great opening. In fact, it reminds me of The Da Vinci Code in that people were starting to right it off by estimating much lower figures.
    I’m so freakin’ happy about A Prairie Home Companion. I’m just glad it didn’t crash and burn like David thought it would (and still does, man you really don’t want that movie to succeed at all do you? :P) and it’s already gonna pass the 2.5mil you estimated for it by the second day. That cast is simply to die for though, ain’t it. Streep, Tomlin, Lohan, Kline, Harrelson, Jones, Madsen, Reilly…

  6. jeffmcm says:

    Yeah, it’s strange when DP insists on low grosses or expectations for certain movies and then doesn’t review them or comment on them at all…especially when it’s a well-reviewed indie title that doesn’t have a huge marketing budget.

  7. Citizen R says:

    I’m surprised to see you still calling a final gross of less than $ 100 million for The Break-Up, Dave. With this hold, I think it’s a lock to pass $ 100 mil, even with Click on the horizon. It should be at $ 85-90 mil before Click is even released.

  8. RoyBatty says:

    Looks like X-3 gets to set a second record – the first film to make over $200M by grossing more than half that in it’s opening week.
    Also, looks like we have an answer for “Will OVER THE HEDGE hold it’s own against CARS?” 44% drop after last week’s remarkable 24% drop (for a film out 4 weeks AND following a holiday weekend) says “not really.”

  9. martin says:

    i must be retarded, but what does dave mean by $50 mill re: The Omen? It will be at 35-40 by the end of this weekend… and will finish up with probably 70-80. Not sure how 50 fits in to the equation.

  10. Aladdin Sane says:

    I took my little sister to Cars. She’s nine, and she was a little bored with it near the middle of the story, it seemed (although she said overall she liked it). I thought it was okay. Not really the best Pixar has to offer. Loved the little “For the Birds” moment though. Blink and you’ll miss it. Anyhow, I don’t think it’s going to be a word of mouth hit. It’ll have to make its money before Monster House…
    anyhow, bring on Superman Returns!

  11. jeffmcm says:

    “Looks like X-3 gets to set a second record – the first film to make over $200M by grossing more than half that in it’s opening week.”
    Huh? X-Men 3 is one of 5 movies to open at over $100m. The lowest grosser of the other 4 was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire with $290m.

  12. Adam says:

    Does anyone else think that “The Omen” would have been a great vehicle for Harrison Ford, and might have turned into a new hit for him?

  13. jeffmcm says:

    That would have been excellent casting. Peck’s performance is one of the best things about the original, and Ford in that part would have actually required him to act again…which he doesn’t seem to be too interested in doing.

  14. RoyBatty says:

    “Huh? X-Men 3 is one of 5 movies to open at over $100m. ”
    Not my point – I was using “record” in a facetious way, to underscore that it will have made over half of it’s eventual $220+ domestic gross in its opening week. In the “winner’s circle” of films over $200M that was rather dubious feat.
    But you actually bring up another record: X-3 gets to be the lowest grossing film to open over
    $100M (and the only film to open over $100M not to make at least $275M)
    Let’s see Fox put THAT on a Variety ad… 😉

  15. Joe Leydon says:

    Oddly enough, Gregory Peck starred in “The Omen” only after the lead role was offered to — and rejected by — Charlton Heston.
    I know that Holywood history is full of these bizarre casting stories. But this has always struck me, for whatever reason, as one of the oddest — right up there with Cliff Robertson (and, reportedly, Donald Sutherland, among others) turning down “Straw Dogs” before Dustin Hoffman signed on.
    And speaking of “Straw Dogs” — talk about a movie that still has a devastatingly potent impact after all these years!

  16. jeffmcm says:

    RoyBatty: I thought you meant something similar to that, but I didn’t want to put words in your mouth.
    Joe: Interesting, I never heard of any of that. I think both movies were vastly better off with both of their ultimate leading men…I can’t imagine Heston being able to pull off the key scenes in The Omen without going super-hammy. Indeed, Peck is better than the rest of the movie, as a whole.

  17. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    “i must be retarded, but what does dave mean by $50 mill re: The Omen? It will be at 35-40 by the end of this weekend… and will finish up with probably 70-80. Not sure how 50 fits in to the equation.”
    It made $13mil on it’s opening day, plus about $15mil or so this weekend. Do you really think there’s that much more juice left in The Omen’s tank? I think $50-$60mil is a very good estimate for The Omen and a number it should be happy with.
    Joe, please never ever mention Straw Dogs again. Worst. Movie. Ever. again. Worst. Movie. Ever. <-okay, not THE worst but definitely one my five least favourites ever.

  18. ThriceDamned says:

    Tell me Kamikaze, oh arbitrer of acceptable taste, why shouldn’t he mention Straw Dogs?…especially since it is a strong contender for Best. Movie. Ever.
    I have a fuzzy spot in my heart for people who get to tell other people what to and what not to like.

  19. Citizen R says:

    A number of box office sites have the weekend estimate for Cars up – $ 62.8 million. If that holds up, it’ll be a slightly lower internal multiplier than expected, but still the second biggest June opening weekend ever.

  20. Stella's Boy says:

    Straw Dogs is brilliant. I have a feeling you’ll be in the minority on this one Kamikaze.

  21. Geoff says:

    yeah, looks like Cars didn’t increase much on Saturday, but held well on Sunday to end up at about $63 million. Wow, now I wonder if it’s gonna break $200 million.
    Figure that Disney will find a way to make it happen, but if gearheads are your hope for strong legs, 3 Fast 3 Furious is coming on its second weekend.
    Like I said yesterday, The Breakup is heading towards $100 million, while Da Vinci and X Men are now assured of $200 million. Over the Hedge got knocked down a peg, this weekend, but that was to be expected with Cars. I still expect that film to gross over $150 million, the word of mouth seems to be strong, and might be stronger than cars.
    Is it me or does seem like EVERYBODY is underestimating Fast and the Furious, next weekend? I have not been watching much T.V., lately, so I am not sure if Universal’s marketing campaign has been too quiet. But I see no reason why it can’t open to $40 million and break $100 million, like the previous two. You gonna tell me that Paul Walker is going to be truly missed as as draw?
    Next weekend looks like a real wild card to me. Both Nacho and Fast could gross over $30 million or not. Who knows? What are your predictions?

  22. Chucky in Jersey says:

    Is “Prairie Home” a well-reviewed indie title? The Newark Star-Ledger gave that movie 2 stars — tells me a mixed review. The US distributor (Picturehouse) is owned by Time Warner — which also owns WB and New Line.
    Off the estimates I figure “Prairie Home” would have opened at least 20% better had the Regal chain not banned it. Oh well, Regal’s loss is every other theater’s gain.

  23. Krazy Eyes says:

    Why did Regal ban Prairie Home Companion?

  24. Josh Massey says:

    I think “Fast 3” is going to open with $30 million-plus, and once word of the “surprise ending” gets out, more people will be interested in seeing it. It’ll definitely be a hit.

  25. Citizen R says:

    Next weekend is such a pileup of new releases and holdovers that it’s a tough one to predict.
    The Fast and the Furious 3 and Nacho Libre have enough overlap in the demographics they’re chasing that they’ll likely hurt each other. Releasing Garfield 2 just a week after Cars is a headstrong move on Fox’s part. And The Break-Up will still be pulling enough business to put a dent in The Lake House’s potential upside.
    I’ll take a wild stab:
    $ 30 million for The Fast and the Furious 3, $ 25 million for Nacho Libre, $ 17 million for Garfield 2, and $ 12 million for The Lake House.

  26. Josh Massey says:

    “Garfield 2” reeks of “Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas” – a sequel nobody, including kids, wanted. I wouldn’t be surprised to see it open out of the top 5.
    I think $12 does sound about right for “The Lake House,” but that sucker is going to have LEGS if its any good.
    The mystery to me is “Nacho Libre.” Personally, I don’t know anybody interested in seeing it, and yet, it could be huge at the same time.

  27. Lota says:

    Nacho Libre will do fine–Jack Black is popular. I didn;t know anyone who wanted to see School of Rock, at first. every man woman and child loves Tenacious D and would go see him for that reason alone.
    Cars was in the marketing toilet–a near invisible campaign where I dwell. Friends’ kids thought about Cars like they did Chicken Little…not very good. they loved Ice Age II.
    Forced forced forced at gunpoint to see the Break Up. I don;t think Jennifer Aniston has longevity as a big screen actress. Ugh. Derailed was terrible. Give her her own Talk Show so I don;t have to see anymore Derailed-s or Along Came Polly-s.
    I really had no interest in The Omen. very ho hum last couple of weeks.
    I think over the Hedge will do better than Cars in the long run–more bodily functions humor will allow it to do so.
    Boys like cars, but boys like body-function referrals even better.

  28. jeffmcm says:

    Every trailer or commercial that I see for Nacho Libre makes me want to see it more.
    Fast 3 will open very strongly because its target audience is somewhat underserved this summer, I think, and they’re underneath the radar of tracking (not that I know what tracking says about it).
    Prairie Home Companion has 78% on Rotten Tomatoes, that sounds pretty well-reviewed to me, plus 4 stars from Ebert. Chucky, if you’re going to use a word like ‘banned’ you should really substantiate it with something that says more about Regal’s business decisions. Rumor-mongering doesn’t help anybody.
    Straw Dogs is indeed a great film. It may be too much for some people to handle.

  29. palmtree says:

    I wish FF3 well for Justin Lin’s career. The man has not had a single hit (Better Luck Tomorrow only did $4 m), and this new film seems to be a logical extension of it…showing the mass audience the bad boys of Asian culture. I admire him for being able to get the film made, but John Singleton’s audience for FF2 may not be the same one here. Can Bow Wow bring enough of them in? Will another cars-based movie open less than expected? Having said that, RV is hanging in there so maybe there is vehicular hope.

  30. TheGaffer says:

    I figured Break-Up would be decent b/c Jennifer Aniston’s few successes seem to be in instances where she can play it straight next to a male co-star that eats up the screen (Polly was palatable for this reason – Stiller’s a big personality. So is Vaughn.) And that may be why more people are seeing it.
    But it was still a C-. Aniston ain’t great, but it’s the writing that killed this one.
    Meanwhile, Prairie Home got pretty solid reviews overall, a ** from one reviewer is hardly consensus, no?

  31. Joe Leydon says:

    For what it’s worth: I brought my two favorite throw-down kids (8-year-old niece, 9-year-old nephew) to see a Saturday morning preview of “Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties”. They liked it a lot. So, apparently, did most of the other kids present. It’s actually an improvement over the first one. And the first, remember, did very well as theatrical (nearly $200 million wordwide gross) and DVD fare. Don’t be surprised if it turns out to do better than its current tracking might indicate.

  32. Tofu says:

    $30 million for Cars, FF3, and Nacho is possible. Cars is going to have legs beyond what anyone is expecting.
    Garfield isn’t expanding beyond the original’s $21 million opening.
    Break-Up has a chance of moving past $100 million, while Da Vinci will move past $200 million.

  33. Blackcloud says:

    Saw DVC today. The 4:00 show had a surprising amount of people. I liked the movie. It’s that rare movie that’s better than the book. Not a surprise, since the book is lame.
    Saw Over the Hedge after that. About a dozen or so people in the theater. I really liked it. Has some interesting things to say about modern consumer culture and life in suburbia. Much better than Ice Age 2.

  34. Citizen R says:

    The Omen has rolled up $ 31.1 million from international markets, putting it at $ 66.8 million worldwide (shouldn’t that be $ 66.6 million, hmmm). Its worldwide tally is going to look very good next to its costs.

  35. Tofu says:

    Scratch that, Break-Up will pass $90 million, along with Scary Movie 4. Will be impressive to see RV end at $70 million with V For Vendetta.

  36. Citizen R says:

    The Break-Up is already at $ 74 million. It would have to go into a sudden nosedive – unlikely, since its daily holds so far have been decent – to land short of $ 100 million. It should land at around $ 115 million.

  37. Tofu says:

    Oh yes, that predict was simply for next weekend.
    Anyone paying attention worldwide numbers? Da Vinci will likely easily pass $600 million after overseas returns for this weekend. It is looking at a final box office possibly twice the size of Mission Impossible 3.

  38. Citizen R says:

    “Oh yes, that predict was simply for next weekend.”
    Ah, sorry, I misunderstood.

  39. Lota says:

    yes Blackcloud, DVC was a “lame book”, and if the movie is slightly more entertaining yet not much better, then I struggle to think of a word for it. maybe a “phone book”.
    I preferred Over the Hedge to IA2, but really small kids seem to like IA2 better. It’s that f*cked up buck-tooth squirrel. He’s the Three Stooges rolled into one animal.
    I actually like a couple of Jennifer Aniston’s movies Mr Gaffer but yes, not specifically due to herself. I’;ve heard Jennifer Aniston compared to Reese Witherspoon’s perkiness etc., yet I can’t see any other comparison. JAs characters just never seem very magnetic.

  40. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    “Tell me Kamikaze, oh arbitrer of acceptable taste, why shouldn’t he mention Straw Dogs?…especially since it is a strong contender for Best. Movie. Ever.
    I have a fuzzy spot in my heart for people who get to tell other people what to and what not to like.”
    Geez settle down, it was a joke. I was just trying to point out that I hate that movie. What IS strange though is that I actually had more written after the “Worst. Movie. Ever.” bit. I originally wrote “Okay, not really. But it’s defionitely one of my 10 least favourites” I… don’t know where that bit went. Clearly the worst movie ever made is “National Security” with Martin Lawrence and Steve Zahn. Vile, racist, unfunny crap.
    Jeff, I may not like the movie but you have no right to sound like a condescending asshole towards me. “It may be too much for some people to handle.” wtf? Gimme some credit Jeff. It’s comments like that that makes me hate a lot of online forums/blogs. Not liking a movie doesn’t immediately equal not being able to handle it or simply not “getting” it as many people like to say. My issues with Straw Dogs are completely unrelated to not being able to handle it. (sorry, i haven’t had a nice vent in a few days. y’all are cool)
    Lota, you think Over the Hedge will do better than Cars in the long run? Cars already has half of Hedge’s gross in half weekend and Hedge is down to $10mil a week. Cars is almost certain to reach $200mil, Hedge is not.
    Nacho Libre I could easily see nestling in the $20mil that movies like School of Rock and The 40-Year-Old Virgin have made. But I could also see it’s PG rating making it much more. Fast and Furious 3 has been marketed on the cars and I think that’s enough to get it to $30mil. There’s hasn’t been a movie for teenage males since X-Men 3 so they’ll show up. On The Lake House, the thing with Sandy Bullock is, if people here the movie is good the audiences will come.
    Chucky in Jersey, is there a reason why we should all know what The Newark-Star Ledger is and why it’s film reviewer giving Prairie 2 stars should bother us. And why does Picturehouse being owned by Time have anything to do with anything?

  41. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    Cars already has half of Hedge’s gross in half one weekend and Hedge is down to $10mil a week.
    (I don’t know why i typed “half” again instead of “one”

  42. jeffmcm says:

    I apologize for my tone, which is always hard to make clear in written form. Wouldn’t you say, though, that the harshness of the violence is a major impediment towards people liking that movie, just as with A Clockwork Orange or United 93 or The Passion of the Christ? I intended no condescension, although ‘bottom 10’ is still, in my opinion, ridiculous for what is a very good movie.

  43. jeffmcm says:

    Let me put it this way: it doesn’t go anybody any good to toss of things like “oh by the way, movie X is one of the worst” without perhaps elaborating a little bit on why.

  44. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    Considering some of the things people say around here, I think I have every right to say stuff like that.
    But if you must, i direct you to my blog entry about it, which was (essentially) a whole lot of rambled comments on how bad it was and me being harsh towards it (considering I felt like I was being repeatedly bashed over the head with a blunt object, I thought it was only justified).
    http://kamikazecamel.blogspot.com/2006/04/wow-that-was-awful.html
    If you need further elaboration, I direct you towards http://kamikazecamel.blogspot.com/2006/04/6-most-annoying-screen-characters-ever.html this entry in which I talk about how the character played by Susan George is as dumb as a sign post. If you need any more let me know. 😛

  45. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    By the way, there are plenty of examples of people (such as Jeff) making blatant statements without clarifications in the prior thread (Greetings from the home of starbucks). The ones that stick in my minds most are calling Lindsay Lohan and “crazy teen star” and many many times just saying a certain is good and expecting everyone else should find it as such too.
    So, ya know… it’s not uncommon.

  46. jsnpritchett says:

    (I’m posting this in this thread, since my e-mails to both David and to the MCN editor were bounced back…)
    Contrary to what you say in your editorial comments below the link to the NY Times story on Fox, Tom Rothman and Jim Gianpulos *were* at Fox when Something About Mary was released. Rothman was the President of Production for the main Fox division, and Jim G. was the head of international at Fox. Rothman was absolutely instrumental in the development and production of the film, and any intimation otherwise is fallacious.
    In addition, Walk the Line was a Fox 2000 film–so it *was* created by a Fox specialty division.
    I’m not sure why you chose to ignore those facts, but I’d be curious to see if you’ll correct your own mistakes.

  47. Wrecktum says:

    Straw Dogs is second-rate Peckinpah. Neither great nor awful, like much of his early 70s oeuvre.
    My magic number for Cars was 70m. Guess I was wrong. I’m a little disappointed.

  48. RoyBatty says:

    Ugly, as is beauty, is in the eye of the beholder:
    Having sat through some hands-down turds of cinema, I always get a chuckle when someone names some bad-but-not-horrible film as “Worst. Movie. Ever.” As I seem to recall, several top-tier critics actually liked NATIONAL SECURITY (which I found simply “meh”)
    How about these stinkers if you want to talk truly terrible national releases (Troma and ilk don’t count, too easy):
    VIRUS
    SPECIES 2
    DREAMCATCHER – (filed in a local DVD store under “Holy Fucking Shit”)
    JERSEY GIRL – (the type of film Smith should parody not make)
    SATISFACTION
    THREE TO TANGO – (Matt Perry should do GLAAD benefits the rest of his life in penance)
    JAWS: THE REVENGE (Michael Caine missed his 1st Oscar for this piece of shit)
    CABIN FEVER
    I tried not to include too many horror titles, as producers can pretty much count on their fans not giving a shit (ie, Eli Roth being allowed anywhere near a camera after CABIN FEVER).
    Others…?

  49. Citizen R says:

    Showbiz Data’s figures today put the opening weekend of Cars at $ 58.9 million. If that’s the actual opening it’s a good bit lower than the $ 62.8 million estimate.

  50. Josh Massey says:

    The worst movie I’ve seen in a theater was, oddly, one many people liked: James Toback’s “Two Girls and a Guy.”
    I’m sure there are worse movies out there, but that was the least enjoyable theatrical experience of my life. And I saw “Breakin’ 2” on the big screen, mind you.

  51. Telemachos says:

    Isn’t it a little early for actuals to be out?

  52. grandcosmo says:

    DP,
    In your world where inflation doesn’t exist are you still paying $1.29 for gas?

  53. PetalumaFilms says:

    Kamikaze- I read your review of STRAW DOGS and have to say….Worst. Review. Ever. Well, definitely in my top 10 of worst reviews. STRAW DOGS is just plain excellent. It’s definitely not pretentious and it’s definitely unlike any movie I’ve ever seen before or since. It’s a total mind fuck and the way you are tossed back and forth between anger, arousal, empathy and fear is brilliant. The people making horror today should watch it to learn a thing or two. And, the film isn’t even horror. It’s a psychological thriller. Your review sounds like that of a 19 year old who’d rather be watching PULP FICTION for the umpteenth time. I like your posts but you’re just wrong on this one and I’m still not sure what you didn’t like about it from your “review.”
    I think NACHO LIBRE will be huge! It’s only rated PG and it has Jack Black so everyone is going to be able to go. Whether or not it has legs, I don’t know.
    And…
    Dave- what’s up with your dislike of PRARIE HOME COMPANION? I’m not trying to set you off again, but I haven’t seen a review from you or any specifics of what you dislike, but I have seen several snide remarks about it. Again, not trying to set you off…but what are your issues? I loved the film and hope it keeps on keeping on…

  54. palmtree says:

    “X3 will likely report as hitting $200,000,666”
    Another sign that Ratner is in fact the devil?
    Mr. Poland seems to have a blind spot for some films that he believes have little to no audience. Praire Home is too much of a radio audience…well guess what? They want to see movies too, just as DVC fans flocked to see their favorite book come to life. Incon Truth won’t go beyond the liberal hardcore…well guess what? It’s an issue that affects everyone rather deeply, even those who don’t like Gore.

  55. Citizen R says:

    The actuals are in from Box Office Mojo: Cars pulled in $ 60,119,509. The SBD figure must have been their estimate.

  56. jeffmcm says:

    The worst movie I’ve seen recently is something that has not been released yet but perhaps will later this year. It’s a WWI fighter-pilot movie called FLYBOYS and it is absolutely appalling on every level; bad directing, bad special effects, bad acting. Worst of all, it’s a war movie that seems to be more interested in providing video-game thrills than saying anything about the horrors of war.

  57. Chucky in Jersey says:

    “X3” is up to $202M+ in US/Canada. No, the gross did not end in 666. Neither did that of “The Omen”.
    Now, for the Bill O’Reilly wannabes who post here:
    The Star-Ledger is New Jersey’s largest newspaper. A lot of people won’t read New York papers but do read New Jersey papers. [Disclosure: I am employed at a newspaper that is a corporate cousin to the Star-Ledger.]
    The Picturehouse logo includes “A Time Warner Company” at the bottom. That phrase also appears below the WB shield and New Line film strips. Thus “Prairie Home” is NOT an “indie” movie.
    Regal is the largest US theater chain. A number of Regal-owned theaters (e.g., UA East Hampton, Regal Union Square) do very well with arty product. “Prairie Home” is aimed arthouse/upmarket.
    BTW, wasn’t jeffmcm called out not too long ago for blindly attacking anything he does not like?

  58. palmtree says:

    “Thus “Prairie Home” is NOT an “indie” movie.”
    Yes it is. Indie refers not to who is distributing it, but to who produced (ie. spent the money to make it). Picturehouse is in the WB family, but look at the list of production companies and you’ll see indie.
    Otherwise by that logic, El Mariachi is not an indie movie (Columbia distributed it).

  59. jeffmcm says:

    That was a difference of opinion.
    How does it make one a Bill O’Reilly wannabe if they don’t live in the New Jersey area and have never heard of the Star-Ledger?
    If you’re going to say that Prairie Home is not an indie movie, that means that the highest-grossing ‘indie’ movie this weekend was Lions Gate’s See No Evil. I think Altman’s movie has more ‘indie spirit’ than Gregory Dark’s slasher.
    We still don’t know any reason for Regal to have decided not to carry Prairie Home…there may be some smoke but there’s no evidence of fire.

  60. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    Chucky, why the hell should anyone know what the Star Ledger is? It’d be like me saying that Leigh Paatsch in the Herald Sun gave Colour me Kubrick 1 star out of 5 so it’s instantanously one of the worst reviewed movies of the year. 1) You don’t know who Leigh or The Herald Sun is and 2) Many other reviews have been favourable. One review doesn’t reach a concensus. (I just chose that example cause I like Leigh’s reviews and Kubrick was reviewed last week)
    Petaluma, this is where it gets ANNOYING. How come I get yelled at and told i’m just WRONG for saying I think Straw Dogs is a horrible movie, yet you can make a definitive statement such as “STRAW DOGS is just plain excellent”. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander ya know.
    Whether I’m in the minority or not, doesn’t matter. If people are gonna get upset at ME for saying an opinion on a movie, then I’m gonna get upset when they turn around think their opinion is the be all and end all and thus have more right to state said opinion.
    I’m all for psychoanalytical movies about violence, in fact, I watched Straw Dogs soon after watching the similarly themed A History of Violence, which I really liked. But everything about Dogs wrang false to me. I didn’t see it as a psychological thriller with any meaningful message, I saw it as a dull-as-dishwater exploitation-esque horror movie that had it’s own fantasy ideals that it was about something, which I didn’t think it was. If there’s one thing I hate more than just really bad movies, it’s really bad movies that think they’re important and about issues.
    And for the record, I’m 20 and have only seen Pulp Fiction twice (I’ve seen Kill Bill and Jackie Brown many more times). 😛
    I hate being this riled up, but I can’t help it when people make me.

  61. jeffmcm says:

    What is your comment re: Pulp Fiction supposed to mean? I think you mean that ‘I’m not into ultra-violent movies’ but it could also other things.

  62. jeffmcm says:

    Oh, I found what it was in reference to. Anyway, your above review of Straw Dogs makes a lot more sense now…I still don’t agree with you but I have a better sense of where you’re coming from.

  63. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    yeah, sorry. That review I posted on my blog was, as i said, my ramblings after watching the movie because i was in such a mood of detestment.
    On the matter of ultra violence, I’m torn. On some accounts it doesn’t bother me in the slightest (Kill Bill, certain horror titles, Clockwork Orance), yet in others (Passion of the Christ predominately) I can’t stand it.
    I should mention that the whole “men-must-be-violent-to-be-men” plot is not one I like. I think it’s cheap and stupid. It also doesn’t help that Susan George’s character annoyed the hell outta me. Man, she just never shut up.

  64. jeffmcm says:

    Aha, but here’s the thing, KCamel: Even thought the movie tells the story of Hoffman’s character being violent to become a man, I do not believe that the movie unilaterally endorses that position. I think Peckinpah presented it in order to critique it at the same time and present the complexities.

  65. KamikazeCamelV2.0 says:

    while the film may not entirely endorce the idea it definitely thinks men and violence go hand in hand and without violence certain men are perceived as weak and pathetic. The obviousness of Hoffman being a mathematician (or whatever he was, i can’t really remember other than he worked with numbers and a chalk board) and having glasses and wearing woolen sweaters was just too much. Like being hit over the head with a blunt object.
    In this case I think Peckinpah was ultimately saying men such as Hoffman’s character need some form of violence (or to let out the violence that is ultimately inside them) to fully consider themselves men (“I got ’em all!”)
    That’s what I got out of it, and it didn’t impress me as you can figure.

  66. jeffmcm says:

    ^^^I feel like I’m repeating myself, but I think the idea that Hoffman needed to express himself in violence is still debatable within the movie.

Quote Unquotesee all »

It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?

So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.

And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.

There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.

I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.

So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.

But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”

My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher

“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.

~ David Simon