BYOB – Weekender
The return to LA is about to begin. I am looking forward to sitting down, without the mania around me, and considering the fullness of this last 10 days. There are movies to discuss (Hamlet 2, Man On Wire, In Prison All My Life, Choke, Momma’s Man, and others), business to consider, and the future of indie to think about.
Meanwhile, discussions about strike discussions are fruitless. The deal will soon be done, barring insanity on either side. The deal will be, as it always was going to be, what the studio side was willing to do. The difficult question of whether the strike was necessary will forever be conjecture. (There are pressures brought to bear that go beyond deal points. “How profitable was the strike to the AMPTP side?” is a story that will be hard to write.) But we all need perspective, not inflamatory gossip, right now.
In any case, I have miles and miles to go before I stop drivng. Box office stuff should be up on MCN soon. Have at it all…
Cloverfield does not open on this side of the Atlantic until next week, but it looks like its box-office business was savaged as much as it savages New York in the movie. I could be all wrong (hard to tell from this far away), but it would appear that the word of mouth after the initial release has not given it legs.
^^^ I think Rambo and Meet the Spartans are definitely factor into the steep drop off.
I have no artistic delusions of granduer about me. Anyone else want to pool some money together, start a production company, grab a few B-to-C-listers, and knock out a super cheap parody movie? We can even do it on DV, Cloverfield-style, and watch the money roll in…
….and the fact that mainstream moviegoers apparently detested “Cloverfield” (hence the “C MINUS” Cinemascore rating), and are apparently spreading poisonous w.o.m., is the most obvious reason for its precipitous decline.
The opening day figure for “Spartans” is a cause for alarm, however.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the braintrust (I use that word loosely) behind Fox’s lameass parody flicks are already prepping a “Cloverfield” spoof for release next January. Does anyone with an IQ above 15 even like these things??? Ugh.
The only silver lining is that “Spartans” and the sickeningly violent “Rambo” are both destined to be one weekend wonders–sort of like “Cloverfield” apparently was. Of course, “C” was a much better, and certainly more interesting, movie.
Nice to see sturdy legs on “27 Dresses.” I think there should be little doubt that Heigl is indeed the real deal.
And apparently Paramount Vantage has absolutely no idea how to market an urban dance flick. “How She Move” is better than either “Stomp the Yard” or “You Got Served,” and those opened huge in previous Januarys. Go figure. Even taking into account the much smaller screen count, that’s a pitiful opening day figure.
I’m in. How much do you think it would take to get Tara Reid? 5 bucks?
“….and the fact that mainstream moviegoers apparently detested “Cloverfield” (hence the “C MINUS” Cinemascore rating), and are apparently spreading poisonous w.o.m., is the most obvious reason for its precipitous decline.”
wow, was not aware. I’m glad not to be one of those people. The most intense movie experience I’ve had in the last 10 years.
movieman:
How She Move lacked any “name” stars to legitimize it with the average moviegoer. Those other movies you mentioned had hip-hop/R&B artists to appeal to fans.
I think the mainstream rejection of Cloverfield is also a condemnation of the movie’s hype and secrecy. If they had thrown the monster in the trailer, I don’t think the hatred or word of mouth would have been nearly as bad.
sky_capitan:
I was thinking a bottle of vodka, but $5 would probably do the trick.
…and those movies also had marketing teams that knew how to attract their target demo.
I’m not sure why P/V even bothered: they must have been thinking about the future dvd profits.
And now a spoiler rant against CLOVERFIELD in
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WHAT A BUNCH OF BULLSHIT! Let me get this right: you put these motherfuckers through hell. You have them lose a brother and friend a long the way. Including most of the friends at that party who Marlena claims that monster ate.
You have them overcome a rube goldbergian stepple chase with two buildings and have them save their IMPAILED FRIEND. Yet you lack the balls to represent HUMANITY by having them survive? There are tens of thousands of stories of people surviving real MONSTERS (aka the dregs of humanity) through nights more harrowing than a monster attack. YET YOU KILL THEM ALL OFF? YOU KILL OFF YOUR NARRARTOR FOR NO GOOD REASON? What a bunch of shit.
However, the way this movie treats some characters that makes some paper, and truly tortures them over the course of the film is one thing. It’s another thing all together to act as if OUR MILITARY CANNOT DEFEAT A MONSTER WITH THE MOST GLARINGLY OBVIOUS WEAKNESS! IT HAS TWO MEMBRANES ON THE SIDE OF IT’S HEAD, FILLED WITH BLOOD, THAT EXPAND AND CONTRACT AS OFTEN AS THAT THING BREATHES!
Yet — the US MILITARY who are not only known for brawn but for smarts — cannot figure out how to use the COUNTLESS MILITARY IMAGING SATELLITES AND LASER GUIDED MISSLES TO SHOOT THAT THING IN THE HEAD? Again, what a bunch of bullshit.
That’s pretty much what I am left with feeling as a person who has seen this movie; “What a bunch of billshit.” You torture characters who are making you paper for no other reason then those of the deus ex machina. You have them survive the night only to kill them off for no other reason outside of a failed attempt to make your film even more realistic. Yet you really come up with some bullshit by making your monster so easy to kill, but making one of the most high-tech militaries in the history of the world too damn STUPID to utilize the technology that can rip a FREAKIN HOLE in the side of the monsters head. This movie is bollocks. Pure and simple.
Oh yeah. I was freakin shocked that this movie did not end with Lou Reed’s “PERFECT DAY.” If you want to go maudlin with that ending. Why not take it over the top? Why not play a song that implies Rob and Beth had a perfect day, but died a horrific death a month later. What a piece of shit. What a total and utterl manipulative piece of shit.
IO, you’re trying to apply logic to a movie that doesn’t require there to be any. It’s sole purpose was to put the viewer in the movie of complete chaos. I think it works.
Have you never seen a Godzilla movie, who’s seemingly indestructible?
Honestly, did you really think this movie was going to have a happy ending if we’re seeing it as “Government Property?” That was a red flag.
Brack; it’s shit statements such as above that let people make movies like Cloverfield time and time again. If you want to be an apologist for this movie. May I suggest you be an apologist for a better movie? This movie is a piece shit.
“IO, you’re trying to apply logic to a movie that doesn’t require there to be any. It’s sole purpose was to put the viewer in the movie of complete chaos. I think it works.”
This is your response? You are defending the movie with a premise that has nothing to do with this MOVIE. This movie is supposed to be a real-life account of a survivor’s tale through the NYC during a monster attack. It’s not supposed to be about COMPLETE CHAOS. Seriously, how can we have a discussion when you ignore the premise of the movie?
“Have you never seen a Godzilla movie, who’s seemingly indestructible?” Do you pay attention to anything? You fuck up the premise of Cloverfield with your own interpretation that has nothing to do with the movie, then you site GOJIRA. Read this well: GOJIRA HAS A REASON BEING INDESTRUCTIBLE. He also does not come complete with HEAT SOURCE CREATING MEMBRANES ON THE SIDE OF HIS HEAD. Again, I am not trying to be all sorts of snarky with you, but you are simply apologizing for a movie you like without anything substantial. This movie had a monster that would have been killed within two minutes in any other context but a monster movie where the US MILITARY apparently has the technological advantage of WWI soldiers.
“Honestly, did you really think this movie was going to have a happy ending if we’re seeing it as ‘Government Property?’ That was a red flag.” Again, if you know anything about this world, then that’s not a red flag. It’s just a statement of where they found the tape.
Whateverthecase, this is a bleak fucking movie. It’s bleak for no good reason. I would go as far to say that this is true TORTURE PORN because it represents characters being put through their paces for no other reason then a truly gifted writer writing a bullshit by the numbers script.
This movie is so bleak. When it did not have to be. It could have been a survivor’s tale. When it leaves you with an hour and a half of watching some people who are making some paper. Being taken out for no other reason than they have paper. Shit. Dawn of the Dead had a more uplifting ending and it dealt with characters having to face a ZOMBIE HOLOCAUST! What a bunch of bullshit Cloverfield turned out to be.
For a movie as boring, annoying and trifling as Cloverfield, IO sure has strong opinions on it.
“This is your response? You are defending the movie with a premise that has nothing to do with this MOVIE. This movie is supposed to be a real-life account of a survivor’s tale through the NYC during a monster attack. It’s not supposed to be about COMPLETE CHAOS. Seriously, how can we have a discussion when you ignore the premise of the movie?”
There’s a difference between premise and purpose. I mentioned the purpose, while you’re fixated on the premise. It is a real account based on the footage of what we saw.
“Do you pay attention to anything? You fuck up the premise of Cloverfield with your own interpretation that has nothing to do with the movie, then you site GOJIRA. Read this well: GOJIRA HAS A REASON BEING INDESTRUCTIBLE. He also does not come complete with HEAT SOURCE CREATING MEMBRANES ON THE SIDE OF HIS HEAD. Again, I am not trying to be all sorts of snarky with you, but you are simply apologizing for a movie you like without anything substantial. This movie had a monster that would have been killed within two minutes in any other context but a monster movie where the US MILITARY apparently has the technological advantage of WWI soldiers.”
IO, you know NOTHING about this monster. No one does. To pretend like you do is laughable (heat source creating membranes? how are you so certain?). And it’s pointless, as it really doesn’t matter. I always find the unknown much more frightening than the known.
“Again, if you know anything about this world, then that’s not a red flag. It’s just a statement of where they found the tape.”
And if you know anything about movies, you could figure out that this was a warning signal. The fact that it says the tape was found at “Site Whatever: formerly Central Park” should tell you that some shit went down, and that the owners of this tape probably are DEAD. Then again, we didn’t exactly see them die, so it’s up to you to decide if they lived or not, since the videotape was not destroyed.
“Whateverthecase, this is a bleak fucking movie. It’s bleak for no good reason. I would go as far to say that this is true TORTURE PORN because it represents characters being put through their paces for no other reason then a truly gifted writer writing a bullshit by the numbers script.”
You could say that about any movie ever made about people who go through hell. And how do you know the monster is taking any pleasure in destroying the city? I thought the definition of torture porn is for the people who are inflicting pain/torture are taking some sort of enjoyment from it. I think it’s naive to not consider the possibility of the characters not making it. And so what if it’s bleak? That’s not a flaw.
Wrec: it’s a stupid fucking movie. I am not supposed to be able to unleash on stupid fucking movies? Really? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm?
Brack, really, you make no sense. If you have TWO EYES and a FUNCTIONING BRAIN you can figure out how to take out that monster. You dont have to know somethings name in order to know how to kill it. Seriously… those two membranes on the side of his head are a WEAK POINT. If you blow them up. He dies. Does that not seem that obvious to you? Let me guess, you do not get why people explode from the bites?
Whateverthecase, this movie is bleak and I am not naive. I simply think it’s ridiculous to expect people to sit through that much tragedy and torture of characters without any catharsis. It’s also naive to not realize how the body can bend in break in ways a fine quality SONY HD CAM would not.
The thing of it is this brack. I actually thought about this movie. While you were titilated by it. Excuse me for not exactly being overwhelmed by a movie that is bleak, heartless, and fucking stupid. It’s just so fucking stupid, that it pisses me off.
Whoever said Cloverfield has to be a survivor’s tale? The movie isn’t called “Cloverfield: The Story of Some Yuppies Who Lived.”
Besides, who knows for sure if they died anyway? If you stick around after the credits you hear someone (I assume it’s the guy) whispering. So maybe they lived anyway.
IO, no wonder you hate those torture porn movies. Apparently you don’t like to be disturbed and want everything hunky dory with little smiling clouds at the end. Which, by the way, is how those movies usually end anyway, with the villains dead. Why don’t you like Hostel? The hero lives!
By the way, the reason the monster couldn’t be killed by shooting those membranes is because it was from another dimension and what basically happened is, it exists on several planes of existence. So while the exterior of the creature exists in our world, its internal organs and everything is safe and sound in the other dimension. So it’s virtually unkillable.
“Brack, really, you make no sense. If you have TWO EYES and a FUNCTIONING BRAIN you can figure out how to take out that monster. You dont have to know somethings name in order to know how to kill it. Seriously… those two membranes on the side of his head are a WEAK POINT. If you blow them up. He dies. Does that not seem that obvious to you? Let me guess, you do not get why people explode from the bites?”
IO, this wasn’t a video game for your Xbox. The army couldn’t take it out very easily. Those membranes obviously couldn’t be penetrated. If they could, the monster would’ve been dead very early in the movie. But it wasn’t killed, so obviously your theory is wrong. We didn’t see the monster long enough to see that anyway, you’re only speculating.
“Whateverthecase, this movie is bleak and I am not naive. I simply think it’s ridiculous to expect people to sit through that much tragedy and torture of characters without any catharsis. It’s also naive to not realize how the body can bend in break in ways a fine quality SONY HD CAM would not.”
Have you ever watched any of the monster/disaster movies of the past where lots of innocent people are killed, but the “main characters” always survive? We always assume that thousands/millions die in these things, yet we NEVER see if from perspective of the people that bite it. Well, this wasn’t one of them, and it was a nice refreshing change of pace from that. And fine Sony HD cam can survive nukes? Wow, good to know, but I’m sure that’s not common knowledge.
“The thing of it is this brack. I actually thought about this movie. While you were titillated by it. Excuse me for not exactly being overwhelmed by a movie that is bleak, heartless, and fucking stupid. It’s just so fucking stupid, that it pisses me off.”
I don’t think titillated would be the right word. I was fearful for the characters. I didn’t think “oh boy, another one is dead!” I got caught up in the chaos, and it was crazy, and really felt terror for those characters. I simply disagree that you say it’s stupid, I thought it was a pretty realistic display of what we’d see from raw footage if such events could really happen.