This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: May 18, 2010
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Lionsgate, New Line, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adventure, Biopics, Drama, Family, Foreign, Foreign Language, Horror, Romance, Science Fiction, Comedy, Home Entertainment, Lists, New Releases,
Here are some of the DVD and Blu-ray options available this Tuesday:
- Apocalypse Now: Redux: DVD
- Carlito’s Way: Blu-ray
- Extraordinary Measures: DVD, Blu-ray
- The Girl on the Train: DVD
- Invictus: DVD, Blu-ray
- L.A. Story: DVD
- The Messenger: DVD, Blu-ray
- The New Daughter: DVD, Blu-ray
- Outlander: Blu-ray
- The Spy Next Door: DVD, Blu-ray
- Valentine’s Day: DVD, Blu-ray
- Walkabout: DVD, Blu-ray
Make sure to also check out the TV-on-DVD options for this week.
Read More 
| Amazon
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Morgan Freeman Hasn’t Received Mandela’s Approval
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Warner Bros, Biopics, Drama, Political,
Nelson Mandela has seen Invictus - but no one knows if he was happy with how he is depicted in the film.
Morgan Freeman, who was just nominated for his portrayal of the former South African president, admits he was left frustrated as the freedom fighter refused to give his opinion after being treated to a special big-screen showing.
“Yes, I know that he has seen it. You know, he won’t say what he thinks of it. So you have to kind of gather from his reactions,” Morgan said over the weekend at the film’s London premiere. “I was sitting next to him and when I first came on the screen he said, ‘I know this fellow.’”
However, the 72-year-old star did confirm that South Africans accepted him playing the legendary historic figure, and even called him by the honorary title bestowed upon elders of Mandela’s clan - Madiba.
“You know, South Africans starting calling me Madiba. I was totally accepted. I remember getting out of a car one time and I was walking into a stadium and someone shouted, ‘You walk like him, you walk like him!’, people were giving me lifts,” Freeman recalled.
2010 Academy Award Nominations
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, FOCUS, Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Weinstein Company, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Music, Musicals, Period, Science Fiction, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Awards, Celeb News, Lists,
After the list of Academy Award nominees were announced this morning, two movies rose to the top of the pack. Avatar and The Hurt Locker - helmed respectively by James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow - both lead the field with nine nominations each. Thankfully, the formerly married directors still get along.
Even though this will be the first time since 1943 (when Casablanca won) that ten films will go up for Best Film, this year’s list only revealed a handful of surprises. Those who have been following other ceremonies during this awards season saw very little changes in the acting categories.
Here are some of the noteworthy mentions/omissions from today’s nominations:
- Many had hoped The Hangover, Star Trek and/or (500) Days of Summer would go up for Best Picture. Many were left disappointed.
- Is this the first time Daniel Day-Lewis wasn’t nominated for simply breathing?
- Acting queen Meryl Streep is up now up for her sweet 16th nomination for her role in Julie & Julia. (I believe I will one day see her 20th.)
- Speaking of leading women, there will be three newcomers going up against vets Streep and Helen Mirren (The Last Station): Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side), Carey Mulligan (An Education) and Gabourey Sidibe (Precious)—someone who wasn’t even an actress to begin with!
- Disney/Pixar’s Up will be double-dipping it this year. The feature has been nominated in both the Best Film and Best Animated Film categories.
Click to continue reading 2010 Academy Award Nominations
Read More | Oscars
Box Office Breakdown: Avatar Dominating the Globe
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Weinstein Company, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Music, Period, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Sports, Box Office, Lists,
An absence of new movies meant very little change for the overall box office standings. A lack of competition, though, meant lots of movement for Avatar.
Over the weekend, the sci-fi extravaganza packed an additional $68.5 million to its already-impressive domestic total. The figure - a record for any entry in its third week - brought the film that much closer to becoming one of the top domestic grossers ever. Avatar ($352.1 million) is now only days away from passing 10th place finisher Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith ($380.3 million).
Internationally, James Cameron is just a few rungs away from one of his other films. In just 17 days, the 20th Century Fox release has pulled in approximately $1.02 billion. That places Avatar behind only Titanic ($1.84 billion), The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King ($1.12 billion) and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest ($1.07 billion).
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Avatar Dominating the Globe
Read More | Variety
Box Office Breakdown: Sherlock, Avatar Both Winners
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Weinstein Company, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Musicals, Period, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Sports, Box Office, Lists,
A collection of wide releases contributed to the biggest weekend for movies in box office history.
Over the past three days, theatergoers shelled out over $275 million—a good portion of that going to Avatar. Despite slightly disappointing results last week, an improvement in weather - and strong word of mouth - helped the sci-fi flick pack on another $75.2 million to its $212 million domestic total.
Meanwhile, Sherlock Holmes debuted in second place with first place-like numbers. The Guy Ritchie directed-film started its run with a record breaking haul on Christmas Day, only to fall behind the sci-fi entry. But Warner Bros. really has nothing to complain about. Holmes still closed the weekend with $62.4 million in ticket sales.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Sherlock, Avatar Both Winners
Read More | Variety
Box Office Breakdown: Avatar Stifled by Blizzard
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Music, Remakes, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Sports, Box Office, Lists,
How big could Avatar‘s debut really been? Thanks to a blizzard, we may never know. James Cameron’s first feature in 12 years pulled in approximately $77 million this weekend, enough to win first place but slightly lower than expectations. The movie, which was produced for around $310 million, never reached its full potential due to weather conditions on the East Coast.
As it was, the movie came in behind 2007’s I Am Legend for the best December opener ever. (The Will Smith film debuted to $77.2 million.) The 3D entry also ranked sixth - behind Star Trek, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and New Moon - for domestic debuts this year.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Avatar Stifled by Blizzard
Read More | Yahoo! Movies
2010 Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations (Film)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories:
On January 17, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association will award their choices for the 2009-10 film season. But on January 23, the people who star in those movies will declare their winners at the 16th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Here are some of the noteworthy mentions from this year’s list of film nominees:
- Precious, Inglourious Basterds, Up in the Air lead the pack with three mentions each.
- Although Nine received a nomination for Best Ensemble, there were no individuals honored. (Could that be a Daniel Day-Lewis first?)
- He may have been snubbed by the Golden Globes, but Jeremy Renner is getting his love now. The Hurt Locker star is up for Best Actor category.
- Since the SAGs don’t differentiate between comedy and drama, Sandra Bullock, Meryl Streep and Matt Damon will have to settle for one nom each.
The SAG Awards will air Saturday, Jan. 23 on both TBS and TNT.
(You can find the full list of film nominees after the jump. Click here for the TV nominations.)
Click to continue reading 2010 Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations (Film)
Read More | Screen Actors Guild Awards
2010 Golden Globe Nominations (Film)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Foreign, Foreign Language, Musicals, Period, Political, Romance, Science Fiction, Comedy, Sports, Awards, Lists,
The 2009-10 awards season kicked into high gear this morning with the official announcement of the Golden Globe nominations. The event - which will be hosted by funnyman Ricky Gervais - will take place just over two weeks before the Academy Award contenders are revealed.
Here are some of the noteworthy mentions from this year’s list of film nominees:
- Up in the Air leads all film nominations with six. The musical Nine follows with five while Avatar and Inglourious Basterds tied with four.
- As expected, Meryl Streep has received another two mentions—unfortunately, they are both in the Comedy category (Julie & Julia, It’s Complicated). On the surprising end, Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side, The Proposal) and Matt Damon (Invictus, The Informant) both have two nominations as well—thankfully, in different categories.
- Talk about drama! An ex-husband and wife will be competing against each other in the Best Director race. (Avatar‘s James Cameron and The Hurt Locker‘s Kathryn Bigelow.)
- Despite backing from both Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey, Precious is not a contender for Best Film. Mo’Nique and Gabourey Sidibe were both recognized for their excellent acting though.
The 67th Golden Globe Awards airs Jan. 17 on NBC.
(You can find the full list of film nominees after the jump. Click here for the TV nominations.)
Click to continue reading 2010 Golden Globe Nominations (Film)
Read More | Hollywood Foreign Press Association
Film Critics Honor The Hurt Locker, Mo’Nique, Christoph Waltz
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Adaptation, Animation, Biopics, Documentary, Drama, Family, Foreign, Foreign Language, Music, Period, Political, Comedy, Awards, Celeb News, Lists, Scripts,
Never heard of The Hurt Locker? You soon will.
Despite opening last summer in limited release, the war drama about an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit in Iraq has already collected a large number of awards.
The movie has now been honored by critics in New York, Boston and Los Angeles for Best Film. Additionally, Jeremy Renner has been acknowledged for his acting work while Kathryn Bigelow has been praised for her direction.
Others receiving multiple honors in this year’s lists include Mo’Nique (Precious), Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds) and George Clooney (Up in the Air). You can see more award winners after the jump.
Click to continue reading Film Critics Honor The Hurt Locker, Mo’Nique, Christoph Waltz
Box Office Breakdown: Princess and Frog Crowned Winner
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Lionsgate, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Period, Political, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,
Disney’s latest entry might not have produced Pixar-like numbers, but it was definitely not a frog.
The Princess and the Frog, featuring the first black Disney princess, finally opened wide this weekend to the tune of $24.2 million. Despite having been available in limited release for two weeks, the 2D-film had the best premiere ever for an animated feature in the month of December.
Meawhile, Invictus - Clint Eastwood’s next possible Oscar contender - unfolded with a $8.6 million debut and a third place finish. Although the Nelson Mandela drama came in behind box office vet The Blind Side, the director’s films tend to generate more buzz (and money) as the awards seasons progress.
Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Princess and Frog Crowned Winner
Read More | Variety
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