TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count  / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week # 1 1 Think Like a Man...


TWLWTitle (click to view)StudioWeekend Gross% ChangeTheater Count /ChangeAverageTotal GrossBudget*Week #
11Think Like a ManSGem$17,604,141-47.7%2,015-$8,737$60,472,199$122
2NThe Pirates! Band of MisfitsSony$11,137,734-3,358-$3,317$11,137,734$551
33The Hunger GamesLGF$10,814,271-26.3%3,572-180$3,028$372,019,021$786
42The Lucky OneWB$10,808,023-52.0%3,175+20$3,404$39,409,719-2
5NThe Five-Year EngagementUni.$10,610,060-2,936-$3,614$10,610,060$301
6NSafe (2012)LGF$7,892,539-2,266-$3,483$7,892,539-1
7NThe RavenRela.$7,289,642-2,203-$3,309$7,289,642$261
84ChimpanzeeBV$5,227,862-51.0%1,567+4$3,336$18,920,794-2
95The Three StoogesFox$5,167,421-47.1%3,105-377$1,664$36,907,965$303
106The Cabin in the WoodsLGF$4,619,480-42.4%2,639-172$1,750$34,783,320-3
  Think Like a Man surprisingly not beat by 4 new competitors!

  I'm also very surprised that an animated movie no matter which voice actors included did not top a US weekend. The Pirates! Band of Misfits released by Sony lands at no.2 starring British hunk Hugh Grant and co-starring Martin Freeman, Salma Hayek, Anton Yelchin along with a few mildly known others.
  The Five-Year Engagement a rated R romantic comedy was damned to land below 3 as we already have a PG-13 movie on top of the list, also being a rom-com. Safe starring action star Jason Statham arrives at 6 and I'm not surprised. Well, I thought with more romance-oriented films at the top how would an action film beat them. So we have three LionGate Films features the previously mentioned along with The Hunger Games that is at no.3 after 6 weeks, and The Cabin in the Woods falls to no.10 in its 3rd week. Another horror feature is The Raven based on a fictional story starring John Cusack as American macabre poet and writer Edgar Allan Poe. I've heard Cusack acted to the part but the film's review wasn't that impressive with critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives The Raven a 22%. The consensus shows a murder mystery that's more silly than scary. Luke Evans from Immortals also stars and he is a fine actor. I'll definitely watch the film on Blu-ray as I am a horror freak and a sucker for anything related to Poe. Also, the director is James McTeigue who directed V for Vendetta and Ninja Assassin, both terrific films.
  The Raven has made just a little over $10m worldwide off a $26m budget. I'm sure it'll make about $30-$35m at the end of its theatrical run.
  So the last two weekends were strange but it also vital to mention that it has been a while since an African-American based rom-com was released. So audiences would've barged in for Think Like a Man because of the USP. One other factor that it is based on a best-selling novelist's book namely Steve Harvey.
  The Avengers opens in the US on May 4. By repeating this the second time I find myself super excited. It had its world premiere on April 11 and has made $218.2m off $220m so covering its cost of production. Websites are predicting that The Avengers will outgross The Dark Knight ($158.4m) and The Hunger Games ($152.2m). The highest best opening weekend is for Harry Potter and The Deathly Hollows: Part 2 which made a massive $169m!
  That movie ended up with over $1,320,000,000 off a $250m mega budget. I predict it would beat the opening of The Hunger Games and probably equal The Dark Knight's. But I state that it would not beat Harry Potter as the female fanbase was so strong and the population of women in the world is larger. Female fanbase for The Avengers is also powerful but still lacks the brand name of J.K. Rowling.

  The Avengers could end up with a BoxOffice101 prediction of $990m or just reaching the $1b landmark at the end of its theatrical run.
  Battleship, another megabudget action feature, was released worldwide on April 12th but still hasn't managed to outgross its $200m cost of production. It has succumbed to $170m. So my prediction is that it won't beat The Avengers to the top on May 18. It'll land on no.2 and then both films will be beaten for the top spot by Men in Black 3 on May 25 as 8% of men surveyed by a summer movie survey opted for this one, and mainly due to women eyeing this as their most-anticipated summer blockbuster.
  Let the battles begin...

(Chart by Box Office Mojo)

Chronicle was released on Feb 1,2012 in the United Kingdom and Feb 3,012 in the States. The film exceeded expectations grossing $20,000,000 ...

Chronicle was released on Feb 1,2012 in the United Kingdom and Feb 3,012 in the States. The film exceeded expectations grossing $20,000,000 in its first weekend off an average budget of $15,000,000. It eventually grossed a global cumulative of $123.1m. The film is written by Fear Itself (horror series) writer Max Landis and directed by Josh Trank.
  Josh Trank, at age 27, is one of the youngest directors to top the Northern American box office. He's followed by Spielberg at 28 for Jaws, and Cameron and 30 for The Terminator. Internationally, Trank is the youngest director to top the UK box office.
  Following the trend of The Last Exorcism (2010) and The Devil Inside (2012), Chronicle was filmed in documentary style. Now that doesn't necessarily mean that the movie's commercial and not to mention critical success makes it worthy of an Academt Award for Best Documentary Feature. The film is a little too mainstreamish. The start is pretty uninteresting and the first half seems as if a teenager was just filming his depression status. A famous critic once stated that it takes 20 minutes to lure an audience. For those who stuck around after that time period, either for their responsibility or simply their nonrefundable cash, it was worth it. The movie actually kicks off after the 20 mins of goofing around.

  The plot is a bit simple for sci-fi action. Three friends gain superpowers including telekinesis. One of them is our main filmmaker in the film who doesn't seem to take the heat. As I said before most of the duration comprises of going through his depression and anxiety. Though the sci-fi aspect is commendable. Even viewers, like my best friend, whom aren't used to documentary features will enjoy this one. For action viewers there is plenty of that in between and a handful in the last moments. That is if you don't get dimwitted by teen drama. Fortunately, there is less of that in comparison, and proper emphasis is laid on the story.
  The pros are abundant. It was very smart filming this one in narrative format. For a average-looking story it added a whole new flavour to the recipe. And although I found the storyline predictable. I still stuck through this one as it was so brilliantly directed (not surprised at Josh Trank's success). The dialogues are not too crafty I'm afraid. The jokes aren't all they're cracked up to be. But the lines from our main character are decent enough. Acting is top notch from an otherwise newer film cast. The trio were equally brilliant in their roles. Main cast includes Dane DeHaan, Michael B. Jordan, Alex Russell, Michael Kelly and Ashley Hinshaw.

  To sum up, Chronicle has few plotholes. Its mainly about how people would react after getting super. Genre could be termed as sci-fi psychological drama thriller. It has a USP: its originality of the direction. Trust me this film was way better than last year's Captain America: The First Avenger and X-Men: First Class. For the former it had a more unpredictable story, and for the latter there was a more realistic feeling to teens becoming mutants.  Chronicle is not a must-watch. Nor is it one of the best films of the year. But it is good for a two-time watch chiefly with friends and a huge pack of popcorn.

IMDB: 7.4/10.
Rotten Tomatoes: 85%.
BoxOffice101: 2.5/4.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count  / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week # 1 N Think Like a Man...


TWLWTitle (click to view)StudioWeekend Gross% ChangeTheater Count /ChangeAverageTotal GrossBudget*Week #
1NThink Like a ManSGem$33,636,303-2,015-$16,693$33,636,303$121
2NThe Lucky OneWB$22,518,358-3,155-$7,137$22,518,358-1
31The Hunger GamesLGF$14,666,007-30.5%3,752-164$3,909$357,066,467$785
4NChimpanzeeBV$10,673,748-1,563-$6,829$10,673,748-1
52The Three StoogesFox$9,764,214-42.6%3,482+5$2,804$29,919,660$302
63The Cabin in the WoodsLGF$8,016,075-45.6%2,811-$2,852$27,246,247-2
75American ReunionUni.$5,474,565-47.7%3,033-170$1,805$48,518,325$503
84Titanic 3DPar.$5,032,557-57.8%2,515-182$2,001$52,860,574$183
9821 Jump StreetSony$4,750,986-27.6%2,427-308$1,958$127,217,167$426
107Mirror MirrorRela.$4,408,179-35.6%2,938-268$1,500$55,499,932$854

Whoa! I predicted The Lucky One would beat The Hunger Games but it itself succumbed to Think Like a Man a motion picture from Screen Gems. The African-American headed cast have found their movie earning just a little over $30m for the weekend off a budget of $12m. I thought The Lucky One, starring Zac Effron (High Musical Franchise) and Taylor Schilling.
  TLO is based on the novel by best-selling romance author Nicholas Sparks who also has many best-ranking romance movies. So it's no surprise this young starrer beat the comparative Hunger Games. Still Think Like a Man is a very big surprise!
  Another point to consider is that the 3 toppers are all based on novels. The first by Steve Harvery, the 2nd's author mentioned in the above para and the 3rd by Suzanne Collins (the 1st from her trilogy).
  Other big surprises were the performances of Wrath and John Carter at the US box office. They flopped their with mega budgets but were successful globally. Wrath made has made an int. total of above $275m off a budget of $150m. John Carter grossed an international cumulative of above $260m off a reported mega-budget of $375,000,000 (production and marketing). Disney would've had more luck with a sequel to their brilliant but only satisfactory grosser Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Jake Gyllenhaal would be happy though I think he prayed for this one to have an epic fail.
  Prince of Persia had grossed over $360m globally off $150-200m which is a hell of a lot better than Carter.
  In the States, The Avengers is releasing on May 4 and I predict it will go to no.1 as it has no competitors that even match up to its title. Battleship, the alien mega-budget thriller is releasing on May 18 so we'll have to see whether it shoves off The Avenger off the top spot. Although, it has a 50% chance as it also stars Taylor Kitsch (Carter) in a vital role...
  Another new opening for this week is the documentary Chimpanzee which finds a chimp Oscar adopted by another chimp in the African forest. The film has grossed just over $10m in its 1st weekend. Well-known comedian Tim Allen is the narrator and the film is from a division of Disney known as Disneynature, again, sorry John Carter.

Die Hard will forever be remembered as one of  the best action films of all time. It had the 3 Cs: perfect characterisation , coordination ...

Die Hard will forever be remembered as one of  the best action films of all time. It had the 3 Cs: perfect characterisation, coordination and above all charisma. Man on a Ledge has 50% of the before-mentioned values.

  Man on a Ledge's concept is about the same as Bruce Willis's Die Hard. An ex-cop and fugitive (Sam Worthington) stands on the ledge of a high-rise building as negotiator (Elizabeth Banks) tries to convince him not to jump. Secrets are revealed during the process and the police must hurry up to find out what made the man jump to such heights. The plot is intriguing, and Banks along with the protagonist played by Ed Harris (The Rock) acted well. The direction well not as good as Die Hard's John McTiernan is above average. The first half is plastered with flashbacks revealing the background story.
  However, the film has many cons. Mainly Worthington is not at all convincing as a man on the ledge of such a high building. He is one of the stone-faced actors of H-town. So it's not surprising he was cast in Terminator: Salvation as a cyborg. Even The Rock is a better actor than him having the ironic stage name. Worthington could be filmed standing on the rooftop of Burj Khalifa without an expression on his face. With such an almost-unique storyline it is depressing that such a followthrough was written. The audience and critics would've expected witty conversations between Banks and Worthington but all we get is wry humour. Action scenes are not worth mentioning to friends and the people watching the scene from the streets seem like wax figures. Where are the gasps? Ironic comments? The direction is a non-thrilling and non-realistic depiction of post-tragedy in New York City. And the motion picture becomes predictable after the first hour of its 102 mins length.

  The film  is directed by Asger Leth and written by Pablo F. Fenjves whose a TV movie writer this being his 1st feature-length film and it comes as no surprise.  He has potential to become great but for the present a mediocre screen-author. It opened at 8th on the US Box Office (Jan 27, 2012) earning a total global gross of just above its $42m budget as deserved. Man on a Ledge is a good thriller and entertaining for a one-time watch. But in the end we realise that this was not worth comparing with Die Hard.

IMDB: 6.7/10.
Rotten Tomatoes: 31%.
Box Office 101: 2/4.

Samuel L. Jackson has starred in both big budget features (The cult classic Pulp Fiction garnering an Oscar nomination, 3 prequels of Star W...

Samuel L. Jackson has starred in both big budget features (The cult classic Pulp Fiction garnering an Oscar nomination, 3 prequels of Star Wars, Lakeview Terrace and ) and low-budget mainstream flicks (Meeting Evil). As of October 011, he is the higest-grossing actor of all time. He's one of my favourite H-wood performers and my favourite African-American thespian. The Samaritan is one where his credentials shouldn't have been.
  The movie consists of Foley (L. Jackson) finishing with 20 years in prison and looking for an end to life as a grifter (con artist). But things start leading to a relapse after he hooks up with a young lady Iris (Ruth Negga). The premise is simple, the direction satisfactory, and the movie is boring. Predictability is high in this neo-noir crime thriller. For those who've watched loads of crime thrillers, please skip this one. For Jackson fans I ask of the same. And the general audience will be delivered with the same. Except the starting quote, ''Nothing changes unless you make it change'', rest of the dialogues are dry. A bad script reigns over a super-cliched background plot. Although you would've like Jackson's character mentioning some intimidating one-liners.
  However, there are pros, although few. The acting by all, especially Jackson is at the highest degree. They breathe life into their characters - sadly what the writers failed to do. The films kicks off well with suspense after 45 minutes. One top critic quoted that a feature-length has to draw viewers in 20 minutes.
  Directed by David Weaver with a script by him and Elan Mastai - The Samaritan is hardly even a onetime watch. And for a better Jackson watch there's the early 2012 released Meeting Evil. With a 3/4 from Box Office 101.

IMDB: 5.7/10.
Rotten Tomatoes: Pending.
Box Office 101: 1/4.

This comedy film is based on a true story. And it seems so as the characterisation is top notch. This one was released at Video on Demand in...

This comedy film is based on a true story. And it seems so as the characterisation is top notch. This one was released at Video on Demand in the US and also filmed at the Toronto Film Festival.
  The film stars none other than Sean William Scott. He's most renowned for starring in the first 3 theatrically released American Pie films. He has also starred in other films like Evolution and the underrated The Rundown with Dwyane 'The Rock' Johnson. His upcoming feature is the 4th cinematic American Reunion reviving his role as the cult favourite Steve Stifler.
  Reunion looks awesome. I loved the 3rd - every scene was laughable. This time, as the title suggests, all the original characters come together again so it's gonna be a blast! It's got 42% from Rotten Tomatoes and was released on April 6 in North America.
  Now for Goon. The story follows a bouncer (W. Scott) becoming an enforcer for a small-time Ice Hockey League and eventually moving up the ranks. The story is kind of original and better than most sports flicks. The acting by W. Scott and Liev Schreiber is well-suited for their roles. The action scenes in the film are catchy. And even a minority of the dialogues make you LOL. Especially between the two actors mentioned.
  On the other hand, though the film has a newer concept most of the scenes aren't so laughable. You'll get through most of the film's funny parts but the drama seems as if it were forced upon. The romantic intimacy between Scott and the female lead (Alison Pill) isn't convincing.
  The film is directed by Michael Dowse and written by Evan Goldberg and Jay Baruchel (who also co-stars). Baruchel is a bad actor he was OK in this though as if he finally found a role that suited him. Which is ironic as he must've constructed him himself. Eugene Levy is cast as Doug Glatt (Scott)'s dad. Levy is also best-known for being in the AP franchise having starred in all 8 films. To sum up, the characterisation and story make up most of the positiveness, but with useless dramatic scenes and also a predictable watch after the first 45 minutes, this is not to be included in Scott's best-movies list.

IMDB: 7.1/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 81%
Box Office 101: 1.5/4.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count  / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week # 1 1 The Hunger Games...


TWLWTitle (click to view)StudioWeekend Gross% ChangeTheater Count /ChangeAverageTotal GrossBudget*Week #
11The Hunger GamesLGF$21,096,824-36.3%3,916-221$5,387$336,666,363$784
2NThe Three StoogesFox$17,010,125-3,477-$4,892$17,010,125$301
3NThe Cabin in the WoodsLGF$14,743,614-2,811-$5,245$14,743,614-1
43Titanic 3DPar.$11,930,249-31.0%2,697+23$4,424$44,723,819$182
52American ReunionUni.$10,473,810-51.3%3,203+11$3,270$39,712,535$502
64Wrath of the TitansWB$6,906,209-53.1%3,102-443$2,226$71,252,005$1503
75Mirror MirrorRela.$6,847,924-38.3%3,206-412$2,136$49,316,185$853
8621 Jump StreetSony$6,558,868-34.4%2,735-274$2,398$120,323,681$425
9NLockoutFD$6,231,836-2,308-$2,700$6,231,836$201
107Dr. Seuss' The LoraxUni.$3,051,285-39.3%2,112-891$1,445$204,513,915$707
The Hunger Games still making audiences crave for more in its 4th week. The Three Stooges - based on a legendary American comedy trio enters at no.2 with just above $17m. Surprise as it was forecast by the co. to open at 10. The Cabin in the Woods (a LionsGate horror feature) enters at 3rd place. I actually thought it would beat Stooges but anything can happen in H-wood.
  Titanic 3D going good in the US and way better internationally. It has become the 2nd movie to gross 2 billion after 2009's Avatar - both directed by James Cameron. American Reunion would've been at 1st last weekend if The Hunger Games hadn't released. AR has made $80m internationally off $50m.
   (Figures from Box Office Mojo).
 Battleship ranked no.2 in Malaysia behind Titanic and was released internationally on April 11. It will make its debut in the US and Canada on May 18. Taylore Kitsch (ill-famed John Carter), Alexander Skarsgard, Rihanna and Liam Neeson star.
  Wrath of the Titans didn't gain much in American but made a global cumulative of approximately $260m off $150m in 3 weeks. Another sequel is up for grabs. Warner Bros. gonna be swimming in the money.