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[xaosslug]

tomatometer:

82% Sully

37% Blair Witch

78% Bridget Jones's Baby

58% Snowden

87% Don't Breathe
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60% Hillsong - Let Hope Rise

metacritic:

*click pic(s) for source*

‘Blair Witch,’ ‘Bridget Jones’s Baby’ Fall Flat as ‘Sully’ Soars

Some things aren’t worth the wait.

“Blair Witch” and “Bridget Jones’s Baby,” sequels to films that first hit theaters a generation ago, both stumbled in their debuts this weekend, earning a meagre $9.7 million and $8.2 million, respectively. They were easily overpowered by “Sully,” the Clint Eastwood drama about the s0-called “Miracle in the Hudson” emergency plane landing that features Tom Hanks as Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger. The Warner Bros. release topped the domestic box office for a second consecutive weekend, earning $22 million and pushing its stateside total to $70.5 million.

The weekend’s other wide-release launch, Oliver Stone’s “Snowden,” was also over-shadowed by the aeronautical heroics, picking up $8 million from 2,443 locations for a fourth-place finish. The look at Edward Snowden stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and got a warm reception at the Toronto International Film Festival, with some calling it a return to form for Stone, a director whose recent work such as “The Savages” has failed to capture the renown of earlier efforts like “Platoon” and “JFK.” However, the NSA leaker remains a controversial figure in American politics, a whistle blower to some and a traitor to others, which might have limited the picture’s appeal. Open Road is distributing the film domestically, and if it continues to attract some awards heat, it’s possible it could chug along to a respectable gross. “Snowden” cost a reported $50 million to produce.

It’s a disappointing result for “Blair Witch,” which some rivals expected to finish the weekend with nearly $20 million, potentially toppling “Sully” for its throne, in the process. Younger moviegoers may not have been familiar with the horror franchise. The first film in the series revolutionized theatrical distribution and kicked off the trend of “found footage” stories when it hit theaters in 1999. Made for a mere $60,000 it rode some eerie marketing to a $248.6 million global gross. A poorly received follow-up hit theaters in 2000, when it was pulverized by critics and made a fraction of the first film’s massive haul.

Lionsgate produced the latest sequel for an economical $5 million and pushed it out over 3,121 locations. It debuted the film at Comic-Con to generate buzz, screening it under its working title “The Woods” and surprising fans who had no idea they were watching a new “Blair Witch.”

At a corporate level, Lionsgate is undergoing transitions and could use some new film franchises. The studio has wrapped up its “Hunger Games” films and is moving the “Divergent” series to television. It also announced Friday that Rob Friedman, the motion picture group co-chair and one of the guiding forces behind the “Twilight” saga, is stepping down. The studio is earning strong buzz on “La La Land,” a musical that is expected to be an Oscar player, “Hacksaw Ridge,” a World War II drama from Mel Gibson, and “Deepwater Horizon,” a true-life action tale with Mark Wahlberg.

“Bridget Jones’s Baby” is another exercise in diminishing returns. It has been 15 years since Jones (Renée Zellweger) first captured audiences’ attention in “Bridget Jones’s Diary” with her romantic travails and 12 years since “Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason” caught moviegoers up with her on-again, off-again relationship with dashing Mr. Darcy (Colin Firth). The romantic comedy is backed by Universal, Miramax, StudioCanal and Working Title, and cost $35 million to produce. It’s faring better overseas, where it opened in first place in 24 territories and racks up $29.9 million, but moviegoers probably shouldn’t expect a part four.

Universal’s domestic distribution chief Nick Carpou said he thinks the film will fare well in the coming weeks as counter-programming. He noted that future films such as “Deepwater Horizon” and “Storks,” don’t cater to the female consumers who support “Bridget Jones’s Baby.”

“We love these characters, we love the actors playing them, and we’re confident in how it will play out,” said Carpou.

Sony’s “Don’t Breathe” rounded out the top five, nabbing $5.6 million to bring its domestic total to an impressive $75.3 million after three weeks.

Pure Flix courted the faith-based set with “Hillsong: Let Hope Rise,” a documentary about the Australian Christian group that made $1.3 million from 816 locations.

“The Disappointments Room,” Relativity Media’s first release since the studio emerged from bankruptcy protection in April, continues to flounder. After debuting last weekend to an anemic $1.4 million, it plunged 71%, eking out $400,000 and pushing its gross to $2.2 million. The horror film about a house’s haunted past stars Kate Beckinsale and cost roughly $15 million to produce. At one point, in Chapter 11 filings, the studio estimated that “The Disappointments Room” would earn $72.6 million over its lifetime, a figure that factors in estimated home entertainment revenue along with theatrical grosses.

The studio has been trying to come up with a plan to service its debts and raise more working capital. It has announced plans to remake “High Noon” and “Hunter Killer,” an action film with Gerard Butler, and has other films hitting theaters this year, including the comedy “Materminds” and the thriller “Kidnapped.”

More to come…

*click pic for full list/source*


*click pic for full list/source*

 

[SpaceWolf]

Damn, had no idea Blair Witch was getting so many poor reviews.

 

[BronsonLee]

omg xaos no that title

 

[Saucycarpdog]

Godamn the next few weeks are going to be so boring. Well, except maybe magnificent seven.

What's coming in October blockbuster wise? Jack Reacher, rings, and what else?

 

[alfredofroylan]

Honestly is hard to call Blair Witch a bomba with that budget.

 

[BumRush]

I'm happy Pete's dragon wasn't a bomb. It deserved better, but it'll make its money back when all is said and done.

On the Disney topic, does anyone see them cutting back on anything that isn't star wars, marvel, animated and live action princess movies?

 

[FTF]

lol @ that title.

And yeah, that's a poor opening for BW...but it only cost $5m so it'll still turn a pretty nice profit, etc.

 

[Broken Joystick]

Bridget Jones's Bomba

 

[3N16MA]

SS moves past IM2 on the domestic side as far as superhero films are concerned.

 

[platakul]

Bridget Jones's Bomba

Really striking while the irons hot with that sequel

 

[Penguin]

Ben-Hurt

 

[Obliterator]

Those are nice drops for Sully and SS aren't they? Only 17% drop for skwad

 

[DeathyBoy]

SS moves past IM2 on the domestic side as far as superhero films are concerned.

DC owning that shit.

 

[Ridley327]

Honestly is hard to call Blair Witch a bomba with that budget.

Expectations were too high, so even though it'll probably make money, it's going to be all about how much more it could have made. It doesn't help that it will also be compared to the original's box office success, which continues to remain one of the most wildly successful films ever made when compared to its budget.

 

[Litan]

Bomba Witch? Its already made almost twice its' budget.

 

[Strax]

Only on GAF would you find posts about a movie bombing after having almost doubled the production budget during the opening weeking.

*sigh*

 

[3N16MA]

I'm happy Pete's dragon wasn't a bomb. It deserved better, but it'll make its money back when all is said and done.

On the Disney topic, does anyone see them cutting back on anything that isn't star wars, marvel, animated and live action princess movies?

Star Wars
Marvel
Pixar
Disney Animation
Live action based on animated Disney films

Do they need anything else?

 

[Snaku]

Blair Witch should have dropped closer to Halloween.

 

[Ridley327]

Blair Witch should have dropped closer to Halloween.

I do wonder why they decided to release it now. Surely, it would have done just fine up against a long-delayed sequel to The Ring and a prequel to Ouija.

 

[xaosslug]

Bomba Witch? Its already made almost twice its' budget.

Only on GAF would you find posts about a movie bombing after having almost doubled the production budget during the opening weeking.

*sigh*

lol

 

[3N16MA]

718M WW for SS. Moves past TWS.

 

[Kusagari]

I feel like calling the movie Blair Witch was a mistake.

Should have just stayed as The Woods.

 

[DeathyBoy]

718M WW for SS. Moves past TWS.

On your right Marvel gahaha

 

[kmfdmpig]

718M WW for SS. Moves past TWS.

That's a surprise. I would have guessed that TWS had earned $850+. It was one of my favorite MCU films.

Suicide Squad has really had a roller coaster ride. The opening weekend shattered records for August, then the drop was huge. Now the legs will end up being fairly solid.

What are the estimates for its overall run?

$325-330 dom. and $750-765 Worldwide? Is that about right?

 

[kswiston]

Only on GAF would you find posts about a movie bombing after having almost doubled the production budget during the opening weeking.

*sigh*

Blair witch's marketing budget was 4x its production budget, so it has a way to go before profitability.

 

[3N16MA]

That's a surprise. I would have guessed that TWS had earned $850+. It was one of my favorite MCU films.

Suicide Squad has really had a roller coaster ride. The opening weekend shattered records for August, then the drop was huge. Now the legs will end up being fairly solid.

What are the estimates for its overall run?

$325-330 dom. and $750-765 Worldwide? Is that about right?

It may get close to 750M. Solid considering that is without China.

 

[Strax]

Blair witch's marketing budget was 4x its production budget, so it has a way to go before profitability.

Sure but this is only the first weekend domestic.

 

[Gordon Shumway]

Geezuz..that title lol.

 

[Diprosalic]

SS is the worst movie ever to hit 700 million. Kudos WB marketing team you deserve a raise.

 

[Kusagari]

SS is the worst movie ever to hit 700 million. Kudos WB marketing team you deserve a raise.

Multiple Ice Age movies eclipsed 700 million.

 

[Strax]

SS is the worst movie ever to hit 700 million. Kudos WB marketing team you deserve a raise.

ok lets do this

Jurassic World
The Avengers
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Minions
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
Alice in Wonderland

and thats just counting billi and higher so...

no

 

[Penguin]

SS is the worst movie ever to hit 700 million. Kudos WB marketing team you deserve a raise.

I think marketing helps, but we're 7 weeks into its run, at some point it's got to be somewhat good WOM.

 

[Diprosalic]

Multiple Ice Age movies eclipsed 700 million.

ok lets do this

Jurassic World
The Avengers
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Minions
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
Alice in Wonderland

and thats just counting billi and higher so...

no

I looked at the entire list. I stand by it.

 

[Hero_of_the_Day]

Loved the original Blair Witch. I've literally seen nothing about this new one. Didn't know it existed until a week or so ago when I saw the early impressions thread pop up here. Felt like they just threw that movie out there with zero marketing.

 

[Obliterator]

I think marketing helps, but we're 7 weeks into its run, at some point it's got to be somewhat good WOM.

Yeah some people are certainly enjoying it. It wouldn't leg this well if it was widely hated

 

[Violence Jack]

Who thought making a sequel to a 15 year old movie would be a good idea? Zellweger isn't exactly box office gold.

 

[brandonh83]

ok lets do this

Your first three are generally liked films.

Anyway, at least Blair Witch did better than Jones.

 

[ezekial45]

Damn, Don't Breath did really well.

 

[Strax]

Your first three are generally liked films.

Anyway, at least Blair Witch did better than Jones.

So is SS

 

[kswiston]

ok lets do this

Jurassic World
The Avengers
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Minions
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
Alice in Wonderland

and thats just counting billi and higher so...

no

I don't think you are going to get a ton of people agreeing with you on the first Avengers being worse than Suicide Squad. Most of the criticisms that can be made about The Avengers are also issues in Suicide Squad, and SS adds in worse acting and editing.

 

[Toa TAK]

Damn I love that title.

 

[milanbaros]

ok lets do this

Jurassic World
The Avengers
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Minions
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
Alice in Wonderland

and thats just counting billi and higher so...

no

I would watch any of those again over SS. Not sure you're making a very strong point.

 

[Diprosalic]

Who thought making a sequel to a 15 year old movie would be a good idea? Zellweger isn't exactly box office gold.

Go look up where the majority of the Bridget Jones franchise BO intake comes from. Then you know.
it's already sitting pretty at 38 million after one week and it hasn't opened yet in several huge european markets.

 

[brandonh83]

So is SS

Didn't see it, to be totally honest.

 

[DizzyCaffeine]

I hope everyone tries to get out to see Hell or High Water. It's an incredible movie and well worth your time and money.

 

[broncobuster]

I think marketing helps, but we're 7 weeks into its run, at some point it's got to be somewhat good WOM.

Sometimes it's hard to separate personal opinion with how things are. I didn't like Suicide Squad but by now it's clear it resonated with audiences to keep it going. And if I'm honest, it'll be disappointing if WB uses it to think they did right by it.

 

[Chamber]

718M WW for SS. Moves past TWS.

On your right Marvel gahaha

 

[Imperial Bishop]

ok lets do this

Jurassic World
The Avengers
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Minions
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
Alice in Wonderland

and thats just counting billi and higher so...

no

Half of that list is not even in the same universe as "the worst movie over 700 mil".

So is SS

"generally"

 

[kswiston]

Bridget Jones 3 wasn't for North America.

The Last movie opened to $8.7M and ended up making $40M domestic on a $40M budget. However, it made over $260M worldwide.

Overseas for Bridget Jones' Baby is already up to $29M. I don't think this film will end up anywhere near the first two worldwide, but it should easily clear $100M on its $35M budget. If it hits $150M, then the late sequel was worth it.

 

[Sean C]

I'm not in the target demographic for Bridget Jones to begin with, but it strikes me as a very odd property to revive at this point in time (not to mention, at a certain point Bridget's constant mishaps just become depressing and pathetic, whereas in the first movie she was your standard aimless thirtysomething).