#the sequel to one of the highest grossing films of all time in one of the most immersive worlds on the big screen

[windcalling]

Hello! That top-grossing list isn't good evidence for originality (or lack thereof) overall. So I did some analysis on all American films in 2023, 1998, 1973, and 1923.

The thing about the list of top-grossing films is that I'm not surprise it's heavily weighted towards franchise films -- just because more people are going to see them!

I wanted to see if there have been actual changes in overall American film production, so I classified every film in Wikipedia's "List of American films in [year]" lists.

Classifications (in hierarchical order, since a film may be in multiple categories): Remake, Sequel, Franchise, Adaptation, Original

More extensive data & notes below the cut, but without further ado...

THE RESULTS

We do see the proportion of movies original to screen ("original" & "adaptation") decreasing over time

BUT...it's still 80% of movies in 2023!

If you're looking for those original movies? Horror and rom-coms. In every year I looked at except 1998, there was a really clear trend of 1-2 genres with a TON of the original films. 1973 is blaxploitation and cop movies, 1923 is westerns and romances.

So there ISN'T a huge difference in originality of the movies that get made, but there IS a big difference in the breakdown of the top-grossing films by year -- 2023 is the only year with more than one sequel/franchise film in the top 10.

My guess? There isn't a big difference in what films get made, but there likely IS be a big difference in what films are advertised, or shown in easily-accessible multiplex theaters.

But I'm not going to look up advertising budgets. Because THAT would be too much.

Under the cut: more data! detailed breakdowns! fun observations!

Here's the complete breakdown! Sample sizes are 343 (2023), 254 (1998), 202 (1973), 437 (1923).

Edit: And here is the same chart filtered on top 10 highest-grossing films -- top 9 in 1923.

Fun data points:

I combine "original" and "adaptation" above because it's often hard to draw a line between them and because it got at the question posed by OP, but the proportion of non-adaptation original movies is HIGHEST in 2023! Adaptations were highest in 1923!

I think this is because there are more writers aiming at film now than 100 years ago, and the way film ideas are picked up has changed over time.

1923 is all silent movies, and I was surprised by how many are already remakes! But I guess the technology was changing so fast...

1923 also had a handful of adaptations of poetry, which I didn't see anywhere else!

Very surprised by how much porn is in 1973. By which I mean, any porn, but ESPECIALLY porn faintly inspired by Sartre's 'No Exit' -- the "hell is other people" play. (I marked it "original", for reasons I trust are clear.)

Process notes & category definitions:

Some of the movies on Wikipedia's lists were definitely not actually American films, but I didn't do any filtering -- I took the list as it was given

Sequel - to existing film franchise Remake - of a previous visual media property Adaptation - of a play/book/story/etc; didn't usually include when the play/story/etc was written shortly before by the director and was otherwise unknown, probably with the intent of going direct to film Franchise - part of an overarching franchise but not otherwise adapted/sequel; includes e.g. Barbie, Scooby Doo, standalone movies in existing universes Orig - includes biographical, loosely-inspired-by, historical, etc; classifying orig vs adaptation is HARD!

is it me or like, have movies been getting worse?????

[muppetjackrackham]

since 2022 is almost over i’ve been thinking about all the movies i watched this year and man, nothing really compares to watching elvis in the theaters. the only other movie i had gone to see during covid at the time was no time to die the year before (since it was daniel craig’s last bond film) and prior to that i hadn’t gone to see a film in the theater since knives out came out in 2019. i’ve loved baz lurhman ever since i was old enough to watch moulin rouge, so i kind of figured i’d like elvis but man, i never expected to care so much about a film like elvis the way i do. and not only that, but the experience itself. the sheer fucking spectacle of this film is one that i don’t know will ever be surpassed for me, because i saw this film eight times in the theater and wondered if it would ever fail to meet the expectation set by that initial viewing, and it never did. not once. it was good every. single. time. i sat in just about every row you could think of and it was not only consistently good, it almost surpassed itself with every subsequent viewing. in 23 years i can’t think of a single movie that has ever made me feel that way. what elvis accomplished is nothing short of miraculous in every way imaginable. i’ve talked about how elvis as a film made me care about a man that only ever existed as a fixture of rock n’ roll music, another name for the history books, a name that mattered in the context of music my folks grew up listening to more than i did. a movie carried on the shoulders of a relative unknown compared to every other major musical biopic to come out in the last few years (bohemian rhapsody and rocketman bolstering far more recognizable star power in rami malek and taron egerton respectively), a name that i hope will go on to even greater heights as a result of his performance and his work ethic. a movie that has given me an experience unlike any other before it, one that i try to relive every time i watch it on my own. a movie that will always be one of the greatest experiences i’ve ever had the privilege of seeing on the big screen.

elvis 2022 man. elvis 2022.

[yourladyem]

‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ Is About To Hit Its Final Domestic Box Office Milestone

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice has been one of the biggest movies of the year, just recently passing Dune: Part Two to become Warner Bros’ most profitable film of 2024.

With less than $500,000 to go and more than half of that coming from its last full day at the box office, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will almost certainly hit $290 million this weekend before it leaves theaters in the next week or two.

The film is currently #120 on the highest-grossing domestic box office rankings ever, recently passing Home Alone and sitting only a few hundred thousand behind Monsters, Inc, which it will likely pass if it manages to reach the $290 million mark. It is also #37 on the list of the highest-grossing domestic movies with an original screenplay, sandwiched between the aforementioned Home Alone and Monsters, Inc. films falling less than $2 million short of Star Wars Episodes V: The Empire Strikes Back.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is also the second-highest-grossing comedy film of all-time falling more than $300 million short of Barbie, which grossed $636 million at the domestic box office.

That is incredible! And especially for a sequel! And a sequel that took almost 40 years to get. Wow!

More reason for a third film.

Source: Collider

Special thanks to @bchargoissketches for reminding of this article.

[synergysilhouette]

Another 10 Disney hot takes/probably unpopular opinions

Not a fan of Meg and Hercules as a couple. I ADORE them having an innocent male lead and a jaded female love interest, but Meg's situation with Hades makes it feel very toxic. The movie is kinda confusing on whether or not she can refuse Hades; one minute he uses incentive to get her to do what she wants (which is bad enough; her freedom for Hercules' death), and then when she tells him the deal's off, he reminds her that she has no say in the matter. Following this, she rejects his deal and he forces her into being exposed so Hercules will make a deal. She does sacrifice herself for him in the end, but it still feels very iffy for me, particularly since the backbone of her resisting him isn't even "I can't let this guy get killed" but instead "I don't wanna fall in love after getting my heart broken and having sold my soul" (which is EXTREMELY valid, but so is the other point). Had Meg been a normal human and made a deal with Hades to save Hercules or help him earlier on during his training, it'd be so much better.

2. Disney needs needs to stop making sequels just because of financial success and actually work to craft a narrative that requires a sequel or two. It's risky (considering the first film could have negative critical or commercial success, as well as take time and resources away from other films at the studio), but would have a better payoff, imo. I enjoyed "Frozen 2" despite it's flaws, but the fact that it felt independent of the first film did make it feel like we could've used an entirely different cast and made the same story.

3. I need more musicals with a male lead--The last one we had was "Tarzan"--or "Hercules," depending on your criteria. The revival era has had female leads for all their musicals, with a male playing as a co-lead or a deuteragonist. I know the girls are MUCH more valuable at Disney due to the Disney princess line and musicals with a male lead may be harder to market (well, not really; "Aladdin" and "The Lion King" were the highest-grossing animated films at one point, and their remakes grossed over $1 billion).

4. "Moana" needed a bigger (main) roster--Something I love is a nice-sized amount of main characters in a movie. "Moana" only had Moana and Maui for most of the movie, and thus it wasn't as enjoyable for me in that respect. "Moana 2" is introducing new characters, so I hope they can hold my interest.

5. Involve the Anderson-Lopez team in more musicals outside of the "Frozen" franchise--they almost got to do this with "Gigantic," but it fell through. Their music has been great, so I really hope to see them in more musicals for Disney outside of Disney's "Frozen."

6. NEVER return to hybrid animation for a feature film--It's too disorienting for me personally, and while the animation for "Wish" wasn't bad, it definitely didn't have the storybook vibe it was going for except with backgrounds. It would look fine if it was a video game, though.

7. "Gigantic" should've been Disney's anniversary film instead of "Wish"-- I already did a post on this, so I'll just leave it at that.

8. Raya is one of the best Disney leads in a while--Granted, her movie could've been much better and I wish the color of her clothes reflected her culture instead of going for neutral colors, but Raya is the blueprint for a great protagonist. It's been mentioned before how she's a feminist icon without having to really show it in ways others have in films, by being a confident warrior with no discussion of marriage or gender inequality brought up in the film. She's also deliciously sassy and quick on her feet. I may have preferred her OG concept of being stoic, but her swagger makes her one of the more engaging Disney leads, particularly as the adorkable trait started to show up. Speaking of...

9. Ariel and Mulan are the best adorkable leads for a Disney protagonist--While I don't have much issue with Anna and Mirabel and don't really find Rapunzel or Moana that adorkable, Ariel and Mulan were the blueprints for a funny female lead, and they felt less forced than later leads.

10. Aladdin is one of the worst Disney princes--DON'T KILL ME! He used to be my favorite Disney prince, until I watched a "therapists react" video to Disney couples and they brought up the fact that Aladdin had lied to Jasmine several times over the course of the movie. Him being insecure is a great character trait (a common one with Disney leads since the 90s, really), but it's poor writing to make his romance with Jasmine be based on a lie. I'd rather he just kept tight-lipped about his identity when Jasmine caught him the first time rather than covering up with another lie.

[frozen10fanzine]

Frozen Through the Years

Yearly Spotlight: 2019

Written by @toriofthetrees

After six long years, 2019 saw the release of the long-anticipated sequel, Frozen II.

The lead-up up to the release was intense to say the least.

The first teaser trailer premiered in February, opening with Elsa on a black-sand beach stripped down to her bare essentials, barefoot, ready to take on a raging sea. She attempted twice to cross the torrential waters before the trailer turned to Anna’s shock of hundreds of diamond-shaped glass covered in strange symbols, taking over Arendelle. Following closely behind were several moments of Elsa, Olaf, Kristoff, and Anna taking on dangerous challenges, and a show of strange, foreign magic. All of this was centered around this new, mysterious setting known only at the time as an autumnal forest.

It gave just enough of a preview to hook millions.

The trailer was viewed and downloaded several million times on Twitter and YouTube within a short amount of time. In the fandom, a storm of news, posts, speculation, and discussions broke out over several platforms, too chaotic to keep track of. The months that followed the teaser were absolutely brimming with excitement! Across cinemas, television, and the internet—both in the US and internationally—came many trailers, sneak peaks, and posters about the upcoming movie. Alongside this came leaks as well, all of it sparking speculation in the fandom over what the plot of the movie could be.

Countless books about Frozen II came onto the market before the film was even released, notably without the end of the film printed within their pages. This lead to fans in many locations to protest the shops selling these books, wanting their money back.

Most of these protests lead to no results.

Success for Disney Studios, specifically. contributed to the exposure for Frozen II. ~In March, Disney invested billions of US dollars in company acquisitions across the film and TV industry, creating the most powerful media company in the world in the USA. ~This was the year of the 6th Disney D23 Expo, the biggest Disney fan event of the year! It was held on August 23–25 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California, showcasing news and pictures around all the new Disney parks, resorts—and movies! Including Frozen II! ~On November 12, 2019, Disney launched its streaming platform Disney+ in several countries ~2019 ultimately proved to be Disney's most successful cinema year to date, regardless of which new film was released!

All of this led up to the release of Frozen II on November 20, 2019 in most countries (unfortunately some countries had to wait until the beginning of January).

This new installment to Elsa and Anna’s story saw the sisters and their found family making a long trek away from Arendelle… in order to save it. Mysterious magics send them up north to the Enchanted Forest, that is covered in an impenetrable mist. Yet, it parts for them. The deeper they go into the forest, the more they discover about themselves, their family, the spirits, Arendelle… so that only one thing can be said for certain: Nothing will ever be the same again.

This film was polarizing.

In the cultural zeitgeist, it was a massive success like its predecessor, exceeding Frozen as the highest grossing animated film of all time. It received mostly positive reviews and it would go on to be nominated for multiple awards, including an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song. The Disney merchandising machinery was running at full speed and earned the company many more millions within a short amount of time. The limited edition dolls were sold out on the same day as release! However, it notably did not have the same cultural reach that its predecessor had. “Into the Unknown,” to many, was not comparable to “Let it Go.” And the film was nominated aplenty, but never actually received any awards.

However, it was within the fandom that this polarization was seen the clearest.

Frozen II made good on its promise that nothing would ever be the same for these characters. The sisters, though still as close as ever, no longer lived under the same roof by the end of the film. Elsa abdicated her crown for her duties as the Fifth Spirit and Guardian of the Enchanted Forest, while Anna took over as Queen of Arendelle. This separation, whilst to some was a step-up for the sisters, others saw as a step back. This debate rages in the fandom to this day, and many, many fans on Tumblr, Reddit, and other social media prefer Frozen to its sequel.

The fandom did gain some new content, including the addition of multiple ships. There were two that were rather popular. The first was Agduna (Agnarr/Iduna), which came about because of the major focus Frozen II had on them, the sisters’ parents. The second was Elsamaren (Elsa/Honeymaren), which came about because Honeymaren had a minor, but important interaction with Elsa in the film that sent her on the right path to Ahtohallan.

Just as Frozen II’s main theme—change—impacted the sisters, so to it did the fandom. The polarizing effect of the film lead to quite passionate arguments over its content. However, the fandom did not get any smaller or lose any passion. People continued to create, debate, discuss, and post about Frozen and Frozen II. In interviews, the cast and crew said that Frozen II was made to grow up with the audience who were there when the first film was released in theaters. With that in mind, the fandom no longer looked like it did when Frozen first came out.

Things change.

But we can still all agree on one thing: We love Frozen 💕

Stay Tuned For More

👆🏻 Click above if you want to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Frozen. The due date is April 12, 2024.

We look forward to seeing your memories ❄️

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

More dust settling... I'll talk about Pixar some more, given that this was the year a certain Pete Docter quote caught a loooot of fire...

Mainly, him implying that - ahead of the release of INSIDE OUT 2 - Pixar would back down from making more "autobiographical" films like LUCA, TURNING RED, and ELEMENTAL, and going for more "general appeal" sorts of stories.

I read this as Pixar resigning themselves to the sort-of "genre" that some people think they are. Makers of "what-if" movies, "what if [x thing] were alive?" "What if this thing you've heard of was actually like some world/factory/city?" And restraining the filmmakers from telling stories that meant a lot to them.

And yet... The recently-announced HOPPERS, directed by WE BEAR BEARS creator Daniel Chong, seems to contradicts those statements. Now you may be saying, "Obviously HOPPERS began development years ago, so it would be one of their last films in that vein." I know that. I know how these things work. It was in development as far back as 2020, when Chong returned to Pixar.

That being said, significant revisions could've been made thereafter, prior to the rollout at this year's D23.

But, from the looks of it, HOPPERS - which will be the studio's 30th feature, by the way - will follow in the footsteps of LUCA, TURNING RED, and ELEMENTAL. Stylistically, it's a lot different from the usual Pixar look. Apparently Lindsay Olivares, who was production/character designer on THE MITCHELLS VS. THE MACHINES at Sony, is all over this one. It looks very wacky and zoogy and cartoony, much more TURNING RED than TOY STORY and FINDING NEMO.

And the premise isn't "what if [x thing] were alive?" Maybe the beaver habitat will have some of that "it's like a city/factory" thing going on, but the main premise is rather out there. Basically AVATAR with beavers, a girl puts a part of her brain into a robo-beaver in order to be among them and ultimately save them from a threat. Chong will probably execute this in a way that's different and very cool.

Then you have ELIO, which had a dramatic director change, but thankfully a release date delay because of it. More time to shape things, and not rush it out under immense pressure. Domee Shi already has BAO and TURNING RED to her name, while Madeline Sharafian has BURROW. It's also worth noting that Adrian Molina, the film's original director, is still at Pixar and is already at work on another film. Sometimes, directors kicked off of their movies during John Lasseter's reign just straight up left the studio. Jan Pinkava, Brad Lewis, Brenda Chapman, to name a few. The latter had WORDS. Molina's still at Pixar, has a new project in the works, and seems to want to stay. It must've been an amicable split.

They both got this, and in the recent interview Pete Docter did for The Wrap, it seemed like they really wanted the movie going forward to emphasize the feeling of being a kid in a big, often scary and intimidating world. Albeit against the backdrop of a cosmic adventure. What he was talking about there was far removed from the corporate-speak talk in the other articles, which were quite cynical to be honest. The Bloomberg one in particular from a few months back, which whined about Pixar's more original movies and posited that SEQUELS would restore their magic... Hunk o' logic right there!

VFX veteran Todd Vaziri put it best, on twitter.

everything about that bloomberg pixar piece is tras it's pro-"content", pro-commerce, anti-art

Couldn't have said it better myself... So, yeah, different Docter when Iger's gun isn't to his head, or the trades having him answer questions specifically.

Weirdly, INSIDE OUT 2... A sequel, and possibly on track to become the highest-grossing animated movie ever, was more creative to me than most of what came out of Disney - across all their film divisions - over the past couple of years. It could've just been a blah rehash of INSIDE OUT, but there were plenty of clever things here, and all the mixed media characters like Bloofy and Lance. Good stuff. It did not, however, restore Pixar's magic in my eyes. Maybe at the box office, but... I still feel TURNING RED is my favorite film to have gotten out of that studio in years, and I really dug SOUL and LUCA, and had great fun with LIGHTYEAR and ELEMENTAL. So yeah, none of that.

Pixar seems fine, really. They continue to do cool stuff, it seems Docter and crew understand that's the way. It's WDAS who I feel are struggling, but I digress. D23 reminded me that they've got some neat stuff coming.

Surely, the sequel announcements make it seem like that's the future... But really, if it were, the announcement of an INCREDIBLES 3 would've been followed by FINDING Somebody, CARS 4, WALL-E 2, ONWARD 2, etc.

In reality, I think INCREDIBLES 3 is a long way off. Brad Bird "developing" it tells me the film is in its Jack-Jack stages. TOY STORY 5 has had a concrete release date for some time and is full steam ahead, INCREDIBLES 3 is different. I'm sure there will be another original between the 2026 release of TOY STORY 5 and whenever INCREDIBLES 3 comes out, granted that it's not the studio's June 2027 picture. Which I kinda doubt it is, but we'll see.

Let's look at both decades...

The 2010s had seven sequels vs. only four originals.

This decade so far and including the announced upcoming films: Four sequels vs. seven originals. Subject to change, a few more originals and maybe one more sequel can sneak in there. But yeah, night and day difference. Pixar doing two pictures every other year allows them to get more originals out. I'm thinking they'll do a spring and summer 2028 thing like they did in 2022 and hope to do in 2026. (They had also planned that for 2020 and this year.) If so, I can imagine spring going to either Domee Shi's next or that project Adrian Molina is now working on, and summer going to INCREDIBLES 3. Meaning an original for summer 2027. KITBULL director Rosana Sullivan's movie, maybe?

I find it ever curious and frustrating that social media blew up over TOY STORY 5 and INCREDIBLES 3, but there was relative crickets on ELIO and HOPPERS... Complaining drives engagement, as does "TOY STORY" and "INCREDIBLES". Household names. ELIO, what's that? HOPPERS? I dunno. So, yeah.

[greatqueenanna]

What is your opinion about #BringElsaHome and do you believe this campaign could have any influence on “Frozen 3” and “Frozen 4”? Maybe change the ending of "Frozen 2"?

Personally, I don't believe they will change what was established at the end of “Frozen 2”: Elsa guardian of the Enchanted Forest living in the forest, and Anna Queen of Arendelle. And I actually believe that this campaign was much more trapped within the fandom, unlike #GiveElsaAGirlfriend, which reached even people who don't know much about the franchise.

This ending of “Frozen 2” has already been reinforced several times as the most correct possible in other materials (“Polar Nights” technically has an entire Elsa monologue on the subject), and having two queens instead of one in the franchise seems to be more interesting for Disney. But can there be any change, even if small, to try to please the people who ran this campaign? One solution I've heard is to have Arendelle be ruled by the two sister queens instead of just Anna, but I still think that would belittle the Enchanted Forest, and while there is this mystery surrounding how the franchise will develop the Northuldra Tribe in the future (there is people theorizing that the tribe will become even more secondary in the next films), I don't think they would do that, but rather that they will continue with what was established at the end of the second film.

My overall opinion of them is very negative, to be honest - for a variety of reasons that I will not go into detail here. It has more to do with their behavior, rather than their opinions.

Regardless, I do not believe that BEH has enough influence to cause any real change within the narrative of the franchise, and especially since the group has been toxic and just really cringe for the majority of the campaign's lifespan.

The Northuldra are definitely not going anywhere. Disney did not sign a deal with The Sami Council and Sami Film Institute just to erase the Northuldra from the franchise. That would be really shitty of Disney to dis them after all this work they put in to give a respectful representation of the Sami-inspired characters.

Elsa and Anna have already been shown in post-side content in their roles, as you mentioned. Disney is standing behind the ending of F2 and have not shown any evidence of back-tracking. The current team on F3 have also already established that Anna and Elsa are "busy in their new roles".

Thus, the request to retcon F2 is already being ignored by the company and film team. Also, it's just nonsensical to think that the sequel that made 1.453 billion and is currently the one of the highest grossing animated film of all time is just gonna be thrown out just because of some critiques.

The best they'll probably do is just show that Anna and Elsa spend a lot of time together and are still close, and especially since protecting The Enchanted Forest and everything associated with it is an important part of Anna's reign and her heritage. They will probably also just better explain Elsa's new role, and show exactly how Anna and Elsa are still working together even though they are living apart.

[filmfauxpas]

Twilight and Its Ever-Changing Directors—Why Catherine Hardwicke’s is The Best. 

Twilight is one of my top three favorite films and was my introduction to fan culture. My stepmom was an avid fan, taking my sister and me to the midnight premieres, playing the original soundtrack on the way to school, and reading each book as they were released. Every fall, I enjoy revisiting my favorite characters as part of my Halloween tradition. While my love for the series is unmatched, there are things I wish were different. Like many fans, my biggest gripe with the franchise is the constant change in style, which primarily comes down to the director changes between films. There is no doubt that Catherine Hardwicke’s Twilight was the best. Her 2008 adaptation was the most well-received among all the films by critics, as it ranked highest according to Rotten Tomatoes.

Hardwicke’s understanding of teenagers demonstrated in films like Thirteen and Lords of Dogtown, made her the perfect choice for Twilight. Summit, the producer of Twilight, approached her after recognizing her knack for exploring the complexity of teenage emotions.  Hardwicke agreed to direct and, despite a modest $4 million budget, she created the beloved film starring Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart. Blue, dreamy, moody, and romantic, the first Twilight aesthetic became iconic, thanks to Hardwicke’s indie film sensibility. Unlike other adaptations of the time, Twilight felt more intimate—its hushed dialogue, early 2000s fashion, and on-location filming only added to its charm. Following its release, Twilight grossed $393 million worldwide. Following its success, Summit wanted a sequel as soon as possible, giving Hardwicke less than a year to create and direct New Moon. Hardwicke argued against execs, which ultimately ended in Summit abandoning her to find someone who would meet their demands. 

In 2009, New Moon was directed by Chris Weitz, and the remaining three films were also helmed by male directors. Although the sequels enjoyed box office success, critically, they fell short compared to Hardwicke’s original vision. Hardwicke expressed her opinion on this choice of directors, saying: “[it was] a heartbreak for me. There are other badass women out there that could have done those.” The absence of a woman's perspective is evident in the remaining films.

Weitz was still finishing New Moon when Eclipse began filming, leading David Slade to take over as director. Previous to Eclipse, Slade solely directed gritty and disturbing films like Hard Candy and 30 Days of Night. Summit chose Slade because of this, hoping he would create a “complex, visually arresting world,” as they described it in their 2009 official press release. While Slade brought a darker tone to Eclipse, the film suffered in its portrayal of Bella, who seemed more passive and confused, caught between Jacob and Edward. This shift in focus, from the internal struggles of the characters to more surface-level action sequences, is where the magic of the first film began to dissipate.

In Hardwicke’s Twilight, Bella’s perspective of Forks is misty and lulling, reflecting her remembrance of the town from when she was a child. There's a certain awe to Forks, the Cullen family, and budding romance between Edward and Bella. Even amid conflict, there was a lingering sense of wonder. As the films progressed, however, that distinct storytelling faded. The blues become auburn and shift to gray, much like the narrative. Some might argue this reflects the maturing of the theme, but I believe it reflects the later directors’ lack of connection to the source material. Hardwicke and screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg fought to give Bella more agency and have her be a “little less passive than she was in the book,” as Hardwicke described. Rather than focusing on the internal and emotional conflict the main characters face, later directors indulge more in the action of the books.

Despite the disappointing predecessors to the first film, Hardwicke remains positive about her work on the Twilight set. “As a director, you work so hard; you pour your heart into so many projects; some of them get made, some of them never get made,” Hardwicke explained. “This one got made, and people loved it and appreciated every little detail. I mean, people are wearing the shoes that Bella wore and asking how you chose this and that, and they really care about the love and attention that filmmakers put into it.” Even though she wasn’t able to continue directing the series, her impact on the franchise is enduring and continues to be admired by fans.

In the end, while the saga might have evolved in ways that didn’t always meet my expectations, Twilight will always hold a special place for me. And every fall, I return to Forks, finding comfort in the nostalgia and magic of that first film.

[tobiasdrake]

An interesting note about this movie is that it was made for pretty cheap compared to other X-films. Not super-cheap, mind. But on a $115m budget, it's a lot cheaper than Origins at $150m, First Class at $160m, or Last Stand's $210m. It came in just under X-Men 2 at $125m.

There wasn't a lot of hype going into this movie. It opened to one of the all-time worst box office openings in X-Men history. The only films that opened worse than this movie were Dark Phoenix and New Mutants. Nobody wanted a sequel to Origins: Wolverine, and neither the success of First Class nor the marketing of the film did much to instill confidence in another Logan solo outing.

But the film proved to have legs. Through repeat showings and word-of-mouth, it managed to soar. By the end of its life it had become, at the time, the second-highest grossing film in X-Men history - outperforming even X-Men 2 by $10m.

It went shockingly far for a film that opened so limp, made for relatively cheap. It managed that by being, for the most part, a political action thriller. It's the same method that made the MCU so big, making films that are genre pieces but painted in superhero colors. It's a Bond movie, moreso than an X-Men film. But with an X-Man in it.

They were even able to save money via a plotline that let them go half the film without having to do any expensive CGI regeneration shots. Though the Silver Samurai certainly looked cool as shit. You can tell they were saving the effects budget for when he got here.

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

The Empire Strikes Back (1980, Irvin Kershner)

20/03/2024

The Empire Strikes Back, also know as Star Wars: Episode V or Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, is a 1980 film directed by Irvin Kershner. Sequel to Star Wars, it is the second film in order of production (fifth in order of internal chronology of the series) of the science fiction saga of the same name created by George Lucas set three years after the events told in Star Wars and is the second act of the original trilogy.

The Galactic Empire, under the leadership of the evil Darth Vader, is looking for Luke Skywalker and the forces of the Rebel Alliance. While Luke's friends, Han Solo and Leia Organa, are busy fleeting the Imperial threat, the young hero is sent by Obi-Wan Kenobi to the old Jedi Master Yoda, in order to complete his training.

The film, in which Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Alec Guinness, Anthony Daniels and Frank Oz took part, was produced independently by Lucas himself, without the influence of a film studio, and had a troubled production, plagued by delays, disagreements within the crew and unusability of the sets. Received lukewarmly by critics, alienated by the abrupt change in atmosphere of the film compared to its predecessor, The Empire Strikes Back won two Oscars, becoming a cultural phenomenon over the years and is today considered the best film in the saga and one of the best science fiction films ever realized. Adjusted for inflation, the film is the twelfth on the list of the highest grossing films of all time in the United States of America and Canada, having managed to sell more than 98 million tickets in the two countries.

[1997thebracket]

Round 2B

Note: this is our threeway matchup to even the numbers going forward! The two highest-voted films will both proceed, and the third will be eliminated.

Space Jam: Come on and slam, and welcome to the jam! What happens when one of the biggest athletes in the world tries his hand at acting-- alongside the Looney Tunes, no less? A confusing but lovable cinematic treasure. In the half-animated comedy Space Jam, basketball legend (oft-cited as the Greatest of All Time) Michael Jordan and the Tune Squad face off against the dastardly Monstars for their intergalactic freedom. Space Jam was the first film produced by Warner Bros Feature Animation, and although it was first released theatrically in the US in November of 1996 it would go on to gross over $250 million during its global run into 1997, making it the highest-grossing basketball movie of all time until 2022. From the slapping soundtrack to the classic jersey designs now coming back into retro-rotation, Bugs and his crew could not feel more firmly planted in the sensibility of the decade. Space Jam also features Wayne Knight of Seinfeld fame flattened in a truly haunting use of crude CGI. Look up 'flat Newman' if you've forgotten.

Austin Powers: Let’s keep this bracket groovy, baby! Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery is a spy spoof film released in 1997, written by and starring Mike Myers and featuring Elizabeth Hurley, as well as known names in the spy movie business Michael York and Robert Wagner. It was the first introduction of the titular icon-to-be Austin Powers, a free-loving secret agent who was cryogenically frozen in the 1960s, returned to us in all his velvet-suited snaggle-toothed glory in the ‘90s to face his nemesis once more. Parodying James Bond and copycat spy films as well as '60s pop culture, the movie would spawn two sequels and novelizations all sharing a similar sense for fashion, gags, and Austin’s recognizable catchphrases. As completely goofy as the film and its legacy is, critics were mostly favorable, with the New York Times writing "The film's greatest asset is its gentle tone: rejecting the smug cynicism of Naked Gun-style parodies, it never loses the earnest naiveté of the psychedelic era." (This is presumably an embarrassing typo: it’s shagadelic, Yorkie baby!)

Men In Black: Fifteen hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was flat, and fifteen minutes ago, you knew that humans were alone on this planet. Imagine what you'll know tomorrow. Men in Black is a sci-fi comedy, starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, which would go on to spawn a franchise after the success of the 1997 film. It centers around a secret government agency known as the Men in Black, tasked with monitoring and regulating extraterrestrial activity on Earth; these agents, notably our protagonists Agent J and Agent K, protect humanity from aliens living among us and ensure the world remains oblivious to their existence. The franchise was praised by critics and audiences alike for its unique screenplay, action sequences, and the humor and chemistry of the lead actors. Over the years, Men in Black has expanded to include multiple sequels, an animated series and spin-offs, all contributing to its enduring popularity as a cheekier take on the sci-fi genre.

[amplesalty]

Halloween 2024 - Day 7 - Terrifier 2 (2022)

Send in the clowns...

A year ago on this very blog we watched a little movie by the name of Terrifier, a gore porn laden romp with an eeriely captivating villain in the shape of Art the Clown. I had initially prophesied that this would be the one and only apperance of Mr Clown because we don't take kindly that sort of hyper violence around here. Unfortunately, that prophecy hasn't come to pass for one reason…well, actually two reasons but we'll come back to that. The more pressing issue is something that is doing gangbusters at the time of writing; Terrifier 3. Quickly surpassing $55m in box office takings saw Art's latest outing shoot to the top of the US box office charts and take it's place as the highest grossing unrated film of all time. But why would that change my mind about proceeding on with this franchise? It's a Christmas movie.

They found my one weakness, a Christmas horror movie. Like Silent Night, Bloody Night and Black Christmas before it, I feel duty bound to see this movie but we can't just dive head long into the 3rd movie and leave a gaping hole in our knowledge of Art lore. There could be cruical plot points that we'd be missing so, despite an enourmous amount of trepidation, I reluctantly sat down to see this sequel. And frankly, as little as I would expected it, there is a lot of stuff going on here that is seemingly going to be vital to the franchise as it firmly sets it's sights on film number 4 at some point in the future. No longer is this a movie of disposable characters that are merely fodder for Art's depraved bloodlust, mere playthings for him to torture whilst the adoring viewers at home cheer him on as he commits ever increasing acts of horror. This time we actually have characters we can feel invested in and pray actually make it out alive by the end.

Namely young Sienna, our final girl who dons a valkyrie type outfit for a large portion of the film, fitting for her position as a sort of antithesis of Art. She is a beacon of hope amidst the darkness and almost seems to have been ordained as the one person that may be able to bring Art's reign of terror to an end. But if the first movie taught us anything it's that nothing is off the table here. We saw how Tara came a cropper there so who's to say that the same couldn't happen to Sienna? It brings a whole extra sense of tension when no one in the film feels truly safe, not even our protaginist. There's a feeling in every scene that Art could pop up at any moment ready to cave someone's head in or slit their throat, the dread building with each passing second as if someone were turning the crank on the world's most demented jack in the box. The human element is not the only thing that has been ramped up here, if you thought the first movie was disturbing then you haven't seen anything yet. Just utter the words 'bedroom scene' to anyone that has seen this and it's bound to elicit a reaction. But Art in general revels in his actions unlike his big name slasher brethern before him. I've said before that guys like Michael Myers or Jason Vorhees have a very ruthless effiency to them, kill and move on to the next victim. Art would much rather sit and watch you suffer, your cries of agony like a symphony, the pain on your face is a piece of fine art for him to admire. So why then does a film that I enjoyed much more than the first and one so dripping with atmosphere fill me with such ambivelance? (Which means feeling two opposite irrececoncilible emotions about the same thing) Well, that atmosphere arguablly goes a bit too far in creating an immensense sense of dread that permeates every single scene, an atmosphere so opprossesive that it's almost aniexity enducing when it feels like your favourites might be seconds away from being disembowled. It's a movie that feels so dark and grimy that I felt like I needed to shower afterwards. And what small measure of cathartic joy you might feel from seeing Art defeated is ripped away from you knowing he'll be back again for 3…and 4…and probaby 5, 6 and 7. It put's me in mind of something like Return of the Living Dead, being in this entirely no win situation as your droom draws closer and closer. Art is inevtiable, a reminder of our own fragile mortality upon this ever spinning world. At least the borderline comedic violence and effects during the kills does offer some scant relief, the victim's wounds looking like live action cartoons at times did break the immersion somewhat but at least they dragged me out of the deeply depressing world of Art for a second.

But it's hard to truly escape it when they have such unspeakable horrors as people watching Night of the Living dead in fullscreen. This is far more evil than anything Art could ever do. As much as I don't want to, I'm afraid that we'll be back here again for Christmas 2025 for Art to make it a truly red Christmas.. But wait, what about that other reason I wanted to see this? Just like in the movie itself, we're going to sneak it in as a little bonus at the end. For who should pop up during the mid credit scene?

Why, Chris Jericho of course! I had known about his apperance in this from his podcast some years ago, which is where the original movie found it's way onto my list, and we do like our wrestling adjacent media around here. Why, we can even do a CM Punk type recap! We'll keep this fairly limited rather than try to cover his whole career. As of late he has been seen leading a stable in AEW by the name of 'The Learning Tree', a moniker shared by Jericho himself who plays the role of an obnoxious and insincere veteran offering to share his wisdom with the younger generation but is obviously only out to further his own career. This has been met with negative reactions but moreso in a 'go home heat' sort of way with audible chants of 'please retire' during his matches and segments with many feeling his run is tarnishing the end of what has been a sure fire HOF career. Arguably, his opinions outside of wrestling and his wife's whereabouts on January 6th might also be going someway to tarnishing his career but that's another story. His 'technically correct' (the best kind of correct) boasts do little to help the matter either, just today on his podcast he was bragging about being in the number one movie in America, a statement that should carry as many asterixs as when he says his band, Fozzy, played to over 80,000 people in Wembley Stadium. Pretty sure when people bought those tickets it wasn't for Fozzy featuring support from AEW, just as Terrifier 3 isn't Chris Jericho featuring Art the Clown.

[mthguy]

One of the best young actors of his generation, Tom Holland's accolades include a British Academy Film Award (BAFTA),  three Saturn Awards, an Empire Award, a Hollywood Film Award and two Jupiter Awards. He was featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list of 2019. 

Holland achieved international recognition playing Spider-Man in six Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) superhero films, beginning with Captain America: Civil War (2016). The following year, Holland received the BAFTA Rising Star Award and became the youngest actor to play a title role in an MCU film in Spider-Man: Homecoming. The sequels, subtitled Far From Home (2019) and No Way Home (2021), each grossed more than $1 billion worldwide, and the latter became the highest-grossing film of the year. He had another action film role in Uncharted (2022), and also expanded to play against-type roles in the crime dramas The Devil All the Time (2020) and Cherry (2021). Holland has additionally directed the short film Tweet (2015) and voiced roles in animated features, including Spies in Disguise (2019) and Onward (2020).

In spring 2024, he starred on stage in the West End, London in Romeo and Juliet.

[2ramunecafe]

WHY SHREK 2 IS BETTER THAN THE PREQUEL

Amongst all animated films the studio, Dreamworks, has produced, the Shrek series or franchise is undoubtedly the most popular of all as it is adored by audience of all ages. Shrek was a film created in 2001 which was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson. It tells the story of a grumpy ogre trying to protect his home, the swamp, from the fairytale creatures the diabolical Lord Farquaad exiled. In order to get his beloved swamp back, the green ogre must go on a quest to rescue a princess for the Lord to marry. Due to the overwhelming success the movie had, more movies had followed suit and thus the Shrek franchise was born. However, in terms of quality, Shrek 2 is the best movie in the franchise.

According to Allison Picurro of HBO, Shrek 2 is definitive proof sequels can be better than the original. While the source of Shrek 2 already seems flawless, the sequel adds things to the main plot that we never knew we needed. After Lord Farquaad was defeated, Shrek and Fiona got married and spent their honeymoon in the ogre’s beloved swamp which was now shared by the two. All seems well until Fiona’s parents learn of their marriage and request to meet Fiona’s husband, completely unaware of the curse that had struck their daughter and with the expectation of meeting Prince Charming, not an unhygienic ogre. When Shrek comes to the conclusion that the King and Queen of Far Far Away are disappointed at the ogre whom their daughter calls her true love, he sets off to find a way to become human and gain their approval; this led to the introduction of Puss in Boots, Prince Charming and the Fairy Godmother, who were indeed memorable characters in the franchise.

Second, aside from the entertaining plot and introduction of new characters, Shrek 2 also possesses one of the most important elements in a movie: a killer soundtrack. The second movie features hit songs like “Holding out for a Hero,” “Livin’ ‘la Vida Loca,” “Funkytown,” and more. “Holding out for a Hero” by Bonnie Tyler was sung by Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders) to set the mood for Fiona and Prince Charming’s dance which also set the viewers’ mood for the climax of the movie. This particular scene is one of the reasons this film deserves the number 1 spot on the list of Shrek movies.

However, some fans argue that Shrek is better because of its IMDb ratings of 7.8/10, which is .6 higher than the sequel. But according to Matt Reynolds (2017), movie-ranking sites such as IMDb should be ignored because the ratings are much more biased towards the opinions of men. Men often make up 70% of the voters for films and they tend to favor movies with more masculine themes. Moreover, IMDb ratings don’t really matter as the film went on to win two Academy Award nominations and compete for the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The film also garnered a box office of 919.8 million USD, which is two times larger than the original’s box office, making it Dreamwork’s highest-grossing film up to date.

With a box office of 919.8 million USD, Shrek 2 is the best movie to ever come out of the Shrek franchise. Packed with comedic references to pop culture figures and fairytale stories, a killer soundtrack, and entertaining plot with no Lord Farquaad in sight, the sequel properly deserved its success and deserves to be the definitive proof why sequels can be better than the original.

REFERENCES

Picurro, A. Shrek 2 is definitive proof sequels can be better than the originals. HBO Movies.

Sharman, A. (2018, October 30). Unpopular Opinion: ‘Shrek 2’ is Better Than ‘Shrek’. The Harvard Crimson.

Reynolds, M. (2017, October 24). You should ignore film ratings on IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. Wired UK.

[doamarierose-honoka]

The joyride continues for Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 which has entered the list of Top 10 highest-grossing movies ever worldwide. Now thisclose to $1.524B global ($1,523.9M) through Wednesday, the sequel has cruised past Furious 7 ($1.515B) and The Avengers ($1.521B) to land the No. 10 spot on the all-time chart.

Through Wednesday, the international box office cume is $905.1M. Mexico, where IO2 is the highest grossing movie ever, has crossed $100M, while the final release market — Japan — starts play today. Domestically, IO2 is at $618.8M through yesterday.

The Top 10 offshore markets to date are Mexico ($100.5M), Brazil ($77.3M/highest-grossing movie ever), UK ($64.9M), Korea ($58.2M), France ($55.6M), Italy ($47.1M), China ($45.9M), Germany ($44.7M), Spain ($44.4M) and Australia ($35.1M).

A little more than a week ago, the Kelsey Mann-directed charmer became the biggest animated film ever worldwide when it overtook Frozen II.

IO2 has been on a mind-blowing run since it began offshore rollout on June 12, with domestic joining on June 14. At the time, the launch weekend logged the biggest opening for an animated movie worldwide at $295M (when using current exchange rates and in like-for-like markets).

Inside Out 2 then quickly topped the $1B global milestone, getting there in just 19 days — fastest to the mark for any animated movie. It is the highest-grossing film of 2024 to date, and the only one to cross $1B so far. In early July, IO2 became Pixar’s highest-grossing film of all time worldwide.