Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax opened with an estimated $70.7 million, far exceeding experts’ forecasts of $50-60 million — setting a record as the biggest opening for an animated family film that was not a sequel. It is also the biggest opening so far this year, Universal’s fourth-biggest opening ever, and the biggest opening for a […]

JOURNEY 2 HOLDS ON TO FOREIGN LEAD

Overseas, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island held on to the top position for the fourth consecutive weekend. But the fact that it earned only $14.7 million reflected the poor performance of the overall foreign box office. The No. 2 film was 20th Century Fox’s romantic comedy This Means War, which earned $14.1 million. Universal’s Safe […]

ACT OF VALOR TRIUMPHS IN BOX-OFFICE BATTLE

Act of Valor, a movie that started out as a training film, which stars Navy SEALs playing Navy SEALs, was victorious at the weekend theater(s) of operations, seizing an estimated $24.7 million from moviegoers, more than twice what it cost to produce. Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds opened in second place with about $16 million, the […]

PHANTOM MENACE RISES IN RECORD BOOKS

Few people had high expectations for the 3D re-release of Star Wars: Episode 1 — The Phantom Menace. Even when it was originally released, the first of the Star Wars prequels took a drubbing from critics and fanboys alike. Nevertheless, the 3D version opened over the weekend with a solid $22.5 million — enough to […]

STUDIOS SET A FEBRUARY RECORD (Updated)

Moviegoers gave Hollywood an early Valentine by packing theaters in twice the numbers than the most optimistic pundits had forecast. For the first time on a non-holiday weekend (Valentine’s Day is not an official work-free holiday — and besides, it doesn’t arrive until Tuesday), four movies debuted with more than $20 million. In fact, the […]

MOVIE REVIEWS: SAFE HOUSE

Several critics are drubbing the script for Safe House, starring Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds, but they’re missing the point, other critics argue. Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times suggests that the “business-as-usual” script is offset by “expert direction” by Daniel Espinosa. The Swedish director, says Turan, has given Safe House “an unmistakably stylish […]

WOMEN LIKELY TO THRONG TO THE VOW THIS WEEKEND (Updated)

Last weekend — the weekend of the Super Bowl — belonged to the men. This weekend, which ushers in Valentine’s Day on Tuesday, belongs to the opposite sex. That, at any rate, is the prediction of box office pundits, who figure that the tear jerker The Vow, which concerns a woman, played by Rachel McAdams, […]