CHASTAIN SHINES IN TWO FILMS OVER MLK HOLIDAY (Updated)

The real winner of the weekend box office was Jessica Chastain. It’s hard to imagine a career booster any greater than having your name on the marquee for both the No. 1 and No. 2 films at the box office. But there it was — for Mama, a $15-million dollar horror flick that wound up […]

MAMA SURPRISES — WHO KNEW THERE’D BE DAYS LIKE THIS?

Box office mavens had predicted that Mama, starring Jessica Chastain, would come out ahead at the weekend — and Martin Luther King Jr. holiday — box office, but no one had supposed that it would win as big as it has. The PG-13-rated horror film is on track to earn $28.1 million over the three-day […]

BIGELOW PENS OP-ED PIECE TO DEFEND ZD30

Director Kathryn Bigelow has again attempted to deflect criticism of the torture scenes depicted in her film, Zero Dark Thirty, emphasizing her previous declaration that “depiction is not endorsement.” Writing in the Los Angeles Times, Bigelow commented, “Confusing depiction with endorsement is the first step toward chilling any American artist’s ability and right to shine […]

ANOTHER VIOLENT WEEKEND ON MOVIE SCREENS

There will be no let-up in the mayhem on the silver screen over the weekend. The Warner Bros. mobster movie Gangster Squad is expected to debut at the top of the box office with around $20-25 million, while Zero Dark Thirty, which ignited a fierce controversy over its depiction of torture, goes into wide release […]

SENATE TO PROBE FILMMAKERS’ ACCESS TO CIA SECRETS

While some conservative lawmakers and commentators have praised the Zero Dark Thirty filmmakers for making a convincing case that the use of torture was justified in tracking down Osama bin Laden, several have also expressed concern that the film may have revealed too much about the inner workings of the CIA. Several liberals have also […]

STRONG LIMITED DEBUT FOR ZERO DARK THIRTY

Opening in limited release, Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty was the clear weekend winner on a per-theater basis. The movie, the object of attack by some critics for its suggestion that torture — or “enhanced interrogation” as its supporters euphemistically refer to it — played a valid role in the manhunt for Osama bin Laden, […]

CONTROVERSY MAY HAVE FUELED ZERO DARK THIRTY TICKET SALES

The controversy over the waterboarding scenes in Zero Dark Thirty has not hurt the film at the box office. TheWrap.com reported today (Thursday) that playing in five theaters on its opening day in New York and Los Angeles, the Kathryn Bigelow feature took in an estimated $124,848 — or an average $24,969 per theater, making […]

MCCAIN SAYS HE WAS SICKENED BY ZERO DARK 30 TORTURE CLAIM

Senator John McCain said on Tuesday that he was sickened by the suggestion in Zero Dark Thirty that waterboarding al-Qaeda’s No. 3 leader, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, helped provide information that led to the hiding place of Osama bin Laden. McCain, who himself endured 5 1/2 years as a prisoner of the North Vietnamese in the […]

WITH 7 GOLDEN GLOBE NODS, LINCOLN BECOMES OSCAR FRONTRUNNER

Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln continued to pile up the awards nominations today (Thursday), picking up seven Golden Globes nods — more than any other film of 2012. Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained and Ben Affleck’s Argo tied for second place with five nominations each. All three films received best film nominations in the drama category as did […]

HOBBIT‘S LENGTH MAY TRIM ITS EARNINGS

Although box office forecasters are predicting that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will have a huge opening at the box office this weekend, its nearly three-hour (174 minutes) length will result in theaters being able to show it fewer times than shorter films, thereby cutting into its potential revenue. But today’s (Wednesday) New York Post […]

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