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The 10 Most Disappointing Movies of 2011

Sandy Schaefer — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 18:23:23 +0000

What really constitutes a “disappointment” is pretty subjective. To use a couple of examples: some people would say they were really let down by Captain America: The First Avenger or Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, simply because the films weren’t as fantastic as they had hoped. Others, though, would argue those titles are still rock-solid films and that certain moviegoers’ expectations were so overblown that no motion picture could possibly meet them. But that’s a whole other discussion…

Today, we have a list of 10 films released in 2011 that simply failed to live up to the Screen Rant staff’s collective expectations. Bear in mind, this isn’t at all synonymous with a “worst of” list for 2011 – in fact, you may notice that a handful of the movies listed here actually received decent reviews from ...

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DVD/Blu-Ray Breakdown: December 6, 2011

Paul Young — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 00:57:50 +0000

There are a couple dozen new releases out on Blu-ray this week, including several popular summer films – Cowboys & Aliens, The Hangover Part II, The Debt and The Help - a couple of box sets – Mission: Impossible Trilogy, Scary Movie Trilogy – a classic historical war film from the ’70s – Tora! Tora! Tora! – and two remakes packaged together – The Omega Man and I Am Legend – and a classic Hitchcock crime-thriller – The Lady Vanishes.

Even families have something to watch with the uninspired, yet humorous, Mr. Popper’s Penguins.

Let’s take a look at nine of these the new releases we think are interesting, and see what special features they offer.

NEW RELEASES

Cowboys & Aliens

Click the Image to Own the ...

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Weekend Box Office Wrap Up: October 23, 2011

Niall Browne — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 18:57:23 +0000

This week:

Paranormal Activity 3 scares away the competition at the box office; it’s not all for one and one for all for The Three Musketeers - and Johnny English may be Reborn but he’s not topping the box office chart.

The Paranormal Activity franchise is the gift that keeps on giving to Paramount – the films are cheap to produce and they make back some serious coin. This latest installment is budgeted at $5 million, but it should gross over ten times that ($54 million) by Monday morning. The first Paranormal Activity cost just $15,000 (yeah – you read that right) and went on to score $107 million ($193 million globally) – while the sequel opened to $40 million on its way to $84 million ($177 million worldwide) from a $3 million budget.

Poised for a run into ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: August 14th, 2011

Sandy Schaefer — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 16:48:06 +0000

This week:

Apes continue to rise, The Help has a heyday, and Final Destination 5 keeps the franchise alive… for now; The Smurfs will return in 2013; Bridget Jones’s love woes aren’t over yet; Disney is giving Cinderella a makeover; Patrick Wilson jumps onboard the Prometheus ship; and Breaking Bad‘s Bryan Cranston is writing and directing his own movie.

Box Office

Neither Emma Stone nor Death itself could stop Rise of the Planet of the Apes from snagging the box office crown a second time this weekend. The popular prequel dropped about 49% from its opening for an estimated $27 million take and a $104.4 million total. Suffice it to say, 20th Century Fox will want Rupert Wyatt to start giving more thought to his sequel(s) plans, ASAP.

Positive buzz helped propel The Help to the #2 spot over the weekend, where it took in some $25.7 million for a ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: August 7th, 2011

Niall Browne — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 17:59:19 +0000

This week:

Apes rise to the top of the box office as Rise of the Planet of the Apes captures the top spot; Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon are in deep…Mud; Kenneth Branagh moves from Thor to The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society; George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road faces even more problems; J.J. Abrams gives reasons for the delays on Star Trek 2; Ethan Hawke teams with the makers of Insidious and Paranormal Activity and there is news on the new futuristic and geographically inaccurate Robin Hood.

Box Office

It looks like 20th Century Fox’s risky reboot of the Planet of the Apes franchise has paid-off. Rise of the Planet of the Apes surpassed studio expectations and should bank an estimated $54 million over the weekend, an impressive number considering that last film in the longstanding franchise was Tim Burton’s critically mauled “re-imagining” of the classic Planet of ...

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‘Cowboys & Aliens’ vs. ‘Attack the Block’: Invasion Movie Showdown

Kofi Outlaw — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 19:55:03 +0000

This past weekend brought us two similar yet very different alien invasion flicks – two similar but different genre mashing invasion flicks, if we’re being totally accurate. On the one hand, there was Jon Favreau’s big-budget ‘old west vs. outer space’ invasion flick, Cowboys & Aliens; on the other side of the movie spectrum was Joe Cornish’s low-budget ‘inner city vs. outer space’ invasion flick, Attack the Block.

While these two close-for-comfort films will likely have two very different lives at the box office, we want to look beyond the profit margins and examine the strengths and weaknesses of both films, the question of which is the more enjoyable of the two, and finally, some speculation about which has the ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: July 31, 2011 [Updated]

Niall Browne — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 18:56:33 +0000

This week:

It’s a stand-off at the box office as Cowboys & Aliens has a showdown with The Smurfs- but the Cowboys win; Simon Pegg has A Fantastic Fear of Everything; Miles Teller, Justin Chon, Skylar Astin and Sarah Wright are 21 and Over; Val Kilmer and Francis Ford Coppola’s Twixt gets interactive; John Cusack and Nic Cage re-team for The Frozen Ground and Antoine Fuqua gets ready to Storm Las Vegas.

Box Office

A fierce battle was fought at the box office over the weekend, as Cowboys & Aliens faced off against The Smurfs (read our review). Cowboys won the weekend taking $36.4 million, while The Smurfs had to settle for second place with $35.6 million. This is good news for The Smurfs, but bad news for Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford. The pricey sci-fi/western combo was expected to bank in the region of $40 million on its ...

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Interview: ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Star Daniel Craig Talks Violence & Han Solo Jokes

Roth Cornet — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 22:48:22 +0000

According to Olivia Wilde, “There’s nothing quite like staring into Daniel Craig’s eyes.”

The actress made the confession during our recent interview for Jon Favreau’s new Western/Sci-fi hybrid Cowboys & Aliens (read our review). After sitting down with Craig during the gorgeous Missoula, Montana junket for Cowboys we are forced to admit that Wilde hit the nail on the proverbial head with her bold statement. Not even the genuinely stunning countryside was able to compete. Craig has a quality of sharp, almost animalistic intelligence to him that has served some of his recent characters perfectly (notably Jake Lonergan in this film and, of course, James Bond). One gets the sense that he is processing multiple pieces of information very quickly — about both people and his surroundings — and making decisions based on ...

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‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Spoilers Discussion

Ben Kendrick — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 04:28:48 +0000

While our readers are already chatting away in the comments section of our Cowboys & Aliens review, this is the place where you can discuss SPOILERS about the movie without worrying about ruining it for people who haven’t seen it yet.

If you’re posting comments here, assume that anyone in the conversation has seen the movie – if you haven’t seen the movie, I would recommend you don’t read these comments here until you have.

Below you can rate Cowboys and Aliens for yourself. After that, feel free to Discuss away!

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Follow me on Twitter @benkendrick and let us know your thoughts on Cowboys & Aliens.

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‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Review

Ben Kendrick — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 04:26:27 +0000

Screen Rant’s Ben Kendrick reviews Cowboys & Aliens

After the success of the Iron Man franchise, even with a less than stellar critical response to Iron Man 2, director Jon Favreau has become a fan-favorite filmmaker among both casual and die-hard moviegoers. As a result, it’s no surprise that his genre mash-up film, Cowboys & Aliens, enjoyed a lot of pre-release buzz – due also in part to the film’s bizarre premise.

But is that Cowboys & Aliens premise a boon or a bane for the film? Successfully marrying a dusty western film with a slick sci-fi action-adventure is a daunting task. Has Favreau succeeded in creating, not just a competent nod to both genres, but an enjoyable ...

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Interview: ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Star Olivia Wilde Likes Joan of Arc & Insane Stunts

Roth Cornet — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:00:30 +0000

Olivia Wilde is quickly becoming one of genre films’ biggest stars. Well, to be fair, her star is rapidly rising across genres. The beautiful actress first came to Cowboys & Aliens director Jon Favreau’s attention in an unusual manner, however. Favreau noticed that his son had repeatedly rented the movie Year One in their hotel room while they were vacationing in Hawaii, so he sat down to discover the appeal of the film for his boy. He soon realized that said appeal could be neatly summed up into two words — Olivia and Wilde.

(Of course, Ms. Wilde came to the world’s attention in a far larger way when she was cast as Quorra in Disney’s highly ambitious endeavor TRON: Legacy.)

When Favreau examined more of her work, he found that Wilde possessed both the enigmatic quality and classical ...

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Interview: Harrison Ford Talks ‘Cowboys & Aliens’

Roth Cornet — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 14:23:31 +0000

As a film buff, when you receive the opportunity to interview Harrison Ford with a small group of reporters, it’s simultaneously elating and intimidating. Ford carries with him the weight of one of the most iconographic filmography’s of our time. He is, as Cowboys & Aliens director Jon Favreau has said, “the John Wayne of this generation” in the sense that “when John Wayne stepped onto the screen, he brought his entire body of work with him, and you have to acknowledge that.”

As we noted in our earlier edit bay visit piece with the director, casting Ford is in some respects a metaphorical tip of the hat to the fans. He was a space Cowboy before anyone really recognized that Star Wars was borrowing many classic Western tropes and character traits and ...

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Interview: Jon Favreau Plays Cinematic DJ With ‘Cowboys & Aliens’

Roth Cornet — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 14:56:10 +0000

This weekend, director Jon Favreau’s highly anticipated Sci-fi/Western genre bender Cowboys & Aliens comes galloping into theaters. Last week, we had the unique thrill of being flown out to Missoula, Montana, to interview Jon Favreau, Daniel Craig, Olivia Wilde and, of course, Harrison Ford.

We were also privileged to be among the first people in the world to see the movie and to experience three days of living like a Cowboy (if by Cowboy we mean city-slicker on an incredible country joy-ride). Said Western-style joy-ride included horseback riding, archery, skeet shooting with a gun in one hand and a glass of wine in the other (I kid, I put the wine down to pick up the shotgun), axe-throwing and learning to lasso (a plastic cow, but still).

Over the course of the week we will be providing continuing coverage of the film and our ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: July 24, 2011

Niall Browne — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 19:10:41 +0000

This week:

Captain America is The First Avenger at the box office; Harrison Ford stays on the Cowboy trail for Black Hats; Pierce Brosnan picks up Stephen King’s Bag of Bones; Seth Rogen and Zac Efron team for an R-rated comedy and the men behind Horrible Bosses take a Vacation.

Box Office:

Captain America: The First Avenger (read our Captain America review here) topped the box office over the weekend and bested the latest Harry Potter film. The Marvel Comics adaptation banked an estimated $65.8 million – similar to Thor (Warner Bros. must be feeling a little bit peeved considering Green Lantern‘s gross). The WWII-era superhero pic had an impressive debut – but it will be interesting to see how it plays overseas. The film is leaning more on the First Avenger angle in order to maximise its appeal, although it’s action and 3D should help grosses. Plus – ...

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First ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Clip: James Bond Vs. Indiana Jones

Sandy Schaefer — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 19:54:18 +0000

Following next week’s release of Captain America: The First Avenger, Jon Favreau will unleash his own comic book adaptation that offers a different twist on a classic Americana symbol (the Old West gunslinger), otherwise known as Cowboys & Aliens.

Previous Cowboys trailers have played up the popcorn entertainment aspects of the genre mashup, which pits a variety of settlers living in the Arizona territory (circa 1873) against an invading army of extraterrestrial beings set on conquering Earth. The first clip released from the film does nothing but support the notion that this’ll be a fun summer blockbuster.

Cowboys & Aliens features a who’s who of famous creative talents working behind the scenes, including Favreau as director, Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard as producers, and sci-fi scripting team Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (Star Trek, ...

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Complete Comic-Con 2011 Movie Panel Schedule

Kofi Outlaw — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 20:39:56 +0000

The 2011 San Diego Comic-Con International is just about here, which means that we (and a few of you readers) need to start plotting our itineraries and map routes that will help navigate the mad halls of the San Diego Convention Center in time to make all of those highly-anticipated panels.

This post will detail the movie-related panels that will held at Comic-Con ’11. You can find schedules for any of the TV-related panels over on our official Comic-Con ’11 Coverage Page.

The panels posted below are ones we’ll be scrambling to attend. Most of them are of course related to movies, but there is always room for some comic-related stuff too – after all, comics and movies are like close cousins these days .

That said, included in the list ...

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‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Trailer #3 Mixes Mystery & Explosive Action

Sandy Schaefer — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 14:11:31 +0000

While non-believers may still scoff at the title, most devoted comic book and sci-fi fans alike are more than a bit excited to see Jon Favreau’s Cowboys & Aliens finally hit the big screen – which in part explains why the Iron Man director has chosen to hold the world premiere for his genre hybrid at the 2011 Comic-Con Festival in San Diego next month.

A third theatrical preview for the Cowboys picture has been released, once again teasing the mix of old-fashioned western, creepy extraterrestrial science fiction, and explosive popcorn movie elements that Favreau’s latest has to offer.

What could be described as Independence Day meets Stagecoach, Cowboys and Aliens revolves around an eclectic mix of traditional old western characters (the mysterious gunslinger, no-nonsense old timer, local outlaws, Native Americans) who ...

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New ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Posters & Featurette: ‘ID4′ Meets ‘Stagecoach’

Sandy Schaefer — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 01:04:12 +0000

Alongside the entourage of superhero comic book movies that have (or will soon) hit theaters this summer, is one graphic novel adaptation that promises to mix things up in an imaginative and yet straight-faced manner – namely, director Jon Favreau’s Cowboys & Aliens movie.

Recently-released TV spots and trailers have focused on selling the genre mashup flick as an exciting bit of summer popcorn fun; however, those that have long been following the film’s development know the big names working behind-the-scenes have something more substantial in mind, beyond what the campy title implies.

Cowboys & Aliens is based on the Platinum Studios comic book by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, but Favreau – along with producer Ron Howard, executive producer Steven Spielberg, and screenwriting duo Alex Kurtzman and ...

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‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Will Premiere At Comic-Con 2011

Sandy Schaefer — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 18:39:36 +0000

Those of you out there readying yourselves for the three days of madness that will be Comic-Con 2011 are in for a bit of a treat; Iron Man director Jon Favreau has announced that the world premiere for his new genre-blending comic book adaptation, Cowboys & Aliens, will take place at this year’s convention in San Diego.

This announcement was made at this past weekend’s Hero Complex Film Festival 2011, where footage shown from Favreau’s western-meets-sci-fi project was well-received (as were his and Robert Downey Jr.’s comments about Iron Man 3).

Premiering his new film at Comic-Con seems a fitting move for Favreau, who has a strong following on Twitter and is known for being a fan-friendly filmmaker in the comic book movie community. The 2010 Comic-Con ...

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‘Cowboys & Aliens’ TV Trailer: Sci-Fi Mayhem In The Old West

Sandy Schaefer — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 17:33:23 +0000

Cowboys & Aliens still inspires giggles from those who are unfamiliar with the ensemble of talents working both in front of and behind the camera on this sci-fi/western mashup. However, those who have been following the project for a while now know that director Jon Favreau has no interest in simply delivering the goofy B-movie the title implies.

A extended television preview for Cowboys & Aliens aired during the 2011 Spike TV Guys Choice Awards lat night, once again portraying the film as being part authentic Old West shoot-’em-up, part gritty alien invasion flick.

To jog your memory: Cowboys & Aliens begins in the Arizona territory circa 1873, with a mysterious gunman named Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) – an amnesiac cowboy with a strange mechanical bracelet attached to his arm. When he rides into the local ...

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