Welcome to the first Weekend Movie News Wrap Up of November. Let’s see what movie news we can read to take our minds off buying Christmas presents.
This week:
Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman read The Book of Eli; Samuel L. Jackson is a Dragon; Ridley Scott is howling; Shyamalan is a Devil and just what is Genesis: Apes?
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Box Office
Halloween hit the box office hard this week! It’s no surprise that Saw V mutilated the number one spot on Friday with a gross of just over $3 million. Look for the horror franchise pic to gross $9-10 million by Monday morning.
Clint Eastwood’s Changeling should also make some change in the $9-10 million range over the weekend. However, expect the Angelina Jolie film to have legs like…er… Angelina Jolie. High School Musical 3 dropped by a terrifying 90% on Halloween night grossing a mere $1.7 million. Don’t worry Effronettes that’s because most of you were out trick or treating. The film should have banked enough on Saturday and Sunday to ensure it grosses about $10 million over the weekend.
Kevin Smith must be tad disappointed. Zak and Miri Make a Porno was supposed to open with around $18-20 million over the weekend - ensuring that this movie would break his final ceiling gross of $30 million. Looks like it won’t happen. The R-rated comedy should end the weekend with about half the expected gross, meaning a $8-9 million weekend.
Meanwhile the Haunting of Molly Hartly died a grisly death on its opening. Expect a ghastly $5 million weekend for the fright-pic.
Meanwhile here in the UK Quantum of Solace (check out my review here) killed all the competition with a record breaking opening day. The James Bond adventure took a mighty £4.94 million on Friday - the biggest Friday gross ever here! By comparison Casino Royale grossed £2.9m on its first day.
Movie News
1. Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman will team for the post apocalyptic western The Book of Eli. The film will be directed by The Hughes Brothers (From Hell), and the plot follows Washington as he tries to protect the titular book that could save the human race.
It’s good to see Oldman back on bad guy duties!
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
2. The always busy Samuel L. Jackson will star as Sho’nuff, the Shogun of Harlem in a remake of the 1985 film The Last Dragon. According to The Hollywood Reporter:
“The updated plot will be along the same lines of the original, centering on young martial arts student Leroy Green in his quest through the streets of New York to achieve the highest level of martial arts accomplishment, known as the Last Dragon. Those who achieve the high ranking possess the Glow, making them the greatest fighter alive.”
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
3. Ridley Scott has acquired the rights to a werewolf movie written by Ian Jeffers. No details are known about the project but I wouldn’t hold your breath on Scott directing, the 71 year old has about a billion projects attached to his name. Although, having said that he might need a hit after Body of Lies. Russell Crowe as a werewolf? Seems possible.
Source: Bloody Disgusting
4. In July we told you M. Night Shyamalan had signed a deal with Media Rights Capital to form The Night Chronicles, a financing and production partnership that aims to produce one thriller a year for the next three years. Well now we can tell you that the first film from the shingle will be the supernatural thriller Devil.
John Erick Dowdle and Drew Dowdle will direct and executive produce the film that was written by Brian Nelson.
Could be good, could be bad. I think it depends on your view of Shyamalan.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
5. Word on the street is that 20th Century Fox has been developing a reboot of The Planet of The Apes. Apparently this film will have nothing to do with Tim Burton’s 2001 effort, but it will be a prequel film showing how the apes took over the earth!
According to CHUD:
“Things are different in this script, written by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, which is called Genesis: Apes. Fans will know that Caesar in Conquest of the Planet of the Apes is the result of a massive temporal paradox - his parents escaped to 1973 from a far future Earth. Further, Conquest takes place in a dystopian ‘future’ - 1991 - while Genesis: Apes is set in the modern day.
In this version Caesar is the result of a genetic scientist fooling around with the nature of things. When the baby monkey exhibits intelligence and the ability to talk, he takes the cuddly thing home to his wife, who is unable to bear children. Things go surprisingly well for a number of years until Caesar grows up and sees mommy getting attacked. The dutiful son steps in and accidentally kills the attacker.
Here’s where it takes off. In a scene paralleling Charlton Heston in the cage in the original Planet of the Apes, Caesar ends up in custody at an Ape Conservatory where he and the other apes are abused mercilessly. Caesar finds himself a primate without a world - he’s as smart as humans but will never be one of them (and is in fact tortured by them) and he’s initially rejected by his monkey brethren.”
This all sounds rather crazy and very much unlike the current regime at Fox. CHUD is skeptical that the film will ever see the light of day (as am I) but it would be a good way to reboot the franchise. The only problem is that it takes away the impact of the ending to the original film - if that is the way that they wanted to go in future films.
It’s a nifty and ballsy idea - but I don’t think that it is Planet of the Apes. The original is an iconic masterpiece that can’t be touched - but it would be fun to see a modern interpretation done with heart! As big a Tim Burton fan as I am, I felt that he did apes for the paycheck and his heart and visual styling weren’t in it. However, no one out there could really match Heston in the role (especially Mark Wahlberg) so a total change in franchise direction may be the only way to avoid comparisons to the original film (and franchise).
If Genesis: Apes does indeed make it to theatres I’d be amazed and impressed by Fox’s thinking. However, I can’t see that happening.
Source: CHUD
That’s it for another weekend. See you at the movies.
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14 Comments
Regarding Zack & Miri: IMHO only people who run/write for movie websites and those who are regular readers are “shocked” at how poorly the film did this weekend.
There’s a difference between an “adult” comedy (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) and one where the main plot point it about making a porn movie. Outside of urban centers on either coast, I’d say people just don’t care to see something like that (at the theater at least… maybe it’ll do better on DVD).
Vic
I’m a big Burton fan but didn’t take to the reboot of Apes at all. Although I did find the actual ape characters much more interesting. Should have killed the humans off and focused on them instead.
Very odd that they want to do more of that series.
Oh, and I hated the constant quotes from the original movie - especially Heston redoing his final lines.
CHUD didn’t break this news. ProdductionWeekly.com reported it back in August–it’s just that people didn’t pick up the news until CHUD ran their report this week.
I am also a fan of Tim Burton, but The Planet of the Apes movie wasn’t what I expected.
Any movie with Gary Oldman, Denzel Washington and Samuel jackson is worth going to see, great actors.
Sam Jackson, is no longer worth my comment time…
^
Lol, Vic I wasn’t surprised that (Zack & Miri) bombed…
Forget the porn reference, the film looks boring…
Seth Rogen, and Kevin Smith are both due for a reality check…
As far as Rogen goes, the guys an eyesore on screen. I hope Smith realizes this, and drops him from any future films…
Sad thing is that Film Schools are full of stoned out, out of shape motards like Rogen,,, and like all slackers, they all have remakes they want to produce… Yikes!!!
(This could be bad for OCP…)
^
Another “Planet of the Apes” film, with an alterted universe prequel story line,,, “that’s original”
I think I’d rather watch the bonus features on my “How to Repair Toilets” dvd,,,
Im not suprised how well Saw did this weekend considering its Halloween but im suprised Changeling didnt do better considering all the hype they were puttin up about it.
I don’t know why there is even any question about whether a new Shyamalan movie, or movies as it seems, would be good or not. Seriously, have Shyamalan made a movie that did not completely suck since 6th sense? Much less good?
And Denzel Washington as the good guy, what a surprise. When will we see him play a different role. Yes, I know you’re all ready to hit the keyboard with Training Day, oh geez, one time he was the bad guy, and I’m sorry to the fans, that movie was not at all as good as people make it out to be. It was a pretty dumb and annoying movie, sorry to say.
Ken, it might be decent,,, M Night is going to provide the story concept, and then let a whole new set of Directors and Writers produce the film.
Gotta agree with Ken J on M. Night. His latest movies have all stunk and I can’t believe that there are STILL people out there that would plunk down hard earned cash to see the same old twists again. Then again, people HAVE been paying money to see Beverly Hills Chihauhau, so what do I know? I would sooner go see Zack and Miri than that piece of stupidity.
As for Zack and Miri, I bet that movie would have done better with a) someone OTHER than Seth Rogen since I bet I am not the only one sick of his mug and b)a title change withOUT the word “porno” in it. I have no idea why people like Seth Rogen. I haven’t really liked ANY of his films, but then again I am anti-drugs, so that could explain why I can’t stand him, too.
Here we go again, me being in the minority. I actually liked Burton’s Planet of the Apes, but not as much as I liked the original. Please, no stones.
@Ken J
I will agree that Training Day wasn’t all that but Denzel has stepped out of his typical good-guy role; look at Man on Fire. In MoF, he’s an anti-hero, like Punisher, delivering his brand of justice on some Mexican policemen who kidnapped and murdered the girl he was trying to protect. He made The Punisher look tame.
Yeah, I read about Sam Jackson playing Sho’Nuff in The Last Dragon. I think he would do very well in that role. I’m just wondering who will play “Bruce” Leroy Greene. The original is a cult classic; I just hope the music is as good.
Zack and Miri, who cares. When I saw the trailer, one word kept popping into my pea brain….DUMB!!
@790
You really dont like Sam Jackson do you? lol
I went with some friends and saw Zack and Miri and now I wish I just stayed home
Well Jess,,,
^
((( (insert sam jackson rant here)))
^
“IMO” he’s become a parody of himself… He’s become the most generic action star I’ve ever seen… ^
This guy would play War Machine, and Nick Fury if Marvel would let him…
He plays roles like that and then (10 more) some.
Yeah he’s great…
Don’t forget to watch the 2008 Video Game Awards later this month, he’ll be hosting them “again”…
Oh yeah (because we haven’t seen enough of him lately) he’s also the bad guy in The Spirit,,,
^
End rant,,,
lol I can say your not alone im starting to get sick of the guy too. Great actor but im starting to see his face in my sleep which is a little weird
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