Moviefone Editorial

Tag: annihilation

  • Movie Review: ‘Civil War’

    Kirsten Dunst in 'Civil War.'
    Kirsten Dunst in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    Opening in theaters Friday (April 12) is ‘Civil War,’ starring Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Cailee Spaeny, Nick Offerman, and Jesse Plemons.

    Related Article: Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi Talk director Sofia Coppola’s ‘Priscilla’

    Initial Thoughts

    Kirsten Dunst in 'Civil War.'
    Kirsten Dunst in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    ‘Civil War,’ written and directed by Alex Garland (‘Ex Machina,’ ‘Annihilation’) is a deeply upsetting and frightening film – and we mean that in the best way possible. Set in an America that looks and feels very much like the one we’re in now, this brilliantly made film presents a harrowing vision of a nation tearing itself apart – as well as the story of a small group of journalists determined to witness history no matter what.

    Garland’s film is so unnerving because he almost underplays the conflict in a way – since the U.S. is so damn large, there are moments when he lulls you into thinking that vast swaths of the country are untouched by the disaster unfolding in its midst. But make no mistake, there’s a pervasive sense of dread throughout ‘Civil War,’ with terror and chaos lurking around every corner. The cumulative effect is devastating, and regardless of one’s politics, this is a movie that everyone should see – if only because we seem to be skating closer to the edge of the abyss that Garland and his cast so memorably portray.

    Story and Direction

    Director Alex Garland on the set of 'Civil War.'
    (Right) Director Alex Garland on the set of ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    Sometime in the not-too-distant future, civil war has broken out in the United States. The reasons are left unsaid, as are the events that led to Texas and California forming their own union, the Western Forces, which plan a final assault on Washington D.C. to remove the President (Nick Offerman) from office. Another faction, the Florida Alliance, looms in the background. Either way, the events that got the country to this point are never explained, but it’s clear that the U.S. has turned into a geopolitical and humanitarian nightmare.

    In the midst of all this, Alex Garland’s film focuses on a band of four reporters – the hard-bitten, callous photojournalist Lee (Kirsten Dunst), the cynical Joel (Wagner Moura), the world-weary Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson) and the novice photographer Jessie (Cailee Spaeny) — who set out together from New York to travel to where the Western Forces are amassing for their final push into the nation’s capital.

    Lee recognizes that Jessie has talent and reluctantly takes her under her wing, warning the young woman that there are far worse horrors ahead if she pursues her calling and that she must present the truth of what she sees with an unblinking eye. In some ways, ‘Civil War’ is the parallel journey of these two women – Lee has hardened herself to what she sees through her lens but may finally be breaking down and letting herself feel what’s happening, while the untested, somewhat naïve Jessie goes through a trial by fire to make herself into the crusader for truth that she hopes to become.

    ‘Civil War’ is also about journalism itself – and the necessity of journalists to report and document what they see without bringing their own biases to the table. That means a lie is a lie, the truth is the truth (not “your truth” or “my truth”) and even the most righteous-minded can do something unspeakable. Lee, Joel, and company are there to chronicle what happens – and let historians and future leaders figure out what it means.

    'Civil War.'
    ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    But even they, of course, are only humans and flawed ones at that: at one point in the film, our four protagonists and a couple of other reporters they meet up with – who have all been a little cavalier up to this point — are given the brutal realization that all the press badges in the world will not protect them anymore, and that events are spinning out of control faster than they might have thought. This is brought home in one of the film’s most terrifying scenes, featuring an uncredited Jesse Plemons (which you’ve seen a bit of in the trailers).

    The scene involving Plemons is the most unnerving in the film, yet it’s one of many that feature imagery straight out of a U.N. war zone: Garland and DP Rob Hardy expertly blend widescreen shots of the American countryside – parts of it still pristine – with more close-up, documentary-like footage of refugee camps, burning urban areas, and hand-to-hand combat. Tanks rumble through American streets as jet fighters scream overheard, anti-aircraft weapons firing at them from below. Even a quiet town tucked away somewhere in Pennsylvania, where it doesn’t seem like the war has touched anything, posts armed sentries on its rooftops. The America of ‘Civil War’ is both eerily recognizable and yet utterly, unspeakably warped.

    In this and other ways, Garland channels another film about a violent conflict sinking into madness: ‘Apocalypse Now.’ At one point, our journalists come upon two soldiers who are pinned down by a sniper in a distant mansion. No one seems to know who’s the mansion or what side anyone is one. It’s directly reminiscent of the scene in Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam epic when Martin Sheen and his crew come upon a remote U.S. outpost that’s descended into chaos: “Who’s in charge here?” Sheen asks a dazed soldier. “Ain’t you?” the soldier replies.

    Garland punctuates this accumulation of disturbing images with both an ominous, pulsing score by Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury, as well as jarringly delicate folk songs and somber pop numbers, bringing a wistful, overwhelmingly sad emotional undercurrent to the horrors unfolding onscreen.

    The Cast

    Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura and Cailee Spaeny in 'Civil War.'
    (L to R) Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura and Cailee Spaeny in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    Kirsten Dunst easily gives one of the finest performances of her career as Lee, the combat photographer who says at one point, “Every time I survived a war zone, I thought I was sending a warning home: don’t do this. But here we are.” Lee has seen it all and then some, and at the film’s outset, it almost seems as if nothing will either rattle her or get to her emotionally. But that changes once she meets Jessie, as she sees something of her younger self in the inexperienced photographer and wants to both nurture and protect that.

    It’s a subtle, complex performance by Dunst, and it’s complemented by Wagner Moura’s charismatic turn as Joel. The Brazilian ‘Narcos’ star gives Joel an easy charm, a rakish demeanor, and a compassionate undertone, all of which is gradually chipped away as the film goes on. Like Dunst’s lee, Moura’s Joel undergoes a gradual transformation, reaching his goal of getting an interview with the President but perhaps not in the way he initially envisioned.

    Stephen McKinley Henderson in 'Civil War.'
    Stephen McKinley Henderson in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    Somewhere between both of them is Stephen McKinley Henderson’s Sammy, an older New York Times reporter who is at this point not physically up to the strenuous journey ahead but willing to keep going no matter what. One of our great character actors of the stage and screen (with indelible recent performances in films like ‘Fences’), Henderson effectively portrays Sammy’s world-weariness and cynicism, even as he remains alert and savvy to what’s happening around him. Compassionate as well, his sense of humanity is pushed to the brink by what he experiences on the road to D.C.

    While we admire Cailee Spaeny’s work here (and in last year’s ‘Priscilla’), we’re not as effusive about her character’s narrative. Jessie is initially cheerful, headstrong, and somewhat naïve about the job she wants to do, and as the story goes on, she becomes more shell-shocked and terrified by what she experiences. But some of her decisions, as well as her rather abrupt latter turn into a fierce photo-warrior – throwing herself into danger to get the shot – feel somewhat rushed and contrived, making a character who should be more of an avatar for young audience members into a plot device.

    Final Thoughts

    Nick Offerman in 'Civil War.'
    Nick Offerman in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    Moviegoers are going to bring their own politics into ‘Civil War’ and read it the way they want, which is part of what makes Alex Garland’s film so excellent. There has been some criticism online of Garland’s decision to keep the reasons for the war offscreen, as well as his choice to unite California and Texas – two states that nowadays couldn’t seem further apart politically – into a seemingly unlikely alliance. But to make Nick Offerman’s brief turn as the President into a take on Biden or Trump, and to make the film into a blue state-red state polemic, would not only instantly date it but create a more concrete polarization that would miss the point.

    ‘Civil War’ doesn’t detail how we got to this point; the film instead asks, “Okay, we’re here now. What are you going to do about it?” The fact that the film doesn’t offer a definitive resolution or simple answer is perhaps the most unsettling thing about it. With ‘Civil War,’ Alex Garland shows us one possible future in all its terrifying plausibility – what we do about it will either keep this film in the realm of speculative fiction or make it a prophetic document of a great nation disintegrating due to its own distrust, misinformation, and fear.

    ‘Civil War’ receives 9 out of 10 stars.

    kbXGTykcRATXlv2XIwQ0J4

    What is the plot of ‘Civil War’?

    In a near-future America, the United States has collapsed into civil war as different factions prepare for a final assault on Washington D.C. to unseat the President. A small band of journalists race across a once-familiar and now-dangerous country to get to the frontline and witness what happens.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Civil War’?

    • Kirsten Dunst as Lee
    • Wagner Moura as Joel
    • Cailee Spaeny as Jessie
    • Stephen McKinley Henderson as Sammy
    • Nick Offerman as the President of the United States
    • Jesse Plemons as an unnamed soldier
    Kirsten Dunst in 'Civil War.'
    Kirsten Dunst in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.

    Other Alex Garland Movies:

    Buy Tickets: ‘Civil War’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Alex Garland Movies on Amazon

    6L0GZ7JH

     

  • 12 Movies That Deserved Oscar Nominations

    12 Movies That Deserved Oscar Nominations

  • The Best Horror Movies of 2018

    The Best Horror Movies of 2018

    2018 has been a really good year for horror movies.

    It probably has to do with the unease we’re all feeling, whether it be political, cultural, or environmental. The filmmakers behind these films have internalized those anxieties, and given them supernatural or mythological weight, to create something as entertaining as it is cathartic. (If anything, the success of “Get Out” has established the tone and tenor for the entire year’s horror output, in new and idiosyncratic ways.)

    Quite frankly, the fact that these films scare the pants off of you while also saying something makes them even more miraculous.

    ‘A Quiet Place’

    Paramount

    This year’s breakout horror sensation was, undoubtedly, “A Quiet Place,” an unnerving and fiendishly clever take on the alien invasion genre wherein the creatures’ primary motivation is sound. (It shares a lot with a terrific episode of the original “Twilight Zone” series, “The Invaders.”) Co-writer/director/star John Krasinski turned what could have been a gimmicky romp into something profound and unnerving, playing like a single continuously sustained suspense set piece for its entire 90-minute runtime.

    But if it was only thrills Krasinksi was after, it wouldn’t have connected the way it did; thankfully, he grounded it with a remarkably human story of a single family living their lives at the end of the world. And Emily Blunt, as the pregnant matriarch struggling to hold her family together, gives one of the greatest performances of the year. She’s a scream queen who can’t make a peep.

    ‘Veronica’

    Netflix

    “Veronica” quietly premiered on Netflix in February, unceremoniously dropped on the service despite its high pedigree (it comes from Paco Plaza, co-creator of the wonderful “[rec]” franchise) and catchy, based-on-a-true-story logline (involving a teenage girl, a “spirit board” and demonic possession). But from those inglorious beginnings came something of a word-of-mouth sensation, with many taking to the Internet to proclaim it the scariest movie they’d ever seen.

    And while that reaction might be a bit much, it’s not exactly wrong, either, especially since the most vocal Twitter users maybe haven’t seen some of the older classics. “Veronica” is definitely sleep-with-the-lights-on scary, and its supposed basis in fact makes it even more haunting and terrifying. Because stuff like this can’t happen in real life, right?

    ‘Cargo’

    Netflix

    Netflix debuted this deeply heartfelt post-apocalyptic chiller, arguably the most thoughtful and emotionally resonant zombie film you’ll see this year.

    In “Cargo,” Martin Freeman stars as a man living in the Australian outback after the end of the world. He’s got a small child and, early in the film, loses his wife to the zombie outbreak. He also soon becomes bitten and so it becomes a race against time to get his child in safe hands before he succumbs. The film’s subtle, intricate world-building (people were bracelets that tell them how long they have until they turn, there are medical needles handed out that kill the undead) and nifty additions to preexisting mythology (the honeyed goo that covers the soon-to-be-zombie’s eyes and mouth is a great flourish) do much to pave over some of the more well-worn territory.

    ‘Hereditary’

    A24

    The breakout indie horror movie of the year (it wound up being A24’s biggest hit), “Hereditary” is still giving us the heebie-jeebies.

    Ari Aster’s assured debut features a tour de force performance by Toni Collette as a woman whose family is coming unglued after the death of her mother, an overpowering matriarch with an incredibly dark secret. The movie unfolds slowly and deliberately, with the audience uncovering the mystery alongside Collette, to profoundly disturbing results. Punctuated by bursts of shocking violence, a spine-tingling score by frequent Arcade Fire confederate Colin Stetson and some of the spookiest moments in recent horror movie memory, “Hereditary” takes hold of you and never, ever lets go. *clucks tongue.

    ‘Annihilation’

    Paramount

    To anyone who is thinking,  “Isn’t ‘Annihilation’ more of a heady sci-fi movie?”, we’d just like to remind you of the screaming bear creature that brutally murders somebody … or the mutant shark-alligator that puts the big beastie in “The Meg” to shame … or the part where somebody’s stomach is sliced open and eel-like intestines slither underneath. And these are just the parts we can remember off the top of our head.

    “Annihilation” is a brutal, brilliant film, that follows a scientist (Natalie Portman) as she journeys into an alien region known as The Shimmer, hunting for answers about what happened to her lost husband (Oscar Isaac) – and how to save him.

    Ultimately, the title refers to her own self-destruction, beautifully depicted in the film’s final act with a virtuoso climax as chilling as anything in a straight “horror film” this year.

    ‘The Ritual’

    Chances are, “The Ritual” (now on Netflix) will seem familiar to you. It most closely resembles “The Descent,” in the sense that it’s about a group of friends (this time, they’re male and led by the in-demand Rafe Spall) who go on a hiking trip following a personal tragedy. Of course, like in “The Descent,” that trip soon turns very, very ugly.

    But if you let go of its connections to other films, “The Ritual” is strangely rewarding, with a heavy atmosphere of dread that permeates every frame and a handful of finely honed performances (Spall, in particular, haunted by a brutal event, is compelling and cowardly in equal measure). Plus, the creature is one of the strangest, most bewitching designs in the current horror landscape. You’ll be riveted.

    ‘Mandy’

    RLJE

    “Mandy” has turned out to be one of the sleeper hits of the year. It was released on VOD and theatrically at the same time and after a few weeks actually expanded into more theaters. And with good reason — it’s not only one of the year’s best horror movies but it’s one of the year’s best movies (period).

    As directed by the truly visionary Panos Cosmatos (“Beyond the Black Rainbow“), “Mandy” concerns a lumberjack named Red (Nicolas Cage), who goes on a rampage after his titular girlfriend (Andrea Riseborough) is murdered by cultists. It’s weird, for sure (we didn’t even mention the supernatural S&M biker gang), but also profoundly moving and haunting, with one of the all-time greatest Cage performances (seriously).

    It’s also arguably the most metal movie ever made.

    ‘Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich’

    Full Moon

    Sorry, “The Happytime Murders,” but this is the X-rated puppet movie we’ve all been waiting for. “Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich” is a gore-soaked reboot of the horror franchise that began way back in 1989 and has continued, unabated, to this day. (There was a canonical sequel – the 12th –  released in 2017.)

    In this entry, written by certifiable genius S. Craig Zahler (“Brawl in Cell Block 99,” “Bone Tomahawk”), the backstory has been rewritten (hello, Udo Kier as a Nazi toymaker!) and a new story has formed around a toy convention where the demonic playthings run amok. The narrative is inspired, in part, by racial, ethnic and homophobic prejudice. So, yes, this isn’t for everyone. But if you’re finding yourself wanting a bloody blast of inappropriate humor, outré horror, and some very, er, “heightened” performances (led by Thomas Lennon), it’s hard to top this.

    ‘Suspiria’

    Amazon Studios

    Perhaps the most surprising thing about Luca Guadagino’s “Suspiria” is that it doesn’t try to ape Dario Argento’s peerless original. Instead, he crafted a brand new experience around the same basic framework (a dewy American girl, this time played by Dakota Johnson, travels to a European ballet school run by witches). The remake is incredibly artful and effective in completely different and equally profound ways. (He even stayed away from the primary colors of the original; this one is awash in autumnal hues.)

    Guadagino fascinatingly chooses to set the movie in the same year that the original film was released, bringing in elements of socio-political unease that the original steered clear of, broadening the scope but maintaining its emotional intimacy. The cast’s performances (led by Tilda Swinton) are peerless and Thom Yorke’s score is, like the rest of the film, haunting and unforgettable.

    If you aren’t moved, puzzled, or enraged by “Suspiria,” you probably had your eyes closed.

    ‘Halloween‘

    Universal/Blumhouse

    40 years after John Carpenter’s original, David Gordon Green has crafted a “Halloween” that stands nobly alongside it. In this new movie, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) has gone from a terrified babysitter to an embittered survivalist, keenly aware of how prepared she should be if Michael Myers ever breaks free. (Spoiler alert: he does.)

    This is a horror movie as much about a homicidal maniac ruthlessly murdering folks on Halloween night as it is about how acts of violence can cause trauma that can course through entire generations. Green’s direction is layered and nuanced, combining Carpenter’s elegance with more down-and-dirty moments, and the script (by Green, Danny McBride, and Jeff Fradley) wisely avoids the muddled mythology that the franchise had built up in the subsequent sequels. Instead, this is a direct follow-up to the original, full of chilly synths, bloody kills, and a female empowerment subtext that makes it the best possible horror sequel for 2018.

    ‘Ghost Stories‘

    IFC

    “Ghost Stories” flew under the radar for a lot of people earlier this year, blotted out by the titanic horror movie events of 2018. But you should go back and check it out. It’s a hoot.

    Written and directed by Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson, based on their stage play, “Ghost Stories” is playful and scary. It is an expert homage to the old British horror anthologies that Amicus would put out in the 1960s (oftentimes employing down-on-their-luck horror icons) that still feels fresh and relevantly today.

    Nyman plays a professional debunker who is assigned three seemingly unexplainable cases by an aging mentor — in one, a night security guard is menaced by an otherworldly force; in another, a young motorist encounters a forest-dwelling beast. The third and final story yet focuses on a successful businessman (“Sherlock’s” Martin Freeman) who is plagued by strangeness while waiting for the birth of his child. All of the stories will chill your blood, and the wraparound segments create their own kind of messed-up story.

    Creepy, twisty, and oddly mournful, “Ghost Tales” (which is now out on home video) is worth spending a sleepless night with.

    ‘Apostle‘

    Netflix

    Gareth Evans, who had previously directed the two “Raid” movies, moved into far spookier territory with his epic follow-up, a folkloric mind-f*ck that makes “The Wicker Man” look like “Hotel Transylvania.”

    In 1905, a restless man (Dan Stevens) travels to a remote British island to rescue his sister from a dangerous cult, led by a charismatic madman (Michael Sheen). That’s pretty much all you can say about “Apostle” without giving way some of its myriad, blood-splattered surprises, but just know this … it’s going to mess you up and it’s going to mess you up good.

    Evans, known for his visceral fight sequences, plays things more atmospheric here, instead settling into the sorrowful presence of the island, and how broken people are able to build a society that is just as broken. It’s beautiful and compelling, with an ending you will not believe, and since it arrived on Netflix, there’s no excuse for you to not watch right now. Like, go!

    ‘Revenge‘

    NEON

    2018 seems like the perfect time for a feminist rape-revenge movie and whew boy did French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat deliver. In “Revenge,” Jen (Matilda Lutz, star earrings dangling from each lobe) is invited to a lavish weekend getaway by her rich (and married) boyfriend. Things take a turn for the worse when one of his buddies rapes her, and then her said boyfriend attempts to kill her. Thankfully, she’s got a will to live and a locket full of high-powered hallucinogens.

    While some of the make-up effects are wildly over-the-top (so much gushing blood), they are all in service of putting the viewer in Jen’s position, as the claws her way to vengeance. She is a survivor. And while this is sounding more like a thesis project than a thrilling piece of entertainment, let me assure you that it is. The subtext is all there, and Fargeat (in her very first film!) delicately balances the message of the movie with the thrill of watching very bad people get dispatched in appropriately nasty ways. (Lutz is a revelation.)

    Think of it as the first drive-in classic of the #MeToo era.

  • Exclusive: For Comic-Con, Mondo Delivers Posters, Mugs and New Robot Line

    Exclusive: For Comic-Con, Mondo Delivers Posters, Mugs and New Robot Line

    Part of the fun of experiencing San Diego Comic Con is visiting all of the vendors and grabbing the most exclusive stuff. And one of the hottest stops for any movie or pop culture fan during the convention is the Mondo booth.

    This outpost of the world-famous Austin, Texas-based art gallery (which in recent years has expanded its footprint to include vinyl soundtracks, enamel pins, Tiki mugs, action figures, and collectibles) always has the coolest stuff that you can only get there. This year is no different, with Mondo offering up brand new posters for some of your favorites, alongside brand new classics like Alex Garland’s brilliant sci-fi mind-bender “Annihilation” (I’m making space on my wall now).

    See these exclusive new prints, alongside a new “Jaws”-themed Tiki mug and your first look at an entirely new line of Mondo collectibles, based on classic Japanese robots!

    And please note that the regular editions will be available on line at MondoTees.com timed to the variant’s booth release, with extra copes of the SDCC exclusives going on sale later.

    Prints

    DIE HARD (SDCC exclusive) by 100% Soft.
    24″x36″ screen print.
    Edition of 275.
    $60

    THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (Online Regular) by Martin Ansin.

    24″x36″ screenprint.

    Edition of 375

    $65

    – THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (SDCC Edition) by Martin Ansin.
    24″x36″ screenprint.
    Edition of 225
    $90

    “Light. Darkness. Balance.” (Regular/Online) by Marc Aspinall.
    24″x36″ screen print.
    Edition of 375
    $60

    “Light. Darkness. Balance.” (The Last Jedi) (SDCC Variant)  by Marc Aspinall. 36″x24″ screen print.
    Edition of 375
    $80

    ANNIHILATION (Regular/Online) by Rory Kurtz.
    24″x36″ screenprint.
    Edition of 325
    $75

    ANNIHILATION (SDCC Variant) by Rory Kurtz.

    Edition of 200

    24″x36″ screen print.

    $85

    Mondo Mecha
    Mondo is excited to introduce a new line of 12″ articulated figures — Mondo Mecha! Taking inspiration from anime, manga, and all things robot, Mondo Mecha reinterprets fan-favorite characters as giant mechs (or robots), each with multiple accessories and lots of articulation. Licenses include Marvel (previewed here), DC, and more.
    In addition to reinterpreting characters into giant robots, the line will also include pre-existing robots, such as Transformers and Iron Giant. Look for more information on the line later this year, and stop by Mondo’s booth at SDCC to see an in-progress Spider-Man Mecha on display.
    Mondo/Marvel

    ‘Jaws’ Tiki Mug

    From the classic blockbuster “Jaws,” you’re going to need a bigger liver with our latest Mondo Tee-ki mug, Bruce the Shark! Bruce is made of ceramic, holds approx. 16oz of your favorite drink, and will be available in various glaze colors. Available this fall.

    JAWS: Bruce the Shark Tiki Mug will be on display at the booth

    Mondo

  • Tessa Thompson’s Love of Goats Inspired the Most Adorable Meme

    Tessa Thompson is on a serious hot streak — from “Thor: Ragnarok” and “Westworld” to “Creed,” “Annihilation,” and the buzzy upcoming movie “Sorry to Bother You.”

    But at heart she’s just a girl who loves goats. And now she’s a girl happily being compared to goats on Twitter.

    Thompson recently told ShortList that goats are her favorite animals:

    “I’m really, really fond of goats. I want to adopt a pygmy goat and name it Gal Dagoat, because Wonder Woman rocks. Goats are huge now, on the internet, but I’ve been a fan for ages. It’s like when your favorite indie band starts getting recognition. I’m happy, but also… stay away from my goats, you know?”

    Her fans doubled-down on the goat love, with someone creating a Twitter feed devoted to “tessa as goats.” Tessa approved:


    She asked everyone to follow the account, and other fans picked up the baton and created their own side-by-side Tessa as goats comparisons:


    ADORABLE. The blue dress one is just next level.

    This is her thing now, so she has to prepare for getting goat comparison tweets from now until eternity. But there are worse fates.

    Tessa Thompson’s “Sorry to Bother You” opens in theaters July 6th. “Creed II” opens November 21st. “Westworld” Season 2 premieres April 22nd on HBO.

    [Via: HuffPost]

    Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook.

  • Box Office: ‘Black Panther’ Tops $500 Million, Dominates ‘Red Sparrow,’ ‘Death Wish’

    LOS ANGELES, March 4, (Variety.com) – Disney-Marvel’s “Black Panther” is continuing its super-heroic run, grossing a stunning $501.1 million in North America in only 17 days and becoming the 10th highest grosser of all time.

    “Black Panther,” starring Chadwick Boseman, dominated domestic moviegoing in its third weekend with $65.7 million at 4,084 locations — the third-highest weekend of all time after “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” at $90.2 million and “Avatar” at $68.5 million.

    “Black Panther” is now the second-highest grossing Marvel movie of all time at the domestic box office, surpassing “Avengers: Age of Ultron” this weekend at $459 million and trailing only “The Avengers” at $623.4 million. “Black Panther” has a realistic shot at reaching that level in the coming weeks and may eventually top “Jurassic World” at $652 million and “Titanic” at $659 million for the third highest domestic total of all time.

    Two new titles opened with moderate results that might have been higher without a must-see title like “Black Panther” in multiplexes. Jennifer Lawrence‘s spy thriller “Red Sparrow” launched with $17 million at 3,056 sites for Fox and Bruce Willis‘ “Death Wish” debuted with $13 million at 2,847 venues for MGM.

    Warner Bros.’ second weekend of comedy thriller “Game Night” followed in fourth with $10.7 million from 3,502 sites, edging Sony’s fourth weekend of CGI-live action “Peter Rabbit” with $10 million at 3,607 locations. “Peter Rabbit” has connected with family audiences for $84 million in its first 24 days.

    Paramount’s second weekend of “Annihilation” finished in sixth with $5.7 million at 2,112 venues, followed by Sony’s 11th weekend of its sturdy action comedy “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” with $4.5 million at 2,313 sites. “Jumanji” has now grossed $393.2 million in 75 days.

    Thanks to “Black Panther” and “Jumanji,” overall domestic box office for 2018 is up an impressive 10.9 percent to $2.12 billion, according to comScore.

  • Here’s Why ‘Black Panther’ Can’t Be Stopped at the Box Office

    Thanks to “Black Panther,” Disney accountants are facing a new challenge — not that they’re complaining.

    Not only to they have to count the rapidly rising stacks of cash from the box office, but they also have to count the ways the new superhero smash is approaching several box office records.

    For instance, with the Wakanda saga’s estimated $108 million take this weekend, it’s become the second fastest movie ever to reach $400 million in domestic sales (it took just 10 days, tied with “Jurassic World,” and second only to the eight days it took “Star Wars: The Force Awakens“). It’s also the second most lucrative second weekend of any movie ever (again, “Force Awakens,” which earned $149 million its second weekend, is first). And it’s one of just four films to ever to earn $100 million or more on its second weekend. (The other two are “Jurassic World” and “The Avengers.”)

    Already, “Black Panther” is the fifth-highest grossing movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and within a day or so, it’ll overtake “Captain America: Civil War” and “Iron Man 3” to claim third place. It’s the fastest Marvel film to reach $400 million, doing so four days quicker than “The Avengers.” Oh, and the film has already earned $300 million overseas, and it’s not even playing in such major markets as China and Japan yet.

    While last week’s column explored why “Black Panther” was so big so fast out of the gate, its second-weekend success comes from some additional factors. Such as:

    1. Repeat Viewings
    The desire to see “Black Panther” over and over has been strong, helping to keep the movie a top seller on Fandango (yes, people are still buying tickets way in advance, even during the week). This helped sales stay strong even on weekdays. Most distributors are thrilled if a movie earns $20 million or more during its first three-day weekend; “Black Panther” earned that much on a Tuesday.

    2. Mass Audience Appeal
    Before “Black Panther” debuted, some pundits wondered if moviegoers beyond African-Americans would go see it. They need not have worried.

    According to tracking service PostTrak, the audience make-up this weekend was 37 percent white, 33 percent black, 18 percent Hispanic, and 7 percent Asian. Love for the Marvel Cinematic Universe is, well, universal, and “Black Panther” is no exception.

    3. Social Media
    People can’t stop talking about “Black Panther,” especially to their online friends, giving Disney the type of promotion you can’t buy. Although Twitter activity has cooled since the movie’s premiere last weekend, according to social media tracking firm RelishMix, tweets with “Black Panther” hashtags are still averaging about 352,000 a day. Most movies would love to see daily Twitter activity in the 100,000 range, so the “Black Panther” online buzz continues to be exceptionally strong.

    4. The Kids Love It
    Last week, Disney Executive Vice President for Theatrical Distribution Dave Hollis acknowledged to Moviefone that the one demographic area where the PG-13-rated “Black Panther” could have done better was among younger viewers. But he also predicted that those viewers would come in time. This weekend, his prediction started to come true.

    According to PostTrak, 47 percent of this weekend’s audience was under 25, with guys under 25 making up the largest quadrant at 29 percent.

    5. No Competition
    There were three new wide releases this weekend, two of them well-reviewed, but none offered any real threat to Wakandan supremacy.

    Going into the weekend, new Jason Bateman dark comedy “Game Night” had several strikes against it. R-rated comedies haven’t done that well over the last year or so, Bateman was the only reliable comedy box office draw in the cast, and the film’s marketing campaign was weird (the poster showed no faces, just board-game tokens, one with a burglar’s ski mask and one toppled over in a pool of blood). Still, it did pretty well for a grown-up comedy, premiering in second place with an estimated $16.6 million for the weekend — or a little more than “Black Panther” earned on a modest Wednesday.

    “Annihilation” also had several strikes against it. It’s a cerebral, philosophical sci-fi drama, and while critics adored it (with an 87 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes), moviegoers seemed to find it slow and confusing (they gave it a poor C grade at CinemaScore). Its cast, led by Natalie Portman and Jennifer Jason Leigh, was light on box office drawing power.

    The biggest strike, though, may have been distributor Paramount, in the midst of a cold streak that’s lasted more than a year. The studio tried to hedge its bets, by marketing the film as more of a female-driven action thriller than it is, and by selling off the foreign rights to Netflix — meaning that the movie will stream overseas just weeks after playing in theaters here. Nonetheless, “Annihilation” opened in fourth place, with an estimated $11.0 million. It actually earned more per screen than “Game Night” ($5,467 to $4,759), but “Game Night” was playing on nearly 1,500 more screens.

    “Annihilation” could have done better, then, if Paramount had booked it into more theaters, but with “Black Panther,” “Game Night,” “Peter Rabbit,” and “Fifty Shades Freed” all playing on more than 3,000 screens each, there wasn’t that much available.

    The final new wide release was young-adult fantasy-romance “Every Day.” It had weak reviews (50 percent fresh at RT), no recognizable stars, and a modest release pattern (1,667 screens) from the long-dormant independent distributor Orion. Also, the low-budget ($5 million) film spent only an additional $8 to $10 million on marketing. Still, the movie debuted in ninth place with an estimated $3.1 million, which may be enough, over the next few weeks, to put “Every Day” in the black.

    All told, then, “Black Panther” has been a phenomenon, one that profited from the movie’s own strengths, as well as good luck and timing. We’ll not see its like again anytime soon — or at least not until Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War” opens in May.

  • Box Office: ‘Black Panther’ Sets More Records With $108M Second Weekend

    LOS ANGELES, (Variety.com) – Disney-Marvel’s “Black Panther” is dominating the box office with an astounding $108 million at 4,020 North American locations — the second-highest second weekend ever behind “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

    “Black Panther,” starring Chadwick Boseman, has now grossed $400 million domestically in its first 10 days. Only “The Force Awakens” has reached that milestone faster. It’s also grossed $304 million internationally.

    The superhero film, the 18th in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, declined only 46 percent from its opening Friday-Sunday — underlining the film’s massive appeal among moviegoers. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” set the second weekend record with $149 million in 2015, and “Black Panther” topped the second weekends of 2015’s “Jurassic World” at $106.6 million, and 2012’s “The Avengers” with $103 million.

    “Black Panther,” directed by Ryan Coogler, has caught on with moviegoers this month in a way that few other titles have in Hollywood’s recent history — blowing past last month’s tracking that showed it would open in the $100 million to $120 million range. It’s notched an A+ Cinemascore — becoming only the second Marvel film to do so — and has dazzled critics with a 97 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes. The film also stars Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya and Letitia Wright.

    ComScore’s PostTrack scores of the audience for the second weekend show support among moviegoers far above average with 69 percent rating the film as “excellent” and another 23 percent as “very good.” And it’s done so outside the traditional summer and holiday season corridors for blockbusters, noted Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst with comScore.

    “‘Black Panther’ continues to elevate the month of February to summer-style blockbuster status with a second weekend that represents only the third time that a film has posted a $100 million plus weekend performance during the month (behind only its $202 million debut and ‘Deadpool’s‘ $132 million opening in 2016),” he said. “And with a North American cume through Sunday of $400 million, it is the highest grossing film ever released in the month after just 10 days in theaters beating the long-standing $370.3 million record held by 2004’s ‘The Passion of The Christ.’”

    Demographics of the second-weekend audience were 33 percent African-American, 37 percent Caucasian, 18 percent Hispanic, 7 percent Asian and 5 percent others. The opening weekend was 37 percent African-American, 35 percent Caucasian, 18 percent Hispanic, 5 percent Asian and 5 percent other.

    Thanks to “Black Panther” and Sony’s “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” 2018 domestic box office has increased by an eye-popping 12.5 percent to $1.91 billion as of Sunday, according to comScore.

    Warner Bros.-New Line’s opening of R-rated “Game Night,” starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, finished a distant second with $16.6 million from 3,488 locations. The film is directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, and follows Bateman and McAdams as couple whose regular game night suddenly turns into a murder mystery. Critics have given “Game Night” strong support, helping draw an 82 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

    Sony’s third weekend of “Peter Rabbit” hopped into third place with $12.5 million at 3,707 sites, giving the family comedy $71.3 million after 17 days. That was enough to edge Paramount’s sci-fi thriller “Annihilation” with a respectable $11 million at 2,102 venues, in line with forecasts.

    Universal’s third weekend of “Fifty Shades Freed” followed in fifth with $6.9 million at 3,265 locations as the erotic romancer slid 60 percent. The finale of the trilogy has topped $89 million in 17 days.

    Sony’s 10th weekend of its comedy hit “Jumanji” took sixth place with $5.7 million at 2,519 venues, declining only 29 percent and lifting the 68-day total to $387.3 million.

  • 8 Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know About Natalie Portman

    8 Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know About Natalie Portman

  • ‘Annihilation’ Director Alex Garland and Star Oscar Isaac On Crafting a New Sci-Fi Classic

    Alex Garland‘s “Annihilation,” based on the novel by Jeff VanderMeer, is the kind of challenging, uncompromised sci-fi classic that we only get every-so-often, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with such mind-bending behemoths as “2001” and “Blade Runner.”

    Garland, who has been the generation’s premiere voice of heady science fiction (he wrote “Sunshine,” “Dredd,” “28 Days Later,” and wrote and directed “Ex Machina“), elevates the genre further with “Annihilation.” It’s the story of a husband named Kane (Oscar Isaac) and a wife named Lena (Natalie Portman) and how they fall apart before he takes a risky mission to explore an uninhabitable patch of land called Area X. This place is infected with some kind of otherworldly, oily gunk and nicknamed The Shimmer by a shadowy government agency called the Southern Reach.

    After Kane returns, uh, different, Lena and a group of like-minded scientists (including Jennifer Jason Leigh and Tessa Thompson) venture into The Shimmer to try and figure out what, exactly, has happened and how they can stop it. And that’s when things get really weird.

    We were lucky enough to get to chat with Garland and Isaac (reuniting after a memorable collaboration on “Ex Machina”) about what they were influenced by, how they developed the characters, and what (if anything) keen-eyed viewers should look out for.

    Considering how going in blind is the best way to experience “Annihilation,” consider this a SPOILER WARNING.

    MOVIEFONE: When did you first start talking about this? Oscar, were you very eager to do whatever Alex did next?

    Oscar Isaac: Even during “Ex Machina,” I was thinking that I want to do everything that Alex does. So I was very excited when he said he had a script and there was a part in it for me. So I read it and immediately started talking about it and figuring out how I could be involved.

    Did you immediately think about him, Alex?

    Alex Garland: Well, we got to know each other in preparing for “Ex Machina,” in truth. And then we properly stayed in touch. We’re proper friends.

    So, actually, aside from enjoying working together and respecting each other, we properly know each other and I would imagine, and I think the reason I don’t remember ever having first told Oscar about it, is because it would have just come up in conversation. There were other projects that had been floating around my head — and we had been talking about them — but it was always a given for me that I would see if Oscar wanted to do it. It was a default state, really. So there wouldn’t have been a particular moment. It was part of a rolling conversation that hasn’t stopped now.

    Oscar, would you have been walking by in a HAZMAT suit in the background if he’d asked you to?

    Isaac: Yes. I would have asked for a lot of money but …

    Garland: Yeah, he would have, anyway.

    What was it like adapting the novel? And Oscar, did you have input, too? This character is pretty different than what you see in the novel.

    Garland: The adaptation thing was complex in some respects. There were two things about the book that really struck me hard. One was that it was original. It just wasn’t like other books. It wasn’t like other stories. That alone makes it unusual. Most stories we tell are versions of other stories that have already been told — on a holistic level, actually, from themes to plot to characters and everything.

    And the other thing was that it has this extremely strong hallucinogenic atmosphere. With any adaptation, and this is only the third one I’ve done, I try to figure out: What is the thing that I’m adapting? And in this instance, it was the feeling, the experience of reading the book; it was the atmosphere of the book. That was the thing that I was concerned about.

    What about in terms of Oscar’s character?

    Isaac: Well, the character then is in service to that. If the key is the atmosphere and how you translate that, then Kane is, in a way, a tool to explore that. The different phases of how we see Kane, the physicality of that, what is happening, the subtext of all that and how it charges the scene, we spoke about all of that.

    We spoke about what point does Kane know what’s happening with Lena? At what point is the way he’s behaving with her influenced by the knowledge he has or doesn’t have? We talked about that. We talked a bit about where he’s from, and how that affects his speech. For me, we landed on a Northern Florida accent. I grew up in Florida and I had a lot of friends who had that way of speaking. All of those little bits and pieces [were important]. In each individual scene, we would try it different ways to see all of the ways it could go.Were there any touchstones that either of you were looking towards, in the science fiction genre, when crafting this?

    Garland: As much as possible, in a way, you try and shed yourself of the things you love, to rid yourself of them. At a certain point, when I’m working on a film, I stop watching any movies and I stop looking at TV and I stop reading books or anything like that to try and get away. But, of course, you do know those things. They’re tattooed into us, into our awareness. So what you do is, when you’re aware of something you can’t shed, you think about how to subvert it.

    Within the stories that we tell and retell, you tend to end with a punch-up of one sort or another. It might be in a courtroom or in a street, it might be a gunfight or a car chase, but it’s still a punch-up. And you think: How do we have this and acknowledge it but also subvert it? So we had our punch-up super ritualized, but also a literal kind of dance in some respects.

    There’s a bear that appears a few times in the narrative and there it was notionally, you’ve got a monster. In all sorts of films, but particularly science fiction films, a monster will appear. It became how can we subvert the nature of a monster? And also, I want to say, it’s not just about trying to subvert genre tropes. All of these things have to dovetail and support the themes and the story.

    So the bear becomes about the damage. It’s not just a bear, it’s a broken, fractured, tragic character in the narrative and it had to have allusions within it. Like, where did the bear come from? Why did it manifest itself in this house? Does the physical structure of the house echo the house where the marriage takes place? So much of it is organic. I’m not sure if people will ever clock it. But just to draw attention to where things are drawn in the film.

    Oscar’s character has a bear tattoo on his chest, so it’s not a coincidence that the creature that arrives in the house is a bear. And so it goes on.

    Oscar, was he talking to you about all of this stuff?

    Isaac: No. Because what was important was not stuff that was composed. It was stuff that we arrived at organically. Or it was there in the script and it was being teased out. So, what Alex does really well, is he writes a script that has so much depth to it already, but enough ambiguity and mystery that he allows for his collaborators to arrive at things and really feel ownership of them as well. Through that ownership, it’s a very truthful approach. This film has so much to it. It’s deeply horrifying in some ways, there’s a real thrill and beauty to some of these images — they’re so strange and alien, but filled with deep emotion and pain — and also intimate.

    So, for me, what I love most about it is you have these incredibly tense, beautiful, horrible scenarios — but at the same time — there’s a very deep, intimate story about a marriage at the center of it.

    You both just talked about the layers of meaning and symbolism. Is there anything else you want people to keep an eye out for maybe in the second or third viewing?

    Garland: Oh, actually, I was slightly kicking myself for having said that stuff about the bear. Honestly, I think the ideal way to see a movie is to know nothing about the film except right before you walk into the film somebody says to you, “This film is going to be crap.”

    So you have low expectations and no information. So I feel like I’m always weirdly undermining the thing by talking about it. So, no, there isn’t anything I’d say. And I’ll just look back in time and erase the thing I said. But there is some truth in that, because a real sense of discovery is a really pleasurable thing. And not being front-loaded, like, “Look out for this!” Just having a pure experience between a group of people who made a narrative for you to experience and then you get to experience it and make your own mind up. I think there’s something really nice about that.

    “Annihilation” infects theaters nationwide tomorrow. Do not miss it (it’s not crap).