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SUNDAY AM: North American numbers show this weekend at the box office was a dogfight. Disney's Beverly Hills Chihuahua made it No. 1 two weeks in a row by beating all four opening movies. It ended the weekend with an estimated $17.5M thanks to Friday's $4.5 million haul and Saturday's $7.6 million from crowded kiddie matinees and adults unaccompanied by children, and Sunday's projected $5.4 million in 3,215 theaters. With a -40% hold from a week ago, the four-quadrant family fare's new cume is now $53M, showing that moviegoers sure love those yappy rat dogs.
But the surprise No. 2 movie was Screen Gems/Sony's low-cost horror flick Quarantine which scared up $5.4 million Friday and $5.5 million Saturday from 2,461 theaters for a $14.2M weekend gross. And the studio brought in the pic for just $12M. Sony also kept the marketing costs downs: it told me it limited the terrifying TV ads to only 15-second spots: "Not only does it save money," one insider told me, "but people can't take much more." The opening weekend demographics showed 52%/48% male and female, and 41%/59% under 21 years old and over 21.
Now for the real news: Hollywood was talking about Warner Bros' disastrous debut of its war-on-terror spy thriller Body of Lies. True, competitors sensed weak pre-weekend wannasee -- but no one expected the pic to underperform this badly. "Maybe it should be retitled Body Bags?" one rival studio exec emailed me Saturday night. That's because its FSS total is only $13.1 million, not the $20M that the studio expected, after taking in just $4.4 million Friday and $5.2 million Saturday from 2,710 dates. Which is bad news for the studio that didn't have a financial partner on the film. "Warner's Body Of Lies now rivals Warner's Speed Racer for the crown of biggest trainwrecks of the year," one mogul gloated. "This is their second $100+ budget film to open under $20 million." How humiliating that Oscar-touted talent like Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe (who gained 50 pounds for the role) and Ridley Scott were dogged at the box office and wound up only #3. Even though Warner Bros had been spending big marketing money since late August/early September trying to make Body Of Lies into an event movie. "You could smell their desperation," one studio marketing rival emailed me. But audiences ran the other way, which is what happens when the script, though based on a book, doesn't measure up.
Two holdovers hung on. The 4th place DreamWorks/Paramount's Eagle Eye starring Shia LeBoeuf made $3.2 million Friday and $4.7 million Saturday from 3,614 theaters for an $11M weekend and fresh $70.5M cume. And 5th place Sony's Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist took in $2.2 million Friday and $2.7 million Saturday from 2,421 runs for a $6.5M weekend and new cume of $20.8M.
Universal's football tear-jerker The Express, a biopic about the first Afro-American Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis, opened only No. 6 with $1.5 million Friday and $1. million Saturday from 2,808 theaters for what was a very disappointing $4.7M weekend. The studio screened it for three months to "genuine thunderous applause," a source told me -- showing once again that test screenings are meaningless. But its gross was only 2/3's what Uni hoped it would earn. It remains to be seen if the pic has legs.
Warner Bros' mature romance Nights in Rodanthe came in #7 with an FSS of $4.6 million and fresh $32.3M cume. In 8th place, Warner Bros' Appaloosa took in $3.3 million from 1,290 plays for a new cume of $20.8M. Also The Duchess from Paramount Vantage starring Keira Knightley finished its 4th weekend in 9th place with $3.3 million and a new cume of $5.6M.
Finally, Fox Walden's costly newcomer City Of Ember starring Bill Murray and distributed by 20th did so poorly -- $970K Friday and $1.2 million Saturday from 2,022 runs for only a $3.2M weekend -- that it only placed #10. This was supposed to start a new family film franchise based on a children's book. But instead Fox Walden had a meltdown after fully financing and producing this bomb.
In other movies of interest, a low-cost holdover, Provident/Samual Goldwyn's faith-based firefighter saga Fireproof, finished its 3rd weekend with $3 million and a new cume of $16.7M for 11th place.
Also, for the 2nd straight week, Bill Maher's liberal spoof Religulous from Lionsgate thrashed David Zucker's conservative satire An American Carol from Vivendi Entertainment even though the Maher movie was playing in just a 1/3 as many theaters as Zucker's pic (568 vs 1,621). The final numbers were $2.2M to $1.5M.
Overall, the weekend total was right at $105M, which is up 5.76% from last year's $99.2M. With a hefty Columbus Day Monday still to come, the theatrical box office appears not only recession-proof but depression-proof.
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I hate to tell you this, but there are actually those of us who don’t think that Leonardo di Caprio is all that great an actor.
Dear “Reader”
There’s plenty of room for opinion in this world but sometimes there are facts.
Leonardo DiCaprio is a great actor.
You can dislike him but his acting ability cannot be denied.
Respectfully,
Tim
“The Express” is a film that can build week by week — a people picture, not a tent pole. The studio is trying to buy a gross when, in fact, the guilelessness of the picture itself is the best advertising there is. Is there still such thing as word-of-mouth?
Leonardo is a terrible actor, and whatever talent russell crowe once had (circa Romper Stomper) is long gone–i haven’t seen him play a credible role in years. i hope those disney puppies stomp all over their movie! as for ridley scott, the only movies of his that don’t come off as lame studio hackwork are The Duellists, Alien, and Blade Runner! he and tony scott are now interchangeable hacks. once this was not the case. Find your mojo Ridley! and stop working with Russell Crowe until he finds his (and never work with Leonardo–it’s not 1997).
I saw Body of Lies at a sneak preview on Monday and wasn’t terribly impressed. It was engaging, though nothing special.
I guess on the plus side, this film should break the “Iraq war curse” that seems to have hindered all other films released these past few years that deal with the war.
papanewguinea,
“As for Ridley Scott, the only movies of his that don’t come off as lame studio hackwork are The Duellists, Alien, and Blade Runner!”
What about Blackhawk Down? Gladiator? Thelma and Louise? Legend?
C’mon now.
Nikki, the problem with Body of Lies isn’t entirely the script. As sad as it is, the problem is that Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio are well past their sell-by dates… Bloated, boring, with fading looks and acting chops, they will end up like Pacino and DeNiro in Righteous Kill… except they’ll lack Pacino and DeNiro’s stellar resumes! The public is bored with Crowe and DiCaprio. The millenials have spoken, and they want their Shia! DiCaprio isn’t hot anymore, in any sense of the word. So don’t just blame the sucky script. The supposed stars are to blame here. Everyone knows Russell Crowe is a jerk, and personally I’m sick of DiCaprio’s liberal preaching, and I’m a liberal! They should just roll over and make way for the Army of Shia, Seth Rogen, and all the other new stars. It’s a whole new era for better or worse!
Papa New Guinea, are you serious? In my humble opinion, DiCaprio and Crowe are 2 of the Top 10 Best Actors working today. I don’t think BOL looks very good. The script wasn’t great if you ask me. I’ll see it Sunday night nonetheless. But there’s no denying its stars are two of the most talented actors alive right now. And DiCaprio will likely be nominated this year for Revolutionary Road. Take the hate elsewhere friendo.
Nikki, you said it best when you wrote “that’s what happens when the script doesn’t measure up.” Sure, DiCaprio and Crowe are talented actors, but the audience (especially adults) are sophisticated enough to realize that actors alone don’t guarantee a great movie. It’s the *story* that counts.
Otherwise, if I just want to see a particular actor, I can go get a DVD with a movie that I *know* I liked and watch that rather than waste $12 at the theater.
I’d love to go to the movies more often- if only LA told entertaining stories worth watching rather than relying on the presence of “stars.”
I have a theory concerning Russell Crowe – whenever he gains weight for a role and enters the pudgy-white-hair-middle-age mode, the film flops.
Time for a GLADIATOR prequel or sequel.
The problem with many of this so called ‘Serious Actor’ is that they pigeon-holed themselves again and again into the same kind of movie
The last 3 productions starring both Leo and Russel are all of the same genre..actions!
Why are the likes of Will Smith, Johnny Depp, Tom Hanks are able to survive still and command the audience’s attention (to want to watch their movies)? It’s no rocket science knowing they engaged their audiences in many different genre, both serious & entertaining
I have said this before, Shia, Orlando, Keira, and many others are type-casting themselves with the same movies they are making. It’s a matter of time before we the audiences will tire of them
Sorry, but Body of Lies won’t break the “Iraq War Curse” because informed Americans don’t buy into Hollywood’s revisionist and left wing views. Leonardo should just go home and switch out a few light bulbs. I’ve got my fingers crossed that a ton of dough is lost on Oliver Stone’s upcoming disgrace, “W.” Here’s to that piece of crap going down in flames. I want the studios, directors and actors to pay dearly for the unbelievable amount crap that has been marched out on television and in the theaters.
Wow some people can be cynical. DiCaprio’s not one of the best actors alive – he’s not Daniel Day-Lewis, but he’s a great actor. The fake southern accent bothered me a bit, but Russell Crowe nailed the character spot-on. Ridley and Tony interchangeable studio hacks? Watch “Domino” then watch “Kingdom of Heaven” and tell me that again. Whatever shortfalls exist are certainly not in Scott’s masterful camerawork and sense of narrative – he is a director at the top of his game (it’s not exactly “A Good Year”).
It’s not the Oscar-genius it was touted to be, but for those smart enough to follow and sensible enough to appreciate good filmmaking, it’s worth watching.
H’wood isn’t making anything worth watching. Where are the real artists? Beverly Hills Chihuahua? F*** me. I was walking through Blockbuster a few days ago and I couldn’t believe the amount of crap. And I’ll watch anything.
PS: Body of Lies is a shitty title. People will watch anything — why handicap yourself out of the gate? And it doesn’t help that the movie is about covert operations in Jordan. They should have made a movie about enlisting the Mafia against Al Qaeda in NYC or something like that — vicious thugs vs. suicide bombers etc. Whatevs.
Other than Will Smith, Star power is a thing of the past! The PUBLIC buys concept, and if they don’t like the concept they don’t go to see the MOVIE! Case in point with Body of Lies!
Ever since Crowe attacked that BAFTA producer and bashed that hotel clerk’s head with a phone, he’s been box office dead weight. He effectively negates the presence of more marketable actors in a film. As opposed to a box office ebola virus that kills a film’s grosses, Crowe is more like box office food poisioning that severly weakens them instead.
I’d write that Crowe is a piece of crap, but crap deserves more respect than that. If compared to Crowe, David O. Russell would be the Humanitarian of the Year.
First the economy collapsing and now a Chihuaha is number one…
The apocalypse is nigh.
Doesn’t anyone remember American Gangster? Russel Crowe was excellent in that film. What about “A Beautiful Mind?” I believe he won best actor for that. Crowe is a phenomenal actor.
Leonardo DiCaprio is the guy who drags this movie down. Many people just don’t like him. I avoid any movie he’s in. Unfortunately that philosophy prevented me from seeing the Departed until recently.
Russel Crowe is a complete ass; much like Tommy Lee Jones. They are scum but, highly talented actors. If I only saw movies that had people I liked I would never see anything. But, I am not going to see Body of Lies.
BODY OF LIES suffered from really bland, mundane marketing; Warner Bros. didn’t seem to put much effort into it at all, and the box office is reflecting that.
I’m more shocked at CITY OF EMBER’s failure, frankly … Fox Walden spent a lot of cash on that in the hopes of setting up a major franchise, not to mention it has something of a built-in audience as a young adult book and has some good talent in it. Maybe – even after the earlier restructuring – Fox Walden is gonna go the way of Fox Atomic …
Right now films about the war in Iraq and terrorism are box office poison. Warners tried to creative by playing down the terrorism angle of the story in the tv trailers. Playing up the star power instead. In the end they only succeeded in alienating audiences who saw little substance & had no clue what the hell the film is about.
The Warner Brothers doctrine that stresses “four quadrants” and no female leads has not been working for years & yet Jeff Robinov is too stubborn to recognize it. As long as they have Batman, Harry Potter, (eventually) Watchmen & the upcoming Twilight franchise, he will never even try to make character based films that will appeal to the population at large. It used to be tentpole movies supported a studio’s real purpose, filmmaking. Now tentpoles are the only thing studios care about. Studios are run by business and marketing majors who don’t know anything about storytelling or the art of filmmaking. Studio bragging rights used to be the number of Academy Award winning films you produced by the end of the year. Now it’s only which film made the most money for the week or the year.
I haven’t seen ONE commercial for City of Ember. I did see one trailer in the theater and planned on taking my son but frankly I didn’t catch that it opened this weekend. Piss-poor advertising.
Will Hollywood ever learn that Americans don’t want to see anti-American anti-war films? Keep on producing those films, Hollywood. And keep losing your money.
I find it ironic that some of the most anti-military extreme left wing cooks have no problem trying to make money off the war they oppose so much. People are just getting tired of all the anti-war sentiment from the hollywood elite
Err, stating simple fact is not spreading “hate”. Di Caprio is certainly a competent actor, but spittle-drooling comments like “one of the best alive” is more than unwarranted — it’s embarrassing. Leo has had some good roles and scores well on empathy…but his range is rather narrow (and yes, I’ve seen him in both ‘Aviator’ and ‘Grape’)
Day-Lewis, Nicholson, Hanks, Hopkins, Depp, Duvall — those are great actors. Perhaps di Caprio will rise to that level one day…but he’s not there yet.
Keep bashin republicans Leonardo and you will soon go down the drain with the rest of the liberals! I wouldn’t walk across the street to see your film!
At first glance body of lies looks like another “make terrorists look like idealists” type film, and people are kinda tired of this.
The fact of the matter is that Body of Lies is not that good of a film. With the caliber of people involved, I was expecting an 8 and got a 6.5 instead. It’s disappointing, the reviews have been terrible, so people have stayed away. I don’t understand why Hollywood keeps cranking out War on Terror films when they repeatedly tank at the box office.
Story is King. This town is not interested in good screenplays. How many new writers with thoughtful, well-crafted scripts have been discovered in the past year? Zero. It’s not that they’re not being written, it’s that the barrier to entry is ridiculous. The next great screenwriter is not taking classes at USC, he or she is working the graveyard shift somewhere in Missouri. Good screenplays turn into good movies which result in profits. Find writers with voices.
Americans are tired of Hollywood bashing this country, that’s why movies like “Body of Lies” bombed.
Leonardo Dicaprio is hugely overrated. As an actor, he has virtually zero credibility in any role. Were it not for being a teen hearthrob in Titanic and possibly Gilbert Grape, he has done little to bring anything to the table since.
Another irrelevant self-important Hollywood never-been.
I’m not going to see “Body of Lies” because I’ve had enough of liberal Hollywood’s Iraq propaganda films. I suspect that many others feel the same way.
The Age of Hollywood is dead. There are no movies, there are no directors, there are no stars. I cannot even recall the last good movie I have seen. The last good movie “fragment” I saw was the last 25 minutes of Deathproof. Beyond that, there is nothing other than left wing political movies and remakes of Asian films. Hollywood is void of creativity. They are deranged and unhinged. I am no longer interested in anything that they do.
Hollywood, and especially vocal people like Decaprio, have made going to the movies more about the political agenda in “showbiz” than the movies themselves…IOW they are now not just actors in a role, they are politics.
The smartest thing that old Hollywood did was keep their politics to themselves. I’m just fed up with people spouting off who have no business telling the world what to think — nor the media that allows it to be dissimilated.
I, for one, will NOT pay a nickel to support these people and hope they all end up having to work for a living, without an audience to spew to.
Half of them are barely able to run their own lives.
DiCaprio may be a good actor but he’s not good enough to make me go to the box office on his account.
United Artists was right not to go ahead with Oliver Stone’s Pinkville. In this current climate, audiences just don’t want to see movies about war and its aftereffects. Has there been one Iraq movie that has turned a profit at the box office?
I go to the movies at least once or twice a week, and had never heard of City of Ember, until it was listed at the theater.
Holly wood sucks. All crap. Go see American Carol, at least there are some laughs.
This Movie?.. No. No DiCaprio for me..
Crowe?.. Yes. Very good acting track record.
DiCaprio?.. No. He’s a Politician. Not an Actor.
Leonardo DiCaprio is an okay actor. Not great. His personality onscreen strikes me as secondhand, New York-Strasberg school acting. I don’t know, some of the film “stars” (lord…does that feel odd to type in these days of real heroes and real villians saving real lives/ causing real devastation) from the 90’s, trying to prolong their careers with “serious” roles, only a select few of them manage to make you remember the performance you saw. “The Aviator” for me was the one role where I felt the adult DiCaprio approached something like great acting.
Besides this, “This Boys Life” is still for me, the only role where a then, very young, and relatively unknown, Dicaprio, really acted. I suppose there are various reasons for this.
Leo Decapprio is an awful actor, Tim.
My humble opinion
People are sick of Hollywood ’stars’ using their fame to dictate their politics.
Hollywood and films are supposed to take us away from reality and be entertained, not preached to.
When they start sticking to what they are being paid to do instead of using their fame as a soap box to dictate, they lose an audience.
Stupid Hollywood does not get it. “Body of Lies” is a waste of time and money and political sewage from socialistic American hating ‘bollywood” level movie actors and directors. Most of the garbage being generated in ‘holly-bollywood’ is not worth paying to see and this is one of those stinkers for sure.
Glad they are flopping and failing. Real entertainment is hard to find and this poor movie is a 4 star stinker that needs to hit the tank and be flushed quickly.
Oh course Decapprio movie opened down. What don’t you get? We are sick of these Hollyweirdoes and their elite socialist agenda and political views.
The vast majority of these radical left “actors” can go F themselves.
Actually, I think a part of the problem is that a larger part of the viewing public that would have in the past gone and seen a film like Body of Lies and other high billed dramas would simply rather stay at home and wait for DVD. I go to the movies maybe 2-3 times a year at most now, and it has to be a huge movie event. Just about everything else, Oscar contenders included, I simply wait. Theater costs are too high, seats too uncomfortable, inconvenient.
Well, I went to see appaloosa yesterday and loved it. Body of lies looks like another Hollywood lefty revisionist history piece of trash so I will skip that one. Even though I do like Russ Crowe. I saw the trailer to W, looks to be a sort of SNL comedy. I did not know that Stone made those kinds of comedies. Looks like another movie I will skip.
DiCaprio, what a putz! Maybe when he learns to keep his mouth shut & just make movies will people come out & pay. He has fallen in line with all of the other tree huggin/global warming left wing hollywood actors.
This is what happens when actors like Dicaprio mouth off and show their left wing liberal side. We don’t want to hear their BS and far left views. This turns the people off and I don’t go to movies anymore to support anti-American actors. Look at Sean Pean,the last movie he made was a total flop, the movie where he played Huey Long two or three years ago. His movie making career is done. Look at Tim Robbins, and George Clooney, their last movies flopped too. Poetic justice.
The people commenting on “Body of Lies” obviously have yet to see the film. I went to an early screening, and based on the previews expected to see another anti-Iraq war piece. I was wrong. The film is set in Jordan and is about covert ops against an al Qaeda cell. The film posits a great question: How does an intelligence agency that relies heavily on technology track down a group that doesn’t use it? More importantly, who can you trust? The lines between good and evil are never blurred, we know al Qaeda are the bad guys. It’s a matter of trust between the CIA operatives themselves, and Jordanian intelligence which gives the movie its dynamic. If you think it’s another piece of liberal hollywood propaganda, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. You can’t judge the film on it’s title (or it’s trailer for that matter).
I agree with Emily. When actors start acting like politicians they lose their audience.
They should stick to acting and not mouthing off.
Make a film that shows the truth about American soldiers, that they are good idealistic people, and you will make money. Unfortunately the lies Hollywood likes to tell still sell very well overseas, and damage the image of the US badly, but what actor ever gave a damn about that? I simply refuse to pay to see Hollywood’s products.
Don’t count Quarantine, out just yet. The promo’s looked interesting. And it’s October time, which means horror flicks usually get a boost. So anything is possible…
The problem with Body of Lies, is that it looks boring from the previews. I wasn’t interested in seeing it, I don’t do war movies, never have never will. Most people want to get lost in their movies, forget reality for a while. Body of Lies, isn’t gonna do that for them. Especially with the way things are going in the economy.
Leonardo DiCaprio- Is an okay actor, nothing great about him. He can carry the right film, but he really is no Matt Damon (who I believe has come a long way)
There are very few real “Stars” left in Hollywood, ones that can really act and make you go wow. Especially those on TV right now, they just normally read from the lines, and you never get a feel for the characters.
Which is why I like Supernatural, Jensen Ackles is one of the most underrated actors on TV. He makes you feel for the character Dean Winchester, he makes you laugh, cry and just go wow. He speaks without speaking, his facial expressions says it all. (Now that is an actor)
Why wont crowe make another master and commander film? That movie has franchise written all over it.
It is a result of bad advertising alone. The first trailer I saw was extremely weak in portraying the mood of the film, the deep complexity of the situation and in the middle the human spirit being consumed in the process.
Oh, wow, another band of uneducated yokel mouthbreathers who want to tell us “JUST HOW BAD HOLLYWEIRD REALLY IS I DUN GO SEEN THEM MOVIES CUZ THEY DONE BE BAD ABOUT MURRIKA.” Thanks for the insight, you friggin’ cancers. Hope you get gassed.
Vote with your wallets and keep your fat, KFC-stuffed mouths shut.
I am not surprised Leonardo’s movie is doing poorly. After I saw Leonardo in the audience at the first presidential debate trying to appear cool, intelligent, and important, he was immediately put on the long Entertainment boycott list. He is Best Buddies with Global Gore. The two of them fly all over in their private jets and tell us who aren’t as lucky to have this type of transportation at our disposal we need to protect the environment. Leo also attended Babs Striesand’s $28,000 a plate fundraiser for celebrity wannabe Obama. Is there any wonder why
no one wants to see his movies when he’s running around spewing his liberal venom. He’s an unimformed,
ignorant, disgrace, and a joke. I have always thought Russell Crowe was a great actor, LA Confidential, A Beautiful Mind, Gladiator, however if he starts voicing his political opinions he can kiss this fan goodbye.
Wait, wasn’t AN AMERICAN CAROL a complete failure, too? It got outgrossed per theatre by RELIGULOUS. Huh. What exactly does that mean, you idiotic conservative knuckle-draggers?
“Leonardo is a terrible actor, and whatever talent russell crowe once had (circa Romper Stomper) is long gone–i haven’t seen him play a credible role in years. i hope those disney puppies stomp all over their movie! as for ridley scott, the only movies of his that don’t come off as lame studio hackwork are The Duellists, Alien, and Blade Runner! he and tony scott are now interchangeable hacks. once this was not the case. Find your mojo Ridley! and stop working with Russell Crowe until he finds his (and never work with Leonardo–it’s not 1997).”
Your speaking privileges have been hereby revoked based on the fact that you’re either talking out of your ass or have a HORRIBLE idea of what makes a movie good. Anyone with any sense of cinema can’t deny that Black Hawk Down and Gladiator are two incredibly well-made and great overall movies.
Wait, BODY OF LIES in only in the #3 position. It didn’t do that bad … heck, it did better than a lot of the other films that came out this weekend. I think some of you don’t have strong reading comprehension skills …
They need to make a movie with Dicaprio, Penn, and all the other liberal stars, so we don’t go watch.
caprio is not a credible action hero, he is better suited as a bi-sexual character than a lead action hero. How the population has managed to sit through his movies believing Mr Geek Squad could save the day is beyond me.
caprio… you are no Stallone. you are no Schwarzenegger… you have been miscast for years and its catching up with you.
“I hate to tell you this, but there are actually those of us who don’t think that Leonardo di Caprio is all that great an actor.”
amen to that. I don’t even get the Shia love. These guys don’t look like ‘men’.
Thats what happens when you wear your politics on your sleeve, DiCaprio should have kept it to himself. I’ve had it with celebrates TELLING US WHO TO VOTE FOR !! This family and friends will never go to see his films again…
Jersey Mike
I miss the days when this was just an industry site that evoked thoughtful commentary by people who were knowledgeable of our business whether they were on the left or the right. Now there are so many ignorant posters who have obviously found their way here from such low brow sites like Perez Hilton & TMZ, & the comments are overrun with propagandist statements instead of promoting insightful healthy debate. Next thing you know, there will be those ridiculous “First!” posts all over the site.
lol at dicaprio being a bad actor:
blood diamond?
the aviator?
catch me if you can?
gangs of ny?
the departed?
furthermore – lol at the rednecks in here blah blah blah hollywood is so unpatriotic i would never go see these movies blah blah blah.
face it – the reason you dont see these types of movies is the same reason youre a struggling middle class person with skewed, conservative political views:
youre not very smart.
movies like this go over your head.
Hmmmm… let’s see…
A “war” movie – with the word “Lies” in the title… and it stars DiCaprio & Crowe… ?
Yeah – I’ll pass too…
more and more are learning to just say NO to hollyweird.
i’d say it’s a positive trend.
I gave up on Hollywood after they went crazy lib. Last movie I saw in a theater was Sea Biscuit and that was at a $1 movie theater.
Movies today are too loud, to tedious, too boring and too repetitious Tend to watch old, old movies on TV. No Netflix, no premium channels.
Leo picks boring scripts or maybe boring characters. Between Titanic (’97) and Departed (’06) his films are forgettable. Frankly I did not think much of him in Departed.
We need to take our country BACK! I am so tired of liberals in Hollywood and the Main Stream Media dictating and slanting the news and producing crappy, agenda driven movies.
lol at pathetic Fox/Walden, what a shitty excuse for a studio. great year guys!! at least “Tom Rothman, genius” stories are officially over, right?
To all those who still have crushes on Ridley…you are wrong. Ridley Scott films are currently garbage. Black Hawk Down is, frankly, racist and jingoistic–Elvis Mitchell’s review of that film is right on the money. Kingdom of Heaven fails miserably because Orlando Bloom is another talentless pretty face (how funny that Edward Norton gives a far more riveting performance, and he’s wearing an immobile metal mask for the duration of the film!)
Ridley has been coasting on his reputation for years. American Gangster was terrible–a boring rehash with the actors walking (or in Russell’s case, waddling) through their scenes. I was glad to see Ruby Dee get awarded, but even her role was something of a liberal stereotype. Ridley Scott’s camera tricks don’t mean that he’s a good director. He’s a sellout hack. He is not an artist (anymore). Go see some Kubrick or early Godard or Cassevetes or the first 2 Malick films to see what art looks like. There is no space for that anymore in America, which is partly why the independent film biz collapsed. Everyone is too busy trying to make money rather than make good films. Doesn’t Ridley have enough money now, after all his hits, and commercials through RSA? Why not experiment (like Coppola and “Youth Without Youth”–even if it doesn’t work, it’s more noble than churning out dreck like “Body of Lies”).
Look at “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” vs. “Body of Lies.” Both are made by directors of roughly the same age. Which one seems genuinely provocative, has an interesting story, and features some great acting? Which one seems like leaden, tedious anti-government propaganda? Which one would you rather spend your time with? Or your dollars on? I’m sick of the propaganda. Leonardo should retire from films, due to a severe lack of talent, and just become the corpulent Ted Kennedy rip-off he so desperately wants to be (but probably will never be). Why is he still acting? His love of it is clearly gone. I would have massive respect if he tried his hand at politics (and no, he’s not too young anymore) and let the acting slide.
As someone mentioned before the title BODY OF LIES didn’t help either.
Coming on the heels of SYRIANA and TRAITOR, plus fatigue about the Iraq war, didn’t help either.
Liberal celebrities are unctuous snotrags. People are losing interest. It’s that simple.
Anyone planning on seeing the next Matt Damon movie? I plan on avoiding everything he is associated with — It has gotten to where I cannot stand the sight of the little pissant. Ditto Clooney, Robbins, Springsteen, Sarandon, Babs, Alec Baldwin, Tina Fey, Brad Garrett, etc., etc., etc….
People are turned off, and they’re turning away. There are better things to do for recreation, like read or take up a hobby or take a walk or play freakin checkers for cryin out loud.
The Express is the fourth repackaging of what has become a tired cliche. Why spend time and money to see a story that’s already been told by the following films:
1. Remember the Titans (2000)
2. Glory Road (2006)
3. Pride (2007)
There are so many of these pics they deserve their own category: the racial sports allegory. Are they planning on making one of these for every sport? What’s next? A movie about the first black curler? We get it, Hollywood, we get it.
There was only one possible explanation for the rash of unenlightened posts on this thread.
INDEED! Drudge has linked to this article again, providing a direct link to the packaged news crowd.
Repeating nearly the same line, so painful. Like moths to a flame.
DITTO on who want to see more of the same, lame terrorism storylines spun by actors who, because they have become legends in their own minds, believe the general public wants to hear them spin their personal agendas. Box office receipts decline is directly proportional to the public’s dislike of spinmeister actors.
When will they ever learn that we don’t believe their scripted political talking points any more than we do their scripted movie lines. They can be entertaining on screen, but outside the theatre they become repulsive mouthpieces of gigantic proportions.
They are self-destructive egomaniacs.
Americans have long memories.
The box office is a clear indicator.
I will not pay to see a Leonardo DiCaprio movie. His global warming idiocy turned me off him forever. I have zero interst in America-bashing films. Make a movie with some real bad guys and some real heroes, and maybe I’ll go. How can no one see fit to make movie about America and the war on terror where we are fighting truly bad guys like the Taliban and winning? Charles Bronson style?
This is what is happening in the movie industry. People want instant gratification and the stars are so over exposed between tv, the internet and magazines, that we tire quickly. If I never see Di Caprio, Pitt, Jolie, etc., etc. again I will not miss them in a heartbeat. They are over-paid and people are becoming very discerning when it comes to spending THEIR HARD EARNED MONEY. They represent CONSPICOUS CONSuMPTION to the max. I would rather see some unknown paid fairly in a good movie than a headlining star posing, air brushed and silly swollen lips. Things are a changing.
I cannot understand why the public feels the need to support these entertainers. They’re USELESS to society.
I absolutely HATED Titanic and DiCaprio was one of the main reasons. I have nothing for or against him but I don’t like his acting ,at all, and I am a movie-goer.
Used to be “Hollywood” meant movies, now it equates to liberal politics – everyone seems to be suffering as a result.
What kind of legitimate business would work to cut their customer base in half without any monetary gain?
Sarah you are so right.
Hollywood is devoid of creativity. Movies that contain gratuitous sex, profanity and violence can only go so far and then people get tired eventually.The “old” Hollywood used to make great inspirational movies with great stories and no crassness. In this hard economic times, Hollywood doesn’t offer anything that average moviegoers would be inspired to see; not to mention these radical, creepy “Stars” who think they can dictate to the public their political beliefs. Now most of Hollywood have no talent, class, or dignity and drink the same cool aid.
I can’t fathom out…. what’s the attraction for Crowe with the Hollywood film studios.?…he is a very average actor and also not easy to look at for 90 minutes or so!
I take my grandson to cartoon and comedy movies like “Chihuahua” but I deliberately avoid movies where the self-anointed actor(ess) spends more time spewing their viriluent version of political propaganda than they do hypothetically acting. A case in point…DiCaprio. Is he “acting” like a politian, or is he “acting” like an actor? Either way, I vote with my money and NEVER see his movies. I have time to read “real” political matter instead of illiterate ramblings.
The reason that Will Smith and others have such staying power is that they have learned to keep their politics to themselves. Like it or not, life is viewed by the prism or political side you fall upon. And Like this or not, in this country, it has been proven that the more dollars per capita on entertainment are spent by those of us on the right side of the aisle. We work hard, have strong beliefs and do not require an uneducated idiot on-screen telling us who or what to believe. That is Why Leo’s movies are not doing well, and others who continue to open their mouths un-necessarily. You may think we are gun toting neanderthals but we use our voices in many ways. Especially financially.
I think it’s hilarious that Crowe & DiCarprio are tanking at the box office …. maybe they’ll get a clue that most Americans are sick & tired of their liberal spews regarding the Iraq War and the presidential campaign. I, for one, find them disgusting and will be very selective in which movies and stars I support from now on…. long after this election is over…. then we’ll see how their careers go…….
surprised? who wants to give a lib. enviro wacko like dicaprio more money? especially when he’s just gonna turn around and give it to the messiah.
DiCaprio’s not worth a ticket purchase….he a very overrated and terrible actor………..let his films flop…..maybe he can take up politics
I’m glad Lenny’s movie is going to tank. He’s another adult teenager with a massive ego and the delusion he can tell people what to do and think. I’ll never take advice from the boy in the plastic publicity bubble.
Hollywood sucks!
When actors stick to acting and not politics maybe we will go back to the movies…….our children are growing up pained by stupid ignorant past their prime actors thinking they have a real voice.
Good to see the Republican Noise Machine has their lackeys out in full force to bash the so-called “Hollywood elite.” Must make them feel better as we all watch the Republican-led deregulated fiscal industries go down the toilet.
Keep telling yourselves that it was all those darn liberals’ fault, take on an extremely easy target such as Hollywood, and cry yourself to a Xanax-and-Busch beer-induced drunken stupor as Obama/Biden take back the White House.
I’m sure “An American Carol” will be out on DVD by November 5 so you can crawl back into your militia holes, mutter “off with his head” and “terrorist” to yourself, and have nocturnal emissions from watching the latest Jessica Simpson/Larry the Cable Guy celluloid masterpiece.
No one cares if you don’t like Hollywood. We, the rest of the sane country of the US of A (not Hollywood), don’t like you.
Nobody buys an overpriced movie ticket or an outrageously overpriced concession item to inspire actors to “mount a soap box” and spew liberal, conservative or religious points of view.
Wake up Hollywood! Your actors have gone to the dogs. Times are tough and America is sick of seeing how many houses, cars, jewels and elaborate outfits money can buy. Why should we support these outlandish habits by buying tickets to their movies???
I find the political views of DiCaprio oderous. I will not go to his films.
They’re actors. Take away the great luck they had with the ability to make millions for a couple of months work, and they would be your insurance guy or the nurse working at your local hospital or the waitress down at the beach cafe.
These people don’t know anymore outside of acting, and in fact probably less, than anyone on here about politics or life.
When did Nikki’s blog become the dumping ground for the misspelled, ill-formed thoughts of jingoist yahoos? Regardless of what some of you might think about Hollywood, liberals, or the pros and cons of invading foreign countries, what can’t be argued is that BODY OF LIES’ source material was a successful novel. Thus there is obviously an audience for this kind of story; it just happens to be people who know how to read. For the rest of you seeking pro-war, pro-American fiction, there’s Fox News. Or just take your kids to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua.
There’s nothing but crap coming out of liberal-controlled Hollywood, media AND Washington. When will these morons get a clue?
You’ll notice that the most hard core democrats in Hollywood (among actors) who spout their crap 24/7 like DiCraprio and Sarandon are being hit with flop after flop. Hmmm. I wonder why? Actually, I don’t. The audience is sick of self-satisfied, hypocritical assholes flying around in their private jets to tell us to turn out the lights after we go to the bathroom and donate all our money to charity when these “stars” hoard all their millions.
Well I can agree that Dicaprio is way out spoken and I have no desire to pay to see his movies.
But he was great in Departed and Blood Diamonds was a pretty good film.
And your high if you don’t think Crowe was great in American Gangster.
But I think both of them need to make a big summer blockbuster style film to put some polish back on their names and images like Tom Cruise does. The days of Gladiator and Titanic are LONG GONE…..