36. Movie Money (29/01/2018)

Jumanji January is finally over!

With new releases starting to trickle out like this week's 'The Maze Runner', perhaps the 2018 box office will finally be worth discussing. This week the #5 movie was none other than 'The Post', slipping down from its #4 spot, and earning a smooth $8.8m, bringing its domestic total to $58.5m, and worldwide it has brought in $83m. It's likely the film will finish with around $100m. #4 we have 'The Greatest Showman' taking a bump up this week from the #5 spot. The Hugh Jackman musical has made $9.5m this weekend and has amassed a staggering $126m domestically, and $259m worldwide. That's pretty impressive for a movie that had a disappointing opening of merely $15m.

At #3, we have 'Hostiles' rocketing into the top five from the #23 spot, thanks to its huge cinema expansion. The Christian Bale film brought in $10.2m and has a domestic total of $12m, just over a quarter of it's $40m budget. #2 is the top dog of the last month, 'Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle', bringing in $16.4m this weekend, with a domestic gross of $338m, and an even more impressive worldwide gross of $822m, on a budget of $90m. The film that took it down is 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure', the thrilling conclusion to the saga that started 4 years ago. The threequel made $23m on its opening weekend, about half of its $62m budget, but has more than recouped that, with a worldwide total of $105.5m.

That's the box office this week and if you'd like to hear Shawna and Damian discuss in more detail, you can listen below. We also discuss this year's Oscar nominees!

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'All The Money In The World' (2017) Review: Cut A Deal On This One

Half Price: A movie worth seeing, but get a deal on it before you do

What would you do if you had all the money in the world? That’s a question that for most people remains purely hypothetical, but in 1973 that was the reality of J Paul Getty. The film touts Mr. Getty’s wealth as being more than has ever been owned in human history when he lived. While that might not be empirically accurate it makes for a good tagline. Still, it’s more than enough to pay for the safe return of his kidnapped grandson. But when asked how much he would give up in order to see his grandson again he simply responds “nothing.”

And the reward for most gangsta MF of 2017 goes too...

That’s the events that kick off ‘All The Money In The World’, a story about the pitfalls of greed, wealth, and the importance of family. It’s also the film that was supposed to star Kevin Spacey, but now stars Christopher Plummer who reportedly filmed his scenes in a matter of 9 days. That changeover might be the best thing that could’ve happened for the film, as this is certainly Christopher Plummer’s show. The 88-year-old actor elevates the production with a complex and rewarding performance.

In fact, Plummer is so good, he puts his co-stars to shame. It’s not that Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Williams are bad. On the contrary, Williams' take on the frustrated mother of a kidnapped child is touching. Mark Wahlberg as the ex-CIA agent hired to find the boy is his least obnoxious performance in years. Everyone does their best in the movie, especially Charlie Plummer, Christopher Plummer’s real life grandson, who plays the character of John Paul Getty III. His skill comes in being sympathetic even though his first appearance on screen is the measured depiction of the most obnoxious rich ponce in existence. 

Normally I'm against using watermarked images but this seems too perfect. 

There’s plenty to love about ‘All The Money In The World’. It’s not a true story that makes you question its authenticity, however inauthentic it may be. The problem is, the movie is entirely too long. 40 minutes cut from the runtime could have made this the best movie of the year. As it stands, it’s still one of the best, but for the movie about getting the best deal you can, perhaps see it at a discount.

Rating: Half Price

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'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' (2017) Review: Steady Your Pitchforks

After the end of ‘The Force Awakens’, it’s safe to say, the films are decidedly safe. Since its return, the franchise has remade one movie and made another as a tangential story add-on. So, walking into ‘The Last Jedi’, I was as underwhelmed as one can be for a ‘Star Wars’ film. That is to say, extremely excited, but not as excited as I should’ve been.

Thankfully, ‘The Last Jedi’ is exactly what should have always been. Picking up what feels like literal minutes after the last installment, ‘The Last Jedi’ is a righteous venture in well-paced adventure. The first 15 minutes of the film are not for the faint of heart, and it stands as perhaps the best opening to a Star Wars film yet. It only goes up from there, as ‘The Last Jedi’ combines what made the previous films so iconic, all the while feeling wholly unique.

Me looking at 'The Last Jedi' breaking all my preconceptions

The film is a testament to expert timing. For a runtime of 2 hours and 30 minutes, it never feel as though it drags. That’s not to say the film is your typical popcorn fare. There’s action to spare yes, but it’s not overblown. Rian Johnson has seemed to have taken note from last years ‘Rogue One’ and opted for a film that treats its sweeping epics as a backdrop, rather than the main focus.

The film is much more interested in its characters, their internal struggle, and of course, the force. Expect a lot of talk about the force. If you’ve never been a fan of the series’ ill-defined, mysterious plot device, ‘The Last Jedi’ is not the film for you. To that end, the film mostly succeeds at crafting an enjoyable narrative, but a few glaring moments keep it from feeling as tight as it could have been.

Just a few

There's a distinct theme of legacy in 'The Last Jedi'. Something a franchise this beloved is more than familiar with. While many will feel slighted by the way the film handles its rich and storied history, it's at the very least consistent. The beginning, middle, and end of 'The Last Jedi' all work towards bringing its core message through, loud and clear. By the end I felt a resounding understanding of the film, what it was trying to say, and how it made me feel. It was far more thoughtful than I'd anticipated.

The characters in the film are the avatars by which that main message is delivered. At the same time though, they're subject to subplots that have less effectual success. It's not to say that the individual character arcs are bad, but they are a bit obvious, and at times heavy handed. Still, it's a blessing that I never felt as though the movie felt unbalanced. In fact, with all that's going on in 'The Last Jedi', it's a wonder it's not falling apart at the seams.

It's almost as if a mystical presence is binding the film's elements together

I suppose there's something to be said for the way the cast sells the film. Of course, returning members like Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill are more than versed in their characters, but new cast members only improved from their last appearance. Oscar Isaac's Poe Dameron is given more material than the last film, and the film is better for it. Oscar Isaac is not an asset to be wasted.

The light side all has players that do their jobs well. The dark side though, continues to feel like their in a completely different film.

Kylo Ren is far more sympathetic this time around, and seeing Adam Driver's face gives the audience more to go off of. The problem, if you can call it that, lies in Domhnall Gleeson's General Hux. His performance feels like his note was to always go bigger and louder. In a film that takes time to delve into characters, is light on action, and employs a healthy dose of nuance, it's incredibly jarring to see what feels like the id of your average neo nazi brought to life. Then again, the character is played mostly for laughs so, I suppose that's something.

Sometimes you're to take him seriously but...that's impossible.

‘The Last Jedi’ is a Star Wars film through and through. It has all the staples that have made the series great, but at the same time, it eradicates so many things holding it down. It’s by no means perfect, and at times, its plot suffers for the sake of character moments that feel unearned or needlessly convoluted. That said, the film is one of the best looking movies of the year, and crafts images never before seen in a ‘Star Wars’ film. I’d definitely recommend seeing it in the cinema.

Rating: Big Screen Watch

Here's a spoiler discussion I had with Shawna from Movie Money:

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35. Movie Money 18/12/2017

Well, it's finally here. The biggest film of the year. A a title previously yearned for by Justice Leagues, Furiously Fast cars, Beauties and Beasts. Some came closer than others, but none could match up to the might of a galaxy far far away. Yes the #1 film this weekend was 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi', bringing in a domestic opening of $220m, and a worldwide gross of $450m. A domestic open second only to its predecessor 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'. While sequels typically do better than the film that came before it, 'Force Awakens' benefitted from being the return to franchise that had been dormant for 10 years, and a continuation of a story with over 30 years of anticipation behind it.

Not exactly news that this made bank.

There's no doubt that 'The Last Jedi' will make lots of money in the weeks to come, especially when its biggest competition is a sequel to Jumanji. With that said the rest of the top 5 demands discussion. #2 belongs to 'Ferdinand'. The friendly bull gained $13.4m domestically and has achieved a worldwide gross of $19.5m. Doesn't bode well for the film's $111m budget. #3 is 'Coco' dethroned from its top spot bringing in just under $10m with $9.4m, and bringing its domestic total to $150.7m, and its worldwide cume to $450.6m.

At #4 we have the wonder that is 'Wonder', bringing in $5.4m, and reaching $109.2m domestically, and $153.6m worldwide. Impressive. Lastly, there's the 'Justice League' which brought in $4.1m this weekend, with a domestic total of $219.4m and a worldwide gross of $635.9m. Unimpressive.

That's the report and here's the podcast discussion where Shawna and Damian discuss the top 5, the Disney/Fox deal, and Star Wars The Last Jedi.

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34. Movie Money 11/12/2017

For the past 3 weeks, the top 3 movies of the week have been the exact same. 'Coco' at number 1, 'Justice League' at number 2, and 'Wonder' at number 3. 'Thor: Ragnarok' has been at either 4 or 5, to round out the box office, with the odd companion every other week. All I'm saying is, it's a good thing next week has two big releases, so the box office gets shaken up a bit.

At number 5 we have 'Thor Ragnarok', possibly its last week in the top 5 winning $6.3m. It's had a phenomenal run and has surpassed $800m worldwide. It passed $300m this week domestically making 'Thor' one of the most successful movies of the year. At number 4 there's 'The Disaster Artist' which made an impressive $6.4m this weekend after getting a wider release. Thing is, on only 800 theatres, it's pretty phenomenal that the movie should get this kind of business.

At number 3, there's 'Wonder' which has made $8.4m this week, and has brought it's worldwide total to $120m, with a domestic total of $100m. 'Justice League' continues to underperform at $9.5m, and is almost certainly going to do less than its predeccesor 'Man of Steel', which made around $660m, wheras 'Justice League' has made $614m. Finally the number 1 movie is again 'Coco', with $18.3m this weekend, and a worldwide total of $389m. The top 3 films seem to have cornered the market on crying audiences. 'Wonder' for the crying moms, 'Coco' the rest of the family, and 'Justice League', Warner Bros. Executives.

That's the report this week and here's the podcast:

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