Jacob Hall
Weekend Box Office Report: ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ Lights the Box Office on, Well, You Know
Everyone knew that 'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire' was going to do well this weekend, but the lingering question was always whether or not it was going to do "really, really well" or "stupidly, gobsmackingly well." We should know by now that you always bet on Katniss Everdeen defying the odds, because it was the latter and everyone made it look easy.
Weekend Box Office Report: ‘The Best Man Holiday’ Stands Toe-to-Toe With ‘Thor: The Dark World’
If there's one thing that we're reminded of a few times a year here at the Weekend Box Office Report, it's that films targeted at black audiences are always ignored by many mainstream movie websites ... until they open huge at the box office. 'The Best Man Holiday' is the latest film to prove that there's an entire group of moviegoers who aren't being given the films they obviously want to see, and hopefully its success will spur Hollywood into action, allowing for the production of more movies with black casts and filmmakers. Maybe. This is Hollywood, after all.
‘SNL’ Mourns the Death of Blockbuster in the Strangest Way Possible
When Blockbuster announced that it was officially closing its doors, it was hard to hear for any real movie fans who truly cared. After all, this is the company that helped kill nearly every small video rental chain and relished in carrying a limited selection. So it's not surprising that 'SNL' made a video commemorating the closing of the controversial (at least among cinephiles) company, and it's less surprising that it's as weird and mocking as the show can get.
‘SNL’ Has the Cure For Obama’s Second Term
When life has you down and the only thing that will help brighten your mood is over the counter pharmaceuticals, the average American has plenty of options for anti-depressants. But if you're the President of the United States, you need something different. You need something special. You need Paxil. Thanks to 'SNL,' we now know exactly how President Barack Obama is able to deal with every crisis and scandal that comes his way.
‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ Reviews: What Do the Critics Think of the Sequel?
The first batch of 'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire' reviews are in, following the worldwide debut of the highly anticipated sequel starring Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson.
While the first film set the bar awfully high for the rest of the franchise -- telling a rich, brutal and exciting science-fiction story with genuine gravitas -- the sequel didn't always look like a sure thing. Original director Gary Ross dropped the project and the production was rushed to meet a release date, leaving many fans worried that the tale of Katniss Everdeen was in less than sure hands. But the first wave of critiques have washed ashore, and the verdict is ...
R.I.P. Blockbuster: Remaining US Stores to Be Closed
After years of struggling against the odds and barely surviving in a rapidly changing world, Blockbuster announced that it's officially set to close the remainder of its US stores. For some, this is a day or mourning. For others, a day of celebration. For all of us, it's just a reminder that the way we consume media has changed so drastically and so quickly that the thought of Blockbuster going out of business would have been unthinkable a decade ago.
Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Ender’s Game’ Takes Flight
After months of boycott talk and constant controversy, the long in the works adaptation of Orson Scott Card's 'Ender's Game' opened at number one at the box office with decent but not spectacular numbers. It's a long road to profitability, but hey, this is a start.
‘SNL’ and Kerry Washington Confront the Show’s Race Controversy Head On
Recently, 'SNL' came under fire for not having any black actresses in the show's line-up, a controversy that was only further flamed when veteran cast member Kenan Thompson said that most black comediennes "weren't ready" for the gig. The show could have just ignored all of this and everything would have just vanished under the carpet, but to the cast and crew's credit, they confronted the issue in the cold open for this week's episode, apologizing while making fun of the entire situation.
Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Bad Grandpa’ Dethrones ‘Gravity’ and ‘The Counselor’ Bombs
If you were wondering what it would take to finally shove 'Gravity' out of the number one spot at the box office, the answer is Johnny Knoxville as an elderly man with a foul mouth and penchant for sustaining groin injuries. After nearly a month at the top, Alfonso Cuaron's science fiction spectacle fell to number two, dethroned by 'Bad Grandpa.'
Weekend Box Office: ‘Gravity’ Dominates ‘Carrie,’ ‘Escape Plan’ and ‘The Fifth Estate’
For the third weekend in a row, 'Gravity' dominated the box office, taking no prisoners in its quest to become one of 2013's most deserving blockbusters. However, its tremendous success has been at the expense of a handful of other films, which have been crushed in Alfonso Cuaron's titanic wake.