![Death of a Nation (2018)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzQ3MmVjYTktN2NkNi00MTM1LWI1YTAtZjJlNzc3ZDAxMDk4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjA3MzM4MDc@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Death of a Nation (2018)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzQ3MmVjYTktN2NkNi00MTM1LWI1YTAtZjJlNzc3ZDAxMDk4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjA3MzM4MDc@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
Controversial pundit Dinesh D’Souza’s latest documentary received a lackluster response from moviegoers.
“Death of a Nation” made $2.3 million when it opened on 1,032 screens, averaging a tepid $2,248 per theater. The documentary, which explores fascism and white supremacy and compares President Donald Trump to Abraham Lincoln, is the lowest wide release launch to date for the right-wing conservative filmmaker. It’s the first political documentary to bow nationwide since Ben Stein’s “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed” debuted 10 years ago.
While a start over a million dollars is impressive for any documentary given the low price tag, it’s not exactly promising for a film that debuted in over 1,000 locations. D’Souza’s previous titles all bowed in limited release before expanding.
His last movie, “Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party,” generated $3.6 million during its wide release in 2016. It went on to make $13 million. Prior to that,...
“Death of a Nation” made $2.3 million when it opened on 1,032 screens, averaging a tepid $2,248 per theater. The documentary, which explores fascism and white supremacy and compares President Donald Trump to Abraham Lincoln, is the lowest wide release launch to date for the right-wing conservative filmmaker. It’s the first political documentary to bow nationwide since Ben Stein’s “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed” debuted 10 years ago.
While a start over a million dollars is impressive for any documentary given the low price tag, it’s not exactly promising for a film that debuted in over 1,000 locations. D’Souza’s previous titles all bowed in limited release before expanding.
His last movie, “Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party,” generated $3.6 million during its wide release in 2016. It went on to make $13 million. Prior to that,...
- 8/5/2018
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
![Te Ata (2016)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTU3NzA3ODg0N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNzkyOTg1MzI@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Te Ata (2016)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTU3NzA3ODg0N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNzkyOTg1MzI@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
Te Ata, the feature film that stars Q’orianka Kilcher and tells the true story of the renowned Chickasaw storyteller who entertained at the White House, befriended the First Lady, performed for European Royalty and on stages around the world in a career that spanned more than 60 years, just released its first key art and trailer. Directed by Nathan Frankowski (Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed), the film will begin its rollout on September 29 in Oklahoma, then will open…...
- 9/15/2017
- Deadline
![Tracy Chapman](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTA4MTY4NjIwOTNeQTJeQWpwZ15BbWU2MDM3MDAxNQ@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,9,140,207_.jpg)
![Tracy Chapman](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTA4MTY4NjIwOTNeQTJeQWpwZ15BbWU2MDM3MDAxNQ@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,9,140,207_.jpg)
X-Men franchise director Bryan Singer, whose first two features debuted at the Sundance Film Festival — including The Usual Suspects in 1995 — was one of the industry figures named to the Sundance juries that will judge this year’s films when the festival begins next week. Singer, who has X-Men: Days of Future Past due in May, will be one of five members of the U.S. Dramatic Jury. Other members of the juries include Tracy Chapman, Lone Scherfig, Leonard Maltin, and screenwriter Jon Spaihts (Prometheus). A complete list of the juries, courtesy of the Sundance Film Festival, can be viewed after the jump.
- 1/9/2014
- by Jeff Labrecque
- EW - Inside Movies
Chicago – If the Koch brothers have proven anything over the last several months, it’s that money speaks louder than the truth. Facts may not be for sale, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be buried. At a time when more information is available to the general public than ever before, an alarming number of Americans are content in remaining blissfully uninformed.
The 90-minute propaganda stunt, “2016: Obama’s America,” banks on the assumption that audiences are idiots. How else to explain its crackpot corroboration of unsubstantiated gobbledygook masquerading as an incendiary examination of the 44th U.S. president? The film isn’t really about Barack Obama at all. It’s about author/co-director/narrator/star Dinesh D’Souza and his own warped view of America, which seems to exist entirely within an alternate reality completely detached from our own. Perhaps the man has a future in science fiction.
The 90-minute propaganda stunt, “2016: Obama’s America,” banks on the assumption that audiences are idiots. How else to explain its crackpot corroboration of unsubstantiated gobbledygook masquerading as an incendiary examination of the 44th U.S. president? The film isn’t really about Barack Obama at all. It’s about author/co-director/narrator/star Dinesh D’Souza and his own warped view of America, which seems to exist entirely within an alternate reality completely detached from our own. Perhaps the man has a future in science fiction.
- 10/30/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
This is from Kevin Miller, one of the cowriters of Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, the hilariously disingenuous “documentary” about “intelligent design.” So does that mean we can expect a “fair,” “reasonable” discussion about how if a fantasy is held by a certain number of people that makes it true, and how it’s just the vast left-wing fact-based conspiracy that denies it? I look forward to the sequel debating the existence or nonexistence of Valhalla, and just how many enemies one must slaughter in battle in order to be granted admission and hence party with Odin for all eternity.
- 9/20/2012
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
2016 movie still trailing Michael Moore, Al Gore 2016 Obama's America, Dinesh D'Souza and John Sullivan's anti-Obama documentary, has surpassed the concert movie Katy Perry: Part of Me to become the second highest-grossing non-fiction film released in North America in 2012. By Sunday evening, D'Souza and Sullivan's right-wing doc -- current cume according to the web site Box Office Mojo stands at an estimated $27.66 million (as of Wed., September 13) -- should have also surpassed the nature doc Chimpanzee ($28.97 million) to become the year's top documentary in the United States and Canada. Worldwide, 2016 -- a 100% domestic sleeper hit like, say, the Tyler Perry movies (which have no audience overseas) -- remains behind both Chimpanzee (another domestic-only release) and Katy Perry: Part of Me. (Please scroll down for more details about the box-office performances of non-fiction films worldwide both in 2012 and "all-time.") As per numerous box-office reports, as the sixth biggest non-fiction film ever (or rather,...
- 9/13/2012
- by Zac Gille
- Alt Film Guide
It’s a heated contest between conservatives vs liberals in the political documentary genre, too. 2016 Obama’s America grossed $26.2M by end of today (give or take some bucks) and passed 4 of Michael Moore’s five political documentaries to become the #2 all-time biggest. Only Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11, his highly critical examination of the first term of President George W Bush, retains the #1 position with $119.1M. It’s extremely unlikely that 2016 Obama’s America will make even half that. But it now has made more money (not adjusted for inflation or higher ticket prices) than Moore’s Sicko (2007 – $24.5M), Oscar-winner Bowling For Columbine (2002 – $21.5M), and Capitalism: A Love Story (2009 – $14.3M). The right-wing doc 2016 Obama’s America is produced by Gerald R. Molen who in fact credits “learning some lessons” from Moore. “When he released Fahrenheit 9/11 in 2004 ahead of the election, it sparked intense debate.” 2016 Obama’s America also has passed the...
- 9/9/2012
- by NIKKI FINKE
- Deadline Hollywood
Well. It happened: they actually made a sequel to last year's cringe-worthy "Atlas Shrugged Part I," which was savaged by critics (amazing Roger Ebert quote: "the most anticlimactic non-event since Geraldo Rivera broke into Al Capone's vault"), and even in its limited theatrical run not much of a hit (making less than $5 million against its $20 million production budget). Next month, Rocky Mountain Pictures, the studio behind such surefire classics as "Billy: The Early Years of Billy Graham," anti-evolution movie "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed," and current wing-nut hit "2016: Obama's America," will release "Atlas Shrugged Part II," which has a vague air of "not classy enough to run on SyFy Channel, despite similar-quality visual effects" next month. Here is a trailer (via Film Stage) to prove it's not some terrible nightmare you had after ingesting too many Doritos-shell tacos. Loosely...
- 9/6/2012
- by Drew Taylor
- The Playlist
As Summer 2012 officially comes to an end over Labor Day weekend, it looks like the box office draught is likely to continue. The only movie with real breakout potential is Lionsgate's supernatural thriller The Possession, though it's lacking the Christian iconography or found-footage style that tend to drive the most successful entries in this genre. Lawless and Oogieloves In The Big Balloon Adventure already opened on Wednesday and showed their limitations: Lawless should wind up somewhere between $13 and $15 million by Monday, while Oogieloves will be lucky to crack $2 million. Finally, 2016 Obama's America is expanding again following an excellent weekend, though it's unlikely that it winds up near the top of the box office.Produced by horror maestro Sam Raimi, The Possession was originally scheduled for Halloween 2011 with the title Dibbuk Box before eventually getting a more generic title and a bump all the way to the final weekend of August...
- 8/31/2012
- by Ray Subers <mail@boxofficemojo.com>
- Box Office Mojo
Rentrak reported today that 2016: Obama’s America is benefitting from the runup to the Republican National Convention. The Rocky Mountain Pictures political documentary has generated $10.6 million since its release seven weeks ago. Now the pic is hot in four of the 12 major battleground states where Gop Presidential candidate Mitt Romney and President Obama are campaigning the heaviest: Florida, Ohio, Colorado, and Virginia. Texas continues to drive revenue as well as Georgia, Illinois, and Arizona. California and New York also are listed in the Top 10 states contributing the most gross dollars to the documentary’s box office but “individual markets including Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City are part of the lowest performing areas by contrast to the norm,” Rentrak says. 2016 Obama’s America has grown +341% as it expands into more movie screens. Based on conservative author Dinesh D’Souza’s best-seller The Roots Of Obama’s Rage,...
- 8/30/2012
- by NIKKI FINKE
- Deadline Hollywood
![2016: Obama's America (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkwMjY3NzMyMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzU4ODEzOA@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
![2016: Obama's America (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkwMjY3NzMyMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzU4ODEzOA@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
Rocky Mountain Pictures’ conservative documentary 2016: Obama's America made its mark at the box office last weekend, earning $6.5 million from 1,091 theaters — substantially more than the three studio-distributed newcomers Premium Rush, Hit and Run, and The Apparition.
The independent anti-Obama polemic, co-produced and co-directed by Dinesh D’Souza, a former Ronald Reagan policy advisor and current president of The King’s College in New York City, has earned $9.4 million since its debut seven weeks ago. Over the weekend, 2016 (passed the 2008 Ben Stein film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed to become the highest grossing conservative documentary of all time. And it’s...
The independent anti-Obama polemic, co-produced and co-directed by Dinesh D’Souza, a former Ronald Reagan policy advisor and current president of The King’s College in New York City, has earned $9.4 million since its debut seven weeks ago. Over the weekend, 2016 (passed the 2008 Ben Stein film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed to become the highest grossing conservative documentary of all time. And it’s...
- 8/28/2012
- by Grady Smith
- EW - Inside Movies
Los Angeles, California (X17online) - Dinesh D’Souza and John Sullivan’s conservative documentary 2016: Obama's America grossed $6.3 million in its opening weekend, making it the top grossing documentary of the year. The anti-Barack Obama film opened last month on a limited release, and it already boasts a total domestic gross of $9.2 million. The film is also the top conservative documentary of all time, beating out Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, which earned $7.7 million. Obama's America release was seemingly timed to debut on the eve of the Republican National Convention, which kicks off this week in Tampa, Florida.
- 8/27/2012
- x17online.com
It was the lowest-performing weekend of the entire year so far, in what can only be read as a sobering commentary on our current economic crisis—a crisis that spurred the surprise success of 2016 Obama's America, the documentary that exposes how Obama is intent on sacrificing the United States to Muslim extremists, using unimpeachable documentary proof by talking to people who say stuff like that, and then playing ominous music. The film landed at No. 8, beating out Ben Stein's Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed to become the highest-grossing conservative documentary of all time, and representing a clear ...
- 8/27/2012
- avclub.com
I’m not sure what to make of the core argument of 2016: Obama’s America, a film with exotic locations and a logic that seems to fall apart as it hurls towards its final act of “2016.” I am weary of any film that ends with a credit telling me how to feel, or summing up what I’ve learned or should have learned. Here we depart from the theatre with the film’s title followed by: “Love Him. Hate Him. Now You Know Him.”
Let’s apply this to our host, conservative scholar Dinesh D’Souza, who employs the style of a quasi-fireside chat, credited as a co-director (with John Sullivan, producer of the pro-intelligent design documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed). This movie is essentially an essay film, in which D’Souza traces his own background traveling from India to a BA at Dartmouth College, contemplating what his life...
Let’s apply this to our host, conservative scholar Dinesh D’Souza, who employs the style of a quasi-fireside chat, credited as a co-director (with John Sullivan, producer of the pro-intelligent design documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed). This movie is essentially an essay film, in which D’Souza traces his own background traveling from India to a BA at Dartmouth College, contemplating what his life...
- 8/27/2012
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
The Expendables 2 and The Bourne Legacy continued to make money this weekend. In fact, the top 7 box office earners from last week all kept their spots this time around except for Sparkle which dropped to 11th place and allowed The Dark Knight Rises and Timothy Green to improve their positions. Premium Rush opened to 7th place with $6.3m on 2,255 screens – resulting in a per screen average that was on par with movies that have been out for two to three weeks and lower than some new offerings. It wasn’t an auspicious opening, but even as the top winners ossify in the August doldrums, the real winners are indie films, and at the top of the heap is 2016: Obama’s America. Based on the book “The Roots of Obama’s Rage” by Dinesh D’Souza and co-directed by D’Souza and John Sullivan, the documentary takes a look at what the country and world might...
- 8/27/2012
- by Cole Abaius
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Old action heroes prove they can still entertain while anti-Obama documentary becomes box-office phenomenon
Audiences clearly have a taste for Lionsgate's action masala The Expendables 2, which contained enough spice to stay atop the Us charts for the second consecutive weekend. I said last week that the sight of Sly Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger shooting holes in the landscape after all these years says all you need to know about the dearth of marketable A-list action heroes today, but you've got to hand it to them – it appears the old dogs can still entertain.
Good to see Universal's fourth Bourne thriller taking strides towards the $100m mark. Jeremy Renner has fitted into the franchise seamlessly with his quiet intensity and superior acting chops and The Bourne Legacy should pass the milestone by next weekend, which will be its fourth in release.
ParaNorman has grossed $28.3m after two weekends. It's a...
Audiences clearly have a taste for Lionsgate's action masala The Expendables 2, which contained enough spice to stay atop the Us charts for the second consecutive weekend. I said last week that the sight of Sly Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger shooting holes in the landscape after all these years says all you need to know about the dearth of marketable A-list action heroes today, but you've got to hand it to them – it appears the old dogs can still entertain.
Good to see Universal's fourth Bourne thriller taking strides towards the $100m mark. Jeremy Renner has fitted into the franchise seamlessly with his quiet intensity and superior acting chops and The Bourne Legacy should pass the milestone by next weekend, which will be its fourth in release.
ParaNorman has grossed $28.3m after two weekends. It's a...
- 8/27/2012
- by Jeremy Kay
- The Guardian - Film News
The Expendables 2 repeated in first place on what was easily the lowest-grossing weekend of 2012 so far: the Top 12 added up to $83.8 million, or 12 percent less than the previous low (Feb. 3-5). While the end of August is generally a slow time for movie-going, it was exacerbated this year by a middling set of holdovers and an even worse group of new releases (Premium Rush, Hit and Run and The Apparition) that couldn't even break $7 million. One interesting area, at least, was the performance of 2016 Obama's America, which is already the highest-grossing conservative documentary ever.The Expendables 2 fell 53 percent to $13.4 million this weekend. That drop is slightly steeper than that of the first Expendables (51 percent), and its $52.2 million 10-day total noticeably trails that movie's $65.4 million. Holding on to second place, The Bourne Legacy dropped 45 percent to $9.34 million. Through 17 days, the spin-off/reboot has earned $85.5 million, and at this rate...
- 8/27/2012
- by Ray Subers <mail@boxofficemojo.com>
- Box Office Mojo
![Dolph Lundgren, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, and Liam Hemsworth in The Expendables 2 (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDg1YWRhNmQtMGI5Ny00MTI3LTg2OTItZWEzZGE3OGZjZDNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDc2NjEyMw@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
![Dolph Lundgren, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, and Liam Hemsworth in The Expendables 2 (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDg1YWRhNmQtMGI5Ny00MTI3LTg2OTItZWEzZGE3OGZjZDNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDc2NjEyMw@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
You know you’ve reached the summer box office doldrums when not a single new wide release is able to break $7 million over the Friday-to-Sunday period.
Such was the case this weekend, when the top 12 movies grossed a cumulative $83.4 million, which makes this the least attended frame at the box office since December 9-11, 2011, when the top 12 films earned just $67.8 million.
Once again, The Expendables 2 led the chart, dropping 53 percent from its opening frame to $13.5 million — the lowest total for a No. 1 movie since that aforementioned December frame when New Year’s Eve topped the chart with a sad $13.0 million.
Such was the case this weekend, when the top 12 movies grossed a cumulative $83.4 million, which makes this the least attended frame at the box office since December 9-11, 2011, when the top 12 films earned just $67.8 million.
Once again, The Expendables 2 led the chart, dropping 53 percent from its opening frame to $13.5 million — the lowest total for a No. 1 movie since that aforementioned December frame when New Year’s Eve topped the chart with a sad $13.0 million.
- 8/26/2012
- by Grady Smith
- EW - Inside Movies
Galvanizing conservatives, Dinesh D’Souza and John Sullivan’s documentary 2016: Obama's America grossed a stellar $6.3 million as it expanded nationwide over the weekend, beating a trio of new films. The anti-Barack Obama film, opening last month in only a few theaters, boasts a domestic cume of $9.2 million, the top gross of the year for a documentary (excluding nature films). Bully was the previous crownholder with $3.5 million. Among other records, Obama's America is now the top conservative documentary of all time, beating out Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed ($7.7 million). Obama's America -- promoted heavily on talk
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- 8/26/2012
- by Pamela McClintock
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
![Dolph Lundgren, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, and Liam Hemsworth in The Expendables 2 (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDg1YWRhNmQtMGI5Ny00MTI3LTg2OTItZWEzZGE3OGZjZDNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDc2NjEyMw@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
![Dolph Lundgren, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, and Liam Hemsworth in The Expendables 2 (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDg1YWRhNmQtMGI5Ny00MTI3LTg2OTItZWEzZGE3OGZjZDNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDc2NjEyMw@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
With the exception of one ultra-buzzy political documentary, this weekend at the box office is shaping up to be an unremarkable one.
The Expendables 2 maintained the top spot on Friday, shooting up $3.9 million worth of tickets, which should lead to a $12 million weekend — a 58 percent decline from last week, when it topped the chart. By Sunday, the action film will have about $51 million total.
Last weekend’s second and third place films will maintain their rankings as well. On Friday, The Bourne Legacy grossed $2.7 million, which may lead to a $9 million frame, and ParaNorman found $2.3 million, putting it on pace for an $8.2 million weekend.
The Expendables 2 maintained the top spot on Friday, shooting up $3.9 million worth of tickets, which should lead to a $12 million weekend — a 58 percent decline from last week, when it topped the chart. By Sunday, the action film will have about $51 million total.
Last weekend’s second and third place films will maintain their rankings as well. On Friday, The Bourne Legacy grossed $2.7 million, which may lead to a $9 million frame, and ParaNorman found $2.3 million, putting it on pace for an $8.2 million weekend.
- 8/25/2012
- by Grady Smith
- EW - Inside Movies
![2016: Obama's America (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkwMjY3NzMyMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzU4ODEzOA@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
![2016: Obama's America (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkwMjY3NzMyMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzU4ODEzOA@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
Friday 2 Pm: The anti-Obama movie 2016 Obama’s America went into wider release around America today and is opening right now in first place at the domestic box office. That’s quite a feat since the Rocky Mountain Pictures political documentary is still playing in only 1,090 North American theaters – or about 1/3 as many theaters as big-budget actioner The Expendables 2 (3,355 theaters). But these political documentaries like faith-based films are frontloaded. The Stallone picture from Millenium/Lionsgate is still expected to end the weekend #1 and should top the box office tonight. And, based on matinee trends, 2016 Obama's America looks to gross $1.2M-$1.7M Friday for a $3.7M-$5.M weekend. But right now it has grossed $700,000 today compared to $300,000 for The Expendables 2. Its new cume after this weekend could make it the #1 conservative documentary (ahead of Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed’s $7.7M). The success of the anti-Obama pic is based on big pre-sales...
- 8/24/2012
- by NIKKI FINKE
- Deadline Hollywood
![Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Premium Rush (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkxNjAwMDkwOF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTQ1NDkwOA@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Premium Rush (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkxNjAwMDkwOF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTQ1NDkwOA@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
The dog days of the summer box office are upon us.
Late August is the time of the year when studios traditionally dump projects that have been shelved, moved, and deemed either misguided or unmarketable. You know, the perceived stinkers.
The same is true this year. This weekend brings three new films — bike thriller Premium Rush, comedy Hit and Run, and horror title The Apparition — none of which seem headed to impressive grosses. There’s also an indie film headed into a wide expansion, the political documentary 2016: Obama’s America, which has a pretty good shot at beating all of them.
Late August is the time of the year when studios traditionally dump projects that have been shelved, moved, and deemed either misguided or unmarketable. You know, the perceived stinkers.
The same is true this year. This weekend brings three new films — bike thriller Premium Rush, comedy Hit and Run, and horror title The Apparition — none of which seem headed to impressive grosses. There’s also an indie film headed into a wide expansion, the political documentary 2016: Obama’s America, which has a pretty good shot at beating all of them.
- 8/24/2012
- by Grady Smith
- EW - Inside Movies
![Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Premium Rush (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkxNjAwMDkwOF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTQ1NDkwOA@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Premium Rush (2012)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzkxNjAwMDkwOF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTQ1NDkwOA@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
As is standard at the end of August, the box office is set to cool off substantially this weekend; it's looking abnormally bad this year, though, with all three of this weekend's new nationwide releases poised to fall short of $10 million. This means The Expendables 2 will repeat in first place, albeit with the lowest number one gross so far this year. Also worth keeping an eye on is the performance of conservative documentary 2016 Obama's America, which is expanding in to over 1,000 theaters after a strong run in limited release.Playing at 2,255 locations, Premium Rush seems to have the most potential among the three new nationwide releases, though that isn't saying much. After successfully shaking the child star label thanks to roles in cult hits like Brick and (500) Days of Summer and memorable supporting turns in Christopher Nolan blockbusters Inception and The Dark Knight Rises, Joseph Gordon-Levitt is taking his first...
- 8/24/2012
- by Ray Subers <mail@boxofficemojo.com>
- Box Office Mojo
![James D'Arcy and Andrea Riseborough in W.E. (2011)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTQyMzMyMjkwM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzIyODkxNw@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
![James D'Arcy and Andrea Riseborough in W.E. (2011)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTQyMzMyMjkwM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzIyODkxNw@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
Each Tuesday, Indiewire publishes a box office chart that sorts the final weekend numbers of all specialty releases by per-theater-average. Check out the full chart here, but here's some highlights: Top Per-Theater-Average: "An Inconsistent Truth" (Rocky Mountain Pictures) Advertised as "the movie Al Gore doesn't want you to see," Shayne Edward's "An Inconsisent Truth" -- which criticizes "global warming culture" -- topped what was a pretty weak weekend at the specialty box office. In its second weekend, the film grossed $12,176 on a single location, narrowly defeating Madonna's "W.E." for the weekend's best per-theater number. Rocky Mountain previously distributed conservative doc hits like "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" and last year's disappointing Tea Party-supported "Atlas Shrugged, Part I." Best Debut: "W.E." (The Weinstein Company) ...
- 2/7/2012
- Indiewire
New Mexico filmmaker makes a 'pro-truth' film about oil – but he needs to be more open about his own links to pro-oil advocacy
Here's a new documentary that I suspect we're going to hear lots more about in the coming months.
An Albuquerque-based filmmaker called Mark Mathis has produced a film called Spoiled, which promises to expose the "outright lies" being spread about oil by "the media, politicians and environmental activists". Mathis says it's now time to "fill up on the truth".
The film is just starting to be shown outside his hometown – it premiered at the Albuquerque Film Festival in August – but there are scheduled screenings in California later this year.
In an interview with the Farmington Daily Times, Mathis sets out why he made the film:
There has been a string of films that have tried to portray oil and gas and other energy sources as bad. This...
Here's a new documentary that I suspect we're going to hear lots more about in the coming months.
An Albuquerque-based filmmaker called Mark Mathis has produced a film called Spoiled, which promises to expose the "outright lies" being spread about oil by "the media, politicians and environmental activists". Mathis says it's now time to "fill up on the truth".
The film is just starting to be shown outside his hometown – it premiered at the Albuquerque Film Festival in August – but there are scheduled screenings in California later this year.
In an interview with the Farmington Daily Times, Mathis sets out why he made the film:
There has been a string of films that have tried to portray oil and gas and other energy sources as bad. This...
- 10/3/2011
- by Leo Hickman
- The Guardian - Film News
![Host and contestant, Ben Stein](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjEzMTA4NDg1M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNDA3ODM3._V1_QL75_UY207_CR3,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Host and contestant, Ben Stein](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjEzMTA4NDg1M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNDA3ODM3._V1_QL75_UY207_CR3,0,140,207_.jpg)
The production company behind Ben Stein’s shaggy god story ‘Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed’ has a sequel to its intellectual bankruptcy: financial bankruptcy. Premise Media has filed for Chapter 7 and...
- 6/14/2011
- by Ryan Adams
- AwardsDaily.com
![Keith Urban at an event for American Idol (2002)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTYzODE2OTc4NV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDI1ODg0OA@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR16,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Keith Urban at an event for American Idol (2002)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTYzODE2OTc4NV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDI1ODg0OA@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR16,0,140,207_.jpg)
We’ve said it before: Cmt’s best show is Cmt Crossroads, a concert series in which country artists team with artists from different genres to perform each other’s songs. Check out the full list of pairings, but think Sugarland and Bon Jovi, Taylor Swift and Def Leppard, Zac Brown Band and Jimmy Buffett, Keith Urban and John Mayer, Jason Aldean and Bryan Adams, Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson, Dolly Parton and Melissa Etheridge, and the Dixie Chicks and James Taylor, to name a few. Our new dream duo: Trisha Yearwood and Adele.
Yearwood did a Crossroads with Kenny...
Yearwood did a Crossroads with Kenny...
- 4/26/2011
- by Mandi Bierly
- EW.com - PopWatch
![Atlas Shrugged: Part I (2011)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTIxMDE0MjkxMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODk0MzU1MQ@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR5,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Atlas Shrugged: Part I (2011)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTIxMDE0MjkxMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODk0MzU1MQ@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR5,0,140,207_.jpg)
Atlas Shrugged: Part I was the top-grossing limited release of the weekend, generating an estimated $1.7 million at 300 single-screen locations. For a pure independent release, Atlas Shrugged: Part I's opening was fine. But for the first-ever adaptation of Ayn Rand's influential mega-selling 1957 novel that had far more media hype than any other independent movie could dream of, it was disappointing. There aren't many direct comparisons, because it's rare that an adaptation of such a famous book gets such a modest release. Atlas Shrugged: Part I opened higher than recent limited Christian movies The Grace Card and To Save a Life, and it was distributor Rocky Mountain Pictures' third highest-grossing launch, behind End of the Spear and Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. But none of those movies are significant in the grand scheme of things. They're all still blips, even if Atlas was a slightly bigger blip than many. What's more,...
- 4/17/2011
- by Brandon Gray <mail@boxofficemojo.com>
- Box Office Mojo
![Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTY0ODIzMDAxOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTc0MDk2MQ@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
![Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTY0ODIzMDAxOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTc0MDk2MQ@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
Indie popsters Walk the Moon stopped by the IFC Crossroads House at SXSW. The group played a short acoustic set of their fun foot-tapping tunes. Don't know the band? Well, you should. One critic called them, "A refreshing Art Pop shimmer that sounds like The Killers playing a Shins tribute band in a Jonathan Demme movie," but you can watch their performance below and decide for yourself:...
- 3/21/2011
- by Melissa Locker
- ifc.com
![Joy Williams at the Roadies premiere on the red carpet in Los Angeles, CA, June 2016.](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTg0NzM3ODI1Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjYzOTM1OTE@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR7,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Joy Williams at the Roadies premiere on the red carpet in Los Angeles, CA, June 2016.](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTg0NzM3ODI1Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjYzOTM1OTE@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR7,0,140,207_.jpg)
At first glance, you would expect Joy Williams and John Paul White to be a source of stone cold severity. There doesn't seem to be room for play in a duo that names themselves The Civil Wars -- she, dressed in all black, lace up to her collarbone; he, in a staid gray suit, cinched with a gentleman's bow tie. But the playfulness beneath the surface is what makes The Civil Wars' often melancholy songs of love so resonant, and their live show, performed last night at the IFC Crossroads House, ultimately mesmerizing.
In the tradition of duos like June Carter and Johnny Cash, Williams and White have an on-stage rapport there that belies a certain degree of intimacy and comfort; though like another dark-haired, country-leaning duo of red and white sartorial splendor, no they are not married, and yes, they know you're wondering. Williams and White use this intrigue to their dramatic advantage,...
In the tradition of duos like June Carter and Johnny Cash, Williams and White have an on-stage rapport there that belies a certain degree of intimacy and comfort; though like another dark-haired, country-leaning duo of red and white sartorial splendor, no they are not married, and yes, they know you're wondering. Williams and White use this intrigue to their dramatic advantage,...
- 3/17/2011
- by Stacey Brook
- ifc.com
Kat Dennings ("Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist," "Thor") will star in the upcoming drama "Renee" which has just begun production in Florida reports The Orlando Sentinel.
The story, described as a blend of "gritty reality and fantasy", follows troubled young woman Renee Yohe whose issues with self-esteem, substance abuse and self-injury (“cutting”) began the "To Write Love On Her Arms" movement which aims to turn teens away from self-harming behaviours.
Dennings will portray the lead who attempts to climb out of the hole she's made for herself. Chad Michael Murray is also on board to play the cofounder of the movement, while Rupert Friend and Corbin Bleu also stars. Several musicians are also said to perform onscreen.
Nathan Frankowski ("Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed") will helm from a script he co-wrote with Kate King Lynch. Shooting wraps late next month.
The story, described as a blend of "gritty reality and fantasy", follows troubled young woman Renee Yohe whose issues with self-esteem, substance abuse and self-injury (“cutting”) began the "To Write Love On Her Arms" movement which aims to turn teens away from self-harming behaviours.
Dennings will portray the lead who attempts to climb out of the hole she's made for herself. Chad Michael Murray is also on board to play the cofounder of the movement, while Rupert Friend and Corbin Bleu also stars. Several musicians are also said to perform onscreen.
Nathan Frankowski ("Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed") will helm from a script he co-wrote with Kate King Lynch. Shooting wraps late next month.
- 2/25/2011
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
It is the anniversary of the day Don McLean dubbed ‘The Day the Music Died’, in his world famous song American Pie. The sudden loss of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P ‘The Big Bopper’ Richardson in 1959 was catastrophic, and each became immortalised in film keeping their music alive and forever young.
Steve Rash’s The Buddy Holly Story, 1978, with Gary Busey received wide acclaim and condemnation alike and the 1987 La Bamba starring Lou Diamond Phillips, was a timely reminder to all of us eighties kids of the wonder of the music that was created by those legends and which affected rock and roll from the 1950’s onwards; from Little Richard, Bob Dylan to The Beatles and beyond.
I believe that films about musicians have a thrall to them unlike that of ordinary stories. Many films and television series have been successful because of their musical scores (I am...
Steve Rash’s The Buddy Holly Story, 1978, with Gary Busey received wide acclaim and condemnation alike and the 1987 La Bamba starring Lou Diamond Phillips, was a timely reminder to all of us eighties kids of the wonder of the music that was created by those legends and which affected rock and roll from the 1950’s onwards; from Little Richard, Bob Dylan to The Beatles and beyond.
I believe that films about musicians have a thrall to them unlike that of ordinary stories. Many films and television series have been successful because of their musical scores (I am...
- 2/4/2011
- by Chris LeCatsas
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
San Francisco band's frontman has 'The House That Built Me' on heavy rotation.
By Kyle Anderson, with reporting by Matt Elias
Train
Photo: MTV News
Before the release of their latest album, Save Me, San Francisco, Train went on a three-year hiatus. While many groups have trouble getting back on the horse after spending time apart, the San Francisco-based band hasn't missed a beat, and their current single, "Hey, Soul Sister," sits at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's the most successful song of their long career (which has also included the smash hits "Meet Virginia" and "Drops of Jupiter"), and it earned them a #MusicMonday shout-out a few weeks ago from Orianthi.
Train have always had a healthy country influence in their sound, but Save Me, San Francisco has a tremendous amount of twang and heartbreak. So it makes sense that frontman Pat Monahan has been spinning one of country...
By Kyle Anderson, with reporting by Matt Elias
Train
Photo: MTV News
Before the release of their latest album, Save Me, San Francisco, Train went on a three-year hiatus. While many groups have trouble getting back on the horse after spending time apart, the San Francisco-based band hasn't missed a beat, and their current single, "Hey, Soul Sister," sits at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's the most successful song of their long career (which has also included the smash hits "Meet Virginia" and "Drops of Jupiter"), and it earned them a #MusicMonday shout-out a few weeks ago from Orianthi.
Train have always had a healthy country influence in their sound, but Save Me, San Francisco has a tremendous amount of twang and heartbreak. So it makes sense that frontman Pat Monahan has been spinning one of country...
- 4/12/2010
- MTV Music News
![John Mayer](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTUzMzk1MDczMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMjg0Njc4._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,1,140,207_.jpg)
![John Mayer](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTUzMzk1MDczMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMjg0Njc4._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,1,140,207_.jpg)
First dinner - then a concert! Days after sharing a meal with John Mayer and friends in Nashville, Taylor Swift showed her support for her rocker pal at a taping of Cmt's Crossroads special with Keith Urban Tuesday night. The country star and her mom were seated in the fifth row, and were spotted dancing and singing along while the singers shared the stage. Audience members took to Twitter following the show - clearly captivated by the superstar in the audience. One concertgoer wrote, Swift was "cute as can be. She sang along to every word of every song." Nashville...
- 1/27/2010
- PEOPLE.com
88,000? Do your math; I rounded up to be safe.
The Lorax I am not, I do not speak for the trees. I however do speak for the Me-Tree, the tree that’s me (Dr. Seuss was a genius, I’m not. I know.) There is a strong difference between a person’s “favorites” and what a person thinks are the “best.” Many lists seem to forget that very important fact. Sure, I think There Will Be Blood, Let The Right One In, Pan’s Labyrinth, Requiem For A Dream, Synecdoche, New York (etc.) are probably some of the best films of the decade as far as craft, performances, and technique goes, but they might not make the list (you have to read further to find out.) They might not be flicks that I want to revisit all the time for leisure or laughs. As for the types of movies that usually gravitate toward my favorites,...
The Lorax I am not, I do not speak for the trees. I however do speak for the Me-Tree, the tree that’s me (Dr. Seuss was a genius, I’m not. I know.) There is a strong difference between a person’s “favorites” and what a person thinks are the “best.” Many lists seem to forget that very important fact. Sure, I think There Will Be Blood, Let The Right One In, Pan’s Labyrinth, Requiem For A Dream, Synecdoche, New York (etc.) are probably some of the best films of the decade as far as craft, performances, and technique goes, but they might not make the list (you have to read further to find out.) They might not be flicks that I want to revisit all the time for leisure or laughs. As for the types of movies that usually gravitate toward my favorites,...
- 12/23/2009
- by bobrose
Thank God scientists finally found the missing link (aka Darwinius masillae, aka “Ida”). Now we can at last prove Charles Darwin right and be done with films like Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, as well as all the seemingly pro-science movies that inadvertently ruined the theory of evolution. We now look forward to the “Ida” biopic, or at least a movie detailing the 26 years (give or take 47 million) it took for the discovery of her fossil to become a mainstream media sensation. Never mind that this is hardly the missing link between apes and humans. With almost 50 years passed since the release of Inherit th ...
- 5/20/2009
- by Christopher Campbell
- Spout
We've heard a lot about the best films of the year, but not much about the worst. And to be sure, these ponzi schemes we're hearing about so much this week have nothing on some of the crimes perpetrated against moviegoers this year.
Proof positive: This list from The Onion's Av Club. It's counting down the ten worst films of 2008...and it doesn't even have three no-contest, must-have worst films of the year. I know a lot of critics didn't see Disaster Movie. But I did. And I've never seen a worse movie as a professional reviewer, and that stretches back ten years now. So it's a rare gem. I mean, The Happening isn't great but at least it had a story.
The other two are Over Her Dead Body, which is sheer torture, and The Love Guru, which is the Inquisition. I'm not seeing Meet Dave is a real treat,...
Proof positive: This list from The Onion's Av Club. It's counting down the ten worst films of 2008...and it doesn't even have three no-contest, must-have worst films of the year. I know a lot of critics didn't see Disaster Movie. But I did. And I've never seen a worse movie as a professional reviewer, and that stretches back ten years now. So it's a rare gem. I mean, The Happening isn't great but at least it had a story.
The other two are Over Her Dead Body, which is sheer torture, and The Love Guru, which is the Inquisition. I'm not seeing Meet Dave is a real treat,...
- 12/18/2008
- by Colin Boyd
- GetTheBigPicture.net
Last week, Roger Ebert finally got around to destroying reviewing Ben Stein's anti-evolution film, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. Ebert's rant is as cerebral as it is merciless, and it's worth a read even if you haven't seen the film. He makes some good points about how the film completely misunderstands the concepts of probability and selection, forming flashy but ultimately useless argument.
Ebert's rage is thinly veiled. He's obviously upset that clear logical fallacies can go unnoticed by so many people. Sure, misreading Darwin while attempting to refute him is a lame move when engaging in scientific debate, but the practice is quite common when it comes to filmmaking. When movies ...
Ebert's rage is thinly veiled. He's obviously upset that clear logical fallacies can go unnoticed by so many people. Sure, misreading Darwin while attempting to refute him is a lame move when engaging in scientific debate, but the practice is quite common when it comes to filmmaking. When movies ...
- 12/9/2008
- by Kevin Buist
- Spout
This summer's blockbuster reboot The Incredible Hulk, featuring Edward Norton in the title role of the gamma-ray enhanced superhero, leads this week's crop of new DVD releases. Pick up the 3-Disc Special Edition and enjoy a plethora of special features, including the much-discussed alternate opening in which a tiny glimpse of Captain America is said to be revealed.
Also debuting on DVD today: Bryan Bertino's super-scary home-invasion flick The Strangers, available in both standard and unrated editions; Ben Stein's Darwinian documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed; and new Blu-ray editions of Sweeney Todd and Casino Royale.
Our DVD pick of the week is the two-volume James Bond Blu-ray Collection, featuring six classic 007 flicks, Dr. No, Thunderball, Live and Let Die, For Your Eyes Only, From Russia with Love, and Die Another Day, available for the first time in high definition. It's the perfect way to bone up on Bond...
Also debuting on DVD today: Bryan Bertino's super-scary home-invasion flick The Strangers, available in both standard and unrated editions; Ben Stein's Darwinian documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed; and new Blu-ray editions of Sweeney Todd and Casino Royale.
Our DVD pick of the week is the two-volume James Bond Blu-ray Collection, featuring six classic 007 flicks, Dr. No, Thunderball, Live and Let Die, For Your Eyes Only, From Russia with Love, and Die Another Day, available for the first time in high definition. It's the perfect way to bone up on Bond...
- 10/21/2008
- by Thomas Leupp
- Reelzchannel.com
DVD Links: Release Dates | New Dvds | Reviews | RSS Feed The Incredible Hulk I just reviewed the Blu-ray edition, which you can read right here, but suffice to say, I love this film and think it is one of the best comic book flicks I have ever seen. It is certainly better than Iron Man and second to The Dark Knight when it comes to summer 2009 superhero movies. It looks fantastic and has a thunderous soundtrack that will shake your room. The Blu-ray has a boat load of features and I would call it a must buy for any fan of straight-up entertaining flicks. Sure, it isn't as serious as The Dark Knight and doesn't have Robert Downey's wit, but in terms of films that describe "spectacle" this one fills the bill. James Bond on Blu-ray
Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Thunderball, Live and Let Die, For Your Eyes...
Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Thunderball, Live and Let Die, For Your Eyes...
- 10/21/2008
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
![Mark Wahlberg in Max Payne (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzM5OTAxYmQtODRkZC00ZGZlLTlhNzYtNzFiODVjMTY4MWU2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTIzOTk5ODM@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Mark Wahlberg in Max Payne (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzM5OTAxYmQtODRkZC00ZGZlLTlhNzYtNzFiODVjMTY4MWU2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTIzOTk5ODM@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,0,140,207_.jpg)
Fox's video game adaptation "Max Payne" had maximum impact on the domestic boxoffice this weekend, as the Mark Wahlberg starrer opened at No. 1 with an estimated $18 million.
Fox Searchlight's adaptation of the novel "The Secret Life of Bees" pollinated a sweet $11.1 million in third place, and Oliver Stone's "W." -- an examination of the Bush presidency -- bowed solidly with $10.6 million in fourth. But Summit Entertainment's R-rated comedy "Sex Drive" stalled in ninth place with just $3.6 million in opening grosses.
Among notable holdovers, Disney's leggy comedy "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" grossed $11.2 million in finishing second over its third frame, while moving its cumulative boxoffice to $69.1 million. Ridley Scott's spy thriller "Body of Lies" from Warner Bros. marked a 47% drop from its first-weekend tally to register $6.9 million, good for sixth place over its sophomore session and a $24.5 million cume.
Sony Screen Gems' horror film "Quarantine" fell 56% to $6.3 million in seventh...
Fox Searchlight's adaptation of the novel "The Secret Life of Bees" pollinated a sweet $11.1 million in third place, and Oliver Stone's "W." -- an examination of the Bush presidency -- bowed solidly with $10.6 million in fourth. But Summit Entertainment's R-rated comedy "Sex Drive" stalled in ninth place with just $3.6 million in opening grosses.
Among notable holdovers, Disney's leggy comedy "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" grossed $11.2 million in finishing second over its third frame, while moving its cumulative boxoffice to $69.1 million. Ridley Scott's spy thriller "Body of Lies" from Warner Bros. marked a 47% drop from its first-weekend tally to register $6.9 million, good for sixth place over its sophomore session and a $24.5 million cume.
Sony Screen Gems' horror film "Quarantine" fell 56% to $6.3 million in seventh...
- 10/19/2008
- by By Carl DiOrio
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
![Michael Moore at an event for The 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTkyMDEwNjk1OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTI4NDA2MQ@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Michael Moore at an event for The 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTkyMDEwNjk1OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTI4NDA2MQ@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
Managing to make the films of Michael Moore and Morgan Spurlock look like dry, scholarly treatises by comparison, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed more than lives up to its subtitle.
Co-written by and starring Ben Stein -- whose credentials range from serving as a speechwriter for Richard Nixon to game show host to acting credits including the beleaguered teacher in Ferris Bueller's Day Off -- this documentary purporting to examine the issue of freedom of expression in the debate between the competing arguments of "intelligent design" and Darwinism squanders the potential fascination of its topic with its simplistic, heavy-handed approach.
The film's main thesis is that scientists and educators are being persecuted, in some cases fired from their positions, because they had the effrontery to challenge their institutions' scientific orientation toward the theory of evolution.
The deep-voiced, stone-faced Stein thus conducts a series of solicitous interviews with a number of such figures, in between his own musings about the beginnings of life. The Berlin Wall is used as a central visual metaphor for the suppression of such ideas, with director Nathan Frankowski employing archival footage of both its construction and eventual tearing down at numerous points.
Indeed, copious use is made of vintage film clips, often to truly goofy effect. From the image of a guillotine in conjunction with a professor's being fired to clips of Khrushchev pounding his shoe at the United Nations to scenes from such films as Planet of the Apes and The Wizard of Oz, the proceedings start to most closely resemble HBO's late sitcom Dream On.
Music is also used for ironic if predictable effect, with snippets heard from such songs as Personal Jesus, Spirit in the Sky and Imagine.
Many of the central ideas expressed are truly offensive, such as the attempt to link Darwinism and Nazism, complete with footage of a grim-faced (not that he ever looks any different) Stein touring a Nazi concentration camp. At another point, the morose host ventures to the lair of the enemy himself, Darwin's home, and engages in a lengthy staring contest with a life-sized sculpture of the scientist.
Not surprisingly, there is a climactic showdown between Stein and the leading atheist of the day, Richard Dawkins (author of The God Delusion), that is as unenlightening as everything that has preceded it.
EXPELLED: NO INTELLIGENCE ALLOWED
Premise Media
Rampant Films
Credits:
Director/director of photography: Nathan Frankowski
Writers: Kevin Miller, Ben Stein
Producers: Logan Craft, Walt Ruloff, John Sullivan
Editor: Simon Tondeur
Music: Andy Hunter, Robbie Bronnimann
Running time -- 90 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
Co-written by and starring Ben Stein -- whose credentials range from serving as a speechwriter for Richard Nixon to game show host to acting credits including the beleaguered teacher in Ferris Bueller's Day Off -- this documentary purporting to examine the issue of freedom of expression in the debate between the competing arguments of "intelligent design" and Darwinism squanders the potential fascination of its topic with its simplistic, heavy-handed approach.
The film's main thesis is that scientists and educators are being persecuted, in some cases fired from their positions, because they had the effrontery to challenge their institutions' scientific orientation toward the theory of evolution.
The deep-voiced, stone-faced Stein thus conducts a series of solicitous interviews with a number of such figures, in between his own musings about the beginnings of life. The Berlin Wall is used as a central visual metaphor for the suppression of such ideas, with director Nathan Frankowski employing archival footage of both its construction and eventual tearing down at numerous points.
Indeed, copious use is made of vintage film clips, often to truly goofy effect. From the image of a guillotine in conjunction with a professor's being fired to clips of Khrushchev pounding his shoe at the United Nations to scenes from such films as Planet of the Apes and The Wizard of Oz, the proceedings start to most closely resemble HBO's late sitcom Dream On.
Music is also used for ironic if predictable effect, with snippets heard from such songs as Personal Jesus, Spirit in the Sky and Imagine.
Many of the central ideas expressed are truly offensive, such as the attempt to link Darwinism and Nazism, complete with footage of a grim-faced (not that he ever looks any different) Stein touring a Nazi concentration camp. At another point, the morose host ventures to the lair of the enemy himself, Darwin's home, and engages in a lengthy staring contest with a life-sized sculpture of the scientist.
Not surprisingly, there is a climactic showdown between Stein and the leading atheist of the day, Richard Dawkins (author of The God Delusion), that is as unenlightening as everything that has preceded it.
EXPELLED: NO INTELLIGENCE ALLOWED
Premise Media
Rampant Films
Credits:
Director/director of photography: Nathan Frankowski
Writers: Kevin Miller, Ben Stein
Producers: Logan Craft, Walt Ruloff, John Sullivan
Editor: Simon Tondeur
Music: Andy Hunter, Robbie Bronnimann
Running time -- 90 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
- 4/21/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
![Jackie Chan and Jet Li in The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTUwNTExMTg3NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNDYyMTM2MQ@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
![Jackie Chan and Jet Li in The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTUwNTExMTg3NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNDYyMTM2MQ@@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,4,140,207_.jpg)
The Forbidden Kingdom, from Lionsgate and the Weinstein Co., traveled to the top of the domestic boxoffice during the weekend, bowing with an estimated $20.9 million.
Universal's R-rated comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall grabbed the frame's silver medal with a memorable $17.3 million in opening grosses. Sony Screen Gems' horror film Prom Night saw a 56% drop over its sophomore session but still finished third with $9.1 million, good for a $32.6 million cume.
Sony's Al Pacino thriller 88 Minutes debuted in fourth place with $6.8 million. Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, a Ben Stein-narrated documentary about critics of the intelligent-design theory of creation, bowed in ninth place with $3.2 million from 1,052 playdates.
Among other holdovers, the cop drama Street Kings from Fox Searchlight and Regency fell 68% from its opening grosses to ring up $4 million in sixth place and produce a $19.9 million cume. The Miramax drama Smart People tumbled from the top 10 on a 61% decline in its second weekend to $1.6 million, with a $6.8 million cume.
Industrywide, the weekend's $92 million in collective grosses marked a 4% increase from the same frame a year go, according to Nielsen EDI data. That represents only the second year-over-year weekend uptick in the past 10 sessions. Year-to-date, 2008 trails the same portion of last year by 3%, at $2.43 billion, Nielsen said.
In a limited bow for the weekend, the Weinstein Co.'s documentary "Where in the World Is Osama bin Laden?" grossed $143,299 from 102 theaters, or $1,405 per venue.
Universal's R-rated comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall grabbed the frame's silver medal with a memorable $17.3 million in opening grosses. Sony Screen Gems' horror film Prom Night saw a 56% drop over its sophomore session but still finished third with $9.1 million, good for a $32.6 million cume.
Sony's Al Pacino thriller 88 Minutes debuted in fourth place with $6.8 million. Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, a Ben Stein-narrated documentary about critics of the intelligent-design theory of creation, bowed in ninth place with $3.2 million from 1,052 playdates.
Among other holdovers, the cop drama Street Kings from Fox Searchlight and Regency fell 68% from its opening grosses to ring up $4 million in sixth place and produce a $19.9 million cume. The Miramax drama Smart People tumbled from the top 10 on a 61% decline in its second weekend to $1.6 million, with a $6.8 million cume.
Industrywide, the weekend's $92 million in collective grosses marked a 4% increase from the same frame a year go, according to Nielsen EDI data. That represents only the second year-over-year weekend uptick in the past 10 sessions. Year-to-date, 2008 trails the same portion of last year by 3%, at $2.43 billion, Nielsen said.
In a limited bow for the weekend, the Weinstein Co.'s documentary "Where in the World Is Osama bin Laden?" grossed $143,299 from 102 theaters, or $1,405 per venue.
- 4/20/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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