Screenhead

…Will Ferrell.

You know, I’m not surprised.  Really.  I’d also include words like “overrated” and “over the hill” too, because frankly, I haven’t laughed at much he’s done since the Butomi era on Saturday Night Live, and even then because he was with Chris Kattan, whose wide-eyed insanity made Ferrell seem like a straight man.

Oh, sure, Elf could’ve been a LOT worse than it was, but my stomach still churns at the thought of Step Brothers, and I still can’t make it through a performance of Semi-Pro without wishing Michigan would fall into one of the lakes, even IF it took me with it.

Ferrell, on average, only brings in about three times what he’s paid, which is actually good by any objective standard, but in Hollywood, in which budgets on single films can easily surpass the GDP of entire countries (here I am thinking of pretty much anywhere in Africa), it takes a lot more than a three to one ratio to justify the big payday.

Oh, sure, Ferrell’s known for a good joke or two, but he often spends his time in one of three basic modes:

1. Whiny man-child Will

2. Entirely too confident of his appearance Will

3. Naked Will

And frankly, I think we’ve all had enough of number three by now.  Number one makes me want to gouge out most of my sensory apparatus and number two is just boring.

Brad Pitt’s Plan B shingle is working on the development a film version of the upcoming video game Dark Void with Pitt possibly starring as the lead combatant. No writers have been hired as yet.

Void follows a cargo pilot named Will (Pitt’s presumed character) who, after crashing in the Bermuda Triangle, ends up in a parallel universe where a band of humans must fight an alien threat they had long been thought extinct. Will and the other humans are outmanned but have a number of weapons and powers to help them beat back the alien invasion.

In January, the game will be released for Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Now, it is obvious that video games are not always successful at the box office like Max Payne. Dark Void, as a game, was purposely developed to appeal to wide-screen mindsets in which they see a world full of adventure in cinematic scope and magnitude.

(Source)

New Moon.

Yeah, I know, I’m pretty bummed out about it myself.  At the rate this thing is going it’s going to DWARF the original Stoker.  Dracula is going to get pushed out by…Team Edward.

A little part of me just died typing that.

But it’s no less true for my squeamishness.  The number one pre-selling title of all time, at least as far as Fandango goes, is New Moon.  In fact, at the rate it’s going, there’s a good chance that theater owners will be resorting to little-known techniques like interlocking the reels to reduce the length of show times, or even running continuous loop showtimes, in which there’s no, or at least a minimum of, time between shows to get the most possible in a day.

One way or another, this thing is going to be one of the biggest movies of the year.  The Twifans have already bought their tickets and there will be virtually no competition on that weekend.  The only alternative is Planet 51 and a handful of limited release titles.  Thus, there’s pretty much no way that New Moon won’t take top spot this weekend.

Lions Gate and Massify are linking up to create a partnership aimed at finding the next great filmmakers.

We all know who Lions Gate is, but you may not be familiar with Massify, the world’s largest online film production network.  The Lions Gate Incubator Project, LINC, gives Lions Gate access to Massify’s huge talent pool.  They’re already getting a project ready for launch within the next few weeks, a “high-concept, male-driven comedy short” that will be developed into a feature length production later.  Here’s the word from Lions Gate:

“There is a revolution of new ideas in filmed entertainment online,” said Curt Marvis, President of Digital for Lionsgate. “We intend to be at the forefront of accessing this enormous and largely untapped source of fresh talent and original new voices. Just as we are always looking for ways to monetize our content in a broadband environment, we are equally committed to using new media platforms as a source of new content. Massify’s large and talented community of filmmakers make them an ideal partner to bolster our online initiatives.”

Smart move for Lions Gate–they need to find the next Saw before someone else does, and the More of the Same plan you’re seeing at places like Universal just doesn’t seem to be holding up.  After all, GI Joe STILL hasn’t made its shooting budget back yet despite having sold a hundred and fifty million dollars’ worth of tickets at last view, whilst the dirt-cheap Paranormal Activity took in a whopping hundred-plus on a shoestring.

Funny, hot shot and whippersnapper, director and producer Judd Apatow (The 40 Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up) will be making a special visit to the Funny or Die writers’ room to answer fan-submitted questions on his latest film Funny People via a special live event on www.funnyordie.com on Wednesday, Nov 18 from 12:30 – 1:00 PM PT (3:30 -4:00 PM ET).

Funny People takes audiences on a hilarious and revealing look at the world of stand-up comedy with the story of George Simmons, a famous comedian who is given a second chance at life.

Funny Peopleis coming to two-disc Blu-Ray, two-disc Collector’s Edition DVD, single-disc DVD and digital download on November 24, 2009 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. 

Apatow will answer pre-submitted questions from Funny or Die’s Facebook page (facebook.com/funnyordie) and live questions from Funny or Die’s Twitter account (twitter.com/funnyordie). Fans watching the special live event will also get to see sneak peeks of the Funny People2-disc Collector’s Edition Blu-ray and DVD releasing November 24, which will feature exclusive clips and behind-the-scenes footage.

John Calley was too ill to attend the ceremony. Steven Spielberg accepted the Oscar for Calley.

Roger Corman, Lauren Bacall and Gordon Willis and John Calley were awarded Oscars this weekend at a special presentation at Hollywood & Highland Center called Governors’ Awards. The affair was a nostalgic celebration with attendees referring to the good old days when Oscars were handed out in such casual affairs without time limits, where recipients’ acceptance speeches were not based on a two-minute stopwatch.  Although the ceremony was not televised, highlights of the toasts and acceptance speeches are available at the Academy’s website. 

I highly recommend visiting the site and taking the time to view each clip. It’s truly a celebrated time where each recipient deserves recognition from their esteemed colleagues.

Call it another casualty of the Great Recession, folks, but MGM is weighing its options in the face of horrendous losses.

As much as we’d all like to blame their lone theatrical release for the year (Fame!  Nobody cared about it…nobody watched this crap!  Fame!  Go ahead, sing along! It’s fun.)  for being the millstone around MGM’s neck, as it turns out, it was weak DVD sales that brought down the beast.  MGM had a monster library of titles, weighing in at over four thousand titles, and now it’s all up for bids.  Also up for sale is the James Bond franchise, and even the roaring lion logo.

Interestingly, though, it may not be as up for sale as we think–seems that MGM’s creditors are taking a pass on collection action for a while, and meanwhile, MGM’s pumping all the cash it can scrounge into its upcoming movies Red Dawn, the Hot Tub Time Machine and The Zookeeper.

Oh, sure, they’re pretty fair releases…a remake and two good comedies featuring solid comedy actors…but enough to save the studio?  Scuse my lack of conviction on that one.

But only time will tell if MGM will still be selling off all its assets or if this year will turn it around.

We’ve been warned at the box office by 2012 leading the way for the film industry’s holiday season spectacular movies.  But the true stand out is Precious in fourth place with a limited release of 174 movie theaters at a total of $6 million, a gross we don’t see very often.  It’s not even a holiday movie with a drive to entertainment, more like “look what’s going on folks” momentum with superlative acting.  I am happy to see This is It rising to fifth place after a no show on the top five Friday.

Results:

1. 2012
$65,000,000

2. Disney’s A Christmas Carol
$22,325,000

3. Men Who Stare at Goats
$6,200,000

4. Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
$6,090,000

5. This Is It
$5,100,000

6. The Fourth Kind
$4,744,000

7. Couples Retreat
$4,253,000

8. Paranormal Activity
$4,200,000

9. Law Abiding Citizen
$3,932,000

10. The Box
$3,185,000

in the millions

(Source)

Ron Emmerich had the biggest opening day ever with his film 2012. 2012 outpaced A Christmas Carol by $18 million. It’s a phenomenal opening for a second week of holiday scheduled movies.  This is It is nowhere to be seen while emotional, tear-jerking film Precious came in fourth place.

Results:

1. 2012
$ 23.7

2. A Christmas Carol
$ 5.6

3. The Men Who Stare at Goats
$ 1.95

4. Precious
$ 1.92

5. The Fourth Kind
$ 1.8

Disney’s A Christmas Carol sings at the box office for the weekly tally. Of course, Michael Jackson’s This is It  came in second with The Men Who Stare at Goats in third.

As we get closer to the holiday season, bigger movies will be vie for the box office.  A Christmas Carol at the top proves that audiences want to see CGI, 3D and animation besides just a great story like Mr. Fantastic Fox, Avatar and 2012.

Results:

1. Disney’s A Christmas Carol
$40,963,844 — $40,963,844

2. Michael Jackson’s This Is It
$18,256,034 — $62,111,376

3. The Men Who Stare At Goats
$17,176,297 — $17,176,297

4. The Fourth Kind
$15,844,295 — $15,844,295

5. Paranormal Activity
$10,816,897 — $99,646,767

6. The Box
$10,021,254 — $10,021,254

7. Law Abiding Citizen
$8,693,527 — $63,394,125

8. Couples Retreat
$8,328,880 — $97,880,390

9. Where The Wild Things Are
$5,978,938 — $71,022,273

10. Astro Boy
$3,777,689 — $16,262,390

(Source)