> Sony is taking an interesting strategy this fall:  with MONEYBALL in release, THE IDES OF MARCH opening on Friday and ANONYMOUS coming on October 28, they’re cornering the market on upscale, wide-release drama until Warner Bros opens J. EDGAR on November 11.  (On that date, Sony will go as downscale as is humanly possible […]

> Fox is adopted a very interesting strategy on its upcoming Cameron Crowe/Matt Damon/Scarlett Johansson drama WE BOUGHT A ZOO.  The movie doesn’t open until December 23, but the studio will hold national “sneak” previews on November 26, in the teeth of Thanksgiving weekend.  (Reportedly screenings will also include a Q&A with Crowe and as […]

> As schools close and vacations begin, a lot of money is about to flood into Hollywood for about 2 blissful weeks.  But not enough to make up for the rest of a doleful year. SHERLOCK HOLMES:  GAME OF SHADOWS (Warners):  With a studio estimate that just barely managed to nudge above $40M–and needed an […]

> Sundance changed the way it kicks things off this year. Instead of a single high-profile Opening Night Film (which has almost always turned out to be a disappointment), the festival screened several smaller films. For those of us who arrived before the madness begins in earnest tomorrow, there was the chance to get Wait […]

>Updated Oscar odds confirm a complete snooze is in store for Sunday’s Academy Awards as The Artist and director Michel Hazanavicius are heavy favorites to win Best Picture and Best Director, bringing a very French flavor — and depressed ratings — to ABC’s telecast.  Oscar ratings rise and fall based on the suspense of the […]

> Deadline is reporting that Saturday’s boxoffice for THE HUNGER GAMES is heading for $50M.  This is obviously a very preliminary figure–some late night west coast shows haven’t even started yet, much less been reported back to the studio.  But if the number holds, it would mean that Hunger Games is an even more phenomenal […]

> Well-played, Marvel/Disney. THE AVENGERS:  Years of planning and marketing led to the 2d biggest opening day of all time, $80.5M, that was behind only Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 and its $91.1M.  (And Deathly Hallows 2 was far more front-loaded with Thursday midnight money, $43.5M compared to Avengers’ $18.7M.)  Now, the […]

  Michael Lewis’ book Moneyball was a marvelous read, but seemed like dim source material for a movie. Credit, then, is due to the creators of the film version–the various producers, screenwriters Steven Zailian and Aaron Sorkin, and director Bennett Miller–for finding a compelling narrative spine in a true-life story about the change in an […]