Reel Entropy

Applying Chaos Theory: Showdown of the century

Posted on November 29, 2015 by reelentropy

The global box office ain’t big enough for the both of them.

In 2016, the showdown between Warner Bros. and DC and Disney and Marvel will begin in earnest, and things had already started to come to a head in 2014. Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, seen as the early headstone of DC’s cinematic universe, pushed its release almost a full year from July 2015 to May 6, 2016, “to realize fully their vision, given the complex visual nature of the story.” Marvel, which started announcing release dates even before scripts were completed early in its production history, had already claimed that weekend, and they didn’t budge, announcing in April that Captain America: Civil War would hit theaters that weekend after a titanic performance from Captain America: The Winter Soldier. After a few months of talking about how Warner Bros. would get slaughtered if it didn’t step off, the studio pushed their date forward to March 25 after Marvel shocked everyone later in the summer with Guardians of the Galaxy, a virtually unknown property that opened within a few million dollars of The Winter Soldier and went on to outgross it on the year.

Everyone in their right mind knew Warner Bros. was going to back down, but what we didn’t know until the Civil War trailer dropped just before Thanksgiving was this — Marvel isn’t going to let them back down.

Continue reading →

Posted in Applying Chaos Theory | Tagged #Batfleck, #Batman, #batman vs superman, #civil war, #Dawn of Justice, #DC, #Disney, #iron man, #man of steel, #superman, #the dark knight, #warner bros., Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel | Leave a comment

Room fantastic — and the sequel is, too!

Posted on November 24, 2015 by reelentropy

Room represents another critical coup for infant production company A24. It’s the company’s 27th film in just three years of operation, and further cements them as the new gold standard for taste in film distribution. Other highlights include Ex Machina, Enemy and The Spectacular Now — again, in just the past three years. They’ll be distributing Sundance darling The Witch in February. Photo courtesy A24 Films.

The generous billboards for Room won’t tell you one very important thing — it’s actually a double feature.

Based on the 2010 novel by Emma Donoghue, which is itself based on several real-world extended kidnapping cases, Room reveals itself through the eyes of Jack Newsome (Jacob Tremblay), who celebrates his fifth birthday at the film’s start. His mother, Joy “Ma” Newsome (Brie Larson), was kidnapped by Old Nick (Sean Bridgers) seven years beforehand to serve as his rape slave, and he’s never been out of the garden shed where she’s held his entire life. After about an hour of this, he and Ma hatch a daring escape, and spend the rest of the film dealing with the aftereffects of their captivity.

Continue reading →

Posted in Entropy | Tagged #A24 films, #brie larson, #enemy, #ex machina, #jacob tremblay, #rape, #room, #sean bridgers, #short term 12, #the spectacular now, #the witch | 1 Comment

The Möbius strip: Mockingjay disappoints, new releases disappoint further

Posted on November 23, 2015 by reelentropy

Part two of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay won the weekend with maybe the first disappointing $100 million opening ever. The film was predicted for north of $120 million. Other new releases, The Night Before and Secret in Their Eyes, also underperformed with just $10.1 million and $6.6 million, respectively- Box Office Mojo

The movie’s $101 million is the lowest opening of the four-part franchise, 17 percent below part one, which released around the same time last year. Critical scores and fan excitement have dwindled as the series progressed- Variety

Already in trouble, Lionsgate stock took another hit today after the disappointing opening- The Hollywood Reporter

Continue reading →

Posted in The Möbius strip | Tagged #charlie chaplin, #charlie sheen, #criterion collection, #david cronenberg, #dustin hoffman, #eastern promises, #eddie redmayne, #HIV, #jennifer lawrence, #lionsgate, #memento, #mockingjay, #paul walker, #peter jackson, #secret in their eyes, #sexism, #the danish girl, #the graduate, #the hobbit, #the hunger games, #the kid, #the night before, #tiger blood | Leave a comment

It’s a good thing they split Mockingjay up

Posted on November 22, 2015 by reelentropy

Also rescued is Johanna Mason (Jena Malone). Among the disappointments, it’s a shame there isn’t more of this wonderfully insane character. Photos courtesy Lionsgate.

The last movie in the Hunger Games series is fantastic — as long as you’re not hoping for an epic blockbuster.

The movie picks up with Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) rescued from the Capitol, but with his mind in tatters after a thorough regimen of hallucinogen-enhanced conditioning and memory alteration. Unable to handle being around him, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) seeks to join the front lines in last two battles to overthrow the reigning government, but rebel leader Alma Coin (Julianne Moore) sees her as too valuable as a celebrity to risk. Nevertheless, Everdeen sneaks into the main war camp and is caught, but cannot be sent back because she’s been seen. She is instead surrounded by an elite unit and forced to stay behind the lines and shoot more propaganda pieces, though she aspires to sneak away from her team and assassinate president Coriolanus Snow (Donald Sutherland). The bulk of the movie takes place far from the battle.

Continue reading →

Posted in Entropy | Tagged #Harry potter and the deathly hallows, #hunger games, #i am legend, #jennifer lawrence, #josh hutcherson, #kill bill, #liam hemsworth, #lionsgate, #mockingjay, #part 2, Harry Potter | Leave a comment

Spotlight a masterpiece, the year’s most authentic movie

Posted on November 18, 2015 by reelentropy

A lot of the film’s quality is driven and necessitated by its story. Even 13 years later, the details of the Catholic sex abuse scandal are revolting, and no movie could ever overshadow the real-life work of the Spotlight team, pictured here with their corresponding actors. Photo courtesy The Boston Globe.

Spotlight brings its world to more complex, nuanced life than any movie in recent memory. This movie is deeply personally affecting, in ways that go far beyond the fact that it’s all true.

The film is about the Boston Globe’s 2002 Pulitzer-Prize winning investigation into systemic pedophilia in the Catholic Church, which resulted in criminal charges against five Boston area priests. The dramatization goes through the hiring of new editor Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber) and his discovery of the story through its investigation by the Spotlight team, leader Walter Robinson (Michael Keaton), Micheal Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo), Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams) and Matt Carroll (Brian d’Arcy James).

Continue reading →

Posted in Entropy | Tagged #boston globe, #catholic church, #liev schrieber, #mark ruffalo, #michael keaton, #pedophilia, #rachel mcadams, #spotlight | 1 Comment

Reel Entropy

Applying Chaos Theory: Showdown of the century

Room fantastic — and the sequel is, too!

The Möbius strip: Mockingjay disappoints, new releases disappoint further

It’s a good thing they split Mockingjay up

Spotlight a masterpiece, the year’s most authentic movie

Recent Posts

Archives

Meta