Worldwide box office review: 2007

Well, that's it, 2007 is more or less over, so time to review what did well in the year.
Despite poor reviews, Pirates 3 topped the worldwide chart with $961m. It was only the fourth most successful film in the US, but was top in the international market (and the most successful of the franchise). No surprise there; in fact no surprises in the top five.
Next up is Harry Potter 5 on $938.4m, another relative poor performer in the US (only fifth biggest), but a mighty $646.4m haul from the rest of the world put it second only to Depp and co. - and produced the second highest international take of the franchise. Harry Potter 6 opens in November 2008.
Spidey 3 topped the US chart and was the only other film to cross the $500m barrier internationally, taking $890.8m worldwide and making it the most commeercially successful of its franchise. Spider-Man 4 will follow, although it's likely Sam Raimi won't direct.
Shrek 3 coudln't hope to beat the $915.2m take of its predecessor, but nevertheless emerged honour intact in fourth worldwide with $794.5m. Shrek 4 remains on the cards, although a hard and fast release date has not been scheduled.
Transformers completes the top five: its $703m haul was split more or less equally between the US and international. Presumably we can expect a sequel.
Although only the eighth biggest movie in the US, Brad Bird's universally loved Ratatouille proved the dish of choice in international markets, garnering $405.8m and counting, leading to a worldwide prize of $612.2m. One eighth of the international gross came from the UK, while one sixth came from France. This is the highest placed 'original' movie in the top 10.
So far Brad Bird has not sequelised his movies: will pressure be put on him to do so?

In seventh place on $525.5m is The Simpsons, its take split two-thirds in favour of international. If the film performed as expected overseas, it almost certainly fell short of commercial expectations at home, ranking 10th. No signs of a sequel, but I wouldn't be surprised if there was one.
First quarter behemoth 300 performed surprisingly well in the US, those homo-erotic undertones apparently lost on those in the services who helped power it to $210.6m. Add in another $245.4m from overseas and 300 enjoyed a worldwide total of $456m. Or in other words, each Spartan was worth $1.5m...
In Greece, 300 spent a month at the top of the chart, raking in twice as much as Pirates 3, nearly three times as much as Spidey 3 and ten times more than Transformers, as Greek youth sought to reclaim its country's heritage.
300 director Zack Snyder's next comic-based epic opens in the same slot in 2009: Watchmen.
Bourne Ultimatum continued the franchise's growth, being bigger than the second (which in turn was bigger than the first), importantly not only at home but also finally abroad, almost doubling the previous instalment's international take to $213.5m. Its worldwide total was $441m. Given that there's a fourth book...
Tenth place falls to Die Hard 4.0. Although an under-performer at home (at least compared with Bourne), Die Harder raked in
$247.6m overseas, giving it a worldwide total of $382.1m.
Christmas/new year opener I Am Legend is closing fast on the Bruce Willis vehicle at $311.6m and still climbing.

The UK was dominated by the boy magician, ahead of the pirate, the ogre, Homer, and the spider. The next five positions were taken by the rat, the shape-changing robots, and Bourne.
Pleasingly the next three places were taken by home-grown figures: Mr Bean, Hot Fuzz and Matthew Vaughn's Stardust. The Golden Compass's end-of-season charge, while non-existent in the US (it's likely to top out at no more than $80m) is closing on $200m internationally and it will outgross Hot Fuzz and Stardust in the UK once its run is complete.

2008 preview: movies to look out for

2008: will it be better than 2007?
Take a look at the following list: the first quarter should be a stonker, the early summer holds much for comic geeks, but the second half lacks quality at the moment.
I've listed films in release date order, followed by some corkers that don't yet have releases set. All release dates are of course subject to change, particularly as England didn't make the Euro Finals, meaning some distributors may change their schedules.

Charlie Wilson's War 11 January
Directed by Mike Nichols, this Arron 'West Wing' Sorkin-scripted Cold War satire has been nominated for 5 Golden Globes. The film that puts Tom Hanks back on the map? Co-starring Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

No Country For Old Men 18 January
The Coen Brothers' latest is a mini-masterpiece, showcasing their trademarked skewed take on film noir. Nominated for four Golden Globes. Read my review on 17 January.

In The Valley of Elah 25 January
Produced, written and directed by Paul 'Crash' Haggis, this Iraq war-related drama stars Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize Theron. Reviews should be strong.

Sweeney Todd 25 January
Tim Burton. Johnny Depp. The well-known musical. What's not to like? Nominated for four Golden Globes.

The Savages 25 January
An uncommonly humane comedy drama about losing an ageing parent, starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and the brilliant Laura Linney. Read my review on 24 January.

Before The Devil Knows You're Dead 1 February
Sidney Lumet returns to top form with this corruption thriller starring Seymour Hoffman (again!), Ethan Hawke, Albert Finney and Marisa Tomei. Should be worth seeking out.

Cloverfield 1 February
From the man that brought us Alias and Lost, now comes Cloverfield. Likely to be the worldwide box office smash of the first quarter, this disaster movie is shot from one of the heroes' video camera POV - so expect plenty of stomach-churning wobbly camerawork. A huge monster attacks New York, chaos ensues, etc. Bring it on!

Things We Lost In The Fire 1 February
Superior drama with career-best performances from Benecio del Toro and Halle Berry. Read my review on 31 January.

Juno 8 February
Nominated for three Golden Globes and surprise winner of the Best Film Award at Rome, this is director Jason Reitman's second film (after Thank You For Smoking). Founded on a superb script and anchored by great performances, especially by Ellen Page's career-making turn as the potty-mouthed pregnant teen of the title, this was the sweetest comedy of 2007. Read my review on 7 February.

Jumper 15 February
The first super hero movie post-Heroes, this teleporting actioneer is directed by Doug Liman (Bourne Identity and Mr & Mrs Smith). Hayden Christensen and Samuel L Jackson star. Should have the brain to match the brawn.

Margot At The Wedding 29 February
Noah Baumbach's follow-up to the excellent The Squid And The Whale is another drama about dysfunctional and unlikeable characters, this time set at Jennifer Jason Leigh's wedding to Jack Black. Family chaos ensues when Leigh's sister, the sharp-tongued Nicole Kidman arrives. Reviews have been strong.

There Will Be Blood 29 February
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Daniel Day Lewis in a performance that may garner him another Oscar, this film tells the story of a prospector in the early days of the Texas oil business.

Lars And The Real Girl 21 March
Ryan Gosling could snag another Oscar-nom for his performance in this offbeat gem, in which his loner marries a blow-up doll; not wishing to ruin his new-found happiness, his friends and family treat her as real.

Persepolis 11 April
Nominated for best foreign film at the Golden Globes, this is the black and white animated adaptation of the acclaimed graphic novel telling the story of a headstrong girl growing up in Iran in the aftermath of the Islamic Revolution.

Iron Man 2 May
The latest Marvel super hero flick should be a corker: Robert Downey Jnr, in a role he was born to play, is billionaire industrialist Tony Stark, a womanising, alcoholic with the gift for creating the weapons the world needs who ultimately is forced to become the hero of the title, backed by an Oscar-friendly cast (Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges and Terrence Howard). I'm gagging for this!

Indy 4 22 May
Sorry, I can't be bothered to give it its full title: to the film-goer on the street this simply is Indy 4. Nuff said.

The Incredible Hulk 13 June
Marvel's second major adaptation of the year, and while the director has no real quality form to speak of, the cast is top-notch again: Ed Norton is Banner/Hulk, Liv Tyler his girlfriend Betty Ross, William Hurt her obsessed army father and Tim Roth the Russian scientist who becomes the Abomination. Surely it can't suck?

Wanted 20 June
An adaptation of Mark Millar's no holds barred super villian comic by the director of Night Watch with yet another fantastic cast: James McAvoy is the dweeb who finds out his father was one of the great super villians and that he is destined to be one too. The cast includes Morgan Freeman, Angelina Jolie and Terence Stamp. Should be good (although with many of the comic's more insulting, inventive edges and characters removed, more's the pity).

The Dark Knight 25 July
Christopher Nolan's sequel to his well-respected reboot Batman Begins features most of the same quality cast (Christian Bale as the titular hero, Michael Caine, and Gary Oldman) with the addition of Heath Ledger as the Joker. This really can't fail.

X-Files 2 1 August
The TV series spawned the rash of cult TV that dominates the airwaves (Alias, Lost, Heroes, etc), but will enough people care?
Co-written and directed by creator Chris Carter and with Duchovny and Anderson along for the ride, this will be a stand-alone story, not harking back to the convoluted mythology that killed off the TV series. Can Carter deliver the story and the dialogue? Can the leads re-generate the old chemistry? I certainly hope so!

Valkyrie 3 October
Bryan Singer's first proper push for Oscar, this is a thriller based on the true story of the plot to assassinate Hitler. Top of the bill is Tom Cruise, but don't let that put you off: the cast is simply stunning, full of British and European actors with a history of playing Nazis - Bill Nighy, Ken Branagh, Terence Stamp, Eddie Izzard, Tom Wilkinson, Stephen Fry, Carice Van Outen, Kevin McNally, and David Bamber. Mouthwatering, I'd say.

Bond 22 7 November
Need I say more?

Star Trek 11 26 December
JJ Abrams again, this time directing the origin of the classic Trek crew, lead by James T Kirk. Yet another intriguing cast, but surely just a Xmas delicacy for Trekkies?

Some top work without release dates set yet include: Grace Is Gone, Julio Medem's Chaotic Anna, Asif Kapadia's gripping Far North, and the achingly funny Son Of Rambow.

For more previews, try the Guardian.

The Golden Stans: your questions answered

What are the Golden Stans?
They are my own awards, set up at the end of 1991 in a fit of infuriation that the right movies never win awards - or at least movies I liked didn't win awards.

What's the criteria?
There are a few easy rules. Clearly, I must have seen it; it must be a current release (so old films at the NFT or major releases of re-edited/remastered works don't count); and it must have been on theatrical release. So, for instance, although I didn't get to see Zodiac at the cinema and I've seen it on DVD at home, it qualifies as it was a theatrical release in 07.

What categories are there?
All the usual 'bests': film, director, actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, original screenplay, adapted screenplay, cinematography, score, etc.

What's won Best Film in previous years?
2006: Bobby
2005: Downfall
2004: Infernal Affairs
2003: City Of God
2002: Lantana
2001: Last Orders
2000: The Green Mile
1999: The Sixth Sense
1998: Saving Private Ryan
1997: LA Confidential
1996: Seven
1995: The Shawshank Redemption
1994: Schindler's List
1993: Groundhog Day
1992: Hear My Song
1991: Silence Of The Lambs

When will the Golden Stans for 2007 be announced?
1 January 2008. A total of 56 films will be in contention out of the 61 I saw this year.

Are there any statuettes?
Er, no.

Comment: Empire and The Guardian's year-end reviews

The top 10 filns of 2007 as voted for by Guardian readers is a suitably eclectic list. No surprises for the No.1 spot: The Lives of Others, which has been topping lists everywhere. But second went to the over-rated Atonement, followed rather appropriately by Control.
Although it was one of the year's commercial flops, David Fincher's Zodiac placed fourth, ahead of Sean Penn's Into The Wild and the year's best action film, The Bourne Ultimatum. David Lynch's mind-bending opus, Inland Empire, was seventh followed by another surprise entry: Mel Gibson's Apocalypto. The brilliant This Is England and Ratatouille completed the 10.
Now compare that with the list voted for by the reviewers at Empire: the two lists have only five films in common.
There's a bit of a shock at the top, with Bourne ousting Others - I don't think you'll find that on too many other lists!
Atonement ranks third aheaed of Ratatouille and the superb Assassination of Jesse James. Zodiac appears again in sixth.
There follow three comedies: Superbad, Hot Fuzz and Knocked Up. The top 10 is rounded out by Half Nelson, which I saw at the London Film Festival in 2006: a great, little film anchored by what turned out to be an Oscar-nominated performance by Ryan Gosling.
Clearly, there are some great works that don't feature in these top 10s: Venus, Once, The Fountain, Lions For Lambs, Letters From Iwo Jima.
How many of these will feature in my end of year review? Check back on 1 January 2008 to find out!

Review: I'm Not There

Todd Haynes’ ambitious, complex tribute to Bob Dylan is as layered and dense as the great man’s best songs.
Imagining Dylan as quite literally different personalities at key stages of his life, Haynes bravely casts different actors in those stages – and then intercuts their stories!
Ben Whishaw goes beyond impersonation and simply is Dylan in his straight-to-camera monologues, while Christian Bale and Cate Blanchett also excel, adding their own spin to the Dylan legend.
Child actor Marcus Carl Franklin is superb as the young Dylan, obsessed with Woody Guthrie.
Heath Ledger and Richard Gere prove less satisfying.
It is arguably too long, possibly too ambitious, but the sheer audacity, the great soundtrack (Dylan originals and covers), the lush black and white photography and the best performances make this one of the best, and most telling, films about rock n roll.
But if you don’t like Dylan or are largely unaware of his history, this is not the film for you!
Score: 8/10

For more info, go to:
IMDB.com
I'm Not There

Welcome to my film blog

Hello there and welcome to Stan's Film Blog.
I'll be posting reviews (and previews) here of current releases, news and comment, and, on a slightly less regular basis, my thoughts about old movies I see at the NFT.
2007 began for me with a showing of The Maltese Falcon at the NFT and currently concludes with a screening of Once at Odeon Panton Street. To date, I've seen 59 films this year, 21 of which were at the London Film Festival.
As a taster of what's to come, a couple of reviews of some important films I saw at the London Film Festival this year follow.
I hope they're informative and readable; if you disagree with my views or just want to add you support, then post away.
All feedback welcome!!

The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
One of the great film’s about the death of the Wild West and therefore about American mythology, Assassination is brilliantly conceived, performed and shot, will linger long in the memory and should feature heavily come Oscar-time.
Co-produced by Brad Pitt, this is no ego trip – it is an art-house western owing as much to The Unforgiven as to The Searchers.
Writer/director Andrew Dominik (whose only major credit to date is Chopper) has worked long and hard through multiple re-shoots and re-edits (the film was meant to premiere in late 2005 if memory serves) and finally delivered a work that is probably greater than the sum of its parts.
Shot by Roger Deakins (another Oscar nom due for the cinematographer’s cinematographer) with considerable style and verve (but not to the detriment of the story), the film opens as the James Gang carries out its final job: the robbery of $3,000 from the Chicago and Alton train at Blue Cut, Missouri.
Working his way into the gang and, he hopes, into the orbit of Pitt’s intense Jesse James, is the nervous, naïve and obsessed Robert Ford, played with surely Oscar-winning intensity by Casey Affleck.
The relationship between the two is awkward, both being inclined to bouts of dis-associative behaviour, with Jesse’s threat of violence ever-present.
While there are many slow takes of strange conversations and strained silences, there are as many ‘action’ set pieces, all tense and shocking.
When Ford’s killing of Jesse finally comes, the release in tension is palpable. Jesse’s realisation that his time has come – and that he will die by the hand of a friend – is poignant (and represents Pitt’s finest performance to date), while Ford suffers the disappointment that his destiny is to kill his hero.
The question of whether Jesse has been ‘assassinated’ by the ‘coward Ford’ is one for the audience to ask itself.
This does not mark the end of the film, as we learn what happened to Ford in the remainder of his life and how complex a character he remained. This extended coda includes a telling cameo from Nick Cave, setting the story to song, at once telling us all that was wrong with the media then and now.
That America has not learnt the lesson laid before it 120 years ago is the film’s final twist.
Score: 9/10
For more info, go to:
IMdb

Lions For Lambs
Robert Redford may well be vilified by Republicans and Democrats alike for this deliberately provocative piece; he calls it a call to action – and that it is, much more so than last year’s liberal festival fave Good Night And Good Luck.
Daringly arranged Kubrick-style in three (and a half) distinct theatres of operations, the film debates American foreign policy, the inadequacy of the military top brass to do their job properly, the capitulation of the Fourth Estate, the failure of the education system to do its job and the apathy of today’s youth – and forces the audience to question every character’s motivation.
The face-offs as Redford’s right-on college professor attempts to persuade an obviously gifted student to give a damn, Tom Cruise’s ambitious senator drops an exclusive into the lap of Meryl Streep’s conflicted journalist, and two Special Forces recruits find themselves deep into enemy territory, wounded and short on ammo, become increasingly tense, the verbal brickbats of the first two mirroring the bullets flying in the latter.
Behind the camera, Redford handles the action remarkably well, but seems to have trouble enlivening his own scene. The script is arguably a tad stagey and over-wordy (and not necessarily in a Mametesque fashion) – but these criticisms pale against the power of the message.
All the cast acquit themselves well: there is something rather satanic about Cruise’s slippery senator, hectoring one minute, confessional the next (the shadow of Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men looms large here for a while..), drip-feeding his story to Streep, excelling obviously.
If Oscar wants to lean to the left this time, then Lions For Lambs will feature heavily in every major category.
Technical credits are of the highest quality – another subtle score from Mark Isham and some superb cinematography from Philippe Rousselot.
Like any liberal film, it must end with some hope – but what price that hope?
Score (as a film): 7/10
Score (as a call to action): 10/10 - every US citizen (and quite a few UK citizens as well) should be forced to watch this!

For more info, go to:
IMDb

Eastern Promises
David Cronenberg’s latest tale of violence and redemption, this time set in London, touches on the Canadian director’s usual concerns (body horror, self-loathing, deception), sometimes in subtly different ways.
Scripted by Steve Knight (the ex-journalist who wrote the Stephen Frears-directed Dirty Pretty Things), the film takes a peak at the life of Russians living in London – both legal and illegal immigrants, both law-abiding citizens and the Soviet ersatz mafia.
Naomi Watts, a midwife who’s own child was stillborn, finds herself falling into mafia circles in an attempt to trace the parents of a Russian teenager who died during childbirth. In so doing she butts up against three distinct characters: Armin Mueller-Stahl as the dangerously charismatic ‘godfather’ figure; Vincent Cassel, brilliantly seedy and needy as usual, as the son who would be king; and Viggo Mortensen’s ‘driver’, permanently clad in dark grey, whose motivations are unclear for much of the film.
Watts succeeds in what could have been a thankless role. She’s perfect casting, generating sympathy and belief in a way that Jodie ‘kick ass’ Foster can’t.
Mortensen’s accent may be an acquired taste, but once again his absolute conviction in performance makes his character believable.
The representation of the mafia suggests more than a passing nod to The Godfather’s operatic milieu, but if anything these Russian hoods are even more venal then Coppola’s familia, their baser qualities acting as a counterpoint to the affected decadence of their lives.
Of course this is a Cronenberg film, so ultra-violence is present in spades: it is shocking, awful, tense and hard to watch – but that’s simply being realistic.
Recommended.
Score: 7/10

For more info, go to:
IMDb

Stan