In Contention

Tag: Dinner for Schmucks

  • IPA announces over 150 nominees for Satellite Awards

    I say over 150 because I honestly lost count.  In any case, the International Press Academy has announced it’s slate of nominees for the 15th Annual Satellite Awards, and as usual, every film under the sun seems to have been nominated for SOMETHING.

    Actually, not every film.  Obviously the organization didn’t see “True Grit” before the voting deadline, as the film wasn’t nominated for a single thing.  Nor was “The Way Back,” though I don’t know whether they saw it or not.  But “Dinner for Schmucks” and “The Other Guys” are well-represented!  As best I can tell, “Inception” leads the way with 11 nominations.

    I think I may have forgotten to post this announcement last year.  I don’t know what kind of stock you might put into the Satellites, but it’s an annual film award announcement nevertheless.  Check out the full slate of nominees at The Circuit.

    [Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures]

  • SUNDAY CENTS: ‘Cats’ is a dog

    *All historical figures cited are adjusted to today’s dollars.

    Hey gang. Sorry this is late but I spent all morning at work and then all afternoon at the Home Depot Center watching the Galaxy get shellacked by the Chicago Fire and getting a sunburn on half my face. I’ll try to keep it short and sweet.

    The number one movie, for a third weekend in a row, is “Inception.” It’s the third film to spend three weeks at the top in 2010, but the first that wasn’t in 3D. The drop was 36%, a bit harsher than last weekend’s slip and gave it $27.5 million for the three days and $193.3 million total. The film is holding fantastically well and will be only the third live action film of the summer to cross the $200 million mark. The $268.4 million of “The Matrix” is not out of reach, which would make it the most successful original sci-fi property since “Independence Day.” that movie with the big, blue things.

    “Dinner for Schmucks” performed to expectations with $23.3 million. As I mentioned on Friday, that’s a bit above normal for Paul Rudd, who is used to sharing a bill with B-listers like Jason Segel and Seann William Scott. Throw Steve Carell in the mix and you’re good for an extra few million. Throw in an animated Steve Carell in a ridiculous accent and you’re good for the surprise smash of the summer. No wonder he’s leaving “The Office.”

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  • FRIDAY FORECAST: Reigning ‘Cats & Dogs?’

    *All historical figures cited are adjusted to today’s dollars.

    Hey kids! How about that terrifying photo to the right? Make you want to see cats and dogs brutally fighting to the death voiced by Nick Nolte and Joe Pantoliano? While Chris O’Donnell looks on confused? Of course it does. We’ve got three new releases this week but are probably looking at a third straight week at the top for “Inception.”

    “Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore” is probably a half decade too late to capitalize on any good will the audience had for the original (a $131 million grossing summer surprise). Warner Bros. has even wisely lopped off the number two from the title since what few fans there are will know and anyone else might just think it’s a family film with a cool concept. They’ve also given it a hefty 3,700 screen count.

    Here’s the thing though. With “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel” being the only exception, talking animal movies have terrible drop offs from the original to the sequel. “Babe,” “Garfield” and “Stuart Little” can all attest. With so much time in between films here, and the almost identical “G-Force” less than a year old, it seems like these cats and dogs are headed for the same pile. I think $17 million is the best they can hope for.

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