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Box Office Guru Wrapup: The Avengers Stays On Top (74 comments)

by Gitesh Pandya on Monday, May. 14 2012, 02:51 PM

Still grossing far more than all other movies combined in its second weekend, the mighty super hero megahit The Avengers easily held onto its crown at the North American box office while the worldwide tally smashed the $1 billion mark in a mere 19 days with plenty of worldwide fuel still in the tank. Johnny Depp's latest eccentric offering Dark Shadows opened in second place as expected but with a smaller audience than had been anticipated while many holdovers enjoyed small declines. Disney and Marvel celebrated another weekend of sheer dominance as The Avengers followed its record-shattering opening frame with a very good hold dropping 50% to an astounding $103.2M.

Box Office Guru Wrapup: Avengers Crushes Records with $200M Opening (224 comments)

by Gitesh Pandya on Sunday, May. 06 2012, 05:27 PM

North American audiences got a big taste of what international movie fans have already been enjoying as the super hero value pack The Avengers smashed the all-time opening weekend record kickstarting the summer blockbuster season in an unbelievable manner. Marketed and distributed by Disney, the PG-13 film grossed a jaw-dropping $200.3M over the Friday-to-Sunday period obliterating the previous record of $169.2M set last July by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 surpassing it by more than $30M. Both films were helped by 3D and IMAX runs. Playing in 4,349 locations, the per-theater average was a scorching $46,063.

Box Office Guru Wrapup: America Takes It Like A Man Again (40 comments)

by Gitesh Pandya on Monday, Apr. 30 2012, 11:58 AM

Four new releases assembled at the North American box office but none had the strength to unseat the hit comedy Think Like A Man from the number one spot. The last weekend of April is usually a dumping ground for films with uncertain commercial appeal and this year studios used the frame to jettison its late-spring waste before heading into what should be a red hot summer season. All four new films failed to reach a $4,000 average and the three R-rated pics do not look to have much of a future.

RT ON DVD

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RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Grey, Chronicle, and Albert Nobbs (30 comments)

by Ryan Fujitani on Tuesday, May. 15 2012, 01:41 PM

After a couple of pretty thin weeks on home video, we've got a good number of new releases this week, and a few of them are actually pretty decent. First off, if you're looking for hi-def re-releases of older films, the choices are many, but random: Bernardo Bertolucci's 1900, Jon Voight thriller The Odessa File, New York Stories, and the original 1973 version of Walking Tall, for example. But we've got some good choices this week, including Liam Neeson's angsty survival thriller, a superpowered found-footage film, an Oscar-nominated period piece, and Woody Harrelson's latest effort with Oren Moverman. Sure, we've got a couple of stinkers too, but the new Criterion should help make up for that. Click through for the full list!

RT on DVD & Blu-ray: The Vow & Underworld: Awakening (12 comments)

by Ryan Fujitani on Tuesday, May. 08 2012, 02:00 PM

We're getting hit with a double-whammy this week, as we not only have few home video releases worth talking about, but even among those worth mentioning, the highest-rated new release comes in at a mediocre 46% on the Tomatometer; that distinction belongs to a home invasion thriller headlined by Rebecca DeMornay. The other films we've got? The latest Underworld film, the Rachel McAdams/Channing Tatum drama, Tim and Eric's feature film, and a new Criterion Blu-ray. Click through to read more!

RT on DVD & Blu-ray: Haywire and Joyful Noise (37 comments)

by Ryan Fujitani on Tuesday, May. 01 2012, 02:29 PM

This week on home video brings us a couple of gems and a couple of duds. Some notable Blu-ray reissues hit stores this week: Clueless, Men in Black II, Jeremiah Johnson, Pillow Talk, and About a Boy. But we'll be focusing on the brand new releases, which include Steven Soderbergh's gritty actioner, Garry Marshall's latest holiday-themed rom-com, a gospel musical, Madonna's second directorial effort, a Beatle biopic, and a collection of Tim Burton's Warner Bros. films. Click through to read up!

Critics Consensus

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Critics Consensus: Dark Shadows Doesn't Scare Up Enough Laughs (57 comments)

by Tim Ryan on Thursday, May. 10 2012, 04:40 PM

This week at the movies, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp reteam to spoof the 1970s horror soap opera "Dark Shadows," with help from Helena Bonham Carter, Eva Green, and Chlo� Grace Moretz. Tim Burton and Johnny Depp have made plenty of witty, macabre pictures together. Unfortunately, critics say their latest, Dark Shadows, lacks their particular brand of black magic - despite moments of oddball inventiveness, the film suffers from jarring tonal shifts that prevent the story from resonating. Based on the 1970s soap opera, Dark Shadows stars Depp as Barnabas, a wealthy 18th century playboy who becomes a vampire after breaking a witch's heart.

Critics Consensus: Marvel's The Avengers Is Certified Fresh (135 comments)

by Tim Ryan on Thursday, May. 03 2012, 04:20 PM

The summer blockbuster season starts this weekend. Marvel's The Avengers, the hotly-anticipated superhero-fest starring Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, and Samuel L. Jackson, soars into multiplexes Friday, finally providing comic book fans with the opportunity to witness Iron Man, Captain America, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, and Black Widow team up to protect the world from evil. Over the past decade, Marvel Comics heroes like the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America have each starred in their own films. And each individual installment offered tantalizing hints of a monumental big screen superhero gathering. Well, comic book fans, the wait is over, and it was worth it.

Critics Consensus: The Pirates! Band of Misfits Is Certified Fresh (53 comments)

by Tim Ryan on Friday, Apr. 27 2012, 05:09 AM

This week at the multiplex, we've got a little something for everyone. There's Aardman's stop-motion animated comedy "Pirates! Band of Misfits" with a vocal performance from Hugh Grant; the Judd Apatow-produced romantic comedy "The Five-Year Engagement," starring Jason Segel and Emily Blunt; "Safe," an action-packed chase thriller starring Jason Statham; and "The Raven," a period whodunit starring John Cusack as Edgar Allen Poe. Aardman Animations, the folks behind Chicken Run and Wallace & Gromit films, make animated features the old-fashioned way: using stop-motion claymation. With their patented mix of heart and raunch, Judd Apatow's productions - including, but not limited to, Knocked Up and Bridesmaids -- have scored big with audiences and reviewers.

Total Recall

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Total Recall: Johnny Depp's Best Movies (85 comments)

by Jeff Giles on Thursday, May. 10 2012, 09:17 AM

He once seemed destined for nothing better or worse than simple teen idolhood, but since escaping from 21 Jump Street in 1990, Johnny Depp has proven himself to be a brave (and mostly pretty astute) chooser of scripts, building an impressive filmography that encompasses everything from black-and-white arthouse fare (Dead Man) to blockbuster Disney trilogies (Pirates of the Caribbean). This weekend, he returns to theaters as the bloodsucking Barnabas Collins in Tim Burton's Dark Shadows, so we thought now would be a fine time to devote a fresh installment of Total Recall to counting down the 10 best-reviewed releases of Depp's 25-year film career.

Total Recall: Movies With Matching Titles (45 comments)

by RT Staff on Thursday, May. 03 2012, 09:24 AM

The Avengers isn't just the title of this weekend's hotly-anticipated superhero extravaganza, it's also the name of a critically panned adaptation of a 1960s TV show starring Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman. This isn't the first time multiple movies have shared a title, of course -- last week's action thriller Safe shared a title with a Todd Haynes drama. But noticing the latest example on the release schedule got us thinking -- and by the time we'd finished thinking, we had ourselves yet another list. From Oscar nominees to infamous duds, here are 25 movies with only a dozen titles between them. It's time for Total Recall!

Total Recall: Movies With Matching Titles (64 comments)

by Jeff Giles on Friday, Apr. 27 2012, 05:08 AM

Safe isn't just the title of this weekend's Jason Statham MMA action thriller, it's also the name of a critically acclaimed Todd Haynes drama starring Julianne Moore. This isn't the first time multiple movies have shared a title, of course, but noticing the latest example on the release schedule got us thinking -- and by the time we'd finished thinking, we had ourselves a list. From Oscar winners to infamous duds, here are 24 movies with only a dozen titles between them. It's time for Total Recall!

Weekly Ketchup

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Weekly Ketchup: Kick-Ass 2 Officially Greenlit (65 comments)

by Greg Dean Schmitz on Friday, May. 11 2012, 05:00 PM

This week's Ketchup covers a seven day period that seems a bit more "Rotten" than usual, or maybe recent weeks have just been that "Fresh." Included in the mix are a Jimi Hendrix biopic, sequels to Kick-Ass and The Smurfs 2 (yes, a sequel to a movie that's not even out yet), and new roles for Cameron Diaz, Paul Rudd and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Weekly Ketchup: Tom Cruise Signed to Van Helsing Reboot (58 comments)

by Greg Dean Schmitz on Friday, May. 04 2012, 05:10 PM

This week's Ketchup covered a week almost entirely comprised of reboots of old familiar concepts. Included in the mix are titles like The Jungle Book (this time in live action), Little Shop of Horrors (a third time), The Dukes of Hazzard (maybe), Tarzan (this time in 3D), and Van Helsing (yes, really). All that, and there's an animated sequel for The Wizard of Oz, too.

Weekly Ketchup: Kurtzman/Orci to Write The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (41 comments)

by Greg Dean Schmitz on Friday, Apr. 27 2012, 04:20 PM

This week's Ketchup includes news of a new Nicholas Sparks adaptation, new entries in the Scary Movie and The Smurfs franchises, animated movies from Pixar and the studio behind Hoodwinked, and new roles for Jennifer Lawrence, Jaden Smith and Taylor Swift.

What The Hell Happened To...

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What The Hell Happened To ... Cuba Gooding Jr.? (89 comments)

by Jen Yamato on Friday, Sep. 05 2008, 02:24 PM

This week, Rotten Tomatoes turns its gaze upon the once promising, now perplexing career of a certain boat-tripping, dog-sledding Oscar winner in hopes of pinpointing just where things went wrong. So what the hell happened to Cuba Gooding Jr.?

What The Hell Happened To Shannon Elizabeth? (104 comments)

by Jen Yamato on Thursday, Aug. 21 2008, 05:57 PM

In our second installment of What The Hell Happened To... we again turn to the Tomatometer to chart the rise and fall of a once-promising Hollywood talent. [To read our inaugural assessment of Wesley Snipes, click here.] What will the Tomatometer tell us, and is there any remedy for Shannon Elizabeth?

What The Hell Happened To Wesley Snipes? (104 comments)

by Jen Yamato on Wednesday, Aug. 13 2008, 05:02 PM

In the first part of a new Rotten Tomatoes feature, we examine the career ups and downs of our favorite fallen celebrities -- as charted by the Tomatometer, of course, and with only the best of intentions in mind.

Five Favorite Films

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Five Favorite Films with Bobcat Goldthwait (14 comments)

by Luke Goodsell on Thursday, May. 10 2012, 12:05 PM

Comedian, actor, and filmmaker Bobcat Goldthwait became a fixture on the stand-up comedy circuit in the '80s and '90s, developing an idiosyncratic persona that he parlayed into a string of movie roles and TV gigs. But rather than ride that schtick into the nostalgia sunset, Goldthwait turned his talents to filmmaking. This week, Goldthwait returns with God Bless America, a delightful valentine to popular culture in which a disgruntled office drone (Joel Murray) and his teenage sidekick (Tara Lynne Barr) go on a cross-country killing spree designed to right the wrongs of contemporary bad manners, reality TV and other social ills. We sat down for a chat with Goldthwait recently; read through for more of his thoughts on the film and his career, but first, here are his Five Favorite Films.

Five Favorite Films with Kathleen Turner (36 comments)

by Luke Goodsell on Wednesday, May. 02 2012, 03:41 PM

Kathleen Turner began her career in the theater, before a sizzling film debut in Lawrence Kasdan's 1981 thriller Body Heat established her as one of the screen sirens of that decade. Hits ensued: Romancing the Stone, The Man with Two Brains, Prizzi's Honor, Peggy Sue Got Married and Who Framed Roger Rabbit? numbered among her critical and commercial successes, while Turner would gravitate toward the black comedy of The War of the Roses and, later, a delectably unhinged turn as John Waters' Serial Mom. We spent some time recently with Turner to talk about her favorite movies -- a subject that proved to be both challenging and an entertaining glance back at her career.

Five Favorite Films with John Cusack (85 comments)

by Luke Goodsell on Friday, Apr. 27 2012, 05:09 AM

If there's one actor who was made for the five favorite films quiz, it's John Cusack, the man who spent the better part of High Fidelity dispensing his own top five lists on matters of girls, relationships, and of course, records. Since Cusack is in town to promote The Raven -- a pulpy murder thriller in which he plays the Godfather of American Goth, Edgar Allan Poe -- he decided to run through his five favorite horror films. "We could do the horror genre," he says, "you know, the scariest movies. I've made a couple, but I don't know how good they are --'cause I'm in 'em." Read on for more of our chat with Cusack, in which he talks about his attraction to playing Poe and the many sides of the writer, but first, here are his Five Favorite (Horror) Films.