Watchers Watch -- Film, Movie and TV Blog -- April, 2007

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April, 2007 Archives | Homepage

Disturbia Stays Atop Box Office

Disturbia stayed atop the weekend box office for the third weekend in a row, making an estimated $9,100,000. That puts the film's total take to date at $52,186,000. In second place was the teen ghost story The Invisible, which made $7,606,000.

In third place was Paramount's Next, which stars Nicholas Cage in a paranormal thriller which made $7,200,000. In fourth place was Fracture, which made $7,075,000 in its second week.

The Condemned starring "Stone Cold" Steve Austin as a death row inmate who fights for his freedom in a reality TV competition came in ninth, making $4,000,000 in its opening weekend. Also opening this weekend was the Jamie Kennedy comedy, Kickin It Old School which made a mere $2,800,000.

Altogether, it was a very slow weekend at the box office: that should all change with the opening of Spider-Man 3 this week.

Posted on April 30, 2007
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CDC Helps Out Medical Dramas

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) is now helping out some of the medical dramas on TV get their facts straight. Apparently there have been some episodes where the facts were totally wrong. And that makes the CDC very grumpy.

Surveys show that most people believe the medical information they see on television dramas and soap operas. With fictional TV shows playing such a powerful role in public health education, the government is dedicated to keeping an eye on what Hollywood says. That’s why the CDC is one of four government health agencies that fund the “Hollywood, Health & Society” program at the University of Southern California. The program has an annual budget of nearly $564,000.

It's run by a former CDC employee, Vicki Beck, but the real "talent" are government health officials and other medical experts the program sets up with writers of daytime soap operas, nighttime dramas and other shows. To be sure, many TV shows consult with doctors, lawyers and others professionals on plot details. Some even hire physicians to be writers. The executive producer of “Law & Order: SVU” is an MD.

*****

The CBS show Numbers is one example. Numbers writer David Harden called, saying he was pursuing a plotline about black market profiteering in human organs. TV writers like the topic because of it's dramatic potential and persistent hold on the public imagination: Who hasn’t heard the urban myth about the man who meets a hot woman in a bar and wakes up in a bathtub full of ice?

Health officials, however, hate it. They say there is no black market in organs in the United States, and dramatizing the idea may dissuade Americans from becoming organ donors. But the program took Harden's call and convinced some experts to talk to him. One in particular was skeptical of the plot idea at first, Harden recalled, but answered every question.

The resulting show, which aired in January 2006, was about an international black market that provided detailed information on how the national organ matching program works. Health officials deemed it a success: In a subsequent online survey of about 160 people who said they were not organ donors, 10 percent said they had decided to become donors after watching the episode.

We saw that episode -- it was a good one. But we still believe that meeting a hot woman in a bar could result in waking up in a tub of ice, missing a kidney. It could happen.

Posted on April 26, 2007
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Victoria Beckham Causes Ruckus on TV Show

Reports say that Victoria Beckham is really mean and that no one likes her on her reality show. Also, the show is boring.

The former Spice Girl has reportedly infuriated staff working on the NBC programme - which follows Victoria and husband David's summer US move as David joins the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer team - with her rude attitude and arrogant behaviour.

A show insider told Britain's Star magazine: 'We think she's full of herself and not very nice. She's very picky, demanding and rude. And she was mean to the assistants, too. 'She waltzes around with her icy attitude. People will walk up to her and say, 'Welcome to America', or, 'Good luck with the move', and she doesn't even stop to talk to them.

'The show is designed to make her a star in the States, but she's dreaming if she thinks that's going to happen. She's coming off as a grade-A bitch!' It is also alleged the show's nervous producers are worried the series will be boring and a major flop. The source added: 'No one knows what to do with her to make the show interesting - she's so boring! Every suggestion the producers make, she rejects.'

Hmmmm....we've seen candid videos of Victoria in which she's down to earth and really quite funny. Is it sour grapes? Or is someone trying to drum up publicity for the show? Calling Victoria a bitch is going to get viewers. But calling her boring will not. We'll just have to tune in ourselves to see.

Posted on April 24, 2007
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Disturbia Stays Atop Box Office

Shia LaBeouf and Disturbia ruled the box office for the second week in a row, beating out two suspense/horror newcomers. The film made an estimated $13,460,000. In second place was Fracture starring Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling. The film made an estiamted $11,175,000. In third place was Blades of Glory, which made another $7,808,000, bringing its total tally to $101,082,000.

In fourth place was Vacancy starring Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale trapped in the hotel from hell. It made a disappointing $7,600,000. In fifth place was Meet the Robinsons which made $7,088,000 in its fourth week of release. Hot Fuzz came in sixth because it played in relatively few theaters. It made $5,837,000, but had an impressive $7,075 per theater average.

Posted on April 23, 2007
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TheTraveling Pants Ride Again

The Traveling Pants are set to travel once again. Sanaa Hamri will direct the sequel to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Variety reports:

Alcon and Warner Bros. have fitted director Sanaa Hamri into a sequel to the 2005 film "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants." The original core ensemble -- America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel and Blake Lively -- are all in talks to reprise.

Plan is to begin production June 3, starting in Greece, then moving to New York and Connecticut. The challenge on the sequel has been squaring the availability of the actresses because of TV series commitments, but the hope is that all the actresses return.

Ferrera's career has taken off as the title character of "Ugly Betty." Tamblyn is awaiting word from CBS on a pickup of "Babylon Fields," the Michael Cuesta-directed drama pilot that also stars Ray Stevenson ("Rome"). Bledel had been expected to be done with "Gilmore Girls," but it is now looking like a strong possibility that the show will return. Lively has "Gossip Girls."

Scripted by "Pants" co-writer Elizabeth Chandler, the sequel uses as its foundation "Forever in Blue," the fourth installment of the "Pants" novel series by Ann Brashares. Bits of the second and third books will also be used. The girls once again take different paths during the summer, but remain bonded by a pair of secondhand pants they take turns wearing. Now college age, the girls have storylines that take place in Turkey, Greece, New York, Vermont and Providence. They faced some heavy dilemmas in the original film, but the sequel concentrates on issues 19-year old girls deal with. While the original film was PG rated, the sequel is likely to be PG-13.

Getting the original cast back will be key for this film. Our favorite actress from the original film is America Ferrera who now stars in Ugly Betty, which is just hilarious. We love that show.

Posted on April 20, 2007
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Matthew Fox is Racer X

Photo of Matthew Fox

Lost's Matthew Fox has been cast to play the mysterious Racer X in the upcoming live action Speed Racer movie.

Matthew Fox (ABC's Lost) is in final negotiations to play Racer X in Larry and Andy Wachowski's upcoming live-action Speed Racer movie, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie, based on the 1960s animated TV series, comes from Warner Brothers and producer Joel Silver. Australian actor Kick Gurry, meanwhile, is in negotiations to play Sparky, Speed Racer's hippie mechanic.

Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, Susan Sarandon and John Goodman have already been cast in the film, which will shoot in the summer in Berlin. Speed centers on a young race-car driver, Speed (Hirsch), and his quest for glory in his gadget-laden Mach 5. Fox will play Speed's mysterious racing rival, an enigmatic soldier of fortune. Fox will fit Speed Racer in around the series' summer hiatus.

The Wachowskis are writing and directing, with the studio eyeing a summer 2008 debut.

This may not be such a good idea. Because now we're going to be rooting for Racer X to beat Speed! And that's not really the point of the movie, now is it?

Posted on April 19, 2007
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Disturbia Tops the Box Office

Disturbia was tops at the box office this past weekend, making an estimated $23,025,000. The horror flick stars Shia LaBeouf, who has just landed a gig in the new Indiana Jones flick. In second place was Blades of Glory, which made an estimated $14,065,000, bringing its total take to a hefty $90,195,000.

In third place was Meet the Robinsons in its third week, which made $12,103,000 for a total gross to date of $72,004,000. In fourth place was Sony's Perfect Stranger starring Halle Berry and Bruce Willis, which opened with $11,500,000. The numbers were actually better than they looked, with a $4,321 per screen average take.

Sony's comedy Are We Done Yet? came in fifth making $9,200,000. In sixth place was Fox's Pathfinder: Legend of the Ghost Warrior which opened with $4,800,000.

Posted on April 16, 2007
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Shia LaBeouf Nabs Indiana Jones Role

Shia LeBeouf has been cast in the most sought-after movie role today: playing the son of Indiana Jones in the next Spielberg-directed action adventure. Ok, no one is admitting that he plays Indy's son, but what else could the role be?

Indiana Jones has uncovered a new sidekick. Shia LaBeouf, the 20-year-old actor who stars in this summer's Transformers action thriller, has signed to co-star alongside Harrison Ford in the fourth Indiana Jones movie.

LaBeouf, whose Rear Window-style thriller Disturbia opens Friday is perhaps best known for his boyhood roles in Holes and the TV comedy Even Stevens. He has been the subject of speculation as an addition to the sequel's cast but was forbidden by director Steven Spielberg and producer George Lucas from revealing it until now. "Up until about two weeks ago, it was little more than a rumor," he says. "Literally, when I was saying, 'I don't know anything,' I didn't know anything. It was an act of faith. I have not read a script. I don't think anybody has."

Spielberg said in an e-mailed statement: "Shia has extraordinary range. I think of him as 'the young man for all seasons." Online fans are guessing Indiana Jones will have a son for this go-round, but LaBeouf says he can't confirm such plot points. Even the time-setting for the movie is a secret. "I can tell you I'm sort of the sidekick character, obviously," he says. "I'm sure there are a lot of laughs at my expense, and some kind of creature crawling on me." LaBeouf adds, "It's not going to be Short Round, all grown up," a reference to the fast-talking little kid from 1984's Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

*****

When he met Lucas recently at Spielberg's offices on the Universal lot, LaBeouf says he brimmed with questions but hit a wall of secrecy, even about the relic Jones will be pursuing. "Lucas looks at you and says simply, 'I can't tell you that,' " LaBeouf says. "Then when he thinks he is supposed to tell you something but isn't sure, he gets up and leaves the room, goes in to talk with Spielberg and comes back and says, 'Nope. Sorry.' "

The movie will begin shooting this summer. The release date is May 22, 2008. We have only one question: why pick Shia LaBeouf? Because we just don't get it. We were hoping that Indy would have a daughter -- one like, say, Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Posted on April 14, 2007
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Brendon Frasier Signs on for Mummy 3

Brendon Frasier has signed on for the third installment of the Mummy franchise. Alas, Rachel Weisz is not coming back.

Brendan Fraser has closed a deal to return in The Mummy 3, but Rachel Weisz is not coming back, Variety reported. Rob Cohen will direct the sequel, which is expected to begin production late in the summer. It will be set in China and will introduce Jet Li as a villain. Universal is planning a summer 2008 release; the franchise has earned more than $830 million worldwide. The Mummy debuted in 1999 and The Mummy Returns in 2001.

Weisz has won an Oscar and had a baby since the last installment and has dropped out of talks to reprise her role. The Mummy 3's script is by Smallville creators Miles Millar and Alfred Gough, who will do another pass that will factor in the absence of Weisz. Universal is holding up a green light pending a final rewrite, but a late summer start date is still expected.

We think Rachel should change her mind and do the sequel. It's a guaranteed hit and the fans won't like it that she's bailed out.

Posted on April 12, 2007
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Jet Li and Jackie Chan Onscreen Together For the First Time

Martial arts fans are thrilled: Jackie Chan and Jet Li will star in a movie together, for the first time. Sci Fi reports:

Lionsgate has come on board the martial-arts action film The Forbidden Kingdom, which pairs Jackie Chan and Jet Li for the first time on the big screen, Variety reported. The studio is planning a September 2008 domestic release. Casey Silver produces. The Weinstein Co. is partnering with Lionsgate on the project.

Director Rob Minkoff (The Lion King) is set to begin shooting in China on May 2 from a script by John Fusco. Action choreographer Yuen Woo-ping (The Matrix; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) is creating the fight sequences.

Based on the Chinese legend of the monkey king, the story revolves around an American teenager who discovers the king's legendary stick weapon in a pawn shop. The teen is transported back in time to ancient China, where he joins a crew of warriors fighting to free the imprisoned king. Li is set to play two roles, that of the monkey king and the silent monk. Chan will pay the monk T'sa-Ho.

Sounds totally awesome. We can't wait!

Posted on April 11, 2007
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Grindhouse Flops at the Box Office

Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse absolutely tanked at the box office this past weekend, coming in fourth with a paltry $11,596,613 in revenues. It was a major disappointment for Tarantino, Rodriguez and the Weinstein Brothers. The winner at the box office this past weekend was Will Ferrell's Blades of Glory, which came in first with $22,522,330, bringing its total to $67,905,237.

In second place was Meet the Robinsons, which made $16,715,437. In third place was Are We Done Yet?, which made $14,262,724. Also having a disappointing opening was Hillary Swank's The Reaping, which opened in fourth place with $10,025,203.

Harvey Weinstein is so unhappy with the Grindhouse numbers, that he said he's going to re-release the two films separately later this month, which was the plan for the European market. The fact that Grindhouse is a double feature which runs 3 hours limited the number of theaters it could play in, and Weinstein is hoping that the good reviews and plentiful violence will draw in viewers.

Posted on April 9, 2007
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Roger Ebert Ready to Get Back to Work

Roger Ebert is ready to go back to work, after a long year recovering from cancer surgery. He writes about his ordeal on his website, RogerEbert.com.

Nine months ago I was leaving Northwestern Memorial hospital after surgery for salivary cancer. I was planning to be back in action in a few weeks, but unfortunately, there were complications, and more medical procedures resulted. I was in bed so long that I experienced serious deconditioning that led to a stint at the famous Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

I began my rehabilitation there, and I am continuing it, along with an overhaul of my general health, at the Pritikin Center in Florida. Also, because of a tracheostomy, my speaking voice is on hold until my upcoming completion surgery. I am feeling better every day and my wife Chaz says we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

During this difficult period it was important for me to write some reviews for the Sun-Times, and I was happy to continue my "Outguess Ebert" contest for the Academy Awards. It was also important for me to make contributions to WLS, ABC-7. At "Ebert & Roeper" with my approval we are using a revolving selection of critics and filmmakers to spar with my partner, Richard Roeper, and I tune in, just like you, to be entertained and informed. After the autumn publication of "Awake in the Dark" and "Movie Yearbook 2007" I have yet another new book being published this month: "Your Movie Sucks," reviews of movies I hated.

I am happy to say my Ninth Annual Overlooked Film Festival will be held as scheduled at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign April 25-29. I'll be there, but friends and colleagues will take over the onstage Q&A duties. I'll watch from the audience. I think of the festival as the first step on my return to action. Because I will be under scrutiny there, I'll tell you what to expect: a sick guy, getting better, who still loves the movies and the festival.

This has been a long and unexpected ordeal, made better by many kind and gifted doctors and nurses, led by the incomparable Dr. Harold Pelzer, Dr. Robert Havey, and Dr Neil Fine, and above all by the selfless and loving care of my wife, Chaz.

I plan to gradually increase my duties in the months to come. I still love writing about the movies. Forty years is not enough.

Get well soon, Roger! Forty years really isn't near enough.

Posted on April 7, 2007
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I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry Trailer

In I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry two straight firefighters played by Adam Sandler and Kevin James pretend to be a married gay couple in order to receive a pension. Jessica Biel plays the faking couple's attorney in the film. The film will be release on July 20th, 2007.

Posted on April 5, 2007
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Die Hard 4.0 Trailer

This is a new movie trailer for Die Hard 4.0 starring Bruce Willis. It is called Live Free or Die Hard here in the U.S. It opens on June 27th.

Posted on April 3, 2007
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Blades of Glory Skates to Box Office Victory

Photo from Blades of Glory

Blades of Glory skated to box office gold this past weekend, making an estimated $33,000,000. The Will Ferrell/Jon Heder comedy got positive reviews from critics and fans alike. In second place was Meet the Robinsons, the animated comedy, which made $25,056,000.

In third place was 300, which made another $11,155,000, bringing its total take to date to $179,662,000, on a budget of $65 million. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles came in fourth, making an estimated $9,160,000, for a total to date of $38,428,000. In fifth place was Wild Hogs, which made another $8,389,000, putting its gross to date at $135,355,000 after five weeks of release. Coming in sixth was Shooter, which made $8,000,000, putting its gross at $27,212,000.

Posted on April 2, 2007
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