list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Spy Kids on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/Spy_Kids/186504/default.aspx Title: Spy Kids
Year: 2001
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Plot: In this reteaming of actor Antonio Banderas and director Robert Rodriguez -- their first film together since the 1995 feature Desperado -- Banderas plays Gregorio, who along with devoted partner Ingrid (Carla Gugino), composes the greatest pair of secret agents working. Both are masters of disguise and have the ability to prevent wars, but eventually they want to settle down and begin raising a family. Nine years later, after retiring and giving up the lives of super-spies, Gregorio and Ingrid find themselves at the call of duty again when techno-genius Fegan Floop (Alan Cumming) and his insidious, ruthless sidekick Minion (Tony Shalhoub) have plans for world destruction. The only hope for Gregorio and Ingrid are their children, Carmen (Alexa Vega) and Juni (Daryl Sabara), who are called upon to save their missing parents, eventually learning their former identities. The film also features Cheech Marin, Robert Patrick, and Danny Trejo. In the summer of 2001, five months after Spy Kids had become a major box office success, an expanded edition was released, featuring several minutes of footage not used in the film's original cuts (including special effects sequences that couldn't be completed within the film's original budget). ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 8
Number of Lists: 20
Number of blog posts: 3
Number of discussion threads: 2
SpoutRating: 2
]]>Tue, 27 Jan 2009 22:06:48 GMTSpy Kids2001Robert RodriguezIn this reteaming of actor Antonio Banderas and director <a href="/players/P___151002/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Robert Rodriguez</a> -- their first film together since the 1995 feature <a href=/films/92132/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>Desperado</a> -- Banderas plays Gregorio, who along with devoted partner Ingrid (<a href="/players/P____29147/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Carla Gugino</a>), composes the greatest pair of secret agents working. Both are masters of disguise and have the ability to prevent wars, but eventually they want to settle down and begin raising a family. Nine years later, after retiring and giving up the lives of super-spies, Gregorio and Ingrid find themselves at the call of duty again when techno-genius Fegan Floop (<a href="/players/P____16130/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Alan Cumming</a>) and his insidious, ruthless sidekick Minion (<a href="/players/P____64745/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tony Shalhoub</a>) have plans for world destruction. The only hope for Gregorio and Ingrid are their children, Carmen (<a href="/players/P___267985/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Alexa Vega</a>) and Juni (<a href="/players/P___283534/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Daryl Sabara</a>), who are called upon to save their missing parents, eventually learning their former identities. The film also features <a href="/players/P___101237/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Cheech Marin</a>, <a href="/players/P___105784/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Robert Patrick</a>, and <a href="/players/P____71701/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Danny Trejo</a>. In the summer of 2001, five months after Spy Kids had become a major box office success, an expanded edition was released, featuring several minutes of footage not used in the film's original cuts (including special effects sequences that couldn't be completed within the film's original budget). ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide8Taggedy Taggged (6-10)20322http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t13024euy0f.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Spy_Kids/186504/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/groups/Weekly_Theme/Weekly_Theme_for_December_8_Good_Old_Fashioned_Es/625/38068/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: mercurial
Post To: Weekly Theme
Post Date: 12/8/2008 3:16:52 PM
Body: In this day and age when parents begin spying on their children in the crib with baby monitors and the elderly can purchase earpieces that give them superhuman hearing to keep up with their neighborhood gossip, anybody can become a spy. With everyone so paranoid it's no wonder that movies that glorify secret agents and international men of mystery do so well at the box office. So let's spend this week talking about those lucky few individuals who's business card reads spy and those unfortunate others that unwittingly fall into the mysterious world of twisted alliances, fancy gadgets and licenses to kill. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - If Looks Could Kill and The Man Who Knew Too Little top my list of inadvertent spies that get to experience the life for a short while before their boring true identities are revealed. D.E.B.S. and The Long Kiss Goodnight are great flicks with woman doing all the dirty work. And Spy Kids is a great family film that goes all out with the action, adventure and nifty gadgets.
]]>Mon, 08 Dec 2008 20:16:52 GMTmercurialWeekly Theme12/8/2008 3:16:52 PMIn this day and age when parents begin spying on their children in the crib with baby monitors and the elderly can purchase earpieces that give them superhuman hearing to keep up with their neighborhood gossip, anybody can become a spy. With everyone so paranoid it's no wonder that movies that glorify secret agents and international men of mystery do so well at the box office. So let's spend this week talking about those lucky few individuals who's business card reads spy and those unfortunate others that unwittingly fall into the mysterious world of twisted alliances, fancy gadgets and licenses to kill. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - If Looks Could Kill and The Man Who Knew Too Little top my list of inadvertent spies that get to experience the life for a short while before their boring true identities are revealed. D.E.B.S. and The Long Kiss Goodnight are great flicks with woman doing all the dirty work. And Spy Kids is a great family film that goes all out with the action, adventure and nifty gadgets. http://www.spout.com/blogs/joem18b/archive/2008/11/23/37569.aspx Post By: joem18b
Post To: joem18b Blog
Post Date: 11/23/2008 10:04:39 PM
Body: I was jogging the other day, listening to Filmcouch #97, and the boys on the program asked whether there are any movies being made in the old spy genre anymore. Pure spy movies, as I think they put it. Or are we now left with, through evolutionary Hollywood transmogrification, only action spies (Bourne), humorous spoofy spies (Powers), and a few self-referential takes on the old genre, viz., The Constant Gardener.So for a few blocks I mentally recapitulated the efflorescence of the spy genre in the Sixties, as I remember it. Fleming, who started it all when JFK told an interviewer that he read the Bond books before bed at night, Len Deighton (Michael Caine as Quiller), the Flint movies. Richard Burton in the first La Carre effort.Then I spent a couple of blocks coming up with the following list:Spy Kids (2001, 2002)Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)The Tailor of Panama (2001)Spy Game (2001)Breach (2007)Later I did a power search of 2000-2008 in IMDB for "spy" and "spies." Didn't see much.My conclusion: There was a period, beginning with Dr. No and ending, perhaps, with Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, (1979) and Smiley's People (1982), when a true (Bond-inspired) spy genre existed. Since then, from time to time, a movie involving spies appears, but only conforming to the conventions of the old genre, if at all, by accident. This is similar to comparing Hollywood genre romantic comedies (which conform to a strict set of rules) to French romantic comedies (which don't).
]]>Mon, 24 Nov 2008 03:04:39 GMTjoem18bjoem18b Blog11/23/2008 10:04:39 PMI was jogging the other day, listening to Filmcouch #97, and the boys on the program asked whether there are any movies being made in the old spy genre anymore. Pure spy movies, as I think they put it. Or are we now left with, through evolutionary Hollywood transmogrification, only action spies (Bourne), humorous spoofy spies (Powers), and a few self-referential takes on the old genre, viz., The Constant Gardener.So for a few blocks I mentally recapitulated the efflorescence of the spy genre in the Sixties, as I remember it. Fleming, who started it all when JFK told an interviewer that he read the Bond books before bed at night, Len Deighton (Michael Caine as Quiller), the Flint movies. Richard Burton in the first La Carre effort.Then I spent a couple of blocks coming up with the following list:Spy Kids (2001, 2002)Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)The Tailor of Panama (2001)Spy Game (2001)Breach (2007)Later I did a power search of 2000-2008 in IMDB for "spy" and "spies." Didn't see much.My conclusion: There was a period, beginning with Dr. No and ending, perhaps, with Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, (1979) and Smiley's People (1982), when a true (Bond-inspired) spy genre existed. Since then, from time to time, a movie involving spies appears, but only conforming to the conventions of the old genre, if at all, by accident. This is similar to comparing Hollywood genre romantic comedies (which conform to a strict set of rules) to French romantic comedies (which don't). http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/9/20/35340.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 9/20/2008 2:00:49 PM
Body: There’s no denying that Repo! The Genetic Opera has plenty of imagination, but right now it’s still spinning around in my brain and I’m trying to decide if I like it or not. The first time I saw The Rocky Horror Picture Show, I thought it was one of the worst movies I’d ever seen, despite Tim Curry’s stellar performance. Is Repo! destined for the same cult status? The only answer I can come up with is… maybe. Based on a 10 minute opera called “The Necro-Merchant’s Debt” by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich (who plays the Graverobber in the movie), Repo! later become a stageplay, and then they brought Saw sequel director Darren Lynn Bousman on board, and now a movie. It’s an epic opera set in the future, where a corporation called GeneCo has mastered the art of creating synthetic body organs. However, they come at a steep price, and if you don’t pay up, the company will send Repo Men after you to reclaim their property. Which of course usually results in the death of the implantee. This serves as the backdrop for the opera portion of the movie, in which Rotti Largo, owener of GeneCo, struggles with his three nasty children: violent Luigi, face-transplant Pavi, and surgery-obsessed Amber Sweet, played by Paris Hilton. Yes, that Paris Hilton. On the flipside of the Repo!-verse are Shilo Wallace, 17 year old girl in a bubble who kept locked up at home by her father, Doctor Nathan Wallace. He’s paranoid that her blood disease will kill her, and tries to keep his daughter hermetically sealed at all times. As often happens in operas, it turns out that Nathan’s dead wife Marni did once love Rotti, but she left him for Nathan. Rotti couldn’t take the rejection, and he poisoned Marni and made it look like it was Nathan’s fault. He kept Nathan out of jail, but forced him to become one of his Repo Men. So, he’s a doctor by day and a Repo Man by night. He’s become very good at his job and takes macabre pleasure in it as well. Rotti discovers he’s dying of a terminal disease that even genetics can’t fix, and he sets about the machinations to bring Nathan’s world crumbling to the ground, while simultaneously denying the inheritance of GeneCo to any of his own kids Thrown into the mix are Blind Mag, a singer with digital GeneCo eyes who serves as the voice of the company who is locked into a perpetual contract with them, and the Graverobber, a man who extracts Zydrate (a glowing blue drug) from corpses around town to feed those who are addicted to the knife, like Amber. Some of the acting is just truly painful and there are moments of laugh-out-loud bad dialogue, like the phone call Shilo gets out of the blue from Rotti, “Meet me in your mother’s tomb!” Gee, okay, no problem. Paul Sorvino chews up every scene he’s in as the villanous Rotti, and the actor who plays Luigi just can’t act in this role at all, other than to snarl at everyone. However, there are some standouts, like Anthony Head who is better known as Giles from TV’s Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Alexa Vega, who played Carmen in the Spy Kids trilogy of films has really grown up, and shines as Shilo, and Paris Hilton actually isn’t bad, although I’m not sure if that’s because she’s playing a limelight obsessed starlet-figure who is consumed with looking perfect. There’s a scene where her new face falls off in the middle of a song, and we’re shown a literally faceless Paris Hilton. Those scenes alone make a better movie than the fluff piece Paris, Not France did. Oddly enough, the real star of this film turns out to be singer Sarah Brightman who plays Blind Mag. She has some of the best songs in the movie, including “Chase The Morning” with Alexa Vegas, and her digital corneas make her look both creepy and cool at the same time. Calling it now: goth girls will love this look for Halloween. Especially if they can buy those contact lenses somewhere. She has the most tragic storyline in the movie, and her look seems directly inspired by the Living Dead Dolls line of collectibles. Hell, if they actually make a Blind Mag doll, I’d probably buy it. Especially if it has “Holographic Projector Eye Action,” batteries not included. What’s ironic about the film is that I kept thinking that it would be great if it wasn’t the musical. Many of the numbers just don’t work, either because of the lyrics or the peformances, but I love the sci-fi setting of the story and the arcs of the characters. It’s like a post-Blade Runner steampunk Victoriana world where synthetic organs have replaced Replicants, and the Repo Men are the bladerunners. They wear cool dark surgeon-esque outfits, complete with full facemask helmets with glowing eyes, and you could imagine the terror they’d strike in your gut when they came calling for that very same organ. Director Bousman said that the studios said the same thing, “Why don’t you do this as a non-musical?,” which he and Zdunich flatly refused to do. So, we’re left with a intriguing story stuck behind an awkward musical in which half of it works, and the other have flails around like a patient without a heart. Goths will love it, mainstream moviegoers will hate it, and horror fans will likely be confused by it. Especially when the other organ repo movie Repossession Mambo hits screens next year. Repo! will have a limited theatrical release in November, and will hit DVD in January 2009. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:00:49 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com9/20/2008 2:00:49 PM There’s no denying that Repo! The Genetic Opera has plenty of imagination, but right now it’s still spinning around in my brain and I’m trying to decide if I like it or not. The first time I saw The Rocky Horror Picture Show, I thought it was one of the worst movies I’d ever seen, despite Tim Curry’s stellar performance. Is Repo! destined for the same cult status? The only answer I can come up with is… maybe. Based on a 10 minute opera called “The Necro-Merchant’s Debt” by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich (who plays the Graverobber in the movie), Repo! later become a stageplay, and then they brought Saw sequel director Darren Lynn Bousman on board, and now a movie. It’s an epic opera set in the future, where a corporation called GeneCo has mastered the art of creating synthetic body organs. However, they come at a steep price, and if you don’t pay up, the company will send Repo Men after you to reclaim their property. Which of course usually results in the death of the implantee. This serves as the backdrop for the opera portion of the movie, in which Rotti Largo, owener of GeneCo, struggles with his three nasty children: violent Luigi, face-transplant Pavi, and surgery-obsessed Amber Sweet, played by Paris Hilton. Yes, that Paris Hilton. On the flipside of the Repo!-verse are Shilo Wallace, 17 year old girl in a bubble who kept locked up at home by her father, Doctor Nathan Wallace. He’s paranoid that her blood disease will kill her, and tries to keep his daughter hermetically sealed at all times. As often happens in operas, it turns out that Nathan’s dead wife Marni did once love Rotti, but she left him for Nathan. Rotti couldn’t take the rejection, and he poisoned Marni and made it look like it was Nathan’s fault. He kept Nathan out of jail, but forced him to become one of his Repo Men. So, he’s a doctor by day and a Repo Man by night. He’s become very good at his job and takes macabre pleasure in it as well. Rotti discovers he’s dying of a terminal disease that even genetics can’t fix, and he sets about the machinations to bring Nathan’s world crumbling to the ground, while simultaneously denying the inheritance of GeneCo to any of his own kids Thrown into the mix are Blind Mag, a singer with digital GeneCo eyes who serves as the voice of the company who is locked into a perpetual contract with them, and the Graverobber, a man who extracts Zydrate (a glowing blue drug) from corpses around town to feed those who are addicted to the knife, like Amber. Some of the acting is just truly painful and there are moments of laugh-out-loud bad dialogue, like the phone call Shilo gets out of the blue from Rotti, “Meet me in your mother’s tomb!” Gee, okay, no problem. Paul Sorvino chews up every scene he’s in as the villanous Rotti, and the actor who plays Luigi just can’t act in this role at all, other than to snarl at everyone. However, there are some standouts, like Anthony Head who is better known as Giles from TV’s Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Alexa Vega, who played Carmen in the Spy Kids trilogy of films has really grown up, and shines as Shilo, and Paris Hilton actually isn’t bad, although I’m not sure if that’s because she’s playing a limelight obsessed starlet-figure who is consumed with looking perfect. There’s a scene where her new face falls off in the middle of a song, and we’re shown a literally faceless Paris Hilton. Those scenes alone make a better movie than the fluff piece Paris, Not France did. Oddly enough, the real star of this film turns out to be singer Sarah Brightman who plays Blind Mag. She has some of the best songs in the movie, including “Chase The Morning” with Alexa Vegas, and her digital corneas make her look both creepy and cool at the same time. Calling it now: goth girls will love this look for Halloween. Especially if they can buy those contact lenses somewhere. She has the most tragic storyline in the movie, and her look seems directly inspired by the Living Dead Dolls line of collectibles. Hell, if they actually make a Blind Mag doll, I’d probably buy it. Especially if it has “Holographic Projector Eye Action,” batteries not included. What’s ironic about the film is that I kept thinking that it would be great if it wasn’t the musical. Many of the numbers just don’t work, either because of the lyrics or the peformances, but I love the sci-fi setting of the story and the arcs of the characters. It’s like a post-Blade Runner steampunk Victoriana world where synthetic organs have replaced Replicants, and the Repo Men are the bladerunners. They wear cool dark surgeon-esque outfits, complete with full facemask helmets with glowing eyes, and you could imagine the terror they’d strike in your gut when they came calling for that very same organ. Director Bousman said that the studios said the same thing, “Why don’t you do this as a non-musical?,” which he and Zdunich flatly refused to do. So, we’re left with a intriguing story stuck behind an awkward musical in which half of it works, and the other have flails around like a patient without a heart. Goths will love it, mainstream moviegoers will hate it, and horror fans will likely be confused by it. Especially when the other organ repo movie Repossession Mambo hits screens next year. Repo! will have a limited theatrical release in November, and will hit DVD in January 2009. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/6/26/31749.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 6/26/2008 5:00:43 PM
Body: Over the weekend, Wanted had a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.com. It’s since gone down to 81% (at the time of this writing — and with top critics it’s down to 67%), though that’s still pretty good for a movie that initially looked like just another Matrix knockoff. But will the good reviews make for great box office? Last night, while viewing the latest trailer in a theater with some friends, I mentioned that Wanted was receiving great reviews. Nobody believed me at first, and then they didn’t care; they still thought it looked terrible. Good reviews rarely help an action movie, and bad reviews rarely deter audiences from seeing them. However, if we look at the top 5 most critically acclaimed action movies, it’s clear that people do often prefer a good action film to a bad one. The next 5, on the other hand… The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 94% (top critics: 98%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #9 ($377 million) Sample Critic Quote: “The film event of the millennium.” (Richard Corliss, Time) My Analysis: In terms of both reviews and gross, it is possible that, yes, this final LOTR film was the film event of the millennium only three years in. It even won the Oscar for Best Picture, as well as ten other Academy Awards. However, we do have a few hundred years left, and Corliss’ assessment is likely to be challenged one of these centuries. Casino Royale (2006) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 94% (top critics: 95%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #133 ($167.5 million) Sample Critic Quote: “This is the best James Bond film in at least 17 years, and Daniel Craig might be the best 007 … ever.” (Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com) My Analysis: Most critics and audiences agreed that this was one of the best 007 films ever and that Craig was at least the best Bond since Connery. Still, it only grossed a mere $7 million more than Die Another Day, which was certified rotten by RT. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 93% (top critics: 97%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #62 ($227.5 million) Sample Critic Quote: “It is probably the best action films to date that doesn’t involved so much special effects.” (Wilson Morales, BlackFilm.com) My Analysis: I agree that it’s the best of the series and one of the best action movies in years, maybe even best to date not involving special effects, as Morales says. But really the only reason that Ultimatum is higher up on the b.o. charts than The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy is because people took awhile to get into the series, with many of Ultimatum’s audience having seen the previous two for the first time on DVD. Still, along with both Return of the King and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, it’s one of the rare threequels that earned the highest gross of its series. Considering Return, that says one thing, while considering Indy, that says something else. Spider-Man 2 (2004) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 93% (top critics: 95%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #10 ($373.6 million) Sample Critic Quote: “[It's sure to] join the upper echelons of action movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back, and Die Hard.” (Jeffrey Overstreet, Looking Closer) My Analysis: If this sequel were switched in ranking with its predecessor (see below), it might say something more about reviews equaling revenue, but otherwise between the two installments, there is evidence that good superhero movies will perform better than bad ones. Just don’t pay any attention to Spider-Man 3, which is also pretty close on the b.o. charts, but which is pretty far below in RT ranking (62%, whole; 44%, top critics). Iron Man (2008) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 93% (top critics: 92%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #26 ($305.9 million and counting) Sample Critic Quote: “It’s the best movie of its kind since the second Spider-Man movie four years ago.” (Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle) My Analysis: Fitting to LaSalle’s quote that Iron Man is just behind Spider-Man 2, and with only another $70 million to go in order to be just behind it on the b.o. chart. Unfortunately, as far as ticket sales show, it’s really only the best movie of its kind since the third Spider-Man movie one year ago. Spy Kids (2001) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 92% (top critics: 96%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #309 ($112.7 million) Sample Critic Quote: “To sum up, if you want your children to someday appreciate the true art of cinema, Spy Kids is a terrific movie to start with.” (Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Daily News) My Analysis: If by “true art of cinema” Strauss means the kind of action movies that receive good reviews, then he’s right. Film critics love the well-directed spy movies (see #2 and #3). As for kids, they don’t care about reviews, which explains why Alvin and the Chipmunks made almost double what Spy Kids grossed. Out of Sight (1998) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 92% (top critics: 90%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #1,395 ($37.6 million) Sample Critic Quote: “In a summer filled with mega-hyped disappointments, Out of Sight proves the undeniable value of story, characterization, and — most of all — intelligence.” (Mike McGranaghan, Aisle Seat) My Analysis: The mega-hyped disappointments of that summer include Godzilla, which made about $100 million more than this film. Of course, Out of Sight isn’t really an action-packed action movie, and it only starred George Clooney, who despite being a huge movie star has never really been that big a box office draw. Meanwhile, 1998’s biggest box office winner, the more-action-packed Saving Private Ryan (which RT apparently doesn’t consider to be an action movie), was also one of the five best-reviewed films of the year. Hot Fuzz (2007) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 90% (top critics: 92%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #2,029 ($23.6 million) Sample Critic Quote: “Hot Fuzz is everything an action-comedy should be. It achieves through parody what most films in the genre can’t accomplish straight.” (Nathan Rabin, The Onion A.V. Club) My Analysis: The best action buddy comedy in ten years, yet it’s gross is hardly comparable to the box office success of the Rush Hour movies, Bad Boys II, Lethal Weapon 4 and … Starsky & Hutch? Even Jimmy Fallon’s Taxi performed better domestically. Rescue Dawn (2006) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 90% (top critics: 88%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #3,970 ($5.5 million) Sample Critic Quote: “A potentially commercial audience-pleaser that retains all of the characteristic Herzog complexity and nuance, Rescue Dawn is an electrifying action adventure that clamps your nerves with jaws of steel.” (Rex Reed, New York Observer) My Analysis: Too bad more moviegoers don’t read Rex Reed, because that’s a mighty good sell. Unfortunately, Rescue Dawn suffered a double blow because of who directed it. Critics certainly overpraised it, just because it’s an Herzog film; audiences likely avoided it because of the same reason (not by name, but had it opened bigger right away, audiences wouldn’t have even noticed the art house connection and might have gone to see the new action movie starring “Batman”). Spider-Man (2002) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 90% (top critics: 85%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #7 ($403.7 million) Sample Critic Quote: “Let the gauntlet be thrown: Spider-Man may be the best comic adaptation of all time.” (Todd Gilchrest, FilmStew.com) My Analysis: In terms of box office receipts, it is indeed the best comic adaptation of all time. But as we see by two titles above, it’s since been beat in terms of critical acclaim, just in this decade alone (and from earlier, at least Superman: The Movie has a better RT score). Still, it would almost be evidence that critics and box office can sometimes go hand in hand if it weren’t for that certified rotten movie that ranks just above it on the box office chart: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:00:43 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com6/26/2008 5:00:43 PMOver the weekend, Wanted had a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.com. It’s since gone down to 81% (at the time of this writing — and with top critics it’s down to 67%), though that’s still pretty good for a movie that initially looked like just another Matrix knockoff. But will the good reviews make for great box office? Last night, while viewing the latest trailer in a theater with some friends, I mentioned that Wanted was receiving great reviews. Nobody believed me at first, and then they didn’t care; they still thought it looked terrible. Good reviews rarely help an action movie, and bad reviews rarely deter audiences from seeing them. However, if we look at the top 5 most critically acclaimed action movies, it’s clear that people do often prefer a good action film to a bad one. The next 5, on the other hand… The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 94% (top critics: 98%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #9 ($377 million) Sample Critic Quote: “The film event of the millennium.” (Richard Corliss, Time) My Analysis: In terms of both reviews and gross, it is possible that, yes, this final LOTR film was the film event of the millennium only three years in. It even won the Oscar for Best Picture, as well as ten other Academy Awards. However, we do have a few hundred years left, and Corliss’ assessment is likely to be challenged one of these centuries. Casino Royale (2006) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 94% (top critics: 95%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #133 ($167.5 million) Sample Critic Quote: “This is the best James Bond film in at least 17 years, and Daniel Craig might be the best 007 … ever.” (Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com) My Analysis: Most critics and audiences agreed that this was one of the best 007 films ever and that Craig was at least the best Bond since Connery. Still, it only grossed a mere $7 million more than Die Another Day, which was certified rotten by RT. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 93% (top critics: 97%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #62 ($227.5 million) Sample Critic Quote: “It is probably the best action films to date that doesn’t involved so much special effects.” (Wilson Morales, BlackFilm.com) My Analysis: I agree that it’s the best of the series and one of the best action movies in years, maybe even best to date not involving special effects, as Morales says. But really the only reason that Ultimatum is higher up on the b.o. charts than The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy is because people took awhile to get into the series, with many of Ultimatum’s audience having seen the previous two for the first time on DVD. Still, along with both Return of the King and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, it’s one of the rare threequels that earned the highest gross of its series. Considering Return, that says one thing, while considering Indy, that says something else. Spider-Man 2 (2004) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 93% (top critics: 95%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #10 ($373.6 million) Sample Critic Quote: “[It's sure to] join the upper echelons of action movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back, and Die Hard.” (Jeffrey Overstreet, Looking Closer) My Analysis: If this sequel were switched in ranking with its predecessor (see below), it might say something more about reviews equaling revenue, but otherwise between the two installments, there is evidence that good superhero movies will perform better than bad ones. Just don’t pay any attention to Spider-Man 3, which is also pretty close on the b.o. charts, but which is pretty far below in RT ranking (62%, whole; 44%, top critics). Iron Man (2008) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 93% (top critics: 92%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #26 ($305.9 million and counting) Sample Critic Quote: “It’s the best movie of its kind since the second Spider-Man movie four years ago.” (Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle) My Analysis: Fitting to LaSalle’s quote that Iron Man is just behind Spider-Man 2, and with only another $70 million to go in order to be just behind it on the b.o. chart. Unfortunately, as far as ticket sales show, it’s really only the best movie of its kind since the third Spider-Man movie one year ago. Spy Kids (2001) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 92% (top critics: 96%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #309 ($112.7 million) Sample Critic Quote: “To sum up, if you want your children to someday appreciate the true art of cinema, Spy Kids is a terrific movie to start with.” (Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Daily News) My Analysis: If by “true art of cinema” Strauss means the kind of action movies that receive good reviews, then he’s right. Film critics love the well-directed spy movies (see #2 and #3). As for kids, they don’t care about reviews, which explains why Alvin and the Chipmunks made almost double what Spy Kids grossed. Out of Sight (1998) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 92% (top critics: 90%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #1,395 ($37.6 million) Sample Critic Quote: “In a summer filled with mega-hyped disappointments, Out of Sight proves the undeniable value of story, characterization, and — most of all — intelligence.” (Mike McGranaghan, Aisle Seat) My Analysis: The mega-hyped disappointments of that summer include Godzilla, which made about $100 million more than this film. Of course, Out of Sight isn’t really an action-packed action movie, and it only starred George Clooney, who despite being a huge movie star has never really been that big a box office draw. Meanwhile, 1998’s biggest box office winner, the more-action-packed Saving Private Ryan (which RT apparently doesn’t consider to be an action movie), was also one of the five best-reviewed films of the year. Hot Fuzz (2007) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 90% (top critics: 92%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #2,029 ($23.6 million) Sample Critic Quote: “Hot Fuzz is everything an action-comedy should be. It achieves through parody what most films in the genre can’t accomplish straight.” (Nathan Rabin, The Onion A.V. Club) My Analysis: The best action buddy comedy in ten years, yet it’s gross is hardly comparable to the box office success of the Rush Hour movies, Bad Boys II, Lethal Weapon 4 and … Starsky & Hutch? Even Jimmy Fallon’s Taxi performed better domestically. Rescue Dawn (2006) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 90% (top critics: 88%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #3,970 ($5.5 million) Sample Critic Quote: “A potentially commercial audience-pleaser that retains all of the characteristic Herzog complexity and nuance, Rescue Dawn is an electrifying action adventure that clamps your nerves with jaws of steel.” (Rex Reed, New York Observer) My Analysis: Too bad more moviegoers don’t read Rex Reed, because that’s a mighty good sell. Unfortunately, Rescue Dawn suffered a double blow because of who directed it. Critics certainly overpraised it, just because it’s an Herzog film; audiences likely avoided it because of the same reason (not by name, but had it opened bigger right away, audiences wouldn’t have even noticed the art house connection and might have gone to see the new action movie starring “Batman”). Spider-Man (2002) Rotten Tomatoes’ “T-Meter” score: 90% (top critics: 85%) All Time Domestic Box Office Rank: #7 ($403.7 million) Sample Critic Quote: “Let the gauntlet be thrown: Spider-Man may be the best comic adaptation of all time.” (Todd Gilchrest, FilmStew.com) My Analysis: In terms of box office receipts, it is indeed the best comic adaptation of all time. But as we see by two titles above, it’s since been beat in terms of critical acclaim, just in this decade alone (and from earlier, at least Superman: The Movie has a better RT score). Still, it would almost be evidence that critics and box office can sometimes go hand in hand if it weren’t for that certified rotten movie that ranks just above it on the box office chart: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/groups/Movie_Games/Re_More_than_one_trilogy/598/29862/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: leeroy711
Post To: Movie Games
Post Date: 5/23/2008 6:01:01 PM
Body: Antonio Banderas in El Miriachi trilogy and Spy Kids trilogy. (Both Rob Rodriguez) El Mariachi (1992) Desperado (1995) Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) Spy Kids (2001) Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002) Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)
]]>Fri, 23 May 2008 22:01:01 GMTleeroy711Movie Games5/23/2008 6:01:01 PMAntonio Banderas in El Miriachi trilogy and Spy Kids trilogy. (Both Rob Rodriguez) El Mariachi (1992) Desperado (1995) Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) Spy Kids (2001) Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002) Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003) http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/family/MemberTagFilms.aspxfamily
Number of films tagged: 6288

Number of people who tagged: 226

Number of times used: 1138

]]>Thu, 03 Dec 2009 20:09:21 GMT62882261138Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/spy/MemberTagFilms.aspxspy
Number of films tagged: 366

Number of people who tagged: 46

Number of times used: 97

]]>Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:24:02 GMT3664697Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/rescue/MemberTagFilms.aspxrescue
Number of films tagged: 4080

Number of people who tagged: 31

Number of times used: 142

]]>Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:39:36 GMT408031142Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/goodvsevil/MemberTagFilms.aspxgoodvsevil
Number of films tagged: 742

Number of people who tagged: 25

Number of times used: 67

]]>Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:42:51 GMT7422567Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/familysecrets/MemberTagFilms.aspxfamilysecrets
Number of films tagged: 253

Number of people who tagged: 14

Number of times used: 17

]]>Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:55:55 GMT2531417Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/sibling/MemberTagFilms.aspxsibling
Number of films tagged: 600

Number of people who tagged: 13

Number of times used: 27

]]>Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:03:15 GMT6001327Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/gadgets/MemberTagFilms.aspxgadgets
Number of films tagged: 110

Number of people who tagged: 11

Number of times used: 23

]]>Fri, 07 Nov 2008 01:08:46 GMT1101123Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/secretmission/MemberTagFilms.aspxsecretmission
Number of films tagged: 57

Number of people who tagged: 7

Number of times used: 8

]]>Sun, 19 Oct 2008 15:35:05 GMT5778Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/floop/MemberTagFilms.aspxfloop
Number of films tagged: 1

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Sat, 01 Apr 2006 02:01:03 GMT111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/henchman/MemberTagFilms.aspxhenchman
Number of films tagged: 81

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Tue, 07 Oct 2008 13:05:40 GMT8111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/Mexican-American/MemberTagFilms.aspxMexican-American
Number of films tagged: 36

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 36

]]>Tue, 23 Oct 2007 16:59:31 GMT36136Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/minion/MemberTagFilms.aspxminion
Number of films tagged: 1

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Sat, 01 Apr 2006 02:01:14 GMT111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/preteen/MemberTagFilms.aspxpreteen
Number of films tagged: 15

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Thu, 12 Oct 2006 13:01:07 GMT1511Tag