Domestic Box Office Prediction - June 14-16 2013

Ok, so I picked a really bad week to try and predict the box office with The Purge earning way more than expected. Live and learn I guess.

This week, 2 new releases come forth including one of this Summer's largest offerings: Man of Steel. From director Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen) and producer Christopher Nolan (who has been mentioned more than the director, I might add) is the newest attempt at bringing Superman to the big screen. After the somewhat failure of Superman Returns, Warner Bros. brings a new reboot starring Henry Cavill in the title role.

There appears to be more buzz surrounding this reiteration of Superman than Returns and superheroes have never been more of a hot commodity than now. The posters and trailers have varied from slow-build to all-out action, which should appeal to the masses.

Along with the name recognition, a lot of promotion has focused on Christopher Nolan as part of the project. Linking his name and The Dark Knight trilogy will certainly add more viewers, though his influence is substantially low compared with The Dark Knight trilogy. With Marvel and their superhero films making a constant profit, Superman and the decades of good will that it has amassed, will certainly bring Warner Bros. good news.

The other new wide release, trying to get a jump start on Man of Steel by opening Wednesday, is the ensemble comedy This Is The End. From writer/director/star Seth Rogen and writer/director Evan Goldberg comes this end of the world comedy that features many regulars from the Rogen/Goldberg stable including: Jonah Hill, James Franco, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson and Jay Baruchel. The story revolves around the aforementioned actors playing fictional versions of themselves at a party just when the apocalypse happens.

Riding a wave of solid reviews (currently 83% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes) and a slate of known actors, this R-rated film should skewer towards the younger, male crowd. Already taking over $7 million dollars, this film should have no trouble securing second place over this weekend, obviously behind Man of Steel.

Beyond those films, the rest of the holdovers will struggle to grab the crumbs from Man of Steel and This Is The End. Last week's champ, The Purge, should fall considerably after mediocre word of mouth hit. Like most horror films, a steep plunge would not be out of the ordinary. The Internship should continue to bomb as reviews for the film have been terrible with Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn wishing that it were 2005 again.

My prediction for this week's top 5 are:

Man of Steel - $147.2 million
This Is The End - 41.4 million
The Purge - $12.1 million
Now You See Me - $11.6 million
Fast & Furious 6 - $11.2 million

Cosmopolis

Director David Cronenberg adapts the book of the same name and provides one of the coldest movie-going experiences of the year.

Rich, young, 20-something businessman, Eric Packer (Robert Pattinson) decides that the day that the United States president visits his city is the perfect day to have a haircut. With his trusty bodyguard, Torval, (Kevin Durand) by his side, he sets off on an odyssey that is unlike any other day.

While stuck in traffic due to the aforementioned visit, along with a riot that continues to gather steam, Eric does not waver in his attempt to be freshly-shorn. His luxurious limo/even more luxurious office remains the main film location as the day presses on.

Eric meets with various associates, co-workers and lovers while venturing throughout the city. After receiving a prostate exam in the limo, (!) Eric starts to become worried and paranoid about his surroundings. As warnings from his associates state that his finances are dwindling and Torval informs Eric that there is a legitimate threat against his life, things begin to spiral out of control for the man who is used to having control of everything.

I pretty much have to start by saying that I didn't like this movie at all. Every single character speaks in large chunks of over-stylized and unnecessarily complicated dialogue while firing at a rapid pace. I have not read the book this film is based on, but I have to assume the book is the same way. This comes off as very annoying and could turn most people off of the film immediately.

Beyond that, there were many more things wrong with the film. From the wooden and cold acting of every participant (though intentional) to the horrendous CGI effects outside of the limo, this is a film that never really clicked for me. Kevin Durand's Torval stood out the most as his scenes were almost laughable at how Kevin Durand played the role and delivered his lines.

With that being said, I loved the overall sense of dread as the film built towards its climax. The bleakness and sense of doom was something that only a few directors could have pulled off; and David Cronenberg did just that. As the film builds, the riots get more intense and the threat on Eric Packer's life becomes more real. By the time we get to the third act, the film brims with dread but also a sense that we have been building towards something and David Cronenberg tries not to let the audience down. If you have made it to the third act, which basically consists of Robert Pattinson and Paul Giamatti talking (shocking, I know) then at least this was a film you could stand.

This movie did its job of isolating me and not caring about any of the players in this film. Just because the film did what it wanted, doesn't make it a good film. What saves it, in my eyes, is how much mood that director David Cronenberg is able to fit into every inch of this film. I was highly curious about this film, and though disappointed, I did not hate what I saw.

As a film, 1/10. As a mood piece, 10/10.

Overall experience is a 5/10