The Oscar nominations are out, and you probably want to see them. You’re in luck, because here they are. (Will be updated with commentary shortly). Lincoln leads with 12 nominations. A Spielberg movie about a beloved dead guy? Who could’ve seen that coming? Life of Pi is second with 11.
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This week on the Frotcast, your last Frotcast before Christmas, we brought Matt Ufford on down to talk about bad sportswriting and our favorite movies and stuff of 2012. I called it the Bests Uff 2012. Get it? Do you see what I did there? Anyway, Les Mis songs were sung about rat poop, the James Hetfield Soundboard was played with, films were argued over – such as Moonrise Kingdom and Magic Mike – and a good time was had by all. Frot on, and be excellent to each other.
You’ll probably note that I am not highly regarded DVD/Streaming writer, Morton Salt. My guess is Morton is off in the Morton mines, or he’s taking the mandated “stay-cation” that James Uproxxxx demands of his minions, or perhaps he just needed a break from a column that’s approximately 4,000 words long. Whatever the case, you’re stuck with me, Laremy (I go by “L-Sizzle” or “Big Booty Legel”).
We’re going to have fun, you and I, because we’re going to talk about all of your options for home video this week, which is a way better plan than simply talking about all of our problems instead (example: Windows 95 computer won’t boot, has really good photos of ex-girlfriend). Here’s a listing of your options for the week:
On DVD, Blu-ray, and/or Streaming Avatar (3D Blu-ray + Blu-ray/ DVD Combo Pack) A League of Their Own [Blu-ray] Alcatraz: The Complete Series Female Vampire (with Erotikill): Remastered Edition Legendary Amazons Mad Men: Season Five Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted Moonrise Kingdom Neil Young Journeys Rock of Ages The Santa Clause 3-Movie Collection That’s My Boy
I won’t front, that’s not exactly the ’27 Yankees of home video options. Some of these titles are likely to cause cancer, and some of other ones wear pink all the time to remind you to be aware of cancer. But there are a few gems, if you care to look a leeetle deeper.
So let’s get in there together, as a family, and get some!
"Say, William, is this one of those 'Blockbusters' the servants have been on about? It's quite fun. Might we also sample some popped corn? I overheard my stable boy Roderick speak of it and it sounds quite droll."
In one of the most shocking stories of the summer, Men in Black 3 was NOT a humongous bomb. It took $55 million over the three-day weekend (the way openings are normally calculated) and $70 million including the holiday. It was less attended than Men in Black II and cost estimates ran as high as $250 just to make, and up to $375 when you factor in marketing. But it’s already earned $203 million worldwide, so it looks like Jaden won’t have to start pawning his sneakers with his own picture on them just yet. Darn.
For the three-day weekend, MIB 3 opened to an estimated $55 million, which is Will Smith’s third-highest Friday-Sunday debut ever behind I Am Legend ($77.2 million) and Hancock ($62.6 million). That’s not really an apples-to-apples statistic, though, given how many of Mr. Smith’s bigger movies didn’t opened on Friday. For example, Men in Black II opened on a Wednesday and earned $54.9 million through its first three days in theaters. For the four-day weekend, MIB 3 made $70 million, which is a bit lower than Men in Black II‘s $73.4 million four-day total. Adjusting for 10 years of ticket price inflation and 3D ticket prices, MIB 3‘s initial attendance was significantly lower than that of Men in Black II. [BoxOfficeMojo]
Ho hum. Other stuff that happened:
Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom, opening in four theaters over the weekend, broke the record for per-screen average, averaging $130,752 per theater for $669K total. My review is embargoed until later this week, but I can tell you this: it’s got a lot of plaid. Like, A LOT of plaid.
The Avengers crossed $500 million domestically, crossing the mark in a record-breaking 23 days. It’s expected to pass The Dark Knight today and move into the third of all time, in terms of domestic box office. I just hope all this success doesn’t go to Joss Whedon’s freakishly large head.
Battleship took another battle-shit (see what I did there???), dropping 46% in its second weekend. It lags even John Carter through the same point. Which seems fair, because at least John Carter was kinda good.
Box Office Top Ten and Fantasy Summer Box Office standings after the jump:
Will Smith shows us exactly how his wiener kids were born.
Opening Everywhere: Men in Black 3, Chernobyl Diaries, Moonrise Kingdom
Never Heard of It: Mighty Fine
FilmDrunk Suggests: Well looky here – for once me and Vince agree on something. I don’t think Men in Black 3 will be a bad movie at all, and Vinnie thought it wasn’t bad. BOOM! Go see it because it’s not Battleship, which I will be seeing next week for *wink wink* certain obligations.
![Female Vampire (with Erotikill): Remastered Edition [Blu-ray] (1973)](http://cdn.fd.uproxx.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Screen-shot-2012-10-15-at-7.33.53-PM.png "Female Vampire (with Erotikill): Remastered Edition [Blu-ray] (1973)")
