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Once there was a man whose prison was a chair. The man had a monkey, they made the strangest pair. The monkey ruled the man, it climbed inside his head. And now as fate would have it, one of them is dead.

1. Yes Man will be Jim Carrey's long-awaited return to the 100M club!
WHAT??? Somebody beat me to that prediction, but YES!!! Jim is back and he knows how to bring the bucks with his formulaic Jerry Lewis B-comedy routine. Jim follows his experimental duds with a classic, and this is no exception (Cable Guy/Liar Liar, The Majestic/Bruce Almighty). This is gonna be his third comeback and we're all ready for it!

2. Seven Pounds will be Big Willie's leave of absence from the 100M club!
WHAT??? Oh am I gonna get some heat for that one... It might be a good flick but the trailer does a poor job at making audiences figure out what it's about. Will Smith went dramatic twice over the holidays - Happyness was a home run and Ali was a miss. I think this is another Ali - not heartwarming enough and too ambiguous for the mainstream.

3. Revolutionary Road will be the must-have PTA hit of the season.
WHAT??? Leo and Kate in another movie together is as if Old Hollywood had been able to sign Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh and put them in another film. But my real push here is that even if it had unknown actors, this is a drama that reaches out to so many - it seems to deal with the unsatisfactory sense of despair that life brings when innocent dreams drown over time.

4. The Spirit will be Frank Miller's biggest failure!
WHAT??? There's a little HMPH! that's missing here despite Miss Mendes and Johansson selling their assets in the trailers. The novelty of Sin City has worn off and 300 had a whole lot more going for it. Christmas Day is always known for cold turkeys every year and with the always strong competition coming from previous releases, I think we got a loser here.

5. Bride Wars will get some serious coin in the nuptial basket!
WHAT??? It's not that Hathaway and Hudson are a huge box-office draw (My Best Friend's Girl... cough) or that movies about weddings are always huge (Made of Honor... cough cough). It's that they are both perfectly cast in these roles as the seemingly generous souls who suddenly fall into the righteous path of viciousness when one another becomes a threat.

Best regards,
Chugs The Monkey

Watch the Monkey Shines Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpG4R3Sjf4Y

I agree with Yes Man. When Jim Carrey does comedy, he almost always scores. This is no exception.

I agree with Seven Pounds. The film doesn't have that hook that other Will Smith films have and it faces too many films that do have that hook (the under 18 crowd).

I disagree with Revolutionary Road. I think that Gran Torino, The Wrestler and Defiance are all better picks.

I disagree with The Spirit. Most comic book adaptations do well and with Sin City and 300 having been hits, this should be no exceptions. I'd say about $55 million before it's all said and done.

I agree with Bride Wars. 27 Dresses was a big hit last year and Anne Hathaway is one of the top actresses right now. It should be Number 1 for the first two weeks of release and will likely be still in first run come early March.

#1 Yes

#2 No, but could go either way. I predict $105 M.

#3 No, at least 3 of these will have more PTA than it including: Slumdog, Milk, Pajamas, Gran Torino, The Wrestler, Defiance, one out of left field.

#4 I don't think it'll do that well, ($40 M) but what Frank Miller movies are you talking about? The ones that look like 300 or all of them? If all of them, it'll probably do better than RoboCop 3.

#5 I said this already, so a definate YES! Highest grossing movie of the month by at least $15-20 M and with good legs.

You did pretty well here, chugs, according to my predictions. Though, they aren't as wild as last time.

Not so crazy this time around I see -

Anyways,

1. I agree. It might crawl there and defintely isn't worth it in Ultimates but in terms of quality, it looks like a winner.

2. Strongly disagree but his film is way overpriced this season.

3. Slumdog is the must have PTA pick of the season. I've been saying it since forever and I ain't backing down now. Road will do alright but it has strong competition from Waltz, Harvey, Torino, Doubt, Defiance, and practically every other movie ever made. Slumdog has got Milk and Frost/Nixon before it rocks some sox in wide release. Oh yeah, did I mention that 100% with 12 absolutely mind-numbingly glowing reviews so far on RT?

4. I strongly agree. Comicon footage is evidence enough. They even slipped a few seconds of that crap on the current trailer. It'll be up for some Razzies.

5. Yup. It should do alright and get some late legs with the Oscars too!

These aren't really crazy predictions. well except for the Will Smith one. Thats just plain dumb, ha ha. Also I dont know if revolutionary road is a must have, but it'll do good. Other than that I completely agree.

1. While Yes Man does look like a return to form for Jim Carrey, I doubt it will hit $100 mil. I don't think it'll have those kind of legs going into Christmas and 2009. I'd say it'll reach about $60-$70 mil but that's it.

2. Seven Pounds does not look like it's good enough to be another Will Smith $100 million earner - but then again, who thought The Pursuit of Happyness would reach that? PoH grabbed 21 Top5 points in 2006 while earning $160 mil in 2006. Not many dramas rake in that kind of money, but Will Smith is the only true movie star in the world. I do think he's the only actor that mass people will go see his movies - simply because they're his movies. I'd bet on another hit for Mr. Smith here.

3. Well, does anyone know when Revolutionary Road will go wide? You can't really guess how much PTA it'll grab until you know how long it'll stay limited. But I do think it will clean up at the Oscars. I do however believe Benjamin Button will be completely ignored at both the box office and by award shows.

4. Totally agree, The Spirit looks god-awful. A cheap knock-off of Sin City, at best. I do know The Spirit comic came out years before Sin City, but most people will not know that and will dismiss it. I'm seeing AVP:R numbers for this one.

5. Yes, yes, yes. Bride Wars will dominate throughout March. Anne Hathaway is on an extreme roll, and I think she'll be nominated for an Oscar for Rachel Getting Married, which can only help. A cool concept, a couple of good looking stars, and I'm seeing it touching at least $80 mil before it's all over.

Not crazy enough for you all eh?

How about Punisher: War Zone raking in more than The Dark Knight?

Yeah, Marvel will get the last word baby! And watch out for Ray Stevenson in the Oscar race. He totally got robbed last time for his gut-wrenching performance in King Arthur.

You'll have to see it to believe it!!!

Wow, Punisher: War Zone. While the first was gritty and different from other comic book movies (read: more realistic), this is one looks too campy and like other comic book movies. Especially with Dominic West, whose character looks too much like a rejected Dick Tracy villain. Not surprisingly, this was all studio-mandated and the director had no control over the film. I wonder if she wanted a film more like the first while Lionsgate wanted something "more Marvel circa 2005".

1. Yes Man will be Jim Carrey's long-awaited return to the 100M club!
it'll probably (and regrettably) achieve this.... but not by much... Liar Liar didn't need a sequel

2. Seven Pounds will be Big Willie's leave of absence from the 100M club!
the trailer looks like shit to me--but people seem to love the "magical black guy" theme.. and will smith is more popular than barack obama.. (note: these two statements are unrelated... i am not implying that barack obama possesses any supernatural abilities)

3. Revolutionary Road will be the must-have PTA hit of the season.
i'll get back to you on this--but my gut is saying "naaah"

4. The Spirit will be Frank Miller's biggest failure!
what do you actually consider to be credible to frank miller? i say Sin City ($74M)... and, to a lesser extent, 300 ($210M).... in which case, no shit! i'll go out on a limb and say this movie will be a financial mess and a critical nightmare

5. Bride Wars will get some serious coin in the nuptial basket!
wtf? i thought this was a tv show

That TV show is Bridezillas. Speaking of "zilla", someone needs to make a feature length version of that King Kong parody from The Nutty Professor remake and call it Fatzilla. Dave Chappelle plays the Raymond Burr role and narrates (maybe wearing the same garb from that scene in The Nutty Professor).

I still think that The Spirit can do well. The trailers may not be that great but I remember that the Fantastic Four films were shit but still were blockbusters. I'd say it will gross less than Sin City but it won't be a flop by any means.

Revolutionary Road will not be the PTA must have.

And JackO, with regards to Slumdog, Let the Right One In was also at 100% Fresh on RT with exactly 12 mind numbing glowing reviews before it opened this past weekend. I'm not saying you're wrong, but there is no report of an expansion or wide release for Slumdog on BOM. Look at how Gran Torino is being released, or Doubt, or Milk, or Frost/Nixon. Even the Boy in the Striped Pajamas has an expansion listed. They are all living in the formula for PTA success.

1. Not so sure. Its Christmas release will bode well for it, but I get this sinking feeling that Jim Carrey just isn't as big as he used to be, and will never regain his former glory.

2. It's possible, but I get the feeling that while the trailer is poor, it's got the kind of tone that will make everyone who saw the Pursuit of Happyness want to see this.

3. Hard to agree with this. It just feels like a very bland drama. The whole 50's despair thing has been done (see Mad Men for a good, if not great, example). I'm sure there will be titanic fans who are now married who may be interested, but if this film expands quickly, which I suspect it will, it won't surpass Doubt or the Wrestler, or even Gran Torino

4. I agree, but the question is to what extent. It seems that FM's predictions seem accurate enough. It probably won't hit 50mil, but that still makes it appealing enough in FM (less so Nov-Jan leagues)

5. Yeah, it could be the next 27 Dresses.

synestro wrote:

Revolutionary Road will not be the PTA must have.

And JackO, with regards to Slumdog, Let the Right One In was also at 100% Fresh on RT with exactly 12 mind numbing glowing reviews before it opened this past weekend. I'm not saying you're wrong, but there is no report of an expansion or wide release for Slumdog on BOM. Look at how Gran Torino is being released, or Doubt, or Milk, or Frost/Nixon. Even the Boy in the Striped Pajamas has an expansion listed. They are all living in the formula for PTA success.

The more people to skip over it, the better. Box Office Mojo also has Ben Button and Hurricane Season on the wrong release date and they moved more then a month ago. They also don't have the theatre count for Boy in Striped Pajamas.

I love Clint just like the next guy but Gran Torino looks like a reimaging of Out for Justice - except that Clint decided to cast himself in Steven Seagal's famous role: Detective Gino Felino.

Whoever expects Million Dollar Baby is gonna wind up with Blood Work.

Aaaah... Good old Blood Work!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0309377/business

It's a dirty job... but somebody's got to take out the garbage.

Yep, Blood Work was what was making me think against Gran Torino. It started at about 60% chance of Blood Work (in my brain), but keeps going down. It's at about 10-15% now.

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