What's next for Lisa Cholodenko?

Adapting a popular children's book, according to Variety:

On the heels of earning an Oscar nom for co-writing The Kids Are All Right, Lisa Cholodenko is in negotiations to direct a live-action adaptation of the children's picture book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day for 20th Century Fox.

Fox could not be reached for comment.

Shawn Levy's 21 Laps banner is producing the high-concept family comedy with the Jim Henson Company. Levy and Dan Levine will produce for 21 Laps, while Lisa Henson and Jason Lust will produce for Henson Co.

Story follows a young boy who endures a frustrating day that begins with him waking up to find gum in his hair and ends with him threatening to move to Australia. Other characters include Alexander's two older brothers and their parents.

ACCA 2001 is up and running!

You know what that means ladies and gents...time to vote like you're a member of the Academy. Go here and get started, and feel free to use this as a place to do your FYC campaigns and chat about who and what may or may not get nominated.

-Happy voting!

Joey's DVD Picks of the Week (5/3/2011)

This week, things pick up a bit on DVD, but mainly because of the rather abysmal offerings of last week. Today there's some more variety, though the quality is still not especially where it should be. We press on anyhow, as this is what we do here. Getting down to the nitty gritty, there's one title that stands head and shoulders above the rest. It's my obvious choice for my PICK OF THE WEEK. It's:

The Green Hornet

I found this action comedy hybrid a lot of fun, and not your average superhero flick. Some took umbrage with the chosen tone of the film, but I think it fit in a strange way. Seth Rogen is more fitting to this particular hero than previously thought, and overall it's just an entertaining piece of popcorn cinema. It won't change your life, but it won't make your brain hurt either. If you enjoyed the movie like I did, now that it's on DVD you can bring it home and enjoy again!

-Also getting released this week is the incredibly disappointing Ron Howard comedy The Dilemma, the direct to DVD Renee Zellweger drama My Own Love Song, and the adequate romantic drama Waiting for Forever. I don't recommend any of these (though I can't comment on the Zellweger flick, since I've yet to see it), but I suppose you could do worse overall if you're desperate for something to watch.

-Rounding out the releases are the romantic comedy From Prada to Nada and the crime flick A Somewhat Serious Man. I haven't seen either, so you'll have to make a judgment call on your own about seeing them or not. I don't think you're missing anything, but I certainly can't say for sure.

Barry Levinson steps in to direct the John Gotti biopic?

Apparently so, according to Variety:

Barry Levinson is ready to return to crime, as the "Bugsy" helmer is in negotiations to direct Fiore Films' mob drama "Gotti: Three Generations."

Nick Cassavetes was previously onboard to direct before scheduling issues with his indie drama "Yellow" forced producers to release him from his contract.

John Travolta is set to play John Gotti Sr.., and Mafia movie fixture Joe Pesci will co-star as Gotti deputy Angelo Ruggiero.

Lindsay Lohan signed on to play John Gotti Jr.'s wife Kim Gotti as part of a two-pic deal with Fiore on April 20. Ella Bleu Travolta will also appear in the film, which focuses on the relationship between Gotti Sr. and his son, who chooses to turn his back on the mob code he grew up around.

Fiore Films acquired life rights last year from John Gotti Jr., the son of the late head of the Gambino crime family. Deal marked the first time a member of the Gotti family agreed to tell their story on the bigscreen.

Here's a whole bunch of Posters for Green Lantern...

The rest after the cut...

Focus Features picks up Wes Anderson's next flick!

From The Hollywood Reporter:

Focus Features has acquired worldwide rights to Wes Anderson’s upcoming feature, Moonrise Kingdom, Focus CEO James Schamus announced Monday.

Focus will release the indie film in the U.S., while the company’s foreign sales arm will begin pitching it to foreign buyers at Cannes later this month.

Filming has begun on the project - which stars Bill Murray, Bruce Willis and Frances McDormand – about a young couple who go off to be together even though people in their small New England town are convinced they've disappeared.

Anderson is directing from an original screenplay that he wrote with Roman Coppola.

Moonrise Kingdom is being produced by Mr. Anderson, Scott Rudin, Indian Paintbrush’s Steven Rales and American Empirical’s Jeremy Dawson.

-Joey's Two Cents: I'm not big on Anderson, but I'm always willing to give a new work of his a shot...thoughts?

Box Office Actuals: April 29 - May 1, 2011

Via Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, and other sources:

Box office estimates are typically overreaching, so it becomes rather noteworthy when a film as big as "Fast Five" comes in underreported. Missing the mark by roughly $3 million, "Fast Five" raised its opening haul to $86.2 million over the 3-day weekend, further shattering the all-time opening record for April releases. This staggering opening places the film as a strong contender to perhaps challenge "Thor" for the top spot next weekend, even with a steep dropoff anticipated.

The remaining new wide openings failed to register a blip with audiences. The public's disinterest in "Prom" ($4.7 million, #5) and "Hoodwinked Too!" ($4.1 million, #6) left "Rio" to settle in for the #2 slot and breeze past the $100 million plateau. "Rio" declined a fair 43.8% in its third weekend, earning another $14.8 million. "Rio" joined "Rango" and "Hop" as the third animated feature to hit the $100 million high mark in 2011.

Steady business during the weeknights allowed "Tyler Perry's Madea's Big Happy Family" to cushion the nearly 61% slide in its second weekend. Banking nearly $41 million in 10 days is an acceptable success for Perry and Lionsgate and the film should finish in the $50-$55 million range by the time its run is completed.

Holding, with a respectable 44% decline for a period-piece romantic drama, "Water For Elephants" added $9.3 million to its total, coming to rest at $32.5 million thus far. Budgeted at $38 million, the film will be profitable by the weekend.

If response was weak for Disney/Buena Vista's "Prom", the news was even worse for The Weinstein Company's "Hoodwinked Too! Hood Vs. Evil", which delivered the worst 3-D opening for a wide release ever. The surprise success of 2005's "Hoodwinked" has no chance of being replicated here, as this sequel, which came in at a reportedly light $30 million budget, may only generate a final tally of $12-$15 million when all is said and done.

A "Cave" nets some wonderful discoveries, not every "Dog" has its day, and more analysis after the cut:

Emily Mortimer could star in Aaron Sorkin's HBO Pilot!

Deadline has the story:

Emily Mortimer is in negotiations for the female lead in Aaron Sorkin's HBO pilot. Tentatively titled More As This Story Develops, the project centers on cable news anchor Will McCallister (Jeff Daniels), who has his own show, as well as the show's female executive producer, MacKenzie (Mortimer), for whom producing the news is what she does best and everything else is tied for last place. Out of a pool of actresses considered for the role, it came down to Mortimer and Marisa Tomei. After flirting with the project and coming close to committing to it, Tomei ultimately decided not to do television at this time, and HBO quickly started negotiations with Mortimer. In addition to Daniels, Mortimer will also join Olivia Munn and Alison Pill, who are finalizing their deals for the project. Greg Mottola is directing the pilot, which is being executive produced by Sorkin, Scott Rudin and Alan Poul. Mortimer, repped by ICM and Brillstein, will next be seen in Martin Scorsese’s 3D film Hugo Cabret. She also co-starred in the hot Sundance entry Our Idiot Brother, which was picked up by The Weinstein Co.

-Joey's Two Cents: I'm digging the casting so far...thoughts?

Does Osama Bin Laden’s death help or hurt Kathryn Bigelow’s 'Kill Bin Laden'?

From Collider:

First off, a little perspective: I am aware that the extent to which the long-awaited death of Osama Bin Laden affects movies is miniscule compared to the closure and sense of justice that death provides to those affected by Al-Qaeda’s terrorism. If a sense of closure for families that lost someone on 9/11 is a “10″, then news about a Bin Laden movie is about 0.0001. But we’re a movie news site and the death of this hated piece of shit has affected various movies in production, most notably, Kathryn Bigelow’s Kill Bin Laden.

As we’ve previously reported Bigelow and Hurt Locker screenwriter Mark Boal want to do a smaller movie before moving on to the international drug crime drama, Triple Frontier. In January, we reported that the indie thriller was about the hunt for Bin Laden, but then Variety updated their story to say the film had nothing to do with Bin Laden. What could have led them to originally think that it did? Apparently the script is called “Kill Bin Laden”. And it actually does have something to do with the recent Al-Qaeda corpse. Hit the jump for more.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is set to 'Cry Macho'!

Via Variety:

Arnold Schwarzenegger has verbally committed to star in the indie drama "Cry Macho" -- but he hasn't decided whether it'll be his first film after leaving the governor's office.

"Gov. Schwarzenegger has not made a decision about what his first movie project will be," his spokesman told Variety on Friday. "There are a number of possibilities, but as of right now, no decision has been made."

"The Godfather" producer Al Ruddy is behind the long-gestating project, based on the 1975 novel by late author N. Richard Nash, who adapted the screenplay before his 2000 death. Brad Furman ("The Lincoln Lawyer") is attached to direct; Bill Block's QED Intl. is also involved as a producer and co-financier.

"Cry Macho" would find Schwarzenegger playing an alcoholic horse trainer who becomes a pawn in an international kidnapping plot after losing his wife and child. Forced to work for a hedge fund magnate, he's told to retrieve the man's mischievous young son, who is living with his wealthy ex-wife in Mexico.

Schwarzenegger has given Ruddy and the rest of the "Cry Macho" team the go-ahead to use his participation as part of their pitch as they put financing together. Ruddy and Block will raise coin on the Croisette at Cannes, with the hope of going into production later this summer.

Today's Posters: Melancholia, A Good Old Fashioned Orgy, and Transformers: Dark of the Moon

The rest after the cut...

A couple of Osama Bin Laden related film projects could be hot commodities now...

...according to Deadline:

I've learned that Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow in recent weeks has been preparing and starting to cast an indie movie with the working title Kill Bin Laden while another movie project about the hunt for the Al Queda terrorist leader at a major Hollywood studio stalled back in 2006. Given tonight's startling news, it's clear that these may be the timeliest film projects in recent Hollywood history. And judging from tonight's showbiz phone calls coming into to Deadline about Bin Laden's death, I wouldn't be surprised if the movie studios are anxious to bring these projects to the big screen as soon as possible updated with the story behind tonight's successful military mission. Have you seen those spontaneous cheering crowds that formed tonight outside Washington DC's White House and in NYC's Times Square as well as around major American cities and small towns? If a patriotic film about this subject matter can tap into these feelings of first helpless horror and then widespread frustration and then successful closure, it could be a real winner at the box office.

Is Steven Soderbergh putting his retirement on hold?

Not quite, but he is delaying it somewhat, according to Entertainment Weekly:

Looks like Steven Soderbergh isn’t quite ready for the gold watch after all. Earlier this year, the famed director of films like sex lies and videotape, Out of Sight, Erin Brockovich, and Oceans 11 vowed that he would retire from filmmaking after finishing two final projects on his plate: Liberace, starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon, and a potential big-screen reboot of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. with George Clooney. “For the last three years, I’ve been turning down everything that comes my way,” Soderbergh told NPR in March. “You’re not gonna have Steven Soderbergh to kick around anymore.” Well, apparently he found one more project too appealing to turn down: Soderbergh has signed on to direct Channing Tatum in Magic Mike, a project based on Tatum’s real-life experiences working as a male stripper at age 19. Tatum, who recently completed the film Haywire with Soderbergh, will play a veteran stripper who mentors a younger newbie.

“When Channing talked to me about this, I thought it was one of the best ideas I’d ever heard for a movie,” Soderbergh said in a statement. “I said I wanted in immediately. It’s sexy, funny and shocking. We’re using Saturday Night Fever as our model, so hopefully we’re on the right track.” Tatum (pictured, from Dear John), who has been developing the passion project for a while now, said in a statement, “This was a wild and pivotal time in my life and I couldn’t be more thrilled to go down the rabbit hole with Steven.” The two plan to start shooting this fall, after which Soderbergh will turn to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Liberace. And then he will retire… unless, of course, he doesn’t.

-Joey's Two Cents: The project itself doesn't sound too exciting, but if it's got him interested enough to want to do it, I'll keep an eye out for it...thoughts?

Box Office Bulletin: "Fast Five" Obliterates the Competition...

Via Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, Deadline, and other sources:

The Summer Movie Season, which typically kicks off in the first weekend of May, hit early with a staggering and stunning record-setting opening for "Fast Five", the fifth film in "The Fast & The Furious" franchise. Hauling in a likely overestimated but still incredible $83.6 million, "Fast Five" not only had the biggest opening ever for the series, but delivered the largest April opening weekend of all time, breaking its own record-setting $71 million "Fast and Furious" entry in April 2009. People knew the film would deliver the biggest opening weekend of the year, but this debut, even when revised actuals drop the number a bit on Monday, far exceeded most expectations. Speculation turned from the worry of diminished box office returns to a tone of optimism that perhaps "Fast Five" could kickstart a wave of films which will have wide-ranging commercial appeal. We shall see.

While "Rio", "Rango", and "Hop" had delivered the biggest openings so far in 2011, "Fast Five" more than doubled the best of those openings and the film already ranks as the 7th biggest grossing film of 2011. "Fast Five"could reach $100 million in total receipts by next weekend when "Fast Five" lines up next to the eagerly anticipated "Thor". And what if "Fast Five" can hold off and outrun "Thor"? Stay tuned...

NEW OPENINGS:

The brutal reality of the other weekend's openings is that no one truly cared about any of the other offerings. The estimated per screen averages for Disney's "Prom" and The Weinstein Company's "Hoodwinked Too! Hood Vs. Evil" were on par with films that have played for 4 or 5 weeks. Although in Disney's case, the poor performance may not be too disappointing in the long run.

"Prom", which was advertised as a non-musical "High School Musical" style film earned $5 million with a dismal $1,832 per screen average. Dismal that is, unless you are budgeted at $8 million, in which case the film may be profitable by the weekend. Nikki Finke at Deadline reports however that this is still going to be recognized as a major disappointment for Disney and raises questions as to why the film was not just morphed into a 4th "HSM" feature. Whether the film is a bomb or not can be left open to interpretation, but Disney execs are spinning this as a success. With the rush to DVD and probable multiple airings on the Disney Channel by the fall, "Prom" may not be as terrible a performer as many are speculating.

There really is no spin that can be leveraged at The Weinstein Company's "Hoodwinked Too! Hood Vs. Evil" however. Opening to a paltry $4.1 million and $1,653 per screen average at 2,505 locations, "Hoodwinked Too!" delivered the worst 3-D opening of all time for a wide release. Budgeted at $30 million, this ill-conceived sequel will likely lose money and provide a reversal of fortunes when compared to the surprising $51 million haul of 2005's "Hoodwinked". Nikki Finke shared an insider's Email on the film, which stated: "Between Blue Valentine, Company Of Men, Scream 4, and this film, they are starting to give back all the money they made on The King's Speech." Ouch.

Although it opened at a scant 875 locations, the comic book adaptation, "Dylan Dog: Dead Of Night" was a non-starter for OmniLab Media and Freestyle Releasing. Not screened for critics ahead of its release, this comedic/horror hybrid starring former "Superman", Brandon Routh, arrived with little in the way of promotion. Grossing $885k, fans of the supernatural horror series were reportedly not pleased at the film being more comedy and less chills and thrills. Italian audiences, where the comic originated from, were also less than thrilled last month when the film opened there.

Other notable trends and happenings after the cut!

Circuit Round-Up, 05/01

* Last week, Joey Magidson reviewed The High Cost of Living, Arthur, and Jane Eyre, while Michael Ward lent his thoughts to the animated hit Rio.

* Joey had a barren slate to work with for his DVD Picks of the Week.

* Luckily, Joey was very enthusiastic about the screenplay for Jodie Foster’s upcoming film The Beaver.

* Anna Belickis paid tribute to recent Oscar winner Natalie Portman for Women in Cinema.

* Sadly, she also had to bid farewell to the likable Chris Jericho in her "Dancing with the Stars" recap.

* Guy Pearce got the Under the Circuit treatment from yours truly.

* I also looked into my (snarky) crystal ball for possible heavy hitters of the summer.

* Finally, the staff gave their long-anticipated early predictions for the next Academy Awards. Whose will be the most accurate? Guess we’ll all find out on Tuesday, January 24^th!