Neeson has taken the Charles Bronson career turn, but he's 69 now, so it can't last forever. Yes, Ford and Eastwood have stuck with it, but it's really their fanbase suspending belief. They are too old to play these parts and everyone else in the films have to be just as old, which kind of makes it all look ridiculous.

Just trying to get lightning to strike twice I guess. The Taken trilogy was a box office smash compared to its budget.

Maybe some nefarious group can take his grand kids. Evil French villain Charles E Chez traps the children in a fun filled arcade with no tokens!

Let's not forget that Liam Neeson lost his wife Natasha Richardson in a tragic skiing accident two months after 'Taken' was released. Dealing with that no doubt had a major affect on his life and career.

Of course it did but I would think that impact would be more in line with him returning to acting as a whole and not the roles he would accept in the future. He did the last two Taken films after she passed away. I got the impression that getting back into his work was more therapeutic for him than just shutting down.

Neeson has done more actioner movies than straight drama throughout his career. The Taken series wasn't really a departure at all.

There's nothing wrong with a good actor making popular films and being a fan favorite. I know there are quite a few actors that I really like to watch because they can play anything well. However, although I may buy the DVDs, I don't actually ever put many of them on because I hate the stories and can't get up the enthusiasm to spend the time.

Serious actors want to do serious roles and that's often in the most arty, depressing, boring, preachy and disagreeable projects you will ever see. The kind that wins acting awards and make no money. I prefer it when they go slumming and play in something that I can enjoy. So good for Neeson.

quote:

Originally posted by Raven:
Serious actors want to do serious roles and that's often in the most arty, depressing, boring, preachy and disagreeable projects you will ever see. The kind that wins acting awards and make no money. I prefer it when they go slumming and play in something that I can enjoy.

...and then there's Bruce Willis

Someone once made a comment in the mid-1950s that Clint Eastwood would never be a success because he had no acting ability. All he could do was squint and talk through his teeth.

He started making films in 1955, I believe. 67 years later, he's still making them. Longer than Marlon Brando, Sean Connery, Robert De Niro, and everyone else.

quote:

Originally posted by Kevin F:
...and then there's Bruce Willis

Yeah, he seems to be on a weird run of mediocre lately. I didn't think there was much of a need for a Death Wish remake.

The critics are pounding hard on uncharted. RT is down to 40%. Even the positive reviews say it is just ok.

Going to be interesting to see how this translates with the gamer crowd.

So far, "Scream" is the only new film released in 2022 that has made more than 50 M domestically. It is up to about 74 M.

In fact, only Scream and Jack*** Forever have made more than 20 M domestically...

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Tommy C,

I think Jack@$$ Forever will break the 50M line sometime next week.

quote:

Originally posted by mykdude:
The critics are pounding hard on uncharted. RT is down to 40%. Even the positive reviews say it is just ok.

Well anything co-starring Mark Wahlberg can go very far either way. He's kind of the second choice when all the big action stars are otherwise engaged and he has made some real stinkers. But he's OK sometimes.

The one I find somewhat interesting is The Lost City opening in March. Now Bullock is 57 and her leading man Tatum is 41. You Go Girl, although at this point Bullock doesn't actually look any particular age.

Brad Pitt is also in it at 58, but I'm not sure if he is doing more like a cameo or not. The villain is Harry Potter himself, 32 year old Daniel Radcliffe, and the whole thing has a Romancing the Stone vibe, if anyone remembers that one. It could be a funny actioner, or it could be a big embarrassment to everyone involved.

From the previews Im leaning towards embarrassment. I do see the Romancing the Stone reference but the whole thing looks too polished or clean. Overproduced maybe?

Early numbers show Uncharted at the $30M range for the weekend. Fortunately it is getting a China release so we will see.

So it didn't get the best of reviews, but Uncharted is beating box office predictions by a lot. It's now expected to do 51M domestically and over 140M worldwide for the extended weekend.

That makes Tom Holland look like a really hot property who is more than one character and will up his standing, but really its always about being in the right film at the right time. This was a perfect time with no important new competition and people looking to get out to see something that isn't all doom and gloom.

Yup! Critics went one way and the audience went another. That like almost NEVER happens!
Uncharted had a lower budget than I would have imagined. With a China release it is difficult to see this one fail.

Dog blew past its production budget the first weekend. Spider-Man wont go away and Death is going to need a bunch of International help.

1 Uncharted $51M Budget $120M World Wide $139M
2 Dog $18M Budget 15M World Wide $18M
3 Spider-Man $771M Budget $200M World Wide $1.8B
4 Death on the Nile $26M Budget $90M World Wide $76M
5 Jack@$$ Forever $47.7M Budget $10M World Wide $61M

Sing 2 is about $20M short from doubling its production budget domestically.

Domestically, Scream has passed 3X its production budget. Plus both films have a strong International haul.


A list of solid misses.

Nightmare Alley
The 355
West Side Story
Marry Me
Blacklight
The King's Man

"Marry Me" would have made for an insipid Hallmark romcom, if that was all it tried to be. The split of domestic and international box office shows that Jennifer Lopez is not the international star you would imagine, and she has got herself stuck in a time warp with this onscreen persona of hers. Anything with Owen Wilson in it now is almost guaranteed to be a stinker. So the answer to "Marry Me" is NO.

"The King's Man", which opened in Dec, has not been a hit. 100 M budget, and it has only grossed 124 M worldwide.

With an only 37 M gross in the USA, I don't see how they can do a fourth film, with such a lack of interest.

quote:

Originally posted by Tommy C:
"The King's Man", which opened in Dec, has not been a hit.

That's why I put it in the list of solid misses.

Went to see it, was a mess of a film. Too bad too because the idea has potential. The first film was really good and it has been all downhill after that.

Not a whole lot of changes last weekend. Death on the Nile is most likely going to be a miss. This weekend with the new Batman coming out should shake things up a bit.

Went to see Uncharted last night. High fun vs low intellect. Mark and Tom are charming enough but literally nothing is discovered without giving the audience a clue that it should have been discovered already.

Not having played I kept thinking that most of this would be pretty cool in a game but is really stupid as a movie.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: mykdude,

The Batman

RT 85% critics 93% audience. Still early.