Sometimes the box office cracks me up. Ant-Man barely held on, but did hold on, to first place, passing the $100 million mark in the U.S. and proving it won't go away easily. That's because it has a story built on principles, characters with history if a little too simple, and a mix of genres. Before we trumpet this thing too much, the tenth-place movie is the latest Terminator petering out at $85 million domestically. I haven't talked with one person who's seen it and urged me to see it. There you go.
At the movies last week, though, I saw the three best previews all summer. The new Star Wars with it's panning shot across what looks like the Tatooine comes upon a crashed Star Destroyer, an awesome sight on a few levels, for its sheer physical magnificence, evoking wonder, and on the storytelling level of crossing familiar with unfamiliar. Then came the shots of lightsabers, symbolizing the force, passed from one character to another. Then the final shot of Chewbacca and Han Solo. We sense the magic will be back, if not for breaking tremendously new ground (the black stormtroopers don't spark much awe), at least building from and sticking to its roots.
The new Mission Impossible looks solid with exotic locales and everyone having fun. We'll see it, and laud the studio for holding off on its release until July 31 when the dust has cleared. The last preview was huge: Guy Ritchie returning to what he does best with The Man From U.N.C.L.E. The two-male banter, the espionage, the improvisation amidst order of operations looks to be the sleeper hit of August. I didn't quite recognize Armie Hammer at first, but this director, I suspect, will get a good performance out of him as David Fincher did in The Social Network.
These three previews on the big screen were almost worth the price of admission.
At the movies last week, though, I saw the three best previews all summer. The new Star Wars with it's panning shot across what looks like the Tatooine comes upon a crashed Star Destroyer, an awesome sight on a few levels, for its sheer physical magnificence, evoking wonder, and on the storytelling level of crossing familiar with unfamiliar. Then came the shots of lightsabers, symbolizing the force, passed from one character to another. Then the final shot of Chewbacca and Han Solo. We sense the magic will be back, if not for breaking tremendously new ground (the black stormtroopers don't spark much awe), at least building from and sticking to its roots.
The new Mission Impossible looks solid with exotic locales and everyone having fun. We'll see it, and laud the studio for holding off on its release until July 31 when the dust has cleared. The last preview was huge: Guy Ritchie returning to what he does best with The Man From U.N.C.L.E. The two-male banter, the espionage, the improvisation amidst order of operations looks to be the sleeper hit of August. I didn't quite recognize Armie Hammer at first, but this director, I suspect, will get a good performance out of him as David Fincher did in The Social Network.
These three previews on the big screen were almost worth the price of admission.
