Black List reveals best of 2013's unproduced

Earlier today The Black List unveiled its top picks for the year’s best unproduced screenplays. Holland, Michigan by Andrew Sodroski earned the most number of votes out of a pack that includes such enticingly titled projects as Randle is Benign, The Shark Is Not Working, Time & Temperature, The Boy and His Tiger, and the we’re-pretty-sure-we-know-what-this-is-about (and-we’re-excited-for-it) A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.

Since 2005 The Black List, founded by Franklin Leonard and Dino Sijamic, has compiled an annual roster of screenplays that is meant to represent the best of the industry’s exponential pile of unproduced works. The organization tends to be spot on. Of the past five Best Picture winners, three were made from Black-Listed scripts: Argo, Slumdog Millionaire, and The King’s Speech. Juno, The Social Network, The Descendants, and Django Unchained all won the Oscar for Best Screenplay, and were all once listed on The Black List.

The upcoming Fathers and Daughters, starring Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried and “Breaking Bad’s” Aaron Paul, was a Black List selection from 2012, as was the Hillary Clinton biopic, Rodham, currently in development at Lionsgate.

See if you can spot 2015’s Best Picture winner out of this year’s group of 72 (listed in no particular order) below:

MISSISSIPPI MUD by Elijah Bynum

PATIENT Z by Michael Le

MAKE A WISH by Zach Frankel

RANDLE IS BENIGN by Damien Ober

A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness

QUEEN OF HEARTS by Stephanie Shannon

HOLLAND, MICHIGAN by Andrew Sodroski

HOT SUMMER NIGHTS by Elijah Bynum

DUDE by Oliva Milch

PAN by Jason Fuchs

SUPERBRAT by Eric Slovin & Leo Allen

SEED by Christina Hodson

CAKE by Patrick Tobin

DIABLO RUN by Shea Mirzai and Evan Mirzai

SEA OF TREES by Chris Sparling

FRISCO by Simon Stephenson

WHERE ANGELS DIE by Alexander Felix

SUGAR IN MY VEINS by Barbara Stepansky

SECTION 6 by Aaron Berg

LAST MINUTE MAIDS by Leo Nicholas

BROKEN COVE by Declan O'Dwyer

TIME & TEMPERATURE by Nick Santora

POX AMERICANA by Frank John Hughes

THE FIXER by Bill Kennedy

HALF HEARD IN STILLNESS by David Weil

THE LINE by Sang Kyu Kim

BEAST by Zach Dean

THE REMAINS by Meaghan Oppenheimer

TCHAIKOVSKY'S REQUIEM by Jonathan Stokes

AMERICAN SNIPER by Jason Dean Hall

THE POLITICIAN by Matthew Bass and Theodore Bressman

BEAUTY QUEEN by Annie Neal

REMINISCENCE by Lisa Joy Nolan

FREE BYRD by Jon Boyer

DIG by Adam Barker

MAN OF SORROW by Neville Kiser

THE GOLDEN RECORD by Aaron Kandell and Jordan Kandell

NICHOLAS by Leo Sardarian

FROM HERE TO ALBION by Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirivani

1969: A SPACE ODYSSEY OR HOW KUBRICK LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LAND ON THE MOON by Stephany Folsom

CLARITY by Ryan Belenzon and Jeffrey Gelber

ELSEWHERE by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis

THE KILLING FLOOR by Bac Delorme and Stephen Clarke

REVELATION by Hernany Perla

THE CROWN by Max Hurwitz

THE CIVILIAN by Rachel Long & Brian Pittman

AUTOPSY OF JANE DOE by Richard Naing and Ian Goldberg

THE SHARK IS NOT WORKING by Richard Cordiner

THE INDEPENDENT by Evan Parter

FAULTS by Riley Stearns

THE SPECIAL PROGRAM by Debora Cahn

I'M PROUD OF YOU by Noah Harpster and Micah Fitzerman-Blue

SOVEREIGN by Geoff Tock and Greg Weidman

DOGFIGHT by Nicole Riegel

INK AND BONE by Zak Olkewicz

A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD by Alexis C Jolly

GAY KID AND FAT CHICK by Bo Burnham

BURY THE LEAD by Justin Kremer

EXTINCTION by Spenser Cohen

SPOTLIGHT by Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy

THE MAYOR OF SHARK CITY by Nick Creature and Michael Sweeney

THE END OF THE TOUR by Donald Margulies

FULLY WRECKED by Jake Morse & Scott Wolman

PURE O by Kate Trefry

CAPSULE by Ian Shorr

SHOVEL BUDDIES by Jason Mark Hellerman

BURN SITE by Doug Simon

THE COMPANY MAN by Andrew Cypiot

SWEETHEART by Jack Stanley

INQUEST by Josh Simon

THE BOY AND HIS TIGER by Dan Dollar

LINE OF DUTY by Cory Miller

China now has the biggest foreign box office--but they just pulled 'Django Unchained' from theatres

Last year, China became the biggest foreign market at the box office, surpassing Japan. With a huge, upwardly mobile population, it will likely remain at number one, and widen the gap between first and second place at the global box office. But China does not have a free press, and two stories in THR highlight the challenges of working in the Chinese marketplace.

Christian Johnston and Darren Mann, the directors of State of Control, a documentary that will be

shown at the HotDocs festival in Toronto, wrote a piece about how they were tailed during the Beijing Olympics in 2008 while trying to make their film about tensions between Tibetans and the Chinese government. They were followed, harassed, and eventually left the country after being constantly blocked from achieving their goals at every turn. In the meantime, the people they corresponded with had their computers hacked. IP addresses traced the viruses back to China. It's worth pointing out, as the filmmakers don't, that the Chinese government was on extreme high alert during the Beijing Olympics, and very cautious about the image they presented. I wonder if the reaction to their filming would be as intense now. Last year at the Tribeca Film Festival, the documentary High Tech, Low Life explored how citizen journalists have been taking on the government in small ways, exposing instances where the government has angered peasants with issues of imminent domain. Another wrote about  a case where the rape of a girl was covered up because the perpetrator was the son of a local official. The officials would have tea with the journalists, finding out what they were doing and marking out the invisible boundaries that they could not cross. There is leeway, but not for all. A political dissident like Ai Wei Wei (who has his own doc, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry) is seen as more dangerous because he targets high-level political officials. You don't want to mess with those people.

As difficult as it can be to exercise free speech or bring injustices to light within China, it's also difficult to exhibit objectionable content. Director Quentin Tarantino's latest, Django Unchained, was pulled from theatres just as it released, because of "technical difficulties." By appearing to change its mind after approving the release, the Chinese government looks bad, and many citizens took to their version of Twitter, Weibo, to complain. My guess is that "technical difficulties" may be a euphemism for further cuts that need to be made, or mistakenly weren't made. Tarantino already noted that he de-saturated the color of blood in the movie in order to comply with Chinese standards. Perhaps the government decided it needs more of these types of cuts before they bring the film back. In the days and weeks to come, Hollywood as a whole will be watching closely to see if the release makes its way back into theatres. TheWeinstein Co. is known stateside for turning controversy into box-office dollars (like its campaign over the R rating of The Bully Project), so if Django Unchained returns to theatres, they just may be able to pique viewers' interests. Who wouldn't want to see a movie so controversial, it was temporarily pulled from theatres?

'Texas Chainsaw 3D' slashes 'Django Unchained'

Along with New Year's Resolutions, there's one thing you can always count on in January: a horror movie. This year's Texas Chainsaw 3D played just as well as the previous franchise installment, earning $23.2 million and a spot in first place. That's not quite as good as Lionsgate's horror offering last year, the religious-themed chller The Devil Inside that opened to $33 million. The
release also proved there's a new star on the rise. A third of the younger attendees came because of cast member Trey Songz, a hip-hop star known for his song with T.I., "Two Reasons." 52% of attendees were female and 64% under the age of 25.

In second place, Django Unchained showed stronger staying power than Les Miserables, earning $20.1 million to the musical's $16.1 million. Django has attracted a broad cross-section of viewers. This is the rare film that has huge support from both black and white audiences, and seekers of critically-acclaimed movies and a violent gore-fest. Soon, the movie's cumulative total will pass that of writer/director Quentin Tarantino's previous hit, Inglourious Basterds, which topped out at $120 million.

Matt Damon-led Promised Land, which expanded into 1,676 theatres averaged a respectable $2,5000 per screen for a total of $4.3 million. Considering its so-so critical reception, this message film's performance was right on target, even though it may seem low for a drama led by such a big star.

The Impossible showed strength as it expanded into 572 theatres and tallied up a total of $2.7
million with a $4,800 per-screen average. The nostalgic look at the 1960s from "The Sopranos" creator David Chase,  Not Fade Away, which also expanded into around 500 theatres, appears to be fading away, averaging $496 per screen for a total of $280,000. With generally good reviews (69% positive on Rotten Tomatoes), perhaps this failure was the result of poor marketing or a lack of faith in the film on part of the studio.

Zero Dark Thirty, expanding into 60 theatres, maintained a stunning $45,000 per-screen average, enough to earn it $2.7 million. That's just unheard of, especially after three weeks in release. This Friday, it expands into 2,5000 theatres, and I'll be watching to see just how much pent-up demand there is for this much-talked-about drama.

This Friday, the 40's-set crime movie Gangster Squad will open wide along with the horror comedy A Haunted House and the wide release of Zero Dark Thirty.

'Hobbit' leads, with 'Django' and 'Les Mis' not far behind

As the holidays start wrapping up, there's plenty of good cheer to share at the box office. The top seventeen films all earned over $1 million this weekend.  Viewers have many great options to choose from and theatres are busy with people on vacation in search of entertainment. Most releases also went up from last week, a rare occasion in the modern, opening-weekend-driven box office.

After dropping by half its second weekend, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey had a second wind, descending just 10% to $32 million. That gives the fantasy a $222 million domestic total to
date, along with nearly half a billion abroad. With many multi-million weekends to come, it looks like J.R.R. Tolkien's novel about Bilbo Baggins will be able to sustain a trilogy.

Debuting in second place, Django Unchained earned $34 million over the weekend and $64 million since its Christmas Day opening. The violent comic Western about a slave's revenge has been an even bigger hit with audiences (93% positive) than critics (89%) positive), and it also earned an "A-" CinemaScore. For many, this movie is a must-see.

Les Misérables had a weekend tally of $28 million, just under Django. However, its $18 million opening on Christmas Day helped propel it to a $67.4 million total, just above director
Quentin Tarantino's violent antebellum picture. Les Misérables received an "A" grade from viewers. I predict Les Misérables will last slightly longer than Django at the box office, since it will likely attract more selective and older viewers who may wait to see a feature until weeks after it opens.

Parental Guidance, a comedy about the clashing parenting styles of different generations, proved a hit with the holiday crowds, earning $14.8 million over the weekend and $29.6 million since Christmas Day. Although This is 40 started out slow, its  $13.1 million total was up 13% from its debut weekend. The $37 million cumulative means the Universal picture has at least made back its reported $35 million budget. The Guilt Trip may be the big loser in the family-oriented comedy race, totaling just $6.7 million for a total of $21 million, with a reported budget that soared even higher, to $40 million.

Silver Linings Playbook, which expanded into over 700 theatres, placed twelfth while posting a per-screen average of $5,500, higher than almost all the movies that earned more than its $4.1 million weekend total. The Weinstein Co.-distributed romantic comedy has earned $27 million to
date as it slowly expands.

The highest per-screen average went to Zero Dark Thirty, which averaged $63,000 per screen while still playing in only five locations. It won't expand wide for two more weeks. A distant (but still decent) second went to Amour, the well-reviewed critics' favorite that averaged $20,000 per screen. The tear-jerker The Impossible, with an $12,300 per-screen average, posted the third-highest total of the week. That movie will expand wide this Friday along with Promised Land. The issue-based drama, which centers on fracking for natural gas and stars Matt Damon and John Krasinski, had a weak ignition, with $7,600 per screen at 25 locations. The documentary West of Memphis also opened soft, averaging $2,700 per screen in five locations.

This Friday,  Texas Chainsaw 3D will splatter horror content into movie theatres, and Promised Land and The Impossible will expand nationwide.

'Les Miserables' and 'Django Unchained' may turn box office from silent to joyful

The weekend box office was softer than usual. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey dropped 57% to lead with $36.7 million, enough to give it a first-place finish by a wide margin. The Peter Jackson-directed epic has already earned nearly $150 million, but since the fantasy adventure is not only big-budget, but the first installment in a trilogy, anything other than a smash hit could portend trouble for the remaining two movies.

In second place, Jack Reacher opened to $15.6 million. The Tom Cruise-led action picture resonated with older male moviegoers, and Paramount believes that the demographic base will expand to teenage males as well. Because the holiday season usually gives releases higher multiples of opening weekend, Reacher may end up with over $60 million, at least four times its first weekend.

Judd Apatow-directed comedy about a family's mid-life crisis, This is 40 followed in third with $12.3 million. That was a lot better than Wednesday release The Guilt Trip, which only earned $5.3  million. Both films, which skewed to older females, only received "B-" CinemaScores. Pre-holiday preparations often prevent the adult demographic from showing up in force pre-Christmas, so there are still plenty of interested viewers who may not have had a chance to see the movie yet--that is, if they still plan on seeing either one if they hear mixed reviews from friends.

Monsters Inc. 3D earned a light $5 million over the weekend. Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away, playing at just noon and 7pm every day, still managed to total $2.1 million. It will up the freqency of showtimes tomorrow, now that it has an "A-" average CinemaScore from its first viewers.

Of all the specialty releases, the one with the most momentum is Zero Dark Thirty. The story of the CIA's hunt for Osama bin Laden averaged $82,000 per screen in five locations, and is picking up incredible buzz and word-of-mouth from those emerging from sold-out screenings. The
heart-wrenching tale of a family that survived a tsunami, The Impossible, opened with a $9,200 per-screen average in fifteen  locations. The modestly successful opening that may pick up speed in weeks to come.

Three more wide releases will open tomorrow, on Christmas Day. A celebration of the "redeeming pleasure of musical storytelling," Les Misérables (2,808 theatres) shows all signs of being the darling of this holiday season. Sung live, instead of lip-synced on set,  the vocals sound real, immediate, and occasionally (and appropriately) ragged. Critic Wendy R. Weinstein couldn't help reflecting on the "progressive political and moral concerns" highlighted from the original text by Victor Hugo. "It’s impossible to leave this movie untroubled by the contemporary parallels," she says, all the more reason the musical may end up being both a box-office and awards-show hit.

Controversy surrounding writer-director Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained (3,010 theatres) has been light so far, but now the ultra-violent film has its first major dissenter. Spike Lee said he would not be seeing the "disrespectful" movie, which does not honor the memories of
his ancestors who were enslaved. The "spaghetti western/slave vengeance mash-up," as described by critic Chris Barsanti, includes comic bits that "play well throughout," but "at the disadvantage of dulling the edge of the script’s visceral portrayal of the savagery of slavery—a problem that gets more pronounced by the film’s gory climax." Perhaps that's what Lee was intuiting, though he hasn't seen it.

Tomorrow, another family-focused comedy (after The Guilt Trip and This is 40) will enter the mix. Parental Guidance, which centers on the generational clash between touch old-school and new helicopter parenting styles, will open in 3,558 theatres. Some "nice comic points" are scored, especially courtesy of Billy Crystal, according to FJI's David Noh, but an effluence of heartwarming moments and other signs of "commercial family slop" make it less palatable.

Next Monday, we'll evaluate how the Christmas releases fared, and if last Friday's releases benefited from vacation days and positive word-of-mouth.

Foreign Press breathes life back into some films with Golden Globe nods

The Golden Globe nominations are in. The Hollywood Foreign Press is an interesting beast, a group of 80 mainly freelance journalists who end up having tremendous sway over the second-biggest awards show.  The two big takeaways of the nominations? The Weinstein Co. is back, and the members of the foreign press have age-specific taste.

Django Unchained may have done poorly in the SAG Awards nominations, receiving no recognition, but it redeemed itself with the Hollywood Foreign Press. Django will be a contender in four categories: Best Drama, Director, Screenplay, and Supporting Actor (for both Leonardo DiCaprio and Christoph Waltz). Maybe Harvey Weinstein knew he could have more of an impact by
targeting the 80-some members of the Hollywood Foreign Press who wield power over such influential awards. Also, the slavery-revenge-Western was rushed to the finish line, limiting the number of advance screenings. I'd say that this strong showing makes it extremely likely to show up as a Best Picture nominee at the Oscars, especially with the new "up to ten" rule.

When it came to the "just-squeaked-in" movies, it helped to have a picture that appealed to an older set. If you want to take a look at the age bias among awards shows, look no further than the nominations for Salmon Fishing in the Yemen and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen received mention both for "Best Musical or Comedy" and for both of its lead actors, Emily Blunt and Ewan McGregor. Although the actors aren't as old as those in Marigold, the story was gentle and had an Old Hollywood vibe. In his FJI review, critic Kevin Lally gave praise to the old-fashioned feel, noting that "the romantic-comedy portions of Salmon
Fishing are something special, a disarming throwback to the
classic repartee of the likes of Cary Grant and Rosalind
Russell." Don't think the Foreign Press didn't notice that. Best Exotic Marigold Hotel also scored in the Best Comedy category, which was backed up with a Supporting Actress nod for Judi Dench. In comparison, the more youthful-leaning Moonrise Kingdom was recognized in the "Best Musical or Comedy" category, and nowhere else.

There were also a lot of good movies with older casts or appeal this year, like The Sessions, which
was recognized for the performances of lead actors John Hawkes and Helen Hunt. And I adore Meryl Streep, but her age and stature with the Foreign Press likely led to her nomination in the funny trifle that was Hope Springs. You could make a similar judgment about Bill Murray's acting nomination in the mostly panned Hyde Park on Hudson. However, older moviegoers are a huge part of the specialty audience these days. They have the time to see movies, and prefer good ones. That's one reason why the Golden Globe nominations are skewing older this year, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. In particular, Hollywood has always been cruel to older actresses, considering them ready for pasture once they hit middle age. A lot of these "middle agers" received recognition.

Of the fifteen female nominees for Best Female Actor in a Drama, Best Female Actor in a Musical/Comedy, and Best Supporting Female Actor, only three are thirty or under, Jennifer Lawrence (22), Emily Blunt (29), and Anne Hathaway (30). Another seven are in the 35-50 range, a group that includes Jessica Chastain (35), Marion Cotillard (37), Amy Adams (38), Rachel Weisz (42), Naomi Watts (44), Nicole Kidman (45), and Helen Hunt (49). The remaining five are retirement age:  Meryl Streep (63), Sally Field (66), Helen Mirren (67), Maggie Smith (77), and Judy Dench (78). As Oscar history suggests, it is quite easy to be nominated and win as a young woman, but it tends to thin out when you get to older actors. This year could be an unusual cluster, or it could be part of a trend, as studios target specialty fare to older viewers and populate their films with mature actors. I will say I was surprised at the ages of some of these very youthful-looking actresses, so maybe part of the wave of older actresses doesn't come from expanded minds, but advances in the age-erasing fields of dermatology and plastic surgery. That's something we'll be paying attention to as the stars walk the red carpet this January.