‘Transformers’ is the Optimus Prime of the box office

Transformers: Age of Extinction performed to very high expectation this weekend, grossing $100 million domestically and a stellar $300 million worldwide. In China, the movie enjoyed the best opening weekend ever for a foreign film, earning $90 million. Extinction has yet to bow in several European markets (due to the World Cup, Paramount decided not to debut the film in all international territories on Friday), meaning yet another round of opening-weekend receipts is on the gilded horizon.  Surprisingly, Extinction did not set a franchise record for the strongest domestic opening weekend: That honor still belongs to Revenge of the Fallen, which managed $108 million in 2009. Still, this fourth installment in the robots series could well end up with a $1 billion worldwide total.

Clearly, audiences did not agree with the critics. The film’s current standing on Rotten Tomatoes may be a dismal 17 percent, but viewers awarded it a “Yeah, we liked it” CinemaScore grade of an A-. Sixty-four percent of audience members were male, and 57 percent were over the age of 25. They helped give star Mark Wahlberg the best opening of his career. The film will likely gross between $250 and $300 million domestically by the time it finishes its theatrical run.

Clocking in at No. 2, 22 Jump Street earned $15.4 million, a dropoff of 44 percent from last week. The film has already surpassed its predecessor’s $138.4 million total, having grossed $139.8 million to date.

How to Train Your Dragon 2, on the other hand, continues to trail 2010’s How to Train Your Dragon. The sequel landed at No. 3 with its $13.1 million haul. It has so far earned $121.8 million, and will likely tally out to somewhere north of $150 million.

Last weekend’s box-office champion, Think Like a Man Too, fell precipitously this Friday-Sunday, claiming the No. 4 spot. It dipped 64 percent to earn $10.4 million, and will almost certainly fail to match, let alone exceed, Think Like a Man’s $91.5 million total.

Maleficent has charted a much surer b.o. course. The Disney hit came in at No. 5, grossing $8.2 million. It beat out Jersey Boys, which took in an additional, and rather weak, $7.6 million, bumping its total to $27.3 million.

Begin Again and Snowpiercer both enjoyed solid openings at the specialty box office. The former managed the best per-theatre average of the weekend (even better than Transformers, we might add). Its $148,325 total from five theatres worked out to a per-location average of $29,655. For its part, Snowpiercer grossed $162,127 from eight theatres.

Week in review: 6/23 - 6/27

The man who played the villain in The Good, The Bad and the Ugly, Eli Wallach, passed away Tuesday. In addition to Sergio Leone's spaghetti Western, Wallach appeared in classics The Magnificent Seven (rumor has it the film will soon be remade with Denzel Washington) and Elia Kazan's Baby Doll. The performer was one of several thesps, including Marlon Brando and Cheryl Crawford, who founded the Actors Studio in 1948. He received an Honorary Academy Award in 2010 for "a lifetime's worth of indelible screen characters." Wallach was 98.

A less well-known figure if one whose work is as beloved by her dedicated base of fans, Freaky Friday author Mary Rodgers passed away Thursday. The daughter of South Pacific composer Richard Rodgers, Mary first rose to prominence in 1959 when her musical Once Upon a Mattress proved a hit on the Great White Way. The Broadway show based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale 'The Princess and the Pea' launched the career of lead Carol Burnett. Rodgers was also a writer of children's stories, some of which would likely be marketed as Young Adult fiction today. Her Freaky Friday has been adapted for the cinema three times: First in 1976, starring Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris (Rodgers wrote the screenplay); then again in 1995, with Gaby Hoffman and Shelley Long; and finally, in 2003, featuring Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis as the mother-daughter pair who inadvertently and unwillingly swap bodies. Rodgers was 83.

As we're now, incredibly, halfway through 2014, this week saw pundits and critics publishing a host of mid-year recaps and retrospectives. Thus, we have a list of Variety critics' top films of 2014 (So Far), and Deadline's more objective roundup of the year's highest-grossing films to date (small surprise The Lego Movie, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and X-Men: Days of Future Past top the bunch). If these items fail to fulfill your longing for lists, or they don't come packaged with enough photos, take a peek at this piece from The Hollywood Reporter: The publication polled a group of Hollywood players, from actors to executives, on their favorite films and ranked the results. Some, like the good folks at Indiewire, were none too pleased with the findings, lambasting the "insidious dullness" of Hollywood's choices. Yes, indeed; The Princess Bride should have been ranked higher.

In considerably more contentious news, Gary Oldman found himself in hot water of his own boiling on Monday after he made a series of ridiculous comments to Playboy magazine. He defended the homophobic tirade of Alec Baldwin and the anti-Semitic rantings of Mel Gibson, among letting fly other choice remarks. Needless to say, the rest of this week has seen Oldman on Mea Culpa high alert, turning his publicity blitz for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes into more of a personal apology tour.

We're much happier to report the appointment of composer and six-time Oscar nominee Alexandre Desplat (Philomena, The King's Speech) to the head of the upcoming Venice Film Festival jury. Desplat will be the first musician to hold the position. Likewise, we're very pleased on behalf of the city of Chicago, which George Lucas has chosen over LA, San Francisco, and other contenders, as the site of his planned Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. The Star Wars' director's wife, Mellody Hobson, is a native of the Windy City.

A city that is for all its famed chilliness not nearly as uncomfortable as the world of eternal winter depicted to such success in Frozen. The New Yorker's Maria Konnikova attempts to understand the surprising global appeal of the Disney princess movie, while writer A.D. Jameson likewise tries to de-mystify the film critic term "mise-en-scene" in his longform 'Why It Matters' piece.

How many of the 271 newly invited to join the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences do you think know the term? Lupita? Michael Fassbender?

Finally, to kick off your weekend in the right and a most pleasant and nostalgic manner, here's Vulture with a collection of photos depicting famous filmmakers working on their favorite projects.

‘Transformers’ to prove itself far from extinct

Only one major release opens this weekend, and it’s a behemoth: Transformers: Age of Extinction. The fourth installment in the lucrative Transformers franchise is shooting for a $100 million debut – domestically, that is. The film also bows in Russia, Australia, China, and several other Asian territories today. Thanks to the World Cup, however, Paramount has decided not to release the film everywhere, holding it back from several international markets until futbol fever cools down.

Once it has been unleashed on the world in its full, Michael Bay-orchestrated glory, Extinction has some rather high expectations to meet. The last Transformers, 2011’s Dark of the Moon, earned an absurd $1.12 billion worldwide. It opened to $97.9 million domestically. Many pundits believe Extinction will at least surpass the debut enjoyed by Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the movie which, with its $95 million haul, currently boasts the strongest domestic opening weekend of 2014. Extinction certainly needs to open very, very well if it hopes to begin recouping its $200 million production costs.

Will the cumulative appeal of its all-new cast be enough to lure the requisite number of viewers? Out is former franchise star Shia LaBeouf; in is the likable if much older Mark Wahlberg. Co-stars include newcomers Nicola Peltz and Jack Reynor, who, if everything goes according to plan, won’t be unknowns after tonight. Right now, pre-sales for Transformers: Age of Extinction indicate the film is on track to open as expected, to the tune of $100 million.

But if, on the off-chance and in the immortal words of Anchorman’s Brick Tamland, “Loud Noises!” aren’t your thing, the specialty box office offers several alternatives. The latest from John Carney, the director behind surprise indie hit Once, also opens today. Begin Again stars Keira Knightley and Mark Ruffalo as a singer and has-been record exec, respectively, who record beautiful music together in and around NYC. The significantly darker Snowpiercer, starring Chris Evans and Tilda Swinton, and French biopic Yves Saint Laurent, also bow today.

‘Man’ overcomes the ‘Boys’

Think Like a Man Too claimed the No. 1 spot at the box office this weekend, as predicted. The Kevin Hart comedy grossed $30 million. Its debut figure falls just shy of that which Think Like a Man earned over its opening weekend ($33.6 million) in 2012, but it is an improvement over Hart’s last outing, About Last Night ($25.6 million).

Although the film bowed to expectation, there are several pundits who believe Think Like a Man Too could have performed better, given Hart’s popularity, and out-earned its predecessor. Most likely, the weekend’s No. 2 earner, 22 Jump Street, poached a good chunk of Too’s audience. Street fell 49 percent to gross $29 million. Neighbors suffered a similar downturn its second weekend out of the gate, and went on to enjoy a successful run (it’s still screening in some theatres). 22 Jump Street should follow a similar pattern. To date, the film has earned $111.5 million, and will likely tally out at $170 million or so.

How to Train Your Dragon 2, the weekend’s No. 3 earner, is charting a similar course. The animated kids comedy is performing slightly worse than expected: it fell 49 percent this weekend, where the first Dragon eased just 34 percent over its sophomore outing. Still, like Street, Dragon 2 is on track to earn a none-too-shabby $170 million in total.

In fourth place, Clint Eastwood’s Jersey Boys disappointed with $13.5 million. That’s worse than misfire Rock of Ages ($14.4 million), although it is an improvement over Eastwood’s last directorial feature, J. Edgar ($11.2 million). Audiences were overwhelmingly older – 71 percent over the age of 50. More seasoned viewers do not typically rush out to catch a flick its first weekend in theatres, so despite a lackluster debut, Boys could hold well. The film may close out with roughly $50 million in total.

Maleficent clocked in at No. 5, earning $13 million domestically and officially crossing the $500 million mark worldwide. The film is now Angelina Jolie’s highest-grossing live-action feature ever. In terms of an overall domestic gross, Maleficent may end up with $215 million, in which case, it will be the biggest hit of the summer so far, besting the monsters and masked crusaders (otherwise known as Godzilla and The Amazing Spider-Man 2).

In total, this weekend’s box office ($142.6 million) was down 39 percent from the same period last year, which saw Monsters University, World War Z and Man of Steel leading the charge to the tune of a combined $190 million.

‘Think Like a Man Too’ to best ‘Jersey Boys’

The sequel to hit comedy Think Like a Man is tracking strong, so the pundits say, and could enjoy a $30+ million opening weekend. The film debuted last night and has already grossed $1.8 million. With its draw of a large and appealing cast, including current box-office Midas Kevin Hart, Think Like a Man Too is well-positioned to displace 22 Jump Street at the head of the charts.

Clint Eastwood’s Jersey Boys, an adaptation of the popular Broadway musical about ‘60’s rock group The Four Seasons, also opens wide this weekend. Reviews have been mixed, with some critics applauding Eastwood’s subdued take on his source material, and others decrying a wet-blanket approach.  The movie cost $30 million but is only tracking around $12 or $13 million. Still, several pundits are optimistic, calling Boys the first “adult” film of the summer. Anyone uninterested in sequels or VX may opt for Eastwood’s film as their safest, most mature, bet. We’ll see whether the Boys prove more Mamma Mia! (which opened to $27.8 million) or Rock of Ages (bowed to $14.4 million) come Monday.

Holdovers 22 Jump Street and How to Train Your Dragon 2 will likely pull out ahead of Jersey Boys. Street in particular could well retain its No. 1 standing, though even if it falls to TLAM2, its downturn shouldn’t be precipitous. The comedy has so far grossed $64 million, while Dragon has $60.4 million to its name.

 

Specialty film The Rover, otherwise known as the movie in which Robert Pattinson makes a concerted, artistic effort to banish Edward Cullen to the farthest reaches of the public’s mind, expands nationwide today. Reviews are mixed, though the name of director David Michod, he of Animal Kingdom fame, will likely entice many arthouse viewers.

’22 Jump Street’ vaults over ‘Dragon 2’

To the surprise of many a pundit skilled in predicting this sort of thing, 22 Jump Street far out-grossed How to Train Your Dragon 2 this weekend, landing the No. 1 spot at the box office. There was a $10 million difference between the two films, with Street raking in $60 million to Dragon’s $50 million. 22 Jump Street’s total was up 65 percent from its predecessor’s opening-weekend figure (21 Jump Street bowed to $36 million in 2012), and marks the second best debut ever for an R-rated comedy, just behind The Hangover Part II. Men and women turned out in equal measure for the flick (you can chalk this up to the Channing Tatum effect) and awarded it an “A-“CinemaScore grade. With such a healthy b.o. start, positive word-of-mouth and favorable reviews, Street could be looking at a final tally between $150 and $200 million.

Which makes the movie’s directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the hottest duo in town. The masterminds behind the first 21 Jump Street, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, and this winter’s mega successful The Lego Movie, are riding high. The pair has made four films in the past five years, each of which has opened at No. 1. 22 Jump Street is their second movie to bow to $60 million or more just this year, after The Lego Movie. In their own words, Everything is indeed Awesome.

We can assume DreamWorks is less thrilled with the performance of its Dragon, though the sequel to How to Train Your Dragon nonetheless enjoyed solid returns. Technically speaking, the animated kids film performed to expectation (the studio did project a $50 million opening) and even earned more than its predecessor, which bowed to $43.7 million in 2010. Still, given the popularity of the first film, and the lack of family friendly competition, many thought Dragon 2 would open much stronger. Viewers, more than half of which were under 25, awarded the film an “A” CinemaScore grade. It should hold well in the weeks ahead, although perhaps not well enough to out-gross the first How to Train Your Dragon and its $218 million total.

The other kids-skewing movie currently playing in theatres, Maleficent, earned the No. 3 spot at the weekend box office. It grossed a nice $19 million and, as of Saturday, out-earned Snow White and the Huntsman. The film’s tally stands at $163.5 million.

Last weekend’s second and first-place b.o. earners, Edge of Tomorrow and The Fault in Our Stars, dropped to fourth and fifth place, respectively. The Tom Cruise actioner dipped just 44 percent to earn $14 million; one can thank its roundly positive reviews for such a nice hold. Stars, on the other hand, fell precipitately, 67 percent, to gross $15.7 million. After such a front-loaded first weekend, a steep decline was inevitable. However, the weepie’s current $81.7 million total is surely nothing to, yes, cry about.

Week in review 6/9 - 6/13

Actress and activist Ruby Dee, best known for her portrayal of Ruth Younger in A Raisin in the Sun (younger viewers will know her as American Gangster's Mama Lucas, a role for which she earned an Oscar nomination), passed away on Wednesday. She was 91.

Last week, we mentioned civilian dissenters in Thailand have begun using the three-fingered salute from The Hunger Games in their public protests of the country's military regime. This week, Thailand made entertainment news headlines once again when its government banned a screening of dystopian drama 1984. Protestors have reportedly made a public show of reading the George Orwell novel off of which the film is based, and even displayed a poster decorated with the face of General Prayuth hovering above the phrase, Thailand 1984.

If Hollywood is spilling over into the realm of the real overseas, viewers at home are clamoring for more reality in their Hollywood fare. That, anyway, is what The Hollywood Reporter is calling The Fault in Our Stars ripple effect: an increase in more "grounded" films for teens. In other words, vampires are officially out. The fate of this summer's dystopian The Giver remains uncertain.

As does the fate of Warner Brothers, which has stumbled in the wake of its Harry Potter string of successes. The studio is behind recent missteps Blended and Edge of Tomorrow. They've pushed the latest from the Wachowskis, Jupiter Ascending, to next winter. Clint Eastwood's adaptation of the Broadway show Jersey Boys isn't tracking particularly strong, and the adaptation of YA novel If I Stay might be opening too close to the similarly weepy The Fault In Our Stars to distinguish itself in the minds of its target audience. There is hope, however, in July's Tammy, a vehicle for the likable Melissa McCarthy.

Uncertainty abounds for name-brand movie stars as well, so claims Variety's Peter Bart in his link bait-y titled though nonetheless interesting piece, Movie Stars Have Become an Endangered Species. For a longread into which  you can truly sink your teeth, however, we suggest Laura Bogart's thought piece on female villainy and strength, I Spit on Your Fairy Wings, and Your Little Dog, Too!: On MALEFICENT and Other Films.

Thoughtful characterizes the Pixar filmmakers' approach to their latest project, Inside Out, which takes for its setting the brain of an 11-year-old girl transitioning from childhood into Hollywood's favorite new demo, young adulthood. What we would assume is terrifying territory appears to be gracefully interpreted by Pete Doctor, who says he was inspired to better understand the female brain after watching his own daughter change from a carefree kid into a moody teen. We're in.

Entertainment Weekly will likely review the film once it's been released, but will anyone read it? The Awl's Anne Helen Petersen charts the rise and fall of the controversial publication.