Dejana

Not that all young writers are bad/mediocre, but knowing Veronica Roth's age/generation puts a lot of this series' flaws into context. She's a peer of thousands of other tweens/teens who were writing Harry Potter fanfic as they waited for the next book/movie to come out. The writing here seems to be on roughly the same level of depth that you often encountered in that realm. I really don't care that she killed off Tris, but IMO a series can't build a legacy on a twist like that. Once a series isn't new anymore, people often come to it already spoiled on certain details but they still want to try it, anyway. If there's no there there, beyond, oooh, you killed off the lead, then all people are left to judge is how the story was told. And if killing off the YA fantasy/sci-fi hero becomes all the rage in other series, someone will probably do a better job of it than Roth did in Allegiant, and/or that story development will become its own cliché 5-10 years down the road.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Sandra Bullock. When they were sitting next to each other at the Oscars this year, they looked good together. It would be nice if they played a couple in something and that she's older than him wasn't a big story issue.

Tom Cruise isn't the draw he used to be but there aren't many of his movies post-2006 where I feel that his presence held them back from making more money stateside. Maybe if they'd had Will Smith (before everyone got sick of him for trying to make his kids celebrities). Jack Reacher, perhaps, if they'd a guy who really looked the part, but it could've come and gone with a whimper like The Punisher or Dredd. Some people avoid his movies now, but his presence still gives them more attention than they might get otherwise. His movies may not reach the monetary heights of his glory days, but they tend to have a floor and at most disappoint at the box office more than outright belly flop. I don't count things like Lion for Lambs (obviously busted Oscar bait) or supporting turns like Rock of Ages (carried on the charisma of Julianne Hough and Diego Boneta), which probably would've tanked anyway. Even if you adjust The Bourne Identity's budget to 2014 dollars it comes out to about $80 million, which wouldn't pay for half of Edge of Tomorrow. Something like Frozen earns money on its soundtrack and merchandise and the ice/stage show potential. Perhaps Hollywood should start budgeting more wisely so that a movie doesn't have to have a gigantic opening weekend or make $500 million worldwide (not specifically EoT but in general) for the studio not to land in the red. I feel that if these hugely budgeted movies with hard-to-sell-to-the-general-public concepts starred someone besides white males that the studio purse strings would tighten up really quickly, but that's another post for another time...

I feel that there can be a way to convey what a movie is about or how it's about, if that makes sense, without completely spoiling it in the ads/trailers. I was really surprised to see the reviews and comments from people who'd seen Edge of Tomorrow, that it had all this humor and wasn't so different in tone from the 2009 Star Trek. Marketing is an easy scapegoat when films do poorly, but the ads didn't make EoT seem anything like that. Oscar bait might live or die by reviews, but when you're a $170+ million action flick starring Tom Cruise, marketing has to be a big part of getting people into theaters. It's like WB knew in advance that word-of-mouth would sink Godzilla, once audiences actually saw it, so they spent all their marketing muscle trying to get it a big opening weekend, and just didn't have any energy left to consider the best way to promote EoT. Frozen obscured that it was a Disney princess musical at first and marketed the goofy snowman heavily, hoping to get boys to watch it, too, but once it opened really well and word of mouth took off, there was an advertising shift to highlight the songs and sisterhood angles more heavily. It just seems much riskier to rely on that sort of strategy when a movie isn't exactly the first action/sci-fi option out of the block for the season. The Bourne Identity had a $27.1M opening weekend and finished with $121.6M. Box office runs were leggier in 2002 and Matt Damon headlining an action movie back then was more of an unknown quality, so there wasn't a rush factor. I think Americans need more convincing these days about Tom Cruise outside the Mission: Impossible franchise, compared to audiences elsewhere, and the ad campaign fell down on the job. But if the world of mouth is really good, maybe EoT will buck the big-budget 2014 movie trend of not holding well in subsequent weeks.

She's had eye surgery that made her virtually unrecognizable, but even before that, her career wasn't going well. She strikes me as someone on the fragile side...if she didn't need the money, maybe she took a hiatus from acting.

If Edge of Tomorrow is humorous in any way, its ads/trailers failed to showcase that side of the movie. It just looked...not radically different from Oblivion, Source Code, and some sort of grim sci-fi Groundhog Day. The reviews for The Fault in Our Stars were very positive, too, but its studio did an infinitely better job selling it to its target audience, and there hasn't been a romantic or teen drama in a while. I wouldn't mind having admissions data, too, but movies make studios money, and the dollar amounts sound more impressive. In ticket sales, a movie like God's Not Dead might seem more successful than it was in dollars, because it played better in areas with lower ticket prices, or sold more tickets at group rates. The studios would rather have a movie that sold the same number of tickets at NY/LA prices. If movies in IMAX or 3D make more money, studios are going to greenlight more movies like that. Maybe tickets for kids' movies cost less, but studios make up for that with 3D surcharges. Live-action children's films probably aren't such a big thing these days in general because there is more money to be made now in animation.

Maybe it has something to do with maximizing play time by scheduling the tournaments when the hours of sunlight per day are closest to their peak in that part in the world. Even now all of those GS facilities don't have lights on all the courts.

About two weeks. Wimbledon 2014 runs from June 23 to July 6.

The Fault in Our Stars is an easy #1 but shows signs of massive frontloading, cooling off considerably on Saturday. Still, it cost $12 million, so the studio has to be pretty happy. WB has to be a little more concerned about Edge of Tomorrow, with its $178M budget. They'll have to hope it's huge overseas and bucks this year's trend of big budget movies with weak box office legs. June 6–8, 2014 Estimates: 1 (N) The Fault in our Stars, $48,200,000 2 (1) Maleficent, $33,523,000 | $127,370,000 3 (N) Edge of Tomorrow, $29,105,000 4 (2) X-Men: Days of Future Past, $14,700,000 | $189,101,000 5 (3) A Million Ways to Die in the West, $7,189,000 | $30,088,000 6 (4) Godzilla (2014), $5,950,000 | $185,043,000 7 (6) Neighbors, $5,201,000 | $137,801,000 8 (5) Blended, $4,050,000 | $36,509,000 9 (9) Chef, $2,600,000 | $10,362,000 10 (8) Million Dollar Arm, $1,822,000 | $31,347,000 Outside the Top 10: HOLIDAY (2014): $413,000 | 144 Locations | $2,868 Avg. | $413,000 IDA: $227,000 | 87 Locations | $2,609 Avg. | $1,287,000 OBVIOUS CHILD: $81,000 | 3 Locations | $27,000 Avg. | $81,000 THE LUNCHBOX: $52,600 | 46 Locations | $1,143 Avg. | $4,052,700 Global Totals: FROZEN: $844.4M Overseas Total | $1.245B Global Total X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST: $422.1M Overseas Total | $611.2M Global Total RIO 2: $343M Overseas Total | $468.6M Global Total GODZILLA: $208.7M Overseas Total | $393.7M Global Total MALEFICENT: $208.1M Overseas Total | $335.4M Global Total NEIGHBORS: $85.6M Overseas Total | $223.4M Global Total THE OTHER WOMAN: $95.3M Overseas Total | $177.5M Global Total EDGE OF TOMORROW: $111M Overseas Total | $140.1M Global Total THE FAULT IN OUR STARS: $17M Overseas Total | $65.2M Global Total A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST: $20M Overseas Total | $50.1M Global Total

A new promo trailer featuring behind-the-scenes and show clips interspersed with cast/crew/Diana interviews.

Leo's tastes tend to run to the more prestige side of things, more often than not. Even his foray into big-budget action was Inception, not, IDK, Transformers. So often actors are ragged on for taking paycheck jobs instead of caring about their craft but DiCaprio gets it for being in too much Oscar bait. OTOH, I know what people mean when they say Leo's projects are all a bit "worthy"...they'd like to see how he'd fare in a buddy comedy, the next reunion with Kate to be something lighthearted where they play witty urbane spies or stylish art thieves, trying his hand as an SNL host, etc.

I think Leo looks better without the slicked back hair and goatee he seems to prefer and his face tends to go a bit bloaty if he doesn't watch his weight. Still, he's not someone who would come to mind when I think of child/teen stars who didn't grow into their looks. I think that's a big part whether a child star ends up being taken seriously as an adult actor, yet it's not really something a person can control.

I looked at the Arnie/Don friendship as a way for Weiner have his author-insert characters (his fictional "realistic" self vs. the idealized leading man version) interact, but that interpretation is a bit meta...

Disney on Ice Presents Frozen:

Yes, that's her.

Beyonce has some intense stans (the Beyhive) plus there are all those conspiracy theories about her selling her soul to become such a megastar, so the Beygency made me think of those things first, but The Adjustment Bureau was on TV last night and the looks of the agents was very similar. Loved that Kiefer having the Rihanna tattoo!

Some movies have a greater influence than their box office would indicate, especially over time. In many cases a movie is watched by the right people who write about movies and it makes them seem more popular than they were initially. A movie can be ahead of its time and get discovered once it's hit the home market or cable. May 2–4, 2014 Estimates: 1 (N) The Amazing Spider-Man 2, $92,000,000 2 (1) The Other Woman, $14,200,000 | $47,345,000 3 (3) Heaven is for Real, $8,700,000 | $65,600,000 4 (2) Captain America: The Winter Soldier, $7,762,000 | $237,143,000 5 (4) Rio 2, $7,600,000 | $106,470,000 6 (5) Brick Mansions, $3,545,000 | $15,482,000 7 (9) Divergent, $2,175,000 | $142,662,000 8 (7) The Quiet Ones, $2,000,000 | $6,761,000 9 (11) God's Not Dead, $1,769,000 | $55,564,000 10 (13) The Grand Budapest Hotel, $1,735,000 | $51,506,000 Outside the Top 10: NOAH: $880,000 | 929 Locations | $947 Avg. | $99,005,000 FADING GIGOLO: $508,000 | 110 Locations | $4,618 Avg. | $1,150,000 BELLE: $105,000 | 4 Locations | $26,250 Avg. | $105,000 IDA: $50,000 | 3 Locations | $16,667 Avg. | $50,000 WALK OF SHAME: $38,000 | 51 Locations | $745 Avg. | $38,000 Global Totals: FROZEN: $786.9M Overseas Total | $1.169B Global Total CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER: $442.7M Overseas Total | $679.8M Global Total RIO 2: $289.1M Overseas Total | $395.6M Global Total THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2: $277M Overseas Total | $369M Global Total NOAH: $233.4M Overseas Total | $332.4M Global Total MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN: $158.2M Overseas Total | $266.7M Global Total DIVERGENT: $107.6M Overseas Total | $250.2M Global Total THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL: $89.1M Overseas Total | $140.6M Global Total THE OTHER WOMAN: $45.8M Overseas Total | $93.1M Global Total

New trailer

Will country radio let more than 3-4 women be consistently popular at a time again?

I'm really surprised that the casting for Jamie and Claire has gone over as well as it has, as the fanbase can be very...passionate. There's been talk of making an Outlander movie for years, with names thrown out like Gerard Butler and Katherine Heigl, so that it's relative unknowns and 16 episodes for one book, seems like a win already.

A topic about the money that movies make, in the US and all over the world. Here are the weekend's numbers: April 4–6, 2014 Estimates: 1 (N) Captain America: The Winter Soldier, $96,200,000 2 (1) Noah, $17,000,000 | $72,341,000 3 (2) Divergent, $13,000,000 | $114,029,000 4 (5) God's Not Dead, $7,726,000 | $32,520,000 5 (6) The Grand Budapest Hotel, $6,300,000 | $33,380,000 6 (3) Muppets Most Wanted, $6,285,000 | $42,142,000 7 (4) Mr. Peabody & Sherman, $5,300,000 | $102,202,000 8 (7) Sabotage, $1,908,000 | $8,767,000 9 (8) Need for Speed, $1,836,000 | $40,839,000 10 (10) Non-Stop, $1,827,000 | $88,138,000 In Limited Release: FRANKIE & ALICE: $350,000 | 171 Locations | $2,047 Avg. | $350,000 UNDER THE SKIN: $140,000 | 4 Locations | $35,000 Avg. | $140,000 DON HEMINGWAY: $32,000 | 4 Locations | $8,000 Avg. | $41,500 Global Totals: FROZEN: $698.4M Overseas Total | $1.097B Global Total THE LEGO MOVIE: $160M Overseas Total | $410.6M Global Total CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER: $207.1M Overseas Total | $303.3M Global Total 300 RISE OF AN EMPIRE: $220.7M Overseas Total | $324.7M Global Total MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN: $137.3M Overseas Total | $239.5M Global Total NEED FOR SPEED: $143.7M Overseas Total | $184.5M Global Total NON-STOP: $90.2M Overseas Total | $178.3M Global Total NOAH: $106.2M Overseas Total | $178M Global Total DIVERGENT: $22.4M Overseas Total | $136.6M Global Total THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL: $54.3M Overseas Total | $87.7M Global Total MUPPETS MOST WANTED: $10.1M Overseas Total (10 Territories) | $52.2M Global Total

I was thinking more along the lines that the event with the bomb is something the Grant kids would attend, young Gerry would be injured and somehow the truth about his possible paternity would be revealed, sending Fitz into a tailspin. Agree that Andrew seems like total canon fodder redshirt material.

Oooh, a music section! Still listening to this album all the time, months later. I get a little obsessed with a different song every week or two; right now it's Superpower, before it was Yonce, then Flawless, and Blue (so adorable at the end when Blue Ivy is saying "Beyonce" in her baby talk way). I really love how she dropped the album out of no where twelve days before Christmas, and that it's been such a big success for her.

I was rather baffled that B613's bills all seem to be paid in real time and that whole plot in general. So, Liv & Friends shut down a super secret cabal of terrorist spies and...that was going to be the end of it? They wouldn't all have targets on their backs? Fitz is just, so, so heinous. Sure, in real life, if a VP candidate/First Lady were having an affair it would be an all-time White House scandal, but in the Scandalverse, the place is loaded with murdering election thieves who are known adulterers. Even if Fitz had said that, hey, he had no right to demand fidelity and after all that he's done, the American public (overall) probably wouldn't blame her too much for finding comfort with someone else, but as a First Lady with an eye on history, maybe sexing the next Vice President is going to be a bad look in the biographies on her. Manipulative, sure, but in a slightly less coldhearted way.

I took the "no spoilers" tag as saying you couldn't just put spoilers in the general body of a post without warning.