At the Movies
A performance film (“Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away 3D”), an exploitation tribute (“Django Unchained”), a disaster epic (“The Impossible”), an action thriller (“Jack Reacher”), a musical epic (“Les Miserables”), a Disney rerelease (“Monsters, Inc. 3D”), an unsettling import (“Rust and Bone”), a couples’ romp (“This Is 40”) and two broad boomer comedies (“The Guilt Trip” and “Parental Guidance”) are holiday titles coming to theaters through Dec. 25.
The new arrivals (with all dates subject to change) include:
“Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away 3D,” with Erica Linz and Dallas Barnett in a PG-rated stylized tale about a fantastical romance between a petite outsider and a trapeze artist. James Cameron served as executive producer, and Andrew Adamson (“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”) directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
“Django Unchained,” with Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Don Johnson, James Remar and Christoph Waltz in an extremely violent frontier tale about a revenge-seeking husband fighting to release his wife from a sadistic slave owner. Quentin Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction”) wrote and directed this R-rated tribute to spaghetti Westerns and blaxploitation titles. (Opens Dec. 25)
“The Guilt Trip,” with Barbra Streisand and Seth Rogen in a PG-13 comedy about an inventor who gets to spend an inordinate amount of time with his controlling mother during a cross-country road trip. Anne Fletcher (“The Proposal”) directed. (Opened Dec. 19)
“The Impossible,” with Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor in a harrowing PG-13 factual tale about a couple and their three children caught in the middle of the 2004 tsunami responsible for killing more than 230,000 people. Juan Antonio Bayona (“The Orphanage”) directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
“Jack Reacher,” with Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Robert Duvall, Richard Jenkins and Werner Herzog in a thriller based on Lee Child’s 2005 book, “One Shot,” about a 6-foot-5 ex-military cop using vigilante tactics while investigating a sniper shooting. Christopher McQuarrie (“The Way of the Gun”) directed the PG-13 picture, which was shot in Pittsburgh. (Opens Dec. 21)
“Les Miserables,” with Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried and Hugh Jackman as Fantine, Javert, Cosette and Jean Valjean, respectively, in a $61 million mounting of the French Revolution musical that’s beloved around the globe. Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen co-star. Tom Hooper (“The King’s Speech”) directed the PG-13 epic. (Opens Dec. 25)
“Monsters, Inc. 3D,” with the voices of Billy Crystal and John Goodman returning as Mike and Sulley, respectively, in a 3D rerelease of the G-rated Disney favorite. (Opened Dec. 19)
“Parental Guidance,” with Billy Crystal, Bette Midler and Marisa Tomei in a PG-rated comedy about aging parents who agree to baby-sit their daughter’s three children for a week. The control-freak daughter then smothers her old-school mom and dad with complaints about their child-rearing skills. Andrew Fickman (“The Game Plan”) directed. (Opens Dec. 25)
“Rust and Bone,” with Marion Cotillard, who won a best-actress Oscar for “La Vie en Rose,” in an R-rated import about a woman who trains whales at a marine-land on the French Riviera and suffers a devastating injury. Her recovery is helped by her relationship with a boxer, who has a 5-year-old son and doesn’t believe in giving the woman too much sympathy. It is being shown in French with subtitles. Jacques Audiard (“A Prophet”) directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
“This Is 40,” with Leslie Mann, Paul Rudd, Albert Brooks, Megan Fox and Jason Segel in an R-rated comedy about a couple who look back at their lives and battle to make changes as they hit the four-decade mark. Mann and Rudd previously played the married characters in “Knocked Up” (2007). Judd Apatow (“Funny People”), who’s married to Mann, directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
At the buck$ office
Director Peter Jackson’s highly anticipated prequel, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” wasn’t quite the blockbuster industry observers expected.
The PG-13 fantasy, based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien, premiered with $84.7 million. That’s certainly a respectable opening, but it was expected to do better in light of the mega success of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, also written by Tolkien.
“Rise of the Guardians” took the No. 2 spot. The computer-animated tale featuring Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny as superheroes grossed more than $7 million.
Director Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” continued to attract viewers. The PG-13 biography, featuring Daniel Day-Lewis as the 16th U.S. president, grossed $7.2 million for the No. 3 spot.
In six weeks, “Lincoln” has grossed $107.8 million, a figure that will certainly rise when the film starts receiving Oscar nominations and other awards.
A performance film (“Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away 3D“), an exploitation tribute (“Django Unchained“), a disaster epic (“The Impossible“), an action thriller (“Jack Reacher“), a musical epic (“Les Miserables“), a Disney rerelease (“Monsters, Inc. 3D“), an unsettling import (“Rust and Bone“), a couples’ romp (“This Is 40“) and two broad boomer comedies (“The Guilt Trip” and “Parental Guidance“) are holiday titles coming to theaters through Dec. 25.
The new arrivals (with all dates subject to change) include:
“Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away 3D,” with Erica Linz and Dallas Barnett in a PG-rated stylized tale about a fantastical romance between a petite outsider and a trapeze artist. James Cameron served as executive producer, and Andrew Adamson (“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”) directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
“Django Unchained,” with Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Don Johnson, James Remar and Christoph Waltz in an extremely violent frontier tale about a revenge-seeking husband fighting to release his wife from a sadistic slave owner. Quentin Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction”) wrote and directed this R-rated tribute to spaghetti Westerns and blaxploitation titles. (Opens Dec. 25)
“The Guilt Trip,” with Barbra Streisand and Seth Rogen in a PG-13 comedy about an inventor who gets to spend an inordinate amount of time with his controlling mother during a cross-country road trip. Anne Fletcher (“The Proposal”) directed. (Opened Dec. 19)
“The Impossible,” with Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor in a harrowing PG-13 factual tale about a couple and their three children caught in the middle of the 2004 tsunami responsible for killing more than 230,000 people. Juan Antonio Bayona (“The Orphanage”) directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
“Jack Reacher,” with Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Robert Duvall, Richard Jenkins and Werner Herzog in a thriller based on Lee Child’s 2005 book, “One Shot,” about a 6-foot-5 ex-military cop using vigilante tactics while investigating a sniper shooting. Christopher McQuarrie (“The Way of the Gun”) directed the PG-13 picture, which was shot in Pittsburgh. (Opens Dec. 21)
“Les Miserables,” with Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried and Hugh Jackman as Fantine, Javert, Cosette and Jean Valjean, respectively, in a $61 million mounting of the French Revolution musical that’s beloved around the globe. Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen co-star. Tom Hooper (“The King’s Speech”) directed the PG-13 epic. (Opens Dec. 25)
“Monsters, Inc. 3D,” with the voices of Billy Crystal and John Goodman returning as Mike and Sulley, respectively, in a 3D rerelease of the G-rated Disney favorite. (Opened Dec. 19)
“Parental Guidance,” with Billy Crystal, Bette Midler and Marisa Tomei in a PG-rated comedy about aging parents who agree to baby-sit their daughter’s three children for a week. The control-freak daughter then smothers her old-school mom and dad with complaints about their child-rearing skills. Andrew Fickman (“The Game Plan”) directed. (Opens Dec. 25)
“Rust and Bone,” with Marion Cotillard, who won a best-actress Oscar for “La Vie en Rose,” in an R-rated import about a woman who trains whales at a marine-land on the French Riviera and suffers a devastating injury. Her recovery is helped by her relationship with a boxer, who has a 5-year-old son and doesn’t believe in giving the woman too much sympathy. It is being shown in French with subtitles. Jacques Audiard (“A Prophet”) directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
“This Is 40,” with Leslie Mann, Paul Rudd, Albert Brooks, Megan Fox and Jason Segel in an R-rated comedy about a couple who look back at their lives and battle to make changes as they hit the four-decade mark. Mann and Rudd previously played the married characters in “Knocked Up” (2007). Judd Apatow (“Funny People”), who’s married to Mann, directed. (Opens Dec. 21)
At the buck$ office
Director Peter Jackson’s highly anticipated prequel, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” wasn’t quite the blockbuster industry observers expected.
The PG-13 fantasy, based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien, premiered with $84.7 million. That’s certainly a respectable opening, but it was expected to do better in light of the mega success of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, also written by Tolkien.
“Rise of the Guardians” took the No. 2 spot. The computer-animated tale featuring Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny as superheroes grossed more than $7 million.
Director Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” continued to attract viewers. The PG-13 biography, featuring Daniel Day-Lewis as the 16th U.S. president, grossed $7.2 million for the No. 3 spot.
In six weeks, “Lincoln” has grossed $107.8 million, a figure that will certainly rise when the film starts receiving Oscar nominations and other awards.