Hollywood is very familiar with the tale of Daedalus and Icarus because they’re letting Captain America: Civil War have the box office in it’s second week. You don’t really think a movie where George Clooney plays a Jim Cramer-type can compete with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, do you? Even with Julia Roberts’ help, it won’t happen. Neither will the release of a horror film on Friday the 13th. The two “big” releases of the week are joined by four platform releases. Here’s what you should and shouldn’t see for the week of May 13th:
Money Monster
Theater Count: 3,104
Starring: George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Jack O’Connell, Giancarlo Esposito, Dominic West
Buzz:
Money Monster is backed by plenty of advertising and press thanks to the star power of George Clooney and Julia Roberts. It doesn’t hurt having Jodie Foster directing, either. The trailer has been criticized for a lack of consistent tone and being too revealing. The film’s TV ads are focused on an older audience which might be smart considering the younger audience have plenty of options.
3 Things to Know:
- The film was shot in New York City last year but re-shoots were done as late as January of this year.
- This is the fourth film where Clooney and Roberts will share the screen together. Clooney also produced August: Osage County which Roberts starred in.
- Clooney’s Lee Gates appears to be a Jim Cramer imitation and his fictional show Money Monster looks an awful lot like Mad Money.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
See it! Clooney and Roberts can elevate a bad script so even if the movie is a dud, these two will be entertaining to watch.
The Darkness
Theater Count: 1,755
Starring: Kevin Bacon, Radha Mitchell, David Mazouz, Matt Walsh, Jennifer Morrison
Buzz:
Sure, releasing a horror film on Friday the 13th is a little gimmicky but it’s sure to grab a few extra patrons on Friday night. It probably won’t make or break this from being a hit but with a modest $5 million budget, it won’t take much for The Darkness to make it’s money back. Blumhouse is marketing the film similar to the way it marketed The Green Inferno last year which pulled in around $3.5 million in it’s opening week. The Darkness opens in about 200 more theaters and doesn’t feature graphic scenes of cannibalism so it should have a slight box office advantage over The Green Inferno.
3 Things to Know:
- The movie was shot in Los Angeles over two years ago.
- Producer Jason Blum had targeted Kevin Bacon as a star of one of his low-budget films but Kevin passed on many scripts before finally showing interest in The Darkness.
- Bacon and Morrison worked together previously in Stir of Echoes in 1999.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
Do you like scary movies? If so, see it! If not, skip it! If someone says this to you on the phone you just answered, run!
Kill Zone 2
Theater Count: 13
Starring: Tony Jaa
Buzz:
The sequel to Kill Zone which was released in Hong Kong and China last year has made it’s way to the states. The platform release will likely not see a wide release.
3 Things to Know:
- Kill Zone 2 opened at #2 at the Chinese box office last year behind Jurassic World.
- It is a sequel in name only to the original. Two actors from the original return but have new roles.
- In China, the film’s title is SPL II: A Time for Consequences.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
If you’re into Asian action flicks, you might want to seek this one out. Otherwise, you might want to pass.
Search Party
Theater Count: 10
Starring: TJ Miller, Thomas Middleditch, Adam Pally, Alison Brie, Krysten Ritter
Buzz:
Despite completing filming in 2013, outside of the Netherlands, Search Party hasn’t found the light of day. It’s early but it is 0-for-11 with critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
3 Things to Know:
- The original U.S. release date was September 12, 2014 and it was pulled from the schedule by Universal.
- The film marks the directorial début of Scot Armstrong who was the writer of The Hangover: Part II.
- The plot of Search Party draws a lot of similarities to The Hangover.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
Skip it! Maybe we’ve grown out of movies like The Hangover… or maybe this just isn’t that funny.
Love & Friendship
Theater Count: 4
Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Chloe Sevigny, Stephen Fry, Xavier Samuel
Buzz:
Critics are on board: All 48 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes have been positive. It is written and directed by Whit Stillman who has a history of well-received films that are barely a blip on the box office radar.
3 Things to Know:
- Love & Friendship is adapted from Jane Austen’s Lady Susan.
- The film was nominated for the Big Screen Award at the Rotterdam Film Festival.
- It was shot in Ireland.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
See it! Who am I to say to skip a film that is recommended by 48 of 48 reviewers who actually saw the film? You’ll probably have to hope it expands though unless you’re in New York or Los Angeles.
The Lobster
Theater Count: 4
Starring: Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz, John C. Reilly
Buzz:
Because The Lobster made the rounds at many film festivals last year and received heaps of praise, you might have heard of it already and thought it had come and gone in theaters. With it opening on just 4 screens, it should see a wider release in the coming weeks but the question will be how wide will it go in a very competitive summer schedule.
3 Things to Know:
- The Lobster won the Jury Prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival.
- Like Love & Friendship, the movie was filmed in Ireland.
- The movie was originally set to be released by distributor Alchemy but due to financial difficulties was acquired by A24.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
See it! Previews look promising and critics have been buzzing about it for some time.
Box Office Recap (May 6th Weekend)
- Captain America: Civil War ($179,139,142) MHT Forecast #1 at $205 million
- The Jungle Book ($24,488,436) MHT Forecast #2 at $28 million
- Mother’s Day ($11,087,076) MHT Forecast #4 at $6 million
- The Huntsman: Winter’s War ($3,948,835) MHT Forecast #6 at $3.6 million
- Keanu ($3,287,484) MHT Forecast #3 at $6.1 million
- Zootopia ($3,214,592) MHT Forecast #5 at $4 million
- Barbershop: The Next Cut ($2,803,268) MHT Forecast #8 at $3 million
- The Boss ($1,913,425) MHT Forecast #10 at $2.1 million
- Ratchet & Clank ($1,463,250) MHT Forecast #7 at $3.1 million
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($1,050,468) MHT Forecast #9 at $2.2 million
Despite all the warnings from critics, nothing stopped moviegoers from torturing their mothers by taking them to see Mother’s Day. The movie actually saw an increase in box office week over week. Oh, and Captain America: Civil War had a big week but not as big of a week as some expected.
Box Office Predictions for May 13th Weekend
- Captain America: Civil War ($79,000,000)
- The Jungle Book ($14,700,000)
- Money Monster ($10,000,000)
- Mother’s Day ($5,000,000)
- The Darkness ($4,900,000)
- Zootopia ($2,400,000)
- The Huntsman: Winter’s War ($2,200,000)
- Barbershop: The Next Cut ($1,500,000)
- Keanu ($1,300,000)
- The Boss ($1,000,000)
Ratchet & Clank ($560k), The Man Who Knew Infinity ($500k), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($450k)
Captain America will own the box office again and neither début should blow anyone away. Expect Zootopia to hold strong.
Want to play along yourself? Check out Fantasy Movie League! (MHT is not affiliated with FML in any way… just a fan!)