I watched Strange Brew again last night. A film I’ve watched for twenty five years now. What I love about the movie is a multitude of things, but last night I really appreciated the absurdity the film builds up. The first half is a more straightforward riff on Hamlet with a ghost and some funny goings on, but by the end of the film you have a flying dog and a plot to take over the world with drugged beer, on top of one of the greatest sight gags that I saw as a child (inflated Bob). I’m probably in the thrall of nostalgia too strongly to ever rate it fairly (much as I feel about Stripes, which is a much weaker film if only because the third act goes off the rails a little), but it’s mother’s milk to me. Oh, that expression is TERRIBLE!

YOU CALL THIS A HOLIDAY WEEKEND?

By the end of the Holiday weekend Avatar will be over $650, and likely over $660. That’s at least $23 Million, which is great for week whatever we are with this thing (*looks at cue cards*) oh. Week eight. This is also the first weekend that Titanic‘s comparison weekend looks insurmountable. Titanic did $28 Million for the three day, and I don’t this has that much juice. Such will amplify the “Avatar is wrapping up” theme, which will then be hurt a bit next week when it outpaces some of the films that opened above it this weekend. (Wait, I was just talking about how what’s going to happen next weekend will reflect on what happens this weekend? That’s crazy Back to the Future talk!) At this point $700 Million before Alice is happening, but it’s got three weeks and then everything changes. Warner Brothers has talked about having nine 3-D films in the near future, but I haven’t seen much hullabaloo about theaters adding more 3-D screens. Have they? They’re going to have to. Basically studios want to charge more to boost revenues in a shitty economy. It’s bullshit, on top of 3-D being thrown at films for no reason other than it’s the thing to do.

Mike D’Angelo mentioned how this weekend we have three films from Chris Columbus, Gary Marshall and Joe Johnston, and said that this is similar to 1991 (when all three directed – arguably – their best works). If only. such led me to mention The Other Sister.

Have you seen The Other Sister? It is – to say the very least – amazing. I saw it in the theater on a weekday at an evening show by myself (so awesome) and the best part is when you realize “this exists. I am not on drugs.”

It is interesting that three older directors are still doing similar work (Kids movies, romances, genre leftovers) nearly twenty years after the fact, but as none of them distinguished themselves as auteurs, they can still get work and called up to direct films that are much like the films that they directed that were hits. This would be sad if these guys didn’t punch their weight, and didn’t try other things and fail with them.

SOMEONE HIRE ME TO BE THEIR PUFFY-ON-BIGGIE-RECORDS STYLE VOCALIST (PREDICTIONS) I COULD DO THAT.

Someone said to me that V-Day could do $50 Million for the four day. Okay. Sure. I’m going to go a little more conservative for that. I think the weakest of the new films is also the strongest film of the bunch (as I’ve been told. By Beaks. For what it’s worth), Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief. I will recuse myself from any opinion on the movie, but the thing about kids movies is they have the most box office wiggle room. Mosty because of how tracking works. Tracking has never been 100% on kids films, so there’s always a bit of breathing room there. Still, over $20 is likely as good as it gets. It can’t be another Golden Compass, and it could get to $100 domestic, and do better internationally, but likely it’s a one and done. The Wolfman – if it gets to $80 – will likely be considered a success even if it cost more just because the production problems on the film were made very public. But this is likely a Watchmen, or Friday the 13th type situation, where the opening weekend is half of the gross. Obviously, last weekend I went low on Dear John, so I might course correct on a title with direct competition and say it does a little better than it should. Or not.

Three Days:
1. Valentine’s Day – $33 .5 Million
2 Percy Jackson – $26.3 Million
3. The Wolfman – $25.2 Million
4. Avatar – $20 Million
5. Dear John – $20 Million

I think the last two are going to fight it out, and that’s a rich weekend. With the four day, two or three of those will jump up over $30 fo’ sho. I won’t write about it, though, I’m just going to write on Sunday.