US Box Office Top 10: 8th September 2014

It was quiet at the US box office this week - the quietest it has been for two years in fact - as the only new release was an utter flop, and even Marvel's smash-hit Guardians of the Galaxy only pulled in $10 million. The fact that this relatively small number was enough for the movie to hold the top spot yet again, should tell you just how few people went to the cinema over the weekend. While there's little more to say about Guardians of the Galaxy aside from that it's a huge success, I did find it funny to see that the Marvel Studios flick has now surpassed Man of Steel's box office numbers! I'm no DC hater, but I do find it amusing that an iconic character that has been the face of the comic book industry for around 75 years, can be bested so easily by an obscure gang of misfits. It's a strange world.

The aforementioned new release this week was The Identical, a movie aimed primarily at Christian audiences, following two twins who are separated at birth. One goes on to become a rock 'n' roll superstar, one struggles with a father he worries about disappointing. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the movie received some scathing reviews and this may be part of why it flopped quite so hard. The movie managed to pull in just $1.91 million over the weekend landing it at number eleven, and while it's unlikely to have had a huge budget, that still isn't great. The movie continues what has been a very bad year for actor Ray Liotta in terms of box office numbers. Liotta, who starred in Martin Scorsese's much-acclaimed 'Goodfellas' has also had roles in some of 2014's other flops including Muppets Most Wanted and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For. There's always next year, I suppose.

Much of this week's top ten is the same as last week, with many movies holding their spots on the chart. Meanwhile last week's disappointing new entries continue to disappoint this week, as The November Man and As Above/So Below perform poorly once again.

Here's this week's top ten in full:

1. (1) Guardians of the Galaxy - $10.1 million

2. (2) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - $6.5 million

3. (3) If I Stay - $5.7 million

4. (5) Let's Be Cops - $5.4 million

5. (6) The November Man - $4.2 million

6. (4) As Above/So Below - $3.72 million

7. (7) When the Game Stands Tall - $3.7 million

8. (8) The Giver - $3.5 million

9. (9) The Hundred-Foot Journey - $3.2 million

10. (11) Lucy - $1.95 million

Be sure to let us know on our Facebook page, on Twitter or in the comments section below what you think of this week's box office numbers, and come back next Monday for more!

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Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson Cast As Black Adam, But Will Shazam Fail?

After years of teasing and hinting, today it was finally announced what role Dwayne Johnson is to have in the developing DC cinematic universe. The actor has talked openly many times about his interest in a Shazam movie, recently telling fans he was struggling to decide which role he would rather play: Shazam or Black Adam. However it seems a decision was made as today Johnson announced from his Twitter account the news that he will be portraying Black Adam in the upcoming Shazam movie, one of many DC projects in the works at the moment.

After all these years of seeing Johnson flirt with the idea of playing this character on-screen, I was sceptical when I first saw Johnson's tweet thinking it may be yet another playful tease and nothing else. But after the news was confirmed by the respectable entertainment news site Variety, I allowed myself to believe that this period of mystery was now finally over. The script to the Shazam movie is being written by screenwriter Darren Lemke, whose resume isn't exactly flawless with his most recent films - Turbo, Jack the Giant Slayer, and Shrek Forever After - all receiving a relatively mixed response. However, the films mentioned do have their fans and are far from terrible so I don't intend on dismissing Lemke just yet.

Black Adam was a DC comics villain who essentially displayed the complete opposite traits of the hero Shazam. Although recently in the comics the character has taken on more of an anti-hero stance, as those kinds of characters continue to be fashionable. No release date has been set for the movie, probably as Warner Bros. try to figure out how Johnson is going to have the time to film Shazam. What with the Fast and Furious and G.I Joe franchises, as well as upcoming disaster flick San Andreas, and HBO TV series Ballers, Johnson is a very busy man. But at least Warner don't have to worry about Hercules becoming a franchise for the star, as the movie disappointed financially this Summer.

This raises the question, is casting the Rock a good decision? While he certainly has a few hits, some of his recent movies including Pain & Gain, Snitch and the aforementioned Hercules have struggled to pull in audiences at the box office. The actor seems more at home in roles where he's surrounded by a group of other actors a la the G.I. Joe and Fast and Furious franchises. If San Andreas, Johnson's next starring vehicle, is another bomb then Warner might just regret their decision to put him in their fragile new universe.

Let us know how you feel about this casting news in the comments section below, on our Facebook page or on Twitter! Also, do you think screenwriter Darren Lemke will be able to turn out a good script for this movie? Or will a rewrite be necessary?

To get a look at how cool Black Adam is in action, check out the cinematic trailer for the videogame DC Universe Online below. It is badass.

For more movie news be sure to keep visiting The Entertainment Network.

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US Box Office Top 10: 1st September 2014

It was another quiet week at the box office, where movie-goers once again decided a second (or third) viewing of Guardians of the Galaxy would be more enjoyable than any of the week's new releases. Because of this, Guardians of the Galaxy was able to hold onto the top spot for the second week, with a tiny drop of just 5.2%. It appears that movie theatres have a lot of faith in the movie too, as Guardians of the Galaxy is one of just two movies in the top ten to add screenings to their theatre count. The Marvel movie adds 91 screens to its overall count this week, bringing it to a total of 3,462 theatres despite being five weeks into its run. The film brings in another $16 million this week, securing its place as the most successful film of the year in the USA. The fear experienced by many in the run up to the release of Guardians - that the movie may not strike a chord with mainstream audiences - now seems a distant memory.

The top three remains unchanged this week, with Michael Bay's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles holding the number two spot, and Kick-Ass' Chloe Moretz close behind at number three with If I Stay. Both films are shaping up to be modest success stories for their respective studios, as the Ninja Turtles move forward with a second movie and If I Stay easily makes back its $11 million budget.

The highest new entry this week is the found-footage horror movie As Above/So Below which debuts at number four. The lukewarm box office reception this movie has had - with just $8.3 million made on its opening weekend - may reflect movie-goers increasing resentment towards the found-footage genre which has garnered so many hits in the last decade due to their low-budget nature.
The other top ten new entry this week is Pierce Brosnan's, The November Man, which also kicks off its run quietly entering the top ten at number six with just $7.6 million pulled in over the weekend. Arguably, Pierce Brosnan's ability to draw in audiences left him a long time ago and so this small debut is not particularly surprising.

Still, I would say the week's biggest loser is once again, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For. The Robert Rodriguez sequel has the biggest drop this week - a nasty 65.6% - bringing it down to a weekend haul of just $2.2 million. What this means is the that the film's total domestic gross is a pitiful $10.7 million, which is less than the first Sin City made on its first day. While I never expected this movie to be a smash hit, I do continue to be puzzled as to why it bombed quite so badly. What's your thoughts on the movie, or any that we've covered this week? Let us know in the comments section below, on our Facebook page or by tweeting us!

Here's the top ten in full:

1. (1) Guardians of the Galaxy - $16.3 million
2. (2) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - $11.7 million
3. (3) If I Stay - $9.2 million
4. (-) As Above/So Below - $8.3 million
5. (4) Let's Be Cops - $8.2 million
6. (-) The November Man - $7.6 million
7. (5) When the Game Stands Tall - $5.6 million
8. (7) The Giver - $5.2 million
9. (9) The Hundred-Foot Journey - $4.6 million
10. (6) The Expendables 3 - $3.5 million

Be sure to come back next week for more box office news!

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