The Summer Movie Season Closes

A look at some of the best and worst summer movies.

The Dark Knight - One of the best movies ever made and is the defining Batman movie. Heath Ledger gives us a performance that will haunt and entertain us for generations to come.

WALL-E - The intelligent story, charm and innovation of WALL-E proves to be one of PIXAR's biggest shinning achievements.

Iron Man - Not as good as The Dark Knight, but still a fantastic film. The movie sets new standards for comic book movies and Robert Downey Jr. gives us a stunning performance. In the end it's really Robert Downey Jr who makes this movie work so well.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - After years of waiting we finally got the fourth Indiana Jones movie. I have to say I personally loved this movie, I thought it was fun and a great way to bring back the whip wielding archaeologist. I know there has been mixed feelings between fans and all I have to say is that you guys begged for a sequel and you finally get one and it really isn't bad, so stop putting the movie down. I mean this chapter, in my opinion, was a lot better than The Temple of Doom.

Sex and the City: The Movie - Alright, first I'm not a die hard fan but I've seen this show on numerous occasions. Going into this movie I can see how all the fans would love this movie and they should because it really gives them a lot to sink their teeth into. Things I thought the movie had going against it was it's writing, it's good for TV but it could of been a little bit better for theaters and in some places I felt the movie was moving too slow.

The Happening - Here is a movie that had a lot of things not happening, and I thought it was original for just showing pieces of horror and letting our minds do the rest. A lot of people hated the movie for that reason. The reason I mark this as a disappointment is because the characters are not very likable, the ending is dumb and they took something that could of been a brilliant concept and just never seemed to run with it. I won't recommend this movie, but I will not stop you for seeing it. I enjoyed some of it and other parts of it I thought could have been done better.

The Strangers - Here is a movie that I was truly excited about. The commercials and trailers made it look like a 70's classic horror film, but when I watched it was nothing more then a lackluster, unoriginal and very non-scary movie. I've seen a lot of horror films in my day and I have to say this one is one of many that just seem to never come together. The whole movie is one note which causes you not to even feel for the characters and by the end you can careless what happens to them.

Speed Racer - This movie had a style of its own, a lot of source material from the cartoon and the directors of The Matrix trilogy, but with all that this movie slipped and became very cheesy and had a plot you could cut through with a scissors.

Don't Mess with the Zohan - I thought it was funny, I can see why some people might think it was stupid. Yet, I laughed more at this movie than Step Brothers.

Step Brothers - A movie that looked so promising turned out to be so tedious. The concept of them being Step Brothers I thought was a good opportunity for both Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly to flex some comic genius, but they both fail us. The movie does have a few funny parts and I stress a few.

Tropic Thunder - Had a lot of funny parts and the scenes with Tom Cruise and Jack Black were my favorite. There is a specific scene where they tie Jack Black to a tree that I found to be very funny and when Tom Cruise is dancing. It's definitely the funniest movie this summer.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars - I'm a Star Wars fan and I'm not scared to admit it. I was excited about The Clone Wars movie and then I saw it. In it's defense this movie is not meant for adults and is aimed solely for kids and some of the battle scenes were impressive.

Master Chief Will Return Next Gen

Reports have flooded the internet that "Halo 4" the next installment in the mega franchise Halo, most likely will be a launch title for the next generation Xbox.

That's basically all the news that I could get together about this game. There is no further details about story or anything, but I do think that this is a little early for people to be getting excited.

I know that a next generation will come, but we have only just started this one. With systems like Xbox360, Playstation 3 and the Nintendo Wii this is proving to be a great generation, and I feel that we shouldn't rush this one by.

As for the Halo franchise I think it's great they are giving fans another installment, but why not release it on the Xbox360. I'm sure that there is many fans that would love to have a Halo 4 in this generation, including myself.

A game that will sort of fill your Halo needs will be "Halo Wars," this game will be a real time strategy game and not a first person shooter like Halo 1, 2 and 3. So, you will not get the same experience as you did with the other Halo games, but you're once again part of the Halo world and exploring new angles of the universe.

Instead of just controlling one character you will be in charge of entire armies and it's up to you to lead them all to victory.

Halo Wars will be released in the first quarter of 2009, and Halo 4 is still ways away.

Movie Recommendations: Disturbia

Disturbia

PLOT: The movie is about Kale Brecht (Shia LaBeouf) a 17-year-old who is placed under house arrest, after punching his Spanish teacher. Kale soon finds entertainment in spying on his neighbors, but things start to get thrilling when he notices his neighbor Robert Turner (David Morse). He starts to notice weird behavior when Turner has guests over and he then pulls his two friends Ronnie (Aaron Yoo) and Ashley Carlson (Sarah Roemer) into it and they grow more and more interested in the activity in Turner's house.

QUICK REVIEW: Here is a movie that a lot of people refuse to watch because they think it looks stupid. When this movie was being advertised on TV it didn't draw me in and I admit that. It wasn't until it came on DVD that I actually picked up the movie and watched it and really learned what I was missing.

The movie is a very intense thriller that really builds on its characters before jumping into the strange and creepy world that rests next door to Kale, which makes you care even more for the characters when they're put into great peril.

The one thing I disliked about the movie is the very cliche ending, but I think everyone needs to put that aside, because they give you a good ride all the way through.

Also ... Shia LaBeouf really delivers a very strong and gripping performance and he's just very entertaining to watch.

If you had doubts about Disturbia - don't. Go and rent this movie or see if its playing on TV and invest your time and enjoy it.

RATING: Rated PG-13 on appeal for sequences of terror and violence, and some sensuality.

RUN TIME: 1 hr 44 mins

Insider Gaming

Since we’re all in the Olympic mood, I decided we would play an Olympic title this week and see if it can win a gold medal.
Ok … really quick I’m going to tell you this game doesn’t win a gold medal. It doesn’t even come close to winning a bronze. This game turned out so bad that it was torture to play that I actual felt my fingers develop intense pain and a single tear of frustration fell from my eye.
But, let’s look at the positive first and the positive is the wide variety of events they offer you to play. You have 100 Meter Sprint, 110 Meter Hurdles, Pole Vault, Triple Jump, Long Jump, High Jump, Javelin, Discus, Archery and Skeet Shooting. I mean how can a game be bad when you have Skeet Shooting?
To quickly sun up all the events I will say that they all lack and most of them are just button mashers. So expect to sit there and continuously hit buttons to actual gain any kind of advantages in this game.
With the 100 Meter Sprint and 110 Meter Hurdles, all your doing is mashing buttons to try to make your guy run faster and occasionally hit the up button to make your guy jump over hurdles. The jumping part is the only part of skill you’ll need to play the running portion of the game.
The Paul Vault event is the event that annoys every bone in my body. It’s so complex and so unnecessarily hard that it just takes what ever fun this game had left and throws it out the window.
You want to know hoe complex well I’m going to tell you. The game controls like this, you have to use two different buttons and press the directional pad into three different directions – all at the same time! You actually have to lay the controller down in order to complete this event, because it requires all of your fingers.
When you actually complete the Pole Vault event and get your guy where he needs to go, he will lay on his back lifeless and I know why. Because he just wants to give up on this game too, but no we need to press on, we need to see it to the end.
I thought the Pole Vault event was bad, but the truth is it only gets worse and I never thought it could.
Next we have the Triple Jump, which is basically the same thing as Pole Vault and the controls just remain frustrating. But, with Triple Jump instead of pressing the direction pad into three different directions you’re just pressing up over and over again. Thank you Olympics game, now I have carpotunel for playing this ridiculous game.
If you fail the Triple Jump your guy will punch the area in a frightening rage and all I have to say is good for him tell the people what you think about this game.
I’m not going to get into the Long Jump, because it’s the same as the Triple Jump but instead of pressing up billions of times you press it once. Thanks game developers for giving my thumb a break.
You know what I’m not going to get into any of the other events, for the simple fact that all are bad.
Here’s an idea, why don’t they give EA Sports the Olympic title and rights and have them do a Wii only game, because I doubt they can pull it off for the XBOX360 or the Playstation 3. I mean with the Wii they can take the mechanics they use for Wii Sports and Deca Sports and apply them to a very affective game. They can call it The Games of The Olympics or Olympic Games. I’m throwing it out there EA, take it and do what you want with it.
To sum everything up this game has nothing going for it and after I was done playing it, I really felt a sense of lose for all the hours I sat playing this game. I can’t believe this is a game, you know what I shouldn’t even call it a game. It’s actually an insanity test.
It Scores A 1 Out of 10
[James Note: Go buy Madden ‘09 and play it. Read my blog at http://www.jamesentertainmentedge.blogspot.com/.]

Bottle Shock Is Shockingly Good

Here is a movie that treats its subject with true elegance and passion that shines through the beautiful shots of the vineyards to the glowing performance of Alan Rickman.
The movie is set in the year 1976 and focuses on a small event that would make Napa Valley a household name.
After viewing the movie, I went online to do some research about the event. What I learned is that “Bottle Shock” is a more fictionalized version of what really happened, but it makes it all the more interesting for the viewer
Let’s begin, the movie is shot in California like the movie “Sideways”, which the advertisements are comparing it to. I don’t agree with this comparison, “Sideways” was a great movie, but the two couldn’t be more different. “Bottle Shock” is really close to the vineyards and the birth of wine, where “Sideways” was more about the characters enjoying the already created wine.
The movie then starts its story and we are brought to a struggling vineyard owner named Jim Barrett (Bill Pullman). Jim owns Chateau Montelena and is in very deep debt with three bank loans. Jim is also growing more stressed over his son, Bo Barrett (Chris Pine) and the choices he’s making in his life.
We then move over to Paris and meet the best character in the movie, British wine enthusiast, Steven Spurrier (Alan Rickman). Steven owns a tiny wine shop named “The Academy of Wine.” The shop is always empty, but he does have one frequent visitor from the next door business named Maurice (Dennis Farina). Maurice gives Steven hope each time he enjoys one of his wines, which we see him sampling a lot while talking business with Spurrier.
Spurrier who has been very intrigued about what is hearing about California wines, leads him to sponsor a blind taste-test between the wines of the two countries. He then gathers a panel of expert judges made up of all French.
The story then shifts back to Napa and we are introduced to two more important characters. We have Jim’s employee, Gustavo Brambilia who is played wonderfully by Freddy Rodriquez and the vineyards summer intern, Sam (Rachael Taylor). Gustavo claims, which becomes some what of a theme, that he has wine in his bones.
The real Brambilia would later go off and found his own famous vineyard.
One pass time that Gustavo takes part in is raising cash by his ability to identify any wine and vintage just by tasting it. Then like we can all predict Bo and Gustavo fall in love with the summer intern Sam, who lives in a shack on the vineyard, and I don’t even know how she survives in there, it’s all open and wonder if it rains, she would be ankle deep in rain water. I really would like to know how the real Sam liked this shack.
Spurrier then comes to Napa, he tastes all the wines in the valley and then brings back the ones that most impress him in order for them to be able to compete in the taste test.
I mean we all know what the outcome of the taste test is going to be, the Americans win, because the movie has a lot of elements of an underdog story, which makes it more and more interesting as we continue to invest time in watching it.
The movie’s has two very strong qualities, the first is the very intimate look at the wine which is the core of the story, and then we have Alan Rickman.
Rickman pulls off a very comedic performance, without ever trying to be funny. The scenes where he is navigating the back roads of Napa Valley in a Gremlin, tasting the wine from all the farmers, eating KFC chicken and convincing 26 fellow air travelers to carry a bottle of wine for him back to Paris, just shows what a great actor can do and how they can make a good movie into a great movie.
There were some things I didn’t like about the movie and that are two of the performances. I thought Chris Pine and Rachael Taylor could have been a little more believable in there roles and I feel they both fell short.
I know there are going to be people who won’t like this movie. I do admit it’s a clunky movie and a lot of people might not care enough about its subject matter to invest time in it. To me the movie was great, I found its clunky and charming story appealing and refreshing.
After watching this movie, I feel like I can go out and start making wine, because they give you so much detail on how to make it.
In order to have the best tasting wine the grape has to be thirsty and struggle in order to produce its best flavor. In that kind of ties in with the characters, the grapes are struggling and so is Jim Barrett but in the end they come together and both succeed.

*** Out of Four

20 Years of Madden

Madden NFL '09 rises to the top of the every gaming system chart, being the top selling game for each individual next-gen system.

In my current review I gave Madden '09 a 9 out of 10. To see that review please visit The Bristol Press website it will remain on the top stories for seven days and later be archived.

But since you are already reading this, I'll go though the game and mention parts that did not make it into that review.

First thing is the franchise mode, this mode is basically like all the other franchise modes but with updated rosters. Yet, this is still fun and where you will most likely log countless hours. I mean you can have a fantasy draft, pick your favorite team and build your football team from the ground up.

Franchise offers everything you can dream of, it's truly the fantasy football experience to beat.

The online is something I wanted to get into deeper. This mode is a mode I play less then I actually expected. There are certain things about the online I like and I dislike.

First, I like how you can play players through an Internet connection, and how every time you sign in it updates rosters.

The thing I have against the online mode is players that drop out. I mean come on, what's up with that? You can be in the 4th quarter and had a game where it's been neck and neck and you score a touchdown putting you in the lead. And I think we all witnessed this, once you take the lead the other player pulls out.

Still ... the online has a lot to offer and runs smoothly. I did run into lag between picking plays and taking the line, but this lag is nothing that will discourage you from playing. When you actual play the field, the lag is nonexistent. So I give a lot of credit to EA for making sure their online runs smoothly.

The Wii version is my version of choice and one thing I like about this version is its "call your own shots mode." This mode allows players, when they're in a passing play, to actual draw a route for your wide receivers to run.

This is an awesome addition to the game, it adds more strategy and just draws you deeper into the experience.

The big thing about the Wii version is the all-play mode, this makes the game of football for a wider audience.

I personally don't use this mode, I like the old and more challenging way to control the game and that's the control schem I use. But I do recommend All-Play for anyone who is new to the franchise and is just learning, in that sense the mode is great. If you're a more experienced and veteran player you can just take the game off of All-Play.

Yes, I will say it again it's the best football game on the market and EA has flexed all of their muscles to bring you a well polished and a well thought out game.

9 out of 10

Game Charts

Nintendo Wii

1.) Madden NFL '09 All-Play

2.) Super Smash Bros. Brawl

3.) Deca Sports

4.) One Piece: Unlimited Adventure

5.) Summer Athletics: The Ultimate Challenge

XBOX360

1.) Madden NFL '09

2.) Soulcalibur IV

3.) Madden NFL '09: 20th Anniversary Collector's Edition

4.) Guitar Hero II (Game Only)

5.) John Woo Presents Stranglehold

Playstation 3

1.) Madden NFL '09: 20th Anniversary Collector's Edition

2.) Madden NFL '09

3.) Soulcalibur IV

4.) Ninja Gaiden Sigma

5.) Assassin's Creed

Internet Entertainment: It's Terror Gnome!

A small town in Argentina is being terrorized by a small gnome like creature. The creature was caught on tape by a group of teenagers wandering the town.

They reported that after the saw the gnome creature that one of their friends was so scared they had to take him to the hospital.

Many locals have come forward to talk about their encounters with the creature, which is causing all residents to be in their home at night.

The creature resembles that of a garden gnome and walks sideways.

Is it real? Well in my opinion I think there is actual something there in the video, but I can't really tell you what it is, because the image is so dark.

It does look like a gnome, but is computer generated - to me it looks like it could be computer generated.

I doubt it's another animal dressed as a gnome, a monkey can do that sort of walk, but the look of the body does not match one of a monkey, dog or cat.

What I can say now is that the video lacks any further detail than the actual creature walking. As I said the image is to dark to see the face, which leaves a lot of questions.

I do believe people are seeing something on the streets, I do believe it looks strange, but I don't know if it's an actual gnome or something being mistaken as a gnome.

Movie Recommendations: High Fidelity

I decided that each week I'll recommend a movie that everyone should check out if they didn't already.

High Fidelity
PLOT: The movie is about a man named Rob Gordon (John Cusack), a man in his thirties that owns Championship Vinyl, a record store in the suburbs of Chicago.
Rob is in the after stages of a difficult breakup and because of this he creates a list of the top five worst breakups he has had in his life, then he goes and tracks them all down.
The movie is based off of the 1996 Nick Hornby’s novel of the same title.
QUICK REVIEW: Here is a movie where Jack Black was still new to the screen and delivers a good performance with out over doing it. Cusack delivers a Ferris Bueller type of performance in the sense he is always talking to the camera, and overall it’s a fun, silly and charming movie that Hollywood seems to be making less and less of.

RATING: Rated R for language and some sexuality.
RUN TIME: 1 hr 53 mins

Battle Of Heroes

After Robert Downey Jr. stated that "The Dark Knight" is too smart for him and that he needs a college education to understand it. I decided to put Iron Man up against The Dark Knight in a movie versus movie battle.
First let's start with Iron Man. This movie is a good movie, one con that I say it all the time it's stuck in four acts. The positive side about Iron Man is that like The Dark Knight is grounds itself in realism.
Iron Man focuses on a world that is war-torn and how a world like that forges a hero. Which is good, but the whole movie is about Iron Man, there is really no time for villains and there is no real threat to the hero until the final act.
Many argue Batman Begins was like this, which isn't true. Batman Begins has three villains and Bruce Wayne's origin story was not the entire movie, it was only a piece of a larger picture.
I liked Iron Man, I think it was a well done superhero movie, but it could had reworked it's third act so it didn't spill over into a fourth.
Now we have The Dark Knight, which is a smart and complex movie that succeeds on every level. What this movie had was a true villain that was evil and scary, that actual made you fear for the other characters.
The Dark Knight is not a hard movie to understand, as long as you pay attention I mean it's pretty much straight forward.
I really don't have any complaints about The Dark Knight, to me it was one of the best movies I've ever seen. And if you released Iron Man after The Dark Knight, I don't think Iron Man would have gotten as much positive feedback as it did. I don't even think it would of made as much money as it did.
So If I had to say which movie is better I would have to go with The Dark Knight. But to be fair I've always liked Batman and I was never an Iron Man fan.
I'm interested seeing how they will do an Iron Man sequel, but I'm even more interested in the third chapter in Nolan's Batman series.

Begun The Clone War Has

In 2005 we finally saw Anakin Skywalker become the evil Darth Vader, the republic fall to the might of the Empire and Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda fall into the shadows so in the future they can usher in a new hope.
We all believed that George Lucas had finished his saga and after an impressive final act, but we were wrong.
This Friday there will be a seventh Star Wars movie in theaters, one that will be completely animated and focus on the time between Episode II and Episode III.
This time was the untold stories of The Clone Wars, a war that is as much a part of Star Wars history as a lightsaber is. A time period I thought we already saw in Episode II and Episode III and the previous cartoon series that was on Cartoon Network.
Apparently they’re still untold stories about this time we don’t know and that’s why will be getting the movie and after the movie we’ll also get a TV show, that already promises 100 episodes.
True Star Wars fans are really looking forward to this chapter in the Star Wars story, but there are others who believe that it’s just quick cash in for George Lucas.
I have been a Star Wars fan, forever. I always enjoyed the movies and I do believe that the first three movies are important films in American cinema history. After hearing about the cartoon movie, I of course was excited but skeptical.
First, I was never that interested in the Clone Wars. I never really liked how we had two sides that were both unemotional, we had one side of Clones that had their free will taken away and then we just have robots that were built to fight.
During the Galactic Civil War, we had both sides that were human and as a movie goer I think we felt more for the individual sides.
Even if Anakin learns a lesson in this movie, does it really matter? We all know that he becomes Darth Vader, so going into the movie we already know no matter what happens in this series there in no happy ending.
I know this movie is supposed to expand on the Clone Wars mythology and even give the clones emotion, something that the prequels never got into. I would like to see how they would do that, but still I rather they picked a different time period to explore.
A time line I would like to see on film is anything that happens after 1983’s Return of the Jedi. I know it has all been told through comics, video games and books, but I rather see it on the big screen.
I know we’ll most likely never get to see any of those stories on screen and we most likely won’t ever get to see the rumored Episodes 7, 8 and 9.

What we will get is a live action TV show, the animated TV show and Lucas has said he will release all six Star Wars movies in 3D.

Still, I would give up all that for another three films.

I'm excited about "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" but I'm not going to get my hopes up, it most likely won't meet our expectations.

Goonies Never Say Die!

It’s been nearly two decades since we saw “The Goonies” on the silver screen and rumors of a sequel are surfacing, proving that the Goonies will never die.
Rumors are hitting the internet hard, claiming that Warner Brothers are actually getting serious about Goonies 2 and want to make the film a large-scale theatrical release and don’t want it to be a direct to DVD movie, which has been rumored in the past.
It was also stated that Warners have assigned new writers to the project and sources claim that the movie will include some of the original cast.
I know for years I’ve always wanted a Goonies sequel and now with all the talk about one, I think it has its flaws but also some plus sides.
Two major problems I have with making a sequel is the reports of only having some of the cast member’s return. I know Anne Ramsey who played Mama Fratelli in the original has since passed away and also John Matuszak who played Sloth has also passed away, I really can’t see a film without Sloth, but maybe they can recast him with someone who can do a similar performance.
Those two characters aside, I’m very worried about is not being able to get back all the original Goonies. How can it be a Goonie movie with certain Goonies missing?
The plus side to this is that they are actual attempting to make another Goonies movie, with original Goonies cast members. They’re not trying to reboot the franchise or shove another remake down our throats.
Yet … with all this excitement Corey Feldman has said that studio bosses will never let the movie happen. He also said that Goonies 2 is too much of a gamble for the studio.
Even if the rumors are false and everyone gets their hopes up once again over nothing, the studios should take that into consideration. If fans of all ages are still getting excited about rumors that a Goonies sequel is being made isn’t that enough of a reason for them to green light it?
Now if the big announcement comes that Goonies 2 is prepared for filming, the question will be where would you take the story?
The whole cast is older, so what can these Goonies do in this stage of their life?
The story line that seems to be the most popular is having the Goonies have kids of their own.
This could work, but I don’t think that’s what anyone wants. I don’t want to watch a movies about the Goonies’ kids, it’s like I don’t want to watch a movie about the Ghostbusters retiring. If I go to see a Goonies movie, I want the original Goonies doing something.
As bad as I want a sequel to this movie, I would settle for not having one if they can’t figure out how to use all the original Goonies in the sequel and also having them as the central focus of the film.

Who Are You Going To Call?

Big news has hit the Internet about a new Ghostbusters film.
So far the reports are that Steve Carell and Seth Rogen will team up with the original Ghostbusters, Dan Akroyd, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson for a third film.
According to reports the movie will be about the original Ghostbusters stars handing over their business to the new guys, which a lot of people in Hollywood believe that will give the franchise a reboot.
What I have to say about this is that I’m excited and also a little disappointed. I know that I’m not the only one who has been waiting years for a sequel to “Ghostbusters 2” and I’m happy they’re finally talking about one. The problem I have is them handing over the business.
I mean if you can get all the original Ghostbusters back, why not make a movie about them and not bring in new guys. I know what they’re trying to do, if the movie is successful then they would want to make more. But I believe fans would be happy if they gave us a third one and end it at that.
I have nothing against Carell or Rogan, but I rather not see them take over the Ghostbusters business. I rather just have the original Ghostbusters in a new movie and not have them retire.
If this is going to happen, which seems to be more and more likely, it has to be worth it, the script has to be good and the original Ghostbusters have to be in the whole thing. If they can’t meet those three things, then don’t do it. I think we would be better off with out it.

Jolie Might Be The Next Catwoman

Angelina Jolie is rumored to be the next Catwoman in either Christopher Nolan’s follow up to “The Dark Knight” or to an actual sequel to the Halle Berry dud of a movie “Catwoman”.
Fans are actually in two frames of mind about this, some think it’s a great choice and others are blasting it, saying that she has no business being Catwoman.
I have to say this, I remember when Heath Ledger was cast as The Joker and no one liked that decision. Everyone thought that he couldn't pull it off and there was nothing but talk until we saw the first trailer with him in it and everyone believed that he could do it.
I honestly think she would be perfect for the role, I think she has everything to make a good Catwoman.
Plus for all of the fans that are saying no to this decision, all I have to say is that nothing is solid yet and if Nolan does chooses to go with her that we should believe in his choice, after all he did choose Heath Ledger and look what that got us – an awesome Joker.

"The Dark Knight" Soars Over The $400 Million Dollar Mark

“The Dark Knight” leaped over the $400-million mark in only 18 days of release. This sets a new box-office record and beating the 43-day record that was held by “Shrek 2” in 2004.
The big question still remains is “The Dark Knight” going to break “Titanic’s” record?
This is how I look at it, when “Titanic” was in theaters the only thing that made that movie such a hit was the teenage girls that were in love with Leonardo DiCaprio. Don’t get me wrong, I thought “Titanic” was a fine movie, but all its repeat business that got it at $600 million was from teenage girls.
Now the only way from here on out for “The Dark Knight” to challenge the record is actually to have repeat business. That repeat business won’t come from teenage girls, but from fan boys.
The problem with that is that statistics show that fan boys are loyal customers, but they are not repeat customers.
So if you liked “The Dark Knight” and you want to see it pass “Titanic” go and see it again.

Indy Might Hold Whip In Hand Once Again

While being interviewed by London Times Online, George Lucas has stated that he is considering another “Indiana Jones” movie, if he could come up with another idea.
After the success of “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”, Lucas revealed certain dramas that involved in getting the latest installment to take flight.
He said the only real challenges are actually getting the story together and getting everybody to agree on it.
“Indiana Jones only becomes complicated when you have another two people saying I want it this way, whereas, when I first did Jones, I said, We’ll do it this way, and that was much easier. But now I have to accommodate everybody, because they are all big, successful guys, too, so it’s a little hard on a practical level,” said Lucas.
There is always rumors floating around, saying that the lead in future movies will be Shia LaBeouf’s character. The idea of Indy passing the baton does not sit well with fans.
I mean I don’t like that idea at all. If I’m going to the theaters to see an Indiana Jones movie I want to see Indiana Jones. I know Harrison Ford is getting old and he is not always going to be able to continue making these, but maybe everyone should stop after awhile.
For years we had the “Indiana Jones” trilogy and fans were set with that. Now with the new one (which I liked) there has become two groups of people ones that hated it and others who loved it.
I wouldn’t mind a fifth one, but I know that there is certain fans that just wish it would end now.
Lucas also revealed that Spielberg wasn’t enthusiastic in doing “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”. Yet … after the success of the movie, Spielberg is more amenable to doing another one.
“We still have the issues about the direction we’d like to take. I’m in the future; Steven is in the past. He’s trying to drag it back to the way they were, I’m trying to push it to a whole different place,” said Lucas. “So, still we have a sort of tension. This recent one came out of that. It’s kind of a hybrid of our own two ideas, so we’ll see where we are able to take the next one.”

The Bat Takes The Lead From The Mummy

“The Dark Knight” once again takes the top spot at the box office, after it fell into second place Friday.
It was reported that on Friday “The Dark Knight” trailed behind “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” by $3 million. It wasn’t until Saturday and Sunday that “The Dark Knight” once again had a sudden surge in ticket sales and quickly gained the lead back.
“The Dark Knight” took the top spot for the weekend with $43 million and “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” came in second with $42 million.
These numbers are only estimates and “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” can still be crowned number one, because only a million separates the two films. We won’t know for sure until the studios give out the official figures on Monday.

"The Dark Knight" Takes Aim On Sinking "Titanic's" Record

Christopher Nolan, the director of the mega hit “The Dark Knight” has told reporters while in Tokyo that he has no idea why his Batman movie is breaking box-office records.
Nolan said that he doesn't know what it is that is making the movie so popular.
I my thoughts on why this movie is so successful is for Heath Ledger’s performance, the deep and dark story and the respect the cast and crew had in handling a project of this magnitude.
The Joker in this movie is one of the scariest, creepiest and well rounded villains we’ve ever seen in a Batman movie.
I know there are still people who say that Jack Nicholson’s performance is their favorite and that’s fine, because he’s performance was good as well.
Yet, what Ledger did was bring The Joker away from the clunky and silly mood that Nicholson gave him and made him menacing and dark.
I mean there is talk about giving Ledger a Oscar nod and I think that’s fair, because if you didn’t know Heath Ledger was in this movie before you went, you would of never of known. Ledger completely disappeared into the role and became the character.
Another reason why this movie is doing so well is because of the story. The story in this movie focuses on organize crime, so it’s like watching Goodfellas with a man in a bat suit and a killer clown.
This movie also gave the fans of Batman a decent and realistic approach that Batman deserves. He really makes you feel that this actually could happen.
It also hits home hard because the movie does give nods to real world events such as terrorism, sanctioned torture and domestic surveillance.
The other thing that the movies has is the very distinct line between good and evil and the hero is always waist deep in turmoil, yet he keeps going because there is a little glimpse of hope.
That is why I think “The Dark Knight” is breaking so many records; it’s because it treats its audience with respect and delivers a well crafted movie that will be remembered as the best Batman movie ever made.

The film has already grossed $342 million in the United States. It has beaten out "Iron Man" and "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." It needs to make over $600.8 million in order to sink "Titanic's" record.

I mean if it can gross $300 million in just 10 days, really what's keeping it from grossing another $300 million. We'll most likely see "The Dark Knight" cross over the $400 million dollar mark this weekend.