Walleye's Weekly Winners: The Films of 2/23
Posted: February 21st, 2018, 12:38 pm
I know anything Marvel does shouldn’t surprise me anymore but – DAMN! Black Panther blew everything away. Records, audiences, and all the competition. If you don’t have this on your slates ask for a Mulligan (No, not the Carey kind.) And if you’re the lucky bastards who drafted it in the year-long draft kudos to you. It’s a game changer. Even with $240 million (4-day) there was a little money left to throw around. Peter Rabbit held up pretty well, and Fifty Shades didn’t totally fall off a cliff. Newcomers Early Man and Samson will soon be forgotten, but on the PTA front we may see a few more points scored by The Party and Loveless as there are no new movies in that category this week. What does this week hold? Uh, lots more Black Panther with what may be the second week of the century. And three movies that might have had a shot in other weeks. But this week. . .
The best contender for helping out your slates was Game Night, starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams. This is a clever take on a pretty well-worn idea: An R-rated comedy designed more for the adults than the kids (see The House, Bad Moms, Horrible Bosses.) When they work, they become modest little hits. When they don’t, they become the aforementioned The House (a movie you should never, ever draft in the 3rd round.) The two names at the top make me think this has potential, but the previews haven’t convinced me just yet. And besides, everyone just wants to see Black Panther. At $13 in both leagues, this is slate filler that might get you 4-5 top 5 points, and 3-4 PTA points with $40 million total. I think you can find better elsewhere.
Annihilation has Padme Amidala and the brains behind Ex Machina – plus a trippy book source – to entice you this weekend. I tried to read this one a year ago and it just didn’t draw me in – which I think is going to be the case for this movie as well. Alex Garland fans are probably going to love it – but will that be enough to justify your $9/10 hard earned dollars for game purposes? At 2 Top 5 and 1-2 PTA points plus a cap of $30 million I don’t think so. And besides, everyone just wants to see Black Panther. I’d pick up Acrimony or A Quiet Place instead.
Every Day is a too cute teen romance with a twist – the love of Rhiannon’s life is a different person every day. In the teen world where being open to any and all love is such a high value, this one will have some strong supporters. It also comes from a beloved book, one I haven’t had the chance to read yet. But for game purposes it’s coming out on 1600 screens. More than the 2000 for Annihilation, but still not enough to garner any Top 5 points, and in PTA no man’s land. So for Ultimate it’s out. In Box Office it’s not a terrible play at $5 – especially if it goes the way of The DUFF. But really, everyone just wants to see Black Panther.
There you go – a pretty boring week when all is said and done. But don’t blame the messenger. Hopefully things get more interesting next week with J. Law’s Russian accent.
Top 5
Black Panther (duh)
Game Night
Peter Rabbit
Annihilation
Jumanji (One last week – I’m calling it.)
PTA
Black Panther (duh)
The Party
Game Night
Loveless
Annihilation
The best contender for helping out your slates was Game Night, starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams. This is a clever take on a pretty well-worn idea: An R-rated comedy designed more for the adults than the kids (see The House, Bad Moms, Horrible Bosses.) When they work, they become modest little hits. When they don’t, they become the aforementioned The House (a movie you should never, ever draft in the 3rd round.) The two names at the top make me think this has potential, but the previews haven’t convinced me just yet. And besides, everyone just wants to see Black Panther. At $13 in both leagues, this is slate filler that might get you 4-5 top 5 points, and 3-4 PTA points with $40 million total. I think you can find better elsewhere.
Annihilation has Padme Amidala and the brains behind Ex Machina – plus a trippy book source – to entice you this weekend. I tried to read this one a year ago and it just didn’t draw me in – which I think is going to be the case for this movie as well. Alex Garland fans are probably going to love it – but will that be enough to justify your $9/10 hard earned dollars for game purposes? At 2 Top 5 and 1-2 PTA points plus a cap of $30 million I don’t think so. And besides, everyone just wants to see Black Panther. I’d pick up Acrimony or A Quiet Place instead.
Every Day is a too cute teen romance with a twist – the love of Rhiannon’s life is a different person every day. In the teen world where being open to any and all love is such a high value, this one will have some strong supporters. It also comes from a beloved book, one I haven’t had the chance to read yet. But for game purposes it’s coming out on 1600 screens. More than the 2000 for Annihilation, but still not enough to garner any Top 5 points, and in PTA no man’s land. So for Ultimate it’s out. In Box Office it’s not a terrible play at $5 – especially if it goes the way of The DUFF. But really, everyone just wants to see Black Panther.
There you go – a pretty boring week when all is said and done. But don’t blame the messenger. Hopefully things get more interesting next week with J. Law’s Russian accent.
Top 5
Black Panther (duh)
Game Night
Peter Rabbit
Annihilation
Jumanji (One last week – I’m calling it.)
PTA
Black Panther (duh)
The Party
Game Night
Loveless
Annihilation