NOVEMBER, 2


OTTO RAHN

Biopic / Drama
Cast: David Strathairn, Vincent Cassel, Franka Potente, Jamie Bell, Kevin Spacey
Director: Werner Herzog
Producer: Steven Spielberg
Screenwriter: Matt Kubrick

Box Office: 36 mill.
Net Gains: 3 mill.

Stark’s Reaction:
We are being lucky this Season. Here is another release hardly saved from net losses. I knew this one was not going to make it particularly great at box office. But it is another one of those prestigious productions that makes the name of the Studio shine.

SON OF THE BRIDE

Comedy / Adult
Cast: Ben Stiller, Lauren Bacall, Christopher Plummer, Paul Giamatti, Abbie Cornish, Emma Stone
Director: Ben Stiller
Screenwriter: James Bradley

Box Office: 87 mill.
Net Gains: 60 mill.

Stark’s Reaction:
You all know I love this Bradley’s adult comedies. And this is one of the best. I am so happy it had made such a great box office for this kind of movie. Production costs were pretty low so net gains are more than nice.

MEGA MAN

Action / Sci-fi
Cast: Taylor Lautner, Christopher Walken, Jean Reno, Jesse Eisenberg, Saoirse Ronan
Director: Renny Harlin
Screenwriter: Josh Collins


Box Office: 118 mill.
Net Gains: 159 mill.

Stark’s Comment:
Great numbers! American and foreign markets have behaved completely different with this movie. American moviegoers decided to ignore this release but DVD sales at the American market were amazing. On the other side, foreign market’s box office was excellent. The sum of those two different behaviors has generated those wonderful net gains.


OTTO RAHN

‘’Otto Rahn’ is such a honest biopic. Usually, biographical movies have a tendency to mythicize the character. But not this time. Herzog makes a picture of the character without concessions. Otto Rahn is a man full of contradictions, weak points, fears but also virtues and talent and Herzog puts it all in the movie without taking sides. He shows what you may like (his adventurous side, his naivety..) and what you may dislike (his sympathy for the Nazis, including a career at the SS, during too many years; his failed and false marriage to hide his sexual orientation…) to let you decide what you think about the character. Herzog resists the temptation to justify Rahn’s mistakes or darker sides, as many biopics do, or to provide an epic dimension to his better side. That turns the movie into a very interesting picture of a very interesting man that inspires all kind of feelings from sympathy to rejection, from admiration to criticism, all dressed up with a great recreation of the times and the historical events and circumstances that surrounded Rahn’s life.’
-Charlie Kiggs

‘Having the chance to play such a rich character like Otto Rahn is a dream for any actor. But, probably, Spielberg and Herzog could not find anyone better than David Strathairn to play it. Strathairn is one of the best actors of his generation. His talent usually shines when playing supporting roles. But when he is given the opportunity to play a lead role it is always a rewarding experience watching him on screen. He may never get to definitely join the A-list of stars in Hollywood – and probably he is not even interested in reaching a ‘star status’ – but works like this confirm him as one of the most prestigious and trustable talents of the industry. Together with him, the rest of the cast also deserves a mention. Kevin Spacey makes a wonderful characterization and recreation of the disturbing Himmler, Frank Potente plays in a most talented way that poor wife that knows she is only a cover, and Jamie Bell and Vincent Cassel take the best of their characters turning what could have been a ‘one-man-show’ movie into a brilliant cast work.’
-Roy Winslow

‘This movie has been made out of Hollywood and you can notice it. It is not at all an indulgent biopic. It does not surrender to the rules of the Hollywood industry. Werner Herzog has never been an easy moviemaker for box office. And Spielberg knows when he is involved in an artsy movie to be made not caring about box office’s success. Otto Rahn is not a hero looking for the holy grail. He is a tormented man – an SS officer that lose his faith in the Nazi regime, a homosexual obliged to hide it for too many years… - but also a man with his own ethics and priorities. He lived a dream – finding the holy grail – in the worst of times – Europe during the 1930s and the expansion of the Nazis regime – and the contradiction between his dreams and reality took him to the only place he could possibly end up: dead in a ditch with a shot in his forehead… ‘
-Anne Roman

SON OF THE BRIDE

‘I love those movies where you both laugh and feel moved by the story at the same time. Bradley and Stiller have made a movie that does not look for an easy tear. They deliberately avoid any pretentious setting of the situations. It all seems to be just a simple and nice comedy. But, underneath the laughs, it tells a thought-provoking story where everyone can find references to their own lives as the story talks about many ordinary things: family, parenthood, love relationships, coming of age… all the things life is made of. But it always does it not losing the sense of humor at any moment. That is not as easy as it may seem. The result is a most intelligent comedy that will make you laugh at the same time that will make you realize how complex is dealing with the main issues of ordinary life.’
-Tim Reeve

‘As it could be predictable, Lauren Bacall is the show stealer of this movie. Her wonderful acting work becomes the most remarkable thing of this brilliant movie. She perfectly builds up the character of this woman dramatically beaten by Alzheimer’s disease that still keeps her irony, her tenderness and the shadow of her strong personality. Bacall does not make you feel sorry for her but to guess the intelligence and charm she had before the illness appeared. The rest of the cast also shines. It is particularly remarkable the sequence where the always happy character played by Giamatti tells Stiller about the death of his wife and daughter (not to mention the hilarious sequence of the wedding with Giamatti faking to be a priest). Stiller has proven to be a great director of actors.’
-Amy Ratched

‘James Bradley has made it again. ‘Son Of The Bride’ directly connects with the soft and elegant sense of humor of many of his comedies. Although it is only a remake, it has that ‘Bradley touch’ seen in movies like ‘Paperback Story’, his three movies with Wes Anderson, ‘Crossovers’, ‘Nude!’ or ‘The Miracle Men’. I even prefer Bradley when he works on original material than when he adapts previous existing one like this time. But he is always a deep observer of human soul and always knows how to explode the comedic side of the most ordinary characters and situations without being superficial. Maybe ‘Son Of The Bride’ will get lost in the shuffle of the many good movies released by CMP this Season, but it is a nice little gem that should not be quickly forgotten.’
-Jackie O’Callaghan

MEGA MAN

‘I have to start my review with a previous statement: ‘Mega Man’ is not ‘Metroid’. It does not have the same epic plot and characters, the visual strength, the extraordinary digital effects and the sense of big show that made of ‘Metroid’ a record breaker. Renny Harlin may be an efficient director but he is not as daring and creative as Zack Snyder. Taylor Lautner may be a teen idol but he hasn’t got yet the screen presence of Charlize Theron. And Josh Collins may be the same but he does not seem to have put the same faith in this story that he put on ‘Metroid’. ‘Mega Man’ is a cheap version of ‘Metroid’. And it makes a common mistake: making a movie oriented to children does not have to mean making a childish movie. And the plot, the characters and the production design of this ‘Mega Man’ is too childish to be taken seriously.’
-Vic Carter

‘Renny Harlin, once considered a visionary moviemaker, had to accept after a few consecutive failures that his destiny was to make B-series versions of the movies he always dreamt to make. His CMP’s movies also respond to that reality. ‘Deep Silence 2’ and ‘Bullet Witch 0’ were only cheap versions of the original movies. And this Mega Man is also a cheap version of the many superheroes, fantastic and console games adaptations developed by CMP. That does not mean that Harlin’s movies do not deserve to make a nice box office (in fact, all Harlin’s works in CMP have succeeded at box office). It only means that you just cannot judge this kind of movies in terms of cinematic quality but only in terms of an intelligent way to make money for Mr. Stark.’
-Jake Cobb

‘Josh Collins seems to be mutating lately as screenwriter. It is true that his old formula – painful family dramas – might be reaching a point of exhaustion. But I am not sure if he has found yet the course that he wants to take with his writing career from now on. It is also true that both ‘Metroid’ and ‘Mega Man’ have meant two of the biggest box office’s hits of Collins’ career. But I just can’t see him as a specialist in sci-fi stories and games adaptations only. In future weeks, we will see a few comedies written by him. Comedy is another genre where he has had some difficulties in the past so we will have to wait and see how this new projects work. But my suspect is that I will begin missing soon Collins as ‘Mr. Drama’. I can understand that he wants to try new things and not just repeat himself but I also hope he won’t completely abandon what he does best.’
-Lilly Stevens