Friday Film Fun

It was announced earlier this week that Saw V will hit theaters on October 24, 2008. David Hackl (who was Production Designer on Saw II, III and IV) will direct.

Here's a quote from him, "You have to realize that I am probably one of the biggest Saw fans out there," Hackl tells Bloody-Disgusting.com. "My team and I are the ones who have had the awesome task of designing and building the Saw traps since Saw II. So now I'm about to helm Saw V. I'm as psyched as anyone could be. You can let the fans know that they won't be let down or I will have let myself down. Jigsaw might be dead but that would never stop him and it certainly won't stop me. "...My work has just begun."

I look forward to it, as I do every Halloween.

As much as you hear the Hollywood studios belly ache, you'd think that this year no movie even made money. Actually there were still quite a few blockbusters with a few more sure to come.

Here is how the current top 10 in U.S. gross stacks up (in millions... duh) for 2007:

1. Spider-Man 3 - $336.5
2. Shrek the Third - $321.0
3. Transformers - $319.1
4. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - $309.4
5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - $292.0
6. The Bourne Ultimatum - $227.5
7. 300 - $210.6
8. Ratatouille - $206.4
9. The Simpsons Movie - $183.1
10. Wild Hogs - $168.3

Sort of strange that in the top 6, 4 of them are the third movies of the series.

Anyway, only 1 new film today, and it should end up with blockbuster status ($100 mil) as well I'd assume. It should be pretty unchallenged this weekend, and whaddya know... it's going to be a trilogy also it looks like.

The Golden Compass

The Plot: In a parallel universe, young Lyra Belacqua (Dakota Richards) journeys to the far North to save her best friend whom she fears has been kidnapped by a powerful and secret organization.
My Thoughts: Well, it's got star power with Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig... it's got the fantasy fan-boy crowd interested... there's no Harry Potter film this year for the holidays... and many Christian groups are protesting it for it's anit-Christian themes. I don't see how this can miss. I've also heard Nicole Kidman's character slaps her monkey, so that that for what it's worth.