lifestyle WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2013 MUSIC & MOVIES Why ‘Gravity’ should stay in box-office orbit through the Oscars

Actress Chloe Grace Moretz poses on arrival for the world premiere of the film ‘Carrie’ in Hollywood, California, on October 7, 2013. The remake of he spectacular 3D and Imax box- moviegoers to not only get out on open- Stephen King’s office numbers put up by “Gravity” ing weekend, but to ante up for 3D or classic horror tale Tmay have obscured another telling Imax as well, is impressive and speaks to opens nation- number from its stunning $55 million the film’s powerful draw. wide on October debut over the weekend: nearly 60 per- >> Bullock has become a bona fide 18. —AFP cent of its audience was over 35. If this box-office force. Forty-six percent of the were a superhero saga, an audience that “Gravity” audience was women, high for a skewed that old would be a disaster. But sci-fi movie. Credit the presence of for an Oscar hopeful like Alfonso Cuaron’s Bullock, who promoted the film relent- “Gravity,” that touch of grey is exactly lessly, for much of that. The actress is on what Warner Bros. wanted to see. sizzling box office run: each of her four Combined with rave reviews from critics films have opened to more than her pre- 76 foreign language and “A-” CinemaScore, it means the vious best. Her last three films - “The Sandra Bullock-George Clooney space Proposal,” “The Blind Side,” “The Heat” - saga is very likely to be orbiting multi- were hits and opened to $33 million, $34 plexes for months - and likely through million and $39 million respectively, the March 2 Academy Awards. before the “Gravity” debut blew the lid off. Its trajectory could resemble that of Imax accounted for an eye-popping films to compete for Oscar Ang Lee’s “The Life of Pi,” another Oscar $11.8 million, or more than 20 percent of contender that drew raves for stunning the total receipts, of the opening week- 3D visual effects, but there are significant end receipts. It’s the first time Imax has differences. Fox opened “Pi” to $22 mil- provided that big of a slice of the pie for lion just prior to Thanksgiving last year. It a movie that opened over $50 million. played and even picked up steam The large-screen chain has largely through the awards season, and wound cleared the decks for “Gravity,” and will be up with $125 million domestically and a providing premium price boosts through whopping $484 million overseas for a October. And Warner Bros. will have no $609 million worldwide total before Lee trouble keeping in 3D theaters after this won the Best Director Oscar. “Gravity” weekend. won’t match the overseas numbers of “Pi,” For the most part, there’s not a ton of which was built to play abroad - and in competition, once you get past this Asia in particular. But it should do even weekend. “Machete Kills” opens Friday, better in the US. “Carrie,” “Escape Plan” and “The Fifth “‘Gravity’ opened with such massive Estate” are the next week and then its numbers, as well as critical acclaim, that “Jackass Presents Bad Grandpa” and “The it could easily pull in $175 millon by the Counselor” the following week. There’s end of its domestic box office journey,” no clearly older-skewing film among Exhbitor Relations vice-president and those, and there won’t be until Nov 1, senior analyst told TheWrap on Monday. when CBS Films rolls out “Last Vegas,” “It will certainly still be a factor when the which stars Michael Douglas, Robert De holiday movie season unspools, and if it Niro, Morgan Freeman and Kevin Kline. circles the awards circuit, as expected, it The exception - and it’s a big one - is he foreign language Oscar competition this community. China opted to submit the patriotic Hunt” (Denmark), Asghar Farhadi’s “The Past” (Iran), will play well into 2014.” There are other Sony’s Tom Hanks modern-day piracy year will be wider than it ever has been drama “Back to 1942” rather than Jia Zhang-ke’s fes- Amat Escalante’s “Heli” (Mexico) and Paolo indicators that point to a long run for saga “Captain Phillips,” which opens Tbefore. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts tival favorite “A Touch of Sin.” The film, which Sorrentino’s “The Great Beauty” (Italy). “Gravity” - beyond the simple fact that Friday. and Sciences announced Monday that a record 73 depicts inequality in contemporary China, won The entries will be whittled down to a shortlist it’s the rare film that begs to be seen the- The thriller directed by Paul countries, plus Hong Kong, Taiwan and the best screenplay at the Cannes Film Festival in May. in January before the Oscars on March 2. The for- aters - and in 3D. Greengrass (“The Bourne Ultimatum”) is Palestinian territories, have submitted their entries Two other well-received films, Japan’s “Like eign language category voting process has often Attendance spiked 32 percent from similarly well-reviewed (88 percent on to the Academy Awards. The acclaimed “Wadjda” Father, Like Son” and India’s “The Lunchbox,” been criticized, particularly for its practice of allow- Friday to Saturday, a clear sign of signifi- Rotten Tomatoes) and also has serious from Saudi Arabia, about an 11-year-old girl’s quest weren’t chosen by their respective home countries. ing the initial choices to be made by national selec- cant word of mouth. Most movies open star-power and awards ambitions. Sony to obtain a bicycle, is the country’s first submission. Japan instead opted for “The Great Passage,” while tion committees. In an effort to smooth out the to younger audiences, which older sneaked it at 800 theaters on Saturday “All God’s Children” is also the first entry from India chose “The Good Road.” Last year, Michael final selection, all academy members will for the moviegoers then catch up to in the sec- and was glad to see sellouts in both Moldova. Montenegro, previously a part of Haneke’s French-language “Amour,” an entry from first time be allowed to vote on the foreign lan- ond or third week if the buzz around the major and mid-sized markets. And anoth- Yugoslavia, submitted a film for the first time as an Austria, won the Oscar best foreign-language film. guage film category. Previously, voting was limited film is strong. “Gravity” will be doing it er number out of the screenings - that 71 independent country: “Ace of Spades.” Haneke’s drama was the overwhelming front run- to members who viewed all five nominees in a the- the opposite way, looking to broaden to percent of those that went to see the Entries are restricted to one per country and ner, but this year’s competition is considered wide ater. DVD screeners of the nominees will be sent to younger audiences. That Warner Bros Somali pirate saga sneaks were over 35 - some nations’ choices were at odds with the film open. Notables include Thomas Vinterberg’s “The members this year. — AP marketers were able to mobilize mature has Sony execs smiling, too. — Reuters Witherspoon’s west Memphis Single again: Bridget Jones returns

three movie ‘Devil’s ridget Jones returns after a 14-year break on Thursday, in a new book which sees Bthe famed British singleton widowed Knot’ acquired by Image with two children but still grappling with mage Entertainment has acquired Moyer. Based on Mara Leveritt’s true modern life and unsuitable men. Author Helen Atom Egoyan’s “Devil’s Knot,” a true crime book “Devil’s Knot: The True Fielding has already dropped the bombshell Icrime thriller about the West Story of the West Memphis Three,” sto- news about the death of Mark Darcy, the dev- Memphis Three, which had its world ry follows three teenagers accused of astatingly handsome love interest who helped premiere last month at the Toronto the brutal 1993 murder of three 8- the two previous books sell 15 million copies International Film Festival, the distrib- year old boys in Arkansas. Jason across 40 countries. utor announced Monday. Image will Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley were “Mad About The Boy” is set five years after release the film in at least 10 top the- sentenced to life in prison, while his death as Bridget launches herself back atrical markets during the second Damien Echols was sentenced to onto the dating scene as a single mum, nego- quarter of 2014. Millennium death. The film explores the lives of tiating the new-fangled technology of texts the deeply misunderstood outsiders, and Twitter and finding herself a boyfriend their families and communities, and two decades younger. Her compulsive list- their darkest fantasies. The conviction making remains, but these days diets are of the West Memphis Three riled the foiled by eating her children’s leftovers, she is American justice system, shocked a now late for school rather than work and the tightly knit religious town and out- desire to drink and smoke tests her hopes of raged the nation. being ‘the perfect mother’. And her fear from The script was written by Scott the first book of dying alone and being eaten Derrickson and Paul Harris Boardman, by Alsatians is now replaced by a fear of drop- the latter of whom also produced the ping dead and being eaten by her starving, film along with Elizabeth Fowler, parentless children. Richard Saperstein, Clark Peterson One entry reads: “Thursday 19 April 2012. and Christopher Woodrow of 175lb, alcohol units 4 (nice), calories 2822 (but Worldview Entertainment. “Reese better eating real food in club than bits of old Bridget Jones Witherspoon delivers a stellar, emo- cheese and fish fingers at home), possibility of tional performance, displaying her Edge of Reason”, in 1999 was also a success out. The review in the Daily Telegraph called it having or desire to have sex ever again 0.” and both were made into films starring Renee a “clunking disappointment”, where “the tone versatility by transforming herself as a Reviewers have complained that characteris- vulnerable mother trying to make Zellweger as Bridget, Colin Firth as Darcy and is all wrong” and “every line feels full of effort”. tics that were so endearing in a 30-something Hugh Grant as Darcy’s love rival Daniel After the success of the books, Fielding sense of her son’s death,” said Image’s Bridget are a mismatch for the 51-year-old chief acquisition officer Bill Bromiley. Cleaver. moved to Los Angeles where she co-wrote widow, the darkness of Darcy’s death under- There are some real laughs and some the movie screenplays and met television “Her commitment to the role was mining the humour of the original books. But exceptional, proving once again why poignant moments in the new book, but the executive Kevin Curran, with whom she had fans will likely relish the return of one of mod- first reviews were not kind. “It isn’t just the two children. The couple have since separated she is one of Hollywood’s best leading ern fiction’s most iconic characters, and pre- actors.” style that jars: the random capital letters, the and now, a 55-year-old single mother living orders on Amazon have already made the subjectless sentences, the mannerisms that back in London, the author finds herself in a The deal was negotiated by Mark book a bestseller. Ward, Jess De Leo and Bromiley on now seem awfully tired. It isn’t just the rather similar position to Bridget. She has always behalf of RLJ Entertainment, and by hysterical tone,” one critic wrote in the Sunday denied the books are autobiographical, but ‘Clunking disappointment’ Times. “It’s the fact that I hardly believed a she told Vogue magazine that the new CAA and WME on behalf of Fielding created Bridget in the mid 1990s Worldview Entertainment and the word of it. I didn’t believe that a 51-year-old Bridget Jones reflects how “hard motherhood for a newspaper column about the life of a 30- Entertainment also chased the title, filmmakers. The compelling tale of woman would tot up the number of minutes can feel sometimes”. “Nobody’s life is perfect something singleton searching for love in though Image made an aggressive the West Memphis Three also she’d spent on Twitter, and spend meetings and today, more than ever, I think women are London. The first book, “Bridget Jones’ Diary” offer that financier Worldview inspired a trilogy of HBO documen- about her own film script sending saucy texts.” under a huge pressure to be something, in 1996, was a global success, spawning a Entertainment could not turn down. taries known as “Paradise Lost,” which Others have suggested that the reams of achieve something, look like something,” she whole new vocabulary-from smug marrieds to Oscar winners Colin Firth and chronicled the arrest, 18-year impris- print that followed in the style of Bridget said. “Mad About The Boy” goes on sale in fuckwits-a new, truncated style of writing and Reese Witherspoon star alongside onment and eventual release of the Jones, including most recently a spate of Britain and online on Thursday, before being arguably kick-starting the entire “Chick Lit” Amy Ryan, Mireille Enos and Stephen three men. — Reuters books about the comic trials of domestic life, rolled out across the world over the next six genre. The second book, “Bridget Jones: The have made it harder for the original to stand months. — AFP