Although it will only be playing for a limited time, Disney’s Frozen Sing-A-Long (which opens in theatres this week Friday) has gotten it’s own poster. Courtesy of the Internet Movie Poster Awards website, it encourages one to “Sing Along” to the “Sing-A-Long” version (am I the only one who sees what I’m seeing?)
Monthly Archives: January 2014
Box Office Totals January 24-26, 2014
Last weekend was another great weekend for Disney’s Frozen at the box office. Here are the weekend numbers in what hopefully will become a regular update. All numbers are courtesy of Box Office Mojo.
4. (up from 5) Frozen, Buena Vista, Week 10. $9,118,806 (cumulative $347,899,011)
13. (down from 11) Saving Mr. Banks, Buena Vista, Week 7. $2,080,948 (cumulative $79,158,310)
33. (down from 29) Thor: The Dark World, Buena Vista, Week 12. $167,296 (cumulative $240,509,243)
42. (down from 40) Delivery Man, Buena Vista, Week 10. $36,262 (cumulative $30,131,216)
FROZEN comes back to theatres in a Sing-Along version
Frozen continues it’s rise to success. Now with two Academy Award nominations, the hit blockbuster is returning to over 1000 theatres next weekend in an “all-new sing-along version.” Opening January 31st, 2014, on-screen lyrics and a bouncing snowflake will accompany showings of the film across the states (and hopefully into Canada?). Here’s the press release:
FANS GET IN ON THE ACT: ALL-NEW SING-ALONG VERSION OF DISNEY’S “FROZEN” HITS THEATERS NATIONWIDE JAN. 31, 2014
Moviegoer Response to Film’s Original Songs Triggers Sing-Along Experience in More Than 1000 Theaters
BURBANK, Calif. (Jan. 22, 2014) – “Frozen” audiences are invited to join the act—literally—as more than 1000 theaters nationwide introduce an all-new sing-along version of Disney’s Oscar®-nominated, Golden Globe®-winning big-screen adventure beginning Jan. 31, 2014.
“‘Frozen’ fans have embraced the film’s original songs and its soundtrack with such passion—there are countless YouTube videos from people singing songs like ‘Let It Go’—we decided to create a version that would celebrate that enthusiasm,” said Dave Hollis, executive vice president, theatrical distribution, The Walt Disney Studios. “It’s a great opportunity for families to get together and have some fun with these songs.”
According to Hollis, on-screen lyrics and a magical bouncing snowflake will accompany select showings; moviegoers can check local listings for showtimes and theaters. The duration of the sing-along run will vary by theater.
Disney’s “Frozen” received two Oscar® nominations, including best animated feature and best original song (“Let It Go”). Named best animated film by more than a dozen critics associations, the film won a Golden Globe® for best animated feature, two Critics Choice Movie Awards, including best animated feature and best song (“Let It Go”), and a Producers Guild of America Award for outstanding animated feature.
In wide release since November 27, the film posted the No. 1 all-time Thanksgiving debut and the largest opening ever for a Walt Disney Animation Studios film. “Frozen,” WDAS’ 53rd feature film, has earned more than $773 million worldwide, including $337` million domestically. The film’s soundtrack was No. 1 in the Billboard top 200 for two straight weeks.
At Hollywood’s El Capitan Theatre, the “Frozen” sing-along version includes on-stage appearances from the movie’s Elsa prior to each showing, plus snow flurries inside the theater. Showtimes are at 10 a.m., 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.
On Digital HD & 3D Feb. 25 and Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD & On-Demand March 18, the in-home version of “Frozen” promises continued family fun with a blizzard of never-before-seen bonus extras to complement the film’s gorgeous animation, memorable characters and unforgettable music.
ABOUT THE MOVIE
Walt Disney Animation Studios, the studio behind “Tangled” and “Wreck-It Ralph,” presents “Frozen,” a stunning big-screen comedy adventure. Fearless optimist Anna (voice of Kristen Bell) sets off on an epic journey—teaming up with rugged mountain man Kristoff (voice of Jonathan Groff) and his loyal reindeer Sven—to find her sister Elsa (voice of Idina Menzel), whose icy powers have trapped the kingdom of Arendelle in eternal winter. Encountering Everest-like conditions, mystical trolls and a hilarious snowman named Olaf (voice of Josh Gad), Anna and Kristoff battle the elements in a race to save the kingdom. The film is directed by Chris Buck (“Tarzan,” “Surf’s Up”) and Jennifer Lee (screenwriter, “Wreck-It Ralph”), who also wrote the screenplay. It is produced by Peter Del Vecho (“Winnie the Pooh,” “The Princess and the Frog”). Featuring original songs from Kristen Anderson-Lopez (“In Transit,” “Winnie the Pooh”) and Tony® winner Robert Lopez (“The Book of Mormon,” “Avenue Q”), and an original score by Christophe Beck (“The Muppets,” Oscar®-winning short “Paperman”), “Frozen” opened in theaters nationwide on Nov. 27, 2013. Accompanying “Frozen” is Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Get A Horse!” With Walt Disney himself as the voice of Mickey Mouse, the all-new short features Mickey, his favorite gal pal Minnie Mouse and their friends Horace Horsecollar and Clarabelle Cow as they delight in a musical haywagon ride. For more information, check outDisney.com/Frozen, like us on Facebook: facebook.com/DisneyFrozen and follow us on Twitter: Twitter.com/DisneyAnimation.
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Academy Award Nominations for Frozen, Saving Mr. Banks, Get A Horse, The Wind Rises, & more
Better than the Razzies, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced their nominations for the 86th Annual Academy Awards, coming up on Sunday, March 2nd. As Disney is now focussing more on mega-blockbusters and less artsy pics, they are getting fewer nominations than companies that bring in less money, but release more films. This also keeps them out of the biggest categories of acting, directing, writing, and the big one of best picture, and even the lesser ones of cinematography, editing, and design. In addition to Disney’s “own” awards, Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound employees have picked up some nominations for their work. This is harder to list, and ILM & Skywalker don’t get named by the Academy themselves. They may become footnotes on the list – it will be hard to track them as time goes on (but congratulations is in order, nonetheless).
So, without further ado, here are the categories in which Disney is nominated:
Best animated feature film of the year:
– “The Croods” (20th Century Fox), Chris Sanders, Kirk DeMicco and Kristine Belson
– “Despicable Me 2” (Universal), Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin and Chris Meledandri
– “Ernest & Celestine” (GKIDS), Benjamin Renner and Didier Brunner
– “Frozen” (Walt Disney), Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho
– “The Wind Rises” (Walt Disney), Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki
Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling
– “Dallas Buyers Club” (Focus Features) Adruitha Lee and Robin Mathews
– “Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa” (Paramount) Stephen Prouty
– “The Lone Ranger” (Walt Disney) Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
– “The Book Thief” (20th Century Fox) John Williams
– “Gravity” (Warner Bros.) Steven Price
– “Her” (Warner Bros.) William Butler and Owen Pallett
– “Philomena” (The Weinstein Company) Alexandre Desplat
– “Saving Mr. Banks” (Walt Disney) Thomas Newman
Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
– “Alone Yet Not Alone” from “Alone Yet Not Alone” (Enthuse Entertainment); Music by Bruce Broughton, Lyric by Dennis Spiegel
– “Happy” from “Despicable Me 2” (Universal); Music and Lyric by Pharrell Williams
– “Let It Go” from “Frozen” (Walt Disney); Music and Lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
– “The Moon Song” from “Her” (Warner Bros.); Music by Karen O, Lyric by Karen O and Spike Jonze
– “Ordinary Love” from “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom” (The Weinstein Company); Music by Paul Hewson, Dave Evans, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen, Lyric by Paul Hewson
Best animated short film
– “Feral”, A Daniel Sousa Production, Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden
– “Get a Horse!” (Walt Disney) A Walt Disney Animation Production, Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim
– “Mr. Hublot”, A Zeilt Production, Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares
– “Possessions”, A Sunrise Production, Shuhei Morita
– “Room on the Broom”, A Magic Light Pictures Production. Max Lang and Jan Lachauer
Achievement in visual effects
– “Gravity” (Warner Bros.) Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, Dave Shirk and Neil Corbould
– “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” (Warner Bros.) Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and Eric Reynolds
– “Iron Man 3” (Walt Disney) Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Erik Nash and Dan Sudick
– “The Lone Ranger” (Walt Disney) Tim Alexander, Gary Brozenich, Edson Williams and John Frazier
– “Star Trek Into Darkness” (Paramount) Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Ben Grossmann and Burt Dalton
Before the Oscars, there are first the Razzie Award Nominations
The Razzie Awards are a bit of an enigma. Created by the Golden Raspberry Award Foundation so as to recognize the worst of the products coming from the Hollywood movie making machine, sometimes they hit, and sometimes they miss. Sometimes the films they nominate are bad films, but not often are they the worst. They are often among the worst of the mega-budget films, and the actors and actresses who receive nominations receive often for their entire body of work in a year, not just individual performances, which can make it look like the organization behind the Razzies just likes to pick on some of the same people over and over again. My own personal beef is their “Worst Screen Combo” category. Often that category has “everyone from ‘Film X'” as a nominee – when really, nominating a character or bit actor with one line in a film should hardly be the subject of a Razzie nomination for “Worst Screen Combo”. Pick on the bad actors, and name names, Razzies. Name names for your nominees. The other concern, is that Razzie noms aren’t voted on by “a jury of your peers”, rather anyone and everyone can be a member, which makes them more like People’s Worst Choice Awards. “Winners” will be announced on “Oscar Eve”, Saturday, March 1st.
Anyways, with that rant behind us, here are Disney‘s 5 nominations for the 34th Annual Razzie Awards, all for The Lone Ranger:
Worst Picture: The Lone Ranger, against After Earth, Grown-Ups 2, A Madea Christmas, and Movie 43.
Worst Actor: Johnny Depp (The Lone Ranger), against Ashton Kutcher (Jobs), Adam Sandler (Grown-Ups 2), Jaden Smith (After Earth), and Sylvester Stallone (Bullet To The Head, Escape Plan, and Grudge Match)
Worst Director: Gore Verbinski (The Lone Ranger), against Dennis Dugan (Grown-Ups 2), Tyler Perry (A Madea Christmas and Temptation), M. Night Shyamalan (After Earth), and <sigh> “The 13 People Who Directed” (Movie 43). [For the record, the thirteen people are: Peter Farrelly, Steven Brill, Will Graham, Steve Carr, Griffin Dunne, James Duffy, Jonathan van Tulleken, Elizabeth Banks, Patrik Forsberg, Brett Ratner, Rusty Cundieff, James Gunn, and Bob Odenkirk]
Worst Screenplay: Ted Elliott, Justin Haythe & Terry Rossio (Screen Story & Screenplay for The Lone Ranger) against Gary Whitta and M. Night Shyamalan (Screenplay) and Will Smith (Story) of After Earth, Fred Wolfe & Adam Sandler & Tim Herlihy (Grown-Ups 2), Tyler Perry (A Madea Christmas), and <again, sigh> the 19 “Screenwriters” (their quotation marks, not mine) of Movie 43 [who again, deserve the ‘credit’ for their work, if it really is that bad. They are: Rocky Russo, Jeremy Sosenko, Ricky Blitt, Bill O’Malley, Will Graham, Jack Kukoda, Matthew Alec Portenoy, Claes Kjellstrom, Jonas Wittenmark, Tobias Carlson, Will Carlough, Jonathan van Tulleken, Elizabeth Wright Shapiro, Patrik Forsberg, Olle Sarri, Jacob Fleisher, Greg Pritikin, James Gunn, and Bob Odenkirk]
Worst Remake, Rip-Off or Sequel: The Lone Ranger against Grown-ups 2, Hangover III, Scary Movie 5, and Smurfs 2.
FROZEN: THE MUSICAL? Possibly, but a long way off says Iger
Hot off the tails of a Golden Globe win for Best Animated Feature, Disney CEO Bob Iger is interviewed in a great article in Fortune magazine which I highly recommend. The most interesting quote is with regards to the idea of seeing Frozen on Broadway sometime.
In his interview with Fortune, Iger confirmed for the first time that Disney is in discussions to develop a show, though there is no set time frame. “We’re not demanding speed,” he says. “We’re demanding excellence.”
New MUPPETS MOST WANTED TV Spot
The newest Muppet movie, Muppets Most Wanted, opens everywhere March 21, 2014. Today there’s a new trailer/TV spot which continues mocking the use of Twitter quotes in trailers. The most remarkable thing is that the Twitter handles that they quote in the opening seconds of the trailer are actually Twitter accounts. They’ve taken the time to post the Twitter identities of actual Muppet fans. Quite remarkable.
Roger Corman’s THE FANTASTIC FOUR documentary “DOOMED!”
Today, another blip on the radar of a documentary based on a quasi-Disney project. Roger Corman, the mega-busy producer of perhaps questionable B-quality films (or worse) made a version of Marvel’s The Fantastic Four back in 1994. There were lots of significant factors surrounding it’s production, and it was never released, nor – does it seem – was it ever intended to. Today we bring news of a documentary made about the project, a film called Doomed! (Did I mention that the villain was the infamous Dr. Doom?). Anyways, for more information, you can check out the Doomed FaceBook page!
ARABIAN KNIGHT / THE THIEF AND THE COBBLER documentary PERSISTENCE OF VISION
In 1995, Disney-owned Miramax Pictures released a little picture called Arabian Knight. I was in attending the University of Saskatchewan at the time, which held a critics’ screening of the film in their on-campus theatre (Place Riel), which has since been converted into a classroom. I grew up watching many Disney cartoons in this theatre as Saturday afternoon matinees, and many other film classics in my early adult years. By this point, I was a fan of Disney’s films, and had been aware of their purchase of Miramax a few years earlier. This made me eager to see this film at possibly it’s only airing in Saskatoon at the time.
By now, hopefully you’ve heard about this film and all of the history behind it. If you haven’t, I point you now to two excellent articles by “Papa Vineyard” (Vincent Zahedi) of Ain’t It Cool News. The first is about how he recently had a chance to see a 1992 version of the film, assembled before Miramax got their hands on it, and the second is an interview with Kevin Schreck, the director of a documentary titled “Persistence of Vision” which is all about the 30-year-plus making of The Thief And The Cobbler, and legendary filmmaker Richard Williams’ vision with regards to his masterpiece project. I suggest you check out both articles.