What would happen if everyone around Nicolas Cage acted as creepily unmoored as he does in any given flop?

The answer, the practically direct to video “Trespass,” gets as close to an answer as we’re likely to see. And it ain’t pretty.

No one is shocked to see Cage line up another clunker, but how did Nicole Kidman and director Joel Schumacher get lassoed into this mess?

Cage plays Kyle, a wealthy diamond merchant living in the kind of home that screams .001 percent. He’s clearly hiding something from his beautiful wife Sarah (Nicole Kidman), but we don’t have time to dig through their neuroses before a band of invaders trick their way into Kyle’s compound.

The ruse is so obvious even Barney Fife might have blown the whistle on them, but the story has to start somewhere, right?

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It’s the sequel everyone’s been waiting for.

No, not quite. But at least it’s not “Next, Next” or “Season of the Witch: Fall’s Back, Baby.”

“Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance” is coming our way in February, and that means Nicolas Cage is out to make amends for the pedestrian origin film. The newest trailer suggests he may have done just that.

Sure, the laugh lines still lack the pop of a Grade A Superhero flick – “Spider-Man,” to name just one. But the action is intense and the special effects might just make up for a co-star (Violante Placido) who looks pretty lost on a movie set.

Superhero films, even the sub-standard models like “Green Lantern,” make coin, period. So it makes fiscal sense to try another “Ghost Rider” film on for size. The character isn’t like your standard cape bearer, and that grinning, flaming skull is one cool vision.

The real question is whether Cage can summon enough of his wacko side to balance out that bony exterior? If so, he may have brought the “Ghost” franchise back from the dead.

Comedian Pablo Francisco confesses he doesn’t know how to attach a photograph to an email. But Francisco is more than savvy enough to leverage the web to bring his comedy to a worldwide stage.

YouTube videos of Francisco imitating everyone from Arnold Schwarzenegger to that movie voice-over guy (Don LaFontaine) have helped the comedian break big across the globe.

“The Internet is such a beautiful thing,” says Francisco, who recently returned from his third trip to Australia and has also played in South Africa. Comedy pals warned him about being unable to connect with crowds while traveling abroad – “good luck with the language barrier, dude,” they told him. Turns out the YouTube videos of his act arrived well before he did.

“They’re getting the comedy … they love YouTube,” he says. “They have the same Burger Kings, the same 7-11s.”

Besides, Francisco’s kind of comedy hardly needs a translator.

“I’m doing it just the way Benny Hill was doing it … everybody likes goofiness, everybody likes messing around, as long as it’s done with soul,” he says.

Anyone can become a YouTube sensation today, but Francisco notes not everyone can write their own material. It’s here where his embrace of the Web casts him apart from a cute kitten or warbling toddler.

Francisco’s latest Comedy Central special, “They Put it Out There,” is now available on DVD. The concept behind the DVD, and his act in general, is simple. If someone dares to enter the public arena, be it that Shamwow guy “who looks like he farted and kept the face,” or a family of reality show dwarves, then it’s fair game for Francisco.

“It’s OK to make fun of them. They put it out there. I’m not a bully,” he explains.

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“As Keith Richards says, 90 percent of everything is crap.”

YouTube

Kurt Loder, a film critic for Reason.com and Creators Syndicate, quotes the legendary Rolling Stones guitarist to explain why most of the reviews in his new book, The Good, The Bad and The God-Awful: 21st-Century Movie Reviews are negative. Loder says he loves movies, but because of the constant demand for new product, the bad movies will inevitably outnumber the good ones. (more…)

In “Season of the Witch,” disenchanted knight Behmen (Nicolas Cage) and his partner Felson (Ron Perlman) return to Europe after deserting what’s become a less-than-holy crusade. Upon their return, they find Europe devastated by a terrible plague, supposedly caused by a girl (Claire Foy) church leaders accuse of witchcraft. Cage’s guilt for atrocities committed during the crusade prompt him to accept a quest to deliver the girl to the monastery for what he hopes will be a fair trial. But on the way, mysterious tragedies befall them, and in the end, Cage and company realize that the trial they sought is nothing like the one they will encounter.

—–

For one of the first films of the year, “Season of the Witch” boasts a decent story and script. Screenwriter Bragi Schut’s dialogue, though blocky, fits the 1300s. While the film is deeper than most in the action-adventure genre, it’s inadequate one-dimensional characters limit its impact. There’s next to no back-story, so the film relies on the likability of lead actors Cage and Perlman (who play themselves, in armor) to keep viewers engaged. It’s not the best choice, since meaningful moments disintegrate into melodrama. Fortunately Perlman’s humor keeps the film light enough to avoid dragging in sentiment. Dynamic supporting characters also buoy the film, and Foy’s nuanced performance leaves you wondering who she really is until the end. 

Box Office Mojo reported that the film cost about $40 million to make. Considering another crusade film “Kingdom of Heaven” cost about $130 million, “Season of the Witch” isn’t half bad, though it’s obvious the special effects budget took a hit, and director Dominic Sena (who also directed “Swordfish” and “Gone in 60 Seconds”) rightly panned over special effects quickly to avoid focusing on obvious CGI. (more…)

Nicolas Cage gets a lot of guff from elite critics because he’s considered something of an apostate. A truly talented actor, the Academy Award -winner has always moved to a silent rhythm of his own, oblivious to the criticism as he marches through a hit-and-miss career making the films he wants to make. Whereas critics would prefer Cage impress them with edgy performances in nihilistic indie films no one wants to see but nonetheless confirms their warped worldview, Cage mostly prefers high-concept blockbusters where that interesting inner-tremble of his is just as welcome as something else that’s becoming endangered on today’s big screen: masculinity.

There’s another welcome and rare quality Cage delivers like few others at his level. Whether he’s drinking himself to death in Vegas or expressing admiration for America’s traditions and Founding Fathers during a quest for National Treasure, Cage never plays it anything less than sincere. Regardless of the role, this is one actor who refuses to wink at the elites so they know he knows he’s throwing a bone to the hoi polloi; he never acts as though he’s above the material. When you’re a star, goodwill matters and Nic Cage has had mine since his marvelous turn as a good man whose decency never fails to get him nearly killed in 1993’s under-rated  and under-appreciated “Red Rock West.”

For “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” which opens everywhere tomorrow, Cage re-teams with “National Treasure” producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director John Turteltaub. Unfortunately, that pedigree combined with all the goodwill in the world isn’t enough to lift this flat, noisy, special effects extravaganza into anything worth recommending. (more…)

When it comes to films, the least of my concerns is content. The stuff that’s in a movie has very little to do with its theme — what a story wants to tell the world — and that’s where a filmmaker is most likely to win or lose me. Does “Kick Ass” have an 11 year-old costumed heroine named Hit Girl who lays violent waste  to bad guys but only after calling them “c*nts” and “motherf*ckers?” Indeed it does. But a heroine she is and one of the finest pre-teen role models Hollywood’s come up with in a long, long time. So powerfully written and realized is this pint-sized, two-fisted ball of righteous vengeance that one of her more heroic feats is saving “Kick-Ass” all on her own even though she’s only a supporting player.

The central story is a fairly weak one that revolves around Dave (Aaron Johnson), one of those typically awkward Hollywood movie teens with a crush on a girl way above his league and part of a trio of nerdy friends enamored with comic books and victimized by bullies.  Dave can’t understand why no one’s ever decided to man up and become a superhero. After all, there’s no law against it and all you need is a costume and the guts, right?

Well, kind of. Tired of being bullied and eager to boost his own self-esteem, after costuming himself in a rubber wetsuit, Dave becomes Kick Ass, a masked avenger seeking to right wrongs on the mean streets of New York. His problem of course is that beneath all that rubber he’s still Dave, a wimp with no formal superhero training. Disaster looms but from afar someone’s watching; a real superhero with real training: Big Daddy (a marvelous Nicolas Cage), a caped crusader who dresses like Batman, talks like Adam West, and  knows the kid’s a fool but admires his grit. (more…)

Incredibly entertaining and ridiculously violent, “Kick-Ass” is also perhaps the most jaw-droppingly audacious superhero movie to date. Depicting what happens when a teenage comic book fan (Aaron Johnson) with no superpowers decides to follow his fictional heroes into cleaning up the streets, the new film from Matthew Vaughn (“Stardust”) offers up slam-bang entertainment starring kids – yet should absolutely not be seen by anyone under the age of at least 13.

I’m not kidding – “Kick-Ass” is rated R, but everyone knows just how many parents could care less about ratings. This is one where they need to pay attention. For not only does the film follow the titular hero on his exploits – which result in he himself getting his ass kicked in graphic fashion at least three times – but it also includes the alternately weirdly touching and outright psychotic relationship between a former cop named Damon (Nicolas Cage) and his daughter Mindy (Chloe Grace Moretz, veering between Girl Scout goodness and a foul-mouthed hellion in a role that will make any parent of an 11-year-old wonder what the hell their kid is secretly up to).

Cage is also an obsessed superhero fan who creates a Batman-like persona for himself called Big Daddy. He trains his daughter Mindy to become a superhero called Hit Girl, and the training includes blasting bullets into a Kevlar vest she’s wearing from 20 feet away. Together, they seek to avenge the death of his wife and her mother, a death that occurred in a childbirth gone awry partly because of the stress caused by Damon’s losing his job due to being framed for drugs by the city’s crime lord, Frank D’Amico. (more…)

This week, as the buildup to the upcoming movie “G.I. Joe” continues, the L.A. Times claimed that…

Yet overseas, where big action films often earn 60% or more of their ticket sales, rah-rah American sentiment doesn’t play well. So those references have vanished from the advertising.

Big Hollywood’s John Nolte gave that theory a thorough fisking, providing numbers showing that while “rah-rah America” movies aren’t guaranteed big foreign box-office returns, they aren’t automatically guaranteed to fail. He also points out that many “anti-rah rah” movies have even less appeal.

Oh, is it still okay to say “foreign?” Just checking, seeing as many schools are replacing “foreign language” departments with World Language departments. We’re all just one, big, happy World Family, right?

Okay, back to the topic at hand. John’s post got me to thinking. If anti-war movies such as “Rendition” and “A Mighty Heart,” despite the hype and the A-list star roster didn’t bring in the beaucoup bucks, how about anti-American movies made by one of the biggest anti-Americans on the planet, Michael Moore? (more…)

In my Final Weekend Tracking column posted on Wednesday, I predicted that X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Fox) would reach $92M on opening weekend, despite soft reviews (now only 38% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). My first fearless forecast of the 2009 summer blockbuster season appears to be close to dead-on (missed by only 5%).

Star-turned-producer Hugh Jackman has scored his second-biggest opening ever and, easily, his biggest as a solo star. Wolverine has mauled the competition with a massive $34.75M opening day (including $5M or so in Thursday midnight sales). That could translate to a 3-day of $86.8M, getting Hollywood’s most lucrative season off to a spectacular start.

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The great thing about a sequel is that it has a built-in audience. The problem with sequels is that, as the numbers after the title go up, so does the production budget. Very hard to know for sure, but sources have told me that the production budget for X-Men was in the $75M range. X-2: X-Men United may have had a budget of about $110M, while the cost of X-Men: The Last Stand was, in all likelihood, as much as $210M. Why doesn’t it make sense to just churn out X-Men 4?

Look at these numbers.

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Recording superstar Beyonce Knowles is building a bankable resume for herself as an actress with Sony Screen Gems’ Obsessed as the latest title burnishing her resume. Co-starring the excellent Idris Elba (The Wire), this low budget, PG-13 genre pic has scored a far-above-expectations $11M on Friday, and it will likely reach $27.5M for the weekend. That is the best opening yet for the former Destiny’s Child lead vocalist as an above-the-title star, topping 2003’s The Fighting Temptations and Cadillac Records from late 2008.

Beyonce does battle with the sexy Ali Larter (HEROES) in OBSESSED

OPENINGS FOR BEYONCE MOVIES
1. Austin Powers: Goldmember – $70.3M opening
2. Obsessed – $27.5M opening (projected)
3. Pink Panther (2006) – $20.2M opening
4. Dreamgirls – $14.1M wide break (after a platform start)
5. The Fighting Temptations – $11.7M opening
6. Cadillac Records – $3.4M opening

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The final weekend of April has never been Hollywood’s favorite release date. In fact, it is generally considered to be among the worst release dates on the calendar. Whatever opens on the final weekend of April gets absolutely crushed by the official start of the summer blockbuster season on the first weekend of May.

The 4 new wide releases and 1 major specialty release set to debut this weekend will face an onslaught of mega-hits over the next month. How can Obsessed (Sony), Earth (Disney), The Soloist, (Dreamworks/Paramount), Fighting (Rogue) and The Informers (Senator) possibly find an audience with X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Fox) and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (Warner Bros) arriving next weekend followed by, in successive weeks, Star Trek (Paramount), Angels & Demons (Sony), the combo of Night at the Museum 2 (Fox) and Terminator: Salvation (Fox) and Disney/Pixar’s Up?

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She has a hit TV show on the Disney Channel, a pair of albums that have debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts, a concert tour with 69 sold-out arenas in North America, and now a second #1 movie in as many years. Miley Cyrus is the biggest teen star in the world.

With most of Hollywood (including myself) expecting an opening in the mid-$20M’s for Hannah Montana The Movie (Disney), Miley has surprised “grown-ups” with her box office clout once again. The picture opened with a heavily front-loaded $17.39M on Good Friday then dropped 40% on Saturday to an estimated $10.34M, and it will reach an estimated $34M by the end of Easter weekend, making it the all-time #2 opening for the bunny holiday weekend. My Friday night early 3-day projection was for $33.6M, but then I raised my number to $39M on Saturday. As it turns out, I should have stuck with my first pass. These young skewing movies are tricky to project, and the Easter Weekend, where Saturday traditionally drops from Friday, makes it even more complicated.

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Easter weekend 2009 will almost certainly be an all-time record-breaker for Hollywood with a pair of new releases that could be among the top six bunny holiday openings of all time. Although neither Hannah Montana: The Movie (Disney) or the new R-rated comedy Observe & Report (Warner Bros) will challenge 2006’s all-time Easter weekend opening champion Scary Movie 4 ($40.2M), both new offerings look very solid in pre-release industry tracking, and they will be joined by some strong holdovers.

Universal’s Fast & Furious is likely to cross the finish line first for a second consecutive weekend, following up last weekend’s almost $71M with about $30M, which would mark a 58% drop. Still, it must be considered a triumph that the re-teaming of Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez may have $120M in US sales after just 10 days. That will mean that Fast & Furious will have almost doubled the domestic gross of The Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift (the last film in the franchise), and this souped-up thrill ride could be headed for $160M US.

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With 400,000 Americans showing up every year at the Indy 500 and 200,000 more buying tickets to see NASCAR’s premiere event The Daytona 500, you would think that the most creative minds in Hollywood would be looking for a way to cash in with more movies about car racing and car culture. NASCAR has an estimated 75 million fans, and it is second only to the National Football League in terms of television ratings, so where are all the good racing movies?

Jordana Brewster is reunited with Vin, Paul and Michelle in FAST & FURIOUS

Universal seems to have answered that question by getting its successful street racing franchise back into the fast lane this weekend with Fast & Furious. The movie, which reunites Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez for the first time since 2001’s original surprise blockbuster, has exploded to a high octane $30.11M or so on Friday and that could mean a $70M opening weekend. That would make it the all-time #1 opening for a car racing movie.

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Universal’s Fast & Furious will be “burning rubber” this weekend at America’s multiplexes as the original street-racing cast reunites after some sub-par chapters of the franchise.

The original The Fast & The Furious hit theatres in 2001 under the direction of Rob Cohen who had shown a knack for action with Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story ($35M US cume) and Sly Stallone’s Daylight ($33M US cume) and a savvy feel for bigger-than-life characters in his Golden Globe winning biopic The Rat Pack (which, if you’ve never seen you should put in your Netflix cue and prepare to be amazed by Don Cheadle’s turn as Sammy Davis, Jr.). In tow, he had a 34-year-old Vin Diesel in only his second starring role following the surprise low budget hit Pitch Black ($39M cume) and 28-year-old Paul Walker, who had just starred in Cohen’s forgettable The Skulls. Also in the cast was Jordana Brewster (As the World Turns) and a pre-Lost Michelle Rodriguez, whose most notable credit was a gritty little indie called Girlfight.

Vin Diesel returns for FAST & FURIOUS

The result was box office jet fuel. Seemingly out of nowhere, The Fast & The Furious scored a scalding $40M opening weekend and reached $144.5M domestic and over $200M worldwide. But Diesel, whose signature line in the original movie is “I live my life one quarter of a mile at a time,” didn’t like the script for the sequel (or they wouldn’t pay his asking price depending on who you ask). That led to the 2003 sequel 2 Fast 2 Furious directed by Academy Award nominee John Singleton (Boyz n the Hood) starring Walker along with rapper Tyrese Gibson and Eva Mendes. Despite Diesel’s conspicuous absence, 2 Fast still delivered $127M in the US. (more…)

It is an excellent weekend for Dreamworks Animation. Although the credit crunch prevented financing that would allow exhibitors to undertake the digital conversion of more of its theatres, Monsters vs. Aliens is benefiting spectacularly from the 2,075 or so standard Digital 3-D engagements and the added 143 Digital IMAX runs. The audaciously ambitious animated send-up of 50’s B-movies has used the “bleeding edge” of technology to milk an estimated $16.7M in opening day ticket sales. The which could translate to $58M or so for the 3-day weekend.

MONSTERS VS. ALIENS towers over previous 3-D releases from Hollywood

If that number holds, and, if anything, they could drift higher as family audiences flood America’s multiplexes, Monsters vs. Aliens will be the all-time third-best opening in the month of March.

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Jeffrey Katzenberg has been the film industry’s strongest proponent of 3-D over the past few years, and this weekend his advocacy will start paying dividends for Dreamworks Amimation. Monsters Vs. Aliens will debut with 4,104 playdates. That makes it the 13th-widest release in modern film history, and it becomes the biggest non-summer debut of all-time.

Jeffrey Katzenberg - The Pied Piper for Digital 3-D

ALL-TIME WIDEST NON-SUMMER RELEASES
- with summer defined as May 1 – August 30 -
1. 3/27/09 – Monsters Vs. Aliens – 4,104 playdates
2. 11/07/08 – Madagascar 2 – 4,056 playdates
3. 10/01/04 – Shark Tale – 4,016
4. 3/31/06 – Ice Age: The Meltdown – 3,964
5. 3/14/08 – Dr. Suess’ Horton Hears A Who – 3,954

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It was another good weekend for Summit Entertainment. The distributor behind last year’s meteoric hit Twilight has scored a solid hit with the Alex Proyas-directed Knowing, starring Nicolas Cage. Despite shaky word-of-mouth and negative reviews, the sci-fi thriller got a solid 9% bump on Saturday for a $9.7M second day, and it will likely finish its opening weekend with a possible $24.8M.

As a production company, Summit is responsible for some monster hits, including commercially and/or artistically successful films like Once (Oscar nominee for Best Picture), American Pie ($102..5M domestic), Memento (Oscar nominee for Best Original Screenplay: Chris Nolan), Mr. & Mrs. Smith ($186.3M domestic) and In the Valley of Ellah (Tommy Lee Jones nominated for Best Actor). But as a distributor, they got off to a slow start. (more…)