Highest Grossing Films of 2010

Here are the top ten domestic grossing films, as reported in the December 24, 2010 issue of The Hollywood Reporter

1.     Toy Story 3 $415 million  (The folks at Pixar and Disney must be very happy.)

2.     Alice in Wonderland $334.2 million

3.     Inception $292.5 million (Christopher Nolan has proven that he doesn’t need Batman to boil his pot.)

4.     Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 $265.7 million

5.     Shrek Forever After $238.5 million

6.     The Twilight Saga: Eclipse $300.5 million (Team Jacob or Team Edward? Who cares! Vampires AND Werewolves aren’t sexy.)

7.     Iron Man 2 $312.1 million

8.     Despicable Me $250.5 million

9.     How to Train Your Dragon $217.6 million  (Or How to Train Your Dragon and Make Millions in the Process)

10.  Clash of the Titans $163.2 million

Joking aside, four out of the ten films in the 2010 list are animated. It is not hard to figure out why, since the ongoing recession has people yearning not just for an escape but a reminder of childhood and animated films do both.  (I explored this idea further in my blog entry of July 21, 2010 and you can read it here: https://justmovieposters09.wordpress.com/2010/07/21/animated-movies%E2%80%94they%E2%80%99re-not-just-for-kids-anymore/). Also, half of the films in the list are sequels. Love’em or hate’em, sequels make the cash register go cha-ching million of times over. From Harry Potter to Twilight and loads of movies in between, people like to see how characters progress over time. I admit, I like sequels for that very reason. Because people want to see the next chapter, they go the see the sequel and the film makes lots of money. It’s not rocket science, folks. It’s what the engineers call “If it works, it works” principle.

So, what will 2011 bring in movies? While I could wax poetic about the art of film, the reality is that the studios aren’t going to mess with a good formula. So, there will be more blockbusters, sequels and animated films in 2011. Of course, there is a chance that I’m wrong and there will be less films that are just formulaic plots with different characters and more films that explore the human condition.

Naaaaa.

Source:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/gallery/top-10-grossing-films-2010-65349

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Animated Movies—They’re Not Just for Kids Anymore

There were three animated movies released during the 2010 summer movie season. In case you’ve been hiding under a rock, they are:

Toy Story 3
Shrek: The Final Chapter
Despicable Me

Usually during the blockbuster movie season (summer or winter/holiday season), one, maybe two animated films are released. What has lead to so many animated films being released at one time?  Here are my theories on the subject:

1. It’s the economy.  The Dow is more down than up and unemployment is still high. In a situation like this, escapist cinema does well at the box office and what can be more escapist than an animated film. The films are visually appealing and the voices are stars like Steve Carrell, Tom Hanks, Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz who know how to bring a character to life.
2. It’s a reminder of childhood. If you are of a certain age, you can remember being camped out in front of the television set on Saturday mornings watching such cartoons as Bugs Bunny, Fat Albert, Superfriends and let’s not forget The Smurfs. While the Saturday morning cartoons aren’t as visually appealing as their feature length cousins, they were fun to watch. Bugs Bunny got away from Elmer Fudd, the Superfriends got the bad guys, Fat Albert and his friends had fun and learned a lesson, and the Smurfs outsmarted Gargamel everytime. Bravo cartoon characters, you entertained me and a million other kids.
3. It’s art. Don’t look at me like that. I’m serious. From Snow White to the current crop of computer generated animated films, it takes a good eye and great storytelling skill to create an animated film that both kids and adults will enjoy. Also, creating art means taking a risk. Speaking of Snow White, Walt Disney took a huge gamble in making that film in 1937. Before Snow White was released, no one thought people would watch an animated feature for more than a few minutes. Well, Disney proved the naysayers wrong and showed than an animated film can be as engrossing and artistic as a feature film. Whatever you think of the Disney studios now, would there be a Toy Story, Shrek or even Despicable Me in 2010 without Walt talking that chance in 1937?

Something to think about as you go to see the latest animated film.

Source: http://disney.go.com/characters/?channel=154327#/characters/articles/snowwhiteturns70/