Where Box Office Meets Good Taste
In light of the both critically and financially (boo-hoo, Pirates, Shrek and Spidey 3 are all only the 29th, 21st and 15th highest-grossing films of all time - and counting) disappointing blockbusters of the summer, I’m curious about those magic moments where commerce and art find common ground. To wit, I took a look at the top grossing films of all time and compared them to the IMDB top 250. The results weren’t all that surprising and probably say a lot more about IMDB fans than movies in general, but a worthwhile exercise, nonetheless.
Admittedly, this is only the top U.S. grossers as opposed to international and also not adjusted for inflation; I’ll save that research for another post. But here are the top ten highest grossing films that also appear in the IMDB top 250, in order of highest-to-lowest gross.
(and if somebody knows how to do tables in WordPress, please tell me, because I can give you a lot more useful info that way)
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope
The Fellowship of the Ring: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Finding Nemo
Forrest Gump
The Lion King
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
The Sixth Sense
The only thing that really shocked me here was Forrest Gump because (a) I didn’t think it made that much money and (b) I didn’t think the IMDB crowd liked it so much.
Ironically, blockbusters like Live Free or Die Hard and Transformers, which were expected to get far worse reviews than The Big Three, are actually doing better with critics. I’d say it’s too early to tell with Transformers, but Variety and Hollywood Reporter have weighed in, and they’re not usually as easily swayed as the early-to-post fanboys are.
By most accounts, an underwhelming action vehicle for Marky Mark. And most people I’ve talked to seem unconvinced by Danny Glover as a bad guy (in spite of his turn in The Color Purple). There’s a featurette called “Independence Hall,” though, which has this Philly resident curious.
Sam Jackson chains Christina Ricci to a radiator. Tell me that doesn’t write itself. In spite of the exploi-tastic premise, critics found a lot to love in Craig Brewer’s follow up to Hustle & Flow. Extras include commentary and featurettes.
Because you know what’s scary? Ventriloquist dummies. That’s what. Especially when they rip your tongue out. Although pretty much anything that rips your tongue out is scary. One of the tag lines for one of the featurettes reads “See the creative genius behind the terror!” Do you think they giggled when they wrote that?
In a year where horror is (pretty legitimately) taking a critical and financial beating (see above), there are still a few flicks that give it a good name. By most accounts, this may be one of the best of the year. A fake doc look at an up and coming slasher, Behind the Mask is a midnight festival fave that never really found an audience in theaters. Here’s hoping it gets another shot on DVD. Featurettes and commentary round out the extras, along with the full script on DVD-ROM.
Mixed feelings about this season, but it kept me interested. Especially like the wedding day ep, and it’s nice to see Clark take on some bad guys who could actually kill him. Also, shout out to Martian Manhunter and the ad hoc Justice League. And, to be certain, one of the most exquisitely awful/spectacular (is “awftacular” a word?) last lines to a season ever.
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
I have to admit, I was expecting this to aggressively suck, but it fared well when the reviews arrived. Narnia producers Walden media begins to carve out a niche for itself with this second effects-rich adaptation of a beloved children’s novel, admittedly far less well-known this time around. Typical assortment of featurettes and commentary round out the extras.
By most accounts, this film was serious Oscar bait for Renee Zellwegger, but the Weinstein Company kind of botched the release. Still, if you’re curious about the story of the lady who wrote 
One of the best cartoon series of the past ten years, Powerpuff Girls worked in the post-modern flourishes while maintaining the silly fun every kids’ show needs. Oh, and it was freakin’ hilarious. Available before in a “best-of” form, looks like they’re committing now to releasing the whole series. Season One includes the Bubblevicious episode, in which Bubbles loses her shit and goes sickhouse on Mojo Jojo - classic. Extras include creator Craig McCraken’s student film The Whoop*ss Girls.
Yet another case of the difficult transition from cult TV hit to mainstream film, Reno 911! - Miami landed with a thud in theaters gaining little of the critical praise heaped upon its small screen counterpart. Extras include three commentary tracks, two of which are from characters from the show.
Before he became the goto recurring character on NYPD Blue, Scrubs and 24, the artist formerly known as Rick (after being formerly known as Ricky) lived in that house with the big train. Oh, and Jason Bateman was apparently up in here, too, but I totally don’t remember that part. Yes, Mr. T is in this season and yes, that was Erin Gray as the millionaire’s assistant and no, I have no frickin’ clue when Buck Rogers is coming out on DVD already.
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?
WHAT’S THE PITCH?