Tag Archives: snowden

Sully Repeats, while Blair Witch and Bridget Jones Fall Short of Expectations

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sully-poster-1If you asked me a week ago, I’d have said there was a good chance either Blair Witch or Bridget Jones’s Baby would come in first this box office weekend. Both fell short in a rather slow weekend that saw Sully repeat for first place. The weekend’s top twelve was down 11.6% compared to last week and down 24.3% compared to last year.

Sully came in first again in its second weekend bringing in an estimated $22 million. Domestically the film has earned $1.8 million. Worldwide, the film has earned $93.9 million with an estimated budget of $60 million.

In second place was newcomer Blair Witch which brought in an estimated $9.65 million. With a budget of $5 million, the film will do fine when it comes to making money, but that amount was short of the expected $20 million the film would open. Still, with such a low-budget cost, the film will be fine in the end, but not the money machine I’m sure some were expected. The film has also gotten bad reviews from critics and audiences, which may be the worst news of the opening.

In third was Bridget Jones’s Baby with an estimated $8.2 million and a reported budget of $35 million. That’s the worst opening for any film in the franchise, but decent reviews from the audience might hold out hope the film has legs. Previous iterations had the movie making over $200 million internationally and it has made an estimated $29.9 million in international markets so far. This could be one that just doesn’t do well domestically, but great internationally, a theme that’s played for a few films this year.

Finally, Snowden debuted in fourth with a little over $8 million and a reported budget of $40 million. The film wasn’t expected to pass $10 million for its opening and did get an “A” CinemaScore from audiences. It’ll probably be the “adult” film of choice for the next month, making back its budget.

When it comes to comic film adaptations….

Suicide Squad was in seventh this past weekend, down from fourth. The three new films dropped it down. The film added $4.71 million to its domestic total to bring it to $313.78 million. Worldwide the film has made $717.88 million. Domestically it has passed Iron Man 2 in earnings and will pass Iron Man ($318.4 million) this coming week. It may pass both Batman v Superman ($330.3 million), Guardians of the Galaxy ($333.18 million), and Spider-Man 3 ($336.5 million) before its domestic run is over. The movie has also moved past Captain America: The Winter Soldier which earned $714.4 million worldwide.

Captain America: Civil War added $13,000 to its domestic total. The film has earned $408.08 million domestically and $1.153 billion worldwide.

We’ll have a greater focus on comic adaptation earnings in an hour.

Review: Snowden

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Snowden coverAs many as 1.4 million citizens with security clearance saw some or all of the same documents that would later be leaked by Edward Snowden. Why did he, and no one else, decide to step forward and take on the risks associated with becoming a whistleblower and then a fugitive?

For many of us, there’s so many unanswered questions about Edward Snowden. In Snowden, writer and cartoonist Ted Rall delves into Snowden’s early life and work experience, his personality, and the larger issues of privacy, new surveillance technologies, and government intrusion.

I consider myself very liberal and progressive, and even now I’m torn as to my thoughts about what Edward Snowden did, and how he did it. Rall does a decent job of giving us a timeline as well as laying out Snowden’s life growing up, and how it shaped him to be the man he is today. There’s lots of questions, there can only be without it being an autobiography. But, you get a good sense of things.

My issue with the story, as well as the Snowden saga as a whole, is the fact that the American public haven’t had the finger pointed at us enough for our allowing legislation to be passed and our privacy eroded. Whistelblower Mark Klein spoke out in 2007, well before Snowden had the positions he was in. I know, I was part of the Dodd internet Presidential team that worked with Klein to raise awareness of the information he brought forth. We knew we were being sold an empty bag of goods, yet we allowed it anyways. That to me is missing from a lot of the discussion. Rall touches upon it, but ignores some of what was done, such as the advocacy that delayed the passing of FISA.

Rall does a good job of giving us the facts. For those that want to learn more about what happened, and why, this is a good way to start, especially due to its ease of reading. By the time you’re done, you have just the facts, and from there you can hopefully come to your own conclusions or continuing your own investigation.

Story: Ted Rall Art: Ted Rall
Story: 8 Art: 8 Overall: 8 Recommendation: Read

Seven Stories Press provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Graphic Policy’s Top Comic Picks this Week!

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Cyborg #2 CoverWednesdays are new comic book day! Each week hundreds of comics are released, and that can be pretty daunting to go over and choose what to buy. That’s where we come in!

We’re bringing back something we haven’t done for a while, what the team thinks. Our contributors are choosing up to five books each week and why they’re choosing the books.

Find out what folks think below, and what comics you should be looking out for this Wednesday.

Brett

Top Pick: Cyborg #2 (DC Comics) – The first issue of the series was a fantastic start, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting the second. Writer David Walker seems to have addresses a lot of past issues with the character in the first issue, while also setting him on an interesting course too. This is a comic I keep checking the release schedule to see if it’s out, that’s how much I want to read it.

Prez #3 (DC Comics) – The first two issues have had me laughing, and they’re turning out to be really prescient when it comes to the future of politics and elections. Not sure if I should keep laughing or be really scared.

Princeless: Be Yourself #3 (Action Lab Entertainment) – Writer Jeremy Whitley nails it issue after issue, in this series which is so far ahead the rest of the comic industry as far as characters and themes. Girl power!

Snowden (Seven Stories Press) – Ted Rall chronicles the history of Edward Snowden and the NSA leak.

Zodiac Starforce #1 (Dark Horse Comics) – A new girl power comic that feels like a mix of Sailor Moon, Jem, and a lot of other series that are just awesome. This was an indie comic, and got picked up by Dark Horse, so it’s fun to see it also go from a small press comic to a full blown one. The first issue is all set-up and pretty entertaining.

 

Alex

Hank Johnson: Agent Of Hydra #1 (Marvel) – The preview pages j have seen of this comic looks absolutely fantastic. The idea of the behind the scenes look at the regular lives of some of henchmen in the worlds premier villainous organisation is really intriguing, and I’m sure there’ll be some interesting. Guest stars.

Old Man Logan #4 (Marvel) – I hadn’t realized just how much I missed reading about Wolverine until this series came out. Whilst I’m glad he hasn’t been resurrected for no reason, it’s nice to get some more time with one of the more interesting incarnations of Wolverine, too.

 

Edward

Top Pick: Hacktivist Vol 2 #2 (Archaia/BOOM! Studios) – The sequel series opened on a high note, and it looks like it will maintain the same tempo.

Batgirl #43 (DC Comics) – A new story arc for this standout series. Not much seems capable of stopping the momentum of this series.

He-Man: Eternity War #9 (DC Comics) – Every issue leads to a bigger turn of the plot. No idea what is coming this time, but it will be big again.

Mulan Revelations #3 (Dark Horse) – The first two issues have been heavy on style and a bit lighter on substance, but the concept is so cool that it deserves a chance to get settled.

Star Wars: Lando #3 (Marvel) – This series has been non-stop fun, proving that Lando should never have been a secondary character.

 

Elana

Top Pick: NEXT Wave: Collected Edition (Marvel) – The hilarious, highly political superhero team satire series featuring Monica Rambeau (formerly Photon or Capt Marvel) is out in a nice complete collection. The biting commentary and creativity of this series is renowned. From dream team Warren Ellis and Stuart Immonen.

Cyborg #2 (DC Comics) – This series is already a standout for having unusually astute analysis of blackness and also about disability. It develops Victor Stone aka Cyborg as a fascinating hero in his own right and as far as I can see it even resolved some of the previously problematic aspects of the character: (read about those problems in Robert Jones Jr’s essential essay “Humanity Not a Included“). I’m ecstatic to have an African-American writer on this title. David Walker’s story is potent scifi that works on metaphorical level and well as on a narrative level. He references Invisible Man– which has needed to happen in a Cyborg story for decades. It’s a can’t-miss series.

Grayson #11 (DC Comics) – In this issue Grayson fights himself. Or someone pretending to be him. I love Huntress in this series acting as his spy master. I totally respect this comic’s dedication to a female and queer male readership that too many series ignore.

Lumberjanes #17 (BOOM! Box/BOOM! Studios) – New story arc featuring our favorite feminist summer camp adventurers. Please get your kids reading this book. It’s groundbreaking and fun and fabulous. And read it yourself for swells of nostalgia for a relatable yet fantastical children’s story that I wish I’d had when I was little.