CinemaSins Gives Us Everything Wrong With The Wolverine
CinemaSins gives us everything that’s wrong with The Wolverine. It only takes about 11 minutes.
Tag Archives: the wolverine
Around the Tubes
It’s new comic day tomorrow! What’s everyone excited for? Check out some comic news you might have missed below.
Around the Tubes
CBR – “Mind MGMT” Screenwriter Will Pen “The Wolverine” Sequel – Interesting.
Kotaku – Crimea’s New Attorney General Reacts to Her Internet Fandom – So weird.
Kotaku – Future Batman Glows In The Dark (And Is Really Old) – Some cool art.
CBR – Allison Types: Is Competition Always Good? – A good read and good ideas.
Around the Tubes Reviews
CBR – Ms. Marvel #2
Diamond Select Toys New Releases: The Wolverine, Tomb Raider and 7 of 9!
Out this week from Diamond Select Toys, new Minimates assortments, a new Marvel Select figure, a new Femme Fatale and a new Minimates carrying case (with exclusive Minimate!) are all available for purchase or order at your local comic book shop starting today.
Marvel Select The Wolverine Movie Action Figure
Based on the celebrated comic book arc, The Wolverine finds Logan, the eternal warrior and outsider, in Japan. There, samurai steel will clash with adamantium claw as Logan confronts a mysterious figure from his past in an epic battle that will leave him forever changed. This 7-inch action figure depicts Wolverine in a look straight out of the film and features 16 points of articulation as well as interchangeable hands and heads. Figure comes in display-ready Select packaging, with shelf reference panel. Sculpted by Gentle Giant! (APR131745, $24.99)
Marvel Minimates Series 52: The Wolverine Movie Asst.
Based on the celebrated comic book arc, The Wolverine finds Logan, the eternal warrior and outsider, in Japan. There, samurai steel will clash with adamantium claw as Logan confronts a mysterious figure from his past in an epic battle that will leave him forever changed. This assortment of mini-figures includes four different two-packs featuring characters from the film. Each Minimate stands 2 inches tall and includes a variety of interchangeable parts and accessories. Designed and Sculpted by Art Asylum! (APR131742, $9.99)
Tomb Raider Minimates Series 1 Asst.
The world’s most popular video game character is back in an all-new adventure! In her recently released prequel video game, a young Lara Croft learns the skills that made her the Tomb Raider she is today, and DST is paying tribute with a full assortment of Minimates! Two-packs include Lara Croft with Molotov Scavenger, Battle Damaged Lara Croft with Armored Scavenger, Roth with Oni General and Priest Malik with Sun Queen! Each Minimate mini-figure stands 2 inches tall and includes a variety of game-specific accessories. Designed and Sculpted by Art Asylum! (APR131736, $9.99)
Minimates 10th Anniversary Carrying Case
Back again due to popular demand! This lightweight cardboard carry case is ready to go, capable of holding up to 36 (or more if you double up) Minimates, and is perfect for everyone from kids on the go to collectors looking to trade or show off their Minimate collections or customs to friends. Each case features a magnetic seal and plastic carry handle, and has two clear plastic trays with snap-tight lids to hold a variety of Minimates of all sizes. As an added bonus, each Minimate Carry Case comes with an exclusive silver 10th Anniversary Minimate, available nowhere else! Only available on the specialty market! Designed and Sculpted by Art Asylum! (FEB131534, $19.99)
Femme Fatales Star Trek 7 of 9 PVC Statue
If all the Borg looked this good, assimilation wouldn’t seem so bad! The first Star Trek Femme Fatale has arrived, and it’s Voyager’s resident cyborg, Seven of Nine! Based on Jeri Ryan’s cybernetically enhanced character from the long-running Star Trek: Voyager series, this PVC statue stands 9 inches tall and comes packaged in a window box. (DEC121593, $45.00)
Kick-Ass 2 Continues to Do Anything But
With summer blockbuster season winding down, we’ve seen the last of the comic book movies hit the screen until later this fall and it was a mixed bag for the final few releases. Kick-Ass 2, which debuted last week dropped in it’s second week, shedding 68%. The movie dropped to 10th place to earn $4.27 million bringing its two week total to $22.4 million. The first movie had earned $32 million at this point. The good news is Kick-Ass 2 had a budget of $28 million and has earned $38.5 million globally. There’s a chance the movie will turn a slight profit when all things are said and done.
2 Guns slipped to #11 in its fourth week in theaters from the 10 spot the previous week.. That’s a drop of 41.7% from the previous week and it brought in an additional $3.4 million. The movie has brought in $65.4 million and had a budget of $61 million. The movie hasn’t opened internationally, so any profit will rely in how it does there, but looks like the movie will make it in the black, not bad for BOOM! Studios first comic to movie adaptation.
The Wolverine was in the 15 spot, earning $2.5 million with a domestic total after five weeks of a little more than $125 million. That’s well behind the total for 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which earned around $180 million domestically. Overseas the movie is doing better, where it’s earned $22 million more than the first movie for $225 million overseas and a grand total of $350.7 million. That puts the movie as the top grossing “X” film overseas, but still in the middle of the pack when it comes to grand total globally. The movie had a budget of $120 million.
Kick-Ass 2 Does Anything But Kick Ass
Kick-Ass 2 was the latest and last comic book based movie to debut this summer. The sequel to the 2010 movie based on the comic series by Mark Millar earned an estimated $13.6 million putting it tied for third place with Elysium. The movie was supposed to be a contender for the top spot. The movie looked like it was heading for issues when it dropped 27.6% from Friday to Saturday. That shows fan of the series flocked to see it right away.
The movie has a budget of $28 million, which caused Universal who released it to spin that the movie will likely break even or turn a profit in the end. The first movie debuted with #19.8 million, $21.2 million when you take inflation into account. The first film was also produced by Lionsgate which passed on the sequel.
The movie skewed heavily male, who accounted for 63% of the audience. The movie received a B+ CinemaScore, but has a horrible 28% approval on RottenTomatoes. It’s been reported that the 15% of the audience under 17 gave the film an “A” rating. Keep in mind, the film is rated R.
The original film earned $96.4 million worldwide, but did very well on DVD.
2 Guns continued to slide, dropping 50.5% and moving to eight place from fifth in its third week. The movie has earned $59.2 million domestically and the film cost an estimated $61 million. It has yet to be released in the rest of the world due to the vast amount of American films already out. That’s also a Universal film.
The Wolverine earned $4.4 million to place it into tenth place. The domestic total is $120.5 million and overseas it has earned $214.8 million bringing its total globally to $335.3 million. That film cost $120.5 million.
2 Guns Drops to Fifth in its 2nd Week
As expected, Elysium was number one at the North American box office. The movie took in an estimated $30.5 million over the weekend a bit shy of the estimated $35 million to $40 million it was expecting. A bunch of other debuts filled out the top four which dropped last week’s top spot holder, 2 Guns to fifth.
2 Guns, the movie based on a comic by BOOM! Studios, brought in an estimated $11.1 million which brings its two-week total to about $48.5 million. In its second week, the movie dropped about 59%. The movie has a budget of $61 million which it’ll probably just about cover domestically.
The Wolverine continues to struggle. In its third weekend, the movie shed over 1,000 theaters, making way for new releases. It brought in about $8 million, that’s a drop of about 63 percent. In its third week, it has earned an estimated $112 million, and looks to be the lowest grossing “X-Men” movie yet at the domestic box office. However, the movie earned another $18 million overseas for a total of $194.7 million. The movie still has Japan to open in and when the dust settles, it’ll likely be the highest grossing “X-Men” movie when it comes to international earnings. It’ll wind up somewhere in the middle when it comes to the global total.
This coming weekend sees the opening of Kick-Ass 2, another movie based on a comic.
2 Guns Comes Out Blazing at #1
2 Guns came out shooting, taking the number one spot this weekend and bumping last weekend’s top film, The Wolverine, to second. The movie put out by Universal Pictures and based on the Steven Grant written comic by BOOM! Studios took in an estimated $27.4 million for the weekend. The action movie starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg cost about $61 million to make.
2 Guns was heavily marketed to African-American and Hispanic audiences and it looks like it helped. African-Americans made up 28% of the audience with Hispanics making up 14%. The studio crafted specific advertisements for those two audiences, making sure actors appeared on networks associated with and on popular shows watched by those two audiences. Women made up a shocking 49% of the opening weekend crowd. In my viewing there were many couples watching, so this isn’t too surprising really. It is a good date movie. The rated “R” movie had an older audience, with 77% over the age of 25.
With its two stars and decent reviews, the movie should do well in August which is generally a quieter month for releases. The movie is steady at 58% on Rotten Tomatoes and has an audience rating of a B+ CinemaScore.
The Wolverine dropped to second bringing in $21.7 million for a two-week domestic total of $95 million. That’s a 59% drop in its second week. Comparatively, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, brought in $122.1 million at the dame point in its run. The movie is doing well overseas where it has brought in $160.2 million bringing its current global total to $255.2 million.
As good as 2 Guns has done for Universal, another of their films based on a comic, R.I.P.D., continues to tank. In its third week it dropped out of the top 10 with a domestic total of $30.4 million so far. That film cost $130 million.
New Photos of Marvel Select’s The Wolverine Action Figure Revealed!
This past weekend, The Wolverine slashed its way into movie theaters, telling the next chapter in the life of the nigh-immortal mutant named Logan. While the Marvel Select action figure based on the film won’t be out until September, it recently made an appearance at San Diego Comic-Con, and Diamond Select has taken some shots of the figure in action! With 16 points of articulation, three interchangeable heads and six interchangeable hands, this 7-inch figure will be the ultimate collectible for any Wolverine fan. Check out the shots, and pre-order him today at your local comic shop or favorite online toy store!
The Wolverine Ranks at a Disappointing Number 1
The Wolverine topped the box office, but analysts are calling the movie’s debut disappointing missing projections. The debuted with $55 million which was about $5-10 million below the expectations and projections. That’s well below the $85.1 million that the original X-Men Origins: Wolverine made in 2009. That’s compounded by higher ticket prices including a 3D release. The movie however did well overseas were it earned $86.1 million in 100 markets. The movie has yet to debut in China and Japan, two markets where it should do quite well.
The Wolverine had a pretty decent Thursday night showing of $4 million. That had analysts predicting a $65 million opening for the movie well into Friday afternoon. The fans seemed to have flocked early to see it, leaving the general moving going audience to pass.
The movie has earned a mediocre 66% on Rotten Tomatoes (as of this writing) but a solid “A-“ CinemaScore from opening weekend audiences. Audiences were 58% male and 58% over the age of 25 showing some issues with the movie’s appeal to general audiences.
This is the second rough opening for “comic book movies” in recent weeks as R.I.P.D. opened to bad reviews and a missing audience. that movie has only earned $24.3 million domestically and less than half of that overseas in its first ten days. That movie had a budget of around $130 million.
Next week sees the opening of 2 Guns, another “comic book movie” which isn’t being marketed as such. We’ll see how that fairs in its opening weekend.
You can read our review of The Wolverine and catch our thoughts on the film.
Movie Review: The Wolverine
To know where I’m coming from I thought the first Wolverine movie was atrocious. It was bad, really bad. Is in, whomever thought it was acceptable should have been fired bad. So, going into its follow-up, The Wolverine, the movie already had something going for it, it couldn’t be worse than the first one, and it’s not. But, that doesn’t mean it’s great either.
The plot is very simple, sort of, Wolverine is called to Japan to say good-bye to a friend whom he saved during the bombing on Nagasaki in World War II. This friend is dying and offers Wolverine a final gift for saving his life. He says he can transfer Wolverine’s healing factor to himself and thus grant Wolverine his wish to die. You see, Wolvie is having issues sleeping, what with all the killing (*cough* Jean Grey *cough*) and all. He also falls for Mariko, the grand-daughter of his pal that’s dying Yashida. Then all kinds of fighting happens and a rather convoluted second half occurs (which is the not so simple plot). The movie ends, I was disappointed, but then the mid-credit scene happens and I get excited again.
The movie isn’t a complete failure, it gets a lot right. It also gets a lot wrong.
Warning there be spoilers ahead….
I liked the tone of the movie the most. For most of it, it evoked a feel of a western set in Japan. The way scenes were set up, Wolverine’s attitude, the obstacles he faces and finally the showdown in the town, all of these things say Western to me. And that is a tone that fits the character quite well.
There’s also some solid sequences. The bullet train fight scene comes to mind as a highlight of the film with some cool action clearly green screened (we’re talking 90s green screen). The end fight scene however was a bit blah with one shocking moment, but the big reveal being a yawn inducing letdown.
There’s also numerous references to Wolverine’s bone claws. That becomes an important point in the movie and I liked the fact it was included.
I generally liked the relationship between Logan and Mariko as well. Wolverine is conflicted by the fact everyone he knows dies, but the sparks between the two are a slow build that’s somewhat believable. Overall, that’s the part that stays pretty faithful to the comics that have come before. He’s also tortured by what he’s done, often waking up at night and popping his claws.
What I disliked was the use of the Silver Samurai, Viper, Yukio and Harada. Lets break down each.
Viper is helping Yashida fight off death. She has some sorts of abilities, but how Yashida found her, and what’s in it for her is never made clear. Overall, her character really isn’t needed at all and the movie probably would have been better without her.
Harada is a character from the comics, and here he’s just a solid ninja who loves Mariko. It’s a waste and you might as well call him, generic ninja #1, and the role would have been fine.
The Silver Samurai is ok for the most part, but the reveal at the end is predictable.
Yukio takes the sidekick role. It’s not needed at all and if anything is as pointless as Gambit in the first movie.
The plot as well is boring and predictable. You know exactly what will be revealed and how things will wind up, except for a bit at the end during the fight scene. That caught me off-guard and I don’t want to spoil that part, because it makes the ending somewhat enjoyable.
Overall, the movie is predictable, but has some cool moments, especially the mid-credit sequence which I think was the best part of the movie and sets up the next X-Men film. It’s better than the first film, but that’s not saying much, but it shows the franchise has a long way to go before it comes close to Marvel’s other offerings.
Direction: 6.75 Acting: 7 Plot: 6.5 Overall: 6.75
