A chance to shatter a glass ceiling: Fox should hire Jane Goldman to direct X-Men: Days of Future Past.

I'm going to make this as brief as I can.  As most of you know, the industry was somewhat stunned this afternoon when it was announced that Matthew Vaughn was stepping down from directing X-Men: Days of Future Past (IE - X-Men: First Class 2).  The film is set to roll in early 2013 which means Fox will be scrambling for a replacement director.  The rumor mill suggests that none other than Bryan Singer is being lured back to the director's chair for the franchise that he started twelve years ago.  Jack and the Giant Slayer feels like a dud and Superman Returns nearly killed an iconic franchise.  You know my thoughts on directors returning to franchises they walked away from long ago after a string of disappointments and you can know admit that I was right about Ridley Scott and Prometheus.  I have another idea for who should helm the sequel.  She is the co-writer of the last X-Men First Class and this upcoming sequel and she is a frequent collaborator with Mr. Vaughn having co-written nearly all of his projects since Stardust back in 2007 while also writing The Woman In Black just this year.  If you want someone who is comfortable in the world established by Bryan Singer while also arguably offering a fresh perspective to a now-12 year old series, she's an obvious bet.  That Jane Goldman is a "she" is a bonus.

Weekend Box Office (06/12/11): Super 8 opens with $35m, X-Men: First Class performs JUST like X-Men, Midnight In Paris nears $15m.

I've written about this before (here and here), but box office pundits and film bloggers generally seem to want it both ways.  They whine about the onslaught of remakes, reboots, sequels, and kid-centric animated films, yet they also DEMAND that the total weekend box office stay at a level that necessitates such a steady diet.  So when Paramount's Super 8 was tracking in the $25-30 million range over the last couple weeks, the various pundits were up in arms about how this original, star-less, $50 million period-set thriller was somehow an automatic flop because it wasn't going to open to $50 million over its first three days.  But now that it HAS opened to a relatively solid $35 million, the line is that total box office is down from this weekend last year.  Well, last year saw the release of a remake of The Karate Kid and a movie-adaptation of The A-Team, which opened with a combined take of $80 million.  Surprising quality of the Karate Kid remake aside, isn't that the kind of slate we all say we don't want?

Won't be SPOILED again... Why I no longer read a Roger Ebert review prior to seeing the movie.

He is arguably the father of modern film criticism and the most recognizable and well-renowned film critic on the planet.  He is the only movie reviewer to be awarded a Pulitzer Prize.  He is the man who introduced countless young readers such as myself to such filmmakers as Martin Scorsese and Sam Peckinpah.  His prose and insights have formed the foundation on which pretty much all of today's critics operate.  Yet I find myself in a position today where I am afraid to read Roger Ebert's film reviews.  It is not due to any downturn in quality or any continual difference of opinion.  It is not due to the notion that Ebert somehow has nothing more to offer the world of film criticism, as anyone who reads his journal will laugh at such an idea.  I no longer read Ebert's reviews (prior to seeing a given movie) out of fear, the fear that he will randomly and arbitrarily reveal plot twists and climactic elements of a given movie without a warning or even a second thought.  While it has always been an occasional issue, Roger Ebert has, in the last few years, turned into a full-blown spoiler. 

Weekend Box Office (06/05/11): X-Men First Class pulls a Batman Begins, grosses $55 million, Bridesmaids and Kung Fu Panda 2 cross $100m, Fast Five crosses $200m.

For better or worse, X-Men: First Class performed like an X-Men picture in its debut weekend, at least in terms of staying power.  Like X-Men parts 1, 2, and 4, it had just over a 2.5x weekend multiplier (X-Men: The Last Stand had a mere 2.2x weekend multiplier).  Actually, this film film had the second-highest weekend multiplier of the series, with a rock-solid 2.62x just behind the 2.7x multiplier for X2: X-Men United back in 2003.  The 60s-set, character actor-filled, and critically acclaimed prequel/reboot opened to $55.1 million, which is almost identical to what the first X-Men opened to back in 2000.  Of course, adjusted for inflation, the original X-Men's $54 million opening is about $79 million, so obviously there were far fewer tickets sold this time around.  And that should be no surprise and no defeat.  Unlike the previous trilogy, the film is filled not with fan-favorite mutants that even the general audiences know, but more 'inside baseball' characters.  There was no Wolverine, no Cyclops, no Storm.  The tone of the marketing was low-key and emphasized setting and character over spectacle.  Fox did not advertise a thrilling action adventure with Wolverine and his pals, but rather a morose and contemplative science-fiction character drama set in the 1960s, filled with unknowns and respected actors who are not box office draws (the biggest name in the film was arguably Kevin Bacon).  This was never going to replicate the massive openings of the previous entries in the series.  

Box Office Midnight Math: X-Men: First Class grosses $3.4 million at 12:01am. It looks like a $62 million weekend.

Here we go again.  The first West-Coast shows have barely let out and we already have solid numbers from last night's midnight screenings.  For the record, 20th Century Fox's X-Men: First Class has pulled in $3.4 million in 12:01 showings.  As we all know if you've been reading over the last month or so, most big-studio pictures that play the midnight game can expect to gross between 4.5-6.5% of their weekend take in the midnight showings.  I only have midnight numbers for the last two entries in the series.  X-Men: The Last Stand opened with $5.9 million worth of midnight screenings, which kick-started a $102 million Fri-Sun Memorial day weekend and a $122 million holiday four-day stretch.  Using just the three-day numbers, X-Men: The Last Stand had a 5.7% midnight multiplier. X-Men Origins: Wolverine grossed $5 million worth of midnight tickets, which led to an $85 million opening weekend (a 5.8% midnight multiplier).

Review: X-Men: First Class is (pick one) eXcellent, eXquisite, eXceptional!

X-Men: First Class
2011
132 minutes
rated PG-13

by Scott Mendelson

I have no idea how 20th Century Fox plans to fit X-Men: First Class into the mythology of the previous X-Men pictures.  It theoretically works as a prequel to the first three films, even as it plays fast and loose with continuity. The vibe I'm getting is that Fox is hedging its bets.  If the film under-performs at the box office, it will simply be considered a prequel to the Bryan Singer/Brett Ratner trilogy.  But if it becomes a genuine smash hit, Fox will likely use it as a standalone reboot to shepherd a whole new batch of X-Men adventures.  Whatever the case may be, as a singular motion picture, Matthew Vaughn's X-Men: First Class is a genuine triumph, a glorious piece of popcorn entertainment that contains nearly everything that should be expected of big budget genre entertainment.

X-Men: First Class gets another solid trailer.

With Fast Five unofficially starting the summer in just under 48 hours, we should expect to see a deluge of major trailers over the next couple days. First out of the gate is a longer, more plot-centric trailer for 20th Century Fox's X-Men: First Class. And once again, Fox is shrewdly selling this as a low-key, character and story-driven alternative to the more razzle-dazzle entries this summer. This will still be a pretty tough sell. Much of the appeal of the original X-Men movies rested on selling the most popular characters, the ones that casual moviegoers may have remembered from the 90s Fox cartoon and/or the Konami arcade game. They also depended on the audience-pleasing super-heroics from Wolverine and the comparative all-star cast (Patrick Stewart, Halle Berry, etc). Without those core elements and stuck with a cast of less visually-dynamic superheros, Fox is selling story-story-story. I don't know what this picture cost, but if it was significantly cheaper than at least the last couple X-Men pictures then Fox should be fine. There is little chance that X-Men: First Class will win the comic book-movie box office war of summer 2011. But with its sharp cast, intriguing real-world narrative and an emphasis on tone over spectacle, it is clearly the front runner to win the critical battle.

Scott Mendelson

X-Men: First Class gets a classy and low-key teaser.

In contrast to the pomp and circumstance that made up the first teasers for Thor, Green Lantern, and Captain America, X-Men: First Class comes out looking like... a prestige picture? Well not really, but the mood is low-key and the goal is establishing the tone (somber and fearful) and the time (1960s). There is a distinct lack of razzle-dazzle in Matthew Vaugn's high-toned compositions, and the few 'money shots' (the floating ship at the end, the glimpse of young Nightcrawler) feel integrated into the story. I'd argue that the trailer will likely leave casual fans feeling a bit confused, especially those without a token grasp of world history, but this is obviously a piece for the hardcores, the ones who have already bought their tickets. On the surface, we're basically getting not a rip-roaring action-adventure, but a character-driven drama that doubles as an acting duel between James MacAvoy (young Professor Xavier) and Michael Fassbinder (young Magneto). Despite being an origin story, X-Men: First Class seems to have the most chance of the major comic book adaptations this summer of breaking out of the mold, of telling a genuinely original story within the comic book trappings. This one comes out June 3rd and, as always, we'll see...

Scott Mendelson

X-Men: First Class gets an official logo, which is basically the teaser poster.

If this looks familiar, it's because the official logo is merely a non-cropped version of the teaser poster from last month. The trailer will premiere tomorrow, apparently on Facebook. Not that you come to this sight for 'instant news as it breaks', but I may be a little tardy on commentary for said trailer, so patience will be appreciated. With the arguable exception of The Hangover 2, X-Men: First Class is the last of the big summer movies to get a teaser this season.

Scott Mendelson

X-Men: First Class releases a teaser poster (plus several images). Look familiar?

Obviously Fox is again going the minimalist route, while also selling the idea that this new X-Men prequel will be less about science-fiction and more about the ideologies behind the respective characters who would shape the world we have come to know. There have been several stills released in the last few days, including that cast photo that was apparently leaked early, photo-shopped, etc (it's real, but no one wanted it out there yet for whatever reason). Anyway, the rest of the photos thus far, including two new ones released just today, are after the jump. Since we now know that Captain America has a trailer debuting during the Super Bowl, X-Men: First Class is the last major summer tentpole to not yet release a teaser. Expect one any day now, but who knows what it will be attached to (if they can wait, I'm betting the February 18th releases of Big Mama's House: Like Father, Like Son and I Am Number Four.

Scott Mendelson