''Gladiator'' pummels new Travolta film at box office
By Dean Goodman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Reigning champ ``Gladiator'' vanquished
John Travolta and his sci-fi challenger ``BattlefieldEarth'' at the weekend box office, as the Second World War submarine thriller ``U-571'' hung on for third place.
``Gladiator'' pulled in about $24.3 million for the Friday-to-Sunday period, vs. $12.3 million for ``Battlefield Earth,'' according
to studio estimates issued Sunday. ``U-571'' slipped one notch to No. 3 with $5.8 million in its fourth weekend.
After 10 days in release, ``Gladiator'' has collected $73.3 million, said DreamWorks distribution president Jim Tharp, and lost
just 30 percent of its audience from the first round. Its per-theater average of $8,257 was the highest in the top 10.
Director Ridley Scott's $103 million epic stars Australian actor Russell Crowe (''The Insider'') as an enslaved general who must
earn his freedom by fighting at the Coliseum. Also starring are Joaquin Phoenix as the evil emperor who tries to have Crowe's
character, Maximus, slain; and Oliver Reed, who died before shooting was finished but was resurrected digitally for his
remaining scenes.
``Gladiator'' is a co-production between privately held DreamWorks SKG, which is distributing it throughout the United States
and Canada, and Seagram Co. Ltd's Universal Pictures, which is handling all overseas territories.
``Battlefield Earth'' collected such accolades as ''profoundly dreadful'' (from the Wall Street Journal) and ''derivative sci-fi
drivel'' (Entertainment Weekly) on its way to movie theaters.
The saga pits a few survivors on a ravaged Earth against extraterrestrial bad guys with codpieces and braided hair. Travolta
plays one of the latter. The film's distributor, Warner Bros., termed the opening number ``respectable.''
The movie cost between $65 million and $70 million to make, and raised eyebrows in the industry because it was based on a
novel by L. Ron Hubbard, the late founder of the controversial Scientology movement to which Travolta belongs.
WB distribution president Dan Fellman said the authorship issue ``never really came into play'' once the film opened. ``I didn't
find that to be a problem,'' he added.
The film averaged a reasonable $3,725 from 3,307 theaters, the widest run in the top 10.
The top 12 films this weekend earned a combined $71.1 million, down 9 percent from last weekend, but up 14 percent from
the year-ago period when ``The Mummy'' was No. 1 with $24.9 million.
Also debuting in the top 10 were the ballet-themed romance ''Center Stage'' (Columbia), the kidnapping comedy ``Screwed''
(Universal) and the urban comedy ``Held Up'' (Trimark).
``Center Stage,'' starring real-life ballet performers Amanda Schull and Ethan Stiefel, grossed $4.8 million, tying at No. 4 with
``The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas'' (Universal). A Columbia spokesman said the $18 million movie played mostly to
women under 21.
``Screwed,'' which stars Canadian comic Norm Macdonald and Danny DeVito, opened at No. 8 with $3.4 million. It did not
screen in advance for critics, a strategy employed when a studio fears the reviews.
``Held Up,'' which stars comic Jamie Foxx and Nia Long, shared the No. 10 spot with Walt Disney Co.'s ``Keeping the
Faith,'' each reporting about $1.9 million.
The Second World War submarine thriller ``U-571'' (Universal), which stars Matthew McConaughey, has grossed $57.9
million after 24 days. The studio's ``Flintstones'' movie has $24.6 million after 17 days.
New releases next weekend include Walt Disney Co.'s animated ``Dinosaur,'' the college romp ``Road Trip'' and the Woody
Allen heist comedy ``Small Time Crooks'' (both DreamWorks).
Warner Bros. is a unit of Time Warner Inc. Columbia is a unit of Sony Corp. Trimark is a unit of Trimark Holdings Co.
in hardcover and over a 1000 pages in paperback. The movie takes place
during the first 400 pages or so of the book. Knowing this, you must not
compare the movie to the book because they are 2 different animals. This movie
probably would have played better as a May sweeps miniseries on ABC so that
characters and plot can be fleshed out over 8 hours instead of 117
minutes. It is also never fair to put down a movie just because it differs
from the source material. It is also easy to criticize a movie like this
for its lack of faithfulness to Hubbard's work, but it is not
necessary. Here are the things that make this movie fail. They
are plot, acting, direction, special effects, and flat out illogic. The
plot of slaves revolting has been going on for an eternity from Moses to
Braveheart to last week's Gladiator, to United States Slavery, to Jewish
Concentration camps during World War II, to 12 years of mandatory
schooling. It seems that the slave masters still do not realize that if
you torture and kill people to make them work for free these victims will
eventually revolt and try to kill you. It amazes me every time I see these
people think they are all that and that other human beings are just cattle to
pull their hoes and when someone says that this is not the right thing to do
they don't understand. But, when the slavemaster becomes the slave they
are like this is so horrible how dare you. They say if you do not learn
from history, you will be doomed to repeat it. Hollywood as well as
writers in general loves the uprising plot but it just leaves you open for
problems. Johnnie "Goodboy" Tyler tries to win his planet
it's freedom with the same speech given in Gladiator, Braveheart, Ten
Commandments, and Henry V. It is also funny how the slavemasters can kick
the slaves asses until the plot says for them to finally lay down and take it
with no vaseline. Also, why is it that when aliens take over Earth they
always have to put it down. The Psyclos are always saying how Earth sucks
and is horrible, but they need it's minerals to help run their oh so purplely
planet. If you don't like it, get out. The acting is a problem here
in BE. Travolta is the worst in the movie. I have said before that I
despise the evil John "ain't it cool" Travolta villains in movies like
Broken Arrow and Face/Off. Travolta never brings anything new to those
parts, and he plays them like he is in some Marvel comic book. As, Terl,
the chief security officer on Earth for the Psyclos, his entire script is
this. "Ha ha ha ha!" and "Ah, but I have leverage over you
now so you can't kill me." and "Man animals are stupid rat
brains." and "You can't trust me because I am evil."
Travolta's speaking voice is also weak when it comes to these roles and he is
just not threatening especially when it looks like he and the other 9 foot tall
Psyclos are about to tip over ever 5 seconds from just breathing hard. The
only other actor of note is Barry Pepper of Saving Private Ryan (the sniper)
fame as Mr. Goodboy. This is his first big starring role and he plays it
straight the whole time when Travolta and his cohorts seem to be camping it
up. He is okay, but it is hard to take him seriously when he is saying
lines like Euclidean geometry is a piece of cake to the primitive
Earthlings. His character hopes that when people look back on these
moments they will know that they fought! I think these records will be
burned long before anyone goes to look for them. Forest Whitaker tries to
keep his dignity, but after his work in Crying Game, he has yet to regain it, so
BE won't hurt him anymore than he is damaged now. Kelly Preston Travolta
shows up as a long tongued whore. She is hot, but she tends to be in
movies that bomb badly (Jack Frost anyone)? Science fiction is the hardest
type of diaogue to make sound convincing. It has never been mastered by
any actor and the only time it works is when it is played straight and not as a
joke. BE does not make any of the actors' jobs easier. Roger
Christian directed this movie pretty horribly. For one thing, he took the
campy thing literally by ripping off the camera angles of the old Adam West
Batman tv show. The shots are all tilted to the side to make things more
dramatic or the 
Psyclos
taller, but it just looks annoying. There are also way too many scenes of
people running in slow motion through broken glass without any cuts.
A movie that is trying to promote itself as innovative, different, and thought
provoking just regurgitates everything ever shown in sci fi movies. The
music is thunderous at points, but when the pay off big explosion happens at the
end, you are so drained by overkill and to some extent boredom, the audience
just sits there and sighs. The special effects are adequate but not
spectacular. The space age scenes and dog fights are straight out of
Playstation and Nintendo games. The makeup on the Pysclos changes on how
much screen time the actor has. If you are Travolta and Whitaker and are
on the screen a lot, you don't get any special facial makeup like bumps and
ridges. The guards and background guys have more detailed features because
they are not on the screen a whole lot. I guess the budget was not there
to make the leads more menacing. All of these things mentioned can be
forgiven if the movie stays within some sort of logic or consistency.
Direction, special effects, acting, and directing are all a matter of opinion,
but when things happen that just don't make sense on any level, then you are
looking at a thumbs down. Let's go to the point of the plot that gets the
most criticism. The man-animals are left on Earth by themselves with
Psyclo machinery to travel around the world at their leisure with no Psyclo
supervision for 2 weeks. The Johnnie Tyler character had been zapped with
a learning machine beam to learn the Psyclo language, history, and technology.
This also, I guess helped him learn how to read Psyclo and English. Okay,
teaching one guy how to use machines so more work can be done makes some sense,
but no Psyclo understands the repercussions of these lessons. The slave
masters of the United States made it illegal to teach slaves how to read and
such because they knew that knowledge is power and their reign would end if the
slave becomes as "smart" as the master. What happens that is
stupid is how they trick the Psyclos. One thing is that the primitives are
supposed to mine gold, but instead of breaking out the pick axes, they take a
Psyclo ship to Kentucky and raid Fort Knox. Goldfinger would be
proud. While they are doing that, they find a stash of jet fighters in
perfect working condition, fully fueled, and operational. And to show how
lucky they are, there is a handy dandy flight simulator to teach all of the
primitives how to fly the planes. This is all done in the span of less
than 2 weeks. The problem is the stuff they find has been sitting there
for about 1000 years. Also, lets say they work because they were in an
airtight area and the power supply was able to be regenerated. You can't
learn to fly a jet fighter in a fort night especially if starting a fire with
sticks and stones is the hilight of your day. This is an obvious error in
plot that is unforgivable and is just one example of the script's
ineptitude. The Psyclos are supposed to be so superior but they run around
like idiots laughing and trying new ways of doublecrossing each other. It
took the 9 foot giants 9 minutes to defeat Earth in the initial battle, but
about 100 "rat brains" take them out on the first try in about a
day. The way they finish the villains off is so stupid that there is no
way that planet Psyclo would have survived this long. If you have read the
book, do not see the movie. You will be wasting your time. If you have not
seen the book, see the movie first and see what a mess it is and then read the
book which I plan to finally get around to doing. It will explain the
holes left in the movie and throw out the dumb crap created to make it a
movie. Hubbard created some religious cult like thing called
Scientology. Whatever, this movie has nothing to do
with that. I have read 10 Hubbard books in my time. They were his
Mission Earth Dekaology he wrote before he died. The story is quite silly,
but the main villain in it is funny and interesting like Travolta's Terl is
supposed to be in BE. I recommend those books. BE will piss off
science fiction fans for being stupid, and it will piss off people who thought
the previews looked interesting. If you want to see it, watch the movie as
a goof and you will have a good time. There is plenty to laugh at.
There are Rocky Horror Picture Show type pauses to throw in your own goofy
lines. When it comes on DVD have a drink everytime Terl goes
"ha ha ha" or says "leverage." In 10 years it
will be the king of the midnight movie circuit. When I left the theater, I
was not as disappointed as the people I saw it with were. It was a fun,
goofy time at the cinema that gives the comic in me so much material.
Final Review: 1 1/2 stars out of 5; 3 out of 10; D; thumbs down. You won't
like the movie, but hey there is always "I Dreamed of Africa."
Fame.
It is our feel good movie of the week if you don't count the laugh you get
looking at John Travolta's sausage fingers in Battlefield Earth. This
movie probably cost very little to make and will end up making a larger profit
than Gladiator. Movies about dance have not been that successful since
much of it plays better on the live stage where you can focus on the performer
without and ex MTV video director making his quick cuts and shots above the
waist angles. This movie is full of unknowns with maybe the biggest name
being Eion Bailey who was in Fight Club. There is a lot of scenes with
people practicing their dance moves in a room with a big mirror and metal bar to
do stretches on. The scenes I have seen show girls in tights and guys in
tights that are too tight prancing and leaping on their toes. This is
definitely an east and west coast picture. The midwest and south don't
seem to like this type of stuff. My opnion is just show me the dance play
they are working on and skip the behind the scenes stuff which gets so cliched
with their arguments and rivalries. Also, a movie like this to be real
successful is to have a rocking soundtrack that makes the billboard
charts. I guess Britteny, Christina, and 'NSync were too busy looking
pretty to help a producer out. The sad thing is that this movie will
probably out gross Battlefield Earth next week.
don't think MacDonald wants to have sex with Elaine Stritch. I thought
this movie would do a little better than it did since the previews have been
airing pretty regularly on television. But, if you look at the tv spots,
the plot is not made clear. You just see a bunch of slapstick and physical
comedy with no purpose. The longer trailer explains the plot and sets up the
relationships between Norm, Dave Chappelle, Danny Devito, and Elaine Stritch.
Norm and Dave are the best friends trying to get rich and get revenge on that
rich bitch Stritch. Devito is the gross mortician who is asked to aid in
the dog nap plot. Along the way Norm is tazered and kicked by some kids,
Chappelle gets scared, and Devito rolls some dead guy down a flight of
stairs. It actually looks sort of funny, and I probably should have seen
that instead of Battlefield Earth. Norm was sort of funny on Saturday
Night Live, but not hilarious like his rep makes you think. He is okay on
his tv show, but I don't watch it enough to have an honest opinion.
MacDonald always looks like he is about to tell a joke, but then turns it into a
"no this really happened" type tone, and then 
just
goes "just kidding." He is sort of a more animated Steven
Wright. I can't goof on him too much because his Burt Reynolds
impersonation he did on SNL was hilarious especially in the Jeopardy
sketches. Chappelle is looking to break out, but can't get over that
hump. His last try at a television show was cancelled before it even aired
and his most high profile movie is being goofed on by Eddie Murphy in Nutty
Professor. Devito seems to be needing the money lately after playing
supporting roles in this, Man on the Moon, and Drowning Mona. His last
real starring role in which he had to carry a picture was Renaissance Man back
in 1994. He seems to be in a rut or maybe Hollywood is realizing that it
is unrealistic for a guy four foot 10 to be starring in all of the movies Devito
has been in since Taxi was cancelled. I still say "hit me" a lot
in honor of his role in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. He was great in
that movie. Ruthless People is still his best movie in which he was the
star. Stritch has been around since 1948 in movies and people still don't
know who she is. Now she gets goofed on for being old. You take what
you can get I guess. I guess she failed the screen test for Psyclo
secretary in Battlefield Earth.
combined if they were to do a movie would probably be less than half of that. In
fact the second most successful person to come out of that early 90s hit is Fly
Girl, Jennifer Lopez and choreographer Rosie Perez hated her. Foxx
is coming off some critical success as the 3rd string quarterback in On Any
Given Sunday, but instead of doing another drama, Foxx went back to what he
knows and that is straight out comedy. This movie is supposed to showcase
his comic talents, but all you really see is how well his stuntman can jump over
a counter when bullets are flying. The movie also looks like it will
probably take place mostly in the store being robbed which means very few set
changes. If I want to see one set, I'll watch a play at the Carousel
Theater. This movie did no open very well even though it had more
commercials than Center Stage. I guess there were not enough big booty
jokes like in Foxx's hit comedy Booty Call. Nia Long is one of my least
favorites going back to her stint on The Fresh Prince of Belair as Will Smith's
girlfriend. I hated her character on that show and have held it against
her ever since. She can do no right in my eyes and is one of the main
reasons I will probably avoid seeing Big Mommas House. Better luck next
time.