What's UP At The Movies - by Seymour Flix

Batman v. Superman: The End of the Superhero Era

'Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice' just might be the dawn of the ending of the superhero pic.  Out of the chute this movie had a $166 million opening but went into free-fall after that. It appears that there is no way Warner Bros. will reach their predicted $1 billion world-wide gross. Batman v. Superman was a bust, as critics and early moviegoers panned it and word spread instantly over social networks.

Baring its flaws, does this film's lackluster box office performance portend the future?  Have moviegoers had enough of the superhero sequel? Are the major studios too reliant on the comic book character franchise?

Warner Bros. has bet the farm on DC Comic character-driven sequels and has green-lit only a handful of original titles.  Certainly the studios have a fetish with franchise films but it could be a bad strategy going forward. Now, at least 25 years in, the superhero fad may be coming to an end. Moviegoers may be tiring of the repeated action scenes and long-in-the-tooth characters in unrealistic story-lines.

To their credit, all of the major studios milked the superhero genre to death, but it may now be oversold and a new product strategy to source revenue may be dawning.  Many more superhero movies are set to be released over the next few years and many more are currently on the production slate - but all of this could backfire as audiences demand fresher characters, better stories, and newer on-screen faces.

I believe we may be seeing the beginning of the end of the superhero blockbuster. Audiences are yearning for  original sci-fi and high-impact action films - the studios need to reassess.


Jungle Book: 'Too Scary For Kids' ?

From original 1967 movie

The MPAA gave the long-awaited remake of 'The Jungle Book' a PG rating. However, the live/animated movie has some critics saying that it is too scary for young children, specially if viewed in the 3D version.

The jungle and animals (who all speak) are very 'life-like' and although virtually every film critic has given the movie 5 stars there is an element of suspense and drama which could be seen as frightening to some children.

According to the MPAA the movie contains "scary action and peril" but it did not reach the level where the more strict PG-12 rating was warranted.

New movie - a bit scary for young children?

I, if at all possible, will be viewing the movie at a Dolby Atmos sound equipped cinema. 3D is OK but I prefer great sound over 3D effect. The 'Jungle Book' is the story of an orphan boy (Mowgli) that is raised in the jungle with the help of a pack of wolves, a bear, and a black panther.

'The Jungle Book' will be a big box-office success bringing in all age groups.  The effects are terrific as is the animation and includes a star-studded cast.

Hollywood Needs To Fatten-up

Lawrence

Calling on the Hollywood studios to embrace a "new normal" for female body types, Jennifer Lawrence says that Hollywood fosters too skinny women in films and that "normal" women are seen as being overweight.

"I think we have gotten so used to underweight that when you are normal weight, it's like: "Oh, my God, she's curvy". Which is crazy. The bare minimum would be to up the ante.  At least so I don't feel like the fattest one." 

The 25 years-old actor says that normal is what women are - they are not skinny and shapeless. Says Lawrence, "A movie star's reality is absolutely fabulous, but it is not the reality of most women in America.  That's what I'm talking about."

Just saying, 
Seymour