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'The Singles Ward' Debuts, 'Ocean's Eleven' Drops from Top 10
DALLAS, TEXAS -- With four major new releases in the top 10, "Ocean's
Eleven" was finally bumped out of the top 10 movies nationwide this
week: After 7 weeks it was in 11th place, down from 6th place last
week. This marks the first time in months that a movie with
Latter-day Saint characters or made by Latter-day Saint filmmakers
was not among the nation's top at the box office. "Ocean's" has now
passed the $175 million mark, which makes it the 10th top-grossing
film of the year.
"Behind Enemy Lines" went from 21st to 27th place after 59 days in
release. "The Other Side of Heaven" was 3rd on the "LDS Movies" list,
taking in $93,809 in just 33 theaters. It was in 36th place
nationwide, down from 34th place last week. "Mulholland Drive" was
just behind "Heaven" -- in 37th place this week, down from 33rd last
week.
"The Singles Ward", the first "LDS Film" of 2002, premiers at the
Jordon Commons (in Sandy, Utah) on Wednesday, January 30th. All
proceeds from the "Utah black-tie", all-star affair will benefit the
National Kidney Foundation. Two days later, on Friday, February 1st,
"The Singles Ward" opens in theaters all over Utah (and Rexburg, ID).
As you doubtless know by now, "The Singles Ward" is based on an
original semi-autobiographical story by Latter-day Saint stand-up
comic John E. Moyer. The screenplay was written by Moyer and the
film's director, first-time feature helmer Kurt Hale. With this movie
Hale becomes only the 3rd director in the post-Dutcher era to release
a commercial feature film made by and about Latter-day Saints (after
Dutcher himself and "The Other Side of Heaven" director Mitch Davis).
"The Singles Ward" is unique in that it is the first comedy.
In "The Other Side of Heaven", producer Jerry Molen played the
mission president and the actual John H. Groberg and his wife Jean
Sabine Groberg appear briefly in a wedding scene. Some real-life TV
journalists appeared as reporters in Dutcher's "Brigham City." So
"The Singles Ward" is not the first LDS niche film to use cameos. But
it is the first to make EXTENSIVE use of cameos. It has a ton of
them. Bit parts are played in the movie by such famous individuals as
Richard Dutcher, Julie Stoffer (MTV's "The Real World"), Steve Young,
Thurl Bailey, Sean Bradley, Danny Ainge, Ruth Hale, LaVelle Edwards,
Ron McBride (the only one who is not Mormon), and Wally Joyner. The
budget for "The Singles Ward" was $500,000, and we're predicting the
movie will be a huge critical and financial success.
Here's an interesting little item: That venerable sage Orson Scott
Card has long made clear his interest in movies. The adaptation of
his popular novel "Ender's Game" into a movie is a perennial topic of
interest. It's true that the screenplays for quite a number of Living
Scriptures animated videos were penned by Card. But if you want to
see what Card might do as a DIRECTOR or as writer of an ORIGINAL
story, there was nothing available... Until now! You can now browse
on over to the official OSC site at
http://www.hatrack.com and check out Card's new short film
"Remind Me Again." The RealPlayer format movie can be downloaded or
watched as a streaming video. The 13-minute film was shot and edited
by the director's son Geoffrey Card (film student and author of the
"God's Army" novelization).
"Remind Me Again" stars Card's daughter Emily, as well as Dustin
Evans, Aaron Johnston and Lauren Johnston. The story is about a man
who has lost his memory, but he isn't Jim Carrey. FYI: There are no
insectoid aliens, magic-wielding prophets, talking trees, sleeping
princesses, or time-traveling Mayans. (Or does it?) And be warned:
"Remind Me Again" is oddly interesting and well made given the
equipment constraints, but it is very low budget (maybe even
no-budget). Don't expect a Nike commercial.
Finally, up-and-coming filmmaker John Lyde announced this week the
completion of his first major feature-length film: "The Field Is
White." The 52-minute movie is being distributed by Thompson
Productions and will arrive in LDS bookstores everywhere within a few
weeks. "The Field is White" is about a returned missionary who
struggles with his faith in post-mission life, but recalls his
mission experiences as he re-reads his journals. "The Field is White"
stars Tyson Downey, Kirt Fairbank and Lynne Carr. Audiences will
remember Lynne Carr as "Sister Beecroft", the mission president's
wife in Dutcher's "God's Army" (2000). "The Field is White" will also
give you a preview of actor Jaelan Petrie, in a smaller role. Petrie
is the star of Kels Goodman's upcoming feature film "Handcart."
[If table below doesn't line up properly, try looking at them with a
mono-spaced font, such as courier - Ed.]
Weekend Box Office Report (U.S. Domestic Box Office Gross)
Weekend of January 25, 2002
Natl
Rank | Film Title
LDS/Mormon Filmmaker or Actor | Weekend Gross
Total Gross | Theaters | Days |
| 11 | Ocean's Eleven
LDS characters: Malloy twins | $3,176,373
175,974,750 | 2,010 | 52 |
27 Behind Enemy Lines
David Veloz (screenwriter) | 320,488
57,460,084 | 503 | 59 |
| 36 | The Other Side of Heaven
Mitch Davis (writer/director)
John H. Groberg (author/character)
Gerald Molen, John Garbett (producers) | 93,809
1,162,138 | 33 | 45 |
| 37 | Mulholland Drive
Joyce Eliason (producer/writer) 88,160
6,421,778 | 58 | 112 |
| 44 | Out Cold
A. J. Cook (female lead) | 50,377
13,797,333 | 140 | 68 |
61 China: The Panda Adventure
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 11,391
1,885,046 | 5 | 185 |
| 68 | Galapagos
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 6,842
12,243,728 | 3 | 822 |
| 78 | Island of the Sharks
Alan Williams (composer) | 4,228
10,619,056 | 3 | 1004 |
79 Mark Twain's America in 3D
Alan Williams (composer) | 4,184
2,145,215 | 1 | 1305 |
| 88 | Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 2,743
13,038,601 | 2 | 633 |
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