|
'The Singles Ward' Strong in Second Week
DALLAS, TEXAS -- "The Singles Ward," the cameo-filled comedy directed
by Kurt Hale, was going strong in its second week, a box office take
bringing its total to over $100,000 -- not bad for a movie that cost
only about $425,000 to make. (This week's box office for "The Singles
Ward" did not show up at the-numbers.com -- something that sometimes
happes with independent films -- but sources inside the production
company cite the total box office as over $100,000.)
After two months in release the hit film "Ocean's Eleven" has finally
dropped out of the top 20 -- at number 21 nationwide. It will
probably be a long time before another movie with Mormon characters
dominates the box office the way this one did.
ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATIONS: LDS genre films were virtually shut out of
the Oscar nominations this year, with no nominations going to
"Brigham City" or "The Other Side of Heaven." Were Russell Crowe,
Sean Penn, Will Smith, Denzel Washington, and Tom Wilkinson really
better than Richard Dutcher in "Brigham City," or did Academy voters
simply not see that movie? You be the judge.
We're not aware of any Latter-day Saints who received Oscar
nominations this year, although many nominated films had Latter-day
Saints in key positions. John Garbett (of "Other Side of Heaven"
fame) was the early producer of "Shrek," which was nominated for Best
Animated Feature Film and also for Best Screenplay (Adaptation).
"Monsters, Inc." (from Pixar) was nominated for Best Animated Feature
Film, Best Musical Score, Best Song, and Best Sound Editing. "The
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" (which was inspired in
part by Latter-day Saint writer Chris Conkling's 1978 version of
Tolkien's classic fantasy novel) was nominated for 13 Academy Awards.
Although "Mulholland Drive" (co-written and co-produced by Joyce
Eliason) received numerous nominations at the Golden Globes and in
major critics awards lists, it made hardly a ripple in Academy Award
nominations. It was only nominated for a Best Director award for
David Lynch. One tenuous but fun connection: Actor Denzel Washington
was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as an urban cop in
"Training Day," in which he asks his new rookie partner (Ethan Hawke)
why he won't use drugs, saying "Why not? You a Mormon?" (For the
record, neither Denzel nor Ethan are Mormons.)
LOOKING AHEAD: LDS Genre: The producers of the "Charly" movie have
changed the title from "Charly, Forever" to "Jack Weyland's Charly."
No word on when the movie will be released. Kels Goodman has wrapped
up filming of the winter scenes for his upcoming epic "Handcart." An
extensive array of photos of the cast, crew, and production can be
found at http://www.kelsgoodman.com
Upcoming Hollywood movies with Mormon/LDS stars: The release date of
"The New Guy" (starring Eliza Dushku) has been pushed back from
February to May. You can still look for "Murder by Numbers" (starring
Ryan Gosling and non-LDS actress Sandra Bullock) to open on April
19th.
[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 February 8, 2002
Natl
Rank | Film Title
LDS/Mormon Filmmaker or Actor | Weekend Gross
Total Gross | Theaters | Days |
| 21 | Ocean's Eleven
LDS characters: Malloy twins | $992,235
180,535,266 | 812 | 66 |
| 32 | Behind Enemy Lines
David Veloz (screenwriter) | 188,761
58,084,217 | 306 | 73 |
| 39 | Mulholland Drive
Joyce Eliason (producer/writer) | 73,485
6,649,583 | 71 | 126 |
| 42 | The Other Side of Heaven
Mitch Davis (writer/director)
John H. Groberg (author/character)
Gerald Molen, John Garbett (producers) | 49,369
1,386,677 | 31 | 59 |
| 44 | The Singles Ward
Kurt Hale (writer/director)
John E. Moyer (writer)
Dave Hunter (producer)
Cody Hale (composer)
Ryan Little (cinematographer)
Actors: Will Swenson, Connie Young
Daryn Tufts, Kirby Heyborne
Michael Birkeland, Bob-O Swenson
Lincoln Hoppe, Tarance Edwards
Michelle Ainge, Gretchen Whalley
Sedra Santos | ~45,000
~100,000 | 11 | 10 |
| 55 | Out Cold
A. J. Cook (female lead) | 15,979
13,883,044 | 45 | 82 |
| 64 | Galapagos
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 9,300
12,274,898 | 3 | 836 |
| 71 | China: The Panda Adventure
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 6,763
1,914,205 | 7 | 199 |
| 76 | Island of the Sharks
Alan Williams (composer) | 4,176
10,633,198 | 4 | 1018 |
|
