4 Takeaways from the Weekend’s Box Office Opens

By Mike Silva

We’re in a dire time for quality movies.

While 2015 was a blockbuster success, 2016 was pretty flat and 2017 holds more of what we’ve already come to know:

• If it wears a cape, it’ll make you money.

• If it wears a cape, expect sequels (unless you’re Eric Bana).

• Remakes are the way to go!

• The few good movies that do come to theaters these days aren’t well covered enough.

• Did I mention nostalgia? That sells too!

It looks like this weekend saw a little bit of all the new status quo rules above. Let’s take a deeper look:

1. “Rings” is only worthwhile if you loved the originals

According to reviews, casual moviegoers will not enjoy “Rings.” It’s a blatant redo of the original installments with a couple of updates reflecting our digital world.

It’s crazy to consider the first American installment (not the original “Ringu”) came out in 2002. That was 15 years ago!

Think of how far we’ve come. We went from Xanga to MySpace to Facebook to Snapchat in all that time. 

I’d like more of that world shown in movies like “Rings”. More “Unfriended” (decent for what it was) and less boo scares.

I think this one is a stayaway. Maybe a Redbox flick for a “get to the point” date night or something to play in the background while you vacuum and clean house.

Rings is a mediocre horror sequel handicapped by poor writing that will only appeal to die hard fans of the genre and source material. - Chris Agar, Screen Rant

A blah generic ghost story that's half-heartedly built around the premise of a videotape that kills. It's now the file-share that kills. I don't know why that's less threatening, but it is. - Owen Gleiberman, Variety

• Rotten Tomato Rating: 5%

• IMDB Rating: 4.7/10

2. “The Space Between Us” had potential but just didn’t pan out

It seems like this movie was made for Lifetime. At least it’s in that wheelhouse.

Reviews say it was a nice movie, but nothing special. It sounds a lot like what someone says when they want a platonic relationship. 

“I like you as a friend.”

What’s worse is the target audience seems to be unclear. The cast would have you believe this is something for everyone, but the subject matter seems to be a teen flick.

Again, another background movie or something you’d watch to fall asleep to in a hotel on vacation. 

This sweet but not particularly out-of-this-world teen romance stars a talented ensemble, but it ultimately lacks the necessary sparks. - Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media

The story plays out on two planets, Mars and Earth, while the production follows its own orbit in a state of zero gravity, zero nuance and subzero sense. - Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal

• Rotten Tomato Rating: 18%

• IMDB Rating: 6.1/10

3. “I Am Not Your Negro”: Controversy that makes you think

As you can tell by some of the quick reviews, this movie takes an interesting look at the civil rights movement and really has you think about your understanding of race relations.

I’ll do it no justice since I haven’t seen it, but something interesting is the disparity in the Rotten Tomato rating vs. the IMDB rating.

That tells me the movie’s likely a little next-level or requires some further thinking, some of which people may just not get.

If it makes you think and challenges your opinion, “I Am Not Your Negro” seems like the kind of movie you’d want to actually pay attention to. Don’t watch it with a talkative date, if possible.

Also, watch it with an open mind.

Whatever you think about the past and future of what used to be called “race relations” this movie will make you think again, and may even change your mind. - A. O. Scott, The NY Times

Raoul Peck’s stunning look at the civil rights era ends up as the writer’s presumptive autobiography, but it gets there via an unexpected route. - Jordan Hoffman, The Guardian

• Rotten Tomato Rating: 97%

• IMDB Rating: 5.5/10

4. No movies could take the lead from “Split”

M. Night Shyamalan’s return to prominence is not going unnoticed.

First, he hit us with “The Visit” in 2015, a “found-footage” look at a pair of siblings’ weeklong visit to their creepy grandparents. Excellent movie.

“Split” was even better, and the fans and critics are keeping the film atop the charts.

The movie was great until the very end, when it becomes even better with an incredible twist.

It’s not for the faint of heart but this movie is a must-watch. Catch it quickly, as it’s been playing for about a month now and you’ll want to avoid any kinds of spoiler alerts.

There are plenty of proper twists to follow, none more unexpected than the fact that Shyamalan himself has managed to get his groove back after a slew of increasingly atrocious misfires. - Peter Debruge, Variety

It twists the themes of fate and trauma that have been his stock-in-trade since The Sixth Sense into a very entertaining genre exercise—some of his strongest work since The Village and Signs. - Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, A.V. Club

• Rotten Tomato Rating: 74%

• IMDB Rating: 7.5/10