Indiana Jones:'Indiana Jones' unearths $126M in box office gold

LOS ANGELES- Indiana Jones unearthed box office gold at domestic theaters with a performance that puts it on track to become the second biggest Memorial Day movie opening ever, according to studio estimates Sunday.The fourth installment of the whip-cracking professor's exploits, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," grossed an estimated $101 million from Friday to Sunday, plus $25 million from its opening Thursday, distributor Paramount Pictures said. The company expects it to earn another $25 million on Monday.That would put it behind only "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," which had a Friday-through-Monday total of $139.8 million, in the pantheon of Memorial Day weekend blockbusters.

Including Thursday's receipts, "Indiana Jones" was expected to collect $151 million over five days, slightly behind "Pirates," which took in $153 million with a partial Thursday included."'Indiana Jones' did incredibly well for a film that comes 19 years after the previous installment," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of tracking firm Media By Numbers LLC.The adventure flick received a lackluster reception from critics at the Cannes Film Festival, but audiences thought otherwise.

Box office estimates grew from $25 million on its opening Thursday through $37 million on Saturday, suggesting strong word of mouth, Dergarabedian said."This is the definition of a summer movie from two of the architects of the summer movie season - George Lucas and Steven Spielberg," he said. "These guys have it down to a science and audiences want to go along for that ride."The first three Indy movies took in $1.2 billion worldwide.Disney's action sequel, "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," slipped to second place with $23 million, for a total of $91.1 million over two weeks.

The company expected the movie to continue to play well as school lets out."Once you start getting the mass number of kids out of school, it turns into some serious money," said Chuck Viane, president of distribution for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.Marvel Studios' "Iron Man" clinched another $20.1 million, bringing its domestic total to $252.3 million. A sequel is set for release in 2010.

The 20th Century Fox comedy, "What Happens in Vegas," continued to roll with $9 million in its third week, for a total of $54.2 million.Fox senior vice president Bert Livingstone said high gas prices were encouraging people to see movies rather than take long trips away from home."This is the last great bargain," Livingstone said.But movie receipts were about 16 percent smaller than last year's Memorial Day weekend, and revenue for the year to date is down nearly 4 percent at $3.3 billion, with attendance off nearly 7 percent.By this time last year, there were seven movies that grossed over $100 million: "Pirates," "Shrek the Third," "Spider-Man 3," "300," "Wild Hogs," "Blades of Glory" and "Ghost Rider," according to Media By Numbers.

This year, there are only three: "Iron Man," "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!" and "Indiana Jones.""It's no wonder that we're down in terms of revenues and attendance," Dergarabedian said. "You don't get out of a deficit like this overnight."Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Tuesday.1. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," $101 million.2. "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," $23 million.3. "Iron Man," $20.1 million.4. "What Happens in Vegas," $9 million.5. "Speed Racer," $4 million.6. "Made of Honor," $3.4 million.7. "Baby Mama," $3.3 million.8. "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," $1.7 million.9. "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay," $900,000.10. "The Visitor," $800,000.

Universal Pictures and Focus Features are owned by NBC Universal, a joint venture of General Electric Co. and Vivendi Universal; Sony Pictures, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; DreamWorks, Paramount and Paramount Vantage are divisions of Viacom Inc.; Disney's parent is The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is a division of The Walt Disney Co.; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight Pictures are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros., New Line, Warner Independent and Picturehouse are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a consortium of Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group, Sony Corp., Comcast Corp., DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Quadrangle Group; Lionsgate is owned by Lionsgate Entertainment Corp.; IFC Films is owned by Rainbow Media Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp.; Marvel Studios is a division of Marvel Entertainment Inc.

'Iron Man' : North American box offices!! Makes 50 Million

LOS ANGELES (May 11) - Superhero movie "Iron Man" pounded the competition at North American box offices for the second straight weekend, landing at No. 1 with $50.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The movie about a comic book hero in a high-tech suit of armor took in $12,284 per theater at 4,111 locations, and saw its total box office rise to $177 million after only about 10 days in theaters."Iron Man" blasted by two new entries this weekend, family adventure "Speed Racer" and romantic comedy "What Happens in Vegas," which battled for the No. 2 and No. 3 positions."Speed Racer" finished in the second-place spot with $20.2 million in ticket sales to $20 million for No. 3 "Vegas," according to Sunday's estimates. But those figures could change when Monday's final weekend tallies are released."Speed Racer" got off to a slow start for the big-budget film's backers at Warner Bros. who had high hopes the movie would prove to be a runaway hit for kids and their parents."We were disappointed with the results over the weekend," said Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution for Warner Bros.However, Fellman said surveys of audiences leaving theaters showed they had positive reactions to the movie about a race car driver named Speed who must stop wealthy corporations from using profits to fix races. It was made by the directors of the "Matrix," brothers Larry and Andy Wachowski.

"We're hoping, optimistically, that the movie can turn it around and sustain an audience into the summer but only time will tell at this early stage," Fellman said.While "Speed Racer" managed to claim the No. 2 spot, "Vegas" beat it on the basis of average sales per theater."Vegas," which stars Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz as a pair of mismatched lovers who get married after a fling in Las Vegas, pulled in $6,221 per theater in 3,215 theaters compared to $5,605 per venue in 3,606 locations for "Speed."A spokesman for Twentieth Century Fox, which released "Vegas," called its performance a "great result" that surpassed expectations for what he said was a movie that cost a mere $35 million to make.By contrast, "Speed Racer" was estimated to have cost $150 million to make and another $100 million to market, according to a recent story in the Los Angeles Times.Rounding out the top 5 films this weekend were romantic comedy "Made of Honor," starring Patrick Dempsey, in the No. 4 spot with $7.6 million and a two-week total of $26.3 million."Made of Honor" was followed by Tina Fey comedy "Baby Mama" with an estimated tally of $5.8 million and a cumulative total of $40.4 million after three weeks in theaters."Iron Man" was produced by Marvel Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. "Made of Honor" was distributed by Columbia Pictures, and "Baby Mama" by Universal Pictures.

Iron Man is a 2008 superhero - Better than other!!

Iron Man is a 2008 superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and master engineer who is captured by terrorists in Afghanistan. Ordered by them to build a missile, Stark instead builds a powered exoskeleton and escapes. He then returns to the United States where he improves his armor and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron Man. Gwyneth Paltrow plays his personal assistant Pepper Potts, Terrence Howard plays jet pilot James Rhodes and Jeff Bridges plays the villainous Obadiah Stane.


User Review-
Worthy Experience (Spoiler-free)
Let me get it out of the way, first. My favourite super-hero movie is Batman Begins, and a far second is the first Spider-man (2nd was okay, 3rd was mediocre).

For me, the key, the ultimate enjoyment in a super-hero tale isn't the spectacle, the marvel, the powers, nor the villains. No, it's the person behind the mask, behind the glasses, the person him/herself. That's what drives the story and grabs my interest. The superhero aspect is an avenue for the expression of the person's desires, morals and willingness to sacrifice under great difficulty.

Here, Iron Man reaches a height that all over, and I mean each and every superhero movie, watches in envy.

Tony Stark is a multi-layered character. He's an unbelievable genius, a pampered playboy, an extremely likeable character, with great wit and eccentricities, and when things get difficult, yes, Tony Stark has a heart.

Unlike most superheroes, where it's merely a rush in the story to get to the part where the hero puts on the suit, Iron Man slowly undergoes this process. It's not concerned with the usual path. Instead, we concentrate on Tony, as he experiences tough circumstances which leads him to look deeply into himself.

Iron Man isn't about how a good person gets bit and seeks a way to 'save' people, which is the usual staple in superhero movies. Instead, it's about the change in a man's perspectives and thoughts, as he sees the world is not in reality as simplistic as he's convinced himself for years.

Which leads me to the acting, which is by far the strongest part of this movie.

The idea to grab Robert Downey Jnr. for this was an amazing stroke of ingenuity. He takes the character completely, and there's no actor who can give witty, quick-thinking dialogue like Downey. I've always, always admired him (thought he was brilliant in Wonder Boys) every time I've seen him, and I was frankly intrigued at them getting Downey as a superhero protagonist. Through Downey's brilliant acting, you understand Tony, and everything he says and does is entirely believeable.

Paltrow was another eye-brow raiser, but she also hits this out of the park. She provides a fantastic amount of sweetness to her character, yet she's more than the generic other girl. She displays the unsureness, hurt, desire, confusion remarkably with the slightest movement of her face.

Terrence Howard is a very good actor, and does well here. I do wish there was a bit more shown between Rhodes and Stark, so I could see more of how they interacted or how they got to know one another.

Bridges is a good one, too.

If you like superhero movies, then I wonder why you're reading. Go on, already, watch this movie!

If you always liked some special effects, but didn't like the overblown visual effects with thin dialogue, I suggest you give this movie a chance. It's a superhero movie for people with brains. Chances are great you'll like it.

I came to the theatre wanting to watch this movie as a good starter for the summer season (with the Dark Knight, Incredible Hulk etc...). I was stunned at my experience.

Iron Man is the best superhero movie I've ever seen. Yes, it's better than Spider-man 1. Yes, shockingly, it's better than Batman Begins. It is a superhero movie tailored to my love of knowing who is under the mask and what makes them tick. Downey is wonderful, simply wonderful.

I can't wait to see the next one. Hurry up Favreau!

Aside, I must say I knew absolutely nothing about Iron Man prior to watching this movie (I was raised more in the mythologies of Superman, Spider-man and Batman). I wonder how this movie rates to Iron Man fans and fanatics. I suspect they'll like it (and they'll watch this movie without reading reviews, too), but I am curious.

Go on. Watch this movie if you like your taste of blockbusters. What was supposed to be a starter for the summer movie season might very well be the best of what the summer (and many years) could offer. The Dark Knight has alot to do if it wants to be my best superhero movie.