New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

George Rose: Quality will be through the roof, no doubts about that, and it will hopefully (fingers crossed) dominate the awards season. As far as box office, I'm not so optimistic. It's a pretty obscure premise and, while people have yet to catch on to James Cameron's pretentiousness, the Peter Jackson name doesn't seem to carry Cameron-style weight. Nothing would make me prouder, though, than to see it outgross Avatar. I don't see that happening, though. Based on absolutely no data, my gut says I'd be content with $100 million, thrilled with $150 million, and would consider it one of the biggest surprise stories of the year if it breaks $200 million.

Michael Lynderey: The Lovely Bones comes off like one of those Oscar shoe-ins that opens just OK but then ends up with Departed- or Beautiful Mind-type numbers. I suspect the reviews on this one are going to be strong, and it's going to play like out like an A-list Best Picture contender, on the level of Benjamin Button at the very least. But it won't come close to any of Jackson's other December movies.

David Mumpower: I'm less optimistic about this one's box office than most of you. Unless it becomes a serious awards contender, something that would probably double its domestic revenue, I see this as another disappointment in the vein of King Kong. The subject matter is simply too depressing otherwise. I see this as a different take on the Mystic River premise, and that's a film that failed to earn $100 million. Given that Peter Jackson's name didn't seem to matter much in selling an already marketable film in King Kong, I'm not sure why we are expecting this to be a blockbuster. All of this changes, of course, if the film garners glowing reviews. Until then, I see this as a film that nestles in the $75 million range and everyone involved should be pleased with that.

Elementary, my dear...

Kim Hollis: After divorcing Madonna, Guy Ritchie did the unexpected and chose a very commercial project. Sherlock Holmes has name recognition and one of the hottest actors of the moment in Robert Downey Jr., plus Rachel McAdams and Jude Law. What are you expecting from this film?

Josh Spiegel: Unless audiences get wind of some pretty terrible word-of-mouth before Christmas Day, I would expect Sherlock Holmes to at least start out with solid numbers. Every time I see the trailer, I'm reminded of Downey Jr. in Iron Man; if everyone makes that association, what with Holmes being more physical and seeming more raffish than, say, the original character, it may lead to good numbers. Of course, anyone familiar with the Sherlock Holmes mythos may wonder what Guy Ritchie and company have done to the detective, but I'd wager that the movie will have a good-to-great opening.

Kim Hollis: I don't think it matters to *most* people whether the literary character has been violated. Yes, there are some diehards who are pretty likely to be upset about the changes to the story, but for most people who just like to go to the movies and have fun, everything I've seen with regard to the film looks like it's going to deliver precisely that. It's not quite going to have the full benefit of December legs, but I expect this to do around $220 million by the time it's all said and done.

Continued:       1       2       3       4       5