February 2012 Content at BoxOfficeProphets.com

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Comics Weekly

Ralph. Wiggum. Comics. Enough said.

The Amazing Race Recap

This week’s Phil-ography lesson: Salta, Peru, has the world’s tallest vineyards. I don’t know what to do with that knowledge but at least, I now have it.

Trailer Trash: Wanderlust

Isn’t it the worst when you see a trailer for a movie that you’re looking forward to and it’s, well, a piece of crap?

How Well Do You Know: Rush Hour

The movie showed that Jackie Chan could be a star in Hollywood, allowed Chris Tucker to make enough money that he never had to do other movies ever again and inflicted director Brett Ratner on an unsuspecting population. The fastest hands in the East meet the biggest mouth in the West. How Well Do You Know Rush Hour?

Review: Ghost Rider 2

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is a bad movie, yes, but it’s not a painful one.

Top Chef: Texas Recap

Previously on Top Chef, Beverly was eliminated from the competition…again.

Monday Morning Quarterback

Today's discussion topics are Act of Valor and Good Deeds.

How Well Do You Know: The 2012 Oscars

Bridesmaids mobbed the stage, jokes were driven into the ground and screen veterans got their due. The 2012 Oscars bore all the zip and youthful vigor that only a Billy Crystal hosted gig can deliver. From red carpet follies to Experiments in Human Taxidermy featuring Nick Nolte, how well do you know the 2012 Academy Awards?

Overpaid Jerks: 2/20/12-2/26/12

This week: contract talk, combine development and All-Star shenanigans. We like giving the people what they want, so here comes our sports trivia quiz for the 9th week of 2012.

TiVoPlex

From the obscure to the obscurest to the merely overlooked or underappreciated; they all have a home in the TiVoPlex!

Are You With Us?

This weekend, the alcohol, drug, and sex-filled Project X takes a glimpse at the world of teenagers that most parents wouldn’t even want to peek in to.

Oscars Wrap-Up

Two columns for the price of one!

Final Thoughts
Best/Worst Dressed

Weekend Wrap-Up

Hollywood gives awards for the best in the year of cinema tonight, but at actual theatres, moviegoing choices are poor at best.

Live Oscars Blog

BOP blogged the Academy Awards as the events unrolled.

How Well Do You Know: Rocky II

Given the box office and critical success of Rocky, a sequel was almost certainly inevitable. That proved to be the right decision, as this movie became the top grossing movie sequel in history at the time. All the main cast members returned to reprise their roles in a story about a club boxer who shocked everyone and went the distance with the world heavyweight champion. Now pressured for a rematch, he struggles with an emotional choice: fight, or family? How Well Do You Know Rocky II?

Friday Box Office Analysis

The war/action movie starring real Navy SEALs is tops on Friday with $9 million.

How Well Do You Know: Parks and Recreation, S04E16: Sweet Sixteen

Leslie's involvement in the campaign means things are falling through the cracks. Jerry's birthday is one of those things. Meanwhile, Tom and Ann and Andy and champion try to come to terms with each other. How well do you know Parks and Recreation: Sweet Sixteen?

This is So Last Week: 2/17/12-2/23/12

A TV milestone. An expensive painting. A controversial host. An oddly quiet week in pop culture news means an abbreviated SLW quiz. However brief, enjoy our entertainment and celebrity review for the 8th week in 2012.

How Well Do You Know: Justified, S03E06: When The Guns Come Out

This week on Justified: Raylan and Winona's marriage collapses, all-out war in Harlan draws ever closer and, hey, Stephen Root! I love that guy. Anyway, you may know never to bring a knife when your opponent has a gun, but how well do you know Justified, When The Guns Come Out?

This Weekend, Watch This

Read this column, or the cast of Act of Valor will come and muss you up some.

2012 Oscar Predictions

As you finish making your own predictions, take a moment to consider our picks.

Final Oscar Predictions: Part IV

Let's look back, for a moment, at the last two comedies that have won the Oscar for Best Picture.

How Well Do You Know: Parks and Recreation, S04E15: Dave Returns

Dave's return means things get awkward for Ben and Leslie. Meanwhile, Tom pursues Ann ruthlessly and Andy seeks musical perfection. You may know when Tom and Ann spoon, who spoons who, but how well do you know Parks and Recreation: Dave Returns?

How Well Do You Know: Futurama, Season 2 Episode 12: The Deep South

The Planet Express crew discover the fabled lost city of Atlanta, where genteel Southerners have evolved into merpeople. Fry falls in love with a mermaid, but their relationship would work a lot better if she were the other type of mermaid, with the fish part on top and the lady part on the bottom. How Well Do You Know Futurama: The Deep South? (A Stern Warning of Things To Come)

Survivor: One World Recap

Previously on Survivor, a new cast was introduced to the world for the first time. We instantly found approximately 80% of them to be insufferable.

Movie Review: Wanderlust

Most comedies are reliant on things like plots and dramatic arcs, rising conflict and protagonists fighting against antagonists.

Best Seriously Overlooked Films

For the third year running, I bring you the Best Seriously Overlooked Films of the year.

Weekend Forecast

After a remarkably consistent February, where several new movies have performed to best-case scenario, we’ll come crashing back to earth this weekend.

How Well Do You Know: Cold Mountain

Cold Mountain is the beautiful love story of two lovers separated but struggling against all odds to get back together. Not the Civil War, not even death can keep these two lovers apart. If you are fighting, stop fighting. If you are marching, stop marching and come back to Cold Mountain. You yourself may not have the over-confidence of youth, but how well do you know Cold Mountain?

Comics Weekly

One of the seminal events in comic book history is compiled in a new trade paperback out this week.

The Secret World of Arrietty

There have been several adaptations of Mary Norton’s classic children’s novel, The Borrowers...

Top Chef Recap

Previously on Top Chef, Beverly edged Grayson for a spot in the final five. This turn of events surprised Lindsay, Sarah, Paul and Edward.

Viking Night: Stardust

Stardust wastes no time getting started, with a snappy prologue regarding a roguish young peasant boy named Dunstan who stumbles upon a kind of dimensional portal.

How Well Do You Know: The Simpsons: Colonel Homer

This episode, Homer decides to live out his boyhood dream of managing a beautiful country singer. They don’t call him Colonel Homer because he’s some dumb-ass army guy! And if this enterprise fails, the Simpsons are broke and if it succeeds, Marge has no husband. Yet Marge doesn’t even know who to root for. How Well Do You Know The Simpsons: Colonel Homer?

How Well Do You Know: The Wizard of Oz

Ding dong, the Wicked Witch is dead! In 1939 movie magic was made as Frank Baum's beloved children's story came to life with Dorothy's adventures in the land of OZ. Are you ready for another trip down the yellow brick road? This quiz is sure to make you click your heels three times. You may know that only bad witches are ugly and that there truly is no place like home, but how well do you know The Wizard of Oz?

Survivor: One World Recap

Survivor returns - now with 100% less Hantz!

Oscar 2012: The Actors

The acting categories have by far the most precursors, which is partially what can make them so predictable.

Overpaid Jerks: 2/13/12-2/19/12

This week: The Swimsuit Edition, baseball passings, drug busts and college basketball shakeups. Play for the last shot by taking our sports trivia quiz for the 8th week of 2012.

Movie Review: The Vow

In more ways than not, The Vow is a pleasing, well-made romance...

TiVoPlex

Sometimes I feel like my TiVo knows me better than I know myself.

The Amazing Race Recap

With this new season of The Amazing Race, we have a full decade of globe-trotting television behind us.

Monday Morning Quarterback

Nic Cage keeps on making movies and people continue to go see them. He's seeing diminishing returns, though...

Part One
Part Two

Weekend Wrap-Up

After a red hot pre-Valentine's Day weekend where The Vow popped with $41.2 million and Safe House was no slouch with $40.2 million, the box office cools a bit.

How Well Do You Know: Rocky (Version 2)

In 1975, Sylvester Stallone was nearly broke, an actor with a handful of minor roles such as stud, thug, and mafioso. By the end of 1976, he was internationally famous, the star of the highest grossing movie of the year, and an Oscar nominee. His story about a down and out boxer with a kind heart and the will to achieve greatness started a billion-dollar franchise of six movies over thirty years. The movie earned ten Oscar nominations with three wins. His leading character is an icon in motion picture history. Yo, How Well Do You Know Rocky?

How Well Do You Know: Justified, S03E05: Thick As Mud

This week on Justified: Dewey Crowe gets to live out his own version of the movie Crank, Raylan gets some sleep at the worst possible moment, and some of the Big Bads of the season have a sit down to share quotes from great thinkers. You may know what was in Winona's letter, but how well do you know Justified, Thick As Mud?

Friday Box Office Analysis

The Ghost Rider sequel is the top new release on Friday with $7 million, good for second place.

This is So Last Week: 2/10/12-2/16/12

This week: Goodbye, Whitney and hello, Grammys. A presidential endorsement, scantly clad ladies and a malicious sea lion also figure into the pas week in pop culture. Here comes our entertainment/celebrity quiz for the 7th week of 2012.

2012 Calvin Awards

This year sees a few titles dominate all of the categories with one becoming the single most triumphant performer in the 11 year history of The Calvins.

This Weekend, Watch This

New movies are released into theaters every weekend. How do you decide which movie to watch?

Weekend Forecast

After last weekend's incredible showing, there's sure to be a letdown in comparison for this weekend's fare, although it won't be for a lack of trying for mass appeal.

How Well Do You Know: Presidents in the Movies II

They're heroes, they're villains. They lead us to victory, they mortgage the soul of the country, they sit idly by while history is made around them. Presidential figures have provided for memorable roles through cinematic history. You may know your Bill Mitchell from your Dave Kovic, but how well do you know Presidents in the Movies?

Chapter Two

Chapter Two proudly continues with the second and final installment in a look at film sequels from the writing/producing/directing team of Zucker Abrahams Zucker was involved.

Movie Review: Safe House

There was a time when Safe House might have been a good movie, which isn’t to say it’s a bad one, but...

Oscar 2012: Final Predictions

It is very tempting, when looking at the artistic and technical categories, to overthink things and second guess yourself...

How Well Do You Know: Drive

Drive, starring Ryan Gosling, is a movie that sets out and successfully proves the old adage “No good deed goes unpunished.” As the quiet, brooding character, Gosling plays a guy who...well...drives. In fact, he drives so well that he often is hired as a ‘wheel man.' All it takes is for him to reluctantly fall for a neighbor for his quiet, solitary existence to violently spin out of control. How well do you know Drive?

How Well Do You Know: Futurama, Season 2 Episode 11: How Hermes Requisitioned His Groove Back

Planet Express has a new bureaucrat, who fires Hermes and begins a torrid affair with Fry – she loves him for the part of him that’s a slob and he loves her because of the part of him that is desperate. But when she downloads Bender’s brain and sends it to the organised confusion of the Central Bureaucracy, she goes too far. How Well Do You Know Futurama: How Hermes Requisitioned His Groove Back? (as foretold by Nostradamus)

Crashing Pilots: Smash

I tend to judge pilot episodes of new TV shows very harshly, often giving up on the prospects of a series before it’s even had 22 (or 45) minutes to impress me.

Things I Learned From Movie X

Like death, taxes and the great taste of Charleston Chew, there are some things in the Universe which are inevitable and unavoidable.

The Amazing Race Preview

Last season, I broke down the previous seasons’ first and second place finishers by their relationships to determine the odds of what type of team would win.

How Well Do You Know: You've Got Mail

Joe and Kathleen are business rivals in real-life and, unknowingly, cozy correspondents online. Made at the relative dawn of the internet age, You've Got Mail is one of the more popular rom-coms to come out of the 90s. So let's go to the mattresses...how well do you know You've Got Mail?

How Well Do You Know: The Simpsons: I Married Marge

Homer’s love of corn-cob pipes leads to a pregnancy scare for Marge, and makes him wax nostalgic over the time he first knocked up Marge. It was right after they saw The Empire Strikes Back. Wow, what an ending! Who would have thought Darth Vader was Luke Skywalker's father! How Well Do You Know The Simpsons: I Married Marge?

Top Chef: Texas Recap

Previously on Top Chef, Grayson was eliminated for disappointing Pee-wee Herman, which is only marginally better than making Santa Claus feel sad.

Viking Night: The Fog

The movie is called The Fog, but it's not a retrospective on the horrors of trench warfare, or a Lindsay Lohan biopic.

Monday Morning Quarterback

In Part 2 of Monday Morning Quarterback, we discuss Journey 2 and The Phantom Menace in 3D.

Overpaid Jerks: 2/6/12-2/12/12

This week: All-Stars, a Pro-Am, Rivalry Week and the Ballad of Jeremy Lin. Have at our sports trivia quiz for the 7th week of 2012.

How Well Do You Know: Justified, S03E04: The Devil You Know

This week on Justified: Dickie and Dewey get busted out of jail to help a crooked prison office find Mags' money, Devil tries to make a power play against Boyd, and Loretta comes back for all of thirty seconds. You may remember the time Limehouse laid Arlo Givens down, but how well do you know Justified, The Devil You Know?

TiVoPlex

Attack the Block makes its debut this week. You're going to want to catch this one. It's fun.

Are You With Us?

With this weekend’s funny spy comedy This Means War crashing into theaters, let's look at another spy/hitman film released this same week 12 years ago.

Monday Morning Quarterback

It was a huge weekend at the box office, and the BOP staff has plenty to discuss.

How Well Do You Know: Hitch

Meet Hitch, whose job is to help men meet women in a way that will open the door for romance. Hitch's slick gameplan that he sells to others doesn't apply to his own life, though, as disaster ensues when he tries to date the beautiful Sara. Most of your dates may end up with you chugging Benadryl, but how well do you know Hitch?

Weekend Wrap-Up

Wow. The box office over the February 10th - 12th weekend has everything your inner box office geek needs.

How Well Do You Know: Crazy, Stupid, Love.

A broken marriage. A conflicted lothario. Unrequited teenage love. Mixed all together they simply become Crazy, Stupid, Love. It’s the story of Cal Weaver’s world crashing down around him when his wife announces plans for divorce and his attempt to move on with help of serial womanizer Jacob Palmer. It’s a hilariously touching account of reclaiming, discovering, and proclaiming love. You may the difference between a straw and a schvantz but how well do you know Crazy, Stupid, Love.?

Friday Box Office Analysis

The calendar may say mid-February, but the box office is acting like it's summertime.

This is So Last Week: 2/3/12-2/9/12

This week: Banged-up action stars, movie trailers, a Smash and The River. Plus: someone or something named Exton. Display your pop culture mastery with our entertainment and celebrity quiz for the 6th week of 2012.

Weekend Forecast

Suddenly, Valentine's Day (proximate) weekend is like July 4th, for all the potential hits opening up this weekend.

This Weekend, Watch This

The Phantom Menace is back in theaters. Is it the movie to watch this weekend?

How Well Do You Know: The Hunger Games

Suzanne Collins' young adult novel became an international sensation shortly after its release in 2008. In the futuristic, post-apocalyptic country of Panem, youngsters are forced to enter a televised fight-to-the-death. Enter unlikely hero Katniss Everdeen, who has to rely on her resourcefulness and courage to survive. So let Cinna dress you and make sense of whatever it is Haymitch is telling you...let's see how well you know The Hunger Games.

Reader Awards

Since 2005, BOP has embraced democracy by empowering you, the reader, with the ability to pick the things you like best.

Oscar 2012

I've been studying the Oscars assiduously since 2002.

Review: The Woman in Black

Given the unparalleled success of the Harry Potter movies, it might seem inevitable that Daniel Radcliffe (Harry) would be forever typecast...

What Went Right: Saw

Saw had a reported production budget of $1.2 million. Just think about that for a moment.

How Well Do You Know: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Reviving a great film franchise left dormant for more than a decade, George Lucas released Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace to great fanfare in 1999. Reaction was....mixed. Trade federations, pod races, a truly bad-ass Sith and one of the more irritating screen characters ever created made for ferocious debate. Let's see if you're a master or apprentice...how well do you know The Phantom Menace?

How Well Do You Know: Futurama, Season 2 Episode 10: A Clone of My Own

The Professor decides to leave everything to his closest living relative, even though his mind is undeveloped and he has accomplished nothing. But the Professor’s clone doesn’t find spending his life finishing the Professor’s half-finished impossible inventions to be a worthwhile proposition. How Well Do You Know Futurama: A Clone of My Own? (coming soon to an illegal DVD)

Comics Weekly

What do I have to do to get you into a new comic book today?

Monday Morning Quarterback

For the second half of our discussion, we look at Big Miracle and the Super Bowl ads.

Top Chef: Texas Recap

At the Top Chef house, Edward rolls out of bed and he's wearing a suit jacket and shorts.

How Well Do You Know: Parks and Recreation, S04E14: Operation Ann

Valentine's Day approaches, and Leslie, worrying that Ann is alone, launches a massive fix-Ann-up campaign. Meanwhile, Leslie sends Ben on a complicated scavenger hunt. As soon as you find the clue taped to your shoe, see how well you know Parks and Rec: Operation Ann.

How Well Do You Know: Jackass: The Movie

In 2002, Johnny Knoxville and company brought their raunchy, hilarious Jackass project to the big screen, and it proved to be one of the more unexpected TV-to-film successes we've seen. This quiz should only be taken by professionals, or under the supervision of professionals. How well do you know Jackass: The Movie?

How Well Do You Know: The Simpsons: Homer Defined

When Homer learns of a problem at the nuclear power plant, he figures he shouldn’t panic, as whosever problem this is, he’s sure they know how to handle it. Unfortunately, it turns out to be his problem. Doh! Who’d have thought a nuclear power plant would be so complicated? How Well Do You Know The Simpsons: Homer Defined?

Viking Night: High Fidelity

So, you're a fan of John Cusack, are you? Well, you're not alone.

Oscar 2012: Sweep Year

Has it reached the point where we all can finally accept the inevitable?

Monday Morning Quarterback

Young men have powers, while Harry Potter grows up and moves on. We discuss all the details.

How Well Do You Know: Justified, S03E03: Harlan Roulette

This week on Justified: Boyd manages to get rid of Mags' weed and starts his plan to take over Harlan, we learn the subtle differences between Russian and Harlan Roulette, and Raylan finally gets to meet the big villain of the season. You may know which Boyd Crowder Devil is going to be working for, but how well do you know Justified, "Harlan Roulette"?

Overpaid Jerks: 1/30/12-2/5/12

This week: A super catch, a vicious dunk, a surprising upset and a thwarted number change. Rejoice: It's the longest possible time before more Collinsworth! Try our sports trivia quiz for the 6th week of 2012.

TiVoPlex

From the obscure to the obscurest to the merely overlooked or underappreciated; they all have a home in the TiVoPlex!

Movie Review: Chronicle

Chronicle is not a superhero movie in the traditional sense, although it certainly adheres to its fair share of the formula.

How Well Do You Know: Charlotte's Web (2006)

E.B. White's beloved book about the unlikely friendship of a spider and pig was turned into an equally revered 1973 animated feature. 23 years later a live action version of the story hits theaters with an all-star voice cast for its barnyard characters and one Miss Dakota Fanning as the lead human. The film tells the tale of a pig making to Christmas and not to Christmas dinner. You may know the difference between a spring pig and a springy pig but how well do you know Charlotte's Web (2006)?

Weekend Wrap-Up

Welcome to Super Bowl weekend at movie theatres – where bad horror films and worse chick flicks are hoisted upon the masses, in the hopes of turning a bad moviegoing weekend into a small profit.

How Well Do You Know: Chuck: Season 5 Recap

Over the last five seasons we've seen Chuck transform from goofy nerd herder to spy extraordinaire, but not without the help of John Casey, Sarah Walker, and many others. As we enter the final chapter in the Chuck saga, will all of his training, and their help, be enough to save Chuck's life...and that of his wife? Let's see How Well Do You Know Chuck, Season 5!

Friday Box Office Analysis

Super Bowl weekend gets off to a super start with two very solid openers in a close race.

This is So Last Week: 1/26/12-2/2/12

This week in pop culture: A desirable woman, an unlikely presidential endorsement, a dose of 80s nostalgia cued up for the Super Bowl, and a question of being gay. We hope you were paying attention to the 5th week of 2012.

Weekend Forecast

There's not a sure thing this weekend at the box office like last week, where the annual Liam Neeson vs. Something movie was pretty close to a guaranteed hit.

This Weekend, Watch This

In which Curt recounts the best conversation he's ever had.

How Well Do You Know: Warrior

Two estranged brothers take two different paths into a mixed martial arts tournament and Warrior. Tommy and Brendan, strangers to each other and to their father, see their fates intersect in the octagon. So let's go to war! How well do you know Warrior?

Movie Review: The Grey

Most thrillers function according to the idea that we want to be the characters, specifically the heroes.

Book vs. Movie

Romance novelist Janet Evanovich had hit on the highly commercial idea of mixing contemporary romance with crime suspense genre fiction.

Sole Criterion

For the life of me, I could not tell you when I first heard about this week’s Sole Criterion pick.

How Well Do You Know: 2012 Oscar Nominees

You've considered pedigrees, entered multiple office Oscar pools and cursed the Academy for not appreciating Ryan Gosling more. As the 2012 Oscars approach, it's time to test your knowledge about the various nominees. You may know your Peppy Miller from your Minny Jackson, but how well do you know the 2012 Oscar Nominees?

How Well Do You Know: Futurama, Season 2 Episode 09: A Bicyclops Built For Two

Leela meets another Cyclops and quickly agrees to marry him and rebuild their race. Saving a race of one-eyed monsters? Who could object to that? But pretty quickly Leela experiences the greatest joy a woman can feel: worshiping some lowlife jerk. How Well Do You Know Futurama: A Bicyclops Built For Two? (this episode has been modified to fit your primitive screen)

Comics Weekly

The comic industry needs your money. Now!

Make An Argument

Companies, apparently, no longer wait for the Big Day to unveil their $3.5 million buys; many of them, now, post teasers of their advertisements online.

Monday Morning QB Pt. 2

Today's update includes Man on a Ledge, the Super Bowl, and a rundown on recent movies.

Oscar 2012: Best Song

I am planning on writing a series of articles about my love of the Best Original Song Category during the awards offseason.

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