BLOGS
Good news for Angels & Demons! The Tom Hanks sequel/prequel to The DaVinci Code may be officially boycotted by the Catholic church. Why is that good news for the movie? Since the Vatican issued a statement last Friday, newspapers and websites from Cleveland to India have already helped spread the word. You couldn't buy that kind of publicity. Well, maybe you could, but it'd be expensive. With the economy being what it is and budgets being pinched, perhaps other movies could benefit from being boycotted from various groups. Although it's unlikely any organization would have quite the opposite-effect clout as the Catholic church, here are 10 movie suggestions with their potential naysayers.
1. Night at the Museum: Battle at the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum made a lot of money in 2006, but it'll need a boost if it wants to compete against Terminator Salvation, opening the same weekend.
Potential boycotter: The Smithsonian Institution
Why:The Smithsonian allowed some of the movie to be shot on location, but when they heard star Ben Stiller had signed on for Little Fockers, all bets were off.
2. Drag Me to Hell
This Sam Raimi horror flick is about a loan officer who's been cursed by an old lady she tried to evict from her home. It's coming out the same weekend as Pixar's balloon-driven fantasy Up, so it might get a little lost in the helium.
Potential boycotter: The American Bankers Association
Why: Like banks don't have enough of the public's ire right now? Plus, people might start getting ideas about putting curses on unscrupulous lenders.
3. The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
The original was good, so people may wonder if it's worth seeing a remake with John Travolta as a subway train hijacker and Denzel Washington as the man who has to stop him.
Potential boycotter: New York Convention & Visitors Bureau
Why: Many tourists were already wary of taking the subway without the prospect of spending two hours trapped inside one with John Travolta and his truly hideous mustache.
4. Imagine That
This one looks fairly gentle, with a troubled financial executive immersed in his daughter's imaginary world, but Eddie Murphy in a fantasy comedy is already pretty well-trod territory.
Potential boycotters: Any number of convicted financial execs now in prison.
Why: It's insulting to imply that financial execs need a kid to be creative. They're very creative with finances all on their own, thanks.
5. The Post-Grad Survival Guide
Alexis Bledel is adorable, but can she carry a summer movie? The plot has her character suffering through joblessness after graduation.
Potential boycotters: Unsympathetic real post-grads.
Why: Actually, they don't have to officially boycott it. They just can't afford to go see first-run movies anymore.
6. Orphan
It's a movie about a creepy kid. How much more do you need to know?
Potential boycotters: Various adoption agencies.
Why: People need more incentive to adopt, not more incentive to run screaming away from little girls in pigtails.
7. The Ugly Truth
Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler star in this rom-com. You can pretty much figure out everything you need to know from the poster: Stereotypical woman and stereotypical man spar, learn some awful/sappy/predictable "truths", and fall in love.
Potential boycotters: Kate Hudson and/or Matthew McConaughey
Why: It just seems like something they would have starred in.
8. G-Force
Guinea pigs are cute, but a whole movie of talking guinea pigs doing secret agent stuff may be a deal-breaker for some moviegoers.
Potential boycotter: The Rats of NIMH
Why: You want hyper-intelligent rodents? Just stick with the classic.
9. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Certainly this sequel will cart off dough like a giant robotic dump truck, but some free publicity could help propel it past the $700M the first movie made.
Potential boycotter: United Auto Workers
Why: The US auto industry is losing enough jobs as it is without the cars assembling their own damn selves.
10. Inglourious Basterds
Quentin Tarantino's latest has a star-studded cast, but WWII movies haven't proved to be major blockbusters in recent years.
Potential boycotter: The Scripps National Spelling Bee
Why: The title might teach kids how to be pritty terrable spellars.
What movies do you think could benefit from a publicity-stirring boycott? What others should just be boycotted, period?
BLOG ARCHIVES
The Moviefile
February 2013
11 Entries
January 2013
16 Entries
December 2012
21 Entries
November 2012
19 Entries
October 2012
20 Entries
September 2012
19 Entries
August 2012
19 Entries
July 2012
17 Entries
June 2012
24 Entries
May 2012
21 Entries
April 2012
22 Entries
March 2012
26 Entries
February 2012
24 Entries
January 2012
25 Entries
December 2011
27 Entries
November 2011
22 Entries
October 2011
22 Entries
September 2011
29 Entries
August 2011
27 Entries
July 2011
30 Entries
June 2011
25 Entries
May 2011
13 Entries
April 2011
23 Entries
March 2011
22 Entries
February 2011
33 Entries
January 2011
39 Entries
December 2010
21 Entries
November 2010
29 Entries
October 2010
23 Entries
September 2010
25 Entries
August 2010
26 Entries
July 2010
29 Entries
June 2010
36 Entries
May 2010
22 Entries
April 2010
26 Entries
March 2010
30 Entries
February 2010
19 Entries
January 2010
19 Entries
December 2009
15 Entries
November 2009
21 Entries
October 2009
27 Entries
September 2009
30 Entries
August 2009
28 Entries
July 2009
34 Entries
June 2009
27 Entries
May 2009
24 Entries
April 2009
23 Entries
March 2009
18 Entries
February 2009
30 Entries
January 2009
56 Entries
December 2008
51 Entries
November 2008
61 Entries
October 2008
102 Entries
September 2008
86 Entries
August 2008
99 Entries
July 2008
116 Entries
June 2008
95 Entries
May 2008
86 Entries
April 2008
67 Entries
March 2008
14 Entries
Blog Categories
A Festival for the Rest...ival
20 Entries
Accidents Do Happen
46 Entries
Adventures in Fakery
77 Entries
Alien Nations
3 Entries
Animation Desensitization
79 Entries
Awards Schmawards
17 Entries
Box Office Tally
79 Entries
Burning Questions
4 Entries
Coming Soonish
9 Entries
Cool Nerds Guide
6 Entries
Cop Rick
4 Entries
Crazy In Love
2 Entries
Director? I Hardly Knew Her!
154 Entries
Disease of the Week
1 Entries
Doc Watch
1 Entries
DVDs Unwrapped
24 Entries
Footage Lost (And Found)
2 Entries
For Your Amusement (Park)
10 Entries
Foreign Relations
49 Entries
Future Tense
1 Entries
Galleries (and Other Picture Postcards)
23 Entries
Gangster's Paradise
4 Entries
Getting Dramatic
3 Entries
Girls on Film
75 Entries
Happy Anniversary
9 Entries
Hi, High School
1 Entries
Hollywood To TWoP: Hello There!
36 Entries
I Voted for GORE!
101 Entries
I Want My DVD
221 Entries
I Want My VOD
20 Entries
I've Got Two Tickets to Merchandise
33 Entries
IMDb Fun Times
6 Entries
Indie Snapshot
41 Entries
Indie, Indie, Come Back Home
38 Entries
It Came From New York
6 Entries
It Came From San Diego
14 Entries
It's a Major Award!
75 Entries
Legal Eaglese
21 Entries
Let's Blame the Media!
49 Entries
Let's Go To The Video!
29 Entries
Letterbox of Recommendations
22 Entries
Lights, Camera... Action Jackson!
177 Entries
Little TV Shows That Done Hit the Big Time
71 Entries
Martial Artistry
11 Entries
Momentous Occasions
25 Entries
More On Movies
37 Entries
Movie Merchandise
4 Entries
Musicalifornication
47 Entries
Name That Tune
2 Entries
Obituaries Without Pity
23 Entries
On the Frontlines
1 Entries
Oscars and Grouchery
11 Entries
Politicking
3 Entries
Pros and Controversy
26 Entries
Read All About It
4 Entries
Real People, Fake Movies
21 Entries
Remakes R Us
7 Entries
Reviews of Movies We Haven't Seen Yet
42 Entries
Reviews of Movies We've Actually Seen
485 Entries
Scary Monsters & Super Creeps
103 Entries
Sci-Fidelity
147 Entries
Script From the Headlines!
56 Entries
Separate but Sequel
246 Entries
Sequelitis
19 Entries
Shameless Self-Promotion
27 Entries
Sing Out, Louise
3 Entries
Sports in Our Shorts
6 Entries
Strike Watch
14 Entries
Stupid Cinematic Celebrity Sayings
34 Entries
Sundance Sundance Revolution
13 Entries
Swords and Sorcerers
2 Entries
Taste the Reading Rainbow
93 Entries
Tears in Heaven
1 Entries
The Art of the Cannes
6 Entries
The Biz
122 Entries
The Casting Conch
192 Entries
The History, Booooyyyyy!
79 Entries
The Kongs of Comedy
199 Entries
Theatre With an "R" and an "E"
11 Entries
Things to Know
1 Entries
Things We Learned
1 Entries
Time Tripping
1 Entries
Top of the
1 Entries
Top of the MWoP
5 Entries
Trailer Trashing
72 Entries
Trailers Without Pity
37 Entries
Video Games Killed the Movie Star
23 Entries
Watching Movies With Kids
4 Entries
We Call Do-Over
177 Entries
We Watches the Watchmen
33 Entries
What's Up, Documentary?
17 Entries
When Animal Movies Attack
13 Entries
YA Wasteland
3 Entries
You Got Comic Book in My Movie
249 Entries
You Know, For Kids!
132 Entries
Comments