The UBS Evening Movie News 12.27.07
Posted by George H. Sirois on 12.27.2007
The “Do’s and Don’ts of New Year Celebrations” Edition…
Welcome everyone to the latest edition of The UBS Evening Movie News. I'm George H. Sirois, and just in case you haven't made your New Year's plans yet, I got a few tips for you that might come in handy. First, the news, and there isn't much to report here since it's the end of the year, but I'll do my best. It turns out that Hollywood Reporter has been agreeing with what I've been saying the past couple of weeks…
TOP STORY
2008 is the year Sony's Howard Stringer and the Blu-ray Disc will slay HD DVD as effectively as Joseph Turok dispenses with dinosaurs. If you're unfamiliar with that metaphor, you probably don't have a PlayStation 3.
Every PS3 console sold in the U.S. comes equipped with a Blu-ray DVD player. That's an advantage that has put the Sony device in about 2.7 million U.S. homes, compared with fewer than 750,000 for HD DVD. Blu-ray movies also outsell HD DVD movies in Europe by a 3-to-1 margin. This despite HD DVD players costing less than half the price of a PS3/Blu-ray combo unit. True, Paramount, DreamWorks and DreamWorks Animation recently joined Universal in exclusively embracing HD DVD. But those decisions stemmed from a $150 million "incentive payment" that smacked of desperation.
To truly understand Blu-ray's dominance, compare titles that are available in both formats. Warner Bros.' "300" is the best-selling next-gen DVD, and Blu-ray boasts an advantage of 66% to 34% over HD DVD in sales of the title.
The final stake in HD DVD's heart could come from Blockbuster, which is testing both formats. "It's still about 70%-30% in favor of Blu-ray at our stores that offer both," a Blockbuster spokeswoman says.
Dual players are expensive, and a recent Forrester Research study suggests that 22% of Americans say they will not buy a next-gen player until one format wins over the other. Couple that with the 25% who say they'll never buy a next-gen player, and the incentives are in place for Hollywood to finally stop confusing the consumer with one too many choices.
Like I said last week, it really looks as if Blu-Ray is going in for the kill and it just might happen this year. Fortunately for those who took the HD-DVD route, they're not completely left out of the cold since there is the combo HD & Standard DVDs and very inexpensive HD-DVD players, but looking back at how these discs were released, it's almost as if HD knew it was going to be beaten out by Blu-Ray and wanted to ease the blow on their customers as much as possible. Now, they can take the standard sides of the combo discs and play them on their PS3's and the picture will look even better.
I also stand by what I said last week when I said that I hope there will eventually be some mutual peace so the HD format's not completely blown into oblivion, but based on the aggressive campaigns that Blu-Ray's doing now, it looks like that's what they want to do. I'm still going to be keeping an eye on this as it develops further.
SYBIL THE SOOTHSAYER
DVD NEWS
For fans of "Stargate SG-1," the story isn't as finished you think. Two feature length direct to DVD movies are coming, with the first one arriving on April 11th. Stargate: The Ark of Truth picks up where SG-1 left off, thrusting the Stargate team in search of an Ancient artifact they hope can defeat the oppressive Ori. The team learns that the Ori are set to launch a final assault on Earth and a double-crossing I.O. operative is aboard the Odyssey!
The disc will also contain audio commentary with Robert C. Cooper, Christopher Judge and Peter Woeste, and there will also be the short "Stargate SG-1: The Road Taken," which bridges the gap between the series and the movie.
Be prepared for the HD elegy. The word is in from Digital Playground that the adult movie studio will also begin supporting the Blu-Ray Disc high definition format, starting this January. So far the studio had only supported the competing HD-DVD format but with the overwhelming market penetration of Blu-Ray players the studio is now adding Blu-Ray to their slate.
The award-winning and acclaimed Pirates will be the first title to make its Blu-Ray debut and it will be presented in 1080p for the first time on the release, as the HD-DVD version offered only a 720p transfer of the film.
Now it's really starting to come in clear. When the adult industry decides to make a turn towards one form of media over the other – like when they went to VHS instead of Beta – then that's when you know which form is going to win in the end. Pirates will come to whatever shelves will sell porno movies on January 4th.
Credit: DVDReview.com
MOVIE TRAILER OF THE WEEK: The Modern Horror Trinity
So while I was at my father's place in Jersey, I finished up my third video for your viewing pleasure. I now have for you the trinity of modern horror icons.
First, there's the Father (Michael Myers)…
And then, there's the Son (Jason Voorhees)…
And finally, there's the Unholy Spirit (Freddy Krueger)…
I'm sure I'll eventually get around to doing something for Pinhead, Chucky, Leatherface and others, but they do take a bit of work and it's a bit difficult to keep doing them while keeping up with everything else.
JIM WEBBING AND HIS IT'S-THE-HONEST-TRUTH-DEPARTMENT
The Definition of Schadenfreude: Jessica Simpson may have set a record at the box office. Her latest film, Blonde Ambition, co-starring Luke Wilson, took in just $1,190 over the weekend. True, it was shown in only eight Texas theaters, but that's still an average of less than $50 per theater per day, meaning about six people showed up to see it in each location each day. On his TV Guide Online blog, film critic Ken Fox asked, "Doesn't someone like Jessica Simpson have more than 48 friends? What about that big Texas family of hers? ... Just how bad is this thing anyway?"
Of all the times for Jessica to be given the "vanity run" in local movie theaters, she gets it right after she shows up at the Cowboys / Eagles game and watches her man Tony Romo give the worst performance of his young career. Not only could Jessica get people into the theaters for this, but neither could Luke Wilson or even Willie Nelson! Yes, Romo couldn't throw and Willie Nelson couldn't draw in Texas. I guess this girl is bad luck after all.
The Run for No Country Begins: In the latest round of awards presentations, the St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association named No Country for Old Men best feature of 2007 and the film's writer-directors, the Coen brothers, best director. It also named Jason Reitman's Juno best comedy. No Country and the Coen brothers also nabbed the top awards from the Florida Film Critics Circle and the Utah Film Critics Association.
I still have to see both movies, but it looks as if No Country for Old Men is starting its run of the table to be the favorite come Oscar time. Juno is looking like a dark-horse contender in the same fashion of Little Miss Sunshine, but I have a feeling that No Country is going to be adding quite a few more awards to the Coens' mantle.
"Could be worse." ROARRRRR! "It's worse.": The father of Jamie Lynn Spears baby is NOT boyfriend Casey Aldridge, according to shocking reports from the U.S. News that Britney's sister was pregnant at 16 - under the legal age for sex in the U.S. - forced 18-year-old Casey into hiding.
But now Star magazine insists that the teenager may not be the dad - and that Spears' friends and family think it is an older man who would face statutory rape charges.
Friends have said that Jamie Lynn was no longer even seeing Casey - and family members told Star that they believe the real father is a much older executive at her children's TV show ‘Zoey 101′.
"Casey is being paid off to be the family's fall guy while the real father remains unidentified," Star magazine insists.
They say the real reason is that an older man could be charged with statutory rape if revealed to be the father of an under-aged girl's baby.
But in Jamie Lynn's home state of Louisiana, Casey would escape charges because a 16-year-old can legally have sex with someone less than two years older than her.
"Conveniently, Casey falls under the bar by just 26 days. The man many suspect is the father, however, would face charges and probably prison time if he were to come forward and admit he had sex with her," Star magazine states.
No matter who the father is, insiders believe the pregnancy will be the death knoll for Jamie Lynn's burgeoning career. It will leave them terrified that she will prove to be the new Britney - and also that Nickelodeon, the TV channel behind Zoey 101, will be terrified of ruining its clean-cut image.
"I can't think of any way that Nickelodeon could keep Jamie Lynn's show on the air, said PR expert Michael Levine.
"If they do, advertisers will drop it like crazy. No advertiser wants to be associated with a minor getting pregnant."
There are some things in life that just can't be added to by commenting on them. This is one of those things. Well, actually this was a late addition to the report and I'm kinda smart-assed out by now, so I just can't think of anything to say about it.
VOX POPULI
WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: December 21 - 23, 2007
1. National Treasure: Book of Secrets - $ 45,500,000
Total: $45,500,000
2. I Am Legend - $34,225,000
Total: $137,490,000
3. Alvin and the Chipmunks - $29,000,000
Total: $84,867,000
4. Charlie Wilson's War - $9,620,000
Total: $9,620,000
5. Sweeney Todd - $9,350,000
Total: $9,350,000
6. P.S. I Love You - $6,505,000
Total: $6,505,000
7. Enchanted - $4,152,000
Total: $98,351,000
8. Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story - $4,100,000
Total: $4,100,000
9. The Golden Compass - $3,980,000
Total: $48,418,000
10. Juno - $3,400,000
Total: $6,385,000
To end this year, I thought I'd give a special shout-out to the women who made 2007 extra entertaining for all of us by allowing us to give a hearty laugh at their expense.
To Paris Hilton, for becoming such a great ecological role model by making sure your water faucets are turned off before leaving your mansion, The UBS salutes you!
To Danielle Fishel, for reminding us all of your existence with your latest attempt at a comeback, "Girl Meets Judge." For that, The UBS salutes you!
To Jamie-Lynn Spears, for getting on the cover of the New York Post for three straight days! And all for doing nothing but letting some 18-year old (or someone else) lie on top of you. For that, The UBS salutes you!
To Amy Winehouse, for your own personal "Rock Against Drugs" ad, The UBS salutes you!
To Britney Spears, for… hell, what HAVEN'T you done?! For that, The UBS salutes you!
And finally, to Jessica Simpson for becoming the bane of the Dallas Cowboys' existence. You have provided us Giants fans a common ground with Eagles and Redskins fans, and we're already looking to pool our resources to get you lifetime season tickets to all home and away games. For that, The UBS wholeheartedly salutes you!
So, you're all set for New Year's Eve? Planning a big party? Going out to one? Maybe taking a trip to see the ball drop in person? Well, if you live in New York and are faced with these options, I got some tips for you to take in, some do's and don'ts for the new year, if you will.
First things first, if you're planning on going to Times Square, DON'T! I'm telling you, as someone who experienced it firsthand, don't go! You may think you're going to get a good spot to see everything, but keep in mind the tourists are already staking their claims. They're the first ones to get to the tree lighting at the beginning of December and they're the first ones to get the prime real estate in Times Square. I'm surprised there aren't some people already there and this is two days after Christmas!
If you're still going to go, guess what? You can't drink! And because of that, you'll be pissed off, especially at the schmucks next to you who snuck drinks in and are falling all over each other and bumping into your grumpy ass.
Oh, and did I mention it's pretty cold in Times Square at the end of December? While you look at your gloved hand and flex your fingers to make sure there's blood circulating, take a look at your watch and realize that you get to keep standing for another FOUR HOURS!
And what are you looking at, by the way? Well, considering where you might be standing, you'll be looking at a little ball the size of a marble dropping about six inches. Whoopee!
The countdown finishes, the confetti drops, and everyone hugs and kisses. Then what? Well, if it's anything like it was back in '97, everyone bolts for the subways so they can get home and drink.
So Times Square is out. What else is there? Well, if you want to go to a bar, there are plenty of options that offer specials for about $50 or so. Just make sure that it's not too big and that you're not paying too much money for the special. $50 is ideal, $75 is fine, even $90 works. But if the asking price is at least $100, you may want to skip it and look elsewhere. The more expensive places tend to attract more people because they seem like "the" spot to go to for the new year.
Case in point: Bar 13 on 13th and University. When my friends and I went there to celebrate the start of 2003, we paid $110 each to go there. It's a very nice place to go to with friends on an ordinary night, but it was pretty crammed when we got there for the party. Since there are three floors, there was an almost instant class separation with little chance of mingling. And are you ready for this? NO TELEVISIONS IN THE PLACE! So how is everyone supposed to do the big countdown?!
Another tip for you: if you want to go to a bar, make sure it's not a trendy place that believes having a television is beneath them. A sports bar would do just fine.
Anyway, since there was no television, we had a bunch of groups crowded around wristwatches and doing their own countdowns. Then, five minutes after midnight, the DJ stopped everything and did a 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 countdown. Needless to say, $110 not all that well spent.
I was going to go further into restaurants and getting catering, but I'm not feeling too hot and need to lie down for a while so I'm good to go for Saturday night's Giants game. Anyway, just remember what I said. Times Square = Bad. Trendy Bar = Bad. Sports Bar = Good. $50 - $75 for a Party = Good. Party at Home with Friends = Priceless. (In some cases, literally.)
And that's a wrap for Chapter 45 of The UBS Evening News. I'm George H. Sirois, have a Happy New Year and I'll see you next week!
Boy, someone has a real affinity for Blu-Ray, huh? I don't think its at all obvious who the winner is, but your column makes it abundantly clear which way you fall. Do I detect a Sony bias or what?? Beyond that, great column as usual.
Posted By: Jeff L (Guest) on December 27, 2007 at 11:18 AM
Bias? He was praying at the altar of HD-DVD until recently and Blu-Ray is more than just Sony. >_> Blu-Ray is way ahead and even the HD-DVD camp buying Paramount's support hasn't helped. Blu-Ray has a lot more potential and that's why I would want it to become the "winner" of the format war and not HD-DVD.
Though the porn industry, which was a factor of VHS beating Beta but not the big one that people make it out to be, is going to be a non-factor this time around no matter what format they choose due to the internet.
Posted By: PHOENIXZERO (Registered) on December 27, 2007 at 02:09 PM
Very well-done YouTube videos for the Unholy Trinity. Good column, too...keep up the good work!
Posted By: JeremyThomas (Guest) on December 27, 2007 at 10:29 PM
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