Smith Is Box Office Legend

Even Hollywood can make movies for the non-'lily-livered:' Nile Gardiner

(NEWSER) - "Hollywood may well be a bastion of liberalism, but it does continue to occasionally produce major films that advance conservative principles," Nile Gardiner writes in the Telegraph . His best of the aughts:

1. Master and Commander, 2003: The Peter Weir flick starring Russell Crowe is "an epic tale of heroism and love for country in the face of incredible odds, and a glowing tribute to the grit and determination that forged the British Empire."
2. Black Hawk Down, 2001: Critics may have called it an "anti-war film," but Gardiner doesn't buy it. Instead, it's "an extraordinarily powerful and deeply patriotic tribute to the heroism and bravery of the US military."

Football flick capitalizes on strong Thanksgiving weekend

(NEWSER) - Building on strong word-of-mouth and an unexpectedly lucrative Thanksgiving weekend, The Blind Side caught and passed New Moon at the weekend box office. The Sandra Bullock vehicle pulled in $20.4 million to $15.7 million for the teen vampire sequel. Both dwarfed Brothers, which underperformed despite stars Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Tobey Maguire, the Los Angeles Times reports. Another big name, George Clooney, has reason for optimism after Up in the Air raked in $1.2 million in only 15 locations. The top five: More»

Football flick tops vampire saga in Thanksgiving receipts

(NEWSER) - New Moon extended its domination of the the box office over the Thanksgiving weekend, but The Blind Side showed surprising resilience and even outdrew the vampire picture on the holiday. New Moon raked in $42.5 million in 3 days, bringing its 10-day total to $230.7 million. The Blind Side did $40.1 million, actually rising 18% from its opening weekend total, according to the Hollywood Reporter . The top five: More»

Latest 'Twilight' entry enjoys 3rd-biggest weekend ever

(NEWSER) - In the third-largest weekend debut ever, The Twilight Saga: New Moon rang up $140.7 million, riding records for a midnight opening and a single day to totals trailing only The Dark Knight and Spider-Man. Audiences were four-fifths female, with the remaining 20% mostly teen boys, USA Today reports. The Blind Side outperformed expectations, doing $34.5 million. Precious fell out of the top five but remained in the top 10, taking in $11 million. The top five: More»

Apocalypse flick does $65M as 'Precious' cracks top 5

(NEWSER) - Apocalypse preview 2012 raked in $65 million domestically at the weekend box office, the high end of the prerelease estimate range, en route to a $225 million haul worldwide. The doomsday action flick handily beat A Christmas Carol, which performed strongly in its second weekend in release. A new entry in the top 10 was No. 4 Precious; the indie sensation did $6.1 million and will open in more locations next week, USA Today reports. The top five: More»