Tom Breihan

9/17/21

Is <i>Bad Boys For Life </i>the last blockbuster?

Is Bad Boys For Life the last blockbuster?

Thanks to COVID-19, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence's big-screen reunion is the final relic of a time when large…

9/3/21

Disney’s lucrative remake plan culminated with a soulless, joyless “live action” <i>Lion King</i>

Disney’s lucrative remake plan culminated with a soulless, joyless “live action” Lion King

Jon Favreau used groundbreaking technology to strip all the life out of the animated classic

8/20/21

Marvel won big as its heroes lost everything in the downer epic <i>Avengers: Infinity War</i>

Marvel won big as its heroes lost everything in the downer epic Avengers: Infinity War

Will the biggest franchise in movie history ever top its two-part crossover smash?

8/6/21

<i>The Last Jedi</i> let the past die—and pissed off a galaxy of overprotective fans in the process

The Last Jedi let the past die—and pissed off a galaxy of overprotective fans in the process

Rian Johnson dared to make an anti-nostalgic Star Wars. The diehards were not pleased.

7/23/21

In <i>Rogue One</i>, Rebel spirit and corporate control collided to make Disney’s best <i>Star Wars</i>

In Rogue One, Rebel spirit and corporate control collided to make Disney’s best Star Wars

Disney is simply not into spending hundreds of millions to indulge a director’s whims when there’s Star Wars money…

6/25/21

<i>American Sniper</i> fought a culture war on the box office battlefield

American Sniper fought a culture war on the box office battlefield

Clint Eastwood's wartime biopic emerged victorious in a year of superhero blockbusters

6/11/21

Blockbusters don’t get much bleaker than the kids-killing-kids spectacle of<i> The Hunger Games</i>

Blockbusters don’t get much bleaker than the kids-killing-kids spectacle of The Hunger Games

Catching Fire taught the Harry Potter generation to distrust adults

5/28/21

Even the Dark Knight was no match for the box office might of <i>The Avengers</i>

Even the Dark Knight was no match for the box office might of The Avengers

In 2008, the year that the Marvel Cinematic Universe began, Batman ate Marvel’s lunch. Iron Man, the movie that…

5/14/21

The final <i>Harry Potter</i> closed a decade of hits—and of failed attempts at the next <i>Harry Potter</i>

The final Harry Potter closed a decade of hits—and of failed attempts at the next Harry Potter

The Harry Potter series was too big to fail, and yet it could’ve failed so easily, again and again. In Harry Potter,…

4/30/21

<i>Toy Story 3</i> went Ham(m) on all our hearts—and made a fortune doing it

Toy Story 3 went Ham(m) on all our hearts—and made a fortune doing it

I must’ve known that all the toys weren’t about to die. I had to know. This was a G-rated kids’ movie, the third…

4/16/21

Avatar, a strange dream that became the biggest movie of all time

It’s been more than a decade since a wholly original film was the biggest hit of its year. All our reigning…

4/2/21

<i>The Dark Knight</i> changed things, forever

The Dark Knight changed things, forever

Film culture, especially popular film culture, moves in fits and starts. There’s a lot of money on the line, and the…

3/19/21

<i>Spider-Man 3</i> swung to the top of a year dominated by lousy third installments

Spider-Man 3 swung to the top of a year dominated by lousy third installments

The three part threes all arrived in May of 2007, one after the other after the other. First weekend in May: Spider-M…

3/5/21

Forgettable but enjoyable, the second <i>Pirates Of The Caribbean</i> buoyed a dry year for blockbusters

Forgettable but enjoyable, the second Pirates Of The Caribbean buoyed a dry year for blockbusters

By most estimates, 2011’s Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is the most expensive motion picture ever…

2/19/21

Even going really dark at the end couldn’t redeem the <i>Star Wars</i> prequel trilogy

Even going really dark at the end couldn’t redeem the Star Wars prequel trilogy

In the fall of 2012, the Walt Disney Company dropped a four-billion-dollar bag of money on George Lucas’ desk and…

2/5/21

<i>Shrek 2</i> turned one executive’s petty grievances into a box office fairy tale

Shrek 2 turned one executive’s petty grievances into a box office fairy tale

Shrek was a “fuck you.” That was the entire point. This massively successful children’s film franchise owes its…

1/22/21

<i>The Return Of The King </i>was the last time a blockbuster could be weird, personal, and Best Picture

The Return Of The King was the last time a blockbuster could be weird, personal, and Best Picture

“Fantasy is the one genre that’s never been done especially well,” Peter Jackson told The Los Angeles Times. “After…

1/8/21

2002’s biggest movies were about great power and great responsibility—but there was only one <i>Spider-Man</i>

2002’s biggest movies were about great power and great responsibility—but there was only one Spider-Man

The bus is a carnival of humiliation. The driver won’t stop, so Peter Parker has to run alongside, banging on the…

12/16/20

Action fans everywhere got their quarantine fix with the Netflix mega-hit <i>Extraction</i>

Action fans everywhere got their quarantine fix with the Netflix mega-hit Extraction

The highest-grossing movie of 2020 was an action movie. This was simply by default; movie theaters were only really…

12/11/20

The first <i>Harry Potter</i> movie preserved everything in the book… except its magic

The first Harry Potter movie preserved everything in the book… except its magic

There was always going to be a Harry Potter movie franchise. As soon as the first J.K. Rowling novel ascended the New…

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