Victoria's Actual Secret: Rudolph Cream.

     No seriously, Victoria Secret models smear reindeer cream on their face and udders in order to get their bronzy and youthful glow. I'll just let that sink in for a while.
     Nonetheless, the race for the holiday season begins with ‘Victoria’s Secret’, ‘The Voice’, ‘Rudolph’ Down; ‘Happy Endings’ & ‘Apt. 23′ Up. 
     You know that Christmas is coming when Rudolph starts showing up and the Christmas songs begin blasting on the radio. Alas, to steal the article's pun, Rudolph's light did not shine so bright last night: CBS’ airing of the 1964 stop-motion animation Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (2.9/8) special was down 28% from last year. This article caught my attention because of this. Like they said, this has been airing since 1964, and it seems that the spirit has almost deadened. To drop by 28%... wow. My question is, what are other people doing? Because it seems that other show ratings have gone down, is it because of the target audience's lack of interest, or their belief that if they miss the show they can always youtube it?

Zero Dark Dirty Business Information

     Director Kathryn Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Baol firmly stated in an interview, that is to air tonight on ABC’s Nightline, that no classified documents were used in the making of Zero Dark Thirty. These fimmakers deny claims that the White House provided classified info. This film details the Navy SEAL mission that killed Osama bin Laden so it is no surprise that this is a hot topic. This film discusses something that our country had to do, and telling the story in film is a way to express this 'success' and whatnot. 

    The pair mentioned that claims they received top-secret help from the Obama administration on the details of the raid came down to partisan politics. “I certainly did a lot of homework, but I never asked for classified materials; to my knowledge, I never received any”, Boal said. “And I think as far as the controversy goes, you know, how can I put this — it was an election year. It was surreal and bizarre to have … I mean there were major players in the Republican Party characterizing the script and the movie before I had written a word, and I found that just really baffling”.

What Really is the Future of Cable?

     "Are Big Media Companies Needlessly Frightened About Pay TV Cord Cutting?" is the big question that everyone is asking this week. Well, not big but rather a substantial one that deserves an answer. Lazard Capital Markets' Barton Crockett seems to think so about companies, that they are needlessly scared. He regarded in one of his analyst essays that this cord cutting could be good for the "content-owning conglomerates" if the consumers begin using the internet to subscribe to the channels they want. Although Crockett takes a step back and states that the current system of pay TV bundling is not going away soon anyway and thus the companies are being excessive in their worries.
     Crockett challenges the "conventional wisdom that media giants would find themselves on a ride to financial ruin if consumers escaped from a system that requires them to pay for channels they don't want." These are based on two assumptions: Consumers would continue to spend $78B a year on pay TV. And, in a post-bundle world, content creators could collect all of that instead of settling for the $32B in program fees that they currently receive from distributors. 

CBS Adds onto Hulu Plus

     Adds. Addition... the plus in Hulu Plus. Get it? No? Well... okay then... >.< Now onto the news. CBS Inks Library Deal For Hulu Plus. CBS, the lone major network that doesn't own a piece of Hulu, is finally going to stream shows. Sort of. Even though CBS has worked with Hulu back in Japan... CBS seems tentative over the streaming thing even though CW (half owned by CBS) has a deal with the service.
     CBS isn't showing its latest hits, they are going to offer some other shows such as "Medium and CSI: Miami and golden oldies such as Star Trek, I Love Lucy and The Twilight Zone." It won't be their latest shows the day after it airs. Also, this is only being made available to those who are subscribed to Hulu Plus. 
     This is quite interesting because it seems like everyone has already jumped onto the internet bandwagon. Seeing CBS barely doing this, this late in the game, makes me think about how old the internet really is. The internet is not that old but it has already had an impact on the industry in terms of pirating, streaming, and whatnot. 
     This seems like a good move for CBS, so hopefully they aren't moving one step forward and two steps back. Expanding a network's services never seem bad to me. With the internet, I wonder how CBS is going to deal with attempting to expand their audience. 

Hey Weather Channel, How Are You?

     This week, everyone seems to be talking about Hurricane Sandy, whether they are making Spongebob jokes about it or placing serious concern on it. Throughout this whole shebang, the Weather Channel's ratings have gone up.  The article states, "The Weather Channel’s coverage of Hurricane Sandy beat all the cable news networks in primetime among adults 25-54 and in overall day viewership." 
     I thought this article was interesting mainly because it is the perfect example of how society dictates what to watch and when. The ratings of the Weather Channel seem to only boost when there are people who are concerned about these events. They seemed focused on others' safety and the news report in general about this natural disaster.

TV Shortens Your Life Span?

     Now-a-days, plenty of people indulge in the pleasure of watching TV whenever they have free time. It's as casual as it can be, and allows people to relax. Unfortunately, Australian researchers have discovered that like so many other pleasures in life, watching TV can shorten your life span.
    This artcile caught my eye since it seems as if many things point out that movies and television can ruin your life through some negative aspects, such as a recent post I did about TV Romances Ruining Your Real Life Romance. As a filmmaker, it makes me wonder as to how this will impact the industry. Will there be new documentaries on this, and will this be a thing along with healthy eating where commercials and shows will be made based on this concept. Such as the ones we already have with telling kids to be active (which is ironic since they send this message through television). With this news, will other studies show the bad effects of television and movies rather than the good they bring as well? When I join the business, would I have to worry about these studies lowering my ratings or earnings? We'll never know until we get there because society seems to choose which studies are important. They also choose about things to forget and not care about at all.

     Nevertheless, the study is the first of its kind to analyze the impact of television viewing on life expectancy. It will be appearing in the October issue of British Journal of Sports Medicine. Using the compiled data from the National Bureau of Statistics and from Australian Diabetes: Obesity and Lifestyle study, the researchers had generated life expectancy tables based on the viewing habits of Australians. It ranged from someone who watched an average of 6 hours of television a day to someone who watched none at all. The results were astonishing: For every hour of television viewed by a person over the age of 25, their life expectancy is reduced by 22 minutes. 

Brad Pitt in "The House I Live In"; Tackling the War on Drugs

     As with all things that involve celebrities, if they aren’t doing their usual thing --- such as acting or singing -- and don't do anything gossip worthy, the public tends to not care about what they say. However, Brad pitt's words won't go unnoticed. He has been thrown in behind a documentary that has been gaining rave reviews. The documentary is called The House I Live In and analyzes America's War on Drugs policy that had started in the 1970s. The Huffington Post has a quick interview with Brad Pitt and Eugene Jarecki (the director) on the matter.

     According to the documentary, more than 45 million arrests have been made. The arrests being mainly from poor communities, thus targeting minorities. Nonetheless, Eugene Jarecki's film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in January, and even gained praise from the Los Angeles Times. They comment it was “one of the most important pieces of nonfiction to hit the screen in years." 

     Pitt, an executive producer on the film, has been known to be for the legalization of drugs. In fact, when Jarecki introduced the project to him years before, he told Pitt that he felt the war on drugs "is possibly a barrier to keep the impoverished down. To keep them shackled," Pitt explains. "And I thought well that may be even too liberal for me [laughs], but we just came off of Hurricane Katrina. We had just witnessed that there was a particular portion of our society that was being ignored and that this could be the case." 

Chistopher Walken is Honey Boo Boo's Mom?

This is just an interesting video. Since Seven Psychopaths is out (and I am actually interested in watching it) and I recently did an article about Honey Boo Boo, here comes this video. It's a it slow but picks up in the middle of it. Enjoy~

This week's official blog is linked here.

Sequel, Anyone?

     The Box Office Results:

1. Taken 2 (Fox) NEW [3,661 Runs] PG13

Friday $18.5M, Saturday $19.0M, Weekend $50.0M

2. Hotel Transylvania 3D (Sony Animation) Week 2 [3,352 Runs] PG

Friday $6.4M, Saturday $11.7M, Weekend $27.1M (-36%), Cume $76.8M

3. Pitch Perfect (Universal) Week 2 [2,770 Runs] PG13

Friday $4.8M, Saturday $5.9M, Weekend $14.6M, Cume $21.5M

4. Looper (FilmDistrict/Sony) Week 2 [2,993 Runs] R

Friday $3.5M, Saturday $5.1M, Weekend $12.0M (-42%), Cume $40.1M

5. Frankenweenie 3D (Disney) NEW [3,005 Runs] PG

Friday $3.2M, Saturday $4.5M, Weekend $11.1M

6. End Of Watch (Open Road) Week 3 [2,370 Runs] RFriday $1.1M, Saturday $1.6M, Weekend $3.8M, Cume $32.7M

7. Trouble with the Curve (Warner Bros) Week 3 [3,003 Runs] PG13

Friday $1.1M, Saturday $1.6M, Weekend $3.8M, Cume $29.7M

8. House At End Of Street (Relativity) Week 3 [2,720 Runs] PG13

Friday $1.1M, Saturday $1.6M, Weekend $3.7M, Cume $27.6M

9. The Master (Weinstein) Week 4 [864 Runs] R

Friday $498K, Saturday $839K, Weekend $1.8M, Cume $12.3M

10. Finding Nemo 3D (Disney) Week 4 [1,746 Runs] G

Friday $366K, Saturday $690K, Weekend $1.5M, Cume $39.0M

     This week, the box office has moviegoing up 41% from last year. Also, some movies have finally performed normally since July's Aurora shooting tragedy. Although that event will not be forgotten, normalcy is finally entering the industry. Furthermore, this weekend, the main stars of the moviegoing area are Taken 2 and Hotel Transylvania, both having low review ratings. 

Source: Rotten Tomatoes

     Its interesting to see that he top two movies have such low ratings. Be it through critics or consumers that are leaving comments and reviews. Nonetheless, ‘Taken 2′ Kidnaps Weekend For #1 & $50M As Moviegoers Return To Late Night Shows; Tim Burton’s ‘Frankenweenie’ Flops $11.1M. 

Honey Boo Boo Gets a Raise

     Before we get started, let me just inform you not to google "Honey Boo Boo." Instead look up "Honey Boo Boo Child."Do not click on the Wikipedia link. You have been warned.

"A dollar makes me holler, honey boo boo."

     Alas, Honey Boo Boo Child is no other than a reality television series on TLC. With a mother who was featured on Extreme Couponing, Honey Boo Boo Child has had some experiences with the camera. Her real name is Alana Thompson though and she was also a participant in Toddlers and Tiaras. Somehow, she has become quite internet famous and is a character people seem to love to hate. And because of that, her family has gained a raise.

Just One Year to Film the Sequel

     Fox is replacing Rupert Wyatt for the upcoming sequel of Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Top Emerging Directors On Fox’s Short List To Helm ‘Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes’. Mike Fleming  discusses this and says that Cloverfield's Matt Reeves and others such as J. Blakeson and Juan Carlos Fresnaldillo, Jeff Nichols, and Juan Antonio Bayona are some of the few Fox wants to take on this project. Fox even stated they would give creative leeway. However, why is Wyatt being replaced? Well... he actually exited this project. He did not agree with the deadline revealed on Sept. 17. This exit it similar to why Gary Ross stepped out of Hunger Games: Catching Fire; Wyatt being uncomfortable about making the May 23, 2012 release date that the studio announced in May.  

TV Romances Ruining Your Romance in Real Life?

       Belief in TV Romances May Hurt Your Love Life. Interesting article because it does have a point. I myself, may be found watching romantic comedies or "chick flicks" at certain times of the month and so this article caught my attention. Also Alexa's article last week about how movies affect different ethnic groups and genders opened my eyes about how film can subliminally influence so many people. It seems like the media's influence can be a double-edged sword.
     Likewise, the study had surveyed 392 married couples and asked them to rate their agreement to the following "Television presents romantic relationships as they really are in life," and "Television helps me understand what I can expect from my romantic relationships."In other words, the study announced from Michigan's Albion College, asked those couples questions to answer about their satisfaction with their current relationship, relationship expectations, commitment, and television habits and beliefs.
     Lead researcher, psychologist Dr. Jeremy Osborn, finds that in the US, the more you believe in televised portrayals of romances, the less likely you are to be committed in your own relationship. "Those subjects who had a higher 'belief' in romantic stories on television, as well as those who spent more time watching TV romance, were found to be less committed to their spouses and thought their alternatives to their spouse, including being single, were attractive options. They also felt that their real relationships ‘cost’ them more in terms of personal freedoms and time spent alone -- and they were more aware of their partner's flaws."

Disney and Its Copyright Issues With an Indie Company

     Disney is a pretty huge brand. It's name echoes in practically every country. This corporation is also in charge of a lot of animations and films known today. So surely, such a big company has others that want to follow in their footsteps, legal or not.
     ‘Brave’ Or ‘Braver’? Disney Warns UK Production Company Over Copycat DVDs discusses how Disney is currently threatening a British indie company with legal action over the packaging of its DVDs. Some examples are as follows (just so you don't have to google them) :

What Influence Do Actors Have?

     It's a no brainer that actors and actresses have influence on their audience, especially those who are well known and have reached the hyped up celebrity status in the industry. However, what I'm beginning to realize is that they also have political influence.  

How to Catch Ryan Gosling

     Ryan Gosling is man of many talents. These include acting and, apparently, making all the ladies swoon. Now, he's adding onto that by testing the waters on the directing and writing side of filmmaking. On Deadline Hollywood, they talk about the film "How To Catch A Monster" and state that it will be "Ryan Gosling's Directing Debut." In fact, the article is about how Marc Platt and Adam Siegel will also produce from Marc Platt Productions, along with the magic man himself, Ryan Gosling. Not only that, but Ryan Gosling will also be writing the script for the movie. 
     Producer, Marc Platt compliments "He [Ryan Gosling] has composed a beautifully haunting script and has a very clear vision of how he will bring it to life. His ability to draw audiences into his world as an actor will serve him well as a filmmaker." Nick Meyer also said something similar, mentioning that Ryan Gosling's ability to connect with audiences will serve him well in the director's chair. 
     "How to Catch a Monster" has no release date yet, but is told be a film with elements of fantasy noir, and with suspense mixed with a modern day fairytale. "Set against the surreal dreamscape of a vanishing city, Billy, a single mother of two, is swept into a macabre and dark fantasy underworld while her teenage son discovers a secret road leading to an underwater town. Both Billy and Bones must dive deep into the mystery, if their family is to survive."

Dish Network Deletes Commercials? Woah!

     Actually, Dish Network doesn't delete commercials. However, they're doing something similar that makes some of their primetime hosts... 'upset'. "Fox Asks Court to Bar Dish DVR Ad-Zapper" is an article discussing how Fox is stating that Dish Network has broken a contract through copyright infringement and so Fox wants a preliminary federal injunction against them (fun week for Fox huh?).
     Well, what exactly happened? If you've seen the commercials, Dish Network is advertising their new device called the "Hopper" which is also known as AutoHop. What AutoHop does is skip commercials when and while recording your favorite TV show.
     As we all know, advertisements are where the television and broadcast stations make their money. After all, advertisers pay for their commercial to be aired, so I can understand why Fox is claiming that the federal court for the Central District of California should block Dish Network "from further infringement of Fox's copyrighted television programs..." Clearly, their advertisers were not happy with Dish Network's move. Likewise, this is what got me interested in the article. Advertisements are everywhere nowadays. If one doesn't have cable, advertisers go onto the online world such as Youtube.  
      Even though people dislike commercials, commercials are essential to TV and even the internet. Without it, your favorite show might not even be on the air. Youtube might struggle by not making a profit.

Tsk, Tsk, Fox Entertainment Group.

     This week in entertainment news, there has been a scandal. Well, not necessarily a scandal but more of a flabbergasting lawsuit that had involved a plethora of unpaid interns. Where exactly did these people intern at? No other than Fox Searchlight Pictures. On August 24, 2012, The Fox Internship Lawsuit will take place and so far, it does not look so good for Fox.
     The case began around last year, the fall of 2011. The main issue discussed was that there were unpaid interns who had to do rigorous jobs when working for the film "Black Swan". Nevertheless, Fox Searchlight Pictures placed the blame on "Black Swan" director Darren Aronofsky for the two unpaid interns. Since then, there were no further inquires and no more interns came out to say anything about the issue... until now. Two more plaintiffs (one corporate intern and the other a production intern) have recently confessed that at Fox they were "hired to work there were not paid, even though they were required to fill out I-9 forms, sign confidentiality agreements and were deemed 'employees' covered under workers' compensation laws."