CinemaCon Edition
So went to the yearly convention in Las Vegas, CinemaCon (still not a great name at all, ShoWest is much cooler and unique). It was a quick trip, was literally there for 24 hours. Arrived Tuesday night after 9PM and then left just after 9PM on Wednesday. Not a big fan of Vegas unless with a certain person but it was good seeing old friends for a short minute. Watched a movie, met some folks, ate some food ... even though it was a quick trip, it was still a good trip. Oh, even had a chance to squeeze in an impromptu meeting! How was that! But was glad to get home, go to sleep in my bed and since I took the following day off, slept in. By sleeping in I mean by 8AM which is nice for me these. What is funny is people were texting me on Thursday asking if I was at this event or that event. I had to write back, already home! Enjoy the rest of the con!
Weekly Update:
Watched the new "Captain America: Civil War" feature and it was long and felt long. But, it was also good so I would see it again. To me that is the bench mark of a good movie if you want to see it again on the big screen or willing to if it comes up. Also saw the first 27 minutes of "Finding Dora" which was all finished and very fun to see. Lot of other clips from the Disney line-up and it looks good. Mostly from Pixar and Marvel along with some Lucas Film so kind of makes you wonder if Disney is making anything themselves worth seeing. But the highlight of the convention for me was the Lionsgate cocktail reception which they always do a great job. The food was great (Gordon Ramsey's location in Caesars) and they brought folks to meet ...
*Eugenio Derbez - big name in Latin America and a very humbling guy. Some US films include "Jack and Jill" and "Instructions not Included."
*John Chu - director for "Now You See Me 2" and very nice guy.
*Jesse Eisenberg - "The Social Network" and really nice guy too.
*Keanu Reeves - so many movies but such a great guy. He took the time to meet everyone and made sure they got a picture with him.
After that, the rest of the con was over for me and headed home that evening after the Pioneer dinner.
At the movies:
BIG surprise weekend as The Jungle Book breaks the 100 mil cume in this sluggish time of year with 103.6 million in its debut. Great numbers for this live-action remake and appears word-of-mouth is good as well. New at #2 is Barbershop" The Next Cut with a solid debut of 20.2 mil, almost close to the original which is great. Big drop to #3 is "The Boss" with 10.2 mil and this particular comedy did not seem to have the steam. Still holding on is "Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice" with another 9 mil this week and now just over the 300 mil cume barrier. Probably will not see it go that much further. Rounding off the top 5 is "Zootopia" with another 8.2 mil and also just over the 300 mil cume mark which is great for an animated feature!
New movies that did not make the top 5:
Just one this week as Criminal comes in at #6 with 5.9 mil, and also around expectations for this one.
Quote of the week:
"The degree of loving is measured by the degree of giving." - Edwin Louis Cole
Facts & Tips:
The first traffic light was in use in London in 1868, before the advent of cars.
"That's seriously demented." - Randy Couture as Toll Road in "The Expendables."
It is nice a cool again, they said rain but they lied yet again. I mean I think I saw the ground wet for 20 minutes but never saw any water coming from the sky. I hope as we begin the month of April we do get that old saying, April Showers. We do get some rain during this month, not a lot but something. Is it a kind of a Spring cleaning to wash everything away? Who knows but we could use 2 years of non-stop rains, not heavy mind you but just rain, to bring us out of the drought. BUT, it would only get us out of a drought but what about long term and sustainability ... that is the big question and I think we are still importing our water from up north through the pipelines and aqueducts. We just need water, any water please.
Weekly Update:
Not much went on this week that I can even remember ... did anything happen? I did some of my taxes but I don't think I will have them ready in time but I will get what I can done. I will probably get another extension again. I am not sure why it is so difficult to get it done or at least turned in on time for me. I suppose just your typical procrastination and you realize you need to do them when you are within 2 to 3 weeks of them being due. Extensions give you like 6 more months but I hope it will be a lot sooner than that because already waited 4 months to get this far! Oh well, it will be worth the wait if I do not need to pay and get even a dollar back.
At the movies:
With what came out this weekend, no surprises at the box office in terms of what would be in the top 5. Also no big surprise at the drop "Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice" took with almost 70% from the previous week. That gives it is a 52.4 million and now past 250 mil cume but still far from goal. This film will be a much quicker burn than other superhero films, they may want to rethink the rest of the DC Universe. Holding strong at #2 is "Zootopia" with another 20 mil and closing in at the 300 mil mark. Also hanging on to the #3 spot is "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" with 11.1 mil. New at #4 is God's Not Dead 2 with 8.1 mil and right about expectations. Rounding off the top 5 is "Miracles from Heaven" with another 7.6 mil and overall did well for a faith based film.
New films that did not make the top 5:
Just one wide release as Meet the Blacks comes in at #8 with only 4.1 mil and about expectations as well.
Quote of the week:
"You can't cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water." - Rabindranath Tagore
Facts & Tips:
New York City has over 800 miles of subway track.
"I learn plenty, yeah, I learned how to sand your decks maybe. I washed your car, paint your house, paint your fence. I learn plenty!" - Ralph Macchio as Daniel Larusso in "The Karate Kid."
Summer time ... or so it feels like it. Aren't we suppose to have April showers? Is that a thing anymore or just a myth? I think it is a myth just like Winter and Fall. I think rain in general for Southern California is always a myth. I still think weather reports or the science of weather is pretty pointless these days. Throw any percentage of a chance of rain and they will always be right. So dumb and so lame ... Where is the weather controlling devices by the way? I would think (and hope) that technology exists or we have to be close to it! No?! This would be pretty handy though for those areas in drought and farming areas. Just saying ...
At the movies:
It costs the U.S. government 2.5 cents to produce a quarter.
