Aquamarine Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Dear James,

You asked whether having kids makes me view kid flicks differently, and whether having kids makes reviewing a family film easier. To answer the first part of your question - to be honest, I'd have to say that my perspective on movies in general is inexorably affected by being a parent, especially when a film concerns parent-child relationships in any way. I remember bawling my eyes out when I took my then 2 1/2-year-old daughter to see Tarzan while I was pregnant with my older son; the whole "You'll Be in My Heart" sequence just tore me up. It's interesting that you used your niece's reaction to Finding Nemo as an example, because the opening of that film was upsetting to me as well. It's kind of a Disney thing to do in the mother within the first minutes of the film, though; I suspect it must be in the Disney Bible somewhere that the change that kicks off the movie should involve the death of a parent. That's a much scarier to most kids than the mythical boogie-man.

For the second week in a row, Madea's Family Reunion topped the weekend box office, earning an estimated $13 million. While that's less than half what the movie made last weekend, it nevertheless was more than enough to out distance all four of this week's debuts. The most successful of the four was 16 Blocks, Bruce Willis' latest actioner - apparently the old dude still has it, because the movie took in a little over $11.5 million, putting it just beyond Eight Below which, in its third week of release, was still the third biggest earner in the country with about $10 million.

Ultraviolet, meanwhile, despite no early reviews and an explosion of terrible ones the moment it was released, finished fourth with a respectable $9 million. (I sure as hell hope Milla's getting percentages on this one, because about $8.75 million of that is all about her.) Rounding out the weekend's top five was Aquamarine, also making its debut, which made $7.5 million. Block Party, meanwhile, finished seventh (just behind The Pink Panther, which just keeps holding on) with a very respectable $10 million on roughly half as many screens as Aquamarine and Ultraviolet. The complete list is after the jump.

Four movies open wide this weekend and, shock of shocks, one of them wasn't screened for critics. Surprisingly, it wasn't the one about the teenage mermaid - instead, they were denied Ultraviolet, the futuristic, shiny, violence-fest. Columbia probably isn't too worried about it, though, because Milla Jovovich is hot enough to rule the box office on the strength of posters alone (Seriously, have you seen those posters?). Critics did have their say, however, on 16 Blocks (derivative, but alright), Block Party (awesome), and Aquamarine (so totally cute, OMG!). The details are below.

• Block Party: The critics have spoken, friends, and they freaking love Dave Chappelle and his partay. Even the few hardened souls who mustered the strength to resist the movie's considerable charms nevertheless found themselves drawn to Chapelle and his easy-going persona. (Also, every single damn review mentioned his appearance on Oprah. We've heard enough about that by now, thanks.)

• 16 Blocks: No, the Fugees aren't in this one, sadly enough. It does, however, feature Bruce Willis and Mos Def, both of whom earn praise from most critics, though said critics don't all feel as positively about the film. Those who do like it freely acknowledge the debt the film owes to the zillions of cop/perp/action flicks that came before, but at least it's fairly accomplished in its derivative-ness. Which means, essentially, that our standards have fallen pathetically low.

• Aquamarine: Basically, if you've got a pre-teen or barely teenage daughter (or, even better, are one), Aquamarine is for you. It's actually pretty good - again, if you're twelve. If you're not, however, go see something else. And parents, keep in mind this bit from the most entertaining review of the whole weekend, written in the voice of the movie's target audience: "When the mermaid and her human friends gawked at the lifeguard...and [he] shook water off his abs and the movie went all slow motion, dad leaned over and said: 'Brokeback Mountain didn't make me this uncomfortable.'"
  

Right now, I know you want to read this but for some reason you cannot take your eyes off the ones staring back at you from above. They're intense, and kind of freak you out, but it's okay - I'm there for you. Now, I'm giving you one more chance here, so pay attention. Are you reading now? Good.

I've always felt like crap after someone has offered me a second chance to get it done. Sure, it seems great to be able to try it again or do the whole thing over, but doesn't that just mean you failed the first time around? Then again, upon succeeding with your second chance, you're hit with this amazing feeling of accomplishment. Failure did not conquer. You did it. You're a star!

All of the following films feature people searching for their own personal second chance. Whether it be external, internal, dramatic or comedic - it's really about proving life is full of those "try again later" moments. Perhaps you may want to ponder your own second chances after reading this week's Trailer Park...