Expelled No Intelligence Allowed Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Just the other day, Eric Snider threw up a fan rant about Ben Stein's Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, and the dismissive box office reports about the film. The flick pulled in $2.97 million and came in 10th in the weekend box office, which he notes makes it the third best opening ever for a documentary. Well, whatever cash was pulled in, some of it might be going right back out.

CNN reports that Yoko Ono is suing the producers of the film for using John Lennon's "Imagine" in it. The lawsuit notes that while she never gave permission, bloggers have begun calling her a sell-out for licensing the song. Us bloggers, always making trouble! The suit, which was filed on behalf of Ono, as well as Julian, Sean, and EMI Blackwood Music, is looking for the filmmakers to stop distributing/selling/promoting the film, and asks for financial damages. Meanwhile, the producers of Expelled say that they've used only "a very small portion of the song," and "Unbiased viewers of the film will see that the 'Imagine' clip was used as part of a social commentary in the exercise of free speech and freedom of inquiry."

I haven't seen the film yet, but for those of you that have -- what say you on this whole "Imagine" drama? Should it be expelled from the documentary?

College professors rule! Well, at least the one that Richard Jenkins plays so well in Tom McCarthy's The Visitor (Overture Films). The comedy-drama expanded to 18 theaters in its second week of release and averaged $9,055 per-screen to remain in the #1 position, according to estimates compiled by Box Office Mojo. Check the film's web site to see where it will be opening in the next couple of weeks (click on "in select theaters now").

Debuting indie films did not fare so well, judging strictly by per-screen averages, but it's notable that Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (Rocky Mountain Pictures), opened on more than 1,000 screens and made $2,997 per location for a total of more than $3 million for the weekend. The doc follows Ben Stein as he chases down Ferris Bueller ... oops, wrong movie! This one's about "intelligent design" in the classroom.

Opening on just one screen, Anamorph (IFC Films) grossed $3,000. Willem Dafoe stars as an NYPD detective investigating a serial killer. Critics were not kind: Anamorph scored just 28% positive at Rotten Tomatoes. David Hudson at GreenCine Daily rounds up pertinent quotes.

Two other holdovers did better as they expanded their runs. Young At Heart (Fox Searchlight), the "elderly folk chorus that sings modern rock songs" documentary, increased its theater count to 33 and averaged $4,393 per screen. Hou Hsiao-Hsien's gentle drama The Flight of the Red Balloon (IFC Films) proved its appeal beyond New York City, making $3,572 per-screen at 11 locations.