Woody Allen's latest film, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, has earned mostly rave reviews, and it's doing well at the box office -- or, that is, it's doing well for a Woody Allen film. It opened in 10th place for the weekend of Aug. 15-17, the first time an Allen film has cracked the top 10 at all (let alone opened there) since Small Time Crooks, eight years and eight movies ago. And Small Time Crooks was the first one since Husbands and Wives, eight years and eight movies before that.

I wouldn't say there's ever been a time when Allen's films routinely made the top 10 -- he's always managed to release a total flop here and there to break up the streak -- but it certainly used to occur much more frequently than it does now. Manhattan opened at #1 in 1979, possibly the only Allen film ever to do so. (I can't find specific weekend data on Annie Hall, which is the only other likely candidate.) Various others have spent at least a couple weekends in the top 10. Still, no Allen film has ever been what you'd call a "blockbuster." His biggest hit, Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), made $40 million and never got higher than 5th place at the box office. Granted, if you adjust for inflation, Annie Hall's $38 million would be about $120 million today, and that would be considered fantastic for a low-budget indie. But it's still not commensurate with how beloved and acclaimed Allen is.

Consider this: Woody Allen has directed 38 theatrical features. The Dark Knight has made more money than all 38 of them combined. Isn't it strange that one of the most iconic American filmmakers of all time can barely scrape together a crowd to actually watch his movies?

Cinematical has just received this exclusive clip from In Search of a Midnight Kiss, which opens in two NYC theaters today (IFC Center, Clearview Cinema) before expanding to other cities. Nothing but good buzz has been following this title around for well over a year now -- so much so that a slew of my friends have been itching for this flick to hit theaters. And I have very cool friends ... who like to do very cool things ... just so you know. The film, which is set on New Year's Eve, follows around two misanthropes who meet online with each in search of something a little more fulfilling out of life. It's currently running at 90% over on Rotten Tomatoes (excellent for a small indie like this), where folks are comparing it to films like Woody Allen's Manhattan, Swingers and Before Sunrise. Seems like a great date movie, so if you're in NYC tonight and looking for that first kiss ... well, I think we know what you should be doing ...

We've been posting these videos of the day for quite some time now, and I seriously believe this video above is very close to being one of my favorites. And it's timely, too! Jason Segel is working on a new live-action Muppets movie that's got all sorts of fans excited. PLUS, Woody Allen's new film Vicky Cristina Barcelona premiered in Cannes earlier this month to some great buzz -- especially from our own Kim Voynar. I shouldn't have to explain much about the video above, because, honestly, if you've never watched Manhattan, we've got other issues to work through first. (And is it just me, or are the Muppets slightly more enjoyable when Woody Allen is writing the dialogue?)

Do let us know what you think of the video in the comments below.

[via Hollywood Elsewhere]

I miss many things about living in New York -- the people, the restaurants and bars, Central Park, the smell of baked ass that overtakes the city this time of year (OK, not that last one). But what I miss the most has got to be the film "scene." Getting a coffee and taking the subway to a movie on a Sunday morning always filled me with happiness. NYC also puts on one of the best film festivals in the country -- the cleverly named New York Film Festival. Showcasing 28 films, the fest will be held this year at Frederick P. Rose Hall in the Time Warner Center. Screenings are set for September 28 through October 14th, and this year's lineup is a real doozy. It includes new films from Sidney Lumet (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, with Ethan Hawke and Philip Seymour Hoffman), Catherine Breillat (The Last Mistress, just grabbed by IFC), Todd Haynes (I'm Not There, his Bob Dylan movie), Abel Ferrara (the promisingly titled Go-Go Tales, starring Willem Dafoe), Noah Baumbach (following up the excellent Squid and the Whale with Margot at the Wedding), the ascotted Peter Bogdanovich (profiling one of my favorite bands with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin' Down a Dream), and Brian DePalma (an Iraq war drama called Redacted).

Wes Anderson's new film (can't wait!) The Darjeeling Limited will open the NYFF. The Coen Brothers' new one No Country for Old Men (really really can't wait!) will be the "centerpiece" of the festival. And Cannes '07 jury prize-winner Persepolis, an "animated coming-of-age" story directed by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud, will close the fest. Also showcased will be Cannes favorites like Gus Van Sant's Paranoid Park, Julian Schnabel's French-language The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, and Palme d'Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days. In addition, there will be five classic films screened, including John Ford's first major film -- The Iron Horse. Probably the most anticipated of that bunch is Ridley Scott's "definitive cut" of Blade Runner, in honor of that film's 25th anniversary. An evening called "The Technicolor Show" should be a major attraction, as it's introduced by Martin Scorsese. Head over to Yahoo Movies for the full roster.

There's arguably no better city for a movie lover in America than Manhattan. On a rainy Sunday you can head out to the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens, which always has incredible screenings going on in addition to their amazing exhibits. You can go to the Ziegfeld, a huge, old fashioned, one-screen jewel that is probably the most beautiful movie theater I've been in. And then there's Film Forum, which shows a mixture of new independents, "lost" treasures, foreign films, and the classics. And all you Bond fanatics who reside outside of the Big Apple might want to sell your home (the money should get you a studio apartment for about three months in New York, if memory serves) and move to NYC because Film Forum is hosting a James Bond Marathon, starting next month.

The film fest runs from April 27 to May 17, and will be showing all of the pre-Dalton Bond flicks (except one, they took the liberty of removing Moonraker). Film Forum is also showing a bunch of non-Bond 60's spy films, such as Our Man Flint and The Ipcess File, and there's some great extras in the mix too: Five vintage Bond trailers will be shown before Live and Let Die and there will be a sing-along (presumably of the Bond themes) following From Russia With Love. Oh, and there's double features and a movie called Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine! With Vincent Price and Frankie Avalon! What are you waiting for? For a lot of younger fans who grew up watching these films on video and DVD, this is one hell of an opportunity, and you've got to support these events when they come to your town. Too many of these great theaters are disappearing.

Eventually every block in Manhattan should have an extra nickname in addition to its actual address. Enough famous things happen in the borough, I'm sure. One of these famous things was the growing up of Humphrey Bogart at 245 W. 103rd Street. Over the weekend, super-fan Gary Dennis, a video store owner who campaigned for the honoring of Bogie and Lauren Bacall, who was married to the actor until his death in 1957, joined other fans in the drizzling rain to declare that block of 103rd Street "Humphrey Bogart Place."

"I'm happy he is honored," Bacall said at the event, "of course, it's only brass on a wall." Only brass? Certainly Bacall has never taken delight in learning about the city's history via plaques, which I've gotten more into since reading Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation. Just the other day I learned that a building I pass sometimes in Brooklyn was the first multi-family home in the borough. Okay, so maybe most people don't care about that stuff, but everyone cares about movie trivia, right? With all the movies shot in New York, perhaps the city could put up more plaques and rename more streets to showcase where film shoots occurred. The most obvious I can think of is the corner of N. Moore and Varick, which should definitely be renamed Ghostbusters Place if it hasn't been already.

This just in to the Cinematical Newsroom! Harvey Weinstein is braving the transit strike-flooded streets of Manhattan! I just received the following string of text messages from Martha:

––I just walked past harvey weinstein. He was talking about 'splitting ten grand' - probably lunch plans.
––Well, it might have been Bob - are they both fat and unshaven?
––I just saw a pic of Bob - this was definitely Harv.

So what do you think Harvey Weinstein is splitting ten grand on? I say it has something to do with trying to fix opening grosses on The Matador.