Michael Stahl-David and Odette Yustman star in "Cloverfield" |
Recession be damned, this year’s box-office grosses proved moviegoers still liked to be entertained. Despite the fact that box office revenues and attendance will be down vs. 2007, the quality of films in the marketplace arguably reached an all-time with notable film after notable film leaving us enthralled.
First-quarter hits such as Cloverfield ($80M) and the Hannah Montana concert movie ($65.2M) surprised us during the shadow of the writer’s strike -- and then the Iron Man ($318.3M) and The Dark Knights ($530.8M) summer mega-blockbusters took over, and we really started getting excited.
Meryl Streep stars in "Mamma Mia!" |
We unexpectedly clamored to see Meryl Streep trip the light fantastic in musical Mamma Mia! ($143.7M); lusted after teen vampires in Twilight ($167.3M); bended bullets with Angelina Jolie in Wanted ($134.2); went 3-D at the center of the Earth in Journey to the Center of the Earth ($101.7M); and kicked ass with James Bond in Quantum of Solace ($161.2M)
Additionally, the end of the year brought us many treats in the form of limited release films that made a huge impression. Slumdog Millionaire has been one of the most talked about and highly regarded films of the year, due to the cinematic virtuosity of director Danny Boyle’s singular vision. Furthermore, films with phenomenal performances have caught our eye, such as Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler, Sean Penn in Milk, Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon and the entire cast of Doubt.
A scene from "The Happening" |
2008 also had its fair share of missteps. These films all had terrific marketing campaigns, big stars and proven pedigrees -- but guess what? Nobody cared that much -- and the lackluster box-office results proves it.
Take M. Night Shyamalan’s The Happening ($64.5M), for example. It was supposed to be a return to the old, creepy-scary Shyamalan -- R rated to boot -- but people stayed away in droves. The Wachowski brothers eye-candy Speed Racer ($43.9) also petered out, while Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy’s comic feats in The Love Guru ($32.2M) and Meet Dave ($11.8M), respectively, failed to inspire
But mostly 2008 will be remembered not for the box-office totals or down attendance, but rather the seeming limitless supply of “must see” movies.
KEEP READING: See which genres did the best in 2008 …
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