Tag: Weekend

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Marvel Girl 1984 opening weekend results in fast-tracked third movie

'Wonder Woman 1984' reviews: What critics are saying

Gal Gadot plays Wonder Woman in “Wonder Woman 1984”.

Warner bros.

“Wonder Woman 1984” hit theaters on Christmas Day, securing the highest box office opening of any domestic film since the coronavirus pandemic crippled the entertainment industry in mid-March.

On Sunday, Warner Bros. announced that the film was worth $ 16.7 million in the United States and Canada. “Wonder Woman 1984” was one of the first major Hollywood blockbusters to be released in theaters and streaming on the same day.

Simultaneous release should accommodate a limited number of open theaters, limited seating capacity, and a broad public that continues to be afraid of returning to theaters.

Warner & Bros. mom AT&T said Sunday that nearly half of HBO Max subscribers saw “Wonder Woman 1984” on Christmas Day. Retail subscribers are those who purchase the streaming service directly, not through a cable or other streaming subscription.

As of October, HBO Max had around 3.6 million direct retail customers. It is unclear how many additional subscribers the company gained prior to the release of Wonder Woman 1984 on the platform.

“Wonder Woman 1984 broke records in the first 24 hours of service and exceeded our expectations for all major ad and subscriber metrics. The interest and momentum we’re seeing suggest this is likely well beyond the weekend will continue, “said Andy Forssell, executive vice president and general manager of WarnerMedia’s direct-to-consumer division. “In these very difficult times, it was nice to give families the opportunity to enjoy this uplifting movie at home where going to the theater wasn’t an option.”

The movie’s box office hit prompted the studio to accelerate a third installment in the Wonder Woman franchise, the company said. It’s written and directed by Patty Jenkins, who directed the previous two films and made it clear to the New York Times last week that she wouldn’t be returning to the franchise if a theatrical model wasn’t possible for the film.

At the beginning of the weekend, analysts weren’t sure the film could top the nearly $ 10 million that “The Croods: A New Age” had secured on the opening weekend during Thanksgiving. There were concerns that HBO Max audience numbers could be grossly cannibalizing ticket sales.

Despite the gross grossing, fans and critics are concerned about Warner Bros.’s DC Extended Universe.

A week before its US debut, Wonder Woman 1984 had a rating of 88% “Fresh” out of 92 reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes review page. As of Sunday afternoon, that score dropped from 285 ratings to 65%.

While the film’s star, Gal Gadot, received widespread acclaim, the film itself has been condemned for its poor story, plot inconsistencies, and inferior CGI.

For comparison, the first Wonder Woman movie released in 2017 scored 93%, the highest of any movie in the DC Extended Universe. Private watch parties and large format screens like IMAX and Dolby were the most popular way for moviegoers to see the latest movie over the vacation weekend, the company said.

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal owns Dreamworks Animation, the studio behind The Croods: A New Age, and Rotten Tomatoes.

Correction: Warner Bros. mom AT&T said Sunday that nearly half of HBO Max subscribers saw “Wonder Woman 1984” on Christmas Day.

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5 Issues to Do This Christmas Weekend

5 Things to Do This Christmas Weekend

In the fantasy version of a December evening, we would dive from West 54th Street up the stairs into the cozy, enveloping glamor that Feinstein’s / 54 Below always gives the feeling of being ready for its close-up. We slipped into a cabin and ordered something nice. Then the long-standing cabaret series “Sondheim Unplugged” would begin – another advantage for the holidays in New York.

Fortunately, the pandemic version of “Sondheim Unplugged” is also quite nice: elegant, comforting, peppered with dead humor. Recorded with five cameras and streaming on Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (and then available on request from Sunday through January 9th), it’s an hour full of Sondheim hits and obscurity sung by Broadway performers with only piano accompaniment. Highlights include Telly Leung’s heartbreaking “Being Alive” and Lucia Spina’s sizzling “Could I Leave You?” and T. Oliver Reid’s extremely sorry “Good Thing Going”. Tickets to access the performance are $ 25 at 54below.com. Pour something bubbly into a glass and enjoy.
LAURA COLLINS-HUGHES

To dance

When you need a break from vacation activities or some space to reflect on the past year, spend time watching Jordan Demetrius Lloyd’s dreamy short film “The Last Moon in Mellowland”. Lloyd, a Brooklyn-based dance artist, began working for the screen when the theaters closed in March. As part of Issue Project Rooms “soft bodies in hard places”, a series organized by curator Benedict Nguyen and tailored to planetary events (such as new moon or solstice), “Mellowland” draws the viewer into a 20-minute meditation that loosely is tracing the arc one day. Lloyd describes this world as a place “the viewers already remember,” and its rhythms and repetitions are comfortably familiar as the camera rests on a spinning ceiling fan or two dancers at the edge of the ocean.

With appearances by Lloyd, Breeanah Breeden, Ariana Speight and Demetries Morrow as well as dramaturgy by Stephanie George, the film, which was released in November, is available free of charge until December 31 at issueprojectroom.org/event/last-moon-mellowland.
SIOBHAN BURKE

Gospel

On the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. next month, the Harlem Gospel Choir will celebrate 35 years as one of the leading contemporary gospel groups in the country and a globally recognized ambassador for the genre. During a normal year the choir toured the world at least once, and when not out the group played a Sunday brunch every week at Sony Hall near Times Square, along with a full band who brought the sounds to praise one Mixture of supporters and tourists.

The group will return to an (empty) Sony hall on Friday for the first time since March to give a special performance on Christmas Day at 5 p.m. East Coast time, which will do its part to maintain the spirit of community at social distance. Tickets for the live stream are $ 25 and can be purchased from sonyhall.com. The archived video of the performance will remain available to ticket holders until January 1st.
GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO

Forget magic and good fairies. The title character of “Hip Hop Cinderella” needs rap and rocket science.

Charmingly played by Alexis Aguiar, she masters both in this 35-minute adaptation of the Space Age, which will be broadcast on-demand on Stellar through January 31st. (Tickets are $ 15-25.) Presented by Amas Musical Theater in association with HipHopMusicals.com, Cinderella still competes against a scheming stepmother (Lexy Piton) and step-sisters (Cassandra Barckett and Emily Lang) on ​​the show, however the price is not a royal marriage. Instead, a prince (Jamiel Tako L. Burkhart) wants to crown the winner of a hip-hop ball and rap competition. With the help of her trusty robot (Brian Criado), Cinderella, also known as Ella C, could get the groove of the galaxy back.

This production was conceived by Linda Chichester and David Coffman and directed by Christopher Scott. It has clever graphics and even some space shuttle material. The show, which includes a book by Scott Elmegreen and music and lyrics by Rona Siddiqui, will amuse adults too when the stepmother files a familiar complaint: “This competition has been rigged!”
LAUREL GRAEBER

comedy

For the first time in its 28-year history, Kung Pao Kosher Comedy, also known as “Christmas Jewish Comedy in a Chinese Restaurant,” is online, meaning you don’t have to go to San Francisco to enjoy the shows.

The headliner is Judy Gold, who appears regularly on “The Drew Barrymore Show” and is releasing a book this year: “Yes, I can say that if they come for the comedians we are all in trouble.” Alex Edelman also appears , whose article about attending a neo-Nazi gathering in New York, “Just for Us”, earned him a 2018 nomination for Best Show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

The founder of Kung Pao Kosher Comedy, Lisa Geduldig, will host the events, which will be broadcast on Zoom and YouTube Live on Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time and on Saturday at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Tickets to access the show cost $ 25 to $ 50 and are available from cityboxoffice.com.
SEAN L. McCARTHY

Categories
Entertainment

5 Issues to Do This Weekend

5 Things to Do This Weekend

In normal times, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater now camped in downtown New York for a month, which aroused awe and brought joy. This year everything is virtual: a mix of archive and newly filmed video, complemented by conversations, available free of charge on the company’s website, YouTube channel and Facebook page.

One or two new programs will be released each week of the season through December 31st and will stay online for a week thereafter. Programs on offer this weekend include one dedicated to star couple Glenn Allen Sims and Linda Celeste Sims, who are retiring this year, and a presentation, Dancing for Social Justice, featuring works by Kyle Abraham and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar.

Then on Monday comes the season’s big premiere, a video piece by company-based choreographer Jamar Roberts. Charlie Parker plays in honor of the 100th birthday of this jazz legend and is called “A Jam Session for Troubling Times”. That sounds exactly as the doctor ordered.
BRIAN SEIBERT

If you haven’t seen Will Arbery’s “Heroes of the Fourth Turning” during its New York premiere, the Wilma Theater in Philadelphia shot a version in a quarantine bubble at the Poconos, and you can’t miss it.

I encountered this production with fresh memories of the production I saw last year and was fascinated by what I hadn’t noticed from my orchestra seat. Arbery’s words grew more urgent; His characters – a group of conservative friends at a house party – were brought to life with urgency. Her need to understand why her pleas were being ignored by liberals became palpable.

They were literally in my living room.

The director Blanka Zizka and the excellent cast (Sarah Gliko is a miracle) took this unthinkable circumstance into account, as did the camerawork (by cameraman Jorge Cousineau) that made the abyss appear within reach. In the darkness of my Brooklyn apartment, I was ready to dive.

“Heroes” can be streamed until Sunday. Tickets are $ 37. After the purchase, the theater sends a link that allows a viewing.
JOSE SOLÍS

children

In Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” the ghosts materialize mainly from the ether in Scrooge’s residence. On Sunday they will appear in some homes using a 21st century method: zoom.

The occasion is the Winter Family Fair, a free virtual version of the Morgan Library & Museum’s annual homage to Victorian England. First, curator Philip Palmer will take a closer look at the handwritten manuscript of the novel, which the museum exhibits each year. (Ghost stories were once as popular around Christmas trees as they were around the campfire.) Then the Grand Falloons will present an abridged adaptation of this story about holiday salvation with characters like Scrooge, Bob Cratchit and Dickens himself.

The celebration ends with a project inspired by the Morgan exhibition, Betye Saar: Call and Response: Using household materials, participants will assemble a family symbol that will express hopes for the New Year.

Attendees must register for the event, which runs from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. – apparently, not all ghosts work at night.
LAUREL GRAEBER

jazz

Members of the opening class of M3 showcased the fruits of their collaboration in free Zoom Sessions – Partial Concert, Part Q. and A. – hosted by journalist Jordannah Elizabeth on jazzmuseuminharlem.org. The second and final session on Saturday at 7pm Eastern Time will feature pieces from three different duos – Eden Girma and Anjna Swaminathan, both singers and multi-talented instrumentalists; Erica Lindsay on saxophone and Serpa on vocals; and the drummer Lesley Mok and the cellist Tomeka Reid – a mixture of electronic and acoustic instrumentation, text recitations and abstract sound. To receive a link to the event, attendees must register on their Eventbrite page.
GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO

comedy

If you miss shows like “@midnight” where funny people traded Zinger for points and your approval, Chase Mitchell and Sean O’Connor’s “The Fun Time Boys Game Night Spectacular” is the online event you attended waiting for.

In “Fun Time Boys,” O’Connor, the former chief writer of “Lights Out With David Spade,” plays host, Mitchell is its staunch sideman, and the name of the game is Quiplash. Players take turns as two of them respond incredibly absurdly to even more absurd prompts such as “What’s the hardest part of fighting a killer doll?” Give. and “The Strangest Celebrity Demand in a Driver Contract: The Green Room MUST have ____.” The other participants and the audience vote for the answer that they like best.

Mitchell and O’Connor will be joined by Kurt Braunohler, Taran Killam, DC Pierson, Blair Socci and Niccole Thurman for their final show in 2020. The action begins Friday at 10 p.m. Eastern Time on the Hold the Phone Comedy channel on Twitch.
SEAN L. McCARTHY