Oz continues to make magic.

Oz continues to make magic.

[Mar 15-17]

#1-Oz stuck on to its spot spot on its second week making $42million.The movie had a great week overseas as well.So far the total gross of the movie is $281million and is heading towards a big total.

#2-The Call made a surprise takeover as it beat its competitor Burt.The thriller starring Halle Berry made $17million.The low budget thriller (made at just $13million) wasnt expected to make such a good opening ,especially since it had late marketing and R rating.The movie didnt even please the critics.With a negative rating of just 40% ,it makes Call's success a even bigger achievement.

#3-The movie that was supposed to trump over The Call ,flopped heavily.The Incredible Burt Wonderstone barely made $10million ,which is a poor debut for a movie starring comic geniuses Jim Carrey & Steve Carrell.The movie has been getting poor reviews as well and is currently rated at 38%. Critics say Burt is just a one time watch.

#4-Jack the Giant Slayer ,is still holding up and trying to save some of its dignity but its all over for this one.The movie made a poor $6.2million ,bringing its worldwide total to $76million.Made at a budget of $195million ,Jack's failure is a BIG blow for its producers.Its turned out to be even a bigger failure than last years John Carter.

#5-Enjoying itself at the box office ,Identity Thief made $4.5million bringing its worldwide tally to $125million.Identity turned out to be a surprise hit like last years Ted.

This week theres a heavy inflow of movies ,but all are below average considering early reviews.But still ,my pick of the Week is....

1-Admission.This is a comedy starring 2 brilliant comic stars ,Tina Fey & Paul Rudd.The story is about a romantic comedy about a college Admissions officer.Initial reviews have been average (50%) ,but being a fan of Tina & Paul ,Admissions ,is RJG's PICK OF THE WEEK.

2-Olympus Has Fallen has some solid stars such as Gerard Butler ,Aaron Eckhart & Morgan Freeman.The movie is an action packed political thriller about the White House being captured by terrorists.Theres not much reviews and the marketing hasnt been too strong.On top of all this Gerard Butler is having a very very poor run at the box office.His last 5-6 movies have flopped.I would recommend this movie for those who dont like comedy and just want to see some thriller action.

3-The Croods is an animated movie about a bunch of cavemen.Lead by Nicolas Cage (who is currently one of the fallen from grace stars) ,Croods has to be seen only after proper reviews are out.Initial reactions have been positive ,praising the animation but story is said to be dull.

Cloud Atlas (2012)

[a large and thought proving movie]

Cloud Atlas (2012)
IMDB- 8.0
Rottentomatoes- 64%
RJG Rating- 90

6 different tales which take place in different eras have an impact on each other.

Starring- Tom Hanks,Halle Berry,Jim Broadbent,Hugo Weaving,Jim Sturgess,Doona Bae,Ben Whishaw,James D'Arcy,Huge Grant
Directors-Lana Wachowski,Tom Tykwer,Andy Wachowski

Based on the novel of the same name by David Mitchell ,it was believed that adapting the novel into a movie was impossible.But, like the successful adaptations of unfilmable works like Watchmen ,Life Of Pi ,Cloud atlas was brought to the big screen by the Wachowskis & Tykwer.

The acting of the cast is the major selling point.A-List stars such as Tom Hanks & Halle Berry not only play the lead and supporting actors in the stories ,they also look completely different in each story.The cast has been arranged in such a way that no actor can be said to be the lead actor .One might play the hero in one story ,the supporting actor in another ,the villain in another ,or just a cameo in another.This gives everyone an equal stage to perform and showcase their abilities,and all of them have done excellently.Hugo Weaving plays a villain in almost all 6 ,and hes truly excellent in all of them.Tom ,Halle ,Jim Broadbent ,Doona,Ben Whishaw all shine in their respective stories as well.

The story is the true core of this entire film.Although it is 3hrs long ,it carries 6,totally different stories.The movie requires your strict attention ,and with 6 stories taking place at the same time ,its a bit difficult to truly understand each ones depth.But on the first watch ,all 6 are beautiful tales ,that deal with different topics and range from friendship,love,mystery,comedy,revolution and survival.The movie requires a 2nd viewing to truly appreciate the depth of each story and to understand the link between each one of them.

Direction by the Wachowskis (Matrix Trilogy) & Tom Tykwer (Perfume) is just brilliant.Their devotion to the source material is admirable and the film is a very honest adaptation of the novel.The pacing of the movie is fast and doesnt lag at all during the entire 3hrs.The movie isnt just mixed together but ,thanks to some excellent editing ,the links between each story is highlighted.

The action sequences and the visual effects are just awesome and the cinematography is very beautiful as well.The makeup on the actors is just superb,at times its hard to even recognize some of them!

But on the downside ,Cloud Atlas isnt for everyone.For some, keeping track of the the 6 stories will prove to be too much to handle.If you like movies that are straight forward , Cloud Atlas isnt for you.Plenty of names will be thrown around, and getting confused as to who is who is understandable.So keeping a piece of paper and pencil at hand is recommended.

Overall ,Cloud Atlas is a definitely one of the grandest work of film making.Fans of the Wachowskis wont be disappointed.Although its a must watch ,its not a movie that most can handle.

Acting -4.5/5
Story- 4/5
Direction- 5/5
Action- 5/5
Drama- 4.5/5
Romance- 4/5
Comedy- 4/5
Thriller- 4/5

Cloud Atlas Cast Pics

Heres the star studded cast & the large number of characters from the movie Cloud Atlas.
The main characters such as Tom Hanks ,Halle Berry & Hugo Weaving are playing 4 different characters and the others too have more than just one character.The story is so large and deep that in order for the audience to make some sense of what the movie was about ,the trailer was 5min long!

Cloud Atlas Trailer

A fascinating new trailer for Wachowski's Cloud Atlas.

Trailer #1

Its a long trailer but filled with all kinds of visuals and supported by an excellent soundtrack.Tom Hanks & Halle Berry lead this star studded movie.Will this redeem the Wachowski's from recent mistakes and take them back to their former glory days (Matrix era)? I just hope this doesnt turn up like Speed Racer.

Pic from Cloud Atlas

First Pic from Wachowski's Cloud Atlas.The movie stars Tom Hanks & Halle Berry.

The synopsis for Cloud Atlas is:
'Six stories set in a different time and place become intricately related to each other.'

All the 6 stories feature the same set of actors.Its sort of a mind bending story.The Wachowskis are known for their classic -The Matrix ,and are returning to direction after 2008's flop ,Speed Racer.They had a good reputation once ,but squandered it on projects such as Matrix 3,Speed Racer & Ninja Assassin.
Cloud Atlas has a release date for October 26 and Im not convinced from this pic that they are bringing a sensible movie.