The Winners & Losers Of Summer Movies 2014
WINNERS:
Angelina Jolie
After four years away from screens, some wondered if Angelina Jolie still possessed the star power she once had. But there was little reason to doubt: Disney’s “Maleficent,” sold pretty much entirely on Jolie and her magnetic presence, was a monster hit, taking nearly $250 million domestic, and over $500 million worldwide, for a grand total of three-quarters-of-a-billion dollars, making it the second-biggest film of the year so far. Technically the film was part of Disney’s trend of rebooting fairy tale properties and making them ugly CGI-fests, but “Sleeping Beauty” name recognition came second to Jolie, who found her most iconic turn in a career full of them, and was rewarded with her biggest hit. Jolie’s choosier than ever when it comes to on-screen roles, focusing on charity work and directorial efforts like this fall’s “Unbroken,” but whenever she appears in a movie, especially in a tentpole like this, she’s a force to be reckoned with.
Scarlett Johansson
Few stars are on better runs right now that Scarlett Johansson. The actress has had more than her fair share of critical and commercial disasters over her career—“Eight Legged Freaks,” “The Island,” “The Nanny Diaries,“ ”The Spirit” et al—but the last few years have seen her win acclaim for her performance in “Her," while taking to the blockbuster world with “The Avengers,” and she’s had a killer 2014 so far. “Under The Skin” won great reviews (if not audiences), and she had a supporting turn in indie crossover hit “Chef.” But more importantly, she bookended the summer with a pair of action hits, first as a key supporting player in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” and then a solo turn in the surprise hit “Lucy.” Sold almost entirely on Johansson’s presence (and the 10% of the brain premise), Luc Besson’s film opened to over $40 million at the end of July, about the same as its production budget. It looks like it’ll even outgross films like Angelina Jolie’s “Salt,” and, though it’s only just rolling out internationally, has already taken $100 million abroad. The list of proven female action stars is a very small one, but Johansson just added herself to it.
I'd post more but I keep getting warned for posting too much of an article so click the title for more Winners and the full list of Losers!
the article makes it sound panned. i didnt see the movie because i was annoyed that they marketed Bryan so much only to have him off screen for the majority of the movie, but i heard it was good.