For some films, summer box office was on vacation
‘Terminator,’ Adam Sandler strike out; Pixar, ‘Minions’ hit home runs.
Another summer film season, another chance for blockbusters to soar and flops to emerge. Here are the winners and losers of summer 2015.
Winners
“Minions”: These little guys are now a bona fide phenomenon. Their adorability factor is off the charts, and because of this, the third film in the “Despicable Me” universe opened to bigger box office than the previous two.
Dinosaurs: It really didn’t matter that “Jurassic World” was basically the same old same old. (Rampaging dinosaurs! Terrified civilians!) It scored the biggest opening weekend — $208 million — in film history, and crossed the $1 billion mark globally faster than any film ever. You can’t argue with those numbers.
Pixar: “Inside Out” was just the latest in a long line of Pixar hits, a monster critical and commercial success. With “Incredibles 2” due out next year, it looks like the smashes will keep on coming.
George Miller: The 70-yearold Aussie director made one of the best reviewed films of the summer. “Mad Max: Fury Road,” which earned a 98 percent positive rating on rottentomatoes.com, grossed more than $150 million in the U.S. and nearly $400 million globally. Now there’s talk of a sequel. And the seemingly ageless Miller will be at the helm.
Rappers: “Straight Outta Compton” played to huge business. No real surprise, since what was once considered a marginal art form is most certainly part of the mainstream.
Losers
“The Terminator” franchise: The filmgoing audience’s basic response to “Terminator: Genisys” was “Please. Don’t come back.”
“Tomorrowland”: George Clooney and director Brad Bird (“The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille”) couldn’t save this futuristic film from laying a huge egg. A confusing screenplay and excessive running time (130 minutes) didn’t help.
Adam Sandler: “Pixels” opened to OK business but struggled to cover its production costs. Last year’s “Blended” barely broke even, “The Cobbler” went straight to video and “Men, Women and Children” grossed less than $1 million. Hard times have hit this previously unstoppable box-office monster.
“Vacation”: Maybe it’s time for the franchise to take a permanent holiday.