Editorial

The Bottom Line: August 10, 2018: THE MEG Takes a Bite out Movie-goers with Jason Statham’s Help

Jason Statham Cliff Curtis The Meg

The Bottom Line August 10, 2018

Quick Takes

Mission: Impossible – Fallout was easily Number One at the box office last weekend for the second weekend in a row. I can’t imagine that The Meg will be strong enough to defeat Mission: Impossible – Fallout, even in its third week of release, but The Meg is tracking well.

Box Office Top Five

Mission: Impossible – Fallout was Number One at the box office last weekend for the second week in a row with $35 Million for $124.4 Million so far. World-wide, Mission: Impossible – Fallout has made $363.3 Million. Christopher Robin premiered in Second Place with $25 Million at the box office this weekend. The Spy Who Dumped Me premiered in Third Place with $12.3 Million at the box office this weekend. Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! was Fourth with $9 Million at the box office this weekend. The Equalizer 2 was Fifth with $8.8 Million at the box office this weekend.

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A Closer Look at Some of this Week’s Films

The Meg (PG-13) 113 mins.

The Meg looks like Deep Blue Sea and the Piranha remakes (“Bring me my legs”) i.e. an empty, date, sub-popcorn film that will be instantly forgettable. The only reasons to see The Meg are: 1.) Jason Statham versus a big a** shark, 2.) the kills, and 3.) the newly christened Batwoman, Ruby Rose, in action (in a supporting role). The film will not have the atmosphere or the powerful musical score that Jaws has and the outcome of The Meg will never be in doubt.

If the unexpected does happen (it won’t) and the Megalodon actually wins at the end of the film, that outcome will force me to Redbox the film, sit down, and watch it…once.

BlacKkKlansman (R) 135 mins.

BlacKkKlansman has the most interesting premise of all the films premiering this weekend and that includes the shark movie. Director Spike Lee has proven again and again that he can make memorable films, regardless of the quality of some of their scripts. Unlike many of those films, BlacKkKlansman‘s script has the benefit of being based on real life events.

With the nationalism debate that Fox News host Laura Ingraham brought to the forefront of the media this week, a movie like BlacKkKlansman is all the more relevant as a reflective tool on America’s present and America’s past.

Slender Man (R) 93 mins.

I have heard bits and pieces about the myth of the Slender Man. Many films have been created about this supernatural figure. Slender Man is the latest and it looks like a by-the-numbers scare-fest. Slender Man will not crack the $17 Million mark this weekend at the box office. The sales point of this film is the Slender Man. That’s it. The Ring was a phenomenon overseas and in the U.S. because it worked on the audience on multiple levels. All Slender Man seems to have are its standard jump scares and standard scary movie investigation, where the heroes investigate and discover what is hunting them. Scream this weekend anyone? At least that horror movie is original.

The Bottom Line

Mission: Impossible – Fallout will win this weekend for the third weekend in a row. The Meg, if the film is lucky, will open in Second Place at the box office. It’s dependent on whether or not Christopher Robin has a string enough hold from last weekend. From the good reviews that the film is getting, it looks like it might. If not, Christopher Robin will be Third this weekend. BlacKkKlansman will open in Fourth Place. If BlacKkKlansman achieves cross-audience appeal, BlacKkKlansman could open in Third Place. The Spy Who Dumped Me will be Fifth at the box office this weekend.

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Movies To Look Forward To:

Crazy Rich Asians (Aug. 15), Operation Finale (Aug. 29), The Predator (Sept. 14), Fahrenheit 11/9 (May 6).

Leave your thoughts on The Bottom Line August 10, 2018 for the films opening this weekend in movie theaters below in the comments section. Readers seeking more The Bottom Line can visit our The Bottom Line Page. Want up-to-the-minute notification? Want up-to-the-minute notifications? FilmBook staff members publish articles by Email, Twitter, Tumblr, Google+, and Facebook.

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Rollo Tomasi

Rollo Tomasi is a Connecticut-based film critic, TV show critic, news, and editorial writer. He will have a MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University in 2025. Rollo has written over 700 film, TV show, short film, Blu-ray, and 4K-Ultra reviews. His reviews are published in IMDb's External Reviews and in Google News. Previously you could find his work at Empire Movies, Blogcritics, and AltFilmGuide. Now you can find his work at FilmBook.
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