We have a small run of movies this upcoming weekend before we get a Force-filled theatrical infusion next week. This time around we’re heading into the good, old ocean with the arrival of In the Heart of the Sea.
Just remember, I'm not reviewing these movies, but rather predicting where they'll end up on the Tomatometer. Let's take a look at This Rotten Week has to offer.
Rotten Watch Prediction
Two hundred years ago, there were are a number of reasons to avoid getting in a rickety boat and venture off into the sea. Storms could pummel your ship to smithereens. You could get lost and up traveling on the endless ocean until you died. Disease could riddle your ship. Or you could get a healthy combo of all the things listed above. And these guys had to worry about skyscraper-sized sperm whales flipping the thing as well? No thanks.
See what it’s like when a giant sea mammal attacks in the trailer for In the Heart of the Sea below:
I’m not a boat guy so maybe there’s something I just don’t understand about the lure of the sea, but I have a bunch of disconnect already to this flick. Set in the 1800’s, In the Heart of the Sea tells the true story of the whaling ship Essex that was capsized by a big-ass whale and had to go about on a mission of survival – ultimately inspiring the classic story Moby Dick.
The flick is based on the book of the same name by Nathaniel Philbrick and is directed by Ron Howard. Howard, for all his career accolades and superlatives has had an interesting run of late. Sure he did Rush (89%), a legit great biopic that I loved despite it revolving around a subject I could care less about. But before that he pumped out The Dilemma (24%) and Angels & Demons (37%). So it hasn’t been all critical acclaim for the guy. This newest looks to fall somewhere in between. Early reviews are good but not great, with the positive reviews trending toward "Fine enough, but not fantastic." These kinds of reviews should have the score right at the middle by the time things are all said and done.
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Well I’m as shocked as you might be for the score on Krampus (Predicted: 39% Actual: 63%). What looked like a schlock-y Christmas horror movie that would fall into some terrible in between slot with both viewers and critics ended up gaining some traction. The score fell in the perfectly acceptable range, and critics agreed the acting talent carried this thing. The story, based on the anti-Santa terrorizing a family at the holidays, seemed like it would just be too weird to perform well in any crowd, but I was wrong on the critical front and it came well above the 50% mark. Color me shocked. Of course I would never personally subject myself to this kind of film, preferring my Christmas movies to involve Griswolds or Red Rider BB guns.
Next time around it’s the big one. We’ve got Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Sisters. It’s gonna be a Rotten Week!
