Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks are the stars of the two biggest movies in the United States right now, Gravity and Captain Phillips, and both movies put their stars through the wringer. So after you've seen Bullock fight off space debris and Hanks deal with Somali pirates, why not watch the two cut loose and dance on a giant piano on British television?
The bit has nothing to do with their new movies, of course, but with Hanks's iconic role in 1988's Big, where he and Robert Loggia did a much more choreographed dance on the giant piano inside Manhattan's FAO Schwarz. Oh, come on, you remember it.
Hanks, a completely good sport in literally all circumstances and probably an all-time great talk show guest, is of course totally game to try and play chopsticks and then fake an elaborate piano performance. But when Sandra Bullock steps up and nails the song in some gigantic heels-- that's serious star power right there. Do they make Oscars for grace while standing on thin spikes of leather?
Bullock and Hanks are both big enough stars that they didn't even need their recent hits to prove it, but this weekend had to feel good anyway. Gravity dominated the box office for the second week in a row this weekend, and set a very specific but significant record-- it's the best second-weekend hold for any film that ever debuted to more than $55 million. Most films that debut huge, even gigantic ones like The Avengers, drop at least 50% in ticket sales in their second weekend. Gravity dropped only 20%, which suggests astonishing word of mouth. Captain Phillips was no slouch either in its first weekend, debuting to $26 million and its own share of ecstatic reviews. Without the 3D buzz and the promise of a space adventure Captain Phillips naturally didn't draw the same attention as Gravity, but its a perfectly respectable debut for a film that should have its own strong share of audiences in the weeks ahead.
Hat tip to Movies.com for bringing the Big video to our attention.
