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Film: 'Out of Step' Reviews Well, But Unknown
DALLAS, TEXAS -- Scott Champion of Halestone Distribution let us know
that the total box office gross for "The Singles Ward" (as of 26
February 2002) is 208,000, and the movie is still going strong. The
film earned $22,902 this weekend, putting it in 57th place
nationwide, one place ahead of "The Other Side of Heaven" (which has
been playing for over 2 months). This means that "The Singles Ward"
has grossed roughly one half of its budget, after less than a month.
The movie opens near BYU-Hawaii in March, and throughout the rest of
Idaho in April. (Currently its only Idaho location is Rexburg.)
"Out of Step" played for a second weekend, but once again, we do not
have any box office data for this LDS-themed movie. An analysis of
local reviews (Salt Lake Tribune, Deseret News, Daily Herald, and
Ogden Standard-Examiner) shows that aside from Dutcher's "God's Army"
and "Brigham City", Derbridge and Hale's "Out of Step" has been the
best reviewed of the five post-Dutcher LDS-themed feature films.
Unfortunately, few people seem to know about this movie.
The astute reader will notice that the critically acclaimed IMAX
documentary "Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure" is back on this box
office list, after many week's of absence. It is ranked #32
nationwide, and it's total box office gross now stands at $7.7
million. Many of the film's makers are Latter-day Saints: It was
produced by Scott Swofford, photographed by Reed Smoot and scored by
Sam Cardon. It has actually been playing continuously (and quite
successfully), but its box office numbers were not being reported
regularly on www.the-numbers.com
There is now a very informative website up for Rob Sibley's
straight-to-video comedy/adventure/time travel/spiritual feature film
"The Shadow of Light." Check it out (including a great looking
trailer) at:
http://www.theshadowoflight.com.
Writer/producer/director Sibley has made a number of documentaries,
but may be best known for "Utah's Blackhawk War: Cultures in
Conflict" (1998; PBS). "The Shadow of Light" (featuring time travel
back to Utah of the pioneer period and the 1940s) features a cast
mostly new to film, including Holt Hamilton, Dallen Johnson, Fred
Walters and Christina Shelley. Glenn L. Anderson wrote the film's
screenplay. Anderson's previous screenwriting credits include
Disney's "The Thanksgiving Promise" (1986). He is also the author of
the LDS science fiction novels _The Millennium File_ and _The
Doomsday Factor_. He also wrote a number of SF short stories,
including "Shannon's Flight" in M. Shayne Bell's _Washed by a Wave of
Wind_.
COMING SOON: Ads have begun to appear on television for "Murder By
Numbers", starring Ryan Gosling (Latter-day Saint actor who starred
in "The Believer"). Sandra Bullock also stars, as an FBI profiler
charged with catching a bewildering serial killer (played by
Gosling). Don't miss it! (And root for Ryan, of course.)
IN THE FUTURE: Michael Cuesta and his brother (neither are LDS) have
been announced as the directors of the film version of Latter-day
Saint writer Brady Udall's immensely popular novel _The Miracle Life
of Edgar Mint_. The movie is being produced by Michael Stipe's
poduction company Single Cell Pictures ("Being John Malkovich").
Cuesta's debut feature film was "L.I.E.", and the director became
best known for his complaints about the MPAA, after "L.I.E." was
given an NC-17 rating. Cuesta erected an extensive website detailing
his criticisms of the MPAA, but he still didn't secure an "R" rating.
[If table below doesn't line up properly, try looking at them
with a mono-spaced font, such as courier - Ed.]
Weekend Box Office Report (U.S. Domestic Box Office Gross)
Weekend of February 22, 2002
Natl
Rank | Film Title
LDS/Mormon Filmmaker or Actor | Weekend Gross
Total Gross | Theaters | Days |
| 31 | Ocean's Eleven
LDS characters: Malloy twins | $193,268
181,651,711 | 176 | 80 |
| 32 | Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure
Scott Swofford (producer)
Reed Smoot (cinematographer)
Sam Cardon (composer) | 192,879
7,709,153 | 19 | 381 |
| 35 | Behind Enemy Lines
David Veloz (screenwriter) | 143,485
58,553,616 | 249 | 87 |
| 47 | Mulholland Drive
Joyce Eliason (producer/writer) | 61,830
6,866,428 | 54 | 140 |
| 57 The Singles Ward | The Singles Ward
Kurt Hale (writer/director)
John E. Moyer (writer)
Dave Hunter (producer)
Cody Hale (composer)
Ryan Little (cinematographer)
Actors: Will Swenson, Connie Young
Daryn Tufts, Kirby Heyborne
Michael Birkeland, Robert Swenson
Lincoln Hoppe, Tarance Edwards
Michelle Ainge, Gretchen Whalley
Sedra Santos | 22,902
208,000 | 9 | 24 |
| 58 | The Other Side of Heaven
Mitch Davis (writer/director)
John H. Groberg (author/character)
Gerald Molen, John Garbett (producers) | 22,552
1,503,881 | 14 | 73 |
| ?? | Out of Step
Ryan Little (director)
Cary Derbidge, Kenneth Marler (producers)
Michael Buster, Willow Leigh Jones, Nikki Schmutz (writers)
Merrill Jensen (composer)
Michael Worthen (cinematographer)
Actors: Alison Akin Clark, Jeremy Elliott,
Michael Buster, Tayva Patch, Rick Macy, etc. | ??,000
??,000 | 7 | 10 |
| 70 | Galapagos
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 10,675
12,352,701 | 3 | 850 |
| 66 | Out Cold
A. J. Cook (female lead) | 10,411
13,903,262 | 19 | 89 |
| 83 | China: The Panda Adventure
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 6,638
1,953,972 | 5 | 213 |
| 86 | Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man
Reed Smoot (cinematographer) | 5,657
13,090,135 | 2 | 661 |
| 100 | Island of the Sharks
Alan Williams (composer) | 3,421
10,638,624 | 2 | 1032 |
| 104 | Mark Twain's America 3D
Alan Williams (composer) | 2,648
2,161,635 | 1 | 1333 |
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