entertainment
‘Spider-Man’ surpasses $1B globally in second weekend
Peter Parker’s good fortune continued over the holiday weekend as Hollywood prepares to close the books on a turbulent 2021. Even with some mighty competition from new Matrix and Sing movies, and rising concerns over the omicron variant, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” stayed in the No. 1 spot and netted a few more milestones too including crossing the $1 billion mark globally.
According to studio estimates Sunday “Spider-Man” added $81.5 million over the three-day weekend, down 69% from its first weekend. The Sony and Marvel film has now grossed $467 million from North American theaters, more than doubling the domestic grosses of 2021′s previous No. 1 film, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.”
With $587.1 million from 61 overseas markets, in just 12 days of release, “Spider-Man" has grossed $1.05 billion globally. It's the first film of the pandemic to cross $1 billion and is tied with “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” for being the third-fastest film ever to do so — and this without the benefit of its release in China.
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Universal’s “Sing 2” came in second place with an estimated $23.8 million, while Warner Bros.' “The Matrix Resurrections” grossed $12 million to take third place.
The animated musical “Sing 2” features high-profile celebrity talent including Matthew McConaughey, Scarlett Johansson, Reese Witherspoon and Bono, as well as a jukebox soundtrack full of well-known hits. Since its release Wednesday, it’s made $41 million ($1.6 million of that came from Thanksgiving weekend showings) from North America and $65 million worldwide.
“We’re extraordinarily pleased,” said Jim Orr, Universal's president of domestic distribution.
Orr said the stellar CinemaScore (A+) and audience scores suggest that the film will continue to perform well in the next few weeks, when many kids are still out of school for the holidays.
The fourth Matrix also opened on Wednesday and has earned an estimated $22.5 million in its first five days in North America. The film, directed by Lana Wachowski and starring Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss, is currently streaming on HBO Max as well. Globally, it’s grossed $69.8 million to date.
While the studio was hoping for a stronger box office, Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros.' head of domestic distribution, said the movie achieved what they were looking for as an overall strategy including HBO Max.
“The Matrix Resurrections" is the last of the 18 Warner Bros. films released in 2021 to debut both in theaters and on HBO Max simultaneously. Starting in 2022, the studio will have a 45-day exclusive theatrical window on their films.
In fourth place was Disney and 20th Century’s “The King’s Man,” a prequel to the action-comedy Kingsman series starring Ralph Fiennes. It came in slightly under expectations with $6.4 million from the weekend and $10 million from its first five days. The audience skewed heavily male (65%).
The Kurt Warner biopic “American Underdog” opened on Christmas Day and has made an estimated $6.2 million in its two days in release to round out the top five. Zachary Levi stars as Warner, the quarterback who went from undrafted free agent to Hall of Famer.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza” expanded nationwide on Christmas, after playing in limited release for a month, and added $2.3 million bringing its total to $3.7 million. And right behind it was the Denzel Washington-directed drama “A Journal For Jordan,” which to $2.2 million.
With just a few days left in 2021, the North American box office is currently sitting at $4.3 billion and is likely to net out around $4.4 billion. Pre-pandemic, it was normal for a year's box office to surpass $11 billion.
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“To say was a roller-coaster year is an understatement,” said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore, Inc. “The marketplace is still facing challenges from the pandemic, but what an amazing capper to one of the most incredible years ever at the box office."
He added: “The future of the movie theater a year ago was a big question mark, and a year later it’s here to stay.”
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” $81.5 million.
2. “Sing 2,” $23.8 million.
3. “The Matrix Resurrections,” $12 million.
4. “The King’s Man,” $6.4 million.
5. “American Underdog,” $6.2 million.
6. “West Side Story,” $2.8 million.
7. “Licorice Pizza,” $2.3 million.
8. “A Journal For Jordan,” $2.2 million.
9. “Encanto,” $2 million.
10. “83,” $1.8 million.
10th Sanjeeb Utshab held at TSC
An album of songs and poems written by noted singer, composer and political activist Sanjeeb Chowdhury titled “Ami Tomake Boley Debo” has been unveiled to mark his birthday which is celebrated as Sanjeeb Utsav.
Sanjeeb Utshab Utjapon Porishad arranged a cultural show to mark the day on Saturday at TSC’s Sanjeev Square.
The album named after late singer’s one of the popular numbers was created by Joy Shahriar and published by his publishing house, Aajob.
Also read: 8th Sanjeeb Utshab held at DU
Joy Shahriar, also one of the organisers of this event said, it’s been 14 years ‘Sanjeeb daa’ is not with us. We organise this festival in his memory. Our aim is to pass on his philosophy and songs to those who have not met him.”
Shubhayatra, Joy Shahriar, Subconscious, Bay of Bengal, were among the performers at this event.
Also read: DU celebrates Boshonto Utshab 1425
Sanjeeb Chowdhury, a student of the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at Dhaka University, died in 2007 at the age of 42 years.
Some of his popular songs are - Ami Tomake Boley Debo, Rangila, Samudra Sontan, Jochna Bihar, Bioscope, Chader Jonno Gaan.
Release of Ananta Jalil's 'Din - The Day' gets postponed
Corporate personality-producer-actor Ananta Jalil's much anticipated big-budget film 'Din - The Day' was scheduled to be released on December 24; however, the movie did not hit theatres yesterday.
After creating buzz all over the internet ever since the release of its trailer on March 15, Ananta Jalil announced the release date of the film back in October this year.
Anticipating fans wondered why the movie did not have its release on time, and now Ananta Jalil has clarified the reason behind the postponing.
"The grand release of our much-anticipated film "Din - The Day" was supposed to take place on 24th December 2021. As you all know, new variants of Corona Omicron have spread to different countries including the continent of Africa. Due to that, everyone associated with the film including our Iranian producer is worried about the release of this big-budget film. Moreover, most of the foreign viewers of Iranian films are from Russia, Africa and the Middle East," Ananta Jalil wrote from his official verified Facebook page on Saturday night.
Describing the reason, Jalil added, "Our film is co-produced by Bangladesh and Iran; however, our Iranian producers have spent most of the money on the film. So considering the circumstances and the financial aspects of the film, and also to release the film across all the countries including Iran and Bangladesh on the same day, our Iranian producer has decided to postpone the release of the film "Din - The Day."
Apologizing to the viewers and fans, he wrote, "As I was out of the country for a business meeting, we couldn’t notify the matter earlier and I apologize to all of our beloved audiences and our fans."
'Din - The Day' is directed by Iranian director Murtuza Atash Jamjam, starring Ananta Jalil and his Wife actress Afiea Nusrat Barsha in the lead roles.
Apart from Bangladesh, the film has also been shot in Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey.
Shooting of the film was planned to be wrapped up within October last year. It had to be rescheduled due to the global lockdown and flight restrictions in 2020.
On March 15, the trailer of the film was released on YouTube from Ananta Jalil's official YouTube channel which has garnered massive fan reactions and viewed over 2.3 million times, as of this report.
3 members of K-pop sensation BTS diagnosed with COVID-19
Three members of the K-pop superstar group BTS have been infected with the coronavirus after returning from abroad, their management agency said.
RM and Jin were diagnosed with COVID-19 on Saturday evening, the Big Hit Music agency said in a statement. It earlier said another member, Suga, tested positive for the virus on Friday.
All three took their second jabs in August, the agency said.
The BTS is a seven-member boyband. The four other members are J-Hope, Jungkook, V and Jimin.
According to the agency, RM has exhibited no particular symptoms while Jin is showing mild symptoms including light fever and is undergoing self-treatment at home. The agency said Friday that Suga wasn't exhibiting symptoms and was administering self-care at home in accordance with the guidelines of the health authorities.
RM had tested negative after returning from the United States earlier this month following his personal schedule there. But he was later diagnosed with the virus ahead of his scheduled release from self-quarantine, the agency said.
After returning to South Korea this month, Jin underwent PCR tests twice — upon arrival and later before his release from self-quarantine — and tested negative both times. But he had flu-like symptoms on Saturday afternoon before he took another PRC test that came back positive, the agency said. Media reports said he also traveled to the U.S.
Suga, who has had a number of personal engagements in the United States during the band's official time off, was diagnosed with COVID-19 during quarantine after returning from the U.S., the agency said.
The agency said it'll continue to provide support for the three members for their speedy recovery. It said it will cooperate with the requests and guidelines of the South Korean health authorities.
Since their debut in 2013, BTS has garnered global recognition for their self-produced music and activism, which includes giving a speech at the United Nations and publicly calling out anti-Asian racism. The band topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart three times in 2020, and was nominated for prominent music awards like Billboard Music Awards and MTV Video Music Awards.
Actor Amir Siraji on life support
Film actor Amir Siraji has been put on life support at a private hospital in the city.
On Friday night, he was admitted to the private hospital in Rampura are following breathing difficulties. Later he was put on life support.
Zayed Khan, general secretary of Bangladesh Film Artistes Association, wrote in his Facebook post, “Amir Siraji Bhai, a respected member of the artistes' association and a popular actor, has been kept on life support due to shortness of breath. May Allah help him.”
Also read: Fakir Alamgir on life support
Amir Siraji earlier suffered a heart attack on December 26 last year and was treated at the Incentive Care Unit (ICU) of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital (BSMMU) in the capital. On January 2, he returned home after recovery.
Born in Mymensingh’s Gafargaon upazila Amir Siraji began his acting career as an artiste with a jatra troupe named Babul Opera troupe. His first film is Patal Bijay. In 1991 he started acting for Bangladesh Television. Amir Siraji also acted in several government-grant winning films, including Chashi Nazrul Islam’s Megh-er Porey Megh, PA Kajol’s Mukti and Faruk’s Kaktarua.
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Star Cineplex to open its maiden theatre in Chattogram next year
Quenching the thirst of movie buffs in Chattogram, the country's largest multiplex chain -- Star Cineplex -- will open its maiden theatre in the port city at Bali Arcade Shopping Complex in the Chawkbazar area.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel on Thursday evening. The agreement was signed by Mahboob Rahman Ruhel, chairman of Show Motion Limited, and Aftab Alam, chairman, The Casablanca Limited.
At a press meet, it was informed that the multiplex is planned to be launched in the middle of next year (2022). This spacious multiplex will have three halls with seating arrangements for 400 moviegoers.
READ: Documentary on Bangabandhu premiered at Star Cineplex
The halls will be constructed following world-class cinema hall standards, including an aesthetic environment, state-of-the-art visuals on the giant screen, and high-quality Dolby sound systems, the organisers informed.
'We have already announced plans to build many cinema halls across the country. The work of implementing that plan has been continuously going on. This initiative will continue to expand the country's film industry, and it will enthral the movie lovers in Chittagong who expect a world-class multiplex like Star Cineplex,” Mahboob Rahman Ruhel, chairman of Star Cineplex, told reporters.
Explaining the venture, Ruhel added, “I myself am from Chittagong, and many have asked me to open this branch as this is a long-standing demand of the movie lovers in Chittagong. I wanted to fulfil this demand a long ago but due to the pandemic and some other reasons, we could not open it earlier. So this marks a jovial occasion for me, personally.”
Bangladesh’s first multiplex cinema hall Star Cineplex was launched on October 6, 2004, at Bashundhara City Shopping Mall in the capital. Currently, Star Cineplex is operating four branches in Dhaka at Bashundhara City in Panthapath, Shimanto Shambhar in Dhanmondi, Sony Square in Mirpur and SKS Tower, Mohakhali.
"We had a plan to launch more than a hundred single screens inside our multiplexes, as part of our countrywide expansion masterplan. Due to the pandemic havoc, we had to compromise that plan, now having only 14 screens inside our four multiplexes; however, my dream is to fulfill that target as soon as possible,” Ruhel had told UNB earlier.
READ: Star Cineplex to continue screening movies at Bashundhara City
Outside Dhaka, two branches are under construction, at Bogura and Rajshahi.
15 bands keep fans on their feet at Dhaka Rock Fest 2.0
Dhaka Rock Fest 2.0, the country's largest rock music festival since the start of the Covid pandemic, was held Thursday at the International Convention City Bashundhara's Noboratri hall in the capital.
The concert, organised by Sky Tracker and sponsored by Banglalink, featured 15 Bangladeshi bands – Warfaze, Aurthohin, Cryptic fate, AvoidRafa, Indalo, Shubhayatra, Conclusion, Shrapnel Method, Brahmaputra, Thrash, The Tree, Subconscious, Aftermath, Arekta Rock Band, and Calypso.
With the concert, Aurthohin's band leader Saidus Sumon (Bassbaba Sumon) returned to Dhaka's concert scene after four years.
Ferdous begins shooting for 'Dampara'
Good news for Ferdous Ahmed fans, as the popular actor is slated to begin shooting for Suddhoman Choitan's next film 'Dampara' on Thursday.
Based on a true story, 'Dampara' portrays the heroic deeds of a daring police officer, Shamsul Haque, who lost his life during the Liberation War of 1971 on active duty.
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While Ferdous will play the lead role of Shamsul and Ashna Habib Bhabna that of his wife's, Mahmuda Haque Chowdhury, Anan Zaman wrote the script.
Shamsul was the superintendent of Chattogram Police in 1971. Pakistani armed forces brutally tortured him to death during the Liberation War on April 17, 1971.
Anan Zaman said, “How Shamsul Haque fought against the Pakistani forces and how he was killed will be shown in the film.”
'Poetry recitation programmes need nationwide attention'
Poetry is one of the most significant parts of Bangladesh's arts and culture and recitation programmes need to be organised all over the country, Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmud said Wednesday.
"Poetry and recitation played a pivotal role during all of our major historical protests against oppressions, especially during the 1952 Language Movement and 1971 Liberation War. To foster the art of recitation, organisations like the Bangladesh Abrittishilpi Sangshad (BAS) and the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) can organise nationwide poetry recitation events regularly."
The minister was addressing the recitation programme "Uchchakonthe Uchcharo Aj Manush Moheeyan," at the BSA's National Art Gallery Auditorium, as part of countrywide recitation events organised by the BAS.
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Eminent actor and recitation artiste Jayanto Chattopadhyay, also the convener of the BAS, and Rupa Chakraborty, member secretary of the organisation, delivered the welcome speeches.
Member of Parliament Suborna Mustafa, Shilpakala Academy Director General Liaquat Ali Lucky, Mancha Sarathi Ataur Rahman, theatre activist M Hamid and Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikder were also present.
Poems were performed by recitation artists from Narayanganj, Munshiganj, Tangail, Gazipur, Narsingdi, Kishoreganj, Madaripur, Shariatpur, Gopalganj, Faridpur, Rajbari, Manikganj, and Dhaka.
To spread the message of harmony across the country, the BAS recently organised recitation programmes in six divisions – Sylhet, Mymensingh, Rajshahi, Barisal, Khulna and Rangpur. The events featured discussions, recitations and dance recitals.
Bengal's Mimi appears for the first time in Bangladeshi music video
Indian film actress Mimi Chakraborty has collaborated with Bangladeshi actor Nirab Hossain for ‘Tui Ar Ami’, a music video.
This is the first time that the popular Bengali actress, also an Indian lawmaker, has appeared in any Bangladeshi project, the teaser of which was released Tuesday.
The song has been sung by popular singer Arfin Rumey and written by National Film Award-winning music director Kaushik Hossain Taposh.
Read: Banglalink releases music video to spread hope
Describing the song, Rumey said, “I am overwhelmed with the whole song and its colourful representation. Taposh bhai had kept this song for himself to sing. However, after he learned that my mother liked the song very much, Taposh bhai gave me the opportunity to sing this song."
"It felt like a dream come true that I have been able to sing such a beautiful song with its wonderful composition," Rumey added.
According to TM Records, more than 50 songs have already been recorded, voiced by local artistes with world class instruments.
Popular celebrities from home and abroad will be seen in the music videos of these songs, which will be released at regular intervals.