Box Office Flashback: 2009

[claws]

2009 DOMESTIC GROSSES

#1–20

01. $749,766,139 - Avatar
02. $402,111,870 - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
03. $301,959,197 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
04. $296,623,634 - The Twilight Saga: New Moon
05. $293,004,164 - Up
06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover
07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek
08. $255,959,475 - The Blind Side
09. $219,614,612 - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes

11. $198,351,526 - Monsters Vs. Aliens
12. $196,573,705 - Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
13. $179,883,157 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine
14. $177,243,721 - Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
15. $166,112,167 - 2012
16. $163,958,031 - The Proposal
17. $155,064,265 - Fast and Furious
18. $150,201,498 - G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
19. $146,336,178 - Paul Blart: Mall Cop
20. $145,000,989 - Taken

Only seen four ...

[HappyGilmore]

Only saw the Chipmunk movie and Paul Blart. Chipmunk was okay.

[JaseSF]

2009 DOMESTIC GROSSES

#1–20

01. $749,766,139 - Avatar - haven't seen and haven't been overly interested in catching it either.
02. $402,111,870 - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - this was AWFUL!!! Painful to watch.
03. $301,959,197 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - haven't seen.
04. $296,623,634 - The Twilight Saga: New Moon - haven't seen and don't want to either.
05. $293,004,164 - Up - this was really quite good!  
06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover - haven't seen.
07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek - majorly disappointing. Trek reduced to dumbed down actioner.
08. $255,959,475 - The Blind Side - haven't seen
09. $219,614,612 - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel - haven't seen
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes - haven't seen

11. $198,351,526 - Monsters Vs. Aliens - probably my favourite of the year. Only Up rivals it IMO.  
12. $196,573,705 - Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - haven't seen
13. $179,883,157 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine - haven't seen
14. $177,243,721 - Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian- haven't seen
15. $166,112,167 - 2012 - dumb action with a surprise ending. Pretty much what I expected given those involved. No great shakes.
16. $163,958,031 - The Proposal - haven't seen
17. $155,064,265 - Fast and Furious - haven't seen
18. $150,201,498 - G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra - AWFUL!!! rivals the Transformers sequel in being painful to watch and mind-numbingly stupid.
19. $146,336,178 - Paul Blart: Mall Cop - sad this makes the top 20 list but it is miles better than Transformers II and G.I. Joe. Just a dumb comedy. Seen Kevin James do better.
20. $145,000,989 - Taken - haven't seen.

[akiratubo]

01. $749,766,139 - Avatar
Nice CGI, pretty well thought out (if unoriginal) plot, but several scenes and even characters were superfluous and could have/should have been cut.

02. $402,111,870 - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
03. $301,959,197 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
04. $296,623,634 - The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Never saw.

05. $293,004,164 - Up
This movie worked and I enjoyed it a great deal.  Pixar's second best, right after Monsters, Inc.

06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover
Never saw.

07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek
Seemed to have been made up as they went along.  I didn't enjoy it at all.  It just didn't seem like a Star Trek movie.  Even the worst of the old series (The Final Frontier, Insurrection) made an effort to get the audience to think, which is what Star Trek is all about.  Abrams-Trek was about stuff blowing up and the heroes making quips.  Also comedy shoehorned in whether it would fit or not.  Probably the worst of the Star Trek movies.

08. $255,959,475 - The Blind Side
09. $219,614,612 - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes
11. $198,351,526 - Monsters Vs. Aliens
12. $196,573,705 - Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
13. $179,883,157 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine
14. $177,243,721 - Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
15. $166,112,167 - 2012
16. $163,958,031 - The Proposal
Never saw any.

17. $155,064,265 - Fast and Furious
This movie SUCKED!  I was so angry at the end of it that I actually shouted at the screen.

18. $150,201,498 - G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Came close to staying true to the spirit of the show, but at the end it turned out to just be Stephen Sommers' G.I. Joe fanfic.  The Baroness getting together with Duke?  What-everrrrrrr!

19. $146,336,178 - Paul Blart: Mall Cop
Never saw.

20. $145,000,989 - Taken
One of my favorite action movies of all time.  It is about Liam Neeson getting his daughter back, period.  There are no subplots, no superfluous characters or scenes, no subtext.  Just a man rescuing his daughter.  That's it.  Michael Bay and Peter Jackson could learn some lessons about narrative focus from this film.

[bob]

06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover - This was hilarous enough to make me want to see Hang Over 2.
07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek - This was an excellent film. I can easily see why friends of mine who are big into Star Trek say it's one of their favorites.
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes -This was great. I need to see it again.

[Jack]

Only seen G.I. Joe, which was a fun popcorn flick.  Star Trek is in my Netflix instant queue. 

[Jim H]

01. $749,766,139 - Avatar - I quite enjoy Avatar.  It's not fantastic, but has a solid story and likable characters and a good finale. 
02. $402,111,870 - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - Tons hate this one, but it gave me what I wanted: a greater focus on giant robots fighting.  Worth a watch.
03. $301,959,197 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Unseen
04. $296,623,634 - The Twilight Saga: New Moon - Unseen
05. $293,004,164 - Up - Excellent film.  Great on every level.
06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover - Amusing, though a lot of the gags are of the hit-or-miss variety. 
07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek - Entertaining, though I think some of the writing is sloppy and illogical.  Great performances from everyone.
08. $255,959,475 - The Blind Side - Solid sports/melodrama.  Other than Bullock's Oscar-winning performance, nothing really sticks out though.
09. $219,614,612 - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel - Unseen.
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes - Good film, but suffers a bit from Blockbuster-itis, where there's somehow just a bit too much stuff going on and it deadens my senses.  Lack of focus I think is the issue.

11. $198,351,526 - Monsters Vs. Aliens - OK.
12. $196,573,705 - Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - Unseen
13. $179,883,157 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine - A good lead performance and a good characterization of Sabretooth - and almost nothing else.  Pretty crappy.
14. $177,243,721 - Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian - Unseen.
15. $166,112,167 - 2012 -  Unseen.
16. $163,958,031 - The Proposal - Unseen.
17. $155,064,265 - Fast and Furious - Enjoyable entry in the series, but not great.
18. $150,201,498 - G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra - Very stupid, with a massive CG overload, but I still enjoyed it for what it was.  Think of it as if a kid was playing with GI Joe figures, then they motion capped it and made a movie and you'll be in the right frame of mind.
19. $146,336,178 - Paul Blart: Mall Cop - Unseen.
20. $145,000,989 - Taken - Probably the most breakneck paced film I've seen, tons of chases and action virtually non-stop.  While the final reveal of what happened with his daughter doesn't amount to much and the resolution isn't quite satisfying enough, still a very good film.  Neeson carries the film on his shoulders to, from beginning to end.

Overall, an alright year I suppose.

Only seen four ...
[/quote]

[Leah]

01. $749,766,139 - Avatar-My sister said that Myst graphics is like Avatar, didn't see.
02. $402,111,870 - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen-never saw
03. $301,959,197 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince-ehh, not the best
04. $296,623,634 - The Twilight Saga: New Moon
05. $293,004,164 - Up-need to see.
06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover-not my thing
07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek-okay, not the best
08. $255,959,475 - The Blind Side-need to see
09. $219,614,612 - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel- DEAR LORD, how can anyone pay money to see talking chipmunks?!
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes-okay, not the best

11. $198,351,526 - Monsters Vs. Aliens-never saw
12. $196,573,705 - Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs-nah
13. $179,883,157 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine-no, I'm a Dark Horse/DC guy
14. $177,243,721 - Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian-don't know if I saw this one
15. $166,112,167 - 2012- never saw
16. $163,958,031 - The Proposal- never saw
17. $155,064,265 - Fast and Furious- probably the worst one of them all
18. $150,201,498 - G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra- never saw
19. $146,336,178 - Paul Blart: Mall Cop- didn't want to see
20. $145,000,989 - Taken-never seen

[Hammock Rider]

2009 DOMESTIC GROSSES

#1–20

01. $749,766,139 - Avatar....It's the Megan Fox of film, nice to look at but not very engaging.

02. $402,111,870 - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen...  I did think Shia's parents were kinda funny and I liekd the crotchety old Decepticon who turned good.I fell asleep half way through so I'm not sure about any of it.

03. $301,959,197 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince...Not a Potter guy.

04. $296,623,634 - The Twilight Saga: New Moon...no thanks

05. $293,004,164 - Up....Fantastic film. It could be Pixar's best...."SQUIRREL!"

06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover...Hilarious.

07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek...It was alright. I liked the actors and enjoyed the humor but yeah, there wasn't much thinkin' going on.

08. $255,959,475 - The Blind Side...Missed it.

09. $219,614,612 - Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel...Missed it.

10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes...I really liked this movie. It held up really well except for the last 1/4 or so, when it became more of a standatd big budget actioner. I always thought Holmes was an interesting enough character to survive a variety of interpretations.


11. $198,351,526 - Monsters Vs. Aliens....This is a great, fun movie.

12. $196,573,705 - Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs...Missed it.

13. $179,883,157 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine...Um...the first part was actually pretty good. I liked it up to the part where he escapes from the farm house. After that it just fell apart into a quagmire of Hollywood Execu-crap.

14. $177,243,721 - Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian...Not as good as the original but not bad. I liked Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart(sp)

15. $166,112,167 - 2012...Missed it

16. $163,958,031 - The Proposal....Really missed it.

17. $155,064,265 - Fast and Furious .....Missed it

18. $150,201,498 - G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra... I thought it was lame.

19. $146,336,178 - Paul Blart: Mall Cop...It was funnier than I expected. Kevin James is pretty good at physical comedy and make s adecent loveable lug, although he'll never be in John Candy's league.

20. $145,000,989 - Taken...Wow. I agree that this was a lean, mean fighting machine of an action movie. The fact that the best action movie of the year starred a guy in his 50's just made me, as an old(ish) guy, that much happier. We could use more action films like this.

[InformationGeek]

01. Avatar (I'll see it.  The way everyone complains make me want to see it so I can say I love it in there faces.  )
02. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (I'm staying away until I can see all of the films at once for review purposes)
03. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (I'm shocked I didn't see this yet)
04. The Twilight Saga: New Moon (See Transformers 2 comment)
05. Up (I really enjoyed this one)
06. The Hangover (Haven't seen it)
07. Star Trek (I saw this with my dad on New Years Eve.  I really loved it.)
08. The Blind Side (My mom saw it... she enjoyed it)
09. Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (No way in hell)
10. Sherlock Holmes (I'll see it at some point)
11. Monsters Vs. Aliens (I'll check it out at some point)
12. Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (It was okay, but it should have been a straight to dvd)
13. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Nope)
14. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (It was okay)
15. 2012 (Nah.  I'm not into this type of film.)
16. The Proposal (What's that?)
17. Fast and Furious (I would have to see the others first)
18. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (My cousin saw it and said it blows to high hell)
19. Paul Blart: Mall Cop (It was okay)
20. Taken (My parents just love this film)

[Rev. Powell]

Really good: UP

Good: AVATAR; HARRY POTTER; THE HANGOVER; STAR TREK; MONSTERS VS. ALIENS

You'd have to pay me to see: TRANSFORMERS; TWILIGHT; THE BLIND SIDE; ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS; 2012; G.I. JOE; PAUL BLART

Not particularly interested: the rest

Better than anything that made the list: A SERIOUS MAN; THE HURT LOCKER; THE SECRET OF KELLS; BAD LIEUTENANT

[lester1/2jr]

loved Avatar and really liked Hangover.

[bob]

06. $277,322,503 - The Hangover - This was hilarous enough to make me want to see Hang Over 2.
07. $257,730,019 - Star Trek - This was an excellent film. I can easily see why friends of mine who are big into Star Trek say it's one of their favorites.
10. $209,028,679 - Sherlock Holmes -This was great. I need to see it again.

Earlier this year I saw Up and Avatar. Loved them both and are favorites. 

[InformationGeek]

You'd have to pay me to see: TRANSFORMERS; TWILIGHT; THE BLIND SIDE; ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS; 2012; G.I. JOE; PAUL BLART

Would you like to be paid in karma points or Internet cookies?  I'm short the 1,000 dollars you would be required to see anyone of them.

[ChaosTheory]

Really good: UP

Good: AVATAR; HARRY POTTER; THE HANGOVER; STAR TREK; MONSTERS VS. ALIENS

You'd have to pay me to see: TRANSFORMERS; TWILIGHT; THE BLIND SIDE; ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS; 2012; G.I. JOE; PAUL BLART

Not particularly interested: the rest

Better than anything that made the list: A SERIOUS MAN; THE HURT LOCKER; THE SECRET OF KELLS; BAD LIEUTENANT

I pretty much agree with this (except I wasn't crazy about HURT LOCKER and I liked TAKEN quite a lot)

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS was the best of the year IMO.  Also really loved MOON and WORLD'S GREATEST DAD.