The first big holiday film of the season arrived this weekend to the tune of $30 million. The Jim Carrey Robert Zemeckis collaboration about the classic Charles Dicken’s tale took top honors at the weekend box office. The 3D animated movie made $30 million Friday – Sunday which was a solid debut, however it was below industry expectations. With the added cost of IMAX tickets and digital 3D features, this film had an advantage to rake in more cash. The one bright spot for this film is that it’s early November release will mean a long run through the holiday season. The IMAX version will be in theaters through the 17th of December when Avatar takes over on the 18th. For a full breakdown of the November 6th-8th box office read on!

Three years ago director Robert Zemeckis dove into the computer animated 3D world that was The Polar Express. He followed that with 2007′s Beowulf which featured the same animation technology. A Christmas Carol once again returns the Forrest Gump director to this style of film making. In this film Jim Carrey plays multiple roles including that of Ebeneezer Scrooge. With positive reviews for A Christmas Carol, Jim Carrey and Robert Zemeckis should have happy holidays ahead of them.

Dropping 43% in week two Michael Jackson’s This Is It raked in another $14 million. Sony originally had this as a limited two week engagement but the studio realized they could make more money the longer the film plays (Crazy, I know.) After two weeks MJ has made $57 million.

George Clooney’s The Men who Stare at Goats opened to a solid $13 million for the number three spot. The obscure comedy tracked well with adults who wanted another option than a 3D Christmas film this weekend.

Ironically The Fourth Kind dropped in at number four this weekend with $12.2 million. With a creepy trailer and true story premise, The Fourth Kind opened bigger than anticipated.

Rounding out the top five was Paranormal Activity which is about to cross the $100 million mark any day now. This weekend the low budget horror flick took in $8.2 million in its seventh week of release for a current total of $97 million. Let me remind you this movie only took $11,000 to make.

Next week the box office welcomes the disaster flick 2012 by Independence Day director Roland Emmerich.

Box Office numbers courtesy of Box Office Mojo.

Variety is reporting that Warner Brothers plans on developing a movie based on the popular LEGO toys. The movie will mix live action with animation and is going to be an adventure set in a LEGO universe. LEGO is apparently highly protective of its brand so it is surprising that the company has allowed a studio to develop a movie about the building block toys. It is not surprising however that LEGO will become a movie after this weekends successful G.I Joe opening. I believe there is a big difference between action figures and building blocks. I am curious to see how this could be an entertaining film, but I suppose we will give it the benefit of the doubt. I was a LEGO fanatic as a kid but the idea of a movie doesn’t really do it for me. What do you think?

Variety is reporting that another beloved book by the late, great Dr. Seuss will be headed to the big screen. The Lorax will be the next childrens book to be adapted into a feature length film. Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment plan to creat the move with CG and in a 3D format. Dr. Seuess’ story about, oddly enough, the environment, and the trek of the Lorax (a creature which speaks on behalf of all the trees.) Like most Dr. Seuss books, The Lorax teaches a lesson. It is a fable about respecting our surroundings and understanding the impact we have on the environment. The metaphors in this story are really vivid throughtout the text.

The last Seuss novel to make it to the big screen was last years Horton Hears a Who which was both a critical and box office success. With the wave of 3D technology taking over movie theaters it does not surprise me that The Lorax will be shown like this. It is not necessarily a bad thing, I just hope the movie captures the heart of the book, and doesn’t rely on the gimmick of 3D to fill that gap. Dr. Seuss was a brillaint story teller and his books deserve to be told in a format which stays true to the authentiivity of his work. What are your thoughts

The Lorax is scheduled for a March 2, 2012 release date.

Film School Rejects has debuted the first poster for director Shane Acker’s new film titled Nine. The movie stars the voices of Elijah Wood, Jennifer Connolly, Martin Landau, Christopher Plummer, John C. Reilly, and Cripsin Glover. This concept film is being produced by Tim Burton (Nightmare Before Christmas) and is scheduled to hit theaters on September 9th. Check out the full poster and plot synopsis after the jump.

When 9 (Wood) first comes to life, he finds himself in a post-apocalyptic world. All humans are gone, and it is only by chance that he discovers a small community of others like him taking refuge from fearsome machines that roam the earth intent on their extinction. Despite being the neophyte of the group, 9 convinces the others that hiding will do them no good. They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.

As we all start back to the work week we thought we could get your Monday rolling with a new Holla Back topic. With the latest Pixar movie released this past weekend there has been much talk as to what is the best Pixar movie. Is the new film Up now a Pixar classic? Does it compete with the Pixar great such as Finding Nemo and Toy Story? Pixar clearly has an extraordinary track record bringing us the best in animation and story telling. Collaborating with Disney, Pixar has brought audiences ten wonderful films. But does one film shine above all the others? Could we rank the movies if we chose to? This is a hard task, but hey it is Monday, may as well start the work week off with a good discussion.

Here are the ten films released by Disney/Pixar:

Toy Story

A Bug’s Life

Toy Story 2

Monster’s, Inc.

Finding Nemo

The Incredibles

Cars

Ratatouille

WALL – E

Up

This is the list of films in order that have been released by Disney/Pixar. Beginning in 1995 with Toy Story, you can see how illustrious the record of Pixar truly is. For the purpose of discussion, I want to know what your favorite Pixar movie is. Or if you would like to rank the 10 films go ahead and do that too. Leave us your thoughts and our staff will Holla Back with our favorite Pixar movies as well. Have a great Monday!

Dreamworks animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenburg will release the companies upcoming films tomorrow for investors. The movies are scheduled to be released through 2012 and consist of five original projects and several sequels to popular franchises. All of these projects are slated to be released in 3D. This past March Dreamworks released Monsters VS. Aliens which currently stands as the years highest grossing film. Last summer Dreamworks released King Fu Panda which was both critically and commercially successful. Continue reading to check out Variety’s list of the films which Dreamworks has planned over the next few years.

2010

How to Train Your Dragon

Set in the world of Vikings and dragons, it centers on an awkward teen who befriends an injured dragon. How to Train Your Dragon arrives in theaters March 26, 2010.

Shrek 4

Now titled, Shrek Forever After, the fourth installment in the hugely successful Shrek franchise will hit theaters May 21, 2010

Oobermind

Originally titled Mastermind, this Robert Downey, Jr. voiced movie is about a superhero who finds little meaning in his life after his nemesis is no longer around. Check out Oobermind in theaters November 5, 2010.

2011

Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom of Doom

Jack Black returns as the clumsy, yet masterful martial artist in this sequel to the hit 2008 animated movie. The Kung Fu Panda sequel lands in theaters June 3, 2011.

The Guardians

Based on a chilrens book The Guardians unites Santa Clause, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, Jack Frost, and the Sandman to defend the world from the Boogeyman. This creative story will be released November 4, 2011.

2012

Puss in Boots

A spin-off of the popular kitten from the Shrek movies. Voiced by Antonio Banderas, Puss in Boots will hit theaters March 30, 2012

Also in 2012:

Dreamworks has a third Madagascar film planned. The second movie was released this past November and grossed almost $200 million domestically. The third film will take the animals from Africa to a traveling circus in Europe.

The Croods, a caveman comedy is currently in development as is Super Secret Ghost Project which asks the question of what ghosts think about humans. Both of these films are still on the drawing board but are still a possibility for 2012.

What do you think about these list of films? I look forward to another Kung Fu Panda film, Oobermind sounds like fun, and The Guardians sounds like the most original choice in the bunch. My only concern is the fact that these movies will all be released in 3D. I think that is a little overkill, but that is apparently the wave of the future.

For those Disney fans out there this is for you. Just yesterday we debuted the first full length trailer for the new Disney animated flick The Princess and the Frog. Today we have the films first poster which is a classic throwback to the old school Disney movies we all know and love. For those who don’t know this movie is a hand drawn animated tale which in a world dominated by Pixar and Deamworks animation it is nice to see something genuine to the craft of animation. While this movie may not appeal to many adults you can’t deny the significance this movie has on animation. Check out the poster and tell us what you think.

Poster courtesy of Cinematical

The return of hand drawn animation is upon us. Not since 2004′s Home on the Range, have we seen a hand drawn movie that did not involve computer graphics. With Pixar’s animation studio releasing some of, if not the best, animation in movies, how can hand drawn animation compete? Well, Disney is taking that challenge with their latest movie titled The Princess and the Frog. Due in theaters this December, The Princess and the Frog is Disney’s first hand drawn movie in years. Today we have the first trailer for the movie which is being released via Youtube. The movie reminds me of the classic animated tales that many of us grew up watching. Check it out and share with us your thoughts.

The Princess and the Frog hits theaters December 11th. What did you think of the trailer? Do you think that this movie could be the start for a comeback to hand drawn animation? Leave us your comments below.

MTV News is reporting that director Robert Zemeckis (Forrest Gump, Beowulf) is interested in developing a sequel to his 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The 20 year old movie made over $300 million in it’s box office run and has become a classic movie for the ages. Who Framed Roger Rabbit starred Bob Hoskins and Christopher Lloyd in the tale of a toon hating detective who is a cartoon rabbit’s only hope to prove his innocence when he is accused of murder. MTV News talked with Robert Zemeckis about his interest in creating a sequel. Continue reading to see what he had to say.

Here is what MTV had to say about the possible sequel to Roger Rabbit:

Talk of a “Roger Rabbit” sequel has been going on since the film originally hit theaters, but now it appears closer than ever. Speaking to MTV News this week, director Robert Zemeckis confirmed that he’s been “buzzing” about bringing his twittery character back to the bigscreen.

“I’ll tell you what is buzzing around in my head now that we have the ability-the digital tools, performance capture-I’m starting to think about ‘Roger Rabbit,’” he told us.

What do you think about a sequel to Who Framed Roger Rabbit? With the advances in technology over the last 20 years this project could be very successful. The combination of animation and live action for 1988 was groundbreaking, and since that time, the technology has progressed to new heights. I think this could be a great opportunity to show a new generation who Roger Rabbit is. What do you think?

By Jeff Olson
March 25, 2009
Source: Animatoons

We have the first promotional image to show you from Dreamworks’ How to Train Your Dragon. The movie is being directed by Peter Hastings and stars the voices of Gerard Butler, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. The film will be released in regular theaters as well as in IMAX format March 26, 2010. Continue reading to see what the studio has to say about what the film is about.

Meet Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, heir of the Viking chiefdom, but a boy with one very big problem: a hero he is not. “How to Train Your Dragon’ is the riotous story of Hiccup’s quest to hunt down the fiercest dragon, bring it into submission, and-hopefully-pass his initiation. Instead, he ends up with the smallest, most ornery dragon-it’s even toothless! Thus begins the hijinx of the world’s most lovable, unlikely hero and a most reluctant “beast.” Packed with energetic drawings and plenty of action, this boisterous tale is just right for fantasy fans or anyone with a spirit of adventure. Based on the book by Cressida Cowell.