Club Jade

Batman kicked ass at the box office yet again this weekend, netting $441.5 million and moving it ever closer to A New Hope’s domestic box office record…

• Travel: InformationWeek’s top vacation spots for geeks features several locations of interest to Star Wars fans, while the S.F. Travel Examiner stays close to home with One Letterman Drive.

• Art: Or, cheapest of all – io9 featured some of Big Rock Ranch’s art today. But come on, guys… Isn’t all Star Wars art inherently cheesy?
• Exhibits: Where Science Meets Imagination’s Minnesota stay has been extended through August 27th. Best go soon if you haven’t already – who know when (or if) it’ll pop up again.
• Box office: The Dark Knight continues it’s climb towards Star Wars domestic record, netting $400.04 million domestically last weekend.
• Gaming: Lego Star Wars has sold 15 million units; Soulcaliber IV is shipping two million.

Batman’s latest had taken in $324.3 million by Monday, putting it on the fast track to beat out Star Wars for the #2 spot on the domestic list of top grossing films Personally, I find TDK’s slim chances at taking out that Titanic schlockfest far more disheartening.

The Dark Knight took in $18.5 million from its midnight release earlier this morning, breaking the $16.9 million record Revenge of the Sith set back in 2005. TDK’s 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. showings were not counted, but it’s sure to make a mint this weekend. Spider-Man 3 better watch his back…

UPDATE: Indeed, it took in $66.4 million Friday, breaking Spider-Man 3′s opening day record of $59.8.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull has now been out for almost a week. To celebrate this event, I ate some crispy minty Indiana Jones M&Ms and drank some Indiana Jones Dr. Pepper yesterday. Now that the caffeine headache has gone away, here’s what I learned:

• 2nd biggest Memorial Day opening, with domestically $151 million (after Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End) – and $311 million worldwide.
• JediNews.co.uk and Lightsabre.co.uk have a joint review.
• Scientific American plus a few articles that are tangential to archaeology and the kingdom of the crystal skull.
• Communists in St. Petersburg, Russia are protesting the portrayal of Soviets of that era. What next, Ukrainians protesting Cate Blanchett’s accent?
• Shia LeBeouf’s entrance a homage to Brando in The Wild One? Signs point to yes.
• Indiana Jones vs Carrie Bradshaw: this weekend – will it be Sex and the City.. or Snakes and the Lost City?
• and one of the shorter reviews: The Five Word Review

John Scalzi takes a look at Star Wars success when compared with Speed Racer’s failure – and how blockbuster culture has changed in the last thirty-some years. (A great companion to this piece is the NYT’s impressive box office chart from February.)

• The Brits really love them some Star Wars wedding: The GFFA-themed marriage ceremony of Bramwell Brightey and Tamsyn Lofts showed up in both The Guardian and The Sun today.

• Could Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull beat Revenge of the Sith at the box office? That’s the magic of inflation!
• No jail time for drunken Vader attacker. Shocking!
• The Force Unleashed is “greatest Star Wars story that we’ve ever told in a video game,” says LucasArts’ Cameron Suey. Better than Masters of Teräs Käsi? That’s unpossible!
  

The New York Times has a stunning interactive on The Ebb and Flow of Movies: Box Office Receipts 1986 – 2007. Shown above, summer 1989, and below, summer 1999. Fascinating…

Jumper topped the box office this weekend, adding fuel to the fire that the combined power of Hayden Christensen and Samuel L. Jackson can propel a movie to do well even if the reviews are bad and there’s no giant all-powerful franchise backing it up. Or, maybe people just like sci-fi tinged action movies starring pretty boys and handsome badasses. Will we ever know?

Did anyone see it? Opinions?

• Cloverfield smashes January box office records, including the one held by the ANH Special Edition.

• Lightsaber named top movie weapon in 20th Century Fox poll. (Huh.) The Death Star and Indiana Jones’ whip also made the list, and Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones are among the favorite weapon-wielding heroes.
• Skywalker Sound up for BAFTA for There Will Be Blood.
• AICN has a report from the cancer-free Fanboys.
• Ewan McGregor claiming Trainspotting had more influence than Star Wars prequels. On his career, perhaps.