UPDATE 2! The Prices Are Alright: Hidden Monster Update

We have FINAL numbers for the weekend, and new rankings after the jump.

UPDATED! The Price's Are Alright- ORCCA Box Office Results Week One, and Top Ten Grossing Movies for May 6-8, 2011

     Greetings, salutations, and welcomes, this is Jaysun. This is the first installment of Summer Box Office Prediction Roundup Bonanza Game Deal...Thing. Starting with The Spectacular Summer Movie Spectacular on Friday, the members of ORCCA are predicting the opening weekend results of new releases throughout the summer, that would be the last weekend of May. Of course, we are not paid analysts (maybe I should be!) so this is super fun happy time for us, and since we don't follow sports, this is the closest we have to competition. As usual with an ORCCA fame, the rules are slightly more complicated than most prediction games and I will explain that here. Each week, for every wide release, a member of ORCCA will give an opening weekend gross prediction based on any factors that the estimator chooses. I, Jaysun, will record these numbers, and on that Sunday will give preliminary results based on Sunday morning estimates. These will hold until Monday night, when revised numbers come up and final tallies are made.
  This is the game part, everyone begins with 1000 points. If a member's estimate falls BELOW the actual gross, a point is deducted for every million dollars under the actual amount, rounded to the closest amount. If a member's estimate is HIGHER than the actual gross, two points are deducted from the score. Because, as we know from the Price is Right, it's better to be under than over in number prediction...mostly. If a member guesses the CORRECT amount (within $900,000 of the same amount i.e. if I guess Thor at 66 million, and it makes 66.9 million) than 5 points are ADDED to the score. Sometimes an entrant will choose not to predict an amount because they cannot get a handle on it, this is an automatic 5 point loss. Highest score on August 29th wins. Right now the game consists of Jaysun, Richard, Michael, and Chris. Marshall may choose to join next week at a handicap. And maybe a guest will play sometimes for exhibition. This will also be a Sunday post so you, our esteemed listeners, will have a great place to see box office results before you hear them at many other places. My sources will include Boxofficeguru.com, Deadline.com, and Boxofficemojo.com

So, GAMETIME!

Opening Points:
Jaysun- 1000
Chris- 1000
Richard-1000
Michael- 1000

THOR: 65.7 million (66)
Jaysun- 68 million: -4
Chris- 75 million: -18
Richard- 72 million: -12
Michael- 80 million: -28

SOMETHING BORROWED: 14 million
Jaysun- 12 million: -2
Chris-  12 million: -2
Richard- 12 million: -2
Michael- $1: -5

JUMPING THE BROOM: 15 million
Jaysun- 6 million: -9
Chris- $1: -5
Richard- 4 million: -11
Michael- $1: -5

New Scores and Rankings:
Jaysun- 985
Richard- 975
Chris- 975
Michael- 962

Jaysun is in the lead for now, not much difference yet, but by the end of May, expect some WILDLY divergent numbers.

So what was the Top Ten?

1. Thor: 66 million. Nearly expected by the studio. Don't see this as a sign that the public doesn't want to see Thor, they just don't know much about him or the stars. This opened on the same level as The Incredible Hulk, attendance wise. But Hulk is a MAJOR comic character, with a popular television series and cartoons, bigger stars as well. Marvel should see this as a major victory, much like Iron Man (with huge movie stars involved) opened near Spider-Man numbers. Trust me, the studio will be VERY happy with these numbers, and you should too. I expect better legs than Hulk, so a higher overall take.

2. Fast Five: 32.4 million. -62% drop. Pretty much expected, but officials on Friday night believed a $40 million weekend was possible. This feature had huge buzz from it's opening weekend, so this will more than likely be the biggest drop it takes during it's run. It's looking like a final of $190-200 million to me. Will make it the highest grossing in the franchise. Seriously, how many franchises get their second wind at movie 4, and movie 5 is the biggest? I will investigate this for our next episode, I expect not many but maybe a horror franchise.

3. Jumping The Broom: 15.2 million. Out of no where. But welcomed by the studio, Sony is DESPERATE for profit. And this will make it, it's budget was in the 6 million dollar range, so it's already doubled. A good standard to see is if a movie triples it's budget, it enters profit (with advertising and distribution costs factored AFTER budget). Good for it though, good counter-programming. UPDATE: Huge 2 million difference in estimates vs. finals. WTF Rentak?!

4. Something Borrowed: 13.1 million. Yea, not much to say or see here. Average opening. Kate Hudson can't sell movies, can't and won't happen.

5. Rio: 8.5 million. -43% drop. This is not taking in as much as I and many others thought. It had a decent opening, and a great second weekend, but since then has not been too kind.

6. Water for Elephants: 6.1 million. -35% drop. This is performing as I expected, solid but not great. Just too early in the year for it. September or October would have been a benefit for a movie like this. Looks to end at around 52 million.

7. Madea's Big Happy Family: 4.2 million. -58% drop. So, not even the Madea movies can pull what they once did. Big drops week after week, I believe it is time for Mr. Perry to enter a new phase of his career, his movies have saturated the market and people are waiting for them to be on television by now. Two movies a year is silly. To Tyler Perry- Of course your studio wants them quickly, they have to think in short term, since you make profits. But it is killing your name and brand and integrity. Slow down, make it on your terms. There are TONS of movies, not every director needs a movie a year to be remembered, those days are long gone.

8. Prom: 2.2 million. -53% drop. Why was this a theatrical release again? Keep it on cable movie of the week. Know the difference.

9. Soul Surfer: 2.3 million. -32% drop. Wow, this movie over performed. No expectations can do that though. Congrats to the team behind this, filmmaker and marketers. Sony needed this to break even very badly, and might end up making a little money after home video release. Cool poster too.

10. Hoodwinked Too!: 2 million. -50% drop. HA! Sorry, that was mean, I will giggle under my breath from now on. Look, 50 million (well 51 if I remember) from the first movie is good, but it was released in JANUARY of 2006. It had no competition. Do kids want to see crappy animation at the same time Rio and Rango are out? Have a brain people. Yes, it is intentionally crappy looking, but that's why releases in dead months would work. Plus advertising was non existent for this. Quick, painful death for this movie, and franchise. Don't expect overseas to help much.

Concluding the first Box Office post of the summer season. Congrats to the winners, and sorrow for the losers. Or something like that. Remember to check back on MONDAY for updated numbers and scores, as it will not be the top post of the day. We will, of course, discuss the results on the next episode of ORCCAcast, and follow on Twitter for updates during weekends. Happy Mom Day! You know who else' day it is? MY MOM!!!!

Episode #37: OMG War on X-mas

Well the weather outside is frightening but the Orccacast is here for 'delighting' and you all know what that means: more Orccasterpiece theater! Where will the craziness of 'Faith without Wings' lead to next? No one can be sure but at least it makes more sense then 'All-star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder' and that's something our ghost author can be proud of. Marshall joins us live in the studio so we can go over 30 things we're looking forward to in 2011 while musing on the insanity of the holiday season. Lantern Corpsner takes it all home in style for what may be one of the most intense sessions yet!

Matty Nightmares and Movie Posters

So King Grayskull, Venkman and the Great Wars Weapon Pak came out today; in the process of struggling with the Matty Collector website I have way too big a headache to focus on writing anything lengthy so I'm instead going to improvise (re: be lazy) and comment on some of the recent posters that have been popping up without much hoopla.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On stranger Tides

It's all about growing the brand

So this is out there. This is pretty much the ultimate in Teaser Posters as it tells you nothing but a release date; no mention of Johnny Depp or Geoffrey Rush much less Keith Richards (who's apparently back in a bigger role). That's pretty much not needed though as there's a reason that Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley aren't coming back for this one: no one cares. Has the hair on the skull always been white and I've just never noticed? Maybe it's meant to hint at the hunt for the Fountain of Youth plot point. It is interesting that the skull's apparently made of metal as it kind of resembles the teaser for 'The Expendables'.

Kung Fu Panda 2 

These came out right on top of one another, maybe in hindsight on Paramount's part that this is going to need a much bigger marketing push then the Justin Bieber movie that it split an attached trailer with. I can only imagine that a full-on CGI feature has to cost a lot more than a hastily assembled psuedo-biopic/concert movie. The first Kung Fu Panda was a big surprise to me; I never really liked anything Dreamworks Feature Animation had done before and this one finally hit the nail on the head enough for them to earn my grudging respect. Of the two of these I much prefer the second one as the expression is completely priceless and it has the benefit of no empty space underneath the character's crotch. Sure it has less info on it but it also doesn't bitch-slap 2D as the ancillary method of audience viewing,so points for that. Here's hoping the final isn't incredible as I have a real reluctance for keeping sequel posters when I lack one for the original (Toy Story 3 being an exception though at some point I plant to get the others). At any rate it'll hopefully outdo the Megamind final where they forgot the title character's facial hair.

Don't be afraid of the Dark 

This is a neat little number; it has a real Edward Gorey vibe and that helps it stand out. The advertising has been a little soft for this (there's only been one trailer that's come in on the hard drives) so it's good to see something that stands out like this. Not sure about the January release date but I think 'The Orphanage' was a first quarter release too and it did a little above expectations.

Mars needs Moms

This may be the final, it's hard to tell at this point; there's no date or rating (admittedly the rating on what is supposedly the 'Tron: Legacy' final is also missing) so there's no guarantee of that. I'm glad to see that they've found a pretty evocative image and cute tagline for Berkeley Breathed's charming picture book though Simon Wells has yet to direct anything I've really been thrilled with (I'm looking at you 'The Time Machine'). I have faith in Zemeckis since I enjoyed 'Monster House' and anything related to Breathed will manage to get my attention. Good to know Mindy Sterling isn't dead either.

Cowboys and Aliens

I HAVE BEATEN YOU YAHOO! WATERMARK

This was the big reveal today over at Yahoo! Movie News. At least it was until the Pirates 4 poster popped up. You can see I've circumvented their watermark by taking a picture of the real one I got when I ran by work today. Yes, that's the fridge in my kitchen.

Anyway, this is the first picture I've seen for Jon Favreau's adaptation of Fred Van Lente's comic and I have to say it's pretty cool. They're probably not doing themselves any favors by leaving out the cast members but I don't mind since it keeps it uncluttered. Besides I don't know if any movie star is enough to pull people in who aren't already convinced of the concepts. It's got a Cowboy and a piece of presumably Alien technology so all parties involved are represented.


So there you go: Matty gives me brain damage and as a result you guys get a peak into what it's like when I bring my work home with me. I'm hoping that the Tron Triptych comes out domestically but otherwise I'm basically in a holding pattern until we get 'Thor' or 'Captain America' teasers.

Episode #35: The present is NOW!

Set sail for advennnnnnnnnnnnnnnnntuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! This week on the ORCCAcast we're once again joined by C the one, the only Chris Kinsel just in time for part 2 of the Orccasterpiece theater production of 'Faith Without Wings!' Parliament throws down the gauntlet at 3-D! Marshall tells us a funny story about Ian Mckellan! Jas makes fun of Ke$ha again! I completely blank when I get my death ring! All that plus we bid farewell to a crew member going on shore leave... FOREVER!!

Reel Madness: 'Inglourious Basterds' and 'Precious'

When I started jotting down my thoughts for these I knew I'd be getting some shit for what I'd be saying about 'Inglourious Basterds'. I'm sure I'll be getting shit about it for years to come. The truth, really, is that Tarantino's latest was hard to quantify because while I found it to be very entertaining the first time, I wasn't quite as engaged in my subsequent viewing.

We never got this poster.

 The first time I watched 'IB' I enjoyed it a lot and found that it clipped along despite my relative disinterest in the Basterds themselves. The second time, I found it interminable. I do realize emotional state can play a lot into enjoyment of a movie (for an example of that, look no further then my Brother. He's pissy all the time and therefore hates any movie that isn't a retro-kitsch pastiche fest or has no muskets being loaded) so I do need to see it again; in the meantime, all I can go on is the fact that the first time was the peak, the second the valley.

Maybe the minor flaws from the first time had become more glaring with hindsight. I never really cared for the titular Basterds as they seem very much like throwaway badasses with little to set them apart excusing their differing degrees of supposed badassery. I hadn't realized how much of the movie's tension is diffused by the fact that they ultimately don't really matter. The Basterds apparently really annoy Hitler but we never see why they'd happen to be more irksome then say, the German defeat at Stalingrad. These guys are a public relations nightmare, that's clear and we definitely see that the German soldiers live in absolute terror of the guys. But I don't know how that's a worse threat then being sent to the Eastern front where you could be eaten by a bear (this is a Tarantino movie so I'm not ruling it out). The possibility that the entire Russian campaign never happened in this universe is there though, since we never see or hear anything about it. But the fact that the Eastern Front was home to most aspects of the Holocaust would seem to give context to the Basterds remorseless torture of the Nazi's they meet, right?

I'm reading into this too deeply aren't I?

Anyway I'm going to say that the Basterds just hate Nazi's arbitrarily in reflection of the fact that they kind of don't matter so much to the movie. More than half of them are dispatched off-screen so I think around the time Tarantino was watching the dailies he realized the movie really only needed to be about one thing anyway: Christoph Waltz as Colonel Hans Landa.

Make no mistake; the movie wouldn't be half as interesting without Waltz. The first time I saw it, he was all I could talk about; the second, all I still liked. The performance is so strong and engaging I think that's the problem I had with the next viewing: I didn't care about anyone but him. There's an immense amount of time spent on the Basterds not really mattering. Sure they shoot up Hitler and the boys but that's ultimately pointless since Shoshanna blows up the theater anyway. Since it's obvious that Landa recognizes Shoshanna, it's apparent that he was going to have Hitler killed anyway. The fact that we never get any real insight into why is a testament to how entertaining the performance is: we find out very little about Landa other then he enjoys the nicknames he's earned. Maybe he wanted to be "The man who between two simultaneous plans, indirectly killed Hitler"?

We never got this one either. I liked Eli Roth in the movie; he should stick to stuff like this and not make any more 'Hostel' movies. I wonder if that funky gun got a big scene the way that bat did.

I don't know what was cut from the film as it was originally planned to be a lot longer. Maybe there was more about Landa's different motivations and how he became such an insidious puppet master. Perhaps there was more to make Private Zoller less sympathetic and therefore more deserving of his fate. I do know that a big deal in made out of introducing Hugo Stiglitz who ultimately doesn't end up doing much outside of the stylish montage that introduces him. I'm not sure if that's a function of German film star Til Schweiger needing face time for international appeal or if Tarantino just really liked the name 'Hugo Stiglitz'.

On that note, I have to say Shoshanna's story was less interesting during the second go-round. Her part of the movie has the most dramatic moments and it's sad because I think on its own, the events would be even more effective. As it is, a lot of their impact is softened by the fact that she doesn't realize the fact that she's in a comedy. I think Tarantino's a great filmmaker, but I also think he's trapped because at this point everyone expects him to make a 'Tarantino' movie and if he goes away from that he ends up with something like 'Jackie Brown'. The fact that 'JB' made over quadruple its budget doesn't seem to conceal the fact that it's the least liked of his movies by audiences (edging out 'Death Proof' by a hair, apparently). The moments we spend with Shoshanna are among the most realistic Tarantino's committed to film but those damn Basterds get in the way of it being taken too seriously. Then again, that could be the point: Quentin doesn't want to be taken seriously and he's secretly laughing at all the reviews claiming that 'IB' is about the destructive power of art.

Still, a lot more has to be said about how the movie makes it fictional Nazi characters more interesting and sympathetic than the American battalion after which the movies named. I've not really looked into it yet, but I imagine that Aldo Raine's crew of roughnecks end up having less screen time in comparison as well.

I think this is the one that best reflects the movie's concept. As you can imagine, we never got it. I think part of why the Weinstein Co. is on the verge of bankruptcy is because they made about 20 different posters for this.

Maybe with the next viewing of 'Inglourious Basterds' everything will distill for me properly. The expectations I had for it going in the second time could have caused it to curdle in my mind prematurely or I might have just been in the wrong kind of mood for that kind of movie. Either way, I know Tarantino's capable of more precise films than this and I'd hate to see him descend into grotesque self-parody the way Sam Raimi is quickly doing. I think the fact that he's kept the tones of his movie's very consistent will help as there won't be quite as much of that 'sad old man trying to relive his past' feeling. 'Drag Me to Hell' was a master class in that, and I don't think QT could make a movie that bad if he tried.

I'll say that my Dad loves Tarantino to the point where anything that he worked on outside of a producing capacity was a theater-going must for us when I was younger; he really disliked 'Basterds' and it's the only thing Quentin's worked on that he didn't care for.

Then again he said Zach Snyder had officially become the Brian DePalma to Tarantino's Hitchcock when he saw the 'Sucker Punch' trailer so maybe we're both crazy.


So...

This is a lot like 'Anatomy of a Murder'. We did get this poster and as far as I know it's the first one.

'Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire' was a surprising experience for me. I'd heard a lot of things about it beforehand but until I watched it, it just seemed to be this year's well-marketed tragedy of choice with only the fact that it was being distributed from Lionsgate, as opposed to Miramax in past years, setting it apart. They somehow pushed 'Crash' into the best picture slot and an eventual win so I was more than a little wary going in.

However, I was glad to see that Lee Daniels' took material that easily could have been given a pass for its dramatic power and turned out a truly engrossing film. True, the movie is relentless in heaping miseries upon its main character but none of it ever feels artificial. It's the complete opposite of 'A Serious Man' as the tragic elements bring us closer to the main character rather than pushing us away with their tonal inconsistency. Precious' reality is a cruel place, with little kindness or humor to be found so it's fitting that the movie doesn't have any one performance you can place above the others. A lot's been made of Mo'Nique's role as Precious' mother and I suppose that's the easiest one to reflect on since it's shocking how ugly they allow the character to be. Still, the comparisons to Lady Macbeth in reviews I've read seem truly bizarre in light of manipulation taking a backseat to abuse.

Either way, the film really is about the ensemble and how they all support the character of Precious, since her insights into them is what guides her towards a better life. The movie doesn't need to stand on any one performance to reach us and that is one of its greatest strengths. Really it only falters during one point: a strange scene that adopts a music video editing style that temporarily takes you out of what was happening around it. Everything around it is enough for that to be easily overlooked and I highly recommend 'Precious' as a whole. The fact that there's apparently a sequel in the works in disheartening as that seems very artificial; you want things to get better for Precious and by the end of the movie you're left with the hope that's what will eventually happen. Coming back for more seems less about being poignant and more about having arbitrary scenes of Precious’ Mother scream and throw appliances.

Of all the best picture nominees, this is the one that is the most arresting as far as drama goes. That may sound strange in a year when one of the nominees has a Robot fighting a Tiger, another lionizes a Nazi for his unsung manipulations towards killing his superiors and another is about a teenage girl finding out her older Beau is a total cad. It’s easy for something like ‘Precious’ to be ignored in light of it being a harsh experience and seeming like another drama generated to win awards (I’m looking at you ‘The Reader’, ‘Crash’, and ‘Babel’) but that works to its advantage. What it lacks in ‘nominee’ identity it makes up for with the excellence of its content. In the future, that will insure its impact rather than being forgotten the way something like 'Secrets and Lies' has been.

Reel Madness: 'The Blind Side' and 'Up in the Air'

Before I start this second installment about the 2009 best picture nominations I want to point out that these aren't ranked in any order; I just did 'A Serious Man' and 'An Education' first because I wanted to get them out of the way. So today I've got two movies that surprised me in different ways that are linked by how I intend to watch them in the future.

A lot of hoopla has surrounded Sandra Bullock’s performance in ‘The Blind Side’ and as a result the movie got a huge push when nominations were being announced; the fact that it held its own against the onslaught of ‘New Moon’ definitely didn’t tarnish its reputation. I really didn’t want to like this movie but it’s far too well-made for its own good and therefore owns up to the hype. The only previous movie I’ve seen by director John Lee Hancock was the troubled through production but excellent in final execution ‘The Alamo’ and that was enough to make me want him to have a hit. Here, he’s made a very engaging film here to the point where essentially any question or issue you could have with its premise is firmly answered with no sleight-of-hand at all. The story of Michael Oher and Leigh Anne Tuohy is touching and intelligent in a way that even got good word from my crab-ass of a brother. Everyone does a fine job and none of the drama is oversold so it’s a lot more quaint then you would expect. The thought that it’s very easy for a wealthy white family to change a poor black kid’s life is directly acknowledged in the film and that’s a degree of self-awareness I’ve never seen in a family drama. Every challenge you could put forth in criticizing the nature of the movie is acknowledged and it’s intelligent enough to make those reasons work. 

In that way, it’s a little sad because I don’t think it would have managed a nomination if not for the 10 slots. Without the praise for Bullock’s performance, the movie’s reviews mostly relegate it to average marks while accusing it of embodying a lot of the qualities that it was smart enough to avoid. Yes it can be a little syrupy but this is the kind of material that is going to seem that way at least slightly no matter how well made it is. Besides that, it’s not like that kind of content is foreign to the Oscars; ‘The Hurricane’ while excellent, falls into it and let’s not forget ‘Ordinary People’ no matter how much we want to. Still, no matter how much I liked it, I don’t know if it was worth a best picture nomination. Without the extra slots this year, this probably wouldn’t have rated, which makes it one of the “audience favorite” choices. It’s definitely worth seeing and is better than this kind of movie normally is, so everyone should reward its quality. I don’t know how often I may see it in the future but it’s not something I would mind watching again. Good for Hancock and company for making an interesting, uplifting film that’s smart enough to not fall into the laziness that so many others of its type always do. It’s a difficult movie to write about because it’s good qualities are so rare and fragile you don’t want to spoil them by crushing them under a microscope slide; still it’s worth your time and earned it’s praise no matter how half-hearted it seems outside of Bullock’s performance.

I was looking forward to ‘Up in the Air’ a lot, perhaps the most of any of the acclaimed pictures from 2009. It’s been sometime since then and I’m still not entirely sure what it is I think of the movie. The hook is great: A man who’s never had to hold onto anything in his life learns to appreciate the connections you can make with other people while defending the nature of his job. Clooney’s character is Ryan Bingham a man who fires people for a living as a professional corporate downsizer. His unique philosophies, both about how his job needs to be as well as about how he thinks of personal relationships, are both put to the test by him being assigned to travel with Natalie Keener. Played by Anna Kendrick, she’s attempting to change Clooney’s job forever by making it a process done over the internet rather than in person. This opposes Bingham’s love of flying as part of his job as well as challenging how he interprets his unpopular occupation. 

In order to make the sequences of characters being fired feel more realistic, Jason Reitman sought out people who had gone through the experience; as a result the movie gets a little detached from the main character. After we see the major players for the last time, there’s an extended sequence of real men and women describe how they managed to move on from being “let go”. It’s wonderful that Reitman was so moved by these people’s stories but it seems to cheat the actual film of much its emotional heavy lifting. After all, this is about Bingham and not the people he’s fired, no matter how much they factor into the change in his feelings. These interviews bookend a similar set of scenes where the same people discuss their reactions to having been fired, talking of how their family and friends helped them endure through the troubled times. We see Clooney reach out to both and by the end of the film he’s developed one meaningful friendship after meeting his family for the first time in years. That we only see the beginning of these relationships seems a little strange in light of the character keeping his job; as a result I felt a little more distant from him then where I was at the midway point of the film. Seeing all the documentary footage of the downsized is strange because we see their closure but not Ryan Bingham’s. Perhaps that is the point; without spoiling a major plot point, maybe the thought that we see Bingham start on that journey is meant as a counterpoint to all the trips we’ve seen him go on and discuss beforehand. It’s a weird juxtaposition but it may congeal better for me in future viewings. The initial viewing, those interviews took me a bit out of the movie which was hardly their intent to be sure. 

Despite all that, it’s still an emotionally gratifying experience that encourages us to not blindly hate an occupation that many interpret to exist solely for the suffering of others. That’s definitely something I can get behind and it makes me want to see this again soon so I can better sort out my thoughts on it. There are a lot of them there and I’m not sure how well they’re coming across even now. I can definitely get behind one thing: the person who designed the Cover Art for the DVD/Blu-Ray release should have just used the theatrical poster seen above. Instead they went with an uninspiring shot of Clooney and Vera Farmiga’s character that looks like generic 90’s Indie Romcom #27C.  

Blech.

That and I'm not sure how good "The Movie of the Year, the Movie of the Moment" is for praise as it makes the movie sound forgettable whereas I’m sure they were aiming at timeliness when they put it on there.

While 'The Blind Side' is hard for me to write about and 'Up in the Air' still needs some internal processing on my part, they're both definitely worth watching. There's no "Oscar shame" in these two being nominated, as when we look back years from now we won't be wondering just what the hell AMPAS was thinking at the time.