Comedy takes over box office; Oscar commercial spots sell out

A crippling snowstorm, which blanketed the many parts of the northeast, didn't do as much box office damage as it could have. Meanwhile, film critic Reed took McCarthy to task in a review. But, this was not just to task over the movie, but attacked her weight. Not a good idea, but in this day and age of over-abundant snarky behavior and attitude, it not all that surprising. Albeit it is unprofessional but not a surprise. Weekend 1. "Identity Thief" - $36.5 million 2. "Warm Bodies" - $11.5 million 3. "Side Effects" - $10.5 million 4. "Silver Linings Playbook" - $9.6 million 5. "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters" - $5.7 million Last week's No. 1, "Warm Bodies," fell a spot and the last film from Steven Soderbergh, "Side Effects," was somewhat of a disappointment. But can this really be his last film? For some, this weekend meant going back to the 1980s and taking a new look at a favorite. "Top Gun 3D" took in $1.9 million on just 300 screens. Award notes Oscars are coming and now it has been noted that the spots have sold out. That doesn't always happen with the show still being two weeks away. They sold for up to $1.85 million for a 30-second spot. The L.A. Times reported the reason for its advertising success boils down to influence and "well-educated and affluent viewers with plenty of disposable income." Hyundai, which is the exclusive auto buyer, said they are on board because the show is about "style and sophistication." The final push for voters is being weighed now and it seems like, if one wants to go by appearances on talk shows, that "Silver Linings Playbook" has the most to gain. Two films seem to have fallen off the radar. They are "Zero Dark Thirty" and "Django Unchained." But, just recently, historical accuracies of "Lincoln" came into question. That leads to one thing this reports notes. When looking to Hollywood, the key is entertainment, not accuracy.