Weekend Report: And the sharks will come...

It seems like such a coercive duty to hammer out a piece on this weekend's films in a time where more absorbing prospects are happening elsewhere. Indeed I'd much rather spend time writing what is, more or less, unread gossip on films I haven't had the chance to see as of yet. Taking things with a grain of salt doesn't quite cut it. You have to realize that your work requires a higher calling than simple ideas and impressions. As much as this business is based on such, it's also necessary to reserve bias to a degree until just seconds before the film begins.

On the other hand, there's no harm in ripping the mickey out of the trash bag collection of films spewed onto the big screen on a weekly basis. One almost wishes these films were let out infrequently throughout the week, rather than just dumped on Friday like an afterthought. In that respect, "The Debt" did manage to get out ahead of the pack, just to escape the comparative doltishness of the mainstream releases. That said, John Madden's less than bombastic thriller didn't get off to a great start on Wednesday, so prognostication for the weekend box office isn't too friendly.

There is, regrettably, more reason for the masses to flock to the more mainstream horror smashes of the weekend. "Apollo 18" arrives on a mix of post-"Cloverfield" era mockumentary idiocy and faux-conspiracy laced buzz that will probably manage to get people in the theaters anyway. I mean, it looks like "Paranormal Activity" is space, right? What could go wrong? And then there's "Shark Night 3D", working off the same formula of mindless carnage as "Piranha 3D" did last year, probably to less enthusiasm.