Box Office Update: Sweet Simplicity

Lets not pretend like this has been a disappointing weekend, because it certainly wasn't by any degree. Perhaps a failure of intellect at the most, but not of entertainment or profit. This weekend had a lot of people going out to the theaters, mostly to see Jackass 3D. The film managed to garner the highest 3D opening weekend since Despicable Me, and the highest opening in general since Inception. The makers may have sacrificed their very well being by attempting to make this comedic venture become a reality, but if they keep raking in earnings like this, I'd consider it a successful investment.

Even Red was able to scratch out an earning against the competition. While not high for a comic book adaptation, when scaled as an average action flick, it did pretty well for itself. Audience appeal should carry it through the next two weeks before the rush of November. The Social Network kept intelligent audiences intact with a less than 30% drop from last weekend. The only other film to hold similarly was Secretariat, which seems to have the same staying power as The Blind Side had not even a year ago, at least in the box office. This weekend was a high rise from last weekend, even if it didn't quite match up to the same weekend last year when Where The Wild Things Are took center stage.

1. Jackass 3D (First Weekend; $50 million)
2. Red (First Weekend; $22.5 million)
3. The Social Network (Third Weekend; $11 million)
4. Secretariat (Second Weekend; $9.5 million)
5. Life as We Know It (Second Weekend; $9.2 million)
6. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (Fourth Weekend; $4.2 million)
7. The Town (Fifth Weekend; $4 million)
8. My Soul to Take (Second Weekend; $3.2 million)
9. Easy A (Fifth Weekend; $2.7 million)
10. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (Fourth Weekend; $2.4 million)

Box Office Update: Staying Social

For the second week in a row, audiences decided to reward quality over corn. The Social Network landed the top spot in a relatively weak weekend, but things are still on the rise. However, while you can pretend that things have changed, they really haven't, which is why Life as We Know It came in second with the support of a mainly female audience. Somewhat predictably, Secretariat did become this year's The Blind Side in a sense, because while critics didn't love it, it seems that audiences did. Here's hoping the box office doesn't blossom to push the horse race film to a similar fate.

10. You Again (Third Weekend; $2.5 million)
9. Case 39 (Second Weekend; $2.6 million)
8. Easy A (Fourth Weekend; $4.2 million)
7. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (Third Weekend; $4.6 million)
6. The Town (Fourth Weekend; $6.4 million)
5. My Soul to Take (First Weekend; $6.9 million)
4. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (Third Weekend; $7 million)
3. Secretariat (First Weekend; $12.6 million)
2. Life as We Know It (First Weekend; $14.6 million)
1. The Social Network (Second Weekend; $15.5 million)

Box-Office Update: Accepted and Ignored

Last weekend truly was the last that we'd see Inception as a presence in the top ten, giving something of a fresher atmosphere for the autumn season. The Social Network matched it's critical acclaim by coming first in the box office this weekend. Sony has had a good month, both with David Fincher's new film, as well as the Emma Stone comedy, Easy A, which fell a mere 32% from last weekend. The biggest disappointment of the weekend, for me at least, was Let Me In coming in eighth, just behind the far more mediocre Case 39. I'm not going to let other audience's reactions influence my outlook on Let Me In, but I will take the low opening weekend gross as an indication that the film won't stay in theaters for long, so expect a review next weekend.

10. Alpha and Omega (Third Weekend; $3 million)
9. Devil (Third Weekend; $3.7 million)
8. Let Me In (First Weekend; $5.3 million)
7. Case 39 (First Weekend; $5.4 million)
6. You Again (Second Weekend; $5.5 million)
5. Easy A (Third Weekend; $7 million)
4. The Town (Third Weekend; $10 million)
3. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (Second Weekend; $10.1 million)
2. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (Second Weekend; $10.9 million)
1. The Social Network (First Weekend; $23 million)

Box Office Update: Yes and No

I imagine that I had a much more enjoyable time this weekend than the regular film-goer. Everyone else was out there catching disappointments, such as You Again and Wall Street 2, while I enjoyed one of the best films of the year. The insufferable two hours I had to spend afterwords was a worthy sacrifice for the time I had. This weekend also offered a chance to see either of last weekend's big releases before next weekend when The Social Network and Let Me In take over the theaters. I'm going to say that this is definitely the last week Inception will stay in the top 10 for. Summer is over, and it's time to move forward.

10. Inception (Eleventh Weekend; $1.2 million; -37%)
9. Takers (Fifth Weekend; $1.7 million; -46%)
8. Alpha and Omega (Second Weekend; $4.7 million; 48%)
7. Resident Evil: Afterlife (Third Weekend; $4.9 million; -51%)
6. Devil (Second Weekend; $6.5 million; -47%)
5. You Again (First Weekend; $8.3 million)
4. Easy A (Second Weekend; $10.7 million; -40%)
3. The Town (Second Weekend; $16 million; -33%)
2. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Gahoole (First Weekend; $16.3 million)
1. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (First Weekend; $19 million)

The Weekend Report: The Owls, The Gekko, and Betty White

We've got three new releases this weekend, but they don't matter that much to me. Tomorrow I'll be taking a look at two of the top films from recent festivals: The King's Speech and Never Let Me Go. I'll get to talk about more on those two once I've actually seen them, but for now lets talk about the three core releases. The film that I've felt the most irrational attraction to is surprisingly Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Gahoole. Originally I had no intention of seeing it, but I've heard some good things about the visuals potentially rivaling Avatar, another film with a visually stunning life that I didn't favor. Then again, I saw that film, so I guess I could give this one a shot at matinee price.

The other big release this weekend is Oliver Stone's Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. I didn't see the original Wall Street, so immediately there's that in the way. On top of that, this film stars Shia Labeouf whose one-note acting style I don't enjoy. This film does benefit from Carey Mulligan playing a part, but it's a strictly supporting role so I don't put the odds on me seeing this film. The film that I wanted to see at first was You Again, and the trailer honestly looked funny to me. However, reviews have been completely slamming this film against the wall as they do for nearly every poor comedy these days. It's sad to say that I may have misplaced my trust. So the score for this weekend is either 1/3 or 0/3. Doesn't matter much to me, because I'm playing the film slate outside the regular market. At least I hope I am. I may just end up getting to Portsmouth to hear them tell me they have no record of my tickets. Really hoping that that doesn't happen.

For Your Acknowledgement: Please... No... Sorry

Well, of the three films releasing today, the one with probably the best chance of success is Oliver Stone's Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. I know that the first film was probably great, but I'm not going to go through the effort to actually see it. The same applies to this film, as it pushes Shia Labeouf at his whiny best. His acting in this scene is mumbling that's even less coherent than the incomplete sentences of the Twilight series.

3 to See in September!

The lineup of films this September isn't nearly a depressing as August was. That may be because the summer is over and therefore people are going to be too busy to go out to the theaters on numerous occasions. It might be because we're heading into Autumn when more Oscar worthy films tend to pop up. I strictly believe it's because there are just some good movies out this month, along with some diverting and unnecessary flops waiting to happen (You Again, Alpha and Omega, Devil). Before I get into the top three, I would like to draw attention to a few films that almost made this list, and do have the potential to be surprise hits.

Easy A, whose trailer I initially panned because I couldn't brush from my memory how disgusting Amanda Bynes looks in the film, actually looks like a moderately funny and enjoyable film. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps got some good reviews coming out of Cannes, so you might want to watch out for that. Ben Affleck's The Town has a decent amount of buzz going for it, but it looks a little too much like Brooklyn's Finest, or any other cop drama out there. However, you never can tell with Ben Affleck whether he is going to make a great film or not. Now on to my three to see.

3. MacheteThe audience favorite of the month definitely has to go to Robert Rodriguez's Machete, based on the fake-trailer that premiered in Grindhouse a few years back. One thing that Rodriguez knows how to do best is old-style gritty violence with a comedic edge to it. You can see that talent in the trailer with the title character using some poor guy's intestines as a rope to swing into a lower window. This film exists for the action within it, and for Danny Trejo to shine in a lead role. The main actor to watch in this movie is Cheech Marin, who plays the catholic priest brother of Machete. I can tell from the trailer that he's going to get most of the lines that will be remembered in this film.

2. The American Barely beating out Machete for the number two spot on my list of films to look forward to next month is Anton Corbijn's The American. I'd like to say up front that I don't think this film will be a huge presence in the awards season. Maybe for the cinematography, and perhaps for George Clooney's performance, but not much beyond that. Still, I think this will be the sort of contemplative thriller that I usually enjoy. I enjoy the slow-building intensity that those films give, instead of the quick jolts of the average thriller that you quickly get used to. This film may not be something incredibly new, but it looks like something incredibly good.

1. Never Let Me Go (Limited Release) Never Let Me Go doesn't get a wide release until later on, but it's worth nothing. It's a british drama based on a beloved book, starring Kiera Knightly, Carey Mulligan, and Andrew Garfield. It's got the most basic buzz surrounding it already, so if it actually manages to be a heartfelt and enjoyable film, it could break through to be a legitimate contender this awards season, like Atonement did in 2007. I dearly hope I'm not wrong to place my vote of confidence in this film. As it is, my other two picks on the list seem either destined not to be critical darlings, or have been too quiet to encourage confidence that they'll actually be good. So I'm going to sit back and pray that all three of these movies I want to see, including my top pick, are reviewed positively so that for once in my life, I can be right about what you should and shouldn't see.