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BEST BETs: A solid group of movies coming out on DVD, highlighted by the Oscar nominated performance by Melissa Leo in “Frozen River”… the Oscar/Golden Globe buzz movies that weren’t nominated, but well reviewed: “W.” and “Miracle at St. Anna”… the thriller “Blindness”… and the romantic drama “Nights in Rodanthe”.

YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN: “Soul Men” got mixed, but mostly negative reviews… and “My Name is Bruce” is more for Bruce Campbell fans (”Evil Dead”).

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New at Theaters (Friday): “Confessions of a Shopaholic”, “Friday the 13th” (2009), “The International”

Watch the trailer for “Confessions of a Shopaholic”

Watch the trailer for “Friday the 13th” (2009)

Watch the trailer for “The International”

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BEST BETs: “The International” is a good looking and decently reviewed action thriller, and “Confessions of a Shopaholic” is the romantic comedy based on best selling novels for women that opens just in time for Valentine’s Day.

YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN: I was not able to make it to the screening of “Friday the 13th”… so horror movie fans… you’re on your own… although I have a feeling you may like the original better.

MY REVIEWS OF OTHER MOVIES CURRENTLY PLAYING IN THEATERS OR AVAILABLE TO RENT: 

Playing at West Michigan movie theaters:
“Slumdog Millionaire” (9.5 / 10)
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (9.5 / 10)
“Changeling”  (9.5 / 10)
“The Wrestler” (8.9 / 10)
“Defiance” (8.0 / 10)
“Revolutionary Road” (7.9 / 10)
“New in Town” (7.9 / 10)
“Australia”  (7.9 / 10)
“Bride Wars” (7.5 / 10)
“Marley & Me” (7.5 / 10)
“Four Christmases”  (7.5 / 10)
“Quantum of Solace”  (7.5 / 10)
“Role Models”  (7.5 / 10)
“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”  (7.5 / 10)
“Paul Blart: Mall Cop” (7.0 / 10)
“Bedtime Stories” (7.0 / 10)
“Hotel for Dogs” (7.0 / 10)
“Twilight”  (7.0 / 10)
“The Day the Earth Stood Still” (6.5 / 10)

- – -

Available to rent or buy:
“The Dark Knight” (9.5 / 10)
“WALL-E” (9.0)
“Pride and Glory” (9.0 / 10)
“Righteous Kill” (8.9 / 10)
“Eagle Eye” (8.5 / 10)
“Burn After Reading” (8.5 / 10)
“Wanted” (8.0 / 10)
“Traitor” (7.5 / 10)
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”
“Get Smart” (7.0 / 10)
“Appaloosa” (6.9 / 10)
“Lakeview Terrace” (6.5 / 10)
“Hellboy II: Golden Army” (6.5 / 10)
“Noise” (6.0 / 10)

- – - 

Next Week at Theaters: “Fired Up”, “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail”

Next Week on DVD: “Body of Lies”, “Changeling”, “Choke”, “Dead Like Me: Life after Death”, “Flash of Genius”, “High School Musical 3: Senior Year”, “Hounddog”, “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People”, “The Midnight Meat Train”, “Quarantine”, “Religulous”, “Still Waiting…” 

New movies last Friday: “Max Payne”, “W.”, “The Secret Life of Bees”, “Sex Drive”

The total box office of $84.76 million is down 2% from last weekend… marking two weeks of decline, but it is $6 million more than this time last year ($78.48 million) !!!

TOP 10 WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (actual results):

1. “Max Payne” - $17.64 million (1st week)

2. “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” - $11.42 million
(3rd week, was #1 last week, lost 35% of its audience from last week)

3. “The Secret Life of Bees” - $10.53 million (1st week)

4. “W.” - $10.51 million (1st week)

5. “Eagle Eye” - $7.03 million
(3rd week, was #4 last week, lost 36% of its audience from last week)

6. “Body of Lies” - $6.82 million
(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 47% of its audience from last week)

7. “Quarantine” - $6.08 million
(2nd week, was #2 last week, lost 57% of its audience from last week)

8. “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” - $3.69 million
(3rd week, was #5 last week, lost 43% of its audience from last week)

9. “Sex Drive” - $3.61 million (1st week)

10. “Nights in Rodanthe” - $2.66 million
(4th week, was #7 last week, lost 42% of its audience from last week)

CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT (10/14/08) 

20. “The Dark Knight” – $0.41 million (total gross: $527.36 million)
(14th week, was #19 last week, lost 22% of its audience from last week)

CHASING HISTORY:

“The Dark Knight” still has a long way to go to close the gap between itself ($527.36 million) and “Titanic” ($600.78 million) for the highest grossing movie ever in the U.S. !!

Although, there are plans to re-release it in January (for Academy Award push and of course.. more $$$$ !!!

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Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Max Payne” poster courtesy 20th Century Fox

“The Dark Knight” poster courtesy Warner Bros.

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

This is not your typical romance, its not a boyfriend-girlfriend date movie, because this movie deals with some heavy issues… its also not typical because it doesn’t go exactly the way you think it might.

“Nights in Rodanthe”

(2008) (rated: PG-13 for some sensuality) (1 hr, 37 min)

Starring: Diane Lane, Richard Gere, Christopher Meloni, James Franco, Viola Davis, Scott Glenn, Pablo Schrieber, Mae Whitman

Genre: Drama/Romance

The Plot: A doctor who is traveling to see his estranged son sparks with an unhappily married woman at a North Carolina inn.

MY TAKE (spoiler free):

“Nights in Rodanthe” marks a reunion of sorts for Lane and Gere, the two hadn’t been on screen together since 2002’s “Unfaithful”, and 1984’s “Cotton Club” but this is not a chick flick in the way you may be used to… this movie deals with a lot of heavy issues like divorce, death of a family member, medical ethics, and broken relationships with family.   This isn’t a date movie for a young couple… more of a date movie for a couple that has been together longer and can handle the emotional ups and downs this movie takes you through.

While this is in some ways different, it is very predictable up to the movie’s twist - which I will not ruin.   The acting is very good except for some of Gere’s acting in the first half of the movie – it feels a little fake or shallow… but as his character changes.. so does his acting – delivering more of a performance we are used to seeing Gere give.  

The supporting cast are great additions that really help this movie standup: Scott Glenn gives another great performance as the husband of Gere’s patient… James Franco gives a short, but emotional turn as Gere’s estranged son… Viola Davis is believable as Lane’s best friend and owner of the Inn, and 20 year old Mae Whitman pulls off the role as Lane’s stubborn teen daughter. 

THE BOTTOM LINE: 

The movie is better than some Romantic Dramas, and certainly one of the better ones this year, but its not likely to win any Academy Awards or make a lot of money at the box office… I give it 7.0 out of 10…. it will do well as a rental and isn’t a bad time/money investment.

So what did you think?  Please post a comment!

 “Nights in Rodanthe” poster courtesy Warner Bros.

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** CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY OTHER MOVIE REVIEWS **

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

New movies last Friday: “Body of Lies”, “City of Ember”, “Quarantine”, “The Duchess” (wider release)

“Quarantine” was 2nd – more than making up its entire $12 million budget in one weekend… which is good because it was disappointing to a lot of viewers, so its numbers ARE GOING TO DROP NEXT WEEKEND… 
“Body of Lies” (15 to see this Fall/Holiday Season) should have opened stronger given the cast of Crowe and DiCaprio, but the subject matter may have kept some away…
“The Express” was 6th – perhaps because the general public didn’t realize it was about more than just college football… 
“City of Ember” made about what I thought it would when I first saw the trailer, but I thought last week’s success of another family movie (”Chihuahua”) would have helped it to higher than 11th place…. 
“The Duchess” move into wide release moved it up from #20 to #9.

TOP 10 WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (actual results):

1. “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” - $17.50 million
(2nd week, 2nd week at #1, lost 40% of its audience from last week)

2. “Quarantine” - $14.21 million (1st week)

3. “Body of Lies” - $12.88 million (1st week)

4. “Eagle Eye” - $10.91 million
(2nd week, was #2 last week, lost 38% of its audience from last week)

5. “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” - $6.42 million
(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 43% of its audience from last week)

6. “The Express” - $4.56 million (1st week)

7. “Nights in Rodanthe” - $4.54 million
(3rd week, was #4 last week, lost 38% of its audience from last week)

5. “Appaloosa” - $3.32 million
(4th week, was #5 last week, lost 34% of its audience from last week)

9. “The Duchess” - $3.30 million (1st week in wide release)

10. “Fireproof” - $3.14 million
(3rd week, was #8 last week, lost 21% of its audience from last week)

– — –

11. “City of Ember” - $3.13 million (1st week)

CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S BOX OFFICE REPORT – 10/6/08

19. “The Dark Knight” – $0.53 million (total gross: $526.69 million)
(13th week, was #21 last week, lost 36% of its audience from last week)

CHASING HISTORY:

“The Dark Knight” has a long way to go to close the gap between itself ($526.69 million) and “Titanic” ($600.78 million) for the highest grossing movie ever in the U.S. !!

Although, there are plans to re-release it in January (for Academy Award push and of course.. more $$$$ !!!

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Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Beverly Hills Chihuahua” poster courtesy Walt Disney

“The Dark Knight” poster courtesy Warner Bros.

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

New movies last Friday: “Beverly Hills Chihuahua”, “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”, “Appaloosa” (limited), “An American Carol” (limited), ”Flash of Genius” (limited), “Blindness” (limited)

I didn’t make a prediction going into last weekend, but if I did, I can honestly say that I didn’t think “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” would be your number one movie this week… c’mon people… I know its a fun family movie from the folks over at Disney… and the other good looking movies were in limited release…. but it was #1 by more than $11 million dollars… yikes… at least I know it will get bumped by “Body of Lies” or “City of Ember” this coming weekend.

So make that back to back weeks with a surprise, last week’s surprise #4 – the Christian themed “Fireproof” starring Kirk Cameron was #8 this week… I was hoping for better numbers for 2 of my 15 to see this Fall/Holiday Season:“Appaloosa” and “Blindness” BUT THEY are not in wide release *yet*.

TOP 10 WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (actual results):

1. “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” - $29.30 million (1st week)

2. “Eagle Eye” - $29.20 million

(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 39% of its audience from last week)

3. “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” - $11.31 million (1st week)

4. “Nights in Rodanthe” - $7.37 million

(2nd week, was #2 last week, lost 45% of its audience from last week)

5. “Appaloosa” - $5.05 million (1st week - wider, but limited release)

6. “Lakeview Terrace” - $4.56 million

(3rd week, was #3 last week, lost 35% of its audience from last week)

7. “Burn After Reading” - $4.12 million

(4th week, was #5 last week, lost 34% of its audience from last week)

8. “Fireproof” - $3.99 million

(2nd week, was #4 last week, lost 41% of its audience from last week)

9. “An American Carol” - $3.66 million (1st week) (limited release)

10. “Religulous” - $3.41 million (1st week) (limited release)

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11. “Flash of Genius” - $2.25 million (1st week) (limited release)

12. “Blindness” - $1.95 million (1st week) (limited release)

19. “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People” - $1.43 million (1st week) (limited release)

21. “The Dark Knight” – $0.83 million (total gross: $525.83 million)
(12th week, was #13 last week, lost 50% of its audience from last week)

CHASING HISTORY:

“The Dark Knight” has a long way to go to close the gap between itself ($525.83 million) and “Titanic” ($600.78 million) for the highest grossing movie ever in the U.S. !!

Although, there are plans to re-release it in January (for Academy Award push and of course.. more $$$$ !!!

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Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Beverly Hills Chihuahua” poster courtesy Walt Disney

“The Dark Knight” poster courtesy Warner Bros.

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

The political/conspiracy thriller “Eagle Eye” did not disappoint, but the other new movies this weekend didn’t do as well as I expected: “Nights in Rodanthe” was 2nd, but about $2 million less than my prediction.

I’m really surprised that “Miracle at St. Anna” was #9 and earned only $3.50 million considering the huge marketing push and Academy Award buzz around the movie… but sometimes war movies just don’t do well at the box office. 

The surprise of the week is “Fireproof”… a small budget/independent movie in limited release this week, starring Kirk Cameron, but it had the 2nd highest per screen average, second only to “Eagle Eye”.

TOP 10 WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (studio estimates):

1. “Eagle Eye” - $29.20 million (1st week)

2. “Nights in Rodanthe” - $13.57 million (1st week)

3. “Lakeview Terrace” - $7.00 million

(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 53% of its audience from last week)

4. “Fireproof” - $6.51 million (1st week)

5. “Burn After Reading” - $6.17 million

(3rd week, was #2 last week, lost 44% of its audience from last week)

6. “Igor” - $5.50 million

(2nd week, was #4 last week, lost 29% of its audience from last week)

7. “Righteous Kill” - $3.80 million

(3rd week, was #5 last week, lost 49% of its audience from last week)

8. “My Best Friend’s Girl” - $3.80 million

(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 54% of its audience from last week)

9. “Miracle at St. Anna” - $3.50 million (1st week)

10. “The Family That Preys” - $3.16 million

(3rd week, was #6 last week, lost 56% of its audience from last week)

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11. “Ghost Town” - $2.95 million

(2nd week, was #8 last week, lost 41% of its audience from last week)

12. “The Women” - $2.65 million

(3rd week, was #7 last week, lost 51% of its audience from last week)

13. “The Dark Knight” – $1.66 million (total gross: $524.46 million)
(11th week, was #9 last week, lost 43% of its audience from last week)

CHASING HISTORY:

“The Dark Knight” may end up falling short of closing the gap between itself ($524.46 million) and “Titanic” ($600.78 million) for the highest grossing movie ever in the U.S. !!

Although, there are plans to re-release it in January (for Academy Award push and of course.. more $$$$ !!!

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Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Eagle Eye” poster courtesy DreamWorks SKG

“The Dark Knight” poster courtesy Warner Bros.

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

The political/conspiracy thriller “Eagle Eye” did not disappoint, but the other new movies this weekend didn’t do as well as I expected: “Nights in Rodanthe” was 2nd, but about $2 million less than my prediction.

I’m really surprised that “Miracle at St. Anna” was #9 and earned only $3.50 million considering the huge marketing push and Academy Award buzz around the movie… but sometimes war movies just don’t do well at the box office. 

The surprise of the week is “Fireproof”… a small budget/independent movie in limited release this week, starring Kirk Cameron, but it had the 2nd highest per screen average, second only to “Eagle Eye”.

TOP 10 WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (studio estimates):

1. “Eagle Eye” - $29.20 million (1st week)

2. “Nights in Rodanthe” - $13.57 million (1st week)

3. “Lakeview Terrace” - $7.00 million

(2nd week, was #1 last week, lost 53% of its audience from last week)

4. “Fireproof” - $6.51 million (1st week)

5. “Burn After Reading” - $6.17 million

(3rd week, was #2 last week, lost 44% of its audience from last week)

6. “Igor” - $5.50 million

(2nd week, was #4 last week, lost 29% of its audience from last week)

7. “Righteous Kill” - $3.80 million

(3rd week, was #5 last week, lost 49% of its audience from last week)

8. “My Best Friend’s Girl” - $3.80 million

(2nd week, was #3 last week, lost 54% of its audience from last week)

9. “Miracle at St. Anna” - $3.50 million (1st week)

10. “The Family That Preys” - $3.16 million

(3rd week, was #6 last week, lost 56% of its audience from last week)

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11. “Ghost Town” - $2.95 million

(2nd week, was #8 last week, lost 41% of its audience from last week)

12. “The Women” - $2.65 million

(3rd week, was #7 last week, lost 51% of its audience from last week)

13. “The Dark Knight” – $1.66 million (total gross: $524.46 million)
(11th week, was #9 last week, lost 43% of its audience from last week)

CHASING HISTORY:

“The Dark Knight” may end up falling short of closing the gap between itself ($524.46 million) and “Titanic” ($600.78 million) for the highest grossing movie ever in the U.S. !!

Although, there are plans to re-release it in January (for Academy Award push and of course.. more $$$$ !!!

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Box Office numbers courtesy Box Office Mojo

“Eagle Eye” poster courtesy DreamWorks SKG

“The Dark Knight” poster courtesy Warner Bros.

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

In Theaters (Friday): “Eagle Eye”, “Miracle at St. Anna”, “Nights in Rodanthe” My Take: There won’t be many moviegoers that can’t find what they’re looking for this weekend… thanks to the 3 new movies debuting this weekend (and the movies already playing in theaters).

You want an Action/Thriller blockbuster this week? You got it! (“Eagle Eye”)

You want a Drama with Academy Award buzz? You got it! (“Miracle at St. Anna”)

You want a Romantic movie? You got it! (“Nights in Rodanthe”)

—- “Eagle Eye” starring Shia LaBeouf, Michelle Monaghan,

Rosario Dawson, Michael Chiklis, Ethan Embry, Billy Bob Thorton Genre: Action/Mystery/Thriller
The Plot: Jerry Shaw (LaBeouf) and Rachel Holloman (Monaghan) are two strangers thrown together by a mysterious phone call from a woman they have never met. Threatening their lives and family, she pushes Jerry and Rachel into a series of increasingly dangerous situation, using the technology of everyday life to track and control their every move. As the situation escalates, these two ordinary people become the country’s most wanted fugitives, who must work together to discover what is really happening — and more importantly, why. —-“Miracle at St. Anna” starring Derek Luke, Michael Ealy, Laz Alonso, Omar Benson Miller, Pierfrancesco Favino, Valentina Cervi, John Tutturro, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, John Leguizamo, Kerry Washington, D.B. Sweeney Directed by: Spike Lee Genre: War Drama/Action/Thriller
The Plot: Set in 1944 Italy, the story of four black American soldiers who get trapped in a Tuscan village during WWII. —-“Nights in Rodanthe” starring Richard Gere, Diane Lane, Christopher Meloni, Viola Davis Genre: Drama/Romance
The Plot: A doctor (Gere) who is traveling to see his estranged son sparks with an unhappily married woman (Lane) at a North Carolina inn. —- These solid offerings should do well at the box office this weekend. —- Next Week at Theaters: “Appaloosa”, “Blindness”, “Beverly Hills Chihuahua”, “Flash of Genius”, “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People”, “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”, “An American Carol” (limited release)

My predictions of the winners and losers at the box office this weekend:

This week, 3 new movies hit theaters in Wide Release on Friday: “Eagle Eye”, “Miracle at St. Anna”, “Nights in Rodanthe”…

…while one of the movies: “Miracle at St. Anna” is likely to get the most Academy Award attention, and “Nights in Rodanthe” is the big date-movie this weekend, the action/thriller “Eagle Eye” will stack ‘em up at the box office this weekend!!!

I also think this is the weekend when “The Dark Knight” could get knocked out of the top 10…

My predictions:

1. “Eagle Eye” – $22 million

2. “Nights in Rodanthe” – $16 million

3. “Miracle at St. Anna” – $12 million

4. ”Burn After Reading” – $10.5 million

5. “Lakeview Terrace” – $10 million

6. “Igor” - $7 million

7. “My Best Friend’s Girl” – $5 million

8. “The Family That Preys” - $3.5 million

9. “Righteous Kill” - $3 million

10. “The Women” - $2 million

——–

11. “The Dark Knight” – $1.5 million

Compare my predicitions to:
Last Week’s Top 10 Weekend Box Office list 9/22/08 (studio estimates):

1. “Lakeview Terrace” - $15.60 million (1st week)

2. “Burn After Reading” - $11.29 million

3. “My Best Friend’s Girl” - $8.60 million (1st week)

4. “Igor” - $8.01 million (1st week)

5. “Righteous Kill” - $7.70 million

6. “The Family That Preys” - $7.50 million

7. “The Women” - $5.31 million

8. “Ghost Town” - $5.17 million (1st week)

9. “The Dark Knight” – $2.95 million (total gross: $521.92 million)

10. “The House Bunny” - $2.80 million