Category: Looking at the Weekend

By the simple fact that Prisoners is opening on more than 3,000 screens, it should be a given that it will take the top spot at the box office. Battle of the Year is releasing more modestly, but wasn’t likely to do major box office feats either way. Individual Commentaries Wesley Lovell: After the festivals…

While it would be nice to say that Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer can top the box office, but the sequel to popular horror flick Insidious is the more likely victor. Individual Commentaries Wesley Lovell: The Family might be a fun comedy starring a pair of talented actors, though Herb & Dorothy 50×50 might…

There are no other wide releases this weekend, which should give Riddick a comfortable lead at the top of the box office. Individual Commentaries Wesley Lovell: I have no desire to see Riddick, but Populaire looks fun. Peter J. Patrick: Absolutely nothing new of interest this week. Tripp Burton: Post-Labor Day must be the new…

Labor Day weekend is the dregs for box office tracking, meaning boy band One Direciton may well find themselves at the top of a lackluster box office with The Butler a close second. Getaway hasn’t gotten much marketing, so I don’t expect it to do well while Closed Circuit has had virtually none and is…

Lee Daniels’ The Butler has a pretty good shot of remaining at #1 for a second week with three seemingly unimpressive titles on the way into the marketplace. You’re Next may have the best shot at beating The Butler simply because horror often has a strong opening. However, the film hasn’t quite gotten the advertising…

Typically, August is a dumping group for films studios originally thought would do boffo box office, but ultimately turned out to be unlikely to do so. They hope that they can claw their way to a decent total to help pay back some of the money they cost. This weekend’s list has one film that…

With family audiences less-than-excited about their available prospects Disney’s latest won’t be one of its best openings and is likely to land second to the week’s big sci-fi action spectacle from District 9 director Neill Blomkamp. Elysium has been hammering the advertising hard and their anti-greed screed should play well with middle America. Individual Commentaries…

It was so popular when it released in 2011 that they brought The Smurfs back for a sequel. They had so little confidence in the film in its predecessor’s winter berth that they’ve pushed it into the lackluster month of August. We’ll see how that works out for them. Individual Commentaries Wesley Lovell: It’s rare…

There’s only one new release this weekend and after all the major releases last weekend that ultimately flopped, The Wolverine promises to be a nice jolt in the arm. The franchise has been popular even if the films have not and Hugh Jackman’s antihero draws people in. And with The Conjuring facing the standard 55%+…

When you pit two genre-similar films targeting young male audiences with a horror film (which partly goes after the same demographic) and a family animated film from DreamWorks. Always bet on the most uniquely different product and that’s Turbo. Individual Commentaries Wesley Lovell: I enjoyed the original RED, so its sequel is the top of…

Adam Sandler versus giant robots? Sandler may have once been a dominant force at the box office, but after a series of missteps, his prospects look bleak. This is doubly obvious with the lame sequel to his popular comedy team-up Grown Ups. And putting a male-centric comedy up against a male-centric film about giant robots…

Will Johnny Depp defeat Gru? That’s the question everyone will be asking as the July 4 holiday competition heats up. Building on the huge popularity of the popular Gru character from the original Despicable Me, the sequel promises to appeal to the same crowd again and will only face one film as competition, the third…

While normally I would bank on Roland Emmerich to storm the box office, funny ladies Melissa McCarthy and Sandra Bullock have reputable names and should have little trouble trouncing White House Down. Individual Commentaries Wesley Lovell: The Heat looks mildly entertaining and I tend to enjoy Emmerich films more than I probably should. On top…

In the eternal battle of monsters and zombies, history shows that monsters are frequently more favored…at least when it’s Pixar behind the monsters and Brad Pitt behind the zombies. Monsters University should have little trouble marking another #1 debut for Pixar while World War Z could easily end up in second place or third behind…

There’s no question Man of Steel will top the weekend box office. The question is by how much. Its predecessor opened to a strong $52 million seven years ago. Buzz seems much stronger this time and if it’s better than its predecessor, totals should easily increase. In 2013 dollars, the opening was only around $63…