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While the
soon-to-be Darth Vader and Peter
Parker devour even more explosions at
the box office this weekend, theaters
give way for yet another trio of new
releases, all expected to do at least
decently. Warner Brothers offers the
creepy thriller, Insomnia while
DreamWorks goes in a fist-to-fist
fight with Disney in Spirit,
and Jennifer Lopez has just had
Enough in the new Sony go-getter.
Despite a
quick death to Smoochy at the
box office, Robin Williams looks to
achieve what appears as his first big
film after his numerous round of
failures in the suspense tale,
Insomnia. The film is directed by
Christopher Nolan, who gained ultra
praise with the art-house hit,
Memento, which also happened to
become a critically acclaimed
psychological thriller. |
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This Weekend at
Lee's Movie Info |
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Sat
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Friday's Box
Office
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9:30 - 11:30 am
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Sun
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Weekend Estimates
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11:00 am - 1:30
pm
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Mon
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Weekend Final
Results
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3:30 - 5:30 pm
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Even for
the moviegoers who have never even
seen Memento, WB's director
reference in Insomnia's trailer
should do some good, as the memory
loss puzzle flick has picked up quite
a bit of steam in buzz since its
theatrical launch last year. Even if
folks have not taken the time or the
brain power to figure out the mystery
behind the Guy Pearce tale, many
filmgoers know the deal about
Memento. While it is questionable
to how much success Nolan can gather
outside Memento's art-house
audiences, the acting duo of Al Pacino
and Robin Williams should be more than
enough to convince those fans that
believe Williams needs to re-consider
his decisions that Insomnia is
a trip at least worth your time and
money. The thriller has also been
retrieving stellar reviews on
RottenTomatoes.com, which is to ensure
a feverish response come Friday. Is it
possible for Christopher Nolan to have
two years in a row where he's had a
film in the "Best of the Year" charts
among critics and audiences alike?
Maybe so.
While
veteran actor Al Pacino has a tendency
to nail an opening weekend gross in
the low $10's depending on the
release, the brilliant pairing of him
and Robin Williams along with the
behind-the-scenes presence of
Christopher Nolan will be big pluses.
The other amazing fact is that
Insomnia stands as Williams' big
debut villain role (if you don't count
Smoochy), prior to August's
One Hour Photo, which is looking
like a dynamite delivery of his. With
the actor choosing non-exciting roles
over the past few years and now
turning to dark features for his
groove, while darker tones can be
harder sells come ticket sales time,
the names behind the production could
very well push the interest up there
and here the actor seems to be giving
a too-creepy-to-miss performance.
While some of the same could have been
said concerning the star-power behind
Death to Smoochy, WB gave that
a lukewarm ad-campaign that didn't
sell well with mainstream audiences,
while Insomnia has carried
strong promotion and a feel as if it's
the first big thrill ride since the
Sony hit, Panic Room. Warner
Brothers is giving the thriller a wide
2,610 theater count release, and with
Memorial Day weekend as its
playground, Insomnia could rake
in $18 million for the 3-day frame and
$22 million for the Friday - Monday
period.
DreamWorks
yet again gives Disney the finger,
exclaiming, "we can do it too!" with
their new animated tale, Spirit:
Stallion of the Cimarron. The two
studios have been battling it out in
box office grosses with each of their
family releases, with DreamWorks
mostly failing to Disney with the
exception of Shrek, which had
to have created lots of laughs on the
DW studio lot over those many weeks.
With DW's new adventure lacks real
supportive reviews and star-power
behind the voices. Instead, the studio
is relying on their bold ad-campaign,
their sneak previews word of mouth
from last weekend and the good 'ol
presence of a 4-day weekend to haul in
the youngsters, let alone about the
same exact time Shrek turned in
huge ticket sales last year. Spirit
will likely be a film that kids will
be somewhat interested in while
parents are sighing at the thought of
going. The film lacks the witty glare
Shrek had and points more
toward children than the old Disney
formula of nailing everyone in the
room with entertainment/humor (as
Aladdin and The Lion King).
The results should be a good launch,
but nothing extraordinary. The
majority of families out there will
more likely be apt to select WB's
Scooby Doo on June 14. Spirit
looks to come in with a 3-day figure
of $16.5 million and a 4-day total of
nearly $21.0 million.
Some
critics have been pointing it out
already and it didn't take long for me
to realize it either. The title to the
new Sony abuser thriller, Enough,
could say it all. Just like MGM's
What's the Worst That Could Happen?
The Jennifer Lopez film about seeking
revenge is a very familiar and cliché
topic nowadays and with the less than
stellar reviews the film is receiving
from critics, more filmgoers are
likely to choose Insomnia or
Unfaithful instead. Enough
carries heavy similarities to
Sleeping with the Enemy and
Double Jeopardy, but both pictures
had heavier buzz factors back in the
days of their release while Enough
carries a moderate one. Lopez is not
known for bringing in big bucks, but
then again, the same could have been
said before Double Jeopardy
turned into a $100 million
blockbuster. Lopez' largest debut to
date was in New Line's The Cell,
which picked up $17.5 million opening
weekend for a very nice $7,265
per-screen. The benefits behind that
thriller involved strong buzz on the
picture's visual effects and a
substantially sized young audience
crowd factor. Enough will be
targeting adults and primarily women,
of whom will more likely drag along
their date or husbands for the ride.
But then again, the audience will also
be targeted for Insomnia, which
will likely skew more male than
female. Opening in 2,623 locations,
Enough may earn $11.5 million from
Friday - Sunday and close to $14.0
million over the long weekend. |