Following the success of “Shutter Island” and the record-breaking opening of “Alice In Wonderland,” 2010 is off to a very healthy start at the box office. The last couple of weeks have centered around just one or two major wide releases, but this weekend audiences will have the choice of four films opening wide, each trying to take a chunk of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp’s enormous rainbow colored 3D pie. That film will have a steep decline after last week, but it will still be enough to keep it very comfortably ahead of the pack. Matt Damon’s “Green Zone” should attract a large portion of the “Bourne” audience for second place; while teenage girls will turn out for anything with Robert Pattinson’s coiff in it, resulting in decent numbers for his starring vehicle “Remember Me.” While the trailers have been promising, poor word of mouth may stop “She’s Out of My League” from reaching the box office heights of the films it tries to emulate. There’s a lot of variety out there this week, and with some great choices at the art-house, 2010 is getting a lot more interesting.
In Wide Release: Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass reteam for “Bourne IV: Bourne in Iraq” aka “Green Zone”. Maybe following the spectacular win of “The Hurt Locker” at the Oscars last Sunday, audiences will be craving another Iraq war picture that puts the action front and center and leaves the social commentary to the imagination a bit. Or possibly all the people finally catching up with the best picture winner on DVD won’t feel compelled to leave the comfort of their living rooms this weekend. Damon stars as the leader of a team of Army inspectors searching for weapons of mass destruction in the early days of the Iraq war. We reviewed the film yesterday, and were pleased to see it plays more like a conspiracy thriller than a humorless examination of recent history. The fantastic cast also includes Amy Ryan, Greg Kinnear, and Brendan Gleeson. Rotten Tomatoes finds critics at-large to be underwhelmed, tracking at only 51% and a 60 score from Metacritic.
Robert Pattinson tries to etch out a career outside of vampire melodrama with this week’s “Remember Me.” The romantic drama stars Pattinson and “Lost” star Emilie de Ravin as two NYU students falling for each other despite (or because of?) their severely flawed family lives. With a talented cast that also includes Chris Cooper, Lena Olin, and Pierce Brosnan, you’ll have to forgive us for being a little curious about this one. Unfortunately however, we posted our review earlier this morning, and found it a film better left forgotten. Rotten Tomatoes is mostly negative with a 33% rating, Metacritic gives it a score of 40.
After stealing quite a few scenes in films like “Knocked Up” and “Tropic Thunder,” Jay Baruchel gets his first starring role this weekend in “She’s Out of My League.” He plays an awkward TSA worker who has an accidental connection with a beautiful woman (Alice Eve) and finds himself way out of his comfort zone. We posted our review yesterday, finding that, despite the promising comedic premise, ‘League’ can’t seem to settle on a tone and refuses to take risks, resulting in a film way too light on laughs. The Apatow-wannabe also stars T.J. Miller, Mike Vogel and Nate Torrence but the comedy maestro himself is not involved personally. RT has it at 44%, with a 48 score from Metacritic.
Opening on about 1600 screens is the offensive-looking comedy “Our Family Wedding.” It’s not the premise so much that’s offensive–an interracial couple get engages and family strife ensues–but the fact that it has to take a talented cast (and Carlos Mencia) down along with it. Forest Whitaker, America Ferrera, Regina King, and Lance Gross star in the film, currently striking out with a 12% rating on RT and a score of 36 from Metacritic.
In Limited Release: South Korean director Bong Joon-ho (“Memories of Murder,” “The Host”) gives us his twist on noir with “Mother.” Won Bin plays Do-joon, a 27 year old man completely reliant on his mother. After coming in contact with a girl who turns up dead the next day, Do-joon is accused of murder and his mother must find out the truth. We reviewed the film last year at Cannes, finding it be an entertaining and satisfying Hitchcockian suspense film that sits right alongside Bong Joon-ho’s best work. Definitely worth a look when it comes to your town. Rotten Tomatoes has it at 88%, with Metacritic giving it an 80 score.
The only best animated film Oscar nominee that didn’t benefit from a major wide release, “The Secret of Kells” opens on a few screens this weekend. The Irish import tells the magical story of the real-life Book of Kells, which is on display at Trinity College in Dublin. We caught the film last week, falling in love with the painterly style and subtle tone. Animation fans really should go out of their way to see this one, they won’t be disappointed. RT is all raves at 90%, with a score of 83 from Metacritic.
Also opening in limited release and VOD, is the long anticipated White Stripes film “Under Great White Northern Lights,” which chronicles the bands 2007 trek across Canada. The band decided to play every province in the country, including remote territories that barely even have a proper venue for a rock concert, instead playing bowling alleys and city buses. We’re looking forward to seeing this one soon. Jon Hamm and Josh Lucas star in the tragi-drama “Stolen.” The soon to be on DVD film stars Hamm as a grieving father of a missing boy who finds similarities in another case 50 years prior. RT: 0%, Metacritic: 33%. Finally, the coming of age indie-drama “The Exploding Girl” makes its way to theaters this weekend. The film stars Zoe Kazan as a college student headed home for Spring Break where she reconnects with a best friend in need, putting into question her fresh relationship with a young man at school. RT: 75%, Metacritic: 59.