Leatherheads, Strangely Named Islands and Ruins
By Connect Mason Reporter Matthew Todd
This week's big screen offers are "Leatherheads," "Nim's Island" and "The Ruins." Before we go into the nitty gritty, lets take a quick look at last weekend's results.
Last Weekend’s Recap
After poorly predicting last weekend’s box office, I'll just go ahead and make the excuse that I was a little rusty in my movie mentality after spring break. Yeah, nice try, I know!
"21" ended up winning the gamble, taking in an impressive $24 million thanks to its star-power and notable marketing push. On the other hand, "Superhero Movie" clunked with a moderately below average $9.5 million (after "Meet the Spartans" grossed $18 million this past February). The mildly well-reviewed "Stop-Loss" stalled with $4.4 million while David Schwimmer’s poorly-reviewed "Run, Fat Boy, Run" pulled in a humiliating $2.3 million.
Leatherheads (Universal, PG-13)
In 1925, Dodge Connolly (George Clooney) is a charismatic yet slapdash football star determined to guide his team from the wild life (bar fights and so on) to packed stadiums. But when the players lose their sponsorship and face collapse, Dodge convinces a college football star (the tall and handsome John Krasinski) to join his ragtag ranks. The captain hopes this latest move will help the struggling team capture nationwide attention.
Like most sports comedies, most notably the mindless box-office loser, "Semi-Pro," you can’t really expect much. After watching the previews, this movie looks as joyless as Academy Award winners George Clooney (coming off the triumphant "Michael Clayton") and Renee Zellweger’s presences. Krasinski looks like he’ll bring some appeal to the film (unless his character ends up being an egotistical, unlikable deadpan). It doesn’t look good.
Nim’s Island (20th Century Fox/Summit, PG)
Anything and everything can happen on Nim’s Island, a world that is ruled and exists in one young girl’s imagination (Oscar-nominee Abigail Breslin). The existence mirrors her favorite literary character, Alex Rover. When Nim’s father goes missing from the island, she and the author of the Alex Rover books join forces to conquer Nim’s Island.
Jodie Foster in a children’s fantasy? I’m totally there! With appealing performers hoping to live up to their prominence, "Nim’s Island" looks to be a solid adventure. But don't get your hopes up too much. The movie will probably be substandard compared to "The Chronicles of Narnia" and "The Spiderwick Chronicles." Yet, with little in the way of children’s entertainment after four weeks of
"Horton Hears A Who," it’s time for something new.
The Ruins (Paramount, R)
Four American friends go to Cancun, Mexico on vacation where they encounter a German tourist who persuades them to hunt for his younger brother. But when they go through ancient ruins, a deadly and violent curse is unleashed.
After watching the disturbing yet not very frightening previews, it’s yet another gory faux-horror film about a college crew’s vacation gone violently wrong. After clicking on the Yahoo movie page, Yahoo indicated I “might not like this film.” Guess what, I’ll take their word for it.
Box Office Predictions
With a hefty advertising campaign and two compelling lead actors, "Leatherheads" could enter number one with a decent $17-21 million. After "21"’s strong gross thanks to solid PR and two powerhouse actors, it’ll be no surprise if this football period comedy shoots to the top. If "Leatherheads" doesn’t live up to the expectations I think it might, then "Nim’s Island" could take the number one spot, grossing anywhere between $16-20 million. As for "The Ruins," I anticipate nothing more than a $7-10 million gross.
My Pick: Nim’s Island