Sci-fi fans rejoice! Your time has come again with a movie that not only has more drama and suspence than special effects, it's all but guaranteed to be the biggest release on the weekend. Purist fans of the book may not be all that endeared to I Am Legend [Read the CB Review], but movie enthusiasts have a film they can sink their teeth into.
Will Smith once again dodges a bullet, both literally and metaphorically. Not only does his character avoid being killed by a virus that is ravaging the rest of the world, he manages to play that character without slipping into "Big Willie" mode as he was wont to do during his last sci-fi adventure, I, Robot. This time around he delves into the role and his own soul to pull out one of the most gut wrenching performances of his life. I Am Legend may not make legendary money, but expect it to easily be the number one on the weekend with at least $50 million in the bank.
Alvin and the Chipmunks [Read the CB Review], whicyh everyone in the critic world besides me seems to hate, will overcome all that negative energy and likely fall in at a distant second. It's the holidays after all, and parents can't resist taking the kids to see cute fuzzy creatures. Add in the nostalgia effect and you've got a movie set to do fairly well, even if critics are poo-pooing it.
The Golden Compass [Read the CB Review] all but flopped last weekend, only bringing in $26 million. There have been rumblings that its first weekend was only a test drive and that word of mouth will kick it into higher gear this weekend. Yeah, right - when polar bears talk. Look for Compass in the third spot this weekend and a rapid slide from the charts shortly thereafter.
It's hard to guess where this weekend's other new release, The Perfect Holiday, will land. In less than half the theaters as Legend and Chipmunks, it probably won't make the top five. Of course I said the same thing about the last holiday movie of the season, This Christmas and it exceeded all expectations. Perhaps Perfect Holiday will do the same. It opened a little early (Wednesday), no doubt to try and grab some word of mouth before it gets completely buried by Legend. That tactic may help in the long run, but can only hurt its chances during the weekend.
The real movie to watch this weekend is Atonement [Read the CB Review]. It's only widening from 30+ theaters to few more than one hundred, but it has a not-so-secret weapon: seven Golden Globe nominations. Expect it to do amazingly well in such small release, likely breaking into the bottom part of the top ten.
