Winter movie preview part one: Dear Santa, please don't let the following movies suck...

It's that time of the year again, where the movie studios unleash what they hope to be their award winners: Oscars, Golden Globes, etc. Of course, all of these films tend to come out at once, giving viewers who crave a little more quality in their movies an embarrassment of riches. Providing, of course, that the movies are actually good.

The following are a selection of said "Awards Bait" that I am hoping will actually live up to their year-end, studio-fueled hype and provide me with enough reasons to say that 2009 wasn't a bad year for films after all. I will not, however, be including "Up in the Air" on this list despite not being released until December 4th. If you have read this blog before, you know how much I love that film.

Here now is the first part of my wish list for quality holiday pics:

"Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans" (currently in limited release)

When I first heard that a new "Bad Lieutenant", be it a remake or just a variation on the 1993 Abel Ferrara depress-o-fest of the same name, was in the works, my jaw hit the floor. It went down even further when I heard that Nicolas Cage was attached to the production. Soon enough, however, the jaw started to rise back into place: first I heard that Werner Herzog was calling the shots. Then I saw an online trailer, which made the film look like it was go-for-broke insane (nothing wrong with that) and finally, I heard from more than a few people that the movie isn't good, it's great. This is a rare occurrence, friends: a Nic Cage film I am looking forward to seeing.

"The Fantastic Mr. Fox" (currently in release)

This one should be a no-brainer at living up to the hype for me. The people that I know who have seen it (and whose opinions I trust quite a bit) have either really liked it a lot or loved it. Plus, with the exception of the mediocre "Darjeeling Limited", Wes Anderson has always delivered for me. "Fox" being a stop-motion animated version of the Roald Dahl children's novel makes it all the more appealing.

"The Road" (currently in limited release)

When a film is delayed several months, chances are the production is in trouble. It's a stigma that accompanies any postponed film. Usually, the stigma proves to be correct. Not all the time, mind you (Titanic, The Age of Innocence), but often enough to make one raise an eyebrow and lower expectations. Still, despite being delayed for over a year, John Hillcoat's bleak adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novel is a film that I am dying to see. Hillcoat's previous film was the knockout Aussie drama "The Proposition", and the previews to this film look fascinating.

"Brothers" (opens December 4th)

A domestic drama about two brothers, one a Marine in Afghanistan, the other a ne'er-do-well and the woman who comes between them, isn't exactly the type of material to make me leave the house to see a movie. But with Irish director Jim Sheridan (In America) calling the shots and the cast including Jake Gyllenhaal, Tobey Maguire and Natalie Portman, I might have to reconsider.

"The Princess and the Frog" (opens in wide release on December 11th)

With the nearly non-stop barrage of computer-animated films coming at us, it's nice to see that Disney is kicking it old school for their latest animated feature. The previews kind of left me cold, but the early word-of-mouth has suggested otherwise. Plus, it's directed by the team that made "The Little Mermaid" and "Aladdin" (I'll just pretend that "Treasure Planet" didn't happen).

"Invictus" (opens December 11th)

Clint Eastwood's latest directorial effort centers on the true story of South African president Nelson Mandella (Morgan Freeman)'s attempts to unify his country in the early days of his presidency, culminating in his country's upset at the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Matt Damon plays Rugby captain Francois Peinnar. Eastwood's directorial track record since 1992's "Unforgiven" has been nearly perfect, so the mere mention of a new directorial effort from the man is more than enough to get me excited (yes, that includes 'Changeling').

"The Lovely Bones" (opens in limited release on December 11th)

Alice Siebold's 2002 novel about a dead girl watching from the heavens as her family tries to track down her killer as well as grieve for their loss had to have been a bit of a bear for Peter Jackson to adapt into a movie. But thanks to his 1995 film "Heavenly Creatures" which combined fantasy elements with stark drama, he is also the ideal person to do such a thing. Early word-of-mouth has been less than kind, but given Jackson's track record over the past decade, I am more than willing to give the film a day in court (I actually liked his bloated-but-entertaining remake of 'King Kong').

Weekend Box Office: Viewers stuff themselves with Werewolves, Foxes, Ninjas and Football

The 2009 Thanksgiving weekend box office went through the roof as a mix of new and older films helped contribute to a record-setting weekend. The top ten films joined forces to haul in an impressive $172.5 million in sales over the Friday to Sunday span.

Repeating its stance at the top of the box office, Summit Entertainment's "Twilight" sequel "The New Moon" pulled in $42.5 million. Despite falling a steep 70% from last weekend's opening, the ten-day take for the film is $230.7 million, with the $300 million mark its next milestone (which it should pass within the next two weeks). The next chapter in the series is due in June of 2010.

"New Moon" came very close to landing in second place this weekend. On Thanksgiving Day, the film stepped down a spot to make way for the Sandra Bullock sleeper hit "The Blind Side", which continued to stun Hollywood by hauling in $40.1 million this weekend to hit the $100 million mark on Sunday. While most films tend to drop in attendance in their second weekend of release, "Blind Side" increased its take by a big 18% from its already-impressive opening weekend. Word-of-mouth has definitely helped this inspirational sports drama, and I wouldn't be surprised if the film played right through the holiday season to land close to the $200 million mark while making an appearance next week at the top of the box office charts.

Third spot went to the Roland Emmerich disaster epic "2012" with $18 million in ticket sales. After three weeks of release, the mega-budgeted film has pulled in $140 million to date, which would be more impressive had the movie not cost so much to produce. Fortunately for Sony, the overseas grosses have been more impressive.

In fourth spot was the Disney comedy "Old Dogs" with a $16.9 million weekend take and an overall gross of $24.5 million since its Wednesday debut. Roundly trashed by critics, the film (which has been sitting on the shelf for a while) nonetheless did the trick for those looking for a brainless laugh to help work off the turkey and pumpkin pie. Fifth spot went to another Disney film, "A Christmas Carol", which pulled down $16 million for a $105 million cume. The film might stand a chance to pull in $145-150 million when all is said and done. Like "2012", the gross for "Carol" may have been more impressive had it not cost so much to make.

Sixth spot went to the action flick "Ninja Assassin" with a so-so gross of $13.1 million ($21 mil for its first five days). The animated "Planet 51" was next with $10 million and a $28 million to-date gross. Eighth went to the indie sensation "Precious" with $7 million and a to-date cume of $32.5 million. 20th Century Fox's "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" did moderate business in its first weekend of expansion with $7 million and a to-date gross of $10 million, while the Weinstein Company finally unveiled the long-delayed "The Road" to an impressive $1.53 million from only 111 venues.

Next Friday, the excellent "Up in the Air" begins its cinematic takeoff in limited release, while the Jim Sheridan-directed drama "Brothers", the Robert DeNiro-led remake of "Everybody's Fine" and the Sony actionier "Armored" make debuts in wide release. None of the above wide releases are expected to come close to making as much as either "New Moon" or "The Blind Side", so it looks like the American Box Office will dine on leftovers yet again.

Weekend Box Office: "New Moon" wild $140 mil take; "Blind Side" and "Precious" also huge hits

As expected, Summit Entertainment's second installment of the "Twlight" series, "The New Moon", led the charge at the nation's box office. The big surprise of the debut was just how big that opening was.

Kicking off with an eye-popping and record-setting $26.3 million from the 12:01 am shows on Friday, "New Moon" went on to set another record on its first day with a final gross of $72.3 million from over 4,000 screens. The midnight screening easily beat the records held by "The Dark Knight" ($18.3 million), "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" ($20 million) and "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" ($22.3 million). The one-day overall gross also beat the $67 million gross of the Batman and Transformers sequels.

Where it goes from there is anyone's guess. The film will no doubt smash through the $200 million barrier and may go as high as $300 million, but its longevity is questionable. As is the case with most anticipated sequels, fans come out en masse on opening weekend. Fans gave the movie an "A-" Cinemascore rating, but what about people outside the fanbase? The film is currently at 29% on Rotten Tomatoes, and I have heard from more than one person that if you haven't seen the first film, you need not bother seeing the second. But neither critics or non-fans really matter here. The films are fairly cheap to make (this one cost $50 million) and as this weekend proved, there are plenty of devoted fans out there. I'm sure it won't take much enticement to get them back for another helping during the holiday season.

The arrival of "New Moon" wasn't the only impressive debut this weekend. The Sandra Bullock inspirational drama "The Blind Side" debuted with a superb (for a non-effects, non-franchise film) $35 million. Whether the high gross was the result of people being shut out of "New Moon", the based-on-real-life subject matter (this story is the stuff of Hollywood dramas) or several weeks of heavy advertising, the film hit a nerve with the American moviegoing public (the Cinemascore for the John Lee Hancock-directed film was an "A+"). Reviews were fairly supportive for the film, and I have no doubt the word-of-mouth will be strong. Watch for "The Blind Side" to go long and score a touchdown past the $100 million marker during the next couple of weeks.

Expanding to 629 theaters after two great weeks in limited release, Lionsgate's future Oscar favorite (and possible winner) "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" for a $11 million weekend gross and an overall cume to date of just a little over $20 million. Much like "The Blind Side", word-of-mouth is strong and should help keep the film rolling right along. The next few weeks will be the true test to the film's appeal with the rest of the country, but I think that the strong reviews and upcoming awards season should help push the African-American drama along just fine.

Last week's number one champ, the 158-minute Roland Emmerich effects reel "2012" dropped down to third place and a $27 million weekend take. Ten-day total is $109 million in the United States, with the worldwide gross currently sitting at $315 million, further proving that fools and their money are lucky enough to get together in the first place.

After holding up fairly well last weekend, Disney's mega-budget animated 3-D version of "A Christmas Carol" (did Charles Dickens ask to have his name removed?) dropped roughly by half to $12.2 million and a three-week estimated cume of $80 million. A very healthy gross, to be sure. But with a price tag of close to $200 million, Disney can't help but be a bit let down by the ticket sales so far.

Sony's latest CG-animated film, "Planet 51", appeared to be DOA with a weak $12.5 million debut take. With far too many choices to be had, this feature may have been better served being released next spring (Sony showed its zero confidence in the film by releasing it the same weekend as the "Twilight" sequel). The film might do okay during Thanksgiving week, but watch for it to vanish immediately after that.

The remainder of the top ten was as follows: "The Men Who Stare At Goats" with $2.8 million, "Couples Retreat" with $1.92 million, "The Fourth Kind" with $1.73 million and "Law-Abiding Citizen" with $1.6 million.

Bonjour! I'm off to Paris!

I will be in the merry ol' land of France for the next week, mixing my client's annual meeting with tons of walking around, taking pictures, buying region-free blu-ray discs and attempting, but failing miserably, to speak French.

If time permits, I will be posting a daily blog entry on my adventures overseas. In the meantime, I await my flight on Aer Lingus (the best way to travel to France is via Ireland, trust me). Have a great weekend, everyone!

DVD/Blu-ray Pick for the Week of November 17th: Star Trek

J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek”, due on DVD and blu-ray disc November 17th from Paramount Home Video, begins with a huge bang, a knockout prologue that chronicles the birth of James T Kirk, and the death of his father, a Starship Captain (for twelve minutes), all during a surprise attack by a renegade Romulan named Nero (Eric Bana). Flash forward a quarter of a century to Iowa, where we find Kirk (played as an adult by Chris Pine) has grown up to be a cocky, devil-may-care genius with a pretty serious chip on his shoulder. Following a bar fight he has with a quartet of Starfleet cadets one night; he meets a Starfleet Captain named Pike (Bruce Greenwood), who suggests that Kirk join Starfleet and try to do a better job than his pop did on the day he was born.

Kirk takes Pike up on his challenge and joins the Academy. It is here where Kirk begins to encounter the usual series suspects, including a brash doctor named Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban), a sexy linguistics officer named Uhura (Zoe Saldana), and a half-Vulcan, half-human named Spock (Zachary Quinto), a fellow cadet who believes that Kirk cheated on a test that he created to be a no-win scenario. As Kirk finds himself facing suspension from the Academy for his so-called ‘cheating’, a distress call is received from Spock’s home planet of Vulcan. After sneaking on board the Enterprise, Kirk soon realizes that the distress call is an actual trap, with a situation quite similar to the one that cost his father his life decades ago.

It was a pretty big risk: giving a complete overhaul to a franchise as beloved as Gene Roddenberry’s “Star Trek”. Not only did the risk lie in keeping long term fans happy with the new changes and faces, but also in the fact that Paramount poured at least $150 million into the production (Trek films usually are done on the cheap). Originally scheduled for Christmas 2008, the film was postponed to May of 2009 to give director J.J. Abrams more time to fine tune the film. Usually, when a film gets delayed for this long, a certain stench begins to fill the air. Considering how awful 1998’s “Star Trek: Insurrection” and 2002’s “Star Trek: Nemesis” were, things were certainly looking iffy (at best) for the new film.

Fortunately, all the fears and doubts proved to be for naught. In the realm of “Star Trek” fandom, a friend of mine best summed up my level of ‘fandom’: I’m a fan when it’s good. This applies to the episodes I have seen from the original television series and, with the exception of the dire “Star Trek V”, the half-dozen film entries spanning 1979 to 1991 (yes, that includes the first one).

For a TV/theatrical episode of “Star Trek” to succeed, all it had to do was have a good story to tell, give the characters some interesting interaction and throw in the occasional kick-ass action sequence. The ‘Original Crew’ film series had this formula down pretty well, with 1982’s “The Wrath of Khan” and 1991’s “The Undiscovered Country” being the standouts. Unfortunately, the quartet of ‘Next Generation’ that spanned from 1993 to 2002 sadly had little, if any, of this winning formula (1996’s “First Contact” is the sole exception).

For this next generation of “Trek”, the winning formula has returned in a big, big way. Using Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman’s screenplay as his foundation, Abrams presents a new, vibrant and more mainstream-accessible version of “Star Trek” without alienating the legions of long-standing fans. With his last film, 2006’s “Mission: Impossible III”, Abrams tried to balance human drama with high-tech action and produced mixed results. Mediocre scripts will do that.

With “Star Trek”, however, he perfectly nails that balance. With the assist of great visual effects and a dynamic music score by Michael Giacchino, the action sequences are among the best in the series, professionally executed without ever overshadowing the story or characters. The quality level of character development and interaction that made the original series such a standout makes a welcome return here, giving the film an emotional depth not seen in this franchise in quite some time.

Breathing new life into a 43-year old franchise is difficult enough. Finding an acceptable group of actors to fill the shoes of iconic characters played by actors so identifiable in these roles is even more of a challenge. But once again, Abrams succeeds. Pine displays a nice mix of cockiness and arrogance to make for a fine Kirk. Qunito excels as Spock, whose internal conflict serves as the film’s emotional core; while Karl Urban is pitch-perfect as the abrasive McCoy. DeForrest Kelly would be proud. Simon Pegg (Scotty), John Cho (Sulu), Anton Yelchin (Checkov) and Zoe Saldana each do just fine in their supporting roles to help solidify this ensemble as the new ‘Magnificent Seven’ in outer space.

Among the other cast members, Eric Bana makes for a decent bad guy, even if his Nero isn’t quite in the same league as Ricardo Montalban’s Khan or Christopher Plummer’s Shakespeare-quoting Chang from “The Undiscovered Country”. Winona Ryder and Ben Cross are fine as Spock’s parents, while Bruce Greenwood gives his Commander Pike a nice combination of authority and father figure to the young crew. As for the sole returning member from the original series, it’s great to see Leonard Nimoy return as…well, you know who.

You don’t need to be able to tell the difference between a Klingon and a Tribble, quote episodes verbatim or dress up in a costume two sizes too small to enjoy the new “Star Trek”. All the new film requires you to do is sit back and have a good time. “Star Trek” is easily one of the year’s best entertainments, and one whose sequel can’t come fast enough. (PG-13, 127 minutes, Four stars out of four)

SQUIRREL! POINT! My review of the blu-ray for "UP" is now online

My review for the latest Disney/Pixar winner, "UP", is now up online at theHDRoom.com. The film, my pick for the best movie of 2009 so far, is one of the very best releases from a studio whose misfires are better than most studio's best animated efforts. It's a wonderful mix of comedy, adventure and genuine drama that features terrific voice work by Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai and co writer/director Bob Peterson, who lends his voice to my favorite new Pixar character, Dug the Dog (left).

Disney/Pixar is releasing several editions of the $293 million hit on Tuesday, November 10th: a single-disc DVD, a two-disc special edition DVD and a 4-disc blu-ray edition that consists of the 2 blu-rays, a copy of the single-disc DVD edition and a digital copy edition that one can put on their computer or other portable electronic device. The pre-order prices are ridiculously low on "UP", so if you want to nab yourself a copy of this future classic, now is the time to do so (you can order any of the editions via one of the Amazon links on the right hand side of this page).

Up In the Air: One of 2009's Best Films

Jason Reitman is on a roll. His first film, 2005's "Thank You For Smoking" was a smart, satirical adaptation of Christopher Buckley's novel about a spokesperson for the tobacco industry (Aaron Eckhart). Two years later, Reitman directed "Juno", the sweet little indie comedy that could and did, winning over critics and the public alike while pulling in a huge $150 million in ticket sales. Now, the young filmmaker takes another huge leap forward with the new comedy/drama "Up In the Air", starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick.

The film, based on a novel by Walter Kirn, centers around Ryan Bingham (Clooney). Ryan is a corporate downsizing expert, flying around the country to lay people off for various companies. Living -and loving- a solitary life out of a suitcase, Ryan is on the verge of reaching a personal goal: reaching the airline milestone of flying ten million miles. Everything that Ryan needs to live his unencumbered lifestyle fits nicely and neatly contained in his wheel-away suitcase. He's so successful at keeping his life in control that he goes on the lecture circuit to instruct others on how to do the same with their lives. Ryan excels at his line of work, as well as keeping the world around him at an emotional distance.

Change, however, is on Ryan's horizon . First, he meets Alex (Farmiga), a sexy stranger Bingham meets in a hotel lounge and quickly discovers that, as Alex puts it, she's just like him...only with a vagina. The two often cross paths in their constant travels, meeting on occasion to form an on-the-road relationship that threatens to bring some long-absent emotional connection into Ryan's life.

The other wave of change comes in an upstart twenty-something named Natalie (Anna Kendrick). Natalie is the new employee at Ryan's company and is of the mind that the job that Bingham and others do on the road can be done just as easily -and cheaper- via teleconferencing. Of course, Ryan disagrees and manages to talk the company's owner (Jason Bateman) into letting him bring the young upstart out on the road to see what he does and how face-to-face is the only way to properly do it.

"Up In the Air" is reminiscent of the works of Billy Wilder, Cameron Crowe, James L. Brooks (in the 1980s) or Alexander Payne. The story is truthful and manages to sidestep the usual cliches associated with the film's genre. The characters, for all their pros and cons, feel real and are immensely likable. And for all the smart, often hilarious dialogue the screenplay by Reitman and Sheldon Turner offers, there are moments of drama that help give the movie a strong emotional punch, the latter no doubt fueled by our country's current job climate and the use of non-actors sharing their own employment experiences. A mid-film sequence where Natalie puts her so-called "surefire money-saving" efforts to the test is one of the year's most heartbreaking scenes to watch.

Reitman could have taken the easy way out to turn the movie into a schmaltzy, manipulative romantic comedy replete with a forced, moral-heavy message. Fortunately, he doesn't. The son of "Ghostbusters" director Ivan Reitman lets the film's events unfold and develop at their own pace. Reitman places his trust in the strength of the story and characters, and his cast's ability to bring both aspects to fully dimensional life. There is a confidence and maturity that Reitman displays with this film, elevating him to an entirely new level that will nab him some well-deserved award nominations in the upcoming months.

While I never watched him on "E.R." and missed his turn in one of the "Killer Tomatoes" films (damnit!), I have been a big fan of George Clooney ever since 1998's "Out of Sight". With his movie star good looks, a winning onscreen presence and a huge amount of talent, Clooney has amassed one hell of a cinematic career over the past eleven years be it starring, directing or producing films (I forgive him for those awful "Ocean's" sequels). As he did in the superb 2007 drama "Michael Clayton", Clooney deftly balances his character's confidence and flaws to give us a complex, fascinating person. Ryan may have convinced himself that he's living the ideal life, but it is anything but. It's yet another fine turn by Clooney that is expertly supported by the entire cast (Farmiga and Kendrick are a lock for Supporting Actress nods). Confident and winning from start to finish, Clooney's performance will definitely see him in the running for Best Actor yet again and perhaps even winning.

A fellow reviewer succinctly summarized "Up In the Air" as George Clooney's "Jerry Maguire". I can see that: both films smartly balance comedy and drama; each have great scripts filled with sharp dialogue and even sharper characters, and both gave their lead actors a chance to really shine. For those lamenting the lack of quality movie entertainment for adults, then you really need to seek "Up In the Air" out when it hits theaters in December. It's easily one of the very best films of 2009. 110 minutes. Four stars out of four.

"Up In the Air" starts in limited release on December 4th and will expand during the month, opening nationwide on Christmas Day.

God Bless Joss Whedon

Hey kids, check out this great letter that "Buffy/Firefly" wunderkind Joss Whedon has written up in an attempt to purchase the rights to the "Terminator" series. A funny way to end your work day.

Thank you, "Paranormal Activity"

Whether this post on Ain't It Cool News is B.S. or not, we may be seeing a return of "The Blair Witch Project". Thanks to the runaway success of the "Blair Witch"-esque "Paranormal Activity", it appears that the people who created the 1999 original are attempting to come up with a direct sequel to that film while pretending that "Book of Shadows" never happened.

Honestly, I wish neither had happened. I know a lot of people loved the original, but not me. Let me put it this way: when you're cheering on the witch to knock off the three pretentous turds onscreen, something is amiss with your movie. For some unexplained reason, I saw the second one at a sneak preview. It was an even bigger piece of shit than the first. A few years ago, I would have gathered that a third one would be made to make up for the second one. But since it's being considered post-"Paranormal Activity", the smell of excrement has been replaced by ones of desperation (have these 'Blair Witch' guys made anything other than the original?) and riding another movie's financial coat tails.

In regards to "Blair Witch 2009", I have yet to see the film. While one or two of my friends really liked it, others have found it to be as entertaining as fingernails on a chalkboard. With the consensus split down the middle, I guess I'll have to sit down and watch it for myself. Sigh.

Weekend Box Office: that was 'It' for 'This Is It'

This past weekend's Halloween box office proved to be downright frightful as ticket sales sunk to their lowest level of 2009 so far. With Halloween falling on a Saturday this year, the box office took a sizable hit on All Hallow's Eve, with even the King of Pop failing to divert people from parties and trick-or-treating.

Prior to its release, "This Is It" was riding a wave of hype usually reserved for mega-budget blockbusters like "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" and "Avatar". But since the subject of the film was the recently-deceased Michael Jackson, a fair amount of that hype was justified as it would be the last time MJ's fans may have the chance to see their idol performing on stage (although I am sure there is plenty of unseen concert footage kicking around...SEQUEL!!!!!). With fans camping out to purchase tickets, the box office wags started proclaiming that the movie would do anywhere from $250-400 million in its first seven days worldwide.

Well, it's time for a bit of a reality check. "This Is It" didn't destroy the box office as anticipated. In fact, it did roughly 1/4th of what they were hoping for. Over the weekend, the Jacko picture moonwalked its way to $21.5 million, bringing its overall five-day total to $32.5 million. Add to that an additional $68 million from overseas, and the movie did pull in over $100 million. It might not be the monster grosses Sony had been hoping for, but that nine-figure haul is still pretty damn impressive, especially for a rehearsal film. Of course, Sony pulled a fast one by saying that the film would only run for two weeks, only to "extend" its run (no doubt an attempt to recoup some of the $60 million it dished out for the distribution rights), which might explain why the first five days pulled in so much money.

After nabbing a surprising first place last weekend, the Paramount/Dreamworks acquesition "Paranormal Activity" held strong in second place for a $16.5 weekend gross and a drop of only 21%. To date, the little film that could have pulled in $85 million dollars. While it will no doubt start fading fast now that Halloween is over, there is still a good chance that it will cross the $100 mark when all is said and done.

"Saw VI", on the other hand, will be lucky to reach the $30 million mark, which is what previous installments in the torture porn series ended up doing on their opening weekends. The latest entry dropped 61% from last weekend to $5.56 million and a measly $22.9 million gross to date.

Elsewhere, third place went to the Jamie Foxx sleeper hit "Law Abiding Citizen", which dropped 41% to pull in $7.3 million for an overall gross of $52 million to date. Fourth spot went to the Vince Vaughn comedy "Couples Retreat" with $6.1 million in sales to add to its overall gross of nearly $87 million. "Where the Wild Things Are" continued its downward spiral, dropping a huge 63% (no doubt affected by Halloween falling on a Saturday) to $5 million and a three week gross of $62 million.

"The Stepfather" enjoyed a little support from Halloween and dropped only by 45% to $3.4 million. "Astro Boy" got hit almost as hard as "Wild Things" by dropping 55% to tie with Fox Searchlight's "Amelia" (down 23%) to each add another $3 million to their coffers. Rounding out the top ten was the film du bomb, "Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant", which imploded 55% to $2.7 million and a ten-day gross of $10.5 million.

On Friday, watch for Scrooge to kick Jacko out of the top spot with "A Christmas Carol", Cameron Diaz plays with "The Box" (huh huh huh...box), some more people deal with otherworldly things in "The Fourth Kind" and George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey are "The Men Who Stare At Goats".

Video pick of the week (and my review of): The Criterion Collection's blu-ray edition of "Wings of Desire"

My review of the Criterion blu-ray edition of Wim Wenders' 1987 masterpiece "Wings of Desire" is now up on theHDRoom.com website. The film is also my video pick of the week (Sorry, "G.I. Joe"). Set in West Berlin prior to the fall of the Wall, "Wings" is a film that defies categorizing and is hard to properly encapsulate in a three-page review. Those are both good things when it comes to the movie. It's a one-of-a-kind work of art that is many things to many people.

The Criterion Collection, which has always been the gold standard of home video releases, gives "Wings" superb treatment for its first foray into the high-definition universe (a DVD edition with the same supplements is also being released). The picture and sound quality is beautiful, and the supplemental material gives the viewer a deeper understanding on both the film as well as the film's cinematographer and one of its stars, Curt Bois. As if this release wasn't enough of a gift from Criterion, the company will be releasing Wenders' other masterpiece from the mid 1980s, the heartbreaking "Paris, Texas" on both DVD and blu-ray disc in January.