New Movies and Box Office Predictions: 5/7

This week's wide releases -
Iron Man 2



There is but one film going wide this weekend and it is the one everyone will be talking about for at least a week. This one movie is sure to draw crowds not seen since the last Twilight film, or perhaps Avatar. Be sure to get to the theater early if you expect to get a good seat. I know that I plan to be there front and center, well maybe not front, I like a few rows back and center. Besides being excited about the film (despite some of the lukewarm response that has been popping up) I am looking forward to the debut of a two new trailers, one for Christopher Nolan's Inception and the other for JJ Abrams Super 8. Both films will hopefully prove strong. In addition to that I will be seeing this in an auditorium equipped with a new Sony 4K digital projector, my first experience with such a projector.

Now, if you do not want to see this surefire mega-blockbuster, you could always choose to catch up wih something else. The documentary Babies is opening in a limited number of theaters. You could also choose to catch up on Kick Ass, or A Nightmare on Elm Street, or perhaps Date Night or How to Train Your Dragon. There is actually a nice selection of movies to choose from in this early blockbuster season.

Iron Man 2. (2010, 124 minutes, PG-13, action/science fiction) Has it really been two years since Iron Man first graced the screens? I have seen it a number of times since then and it is always just as entertaining as the first. A near perfect blend of exposition, action, comedy, and character. It is easily among the top comic book adaptations to this point and definitely one of the best origin stories. Will the sequel live up to he excellence of the first? Early word seems to be divided, but I cannot wait to see for myself. This story sees a new bad guy emerge with a desire to take down Tony Stark, a Russian who calls himself Whiplash (Mickey Rourke). I have avoided much in the way of the story details aside from what I glean from the trailers. I like the casting of Don Cheadle in replacement of Terrence Howard and I can't wait to see him in the War Machine armor. Also joining the cast is Sam Rockwell as a bad guy bankrolling Whiplash's work and Scarlet Johannsen as the Black Widow. Jon Favreau returns to the director's chair and I am glad that he did, I hope.




Also opening this week, but not near me:

• Badmaash Company
• Casino Jack and the United States of Money
• Mother and Child
• Multiple Sarcasms
• OSS 117: Lost in Rio

Box Office Predictions
Who do you think is going to win this week? Don't answer, we all already know. The better question is whether or not you think it will challenge The Dark Knight for biggest opening weekend. I think it has a shot, but mainly because it runs a good forty-minutes shorter and that could help squeeze in an extra screening in a day. However, ultimately I do not think it will reach it, although I would love to see it outdo the opening of the last Twilight movie, regardless of quality (although hoping for good). In any case, it is going to be Iron Man 2 followed by everybody else.

Here is how I think it could play out:

Rank	Title	Box Office
1	Iron Man 2	$145 million
2	A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)	$12 million
3	How to Train Your Dragon	$6 million
4	Date Night	$5 million
5	The Back Up Plan	$4 million
6	Clash of the Titans (2010)	$3.5 million
7	The Losers	$3 million
8	Furry Vengeance	$2.5 million
9	Babies	$2 million
10	Kick Ass	$2 million

This article was first published at Blogcritics.