Tron races to the top!

The Light Cycles danced within the Grid in enchanting bends of light as Tron: Legacy released at the #1 spot in US, as expected. How huge will it be? That is what the question really was. Well, it did better than last weekend's #1 movie, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. But neither did it shatter the box-office as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 did about a month back. To punch in the numbers, Tron: Legacy earned a robust $44 million at the US box-office in its opening weekend. These would have been good opening numbers for most of the movies, but with the production budget reported to be about $200 million, the distributor, Walt Disney Pictures, would be a tad disappointed with the opening. Hope the light will not fizzle out soon from this sci-fi flick. Warner Bros released their 3D flick of a completely different genre, Yogi Bear 3D, that grabbed the second place with $17 million. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader moved to third spot and has earned a meagre $43 million in its first 10 days at the US box-office, something that the first two movies of the Narnia series had managed in their opening 3 days itself! The Fighter had a wider release and moved to #4 place with the Golden Globe nominations for its leading actors and the Oscar buzz doing it no harm. But with 2010 drawing to a close, talks are already on for the much awaited releases of 2011. And the last week has been abuzz with trailer releases of some heavy summer flicks! For the lazy ones, do check out trailers of The Transformers 3, Thor and Pirates of the Caribbean 4. They are... to say the least... awesome!

Aslan fails to strike!

The weekend numbers have numbed the roar of Aslan. Though The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader topped the weekend charts at the US box office, its collection of $24 million is the lowest in the franchise yet, and to put in simple words – very disappointing! To put it in perspective, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe had grabbed $66 million during its opening weekend while even the disappointing sequel, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian had got in $55 million. The third movie of the franchise has not been able to cash in even half of the amount of its predecessor. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader would require a very strong international performance to make the studio earn decent profits. Right behind it was another disappointing performer for the weekend. The much awaited The Tourist starring Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie could also gather a lowly $17 million during the weekend, much below expectations. Both the leads have already starred in hit movies this year that have grossed more than $100 million at the US box office (Johnny Depp in Alice in Wonderland and Angelina Jolie in Salt). Compared to the success of those films, The Tourist may find it tough to hit the same heights. The third spot went to Tangled that became the sixth animation flick to hit the $100 million mark in the US. But compared with an astonishing reported production budget of $260 million (I still cannot believe it!), the movie’s revenues are expected to remain short. So overall the weekend has not produced anything grand, and maybe it would be upto Tron during the next weekend to show them how it is really done!

Back to the lands of Narnia

Roaaaarrrrrr! The growl of the magnificent lion, Aslan, scares away the evilest of the evil witches and warms the heart of the bravest of brave souls. In the lands of Narnia. And that is where the audience will be taken back this weekend. Not exactly in the lands, rather on the waters. The third movie of the Narnia series, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, brings back two of the Pevensies, Edmund and Lucy, to the magical worlds where they had ruled once as Kings and Queens. In this adventure they join Prince Caspian on the ship Dawn Treader to locate seven lost lords of Narnia. With of course the ever-present Aslan to guide them, whenever required.

The first movie enactment of these tales of C.S. Lewis, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, was released in 2005 and turned to be such a huge success that it could have been easily compared with the Harry Potter saga at an initial glance. The movie grossed $292 million in the US and $749 million worldwide and easily paved the way for at least a trilogy. But things went wrong with the second film of the series, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. While the Pevensie siblings returned to Narnia to help Prince Caspian regain his rightful place as the King, the movie however lost its own way somewhere and could manage only about half of the revenues of its predecessor. A mediocre $142 million at the US box office and earnings of $420 million worldwide was deemed unsatisfactory on a production budget of $225 million and this made the distributors Walt Disney Pictures skeptical about the project. So when it came to tackle the third film in the series, Disney stepped away from the lands of Narnia and in came 20th Century Fox to carry the franchise forward.

The production budget is said to be $140 million for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and with it falls a grave responsibility on the shoulders of this movie. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis holds in totality seven tales, and for future projects to see the day of light, it would be imperative for the Dawn Treader to fight the tides and post in strong numbers. While a success similar to that of the first movie would be out of reach, numbers in line with the second could ensure more movie adaptations about the Narnian lands and its adventures. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader should take the top spot for the weekend at the US box office though as Tangled would enter its third week and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 would be in its fourth. All said and done, maybe more movies on Narnia should be made just to get another glimpse of the gigantic Aslan and the stirring voice behind it of Liam Neeson. Maybe there is still another roar left. Rooooaaaaaaarrrrrrr!

Tangled now leads the race...

The battle between Tangled and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 continued over the weekend. While the first round last weekend had been won by the young wizard, it was the Disney flick that grabbed the top spot this time round. With $21 million earned at the US box office during the weekend, Tangled is less than $4 million short of eclipsing the $100 million mark. The fall for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 was steeper but its $16 million collection takes its US box office total to $244 million while its worldwide revenue collection exceeds $600 million for now, though there is still a lot more to come. With the release of the third movie in the Narnia series, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, during the coming weekend in US, there is bound to be direct competition to the the current top two movies and Tangled could well be off its top spot soon. For Aslan is about to return!

Harry Potter Tangled!

The post title should rather read Harry Potter Un-Tangled, because that is what the young wizard has managed to do during the weekend. Get the better of Disney's Tangled! And how close was it? Very! By just about $1 million. Yeah, that is a small figure when you compare it with the $50 million that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 earned at the US box office in its second weekend. The total for the latest Harry Potter flick now goes up to $220 million in US after 10 days while numbers from worldwide ticket collections are still pouring in. Tangled put in solid numbers at $49 million at the US box office ($69 million for the first five days since the movie had a Thursday Thanksgiving Day release) though way short of Disney's other movie that was released this year, with Pixar of course - the unforgettable Toy Story 3 that had a $110 million opening weekend collection! The numbers are slightly better than the opening weekend collection of another animation flick that was released this month, Megamind, that takes the third spot. A few other movies were released during the weekend, including Love and Other Drugs starring Jake Gyllenhal and Anne Hathway, though it occupies a disappointing sixth position. The King's Speech had a limited opening at only four theatres, though it is a movie I am looking forward to watch and will not be surprised if it pops up among the Oscar contenders.

Potter mania reaches a new high!

It was expected to be phenomenal. And the first part of the epic finale of the Harry Potter series has pretty much lived up to the expectations. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, with all its wizardry and witchcraft, stole the limelight and had the best opening weekend of the franchise with $125 million at the US box office, better than the $103 million that had been collected by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Add to that another $200 million odd earned worldwide, and the first 3 days of the Harry Potter saga have been a whoop! But as is with such movies, the fall in revenues could be steep in the coming weekends and it is tough to know whether it would reach the elusive collection figure of $1 billion worldwide, the figure that has not yet been graced by any Harry Potter movie. With the audience having only one movie in mind during the weekend, the collections for the others were bound to be affected. Megamind claimed second spot and became the twentieth movie released in this year to achieve the milestone of reaching $100 million at the US box office. But it still remains way behind the money churned in by other Dreamworks movies of the year, How to Train Your Dragon and Shrek Forever After, both of which have hit the $200 million mark. Russell Crowe’s The Next Three Days had a lackluster beginning with only $7 million in the opening weekend. The doom that must fall to any movie that dares to pit itself against the magic of Harry Potter and his friends! Next weekend it will be another movie daring to do the same when Disney release their new take on the old fairy tale of Rapunzel in Tangled. As the year is coming to a close, the weekend battles get hotter and next up is… Tangled v/s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1! How much money will be spent this time round... only a few days to go...

The Boy Who Lived...

It all began in the year 2001! Some would say it began before. In the year 1997, when the first book was published. Or others would argue that the seeds of the phenomenon were laid way before even these two dates. In the year 1990, when it is said that J.K. Rowling imagined for the first time a simple black-haired, bespectacled kid who would become the greatest nemesis of the most sinister Dark Lord to haunt the Wizard World. If you have not guessed the title of this great series yet, then I am afraid that you have been bereft of many a joy. For this post is a prelude to the release of the most anticipated film of the year, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.

While the Harry Potter book series had become quite a sensation before the release of the first film, which provided a firm fan base to begin with, the kind of revenues that the movies could generate still remained to be seen. All expectations were shattered when the first movie, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, opened in November 2001 to a phenomenal reception. $90 million at the US box-office was a good figure to start the first weekend with, especially when the production budget had not been more than $125 million. The movie till date remains the highest earning movie of the series, collecting $318 million at the US box office and $976 million worldwide. The phenomenon had however just begun! Exactly an year later, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets too met with success, with a collection figure of $262 million in US and $879 million worldwide.

While an April release did not suit the third film of the franchise, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which is the only film of the series so far to collect less than $800 million in worldwide revenues, the next three films in the series restored things back to normal. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire raked in $896 million in 2005 and the next two films, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix & Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, once again took the revenues above the $900 million mark, collecting $938 million and $934 million worldwide, respectively. Such staggering collections have made the Harry Potter franchise the highest grossing film series of all time with $5.4 billion in worldwide receipts on a total production budget of less than $1 billion. Phew!! And to imagine that two more movies still remain in the pipeline…

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows would be showcased in two different parts, the first one releasing this weekend while the second part would be shown in July 2011, marking the end of this great epic. The numbers that will be generated would be anybody’s guess. Somewhere close to $900 million in worldwide ticket sales is a safe bet. But with the end now in sight, both the final movies could be looking for a $1 billion earning. Already five of the six Harry Potter movies feature in the All-time #20 list in terms of worldwide collections, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 & Part 2, would be firm favorites to make their mark in this elite list. But only 7 movies so far have had the $1 billion tag shine across their names. Would Harry Potter finally make it there… I, for one, would love to see the Boy who Lived depart in such a grand style!

Megamind likely to stop the Unstoppable

November kicked off on the right note. And the momentum could remain strong for the second weekend of the month. While Megamind will continue to be the attraction for young ones who were too busy last weekend to catch it, the slightly older (but not so old!) have something else to look forward to - Unstoppable starring the ever intense Denzel Washington alongwith Capt. Kirk aka Chris Pine. Denzel Washington is a reliable character in the industry whose movies do not usually sweep away the box-office, but more often than not, post strong numbers that allow the studios to rake in the returns. His last movie released earlier this year, The Book of Eli, grabbed $95 million at the US box-office. But it was in 2007, under Ridley Scott, that Denzel Washington got his last $100 million+ movie with his dazzling portrayal of Frank Lucas, a drug lord, in The American Gangster. And while Unstoppable may not post those kind of numbers, and Washington in this flick may not be as memorable as some of his old characters (so many come to mind... Trip in Glory, Malcom X in Malcolm X, Lt. Commander Ron Hunter in Crimson Tide, Lincoln Rhyme in Bone Collector, Rubin Carter in Hurricane, Coach Boone in Remember the Titans, Detective Alonzo Harris in Training Day, John Creasy in Man on Fire etc. etc. etc.), it still would most likely post good enough numbers to post a challenge to Megamind for the top spot at the weekend. Following behind is the sci-fi Skyline that pretty much repeats the genre itself, trying to re-create the 'world is attacked by aliens' theme. Movies of such kind have done fairly well, though Skyline may not be the one that will creep to mind years later when you talk of Movies-with-Aliens while chatting with your buddies around a bonfire. But if you do... maybe you have seen a bit too many...

A grand beginning...

Two months to go before the year comes to an end. November seems to have started off in a very successful manner indeed. The weekend has seen three movies earn more than $20 million at the US box-office. And as expected, it was the animation flick, Megamind, to top the list with $48 million. Dreamworks has already enjoyed a successful year with its previous two ventures in the animated world, How To Train Your Dragon and Shrek Forever After, earning grand returns. And Megamind seems to be adding itself to the same list. While the first weekend figures for Megamind are marginally better than How To Train Your Dragon, the latter had some strong word-of-mouth that had led to low declines in the subsequent weeks, a phenomenon that Megamind may not witness, especially considering that the latest Harry Potter flick is on its way. Despite the same, $100 million would be achieved quite easily, though the movie may just fall shy of the $200 million mark.

The second spot was taken by the comedy movie, Due Date, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galifianakis. The movie earned a strong $35 million during the weekend at the US box-office and would be aiming to hit the $100 million mark soon. With a career that had not seen a single $100 million movie before, Robert Downey Jr. has seen things change dramatically in the last three years. Since 2008, he has already had four movies crossing that mark (Iron Man, Tropic Thunder, Sherlock Holmes and Iron Man 2), won critical acclaim for his varied roles and earned an Oscar nomination too. Talk of revivals! The final movie to garner $20 million at the US box-office during the weekend was For Colored Girls, directed by Tyler Perry, which has a long list of women starring in the film including Thandie Newton and Whoopie Goldberg. November has got off to a grand start but this is just the beginning. Come November 19, and it would be time for the green bucks to flood the cinema halls again!

Saw tops...

As expected, Halloween welcomed the final instalment of the Saw series with open arms. Saw 3D (or Saw VII) topped the weekend US box-office results with $24 million which is better than the previous Saw movie that had earned only $14 million in its first weekend. But the results still do not match the other Saw movies that have managed first weekend collections of more than $30 million. Paranormal Activity 2 slipped to second place but continues to put on a good run that should ensure another sequel in this low budget horror series. A significant achievement was however registered by Jackass 3D that climbed the $100 million barrier at the US box-office during the weekend and is the first movie in the franchise to do so, a milestone not many expected the movie to reach. Way to go! The other interesting story comes from the highly anticipated flick Captain America: The First Avenger. To be shown in theatres in July 2011, the first images of the film have been released. Most depict a uniformed Chris Evans in a war era setting, though the best one for me is the one below. A man walking away with his back to you, unaware that he has a destiny much greater than one he can ever imagine!

The End of a Legacy this Halloween

It is Halloween time! And as usual, for movie watchers, it means the release of the latest instalment in the Saw series. While Paranormal Activity 2 had a strong showing last weekend earning $41 million at the US box-office, it is likely to be replaced at the top by the seventh and final movie in the Saw series. Horror movies rarely come in as a solitary package. When the original does well, it usually attains a loyal following that prompts the studios to keep the story running till the series finally dies a slow death. Generally devoid of any big stars, the budgets are kept tight and the return on investments remain healthy. The earliest horror movie series that come to mind are the classics of the 1970s, Exorcist and Omen series.

The Exorcist released in 1973 (and re-released in 2000) is one of the most successful horror movies till date earning $205 million at the US box-office and more than $400 million worldwide on a reported production budget of $12 million. The movie that dealt with the tale of Father Merrin's attempt to free a 12 year old from the clutches of a demon that had possessed her, won 2 Oscars and was nominated in 8 other categories. The film prompted four other sequels/prequels, though none of them have even come close to matching the success of the original. In 1976, Satan emerged again in the form of a child of an American Ambassador (played by Gregory Peck) in another classic, The Omen. The film was a critical and commercial success too and grossed about $50 million in US on a budget of only $2.8 million setting the stage for two more sequels that followed the path of Damien's emergence from childhood to youth and then to adulthood. The original movie that helped the notorious number 666 garner more attention, was remade and released in 2006. To be exact, on 06/06/06.

The 70's also saw the emergence of another low-budget popular franchise aptly titled Halloween. What started off in 1978 on a budget as low as one third of a million, the series subsequently saw the release of ten movies. The film series, started by John Carpenter, follows the tale of Michael Myers as he stalks and kills teenage babysitters on... yes, Halloween night! The original movie had seven sequels with Halloween: Resurrection released in 2002, and finally the series was rebooted and the original was remade and released in 2007. A sequel to the same followed in 2009. The franchise has collected almost $366 million in worldwide earnings on a total budget of $70 million. Quite a way to celebrate Halloween!

The list of long horror movie series does not just end there. A Nightmare on

Elm Street, released first in 1984 (and had Johnny Depp in his first theatrical appearance), has seen seven sequels to the original and subsequently a remake of the original in 2010, thus bringing the total to nine movies for the franchise. The remake remains the highest grosser of the series earning $117 million worldwide, though it had a much higher budget of $35 million, almost 20 times that of the original. Then there is the masked slasher Jason Voorhees, of the Friday the 13th franchise, who quite conveniently kills those that encroach the Camp Crystal Lake. First released in 1980, this franchise has nothing less than twelve movies in its repertoire, with production budgets not being more than $5 million for the first nine and each one providing steady returns. The franchise also saw a restart of the film series in 2009, that earned $92 million worldwide. Other famous spine-tingling series that come to mind are Texas Chain Saw Massacre series with six movies as part of its franchise, and Child's Play that made dolls look bad, with five movies.

While there might be a few more famous horror movies that make Halloween special indeed (not to forget the solitary greats like The Shining and Rosemary's Baby), the Saw series has managed to make its mark emphatically in this segment. Released each year close to Halloween time, Saw started off in 2004 on a production budget of a mere $1.2 million. The tale began with the famous opening scene of two men waking up at the opposite ends of a bathroom, chained to the pipes. Then followed the start of a labyrinth of games and tests, being outlined by the creepy Jigsaw, which kicked off a commercially successful franchise. The first movie grossed $103 million worldwide, its sequel released an year later did better with $153 million. The third movie remains the highest grosser of the franchise at $164 million. The films of the series have been made at low production budgets, not exceeding $11 million, and apart from the sixth movie, the previous five have earned more than $100 million in worldwide revenues. With a combined worldwide gross of $729 million from its six movies, the Saw franchise is easily one of the most successful in its genre! The final movie titled Saw 3D, the first one shot in 3D technology, will mark the end of the franchise and the legacy of Jigsaw. But come next Halloween, it could be the beginning of maybe another horror movie franchise... one never knows... till then... boo! Happy Halloween!

Time to feel the chills with Paranormal Activity 2

While Jackass 3D stole the show last weekend by posting the best weekend figures for an October release at $50 million, it is time for comedy now to take a back seat. Shift from humour to horror, all in a week! This weekend sees the release of a highly anticipated sequel to the 2007 surprise hit Paranormal Activity. The original movie had caused quite a sensation in the industry with its 'raw footage' style of camerawork wherein the creepy happenings in a house are caught by a video camera placed on a tripod. The movie of course invoked memories of the cult classic The Blair Witch Project.

The Blair Witch Project, released in 1999, was presented in the style of a documentary, following the adventure of three students who enter a mysterious forest to search about the local legend of the Blair Witch. The movie is reported to have been made on a production budget of as low as $0.6 million and went on to gross $248 million in worldwide revenues, reporting what could arguably be one of the best return on investments. The Blair Witch Project continues to have a strong following amongst horror-movie lovers till date. A sequel was eminent. But what followed in 2000, Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, was a mere gentle breeze compared to the hurricane that the original was. Made on an increased budget of $15 million, the sequel earned only $48 million in worldwide revenues, almost one-fifth of its original.

Ten years since the release of The Blair Witch Project, another movie created a similar stir in the industry. Paranormal Activity was initially released at a Horror Movie Festival in 2007 and subsequently it reached the attention of people at DreamWorks who cut a deal with director, Oren Peli. While there were plans to direct a movie on similar lines with a higher budget, the same was later scrapped and Peli's original film (with some re-editing) was released in September 2009. Reportedly made on a production budget of a mere $15,000 (no use of 'millions', here), the movie earned rave reviews and $197 million worldwide. A mind-boggling return on investment! When you earn so much on such a low cost, it is likely that you are not going to simply sit still and bask in its glory. Sequels become imperative. And so here is Paranormal Activity 2, a movie that will continue to attempt to scare the most lion-hearted of men. The production budget has increased manifold to $3 million. Oren Peli has shifted to the role of producer. But the chills remain the same. If there were any doubts on whether the sequel would collapse like the sequel to The Blair Witch Project did, the same have been kept at bay by a strong response on the opening day. The movie has already collected $20 million on its first day of release, i.e. Friday. While the fall could be steep on account of the Fanboy Effect, the movie should have earned close to $50 million on its opening weekend. Enough to keep the producers happy! And maybe enough to set the stage for another sequel... and another chilling tale about 'ghosts in your closet'...

The Year for Animation!

The year 2010 has been a great year for animated movies. And Megamind, releasing in the first week of November, could very well keep the run going. The dominance of the animated movies can be very well seen in the fact that, till date 4 animated movies have earned more than $200 million at the US box-office this year (out of a total of 8 movies that have achieved this feat). Compare this with only one movie in 2009 and two movies in 2008, and it is easy to see why animation studios have much to rejoice about. Animated movies have grown in stature and size over years, moving away from a traditional target audience of young adolescents to a more varied audience, comprising of anyone and everyone who enjoys listening to a good story. The so-called 'cartoon' flicks no longer deal on themes that only 5-year olds can relate to, but dwell into emotions felt by people all over the globe. And this year's big animation flicks have done exactly that... they have hit the perfect notes and spoken about camaraderie, love, courage and as always... adventure!

Toy Story 3 was one of the most anticipated films of the year considering the big boots it had to fill. The first movie of the series, Toy Story, released in 1995, had marked the beginning of the partnership between Pixar and Disney. And the response that it had garnered from fans and critics was overwhelming as it made Pixar a household name, earning $362 million worldwide. The sequel that followed four years later matched its predecessor in every aspect, earning $485 million worldwide and cementing Pixar's reputation in the animation industry. So when it came to 2010, people questioned 'How bigger can it get?' The answer was simple. $412 million at the US box-office alone, $1056 million worldwide, the biggest grosser animated movie of all-time... that is how big it has become! The adventures of Woody and Buzz Lightyear and the rest of the crew have created a legacy... a legacy that even another Pixar film will find hard to touch. Toy Story 3 will undoubtedly go down in history as one of the greatest animation movies of all-time!

While Toy Story 3 was made on a production budget of $200 million and had the name of Pixar behind it, another animated movie released a month later had little of such affluence to rely on. Made on a meagre production budget of $69 million, Despicable Me was not expected to run long in the theatres. The first film by a relatively new studio, Illumination Entertainment, currently co-owned by Universal Studios, Despicable Me however surprised many as it raced on to become the second-biggest animated movie of the year in the US. A tale of a supervillain and his bonding with three orphan girls, the movie's family-friendly tone brought in the movie-goers in plenty, and collected $247 million at the US box-office. The movie's worldwide collections have been relatively low at $383 million, but considering the low budget of the movie, it has earned enough to make its studio owners run merrily to the bank.

Just like the Toy Story series, the Shrek series has been one of the greatest animation movie series of all-time. Prior to Toy Story 3, it was Shrek 2 that had been the highest worldwide grosser amongst animated movies. The series that had started in 2001 and grown in leaps and bounds with its sequel, took a slight nosedive with the third movie of the series. Shrek Forever After, the fourth Shrek movie, had already been labeled as the final installment of the series. While it earned $238 million at the US box-office, the figures are the lowest amongst the movies in the Shrek series. Though many have suggested that it is time for the green colored ogre to make his exit, the worldwide collection figures however speak otherwise. The movie earned $732 million worldwide, which, despite being lower than Shrek 2 and Shrek The Third, reflects the global following that Shrek continues to enjoy. Shrek and his friends will definitely be missed!

Dreamworks Animation had two reasons to rejoice this year. While Shrek

Forever After brought in good returns to the studio, the joy was doubled with the success of How to Train Your Dragon, both critically and commercially. How to Train Your Dragon was the first of these four animated films to be released in the year and it is now expected to be the one to give Pixar's Toy Story 3 a tough competition at the Oscars. The movie spoke about a young Viking and his friendship with a dragon that changes the course of his life and the decisions that he takes. While the opening of the movie was the weakest amongst the top four animated films of the year, a strong word-of-mouth helped the bucks flow in, and gradually the movie crossed the $200 million mark, earning a total of $218 million in the US and $493 million worldwide. Will it be strong enough to pip Toy Story 3 for the Oscar... that remains to be seen!

Dreamworks has another shot at the box-office with Megamind opening in November. Another villain-centric story, the trailer is likeable and the voices of Will Ferrell and Brad Pitt also up the credibility of the movie. But independent of the fate of Megamind, it has been a wonderful year for animation movies in general and this raises the bar for all animation studios in the coming years to not only maintain high quality of animation work but also mix the storyline with the right amount of emotion along with humour. Kudos to them all, and looking forward to many more adventures to come!

Will the box-office be painted Red?

While The Social Network had a strong second weekend last time, there are a bunch of movies releasing in the US this week hoping to pull down the 'Facebook' inspired movie. And the action-packed Red would be one of the contenders. Starring Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren and Morgan Freeman, the movie has quite an aging cast, which does draw parallels to The Expendables that has had a strong run at the box-office. A $100 million revenue collection at the US box-office for Red though appears bit of a stretch. It has been sometime for a Bruce Willis movie to cross that target - since 2007 to be precise, when Live Free or Die Hard piled in strong numbers, becoming the highest grossing of all Die Hard flicks ($384 million in worldwide collection).

Jackass 3D appears likely to provide a stiffer competition during the weekend. The third instalment of the Jackass series is unlikely to be in contention for any Oscars though that must be the last thing on the minds of the producers. This slapstick comedy movie would be looking to earn more than its predecessor that raked in $73 million in the US on a meagre production budget of $11 million. Solid return on investment! And finally there is Conviction starring two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank. Swank's last movie, Amelia, bombed at the US box-office. And this drama about a single mother studying law to defend her convicted brother, may not necessarily strike gold at the box-office. Hilary Swank is not known for any major blockbusters, though the movie may create another Oscar buzz for her. So a lot of variety to look forward to this weekend. Take your pick!

Superman's maker announced

A string of releases this weekend could not push past the combined force of '500 million friends'. The reference is of course to The Social Network, a loose story about the founders of Facebook, that continues to remain on the top of the US box office for the second week in a row. Katherine Heigl starrer Life As We Know It came in second, earning $14.6 million during the weekend. The big news of the past week though is the announcement of the new director for the next Superman movie - Zack Snyder. While his latest movie Legend of the Guardians fell to the fourth spot and has definitely not brought in the bucks the studio would have expected, Snyder has a past, albeit a short one, to fall back on. His directorial debut was the horror flick, Dawn of the Dead, released in 2004 that earned $102 million worldwide, and considering the limited budget of the movie, was a financial success. Snyder however really caught the attention of the public when he made 300 semi-clad men shout battle cries in the middle of the night with fury and defiance. 300 was released in 2007, and was a major success earning $457 million worldwide and making "We are Spartans!" a cult war cry. The year 2009 saw the release of the much awaited Watchmen, again based on a comic series. The movie however did not raise too much interest and could manage only $184 million in worldwide collection. Before he begins his work on the Superman movie, Snyder's Sucker Punch will be released on March 2011. Back to R-rated work, this action packed film has an interesting trailer doing the rounds. Despite how that goes, with the Superman movie, Snyder will not be able to get away easy. A lot is expected of this series, especially with Christopher Nolan at the realm of things. Snyder knows he has a tough battle at his hand. Anything short of greatness would be massacred by the fans. Will he be able to give the Man of Steel his due? I hope so. Let us wait and watch....

A long time ago, In a galaxy far far away...

If the title of this post makes your heart race and your mind reel back to the time when you first saw those yellow-colored lines slant away against a starry background, then the latest news about the greatest movie saga would have made you jump off your seat too. Star Wars.. the great Star Wars series is coming back on the big screen -- in 3D!! What started off as a tale about a young Jedi living on the planet Tatooine, went on to become on of the greates movies series ever in the history of film-making. Star Wars is and will always be more than just a movie series though. It is the tale of a different galaxy altogether, of different species, of a war of a different kind...

Released on May 25, 1977, Star Wars: A New Hope paved the path for the beginning of the original trilogy. The movie became an instant hit as words like 'Jedi' and 'Sith' formed part of the common man's language. The movie easily

broke the previous highest earnings at the US box-office held by Spielberg's Jaws and went on to earn a staggering $461 million (including earnings from subsequent re-releases). The movie currently stands at #4 on the all-time US box-office list. The Force remained with the series as the sequels that followed, viz. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in 1980 and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in 1983, earned $290 million and $309 million respectively. As compared to the production budgets that movies nowadays start off with, the budgets that George Lucas and his team worked with appear peanuts - $66.5 million was the combined budget on which the entire trilogy was made!

16 years after the final battle between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker had concluded, George Lucas began another trilogy describing the beginnings of

the world's most popular villain - Darth Vader. In 1999, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace was released amongst huge expectations and the movie was a phenomenal success. It earned $431 million in US (all-time #7) and grossed $924 million in worldwide revenues, the latter being the highest earnings amongst the Star Wars movies. Star Wars: Attack of the Clones released in 2002 and fell short in comparison earning $311 million in US. But the final movie of this amazing adventure, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, released in 2005, capped off a wonderful journey, grossing $380 million in US (all-time #12) and $849 million worldwide. The Star Wars saga now stands as the third-biggest movie series ever, only after James Bond and Harry Potter series!

And this does not end here. The series that has seen number of spin-offs into novels, animated series, theme parks, will be returning back to the big screen. In late September, it was annouced that the entire series would be returning in 3D. The experience would kick-off in chronological order this time, starting with Star Wars: The Phantom Menace that is slated for an early-2012 release. The other movies would follow, one each year. The 3D technology itself has grown by leaps and bounds over the years and this would surely make the 'new' Star Wars viewing an "outworldy experience"! May the Force be with You...

Wall Street moves up

"Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works." These lines uttered by the business mastermind, Gorden Gekko, 23 years back still continue to stir a thought whenever you hear them. And Michael Douglas has reprised his role with some aplomb in the sequel Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps that has taken the US box office top spot for the weekend with $19 million. While the sequel should go on to earn more than the original that grossed $43 million in US, the more-than-two decade timeline between the movies hardly warrants a comparison. The second spot was taken by the high flying owls of Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole. The movie did not stir the box office much despite being a family-centric film released in 3D (surprised people not that interested in talking owls!). Ben Affleck's The Town continued an impressive second week with only 34% decline in weekend results. It will be grossing $50 million at the US box office soon. And catch the trailer for The King's Speech starring Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter. Hilarious, mixed with the right amount of drama!

Will the Hobbits return?

The production of the prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit, continues to remain shrouded in as much mystery and drama as the Middle Earth itself created by J.R.R. Tolkien in his books of the same name. Between the period from 1937 to 1949, Tolkien created one of the greatest literary creations of the century that was later brought to life on the silver screen by Peter Jackson. As the release dates for The Hobbit series continues to allude, it is time to go back in history and relive the impact that the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) trilogy created.

The phenomenon began in the year 2001. On a production budget of $110 million, LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring introduced the world to the Middle Earth and its creatures, the hobbits, the wizards, the dwarfs, the elves, the orcs and many more. The humble Shire of the hobbits, the grandeur of the wizard Gandalf, the dark Nazguls and their allegiance to their Lord, Sauron, the beautiful land of Rivendell where the Fellowship is formed, all combined well to stir more than a mere liking for the film. It created a sensation across the globe! The movie grossed $869 million in worldwide revenues, won 4 Oscars of the 13 categories it was nominated in, and set the roadpath for the next two sequels to follow.

Exactly an year later, the much anticipated LOTR: The Two Towers followed. And it lived upto the reputation set by its predecessor. As the disbanded Fellowship continued on their separate journeys to achieve the sole quest of destroying the One Ring, the audience followed them loyally all the way. The movie grossed $926 million worldwide, more than its predecessor, and won 2 Oscars of the 6 categories it was nominated in. But it was the final movie of the trilogy, released in 2003, that set the stage on fire! LOTR: The Return of the King followed the journey of Frodo and Sam to Mount Doom as Sauron's forces arrived at the lands of Gondor to claim Middle Earth. The finale of the trilogy broke the $1 billion barrier (previously achieved only by Titanic) and swept in $1,133 million in worldwide revenues (all-time #3, after Avatar and Titanic). As if that was not enough, the movie then went on to grab all the 11 Oscars that it had been nominated for. Sauron's forces had been vanquished and Middle Earth had been saved!

It came as no surprise then when the movie adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit was announced. Published in 1937, the story acts as a prequel to the happenings of LOTR, showcasing Bilbo Baggins' journey with the dwarves to battle the dragon Smaug and more importantly, his encounter with Gollum that leads him to the possession of the most coveted Ring. Peter Jackson was initially supposed to serve as executive producer and co-writer while Guillermo Del Toro (of Pan's Labyrinth fame) was brought in as the director. The movie is planned to be broken into two parts. The making of the film has been however hardly anything but smooth. The initially announced release date of December 2011 for the first film has already been pushed back with the aim to start shooting by January 2011. The on-going financial problems of MGM who holds large portion of the rights to the movie, has been another reason for the drama surrounding the movie. The casting has not been completed yet though it is expected that many actors from the LOTR series would be reprising their roles (would love to see Gandalf back!). More importantly, the movie has no director as of now, with Del Toro walking out in May 2010 after working for two years on pre-production, due to the delays in filming. It appears that it would be upto Peter Jackson once again to weave his magic. We can only hope that the issues are resloved soon and we are taken back to Middle Earth to accompany the brave Bilbo Baggins on his adventures, especially his chance meeting with Gollum and the game of riddles that follow which brings the mysterious ring in Bilbo's possession. Fingers crossed!

"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,

One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them."

It is a 100 for Stallone!

When one is 64 years old, one thinks about retiring to the golden beaches of Hawaii or to the breezy lands of the Savannah. One does not think of jumping onto moving airplanes or riding bikes through blazing warehouses! But if someone does that, he better be good. Sylvester Stallone has proven that he better than good... he is one of the best when it comes to making adrenaline-pumping intense action films. In the past week, Stallone's The Expendables crossed $100 million at the US box office and has become the second biggest hit ever for its distributor, Lionsgate (after Fahrenheit 9/11). This surprise hit has raked in $240 million in worldwide revenues so far, showing that brute force at times does work!

The past weekend saw another actor-turned-director perform well at the box office. Ben Affleck's The Town earned a respectable $24 million in the first weekend in the US. Pretty solid, considering Affleck's directorial debut Gone Baby Gone had roped in $20 million in the US in its entire theatrical run. Easy A bagged the second spot while The Devil had a slightly disappointing opening weekend with third place. Jovovich's run with Resident Evil seems to be coming to a sharp end as the revenues fell by 62% in its second weekend. It is still on course to become the highest grossing movie of the series. And finally, check out the trailer for The Fighter. With a cast including Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale and Amy Adams, this one seems to be a must watch. Too early to say, but looking at the trailer I wonder if... Oscar buzz for Christian Bale?

Angelina Jolie & Johnny Depp... aha!

The two names mentioned in the title of the post are enough to attract the attention of even the naivest of movie fans. But before we venture into that, there is a whole long list of movies releasing this weekend. In wide releases, the list is Easy A starring Emma Stone, Ben Affleck directed The Town, M. Shyamalan written (but not directed) Devil and the animated Alpha & Omega. None of these is likely to turn the box-office on its head. Devil is the one that catches my attention with a typical Shyamalan-ic plot about a group of people trapped in an elevator who realise that one amongst them is the devil! Cool.. but is it cool enough to get the audience inside the theatres... we will have to see... There are a few interesting limited releases as well, Never Let Me Go starring Keira Knightely and Jack Goes Boating, the directorial debut of Philip Hoffmann.

Now to the main event. Put Angelina Jolie in a movie. Heads will turn. Put Johnny Depp in a movie. Heads will turn. Put them both in a movie. Heads will spin wildly! That is what will happen on December 10, when The Tourist starring the two mega-stars (for the first time ever) is released in the US. The trailer for the film is out and it does live upto the expectations. Charisma and style galore! The opening lines from the trailer... just to pique your interest...

Jolie: I am Elise.

Depp: I am Frank.

Jolie: That's a terrible name.

Depp: Haha. It's the only one I've got.

Jolie: Maybe we can find you another.

Depp: Okay!

Check out the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iXHDFqI7qk

Zombies rule while Eastwood shoots...

People still love a tough looking girl pick up the guns and teach badly dressed zombies some manners! Resident Evil: Afterlife predictably took the top spot during the weekend at the US box office with the higher ticket prices for its 3D format helping the movie gross $27 million in the US and $73 million worldwide, making it the best opening weekend in the Resident Evil franchise. Resident Evil 5 is definitely on the cards and I, for certain, am not complaining. The other movies saw big dips in their earnings as Takers moved to second spot and Clooney's The American slipped to third.

For Clint Eastwood fans, the legend is back! Not in front of the camera, but behind it once again as the trailer for his new flick Hereafter starring Matt Damon has been released. A supernatural thriller, the movie is slated for an October release this year. If you are wondering what all the gungho about, well for starters because he is Clint Eastwood! And his directorial CV appears something like this (hold your breath!) : Invictus (nominated for 2 Oscars and 3 Golden Globes), Gran Torino (nominated for 1 Golden Globe), Changeling (nominated for 3 Oscars and 2 Golden Globes), Letters from Two Jima (won 1 Oscar & 1 Golden Globe, also nominated for 3 Oscars and 1 Golden Globe), Flags of Our Fathers (nominated for 2 Oscars and 1 Golden Globe), Mystic River (won 2 Oscars and 2 Golden Globes, also nominated for 4 Oscars and 3 Golden Globes) and on and on and on.... To quote his line from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, "You see in this world there's two kinds of people, my friend. Those with loaded guns and those who dig." Eastwood is the one with the loaded guns!

Superheroes that walk amongst us...

From the beauty to the geek, a superhero captures the imagination of all demographics. The alter-egoes, the super cool powers, the desire to uphold justice, are some of the many traits that everyone fantasises about, dreams to achieve. Aunt May's message in Spiderman 2 'I believe there's a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride', sinks in each one of us. Asking you to search for the hero within you. And that is why a superhero movie is never simply a movie. It is another world altogether, another dimension that you want to reach out to. The characters are legends, timeless heroes, living across generations, relentless in their pursuits. And no wonder then that a superhero movie, or call it movies based on comic characters, live ages, appeal to the masses, and also earn the "big bucks".

The turn of the century gradually saw the reemergence of the comic book heroes. It began with X-Men releasing in July 2000 to a fine reception from the audience and the critics. The movie earned $335 million in worldwide ticket sales, propelled Hugh Jackman into stardom as the 'less-talk more-action' hero Wolverine, and ushered in three more films of the franchise, each of which performed better than the original on the box-office. But it was in 2002 that a comic book hero really took centre-stage. None other than the web-slinging, 'friendly neighbourhood' Spiderman. The character that Stan Lee created in 1962, had a smashing movie debut 40 years later as it took the world by storm, leaving everyone gushing for more. The two sequels that came later were hardly disappointing and the franchise collected a whooping $2.5 billion in worldwide revenues. As of now, the three Spiderman movies are ranked in the top 20 list in terms of their US box-office revenue collections.

In comparison to Spiderman's mind boggling numbers, release of Hulk in 2003 with Eric Bana as the lead, paled. The movie collected only $245 million in worldwide revenues, causing the production house to reboot the series in 2008 with release of The Incredible Hulk starring Edward Norton as the angry green guy. The movie could however perform only marginally better than the original.

It was not before 2005 that one of the greatest ever comic characters saw his reel rebirth. A series that many had lost hope for. A character few believed would ever emerge back from the darkness. Batman! The previous century had seen four Batman films hit the screens, and while 1989's Batman starring Michael Keaton had been a huge success, little said about the other three that followed, the better. After the disastrous Batman & Robin of 1997, it took Christopher Nolan's genius to revive a lost cause and give the world a treat to savour. Batman Begins was released in 2005 and as the name suggested, it revisited the beginnings of the superhero. The movie earned a respectable $372 million, enough to push for a sequel, and established Christian Bale as a star. What followed next is what you will define as the best possible mix of creative story-telling and superlative performances, so engrossing that one loses touch with everything else around him. That was the wonder called The Dark Knight! As Batman took on his greatest nemesis Joker in this sequel, a performance that landed Heath Ledger a posthumous Oscar, the producers laughed all the way to the bank as audiences piled on and on. The Dark Knight earned nothing short of $533 million at the US box-office (#3) and $1.2 billion worldwide (#7) making it the biggest superhero blockbuster of all time.

While Batman had a smashing return to the big screen, the same was not the case for an equally popular superhero, Superman. Chrisptopher Reeve had made the Superman franchise a popular series during the period 1978 - 1987. There were attempts in the past to revive the series but it was not until 2006 that the next Superman movie hit the screens starring Brandon Routh as the famous Kryptonian. While the movie earned $391 million worldwide, higher than the earnings of Batman Begins, the studio termed it as disappointing due to the much higher production budget on which the movie was made and so no sequel was immediately followed. As of now, the Dark Knight has outdone the Man of Steel!

In 2008, it was a not-so-famous superhero that would resurrect an actor's career back in the A-list and revolutionise a comic book franchise. Not many were in awe of The Iron Man prior to Robery Downey Jr.'s depiction of the superhero in the movie with the same name. But the quick-talking and science-loving character created quite a first impression on the big screen earning $582 million worldwide and about $620 million in its sequel released earlier this year, making it one of the most successful superhero franchises of all time. The success of the movie has also paved the path to bring together any fan's dream team 'The Avengers' - Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America and Thor.

While the past decade has been exciting , the next two years should be grander when these superheroes will walk amongst us once again. The X-Men series has disintegrated with focus towards spin-offs and prequels. X-Men: First Class is slated to be released in 2011 that would focus on the earlier years of Magneto and Xavier. The sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine is also underway and shooting for the movie is expected in 2011. The hugely successful Spiderman series will also see a reboot with Tobey Maguire not reprising his role as the famous web-crawler. The fourth movie is scheduled to be released in July 2012 with a new director and new cast. If anyone was worried whether the Batman series will suffer the same fate, then have no fears. Christopher Nolan is back at the realm of things for his final instalment of the franchise while Bale would be back in the guise of the Dark Knight. The movie is also slated for a July 2012 release. Christopher Nolan will also be involved in reworking on the Superman series though not in the capacity of a director. The next Superman movie may come out in late 2012.

While some great superheroes will return in 2012, the year 2011 is going to have its mouth savoring moments too. June 2011 will bringforth the Green Lantern starring Ryan Reynolds as the superhero carrying the power ring and reciting the famous oath 'In brightest day, in blackest night, No evil shall escape my sight, Let those who worship evil's night, Beware my power, Green Lantern's light!' Before that we will be introduced to one of the Avengers, the hammer-yielding God banished to Earth, Thor, releasing in the month of May (remember the appearance of Thor's hammer in the post-credits scene of Iron Man 2). The First Avenger, Captain America, will make his appearance in the month of July completing the Avengers list. The grand meeting of these superheroes in Avengers is slated for a May 2012 release. So mortals, be ready to fall in awe... The Superheroes are coming...

Alice's back... and she's bringing a few of her friends...

This is the tagline for the fourth movie of the Resident Evil franchise releasing this weekend. Not the best tagline in the world. But if you are a fan of Milla Jovovich shooting bullets across the hall as she takes on rabid dogs and deadly zombies, then you would be glad to see Alice (Jovovich's character in the series) back in action. The fact that this movie is in 3D adds to the fun. The previously released three movies have been steady box office performers, each earning about $50 million in the US market while revenues in the international market have grown with each flick (Resident Evil 3 grossed $146 million worldwide). 'Resident Evil 4: Afterlife' should not do any worse, especially with no other big release hitting the theatres this weekend. So do not expect too much from the storyline, grab a cone of popcorn alongwith a cold drink and enjoy the bullets whizzing by!

Mr. Clooney, you can do better...

If you are asked whether you want to watch a George Clooney flick, the chances are pretty high that you will agree without thinking twice (though you may enquire whether he is playing Batman again). With a stellar performance in his last movie, the Oscar nominated 'Up In the Air', I had hoped that Clooney would move on to something bigger. But The American released last weekend does not seem to fit the bill. A story line around an assassin on his final job does not sound something fresh. While the movie topped the weekend US box office, it will not be making the $100 million cut. Surprisingly, it has been three years since Clooney has had a film cross the $100 million mark in the US, with Ocean's Thirteen achieving this feat in 2007. But you still gotta love his style!

No other exciting news this week... Shooting for Spiderman 4 to begin from December. And casting for the remake of Judge Dredd is going on, with Karl Urban (remember him as Dr. McCoy from Star Trek) to fill Stallone's big shoes.

Another week goes by...

The weekend figures hardly held my interest. Takers, a tale on a group of bank robbers, narrowly edged out The Last Exorcism to top the weekend box office while The Expendables dropped to third. The most interesting thing to watch was the re-release of Avatar. Why, you may ask. No clue. Give the fans nine additional minutes of unreleased footage, maybe. The $4 million that it earned during the weekend helped it to cross $750 million on the US box office. For those who still have no clue about its worldwide collections, it stands at a pretty cool $2.7 billion. That is way ahead of the previous No 1 - Titanic with $1.8 billion.

The other notable stories include Toy Story 3 crossing $1 billion in worldwide box office collections, making it just the seventh Hollywood movie to do so (and second of the year after Alice in Wonderland), Stallone expressing his interest to cast Bruce Willis as the villain for the sequel to Expendables (if Schwarzenegger is in it, then I am watching) and the trailer release of Oscar winner Danny Boyle's latest movie, 127 Hours (weird trailer, but worth a watch).

Vampires Suck....

As expected, The Expendables continues its reign at the top of the box office though a 50% dip in its second weekend takes the US gross to $65 million after the first 10 days. It was Vampires Suck that took the second spot despite the terrible reviews for this spoof on vampire flicks. Shows that mindless attempts at comedy too can drag in the crowd as can mindless action. Jeniffer Aniston's The Switch has been hardly impressive, opening at the eighth spot and likely to be forgotten soon. So nothing significant to talk about. Maybe next weekend would be better.

Ho-Hum weekend awaits...

Nothing big seems to be on the horizon this weekend that might dethrone The Expendables from the top spot. There is the sequel Nanny McPhee Returns and also The Switch staring Jennifer Aniston, but none of these seem to be the kind that would make you wait desperately for the Friday sunrise. Instead one could check out the trailer for The Next Three Days starring Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks which might prove to be more entertaining. One could also rejoice in the latest accomplishment for Toy Story 3 - becoming the highest worldwide grossing animated movie ever, grabbing a spot above Shrek 2. In India, Cats & Dogs 2 is being released which again would not pull the common man easily to the cinema. The movie was released 3 weeks back in the US and has barely managed to earn one-third of its predecessor. Seems a talking fur-ball is not always that enthralling!

Stallone kicks to the top & Woody makes it big!

What does it take to make it to the top of the weekend box office? Muscles. As simple as that. The brawn of the Expendables marched on to the top of the weekend box office with $35 million ticket sales in US. While the movie could have been much better in terms of creating more intricate personalities for its leads, I guess the old throat-cutting, gun-slinging action is still in demand. The Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World however could not bring in the green bucks despite the positive reviews and landed up on the fifth spot. It was surprisingly Julia Roberts' 'Eat Pray Love' that slotted in the second spot, grossing $23 million.

Woody and his gang crossed the $400 million mark, the second animated film to do so after Shrek 2. Toys do sell big! And finally, Salt became the 16th movie to hit the $100 million in the US box office this year. Not many left, I believe, that will achieve this feat in 2010.

Dare to take on the Expendables?

In the eigth month of the year, and only 15 movies have managed to cross the $100 million mark in the US market so far. Compare that with the 30 movies that achieved this feat in the previous year and you will share my concerns. Toy Story fans would however watch with bated breath as the third edition inches ever so close to the grand $400 million mark, that would make it only the 11th movie in the history of US cinema to achieve this feat. Despicable Me crossed $200 million in the previous week, demonstrating the growing love for animated cinema and becoming the fourth animated film this year to cross over to the 200+category (others being Toy Story 3, Shrek Forever After, How To Train Your Dragon).

This weekend would see the release of Stallone's The Expendables, featuring a cast of hard-hitting action men with the much talked about cameo appearance of Arnold Schwarzenegger. How good this movie will be? Well, Stallone's last two directorial movies earned bucks and were critically appreciated - Rambo IV and Rocky Balboa. So this might just not be a 'shoot and kill' flick after all. Would be worth a watch! Then on the other end of the spectrum, there is Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, featuring Stallone's antithesis, Michael Cera. A guy having to defeat his girl's seven exes, who would not root for this dude! Two movies to enjoy, though either of them making the $100 million mark seems unlikely. We'll know though once the weekend numbers start churning in...