WEEKEND TOP 5 STUDIO ESTIMATES, SEPTEMBER 26-28, 2008 1. Eagle Eye - $29.2 million 2. Nights in Rodanthe - $13.6 million 3. Lakeview Terrace - $7.0 million 4. Fireproof - $6.5 million 5. Burn After Reading - $6.2 million

Source: boxofficemojo.com

Kirk Cameron, box office star. Whoever had that in your office pool from 1987, congrats, it's time for your co-workers to finally pay up. Fireproof is Cameron's latest film that is closely tied to religion. It was only released on 839 screens which means Cameron's film had BY FAR the highest per screen average of the top 5.

Eagle Eye did what it was supposed to do, and LaBeuof will continue to get starring roles because of it. I just hope he doesn't simply continue with the action genre. He's got a small role in New York

Opening this weekend: Eagle Eye Fireproof Miracle at St. Anna Nights in Rodanthe Choke Forever Strong The Lucky Ones

And we have plenty of reviews this week. Three for Eagle Eye (trying something new with a plethora of opinions), two for Miracle at St. Anna, and then we also review The Lucky Ones, Choke, and Nights in Rodanthe.

This was my week of high hopes. I was expecting big things out of Spike Lee, Shia LaBeouf and Sam Rockwell. I guess I'll wait until next time.

And now it's time for everyone's (or at least 12 people's) favorite new game ... Here's how it works, just decide the order. Points are awarded as such ... #1 at the box office = 5 points 2 = 4 points 3 = 3 points 4 = 2 points 5 = 1 point

Your goal: Try to beat us. Our

WEEKEND TOP 5 STUDIO ESTIMATES, SEPTEMBER 19-21, 2008 1. Lakeview Terrace - $15.6 million 2. Burn After Reading - $11.3 million 3. My Best Friend's Girl - $8.3 million 4. Igor - $8.0 million 5. Righteous Kill - $7.7 million

Well, I was right. But unfortunately it was only once. Lakeview Terrace claimed the number one spot. Here's how the Box Office Preview game played out for Sept. 19...

Bayer, Pohl and Pardee tie. No winners (for the staff) again this week. But Kyle comes out of nowhere and proves sun shines on a dog's arse every once in a while. Well done Kyle, almost perfect nailing the first four spots for a total of 14 points. Feel free to talk all the trash you want.

The new films getting wide release this week are: Lakeview Terrace - 6/10, reviewed by Pohl Igor - I've seen the trailer, and I'm not impressed with the animation, yet another Cusack miss My Best Friend's Girl - no screening in Portland, that smells like a stinker Ghost Town - 4/10, reviewed by Bayer

Let's play a game. We attempted this last week, but we're calling that the preseason. It's time to predict the Top 5 at the box office this weekend. Here's how it works, just decide the order. Points are awarded as such ...

#1 at the box office = 5 points 2 = 4 points 3 = 3 points 4 = 2 points 5 = 1 point

Your goal: Try to beat us. Our goal: Prove our dominance.

Just add your predictions below, and yes, it's kind of cheating if

WEEKEND TOP 5 STUDIO ESTIMATES, SEPTEMBER 12-14, 2008 Rank. Movie Title (Distributor) Weekend Gross | Theaters | Total Gross | Week #

1. Burn After Reading (Focus Features) $19.4 million | 2,651 | $19.4 million | 1

2. Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys (Lionsgate) $18.0 million | 2,070 | $18.0 million | 1

3. Righteous Kill (Overture Films) $16.5 million | 3,152 | $16.5 million | 1

4. The Women (2008) (Picturehouse) $10.1 million | 2,962 | $10.1 million | 1

5. The House Bunny (Sony / Columbia) $4.3 million | 2,763 | $42.2 million | 4

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

Wow, what happened to Tropic Thunder -- it dropped out of the top 5. Oh well, guess it was time to go with so many new films opening this weekend.

And we have a new competition here on TSR. Staff

Press Release from Focus Features -- Production begins today on location in Minnesota on A Serious Man, for Focus Features and Working Title Films. Joel and Ethan Coen, Academy Award winners for No Country for Old Men and Fargo, are writing, producing, and directing the film. Working Title co-chairs Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner are executive-producing the film with Robert Graf, who has worked on the Coens’ last six features in various producing capacities.

The director of photography on A Serious Man is seven-time Academy Award nominee Roger Deakins, who is marking his tenth feature collaboration with the Coens. Mary Zophres is the film’s costume designer, marking her ninth feature collaboration with the Coens. Jess Gonchor is the production designer, marking his third feature collaboration with the Coens.

WEEKEND TOP 5 STUDIO ESTIMATES, SEPTEMBER 5-7, 2008 Rank. Movie Title (Distributor) Weekend Gross | Theaters | Total Gross | Week #

1. Bangkok Dangerous (Lionsgate) $7.8 million | 2,650 | $7.8 million | 1

2. Tropic Thunder (Paramount (DreamWorks) $7.5 million | 3,446 | $96.8 million | 4

3. The House Bunny (Sony / Columbia) $5.9 million | 2,736 | $37.0 million | 3

4. The Dark Knight (Warner Bros.) $5.7 million | 2,575 | $512.2 million | 8

5. Traitor (Overture Films) $4.7 million | 2,108 | $17.7 million | 2

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

Wow, no one saw movies this last weekend. I assume this was due to some football. Both college football and the NFL were in full swing this weekend, and next to Nic Cage in an action movie, there wasn't much of a choice.

"The Dark

Bruce Springsteen is back to working on soundtracks. Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain) has gotten the Jersey native to craft a song for the final credits to his new film The Wrestler starring Mickey Rourke. This quote is directly from Aronofsky's blog. off to venice on wednesday. but i wanted to just share with you all the other music news i talked about in the past post. bruce springsteen wrote a beautiful original song for the closing the film. called THE WRESTLER it is a wonderful acoustic piece. makes me choke up every time i hear it. he really captured the spirit of the film and mickey's character in the piece. This adds to the already impressive list of "Streets of Philadelphia," "Dead Man Walkin'" and "Secret Garden."

Rank. Movie Title (Distributor)Weekend Gross | Theaters | Total Gross | Week #

1. Tropic Thunder (Paramount (DreamWorks) $14.3 million | 3,473 | $86.6 million | 3

2. Babylon A.D. (Fox) $12.0 million | 3,390 | $12.0 million | 1

3. The Dark Knight (Warner Bros.) $11.0 million | 2,750 | $504.7 million | 7

4. The House Bunny (Sony / Columbia) $10.2 million | 2,714 | $29.8 million | 2

5. Traitor (Overture Films) $10.0 million | 2,054 | $11.5 million | 1

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

My "quality rank" of the Top 5. Dark Knight Tropic Thunder House Bunny Traitor Babylon A.D.

My scores for those films actually goes 9, 8, 7, 6 and then Babylon messes everything up by getting a 4. I haven't written that review yet and might just give a quick blurb. Good start, terrible finish pretty much seems

Roger Ebert, the film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times wrote an open letter to Jay Mariotti, who recently quit the newspaper. This is the opening ... What an ugly way to leave the Sun-Times. It does not speak well for you. Your timing was exquisite. You signed a new contract, waited until days after the newspaper had paid for your trip to Beijing at great cost, and then resigned with only an email. You saved your explanation for a local television station.

As someone who was working here for 24 years before you arrived, I think you owed us more than that. You owed us decency. The fact that you saved your attack for TV only completes our portrait of you as a rat.

To read the article in its entirety --

SCI FI Wire is now confirming that star Shia LaBeouf's hand injury has become part of the film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. LaBeouf's hand was injured in a car accident earlier in August. The film is hoping for a release date of June 26, 2009."Shia just got back to the set last week," Roberto Orci, co-writer, said in an interview in New York on Aug. 25, where he was promoting his upcoming Fox TV series Fringe. "We incorporated his injury into it. Not because it was absolutely necessary, but [director] Michael [Bay] in particular wanted to be able to protect him on the set."

"He's still going to be running around in this movie," said Orci. "[Bay] literally just wanted, for [LaBeouf's] safety, ... to make sure that we weren't

Atlantic Records has announced the release of “NICK & NORAH’S INFINITE PLAYLIST: ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK,” the musical companion to the upcoming Columbia Pictures/Mandate Pictures film. Due in stores and online on September 23rd, the album features tracks from some of indie rock’s best and brightest, including Vampire Weekend, Band of Horses, We Are Scientists, Bishop Allen, and Devendra Banhart. Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist is slated to open in theatres nationwide on October 3rd.

In addition to songs by such artists as Richard Hawley, The Real Tuesday Weld, and the late, great Chris Bell, the soundtrack also features a previously unreleased tune from L.A.-based newcomers Army Navy, as well as an exclusive selection from the film’s score, performed by its legendary composer, Mark Mothersbaugh (DEVO, Rugrats, Big Love

WEEKEND TOP 5 STUDIO ESTIMATES, AUGUST 22-24, 2008 Rank. Movie Title (Distributor) Weekend Gross | Theaters | Total Gross | Week #

1. Tropic Thunder (Paramount (DreamWorks)) $16.1 million | 3,352 | $65.7 million | 2

2. The House Bunny (Sony / Columbia) $15.1 million | 2,714 | $15.1 million | 1

3. Death Race (Universal) $12.3 million | 2,532 | $12.3 million | 1

4. The Dark Knight (Warner Bros.) $10.3 million | 3,163 | $489.2 million | 6

5. Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Warner Bros.) $5.7 million | 3,452 | $25.0 million | 2

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

Wow, this played out exactly like I hoped. Tropic Thunder deserves a second week at the top, House Bunny definitely had enough laughs and clearly appealed to more than just girls. Death Race ... should have been much better.

So far

WEEKEND TOP 5 STUDIO ESTIMATES, AUGUST 15-17, 2008 Rank. Movie Title (Distributor) Weekend Gross | Theaters | Total Gross | Week #

1. Tropic Thunder (Paramount (DreamWorks) $26.0 million | 3,319 | $37.0 million | 1

2. The Dark Knight (Warner Bros.) $16.8 million | 3,590 | $471.5 million | 5

3. Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Warner Bros.) $15.5 million | 3,452 | $15.5 million | 1

4. Mirrors (Fox) $11.1 million | 2,664 | $11.1 million | 1

5. Pineapple Express (Sony / Columbia) $10.0 million | 3,072 | $62.9 million | 2

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)

Some good news and bad news. Batman is dead. OK, not dead, just not first anymore. But Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder definitely worked hard to entertain. Perhaps the best news is The Clone Wars underperformed. True, this will probably only make George

Warner Bros. Pictures released the following statement...Warner Bros. Pictures today announced that it has moved back the release date of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” to Summer 2009. The sixth installment of the blockbuster Harry Potter franchise will now open day-and-date domestically and in the major international markets on July 17, 2009. The announcement was made by Alan Horn, President and Chief Operating Officer, Warner Bros.

In making the announcement, Mr. Horn stated, “Our reasons for shifting ‘Half-Blood Prince’ to summer are twofold: we know the summer season is an ideal window for a family tent pole release, as proven by the success of our last Harry Potter film, which is the second-highest grossing film in the franchise, behind only the first installment. Additionally, like every other studio, we are

Bernie Mac died on August 8, 2008. It has put the seldom heard about disease sarcoidosis in the spotlight. Luckily, his comedy with last for decades to come.

1. The Dark Knight - $26.0 million2. Pineapple Express - $22.4 million 3. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - $16.1 million 4. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 - $10.8 million 5. Step Brothers - $8.9 million

1. The Dark Knight - $43.8 million2. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - $42.5 million 3. Step Brothers - $16.3 million 4. Mamma Mia! - $13.1 million 5. Journey to the Center of the Earth - $6.9 million