Big names to dominate weekend box office

With a host of major releases bowing this weekend, moviegoers of every age, demographic and level of taste should have little trouble finding something to satisfy them. Sci-fi flick Ender’s Game has been generating the greatest amount of buzz as the first installment in a would-be franchise for Summit Entertainment (a company in need of another tentpole, now their Twilight series has faded). The adaptation of Orson Scott Card’s young adult novel has been tracking strong in pre-sales, with reviews just this-side of positive (63% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes).  Odds are, Ender’s Game, which is opening in 3,407 theatres tonight, will likely score somewhere in the high $20 million range.

If Game is looking to draw a crowd of teenagers, Free Birds is after their younger brothers and sisters. It’s been all Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 all the time for the past few weeks, so far as kid features are concerned. Lacking any family friendly challengers the animated sequel has been doing solid business, consistently ranking among each weekend’s top five highest-grossing films. Although our critic Michael Sauter thought Birds was one mess of a turkey, parents who’ve already seen Cloudy 2 will most likely welcome the change of pace. Free Birds will debut very widely, in 3,736 locations. Look for earnings as low as $15 million and as high as $20+ million.

With brother in one theatre, and baby sister in another, you’ll most likely find grandpa down the hall in cinema 3 yucking it up at Last Vegas. You couldn’t ask for a better cast – Michael Douglas, Kevin Kline, Morgan Freeman, and Robert De Niro – though no one would fault you for wishing writer Dan Fogelman had invested his script with a little more wit or originality. Critics haven’t been falling for the comedy’s tried tropes and gags, but if you don’t mind a little derivativeness, watching the four leads throw self-seriousness to the wind is a hoot. In all likelihood Last Vegas won’t do banner business, but a respectable $14 million would be just that.

About Time will likely rank among the weaker of Friday’s major debuts, even with its director’s legions of faithful – young women capable of reciting every line of his beloved film Love, Actually – in attendance. Richard Curtis’ latest, about a young man with a nifty family gene that allows him to travel back in time, also boasts romance queen Rachel McAdams as the love interest. Between director and leading lady, About Time (175 theatres) is expected to draw a small, devoted crowd that may translate to roughly $2 million in sales.

Last but by no means least (quite the opposite, in fact) specialty release Dallas Buyers Club will open in nine theatres, and 12 Years A Slave will expand to 410 theatres. Each early Oscar contender has received strong reviews and is expected to do very strong art-house business.

Morgan Freeman rounds out the cast of 'Now You See Me'

By Sarah Sluis

Recently, I've developed a bit of a Morgan Freeman obsession. On television, I keep finding his voiceovers left and right. It's a rare person who wasn't won over pre-DVR by his starring role in cable TV favorite The Shawshank Redemption. His voice is rich and reserved, authoritative but twinkling. He just may be the best narrator out there. I recently took a look at his Alex Cross films (Along Came a Spider and Kiss the Girls) on the announcement that Tyler Perry plans to star in a reboot of the franchise, I, Alex Cross. They're generic, formulaic detective movies that date quickly, but they're also films in which Freeman gets to play the character he's honed so well over the years: wise, competent, and always ready to save the day.

Now You See Me centers on a couple of FBI agents who are trying to take down a quartet of magicians who carry out bank heists during their performances, ending by distributing the money to the attendees. Freeman will play a former magician who now gives away the secrets behind the tricks, an action that makes him reviled in the magic community. Freeman as a wise, behind-the-scenes guy who has more insight into what's going on than anyone else? Sounds like the perfect Freeman role to me.

Besides Freeman, Mark Ruffalo has signed on to play one of the FBI agents for the Summit Entertainment project. Jesse Eisenberg will play the cocky ringleader of the magicians (presumably employing his mile-a-minute delivery) and Amanda Seyfried and Melanie Laurent will play femme fatales. Though the cast is top-notch, the writing/directing team has a less than stellar track record. Director Louis Leterrier helmed the ill-fated Clash of the Titans, the poster child for poor 3D conversions, as well as The Transporter and its sequel. His record is pure action, but is he hungry to prove himself dramatically? The screenwriting team of Boaz Yakin and Edward Ricourt also gives little indication of their capability. Yakin has writing, directing, and producing credits on a variety of films, including Uptown Girls (director, executive producer), Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (writer), and the documentary Bombay Beach (producer). Ricourt is a new talent, with no finished films but four scripts to his name on IMDB, which range from sci-fi to thriller to literary adaptation. There's no telling what shape the project Now You See Me might take, but one thing's for sure. Freeman will be there, lending his wise and comforting presence.