Will 'Bridesmaids' ruffle up the box office?

By Sarah Sluis

This weekend is something of a box-office test for a female-driven R-rated comedy. Bridesmaids (2,917 theatres) comes from producer Judd Apatow (Knocked Up), a veteran of risqu comedies, and stars Kristen Wiig, who co-wrote the screenplay. As the latest "SNL" veteran to cross over to feature films, "Wiig creates a portrait of a woman at loose ends that is simultaneously poignant and rib-tickling," critic Kevin Lally affirms. The comedy is already showing strong interest among females over 17, but Universal's biggest struggle will be convincing men that Bridesmaids is their kind of movie. Given these difficulties, the movie's target is an opening weekend in the conservative high teen millions, lower than other Apatow openings. With a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 91%, however, it will be a crime if this movie doesn't do big business.

Even after coming down from its $80 million opening weekend, Thor should be able to hold its first-place spot. A 60% drop would put the film at $32 million, a number out of reach for Bridesmaids. Fast Five, too, should continue a strong showing and remain within the top five.

The residual effect of these tentpoles should not dampen Priest (2,864 theatres), a religious-inflected horror movie that will also collect premiums for being in 3D. Critic Ray Bennett panned the "short, dour and stodgy creature feature," which borrows heavily from classic films from every imaginable genre. He hopes it will be the end for Priest: "The blatant set-up for a sequel after the climactic battle appears almost pitiable."

Will Ferrell plays an alcoholic whose life is imploding in Everything Must Go (218 theatres). Despite "mixed results" due to a reliance on "feel-good platitudes," critic Wendy R. Weinstein praised Ferrell, who "delivers a nuanced, sympathetic lead performance in a rare dramatic role."

Also hitting theatres is Lionsgate's low-budget teen dance film, Go For It (218 theatres). Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a motherless boy's anti-savior in Hesher (40 theatres), "[undoing] a lot of goodwill he inspired with his sweet leading-man qualities in (500) Days of Summer,' according to critic David Noh. National Geographic Entertainment releases based-on-a-true-story tale The First Grader (3 theatres), which centers on an 80-something man who enrolls in first grade in Kenya. The heartwarming story is "a textbook case of what happens to a good story when it's poorly directed," according to critic Maria Garcia.

When the weekend is over, the big question will be "Did Bridesmaids succeed?" If the answer is yes, a number of copycats will hit the market next year. If the answer is no, I actually think Hollywood will keep trying. Bridesmaids identified a gap in the marketplace, and it's just a matter of time before someone hits the jackpot.

'Fast Five' revving up for a blockbuster weekend

By Sarah Sluis

It's not even May yet, but this weekend should bring the first summer-size blockbuster hit, Fast Five, which will saturate the market with 3,643 theatres. Pundits are predicting the film could haul in up to $70 million, tens of millions more than anything that's hit the box office this year. What's more, despite being both the fourth sequel and a car chase action movie, critics are singing their praises, giving it an overall 78% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. FJI critic Daniel Eagan singled out the movie's "delirious action sequences" and concluded that it "condenses everything good about the series into a state-of-the-art thrill ride."

Many high schoolers are just weeks away from their own proms, so what better way to prepare than to catch Disney's Prom (2,730 theatres)? In fairness, the scrubbed-clean Disney version of Prom (no lose-your-virginity pacts la American Pie) will probably attract an audience more tween than teen. According to critic Kirk Honeycutt, the movie has "a cheerful good nature and a solid cast of youngsters," and will probably please the intended audience, but not adults. Disney estimates the movie will open just under $10 million.

Five years after Hoodwinked, the Red Riding Hood redux film Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil will hit 2,505 theatres, 72% of them 3D. Hayden Panettiere voices the lead role, taking over for Anne Hathaway. Critic Frank Lovece acknowledges that the first film was a hit according to independent animation standards, but he's not so kind to the sequel, faulting the "primordial" CG animation and "hackneyed pop-culture references," which date back to the last couple of decades. Like Prom, this animated sequel should debut under $10 million, a relic of when the Weinstein Co. lost its momentum.

Finally, the horror-comedy spoof Dylan Dog: Dead of Night (862 theatres) will target itself toward horror buffs. Based on a comic book, the movie centers on a detective that specializes in the undead (zombies, vampires, etc.). His business card reads "No pulse? No problem."

Those that like a splash more blood can check out director Takashi Miike's 13 Assassins (3 theatres). Technically a samurai pic (jidaigeki), Miike's latest effort "bathe[s the genre] in a steady downpour of blood, mud and filth," according to critic Maitland McDonagh.

After receiving a warm reception on the festival circuit, Werner Herzog's documentary Cave of Forgotten Dreams will start its release with 5 theatres. Shot in "terrific" 3D, critic Doris Toumarkine enjoyed his footage of the Chauvet Caves, and found Herzog's "enthusiasm and awe...contagious."

On Monday, we'll see if Fast Five can get up to that 70 MPH box-office figure, if tweens show an iota of their High School Musical devotion for Prom, and if Hoodwinked Too! is able to steal some thunder from Rio.