'Clash of the Titans' fights for the #1 spot

By Sarah Sluis

Clash of the Titans (3,777 theatres) opens this Easter weekend bolstered by not-so-official previews earlier this week, intended to cash in on the Spring Break crowds and avoid the Sunday Easter drop. The remake of the 1981 Greek gods action-drama is "still pretty damn goofy, just in the 'roided-up way of most overstimulated, underwritten contemporary blockbusters," according to FJI critic Ethan Alter. The movie was converted to 3D at the last minute, a move that will do more for the movie's box-office receipts than its glasses-wearing audience. Alter adds that, "the late-inning inclusion of 3D adds nothing to the viewing experience beyond a mild headache, so don't feel compelled to shell out for the higher ticket price...the gulf between a movie shot in 3D and one converted after the fact is becoming more and more obvious." Though Easter will bring down the Sunday box office, the movie should open over $40 million (the record set by Scary Movie 4) at the very least.

Miley Cyrus' first "adult" movie, The Last Song (2,673 theatres), got a head start by opening this Wednesday to a $5 million gross, again intended to bring in the Spring Break crowd. Cyrus stars as a talented former pianist and high schooler who spends the summer with her father on the beaches of Georgia. Nicholas Sparks wrote the screenplay, which is intended to gently transition Cyrus into more adult roles. "Virtually bursting its fictional seams with the kind of heart-tugging themes and never-fail plot devices that have stood the test of time," according to FJI critic Shirley Sealy, the movie has already drawn in an audience largely composed of tween-to-teen girls.

Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too (2,155 theatres) opens without critical review, per Perry's norm. The original movie, Why Did I Get Married, opened to $21 million in 2007, though in a timeslot with much less competition. Kind of like Couple's Retreat, but with more drama, the movie follows four couples on an annual vacation in the Bahamas. The ex-husband of one of the couples shows up, trying to win his remarried wife back, leading all of the couples to examine the problems in their marriages.

On the specialty side, the well-reviewed, extremely low-budget Breaking Upwards opens at New York's IFC Center. The Woody Allen-inspired tale follows a couple that decides to pursue an open relationship. Paladin-distributed The Greatest, starring Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon and Carey Mulligan, "pulls off a stunning feat, drawing an audience into a comprehensive film about grief." The drama opens in New York and Los Angeles.

This Monday we'll recap one of the most competitive Easter weekends to date. With Clash of the Titans, How to Train Your Dragon and Alice in Wonderland all competing for 3D screens, we'll see if the limited space affected overall returns.