IMAX rounds out its 2011 release slate

By Sarah Sluis

In 2010, nine of the top ten grossing films included a release in the IMAX format. The exception? The animated film Despicable Me, which was squeezed out of IMAX's slate by releasing just three weeks after Toy Story 3. For that reason, it's worth looking at what movies are releasing in IMAX this year. They reflect not only which films studios are hyping, but which tentpoles they think will actually deliver.

Today, Paramount announced that four of the studio's films will release in the big-screen format: Super 8, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Mission: Impossible--Ghost Protocol and The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn. Both Super 8 and Tintin have the involvement of Steven Spielberg, making them gimmes, but seeing the relaunch of Mission: Impossible here is more of a surprise. Though Tom Cruise will be in the movie, the main leading man will be someone younger, Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker). As for the third installment of Transformers--I can only hope it makes in the low hundreds of millions.

Other IMAX titles that could hit it big:

Sanctum: This James Cameron-produced underground cave film has some confused about the concept, but it will be more like The Descent and not like his documentary Aliens of the Deep. Caves are creepy, but whether or not the concept is pulled off depends on how involved Cameron was in the process.

I Am Number Four: I've already seen ads for this one, which focus on a teen with superpowers who must escape those who want him dead. I haven't seen a good young hero for awhile, so I think the kids will go for this one. Newcomer Alex Pettyfer could be the next Robert Pattinson if he plays his cards right.

Real Steel: A father and son construct robots for fighting matches in a futuristic world. Family dynamics + fight scenes? This one looks like a real winner among male audiences.

Mars Needs Moms: In this cute concept, a boy must rescue his mom, who has been kidnapped by mom-needing Martians. Releasing March 11th, this movie will be in the spring spot that How to Train Your Dragon took last year, grabbing spring breakers and hopefully going for a slow burn at the box office.

Sequels comprise the remainder of IMAX offerings, including Fast Five, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Cars 2, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, and Happy Feet 2. Of all these sequels, the final Harry Potter will definitely show up in the top ten and the animated sequels to Cars and Happy Feet will also be strong box-office contenders. The third Pirates of the Caribbean was the first one to gross less than its predecessor, indicating the franchise is waning, but it's been four years since we've seen Jack Sparrow so perhaps audiences will be eager to see him once again.

Some movies are missing (won't the latest Twilight open in IMAX, like Eclipse did?), but this list of films probably holds at least three-quarters of this year's top ten.