New Movies and Box Office Predictions: Cats and Dogs - The Revenge of Kitty Galore, Charlie St. Cloud, Dinner for Schmucks, The Kids Are All Right

This week's wide releases -
Cats and Dogs - The Revenge of Kitty Galore
Charlie St. Cloud
Dinner for Schmucks
The Kids Are All Right

The summer movie season is slowly beginning to enter the rear view mirror. Sure, there are still a few movies to look forward to, like The Expendables and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, but for the most part the big movies are behind us. What does that say for this week? No much really, just don't expect any monster hits. I am sure that a few of the this weekend's films will see success. We do get a nice spread of films targeting families, teens, drama fans, and goofy comedy fans alike.

Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore. (2010, 82 minutes, PG, family comedy) I cannot believe that this movie will be any good. On the other hand I, for some odd reason, kinda want to see it anyway. The movie is a sequel to the 2001 feature that introduced us to the secret high tech war being waged between everyone's favorite domesticated pets. This time the felines and the canines must team up to stop the evil Sphinx cat Kitty Galore. All I really want is for it to be better than G-Force, which I sampled on Netflix and found horrid (I know, I should know better). The cast includes Chris O'Donnell, Jack McBrayer, Alec Baldwin, and Michael Clarke Duncan.





Charlie St. Cloud. (2010, 109 minutes, PG-13, drama) Based on a popular novel, this adaptation stars Zac Efron in his first opportunity to stretch his dramatic muscle on the national stage. It is not a film I feel particularly drawn to see but the trailer seems rather interesting. Efron is Charlie, a skilled sailor with the love of his mother and younger brother with the world at his fingertips and a scholarship that will take him away from his small hometown. Things are going great for the young man until tragedy strikes and his world crashes down around him. I will not say what it is, but if you watch the trailer it is pretty apparent. I suspect it will be a little overboard on the melodrama but will hopefully deliver for those interested.





Dinner for Schmucks. (2010, 110 minutes, PG-13, comedy) This looks so completely stupid that it will either be brilliant or an absolute train wreck. I am hoping it leans towards the former. The basic story has some big time office folk who get together for dinner and each of them brings an idiot with them for entertainment. Paul Rudd is up for a promotion and is invited to said dinner, now he has to find an idiot. Enter Steve Carrell, a sweet-hearted tornado of destruction. With those two the movie practically writes itself. I am hoping for this to be a funny diversion. It has the feel of a lesser Apatow-camp film. Jay Roach helmed the film and is currently slated to direct the next Austin Powers film.





The Kids are All Right. (2010, 104 minutes, R, drama/comedy) Julianne Moore and Annette Bening are a loving couple with two children that they are very proud of. Their family is going well until the birth father enters the equation. Each of the women were artificially inseminated and had Josh Hutcherson and Mia Wasikowska. They want to meet their father, enter Mark Ruffalo. Comedy ensues. I am curious about this. It has a good cast and could bring a new family dynamic to the big screen. It has been out for a few weeks already and is now spreading out to more markets.





Also opening this week, but not near me:

• The Concert
• The Dry Land
• The Extra Man
• Get Low

Box Office Predictions 
I have a feeling that Inception is going to hold on for a second weekend at the top. There has been too much good word about it this week, along with the fact that is very rewatchable. On the other hand, I think that Salt is the only new release that has a shot at the top spot and that is going to be a stretch. I am not convinced it is going to have a big open. It will do well I am sure, but $30 million may be pushing it. Meanwhile, Ramona and Beezus is going to be much further down the list. 

Here is how I think it could play out:

Rank	Title	Box Office
1	Inception	$28 million
2	Dinner for Schmucks	$25 million
3	Salt	$21 million
4	Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore	$15million
5	Despicable Me	$12 million
6	Charlie St. Cloud	$9 million
7	Toy Story 3	$7 million
8	The Sorcerer's Apprentice	$5 million
9	Grown Ups	$4 million
10	The Kids are All Right	$3 million

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