This week in theaters: 10/30

There's really only four things in theaters this weekend, only one of which is in wide release. One of the limited ones sounds interesting, but it's not playing near me. Oh well.

Michael Jackson's This Is It: A two hour film that consists of only footage of Michael Jackson practicing for what was supposed to be his upcoming concert tour. I'm going to be honest: I'm sorry Michael Jackson died, but I really could care less about this film. It's obviously just a cash grab by Columbia Pictures. Of course, see it this weekend if you're interested because it's only in release for two weeks.

Gentlemen Broncos: Jared Hess, the maker of Napoleon Dynamite, returns with the story of a teenager who goes to a fantasy writers' convention and discovers his idea for a story has been taken. I was originally interested, but then I came to the realization that Napoleon Dynamite wasn't really that great. It's a good movie, but only for maybe two viewings. Meh.

The Boondocks Saints II: All Saints Day: A sequel to the indie hit The Boondock Saints. Only for fans of the original which I admit that I've never seen although it's on my long Netflix queue.

The House of the Devil: Here's the one I wanted to see. A girl takes up a babysitting job, but realizes her client doesn't even have a child and has a darker secret: they're using her in a satanic ritual. This one has been highly buzzed about and I really need another great horror movie after Paranormal Activity. Plus, doesn't it make sense to see a scary movie on Halloween?

This week in theaters: 10/23

Before you read this, let me remind that there is nothing good coming out this weekend. Seriously. The fall season has hit a dry spot. Next week isn't going to be much better. As Jigsaw from Saw would say, what do you choose?

Saw VI: I guess this is the one to see in theaters, but only if you're a fan of the series. The first one was great, the second was good, and the third was where it took a wrong turn and went bad. And to still think they're making more. Game over, Saw.

Astro Boy: Based on the 1950's cartoon about a robotic boy who can fly. Meh, nothing interesting. There's nothing much I can say about this.

Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assisstant: Another shot at the vampire movie. A boy becomes a vampire and is exposed to carnival led by John C. Reilly. One of the main attractions is a bearded Salma Hayek. Whatever.

Amelia: Hilary Swank plays Amelia Earheart as directed by Mira Nair of Monsoon Wedding. Richard Gere co-stars. The predictions that this was Oscar bait were apparently very wrong. It currently has 18% good reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. I thought I would want to see this, but not anymore.

Antichrist: A couple goes to their cabin the woods where the engage in mental, physical, and sexual torture. A good movie to say you've seen...if it's playing anywhere near you. It has a limited release of under 20 theaters. Also, it's very controversial so there's a good chance you might not like it. There's penis smashing, a shot of unsimulated sex, vagina mutilation, and a talking fox. Did I mention it's directed by the infamous Lars von Trier?

Paranormal Activity expands its release to 1,000 more theaters making the total about 1,800 theaters. If you haven't seen it yet, do see it, but don't read anything about it. Even though I think it's one of the scariest films ever made, people who have seen it tell me it's overhyped. Use your judgement.

Scary Movie 5 is a reboot

Oh, Hollywood is running out of original ideas. Scary Movie 5 is officially a reboot of the series. Now here's my question: How do you reboot a satire? A parody is a parody. You can't redo it or start it over! That's just stupid.

While the idea is already satirical by itself, we really don't need another scary movie. There's a reason why the Weinstein Co. is suffering and that's because they keep making stupid movies! I'll admit that I did think Scary Movie and Scary Movie 3 were occasionally funny, but the second and fourth were horrible. We need a fifth one like I need another Uwe Boll movie.

Awesome: New Avatar trailer coming to theaters Friday!

The general reaction to the teaser trailer of Avatar was so-so. Fans were underwhelmed and audiences who were previously unexposed to it wanted to remain underexposed to it. ComingSoon.net has found out that a new trailer for Avatar will be coming to theaters on Friday! This trailer will be three and a half minutes long and it will tell more about the story. Don't get so excited. It won't be online till October 29th. Also, don't hype it too much. Remember what happened last time.

Box Office Report: Week of 10/16

This week was a pleasant surprise at the box office. Where the Wild Things Are landed at number one with about the money the expected it to and The Stepfather did well against its competition. The real stars of the weekend were Law Abiding Citizen and Paranormal Activity. Many people were sure that Law Abiding Citizen would fail, but this is far from what happened. It actually was quite a hit at the box office. Paranormal Activity did well, but far better than expected. It expands more next week. Can it make it past third place and maybe even damage Saw VI? We'll see! On a side note, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs has officially crossed the $100 million dollar mark at the box office. Who woulda thought it?

1. Where the Wild Things Are-$32.5M

2. Law Abiding Citizen-$21.2M

3. Paranormal Activity-$20.2M

4. Couples Retreat-$17.9M

5. The Stepfather-$12.3M

6. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (in 3D in some locations)-$8.1M

7. Zombieland-$7.8M

8. Toy Story/Toy Story 2 Double Feature-$3.0M

9. Surrogates-$1.9M

10. The Invention of Lying-$1.9M

Review: Paranormal Activity

I finally got to see Paranormal Activity which was overdue from last week when I got there and it was sold out. It was so scary! I don't scare easily, but Paranormal Activity really got under my skin. It's a really great movie to see in theaters. Read my review that I wrote for IMDB (my user name is alexart-1):

Fear. One of the most essential and loved emotions ever in the movies. Does Paranormal Activity bring the fear? It sure does. Paranormal Activity is one of the rare horror movies that is actually scary and that makes you afraid to sleep. Many horror movies these days fall the way of Sorority Row and the Final Destination series-full of clichés and lacking scary material. In fact, in a day where the horror movie is not actually scary, it is hard to even call it a genre anymore. Paranormal Activity disobeys the standards for the new horror movie genre and brings the old version back with good film-making and great thrills.This spooky little film starts out easy and almost a comedy.

It's about a couple, Katie and Micah (pronounced Meeka), who have been experiencing what they think is a haunting. The two quarrel while remaining hopelessly in love with each other. Micah decides to set up a camera system to appease Katie who is hoping to give Micah a glimpse of a ghost which she believes to be in the house. The heart of the film is its night scenes which depict the couple sleeping in bed while the ghost (it's actually something slightly different) "attacks". The film is made in the "shaky cam" style, but the camera is not very shaky and audiences concerned about nausea should not be.

Paranormal Activity works primarily for the reason that it continually mounts fear. As I said before, the beginning starts out comedy-like, gradually transitions into horror, and then just goes wild. The night scenes are scariest because they prey on one of our most common fears: the unknown predator. The viewer knows what it is that is haunting them, yet they never get even a quick look at what it is that is doing this other than its shadow. The night scenes begin with shutting doors, banging noises, and booming noises in the background. This may not sound like anything new, but after this phase is done, the film just keeps getting stranger. By the end, the film is so scary that the viewer just hopes that there isn't another night scene coming, that everything is going to be okay, that the movie will be over so they won't have to endure any more fear. No, Oren Peli, the director, does not give up. Once you've gotten into his trap of this movie, you can't leave. Peli has made a film so scary that even I, a person who really doesn't get scared by horror movies, might have trouble sleeping for the next few days.

This film is absolutely one to catch in theaters. Part of the fun of the movie seeing the audience's reaction. The film was so scary that during a screening in Montreal, a person fainted and was carted out of the theater by the ambulance. Alright, nothing that exciting happened to me, but yes, the reactions were very interesting. However, it was so scary that one woman sitting behind me kept murmuring to herself "Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!" during the night scenes. Later, the "ohmygods" turned into a scream which, at the very end, changed into her crying because she was so scared. Many people didn't have as intense a reaction as this, but almost everyone was gasping when scary things happened. I even found myself gasping at the screen at certain parts, something I have never found myself doing before at a movie.

It's hard to believe that Paranormal Activity was made for $11,000. It brings the scares of a $20 million-ish movie. Oren Peli takes the audience and scares them until the very end which is easily one of the most jolting endings to a movie ever. Don't watch the trailers! They spoil the ending! Anyway, Paranormal Activity is one of the scariest movies ever and will definitely spook any horror fan. It's a must see for people who care about movies and even for people just looking for fun. I know that I've never had as much fun watching a movie in theaters before. Paranormal Activity is not only one of the best films of the year, but also one of the most frightening films of all time.

Chris Pine is Jack Ryan?

Everyone knows Chris Pine was awesome in Star Trek this past summer. Now, Paramount has taken this into consideration and it is said that they want Pine to play Jack Ryan in a reboot of the Tom Clancy series. Good idea? Yeah, probably, but I think the buzz surrounding him has reached saturation point. The idea of Star Trek 2 is awesome, but I think Hollywood loves him a little too much. Still, I think I'm looking forward to this project.