Box Office Buzz: Cloverfield & 27 Dresses liven up January

Who says January is a slow month? I think it's only slow if studios etc. make it a slow month by releasing crap. Let me applaud J.J. Abrams for releasing a potentially big monster movie called Cloverfield in January! And lookie.. it grossed $40 million in its opening weekend! See, if you release quality, the people will come. The movie looks great, I loved the initial marketing, Mike Vogel is awesome and I cannot wait to see this opening day here in The Netherlands.

But what I'm really happy about is 27 Dresses opening in the second spot with a pretty damn great $22 million. Yes, Katherine Heigl is able to open a movie! I knew she could do it! I know people wanted her to fail after what she said about Knocked Up in her recent Vanity Fair interview, and that she should be thankful to Judd Apatow. I defended her here, and like I said in that post, Katherine Heigl is a star. People will go see a movie for her. And it helps that Prince Charming himself James Marsden co-stars of course! Considering 27 Dresses cost only about $30 million to make, it's a hit for Fox already!

The other big release, Mad Money, did not do as well as Cloverfield and 27 Dresses, but that was to be expected as it stars Katie Holmes. Need I say more? Though the $7.6 million it grossed in its opening weekend is already more than I had anticipated. Ellen Page's Juno is heading towards the $100 mark, while those cute Chipmunks are heading for the $200 million! I will never doubt your movie making decisions again, Jason Lee. I take back everything bad I've said about making a Chipmunks movie. I Am Legend is heading towards the $250 million mark.. people sure love Will Smith!

The weekend numbers courtesy of Box Office Mojo:
1) Cloverfield - $40,037,000/$40,037,000
2) 27 Dresses - $22,750,000/$22,750,000
3) The Bucket List - $14,010,000/$41,569,000
4) Juno - $9,925,000/$85,052,000
5) First Sunday - $7,800,000/$28,466,000
6) National Treasure: Book of Secrets - $7,609,000/$197,492,000
7) Mad Money - $7,600,000/$7,600,000
8) Alvin and the Chipmunks - $6,900,000/$196,280,000
9) I Am Legend - $4,870,000/$247,447,000
10) Atonement - $4,759,000/$31,884,000

Review: Enchanted

After a long and frustrating day of Christmas shopping, and spending way too much money on a gorgeous tweed buckle tote (read: bag), the Best Friend Forever and I settled down in our favorite movie theater to watch Enchanted. When I first heard about this movie in its (pre-)production stages, I wasn't sure what to expect. Amy Adams starring as a princess-in-waiting in an animated/live-action Disney movie? I can't remember which part bothered me most: Amy Adams or the animation/live-action combo. However, when I saw the trailer (attached to a screening of Knocked Up), I leaned over to the Best Friend Forever and told her we were seeing this movie once it gets released. I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised both by the movie and Amy Adams.

Enchanted tells the story of Giselle (Amy Adams), who lives in the animated world of Andalasia and dreams of meeting her true love. She is rescued from a troll by Prince Edward (James Marsden), and they are to wed the following day, much to the dislike of Prince Edward's step-mother Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon). Queen Narissa, not wanting to give up her throne, throws Giselle down a magic portal and she ends up modern-day, live-action New York. There, she meets lawyer Robert (Patrick Dempsey) and his daughter Morgan, who help Giselle adapt to her new surroundings while she waits for Prince Edward to find her.

You'd probably have to be a real Grinch not to enjoy this movie. It's amazingly fun, optimistic and wonderfully acted by Amy Adams and James Marsden, who are both perfect for their parts. I couldn't stand Adams in Cruel Intentions 2, The Wedding Date or her guest-spot on Buffy, but I quickly warmed up to her and eventually fell for her enthusiastic, endearing and, yes, enchanting performance. No longer will I sigh when I hear about her involvement in future projects. This girl is a star. While everyone is praising Adams, Marsden should not be forgotten either. He has come a long way from Disturbing Behavior. I loved his commitment to his part, and without it, his character could have easily been overshadowed by Adams's grand performace. Marsden looks like Prince Charming and has the comedic timing needed to make his character come to life. The rest of the cast is great as well, but hardly as memorable. Susan Sarandon is actually barely in this movie at all.

Sure this movie isn't perfect. Personally, I could have done without the animated Queen popping up in several live-action sequences (that just looked kinda meh to me), but it won't stop me from buying this on DVD once I get the chance. Despite it being fairly predictable, I never looked bored at my watch once! From the musical numbers, the numerous references to other Disney movies, Pip the chipmunk, and the McDreamy-ness of Patrick Dempsey to the stand-out performances by Adams and Marsden, Enchanted is fun for the whole family. Definitely one of my fave films of the year. A 4/5.