First up is the sequel to the animated classic Cars 2.  Every one is back, Lightning McQueen, Mater and Sally as well as a whole bunch of new vehicle friends from all over the world.  Star race car Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places in “Cars 2″ when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car.  But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage.  Torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret spy mission, Mater’s action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world.  This is going to be number one come Sunday.  The big question is how much is this film going to make?  I say it will be just over $75M.

Next up is Bad Teacher.  This is the film I am going to see.  This is not a film for the kids.  Plenty of adult language and adult themes, this looks like blue comedy at its finest.  Some teachers just don’t give an F. For example, there’s Elizabeth (Cameron Diaz). She’s foul-mouthed, ruthless, and inappropriate. She drinks, she gets high, and she can’t wait to marry her meal ticket and get out of her bogus day job. When she’s dumped by her fiancé, she sets her plan in motion to win over a rich, handsome substitute (Justin Timberlake) — competing for his affections with an overly energetic colleague, Amy (Lucy Punch). When Elizabeth also finds herself fighting off the advances of a sarcastic, irreverent gym teacher (Jason Segel), the consequences of her wild and outrageous schemes give her students, her coworkers, and even herself an education like no other.  The amount of advertising just might work on this one, it did on me.  Unfortunately, there is a hugely anticipated family film coming out at the same time.  I think it will have enough to land at number two.

Finally is the drama A Better Life.  This is considered to be one of the first award contenders for this year.  The trailer looks great and I realize that they are put together to make you want to see them but I really think this is a must see film.  A gardener in East L.A. (Demián Bichir) struggles to keep his son (José Julián) away from gangs and immigration agents while trying to give his son the opportunities he never had.  If it wasn’t for the other movies being released this weekend it might do better but I don’t see it ending up higher than number five.

Stop back on Sunday to see where this weeks new films end up.

1. Green Lantern
2. Super 8
3. Mr. Poppers Penguins
4. X-Men: First Class
5. The Hangover Part II
6. Kung Fu Panda 2
7. Bridesmaids
8. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
9. Midnight in Paris
10. Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer

Movie goers have spoken to the tune of $52.6M for Green Lantern.  It knocked last weeks number one down a notch with a per theatre average of $13,806.  There has only been a handful of movies that have had a better opening weekend so far this year so this is some good news for Hollywood.  Unfortunately, sitting atop the list is going to be short lived as next weekends big movie release is expected to dominate ticket sales for the foreseeable future.

Dropping one spot to number two is Super 8.  With another good weekend, taking in an additional $21.2M, Super 8 is still drawing decent crowds.  The per theatre average of $6,235 is not bad for a second weekend but the number of new releases coming up are going to push this even further down the list in the coming weeks.  However, a good movie like this will clean up in second run theatres.  This is the kind of movie you want to see twice and with current ticket prices, second run theatres are perfect for multiple viewings.

The other major release this weekend, Mr. Poppers Penguins,came in at number three right where I said it would.  Taking in a healthy $18.2M with a per theatre average of $5,450, this will also fall victim to the overwhelming number of blockbuster new releases coming this summer.  Unfortunately, they start next weekend so this will only move down the list.

Falling two to number four this weekend is X-Men: First Class.  With a weekend of $11.5M and a per theatre average of $3,407, thing are not looking good for this film.  While the total is just shy of $120M, it won’t be too much longer before this hits your local retailer’s shelves.  I give it four more weeks on the list, tops.

Also dropping two is the comedy smash The Hangover Part II.  At number five, it took in an additional $9.6M and averaged $2,784 per theatre.  Those numbers are typical of a movie on its way out but as it heads to second run land, it should add nicely to it’s already healthy totals.  While it has fared better in it’s first 25 days of release, $232M, this summers schedule is going to reduce the number of theatres showing this one.  Three weeks and this one will be pushed off the list.

Kung Fu Panda 2 dropped two to number six.  Adding $8.7M with a per theatre average of $2,507 brings the total to $143.3M.  The first Kung Fu Panda made $215M domestically and with the slate of releases in the next few weeks, this one may not make it that high.  Although DVD sales will no doubt be brisk as most kids that have part one will want part two.  Bridesmaids moves down just one to number seven continuing to hang on as it still draws sizable crowds in second run theatres.  This weekend it brought in another $7.4M with an impressive per theatre average of $2,910.  The total is almost $137M and it would do better on the list if it was in more theatres.  This movie will do very well in rentals and sales.

Down three to number eight is Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.  Taking in $6.2M and a per theatre average of $2,274, that is off considerably from the previous incarnations.  Interest is falling off rapidly and it may not fare as well as it moves to second run theatres but fans of the series may bring a little boost to revenue when it ends up on store shelves.  Midnight in Paris falls one to number nine but still manages to average an impressive $5,045 per theatre.  This weeks $5.2M brings the domestic total to $21.7M and the worldwide gross to over $42M.  The film is still adding theatres, although at a slower pace, so it may be able to hang on another week or two but second run theatres are on the horizon and the films popularity should add to those totals nicely.

At the bottom of the list, falling three is Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer.  This movie will not survive the cut next weekend so look for it in your local discount theatre.  The per theatre average was a dismal $887.  It took in $2.2M simply because it was still in a number of theatres.  I can guarantee the theatre owners won’t be letting this bet ride.  With a total of $11.2M, this will be in rentals in no time.

Thor and Fast Five have finally dropped off the list although Thor still managed to make $1.1M but that wasn’t enough to make the cut.

Next week we have another sequel that figures to dominate the box office and a Bad Teacher.  Stop back Tuesday to see the trailers.

First up is the super hero movie Green Lantern.  Ryan Reynolds stars as the comic book action hero Green Lantern and with all of his recent successes this will probably go the same way.  For some reason, people love action movie with their favorite childhood comic book heroes.  I’ll admit I like to read books that were made into movies and vice versa the movies that were made from books that I have enjoyed.  There is something about seeing what I was imagining on the big screen.  The story line is “A test pilot is granted a mystical green ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers, as well as membership into an intergalactic squadron tasked with keeping peace within the universe.”  Sounds like a lot of action and based on all of the trailers and commercials, it looks pretty exciting.  Exciting enough to out-do Super 8?  That remains to be seen.  The PG-13 rating could keep some of the younger viewers away but with the other film being a family film it could boost ticket sales.  i say it will be number one at about $35M.

The other film is the family comedy Mr. Poppers Penguins.  As W.C Fields once said, Never work with children or animals, because you’ll be upstaged or something to that effect.  Jim Carrey has never shied away from working with animals (Ace Ventura) because of his larger than life persona so this film should be no different.  He has always managed to upstage any other actor, man or beast, with his on screen presence.  The tag line of this film is “The life of a businessman begins to change after he inherits six penguins, and as he transforms his apartment into a winter wonderland, his professional side starts to unravel.”  The movie was filmed on a refrigerated set with real Gentoo Penguins.  Not that that makes a difference but at least some of the action will be real as opposed to using CGI penguins.  I want to say this will come in at number two but it probably won’t have enough interest to topple Super 8 so I’ll call it number three.

You can check back on Sunday to see how good my predictions are.

1. Super 8
2. X-Men: First Class
3. The Hangover Part II
4. Kung Fu Panda 2
5. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
6. Bridesmaids
7. Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer
8. Midnight in Paris
9. Thor
10. Fast Five

It was a soft weekend for movies as the number one film only managed $37M.  Super 8 took the top spot as expected but by a smaller margin than I thought.  The per theatre average was $10,949 which was pretty good for a weekend that saw lower receipts but that might have been hurt by the lower number of theatres actually showing the film.  Summer vacations are also starting so the could have been a factor as well.  In fact the total for the top five movies was just shy of $108M which is about $25M off of last weekend.

Number two was X-Men: First Class and that was no surprise as it closes in on the $100M mark after its first full week in release.  With another $25M this weekend at a per theatre average of $6,771, it may not fare as well next weekend with another comic book super hero to compete with.

Number three is The Hangover Part II.  After only 18 days in theatres, it has taken in over $216M, $18.5M of it this weekend with a per theatre average of $5,034.  That is pretty impressive considering it hasn’t even made it to the second run theatres.  That will push the totals even higher and all that is before rentals and sales.  Before this movie is through, it should have no trouble breaking the $300M mark.

Dropping one to number four is Kung Fu Panda 2.  Adding another $16.6M this weekend brings the total to nearly $127M.  The per theatre average of $4,233 is about 33% off of last week and that too could be a result of the beginning of summer vacation season.  This film will start to show up in second run theatres soon as well as the rental and sales market so the resulting profitability could bring Kung-Fu Panda 3.

At number five is Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.  This weekend it took in $10.8M with a per theatre average of $3,159.  While it is not burning up the box office it has still made nearly $209M.  Not quite the totals of the previous three films but it is not in second run theatres yet and sales for fans of the series should boost the totals even further.

Bridesmaids moves down one to number six and after a month it is now showing up in second run theatres.  It still managed to bring in $10.1M with a per theatre average of $3,475 which is pretty impressive considering the ticket prices at the bargain theatres.  The total is almost $124M and another week like this one could break the $130M mark not to mention the rental and sales markets just around the corner.  At number seven is Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer.  I have no idea why this movie performed so poorly but it may just be a flop.  Taking in an anemic $6.2M on it’s opening weekend, Relativity Media may have overextended themselves with advertising.  The per theatre average of $2,482 is indicative of a movie on it’s way out or a box office disaster.  Maybe this movie will do better in DVD sales but I doubt it.

Keeping it’s spot at number eight is Midnight in Paris.  Now that it is in almost 1,000 theatres it took in $6.1M with a per theatre average of $6,510.  That is not bad considering that the advertising has been very limited.  The total is now over $14.1M domestically and the international gross is starting to fall off at $17.9M bringing the total to $32M.  Now that the film is in the black every ticket sold is icing on the cake for Mr. Allen.  Number nine is the action film Thor.  At $2.3M this weekend, this film appears to be nearly through with it’s run in theatres.  The per theatre average of $1,329 is not great even for second run theatres and with the list of blockbusters slated for release in the coming weeks,the total of over $173M so far means it will probably do well on retail shelves.

Finally at number ten is the mega action film Fast Five.  The most popular of the series is riding on the rims as this weekend only brought in $1.7M with a per theatre average of only $1,290.  Even though the total is just over $205M, once again, the new films will start trimming the low hanging fruit like this one.  The worldwide gross for this series is over $1.5B so sales for this one should be brisk and if the studio is smart they will offer a package with all five movies to boost sales numbers.  Number six will have to be good to top the numbers for this one.

Another new release this weekend, although limited, was The Tree of Life.  This film has had an extraordinary first week, finally making it to number eleven with a per theatre average of $18,619.  It is only in 47 theatres nationwide so it may be hard to find just yet but like Midnight in Paris, it should start showing up in more theatres soon.

Falling out of the Top 10 this weekend are the films Jumping The Broom and Something Borrowed.

Next week we have some arctic birds and a super hero.  Stop back Tuesday to see the trailers.

Beverly Hills, CA.  6-10-2011

Academy Film Archive preservationist Brian Meacham, who inspected thousands of feet of nitrate footage in the New Zealand Archive’s holdings, will introduce the screening. The presentation will feature an Academy-commissioned score by Michael Mortilla, who will provide live accompaniment on piano with Nicole Garcia on violin and percussion.

In September 2010 a newly restored print of “Upstream,” the first of the repatriated features to be preserved and screened publicly, premiered at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills and later screened at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

“Upstream” is a backstage comedy that focuses on a love triangle involving an egotistical actor and a young couple who partner in a vaudeville knife-throwing act. It was one of the last completely silent films of Ford’s career; his later productions included pre-recorded sound effects and music.

The National Society of Film Critics recently recognized the Academy Film Archive, New Zealand Film Archive, National Film Preservation Foundation, Park Road Post Production and Twentieth Century Fox for the rediscovery of “Upstream.”

Tickets for “Upstream” are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. Tickets may be purchased online at www.oscars.org or by mail (a printable order form is available in the Events & Exhibitions section of the website). Tickets may also be purchased at the box office prior to the event (subject to availability).

The Academy Theater is located at 111 East 59th Street (between Park and Lexington avenues) in New York City. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.oscars.org or call (212) 821-9251.

Garner was most recently seen in “Arthur,” released earlier this year. Her other acting credits include “Valentine’s Day,” “Juno” and “13 Going on 30.” She will next be seen in “The Odd Life of Timothy Green,” due out later this year.

Musker received an Oscar nomination in 2009 for the animated feature “The Princess and the Frog.” His other credits include “Treasure Planet,” “Aladdin” and “The Little Mermaid,” all of which he co-wrote and co-directed.

A complete list of this year’s winners can be found at: http://www.oscars.org/awards/saa/winners/2011.html

While all winners know they will each receive an award, their placement – Gold, Silver or Bronze – will not be revealed until the June 11 ceremony. Gold Medal award winners receive cash grants of $5,000, Silver Medal award winners receive $3,000 and Bronze Medal award winners receive $2,000.

The U.S. students first competed in one of three regional competitions. Each region is permitted to send to the Academy up to three finalists in each of four categories: Alternative, Animation, Documentary and Narrative. Academy members then screened the finalists’ films and voted to select the winners. The winners in the Foreign Film category were selected by Academy members at special voting screenings from a pool of 52 entries from 32 countries.

The Academy established the Student Academy Awards in 1972 to support and encourage excellence in filmmaking at the collegiate level. Past Student Academy Award® winners have gone on to receive 43 Oscar nominations and have won or shared eight awards. At the 83rd Academy Awards earlier this year, 2010 Student Academy Award winner Luke Matheny took home the Oscar for Live Action Short Film for “God of Love.” Tanel Toom, another 2010 Student Academy Award winner, also was nominated in the Live Action Short Film category for “The Confession,” and John Lasseter, a 1979 and 1980 Student Academy Award winner, was a nominee in the Adapted Screenplay category for “Toy Story 3.”

The 38th Annual Student Academy Awards ceremony on June 11 is free and open to the public, but advance tickets are required. Tickets may be obtained online at www.oscars.org, in person at the Academy box office or by mail. The Samuel Goldwyn Theater is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. For more information, call (310) 247-3600.

Hammond, IN (June 7, 2011) – The PFX Professional Softball Tour team will be competing against amateur girls softball players from Indiana and Illinois in a tournament like no other in the world of sports. The National Softball Association and the PFX Tour are teaming up with South Shore Sports (subsidiary of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau) for a 61 team tournament that will take place in Crown Point, Merrillville (Ross Township Hidden Lake Park) and Cedar Lake June 10th through the 12th.

More than 20 nationally recognized collegiate stars will compete including 3-time Olympic Gold Medalist and 2010 NCAA DI Champion Lisa Fernandez. International stars Danielle Stewart, 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Bronze Medalist, Australia; Jen Yee, 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Canada and Ruby Rojas, 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Venezuela will also be competing this weekend.

The tour will bring more than 900 athletes and 2,500 total visitors to the South Shore and will have an estimated economic impact of $75,000. “Girls softball continues to be an economic driver in Northwest Indiana, filling our hotels, restaurants and parks eight months out of the year,” stated Jason Sands, Director of Sports Development for South Shore Sports. “Partnering with our local parks and the National Softball Association to bring an event to the South Shore that allows young athletes to learn and compete against their idols while giving the local economy a shot in the arm is exactly what sports tourism is all about,” Sands continued.

Events kickoff at Crown Point Sportsplex with a players and coaches clinic Friday, June 10th at 5pm followed by Opening Ceremonies at 7pm and a Professionals vs. Amateurs game at 7:30pm. Two more similar games are set to take place in Crown Point at 10:30am and 1:30pm on Saturday. The amateur tournament begins at 8am on Saturday morning and continues into Sunday evening. Events are open to the public.

For more information about the tour, visit, www.pfxtour.com.

First up is the action thriller Super 8.  I have seen a lot of commercials for this movie and apparently Paramount thinks this movie is going to do big Box Office numbers.  The tagline in all the commercials is “This film reminds us why we like to go to the movies” and I believe that is true.  I want to know what is in that box car that escaped and is terrorizing the town and I would imagine most action movie fans feel the same way.  Director JJ Abrams and Producer Steven Spielberg both know how to make great movies and this should be no exception.

In the summer of 1979, a group of friends in a small Ohio town witness a catastrophic train crash while making a super 8 movie and soon suspect that it was not an accident.  Shortly after, unusual disappearances and inexplicable events begin to take place in town, and the local Deputy tries to uncover the truth – something more terrifying than any of them could have imagined.  Clips from the site elude to the creature being an alien but you have to watch all of the clips to get that.  This will probably take in somewhere in the neighborhood of $80M to $85M.

The other new movie this weekend is the family comedy Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer.  Based on the beloved, bestselling book series by Megan McDonald, Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer is an irresistible and delightfully funny treat for adventure-loving kids and adults.

When her best-laid plans for a summer full of fun go comically awry, an imaginative young girl creates her own vacation adventures.  This summer, third grader Judy Moody is planning the most super-duper, double-rare summer vacation ever with best friends Rocky and Amy.

Like most family movies, it will draw big audiences as kids love kids movies.  Not enough to take over number one but most likely number two and the Box Office should be in the area of $50M.

Stop back on Sunday to see which film takes the number one slot.

1. X-Men: First Class
2. The Hangover Part II
3. Kung Fu Panda 2
4. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
5. Bridesmaids
6. Thor
7. Fast Five
8. Midnight in Paris
9. Jumping The Broom
10. Something Borrowed

This weeks Top 10 List is pretty un-extraordinary.  The major release this weekend, X-Men: First Class, came in at number one and everything else moved down one. Last weekends number ten is also this weekends casualty as it drops off the list.

X-Men: First Class took in $56M with a decent per theatre average of $15,380.  While those numbers aren’t earth shattering by any means, the fact that this weekends movies had to compete with school graduations and graduation parties made this a pretty good weekend.  The top five films took in about $133M and that is a big number.

The sequel to the number one comedy of all time, The Hangover Part II, brought in an additional $32.4M bringing the total to almost $187M.  That is about $19M a day and that is big.  The per theatre average is still up there at $8,975 so expect this movie to break the $200M mark this week.  You can also expect Hangover III to start as soon as a decent scrip is ready.

Number three is Kung Fu Panda 2.  This weekends take was $24.3M and the per theatre average is $6,148 but summer is coming and a quality family film draws families for a night out so expect this to stay in the top half of the list for a few weeks.  It has also crossed the $100M barrier this weekend and the first few weeks of summer vacation should add to that nicely and when it finally does go to second run theatres, it will still be pulling in large audiences.  That is all before the movie makes it to store shelves where is will do big numbers typical of family films.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is number four, taking in an additional $18M with a per theatre average of $4,541 and a total of just over $190M.  While not as popular as previous incarnations of the series, those numbers represent a trend that will make this a profitable movie and that means the possibility of another one.  The downside of that being the downward trend that makes profitability more difficult as time goes on.  Reversing that would require an incredible movie with an incredible story.

Bridesmaids moves down one to number five.  After three and a half weeks in theatres, it still managed to take in 12.8M with a per theatre average of $4,155 bringing the total to just over $107M.  Over the next four weeks there are a number of big budget films hitting our local theatres so this movie may not be around much longer.  Considering it has tripled its production budget, we will be seeing more of Kristen Wiig.  Rentals and sales will do a brisk business for this film so expect another film to get green lighted soon.

At number six is Thor.  This film has been in theatres for over a month and it is still drawing audiences; $4.2M worth with a per theatre average of $1,510.  Not stellar numbers considering the amount of advertising and merchandise tie-ins.  The total is just shy of $170M but movies like this do pretty good at the retail level.  The kids have the toys so they want the movie too.  Number seven, Fast Five, is about forty days into its run and looks to be about finished.  While it has grossed over $200M domestically, $3.2M on a weekend with an average of $1,450, the numbers are moving in a negative direction.  With some blockbusters on the horizon, your chances of seeing it on the big screen are limited.  A film of this caliber will do great in rentals and sales!

At number eight is Midnight in Paris.  This weekend it took in $2.9M, helped by tripling the number of theatres, and averaged $19,838 per theatre.  The total is nearing $7M and the international gross is approximately double that at $14.4M.  The production budget is $30M so it should be in the black by next weekend as more theatres are added.  Number nine is Jumping The Broom.  It looks as though this one is on the bubble for next weekend as the weekend take was only $865K with a per theatre average $1,465.  A critically acclaimed movie, this will do well in rentals and VOD as well.

Finally at number ten is Something Borrowed.  Suffering from the same poor numbers as Jumping The Broom, this will not survive the cut next weekend.  With $835K in box office receipts and a per theatre average of  $1,213 it is on its way to the rental market and it probably won’t do well there either.

This weekends casualty was Rio.

Next week we have the first official summer movie and a thriller.  Stop back Tuesday to see the trailers.

First up is the prequel to the first four films, X-Men:First Class.  There have been enough TV commercials so you should know what to expect.  It is basically the X-Men as young adults learning about their powers.  Nothing new here so while it won’t break any new ground in the story, it will still draw the loyal legion of fans who are invested in the story.  The first four averaged $82 on their opening weekends with the third installment being the most popular at $102M.  I’m going to say $73M and that will be enough to be at the top of the list on Sunday.

Next up is the comedy drama, Submarine, from The Weinstein Company and Ben Stiller.  That is a pretty impressive pedigree considering that is the company that brought us The Kings Speech and of course, Ben Stiller.  An accomplished comedic and dramatic actor, he brings a wealth of experience so this film should be excellent.  The trailer is good so as long as those aren’t the only good parts of the movie, it should do well.

Finally we have the drama, The Beginners.  Also from the Weinstein Company, this starrs Ewan McGregor.  It is a story about a young man who meets a girl shortly after the death of his father, played by Christopher Plummer,  and attempts to love her with all the bravery, humor, and hope that his father taught him.  Plummer’s character comes out of the closet after his wife of 45 years dies and at age 75 lives a full, energized, and wonderfully tumultuous gay life.  This brings father and son closer together then they have ever been.

Although Submarine and The Beginners are not being released in Northwest Indiana yet, I though you might like to see the trailers.

Well, stop back Sunday to see just how well X-Men does.