New Movies In Theaters This Week - Rotten Tomatoes

New Movies In Theaters This Week - Rotten Tomatoes

There are two films in saturation distribution this week, and another in a more modest nationwide roll-out.

Brave, Pixar's latest PG animation, will be in 4100+ theaters and is expected to take first place by a mile, grossing $60 million or more. 73% positive reviews.

Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter is ... well, it's kinda self-explanatory isn't it? Well, kinda. I don't need to tell you what it is about, but you might expect such an outrageous concept to have some humor in it, which this film apparently does not. For that reason and several others, the critics have not been kind. Although the production was headed up by Tim Burton and directed by Timur Bekmambatov, only 32% of the reviews have been positive. Many of the critics seemed outraged at the desecration of Lincoln, but James Berardinelli seemed to speak for those who remained level-headed and tried to evaluate the project on its own terms: "The concept of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is worthy of a good chuckle or two, but the execution proves that sometimes a clever title does not beget a production of equal value." The R-rated gorefest will be found in about 3100 theaters, and is expected to gross about $20-25 million, which should be good enough for second place.

Seeking a Friend at the End of the World is a bittersweet look at what people would do if they knew the world was going to end in a few weeks. It stars Steve Carell and Keira Knightley. The film will be in 1600 theaters, but will really struggle to find an audience. Variety called it "disastrously dull." It will probably gross in the neighborhood of five to seven million dollars, which could land it anywhere from 5th to 10th because several other films will be bunched in that same neighborhood.
.... 56% of the reviews were positive. There's not much difference between the good reviews and the bad. This is a rotten tomato: "Think of it as a greeting-card version of the end of times. Self-consciously winsome." This is a fresh tomato: "One of the uneasiest mixes of humour and drama you'll ever see."
.... The film is rated R for language. That cussin' was probably a poor marketing strategy because it shuts out many young females who might find this sort of thing appealing. The film would probably do better as a PG-13 film.