By Chris Kavan - 12/10/10 at 01:13 PM CT
After the post-Thanksgiving blahs, hopefully something this week will spark some interest at the box office.
1) Entering the crowded family market is The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader. While the first one was a hit, the second one was a disappointment and it looks like the third continues the downward spiral. While this is my personal favorite book in the series, it looks like this is going to be the worst film in the bunch with words like boring and unimaginative being tossed about. Not even 3D is going to help this one out very much. I'm going out to say this will underperform and we won't be seeing any more trips to Narnia anytime soon.
2) The best draw for Oscar this week should be The Fighter - a mix of Rocky-style rise in boxing with a bit of biography thrown in - it's sure to be a hit with those who prefer their heroes in the working class variety. Plus no one expounds blue-collar like Mark Wahlberg, though having Christian Bale on your side helps too.
3) It seems like they should have paired these two long ago, but finally Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie share the screen in The Tourist. This remake is full of intrigue and drama and is sure to draw in a healthy crowd thanks to the big names, but how many people show up will go a long way to see if fans will follow them when pirates aren't involved.
4) Julie Taymor does a bit of gender-switching for her interpretation of The Tempest. Chances are if you've approved of her work in the past, this will work for you. As it stands, the bard's work may be legendary, but this version may stand up well under scrutiny.
It will be interesting to see if Hollywood an pick up a little steam this week after its lackluster previous weekend.
