Up Still On Top After Two Weeks

Pixar's "Up" opened to theaters last week to a massive reception, and very soundly proved those rats at Wall Street wrong. (If you remember correctly, I wrote about how the rats at Wall Street dismissed "Up" as commercially unviable. Now we know who's REALLY responsible for this recession.) Wrapping up its second week, "Up" is still on top.

There's no doubt that the hype building up towards "Up" for more than a year was instrumental in making it a huge hit. Pixar without a doubt produces the best digital animated features in Hollywood, and its long list of successes was sure to continue with "Up."

What's impressive about "Up" is that it doesn't rely on star power to rake in the big bucks -- it doesn't have Mike Myers ("Shrek") or Jack Black ("Kung Fu Panda") or Miley Cyrus ("Bolt") to headline the cast. What we have is a curmudgeonly old groan named Carl Fredricksen and an enthusiastic explorer, Russell -- an odd combination, but the magicians at Pixar definitely know what they're doing.

"Up" managed to keep this week's new entry "The Hangover" at bay, by a slim margin of less than a million dollars. "The Hangover" is an R-rated comedy about the craziest ever bachelor party -- which, for some reason, managed to draw in almost as many women moviegoers as men. Might be one worth seeing.

"Angels & Demons" is still doing remarkably well two months into its release -- it became the first movie in 2009 to break the $400 million mark worldwide. It's still looks to be the year's highest-grossing film to date -- although "Up" may have something to say about that in a few weeks.

The disappointments keep piling up, though. Will Ferrell's "Land Of The Lost" didn't do so well, as marked by poor box office revenues for the first week. I love the guy, but I guess this just wasn't the best movie for him.

Same goes for Sam Raimi's return to his horror roots. "Drag Me To Hell" did just that in the box office, making me wonder just what Sam intends to do for his next film. Spider-Man 4 is of course in the works, and unless they do something to set the movie apart from the first three snoozefests, I think Sam's going to be in a world of hurt.


So my picks for this week? "Up" and "Star Trek" if you haven't seen them yet (I'm sure you've seen Angels & Demons), and "The Hangover" if you're looking for a comedy that actually delivers.