Clint Eastwood reunites with Morgan Freeman and puts Matt Damon in the game for Invictis (reviews); The traditional 2-D toon The Princess and the Frog (reviews) hops onto the big screen looking likely to be #1 come Sunday; Peter Jackson brings The Lovely Bones novel to the big screen amidst mixed reviews...
Pamela McClintock of Variety:
Disney's traditionally animated "The Princess and the Frog" will look to sweep tots off their feet as it expands nationwide today at the domestic B.O., while Warner Bros. opens Clint Eastwood's "Invictus."
The specialty box office sees two high-profile titles launch in limited runs: Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones," from DreamWorks/Paramount, and the Weinstein Co.'s "A Single Man," the directing debut of fashion designer Tom Ford.
"Single Man" opens in nine theaters in a handful of markets including New York and L.A. "Lovely Bones" opens in three theaters in New York and L.A.
With Golden Globe nominations being announced Tuesday morning, awards season will kick into full gear, with films including "Invictus," "Lovely Bones" and "Single Man" hoping to benefit at the box office.
The domestic B.O. is running at record levels as the film biz heads into the busy year-end sesh.
This weekend, "Princess" is expected to draw a royal flush after a successful two-week limited run in New York and L.A. Many of the shows were sold out.
Box observers say "Princess," going out in 3,434 runs, has a strong shot at winning the weekend and toppling Warners' sleeper hit "The Blind Side," which topped the B.O. last weekend.
"Princess" has kids to itself for two weeks before 20th Century Fox's "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel" opens on Christmas Day. "Squeakuel" bows first in the U.K., where it unspools this weekend.
"Princess" opens day and date in a handful of markets, including Germany and Mexico. Other action overseas includes the debut of Sony's "Julie and Julia" in Japan.
Opening in 2,125 theaters domestically, "Invictus" stars Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.
"Invictus" tells the story of how Nelson Mandela, then president of South Africa, used the 1995 Rugby World Cup to unify his country. Damon plays the captain of the team.
Eastwood's films don't tend to see huge openings. "Million Dollar Baby" posted a weekend gross of around $10 million when it expanded nationwide. Filmmaker's last film "Gran Torino," in which he also starred, was the most successful of his prolific career, grossing nearly $270 million worldwide.
Adapted from Christopher Isherwood's tome of the same name, "A Single Man," starring Colin Firth and Julianne Moore, revolves around a gay British professor living in Southern California in the 1960s.
"Lovely Bones" toplines Saoirse Ronan, Mark Whalberg, Rachel Weisz and Stanley Tucci.
Film was adapted from Alice Sebold's harrowing book about a young girl who is murdered by a serial killer. It is Jackson's first film since "King Kong" in 2005.
Nicole Sperling of EW forecasts a solid if not spectacular opening weekend for well-reviewed animated film
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