Another week, another round of sub-standard movies

February 6, 2003

It’s been a long time since a movie opened wide to positive critical reviews, we have to go all the way back to the last week of December to find such a movie (Catch Me If You Can.) And if the early indications are anything to go on, we’ll have to wait another week for that trend to end.

Opening wide this week are:

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days: Romantic Comedy starring Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey. Receiving generally awful reviews, including a 0% from the cream of the crop over on Rotten Tomatoes. Too predictable is the greatest criticism, however, other reviewers admit there is a certain charm. Widest release of the week with 2,923 theatres.

Shanghai Knights: Sequel to 2000’s Shanghai Noon starring Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson. Both stars are looking for box office rebounds; Jackie Chan’s last movie was the box office disappointment The Tuxedo. (Although to be fair, The Tuxedo is performing better than expected overseas.) And Owen Wilson’s last was the box office bomb I Spy. The reviews substantially better than How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and fall just short of the 60% needed for an overall fresh rating. Even with the slightly smaller opening of 2,753 theatres should win this week’s box office race. Update: Latest reviews on Rotten Tomato pushed Shanghai Knight past the 60% to an overall fresh rating.

Deliver Us from Eva: Opening in only 1,139 theatres this romantic comedy stars Gabrielle Union as the title character. While the reviews are in between those of Shanghai Knights and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, the reviews from the cream of the crop are at 80%. Even with the low thetre count, Deliver Us from Eva should finish in the top 5.

Also opening in limited release are:

Kedma: Tells the story of illegal Jewish immigrants who traveled to Israel just before it was officially declared a country.

May: Receiving the best reviews including Variety naming star Angela Bettis as one of the top ten stars to watch for. Should open wide, or at least wider, in the coming weeks. For more information check out the official site.

Note: All reviews were at the time of release. Numbers subject to change, as more information becomes available.

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Source: IMDb

Filed under: Catch Me if You Can, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Shanghai Knights, Deliver Us From Eva, May