HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
I've learned never to underestimate Lawrence (Big Momma's House 2 opened at number one, people), however, the following week is a motherfucker. $34mil.

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FOOL'S GOLD

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson team up for another romcom.

WILL IT SUCK?
Director Andy Tennant knows how to make romcoms work (Ever After, Hitch), on the other hand, the first movie he did with "fool" in the title was Fools Rush In. Also, the writers did the Anaconda sequel. However, if the film degenerates into McConaughey and Hudson fighting a horde of gigantic, horny reptiles, I might actually want to see it.

Keep an eye out for Malcom Jamal-Warner. Theo, baby!

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
You really don't want to bet against McConaughey in a romcom. $79mil.

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THE HOTTIE AND THE NOTTIE

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Guy tries to placate ugly girl in order to get with her hot best friend.

WILL IT SUCK?
Well, with an enlightened premise like that, how could it? Even if this didn't have Paris Hilton as the "hottie," it would still suck. A lot.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
It was hard enough getting people to come out to see her get harpooned in House of Wax, how many people do you think are gonna line up to watch people be nice to her? $10mil.

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VINCE VAUGHN'S WILD WEST COMEDY SHOW

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Vince Vaughn takes a bunch of comedians you've never heard of on tour.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is mixed, but what little I've seen looks pretty damn funny.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Dude, it's got Vince Vaughn's name right there in the title. $3mil.

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THE BAND'S VISIT

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
A bunch of Egyptian policeman/musicians get lost on the way to playing a gig in Israel.

WILL IT SUCK?
Universally beloved. Won tons of international fest awards (including Un Certain Regard at Cannes) and damn near swept the Israeli Film Academy Awards. The only obstacle to it becoming Israel's foreign-language Oscar submission was apparently not enough foreign language.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Tons of good reviews are no competition for name recognition. $750,000.

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February 15
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DEFINITELY, MAYBE

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
How I Met Your Mother: The Movie

WILL IT SUCK?
Working Title is like the Pixar of romcom (About a Boy, Bridget Jones's Diary, even the title font and colors for this one come from Love, Actually). That having been said, the writer/director wrote the Bridget Jones sequel and Practical Magic.

Early buzz, however, is good. And the cast is hot: Ryan Reynolds, Isla Fisher, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz, Abigail Breslin, Kevin Kline, Derek Luke, and Nestor Serrano.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Very crowded field. $33mil.

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STEP UP 2 THE STREETS

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Best use of a "2" pun in a sequel title since Teen Wolf, Too.

WILL IT SUCK?
The only two things distinguishing this from all other You Got Served kith in my mind are (a) one of the writers wrote Save the Last Dance, which was supposed to not suck and (b) it's set at the Maryland School of the Arts, and I'm from Baltimore.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Field didn't get any less crowded, but don't underestimate dance challenge flicks. $33mil.

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THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Another kids' fantasy flick.

WILL IT SUCK?
Mark Waters helmed the shit out of Freaky Friday and Mean Girls, but seeing Chris Weitz fail to crossover from romcom to fantasy with Golden Compass gives me pause. Writers have done everything from Chicken Run to Haunted Mansion, so your guess is as good as mine, although they did bring in John Sayles to script doctor. Early buzz is good.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Bad timing. Jumper's going to be an issue. If the rumors about an attached Indiana Jones trailer hold true, that might give the opening weekend a bump. $58mil.

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JUMPER

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Teleporting freaks battle it out with government agents.

WILL IT SUCK?
Director Doug Liman knows his shit, and the writers have titles like Fight Club and Batman Begins under their collective belts.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Will own a crowded weekend. $93mil.

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GEORGE A. ROMERO'S DIARY OF THE DEAD

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
George goes all Cloverfield on the zombie genre.

WILL IT SUCK?
Zombies are what this man does. Early buzz is good. Keep an ear out for voice cameos from Quentin Tarantino, Guillermo Del Toro, Stephen King, Simon Pegg and Wes Craven.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Oft-delayed indie horror flick Signal comes out next week, but no one takes on Romero. $10mil.

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February 22
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VANTAGE POINT

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
An attempt on the President's life, Rashomon-style.

WILL IT SUCK?
The writer's a friend of a friend, so I'm going to say it's the best film in the history of films that were written. I've never heard of the director, but let's say he's good, too.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Some stiff competition, but awareness is pretty high. $44mil.

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CHARLIE BARTLETT

(Delayed from lots of months)

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Kid starts handing out psychiatric advice (and meds) in his high school.

WILL IT SUCK?
Not bad. I wouldn't put it in the pantheon of great teen smart-ass flicks, but it's decent.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
On this crowded a weekend, I think indie platform would be a better strategy for this type of fare. $16mil.

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BE KIND REWIND

(Delayed from January)

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Two video store clerks (Jack Black, Mos Def) set out to remake classic films that one of them accidentally erased.

WILL IT SUCK?
Written and directed by Michel Gondry, so already it's good times. And judging by the trailer, they'll make the most of a terrific premise.
Early buzz is mixed.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Moving into a position where a wide release would be more advantageous was probably a good move, but it's still a crowded weekend and Jack Black hasn't been as big of a draw for his last few movies. $32mil.

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WITLESS PROTECTION

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Larry the Cable Guy does some stuff. Probably says "Git-R-Done."

WILL IT SUCK?
Finally, the guy who wrote Gymkata has made another film. Yaphet Kotto, what happened? You were in Midnight Run, man. Midnight Run.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Semi-Pro comes out next week as the relatively highbrow comedy alternative. $9mil.

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MY MOM'S NEW BOYFRIEND

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Mr. Woodcock with art thieves.

WILL IT SUCK?
From writer/director George Gallo, who went from writing stuff like Midnight Run to writing stuff like Code Name: The Cleaner. This looks like more of the latter.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
I never thought I'd say this, but Witless Protecton has a better shot at opening well. $6mil.

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THE SIGNAL

(Delayed from October)

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
A mysterious signal is broadcast over all airwaves that basically says "you go kill now."

WILL IT SUCK?
Three writer/directors tackle the three acts of the film. The concept works, according to early buzz.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Better against the second frame of Diary than the first of Saw IV, which was its original competition. $2mil.

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THE COUNTERFEITERS

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
True story of a WWII-era counterfeiter recruited by his Nazi captors to produce fake foreign currency.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is great. Manged to navigate this year's unusually turbulent waters of Best Foreign Oscar selection to make it into the final five.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
The Oscar nod will help, if anyone ever hears about it. $2mil.

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THE DUCHESS OF LANGEAIS

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Married 1820's woman toys with passions of an increasingly impatient adventurer. I'm sure that works out well for both of them. Based on the novel by Balzac.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is good. Stars Gerard Depardieu's son Guillaume. From acclaimed French director Jacques Rivette.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Raise your hand if you've heard of Rivette. $750,000.

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February 29
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THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
King Henry VIII (Eric Bana) has to choose between Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson. Poor baby.

WILL IT SUCK?
Penned by The Queen and Last King of Scotland scribe Peter Morgan, so pay attention.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Shoulda been a platform release. $32mil.

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SEMI-PRO

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Will Ferrell basketball film.

WILL IT SUCK?
I'd complain about the repetitiveness of Will Ferrell forming his own sports spoof subgenre if it wasn't such a damn funny subgenre. This time Old School and Road Trip scribe Scott Armstrong takes a crack at the formula. As usual, the supporting cast is sublime: Woody Harrelson, Maura Tierney, Andy Richter, Will Arnett, David Koechner, Jackie Earle Haley and Rob Corddry.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
10,000 B.C. might be an issue the following week, but this should be one of the biggest releases of the month. $119mil.

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PENELOPE

(Delayed from 2006)

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Chick has to find true love in order to get rid of her pig nose.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is good, which is a good thing since this has been delayed since time immemorial. Good cast, with Christina Ricci as Penelope, and Peter Dinklage, James McAvoy, Catherine O'Hara, Richard E. Grant and Nick Frost also up in there.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Could be overshadowed by The Other Boleyn Girl. Again, a limited, Juno-style release might have been wiser. $9mil.

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CHICAGO 10

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Doc about the Chicago 10, with re-enactments done A Scanner Darkly-style.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is good, and well it should be. This is from the writer/director of The Kid Stays in the Picture, and early IMDB ratings have it as being even better.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Unlikely to do much better than Kid. $2mil.

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CITY OF MEN

(Delayed from January)

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
More drugs and kids doing what they shouldn't in Brazil.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is good. Directed by Paulo Morelli, who also directed eps of the TV series on which this is based, itself a spin-off of the Fernando Meirelles classic, City of God. Screenwriter Elena Soarez also wrote for the series, and scripted the lauded House of Sand.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
If this were an actual sequel to City of God with Meirelles directing, it might be able to compete with what's coming. $1mil.

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BONNEVILLE

WHAT'S THE PITCH?
Oscar-winning woman (Jessica Lange) goes on a road trip with her Oscar-winning/nominated friends (Kathy Bates, Joan Allen) to deliver her husbands ashes to his bitchy, non-Oscar-nominated daughter (Christine Baranski) in an effort to keep her house.

WILL IT SUCK?
Early buzz is crappy, but if you want to spend $2 grand to watch it before anyone else, they're premiering it on Princess Cruise Lines.

HOW WELL WILL IT DO?
Much more buzzy Mrs. Pettigrew Lives for a Day appeals to a similar demo next week. $1mil.

Next Month: Jim Carrey goes back to the Dr. Suess well with Steve Carell in tow.