It's Crank vs. The Wicker Man

It's a new week with new releases at the box office. Hi there, I'm Charles Jurries with this week's weekend preview. And we start off with a shocker: we've eliminated the financial recap from the Preview. It will still be found in the recap. We as a staff felt that it just did not feel right at home in the Preview, but we are looking at other ways to give you a recap on the stock markets. With that shocking revelation behind us, let's get to the upcoming releases.

Crank - The hero's name is Chev. (Strike 1) Chev, a hit man who freelances for a major syndicate, wakes up groggy, unable to move and with a slow heart. He hears the voice of thug Ricky Verona who tells Chev has been poisoned and only has an hour to live. The night before, Chev let his target slip away in an effort to quit his job and start a new life with his girlfriend, Eve. Now, Chev must keep adrenaline pumping through his body to stay alive, to prolong the poison from stopping his heart. This means that the movie is non-stop action! Wreaking havoc on Los Angeles! With Eve playing the role of damsel in distress! While searching for a antidote to the poison! Starring Jason "The Transporter" Statham, Amy Smart, Efren Ramirez and a guy called "Kay Xcala".

Crossover - (Have you heard of this movie? Because I haven't. And I thought I was cultured. Harumph!) Noah Cruise is a naturally talented basketball player who is determined to forsake his natural skills and become a doctor, but pay for it by getting a basketball scholarship at UCLA pre-med. But someone wants Noah to go to the NBA! Noah has a close friend who did time for an assault charge, but he wants to get his GED and win an underground street ball game against an arrogant rival, "Jewelz". But then the two get girlfriends! And their lives change forever! And everyone probably ends up well for everyone. Starring Tamer Werfali, Anthony Mackie, Wayne Brady and Little JJ.

The Wicker Man - If the two previous original films don't interest you, then maybe this remake will! Police officer Edward Malus receives a letter from his former fiancee, asking for his help: her daughter went missing. She asks him to come to her home on a private island - Summersisle - a place with it's own traditions where people "observe a forgotten way of life." It's a Amish paradise? The island is dominated by its matriarch Sister Summersisle. Bonded together by arcane pagan traditions, the people of Summersisle only ridicule the investigation, insisting that the child never existed. Edward Malus must now uncover a web of ancient traditions and murderous deciet. Sounds like fun! Starring Nicholas Cage, Ellen Burstyn and the lovely Leelee Sobieski.

It's that time of the week where we pool our office predictions and tell you what films we think will sink - or swim - this upcoming weekend at the box office. Will the action thriller Crank take top honors, or will the Wicker Man scare up some good bucks? Our predictions begin right now.

1. The Wicker Man, $15-$20 million. It's smart, it's scary looking, and it's got a built-in fanbase from the original film. It'll get the top honors easily.

2. Crank, $10-$15 million. Personally, I think this movie looks stupid. But I thought that about Beefest and that film still pulled in a lot of money.

3. Invincible, $10-15 million. It's a feel-good movie. Those stick around for a while on the top charts.

4. Talladega Nights, $8-$13 million. This is the film that just. won't. go. away. Ever.

5. Little Miss Sunshine, $8-$13 million. It's the little-independent-film-that-could. Kind of. It'll still be popular enough to get on the top five. Probably.

And that's all for the Weekend Preview. Pretty short, isn't it? And stupid? Yeah, I'll agree with you on both counts. But now you've read it and now you know what films are opening this weekend. Come back this weekend for the Recap, when we tell you how well the top ten films did at the box office. Plus, we compare our predictions with reality to find out if I write Fact or Fiction. Until then, stay safe and remember: friends don't let friends wear plaid polo shirts.