Opening this week are "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" with Kristen Stewart; "The Blind Side" with Sandra Bullock; "Planet 51"; and Werner Herzog's "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans with Nicolas Cage.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON (with Kristen Stewart)

Synopsis: Bella Swan is devastated by the abrupt departure of her vampire love, Edward Cullen, but her spirit is rekindled by her growing friendship with the irresistible Jacob Black. Suddenly she finds herself drawn into the world of the werewolves, ancestral enemies of the vampires, and finds her loyalties tested.

First thoughts: Just so you know, I'm not a Twilighter. That said, I moderately enjoyed the first film, and I must admit I'm rather interested to see how this sequel turns out. The trailer really delivers the goods, and I hope Chris Weitz did his best to please all the fans out there. You don't want to piss off Twilighters, right? My excitement meter for this one: 7/10.

***

THE BLIND SIDE (with Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw)

Synopsis: A poor, undereducated 344-pound African-American teenager in Memphis is shuffled through the public school system, despite his low grade point average and absenteeism. But his tremendous size and quickness attracts the interest of a wealthy white couple who take him in and groom him both athletically and academically to become one of the top high school football prospects in the country.

First thoughts: This is the third Bullock film this year, and I doubt it will be the best. Sure, it's a nice, inspirational story and all, but wow, it sure does look formulaic and cheesy. Plus, I just don't buy Bullock's accent in this thing. Maybe that's just me, but it hurts! My excitement meter for this one: 6/10.

***

PLANET 51 (with Dwayne Johnson)

Synopsis: American astronaut Captain Charles "Chuck" Baker, lands on Planet 51 thinking he's the first person to step foot on it. To his surprise, he finds that this planet is inhabited by little green people who are happily living in a white picket fence world reminiscent of a cheerfully innocent 1950s America, and whose only fear is that it will be overrun by alien invaders--like Chuck!

First thoughts: Well... the trailer is cute and all, but I feel this one certainly wasn't marketed a big as other animated films recently. Still, it sure looks like fun. My excitement meter for this one: 6/10.

***

BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS (with Nic Cage)

Synopsis: Nicolas Cage plays a rogue detective who is as devoted to his job as he is at scoring drugs -- while playing fast and loose with the law. He wields his badge as often as he wields his gun in order to get his way. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina he becomes a high-functioning addict who is a deeply intuitive, fearless detective reigning over the beautiful ruins of New Orleans with authority and abandon.

First thoughts: The film I'm looking forward to most this week. I'm a big Werner Herzog fan, and what I've seen of this film so far really intrigued me. It looks like Cage is in a great shape too. My excitement meter for this one: 8/10.